Samson

2A man named Manoah lived in a town called Zorah. He was from the family group of Dan. His wife could not have children, and none had been born to them.

And there was a certain man of Zorah, of the family of the Danites, whose name was Manoah; and his wife was barren, and bare not.

NoteIsrael was made of twelve big family groups called tribes. Dan was one of them. Zorah was a small town in the hills.

3The angel of the LORD came to the woman. He said, "You have had no children. But now you will have a son."

And the angel of the LORD appeared unto the woman, and said unto her, Behold now, thou art barren, and bearest not: but thou shalt conceive, and bear a son.

NoteAn angel is a messenger God sends to bring people his words. Long ago, a family with no children felt very sad. People also hoped for children to care for them when they got old.

4"So be careful. Do not drink wine or any strong drink. Do not eat anything God has called unclean."

Now therefore beware, I pray thee, and drink not wine nor strong drink, and eat not any unclean thing:

Note"Strong drink" was a drink made from grain or fruit. It made people drunk, like wine did. "Unclean" food was food God told Israel not to eat. It was not about being dirty. It was about following God's rules.

5"You will have a son. No one may ever cut his hair. He will be a Nazarite, set apart for God, from before he is born. He will start to save Israel from the Philistines."

For, lo, thou shalt conceive, and bear a son; and no razor shall come on his head: for the child shall be a Nazarite unto God from the womb: and he shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines.

NoteA Nazarite made special promises to God. He never cut his hair. He never drank wine. He stayed away from dead bodies. His long hair showed everyone that he belonged to God.

6The woman went and told her husband. She said, "A man of God came to me. He looked like an angel of God. I was full of wonder and fear. I did not ask where he came from. He did not tell me his name."

Then the woman came and told her husband, saying, A man of God came unto me, and his countenance was like the countenance of an angel of God, very terrible: but I asked him not whence he was, neither told he me his name:

NoteA "man of God" meant a prophet. A prophet told people what God said. The King James Bible says the man was "very terrible." Back then that meant awesome, or full of wonder. It did not mean bad.

7"He told me, 'You will have a son. Do not drink wine or strong drink. Do not eat anything unclean. The boy will be a Nazarite, set apart for God, all his life.'"

But he said unto me, Behold, thou shalt conceive, and bear a son; and now drink no wine nor strong drink, neither eat any unclean thing: for the child shall be a Nazarite to God from the womb to the day of his death.

8Then Manoah prayed to the LORD. He said, "Please send that man of God to us again. Let him teach us how to raise the boy."

Then Manoah intreated the LORD, and said, O my Lord, let the man of God which thou didst send come again unto us, and teach us what we shall do unto the child that shall be born.

NoteManoah wanted to know how to raise a Nazarite boy. There were special rules to follow.

9God listened to Manoah. The angel of God came to the woman again. She was sitting in a field. Her husband was not with her.

And God hearkened to the voice of Manoah; and the angel of God came again unto the woman as she sat in the field: but Manoah her husband was not with her.

10The woman hurried and ran to her husband. She said, "Look! The man who came to me the other day is here again!"

And the woman made haste, and ran, and shewed her husband, and said unto him, Behold, the man hath appeared unto me, that came unto me the other day.

11Manoah got up and followed his wife. He came to the man and asked, "Are you the one who talked to my wife?" The man said, "I am."

And Manoah arose, and went after his wife, and came to the man, and said unto him, Art thou the man that spakest unto the woman? And he said, I am.

12Manoah said, "When your words come true, how should the boy live? What work will he do?"

And Manoah said, Now let thy words come to pass. How shall we order the child, and how shall we do unto him?

NoteThe King James Bible asks, "How shall we order the child?" That means, how should we raise him?

13The angel of the LORD said to Manoah, "Your wife must do everything I told her."

And the angel of the LORD said unto Manoah, Of all that I said unto the woman let her beware.

14"She must not eat anything that grows on a grapevine. She must not drink wine or strong drink. She must not eat anything unclean. She must do all I told her."

She may not eat of any thing that cometh of the vine, neither let her drink wine or strong drink, nor eat any unclean thing: all that I commanded her let her observe.

NoteGrapes grow on a vine. Wine is made from grapes. A Nazarite ate no grapes, no raisins, and drank no wine.

15Manoah said to the angel of the LORD, "Please stay a while. We will cook a young goat for you."

And Manoah said unto the angel of the LORD, I pray thee, let us detain thee, until we shall have made ready a kid for thee.

NoteLong ago, you honored a guest by cooking a meal. A young goat was a very special gift. It cost a lot to give away.

