What other biblical instances show God using unlikely tools for His purposes? An unlikely instrument in Samson’s grip Judges 15:15 reminds us, “He found a fresh jawbone of a donkey, reached out his hand and took it, and with it he struck down a thousand men”. A discarded bone, still moist from a recent death, becomes the weapon of deliverance. The scene sets the tone for a larger, consistent theme: God turns the ordinary—or even the absurd—into a channel of His power. Seeing the pattern: God’s delight in surprising tools • Ordinary objects • Outnumbered or outcast people • Creatures and situations no one would pick Each episode below underlines that the power is never in the tool but in the God who wields it. Old Testament snapshots • Moses’ staff – Exodus 4:2; 14:16. A shepherd’s rod splits a sea and topples an empire. • Gideon’s trumpets, jars, and torches – Judges 7:20-22. Clay pots shatter, light bursts forth, and Midian’s army melts away. • David’s sling and stones – 1 Samuel 17:50. A teenage shepherd brings down a giant without a sword. • Balaam’s donkey – Numbers 22:28-31. An obstinate animal sees what the prophet misses and speaks truth. • Rahab’s scarlet cord – Joshua 2:18-21. A simple thread marks a house for salvation amid Jericho’s fall. • Widow’s oil jars – 2 Kings 4:2-7. Empty vessels overflow, debts vanish, and a family survives. • Naaman’s seven dips in the Jordan – 2 Kings 5:10-14. Muddy water becomes a healing bath for a Syrian commander. • Ravens feeding Elijah – 1 Kings 17:4-6. Unclean birds deliver breakfast and supper during drought. New Testament echoes • A boy’s lunch – John 6:9-13. Five loaves, two fish, twelve baskets left over. • Mud made from spit – John 9:6-7. Dust and saliva open blind eyes. • A coin in a fish – Matthew 17:27. Tax money retrieved from the Galilean waters. • Cloths from Paul’s skin – Acts 19:11-12. Handkerchiefs carry healing power to the sick. • Weakness as strength – 1 Corinthians 1:27-29. “God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise.” Threading it all together God repeatedly bypasses human expectations, highlighting that: • His sovereignty is unhindered by the apparent inadequacy of instruments. • Dependence on Him eclipses confidence in human resources. • Each unlikely tool whispers the gospel theme—salvation arrives in surprising packaging, culminating in a crucified Messiah (Isaiah 53:2-5). Living the lesson The jawbone in Samson’s hand, the staff in Moses’, the sling in David’s, and the lunch in the boy’s—each invites trust that nothing is too common or too weak for God’s purposes. Availability outweighs impressiveness. Yield the ordinary, and watch Him work the extraordinary. |
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