16The angel said, "Even if I stay, I will not eat your food. If you make a burnt offering, give it to the LORD." Manoah still did not know he was the angel of the LORD.

And the angel of the LORD said unto Manoah, Though thou detain me, I will not eat of thy bread: and if thou wilt offer a burnt offering, thou must offer it unto the LORD. For Manoah knew not that he was an angel of the LORD.

NoteA burnt offering was a gift to God. An animal was placed on an altar and burned up. The smoke rose to the sky like a present going to God.

17Manoah asked the angel of the LORD, "What is your name? When your words come true, we want to honor you."

And Manoah said unto the angel of the LORD, What is thy name, that when thy sayings come to pass we may do thee honour?

18The angel of the LORD said, "Why do you ask my name? It is too wonderful for you to understand."

And the angel of the LORD said unto him, Why askest thou thus after my name, seeing it is secret?

NoteKnowing someone's name felt like knowing who they really are. The angel would not share his name.

19So Manoah took a young goat and a gift of grain. He offered them on a rock to the LORD. The LORD did an amazing thing. Manoah and his wife watched.

So Manoah took a kid with a meat offering, and offered it upon a rock unto the LORD: and the angel did wonderously; and Manoah and his wife looked on.

NoteThe King James Bible says "meat offering." In 1611, "meat" just meant food. This offering was grain, not meat at all.

20The flame rose up from the altar toward the sky. The angel of the LORD went up in the flame. Manoah and his wife saw it. They bowed with their faces to the ground.

For it came to pass, when the flame went up toward heaven from off the altar, that the angel of the LORD ascended in the flame of the altar. And Manoah and his wife looked on it, and fell on their faces to the ground.

NoteAn altar was a pile of stones. People burned their gifts to God on it. Here Manoah used a big rock as his altar. Bowing with your face to the ground showed deep respect.

21The angel of the LORD never appeared to them again. Then Manoah knew he was the angel of the LORD.

But the angel of the LORD did no more appear to Manoah and to his wife. Then Manoah knew that he was an angel of the LORD.

22Manoah said to his wife, "We are going to die! We have seen God!"

And Manoah said unto his wife, We shall surely die, because we have seen God.

NotePeople believed that no one could see God and live. Manoah thought they had seen too much.

23But his wife said, "If the LORD wanted to kill us, he would not have taken our gifts. He would not have shown us these things. He would not have told us this news."

But his wife said unto him, If the LORD were pleased to kill us, he would not have received a burnt offering and a meat offering at our hands, neither would he have shewed us all these things, nor would as at this time have told us such things as these.

24The woman had a son. She named him Samson. The boy grew up, and the LORD blessed him.

And the woman bare a son, and called his name Samson: and the child grew, and the LORD blessed him.

NoteThe name Samson sounds like the Hebrew word for sun.

25The Spirit of the LORD began to stir Samson at times. This happened at the camp of Dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol.

And the Spirit of the LORD began to move him at times in the camp of Dan between Zorah and Eshtaol.

Note"Stir" means God's power started working inside Samson. The camp of Dan was a place where his family group stayed. Zorah and Eshtaol were two towns nearby.

1Samson went down to a town called Timnah. There he saw a woman. She was one of the Philistines, the people who ruled Israel then.

And Samson went down to Timnath, and saw a woman in Timnath of the daughters of the Philistines.

NoteTimnah was a Philistine town near where Samson lived. It was only a few miles from his home, an easy walk.

2He came home and told his father and mother. He said, "I saw a Philistine woman in Timnah. Please get her for me. I want to marry her."

And he came up, and told his father and his mother, and said, I have seen a woman in Timnath of the daughters of the Philistines: now therefore get her for me to wife.

NoteLong ago parents chose who their children would marry. A young man asked his father to arrange it for him.

3His father and mother said, "Is there no woman among our own family or our own people? Must you marry one of the Philistines, who are not God's people?" But Samson said to his father, "Get her for me. She is the one I want."

Then his father and his mother said unto him, Is there never a woman among the daughters of thy brethren, or among all my people, that thou goest to take a wife of the uncircumcised Philistines? And Samson said unto his father, Get her for me; for she pleaseth me well.

NoteThe King James says the Philistines were "uncircumcised." Circumcision was a small cut made on a baby boy's body. It was a mark that showed his family belonged to God. Philistine boys did not have this mark, so the word here means they were outsiders.

4His father and mother did not know this plan came from the LORD. God wanted a reason to act against the Philistines. At that time the Philistines ruled over Israel.

But his father and his mother knew not that it was of the LORD, that he sought an occasion against the Philistines: for at that time the Philistines had dominion over Israel.

NoteWhen you see LORD in big letters, it stands for God's own special name. The people of Israel loved that name so much they did not say it out loud.

5So Samson went down to Timnah with his father and mother. They came to the grapevines near the town. Suddenly a young lion came roaring at Samson.

Then went Samson down, and his father and his mother, to Timnath, and came to the vineyards of Timnath: and, behold, a young lion roared against him.

NoteLions really did live in that land long ago. A person walking alone could meet one.

6The Spirit of the LORD came on Samson with great power. He tore the lion apart with his bare hands, as easily as a young goat. But he did not tell his father or mother what he had done.

And the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him, and he rent him as he would have rent a kid, and he had nothing in his hand: but he told not his father or his mother what he had done.

Note"The Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him" means God suddenly gave Samson great strength. The King James word "kid" means a baby goat, not a child.

7Then Samson went on and talked with the woman. He liked her very much.

And he went down, and talked with the woman; and she pleased Samson well.

8Later he went back to marry her. He stepped off the road to look at the dead lion. Inside it was a swarm of bees, and there was honey.

And after a time he returned to take her, and he turned aside to see the carcase of the lion: and, behold, there was a swarm of bees and honey in the carcase of the lion.

Note"Carcase" is the King James word for a dead animal's body. In that hot, dry land a dead animal dries out fast. Bees could build a nest inside the dry bones and make honey there.

9He scooped the honey into his hands and ate as he walked. He gave some to his father and mother, and they ate it too. But he did not tell them the honey came from the dead lion.

And he took thereof in his hands, and went on eating, and came to his father and mother, and he gave them, and they did eat: but he told not them that he had taken the honey out of the carcase of the lion.

NoteBefore Samson was born, his parents promised God he would live in a special way. One part of that promise was that he must never touch anything dead. Here he touched the dead lion and did not tell anyone.

10His father went down to see the woman. Samson made a big feast there. That is what young men did when they married.

So his father went down unto the woman: and Samson made there a feast; for so used the young men to do.

NoteA wedding party then lasted seven whole days. The bridegroom, the man getting married, gave the food and drink for everyone.

11When the Philistines saw him, they brought thirty men to stay with him at the feast.

And it came to pass, when they saw him, that they brought thirty companions to be with him.

NoteThese thirty men were like the friends who stand up with a groom at a wedding. They were Philistines, and Samson was a stranger among them.

12Samson said to them, "Let me tell you a riddle. If you can tell me the answer during the seven days of the feast, I will give you thirty linen cloths and thirty sets of clothes.

And Samson said unto them, I will now put forth a riddle unto you: if ye can certainly declare it me within the seven days of the feast, and find it out, then I will give you thirty sheets and thirty change of garments:

NoteA riddle is a puzzle question with a hidden answer. Cloth was costly then, because every thread was spun by hand. Thirty sets of clothes was a huge prize to win or lose.

13But if you cannot tell me the answer, you must give me thirty linen cloths and thirty sets of clothes." They said, "Tell us your riddle. We want to hear it."

But if ye cannot declare it me, then shall ye give me thirty sheets and thirty change of garments. And they said unto him, Put forth thy riddle, that we may hear it.

14So he said, "Out of the eater came something to eat. Out of the strong came something sweet." For three days they could not figure it out.

And he said unto them, Out of the eater came forth meat, and out of the strong came forth sweetness. And they could not in three days expound the riddle.

NoteIn the King James, "meat" means any food at all, not just animal meat. Samson's riddle was about the lion he killed and the honey inside it. Nobody else had seen that, so nobody could guess.

15On the seventh day they said to Samson's wife, "Talk your husband into telling us the answer. If you do not, we will burn you and your father's house. Did you invite us here to rob us?"

And it came to pass on the seventh day, that they said unto Samson’s wife, Entice thy husband, that he may declare unto us the riddle, lest we burn thee and thy father’s house with fire: have ye called us to take that we have? is it not so?

NoteIf the thirty men lost, each one had to pay for clothes himself. That is why they were angry enough to threaten Samson's wife.

16Samson's wife cried in front of him. She said, "You hate me. You do not love me. You told my people a riddle, but you will not tell me the answer." He said, "I have not even told my father and mother. Why should I tell you?"

And Samson’s wife wept before him, and said, Thou dost but hate me, and lovest me not: thou hast put forth a riddle unto the children of my people, and hast not told it me. And he said unto her, Behold, I have not told it my father nor my mother, and shall I tell it thee?

17She cried in front of him for all seven days of the feast. On the seventh day he finally told her, because she kept begging him. Then she told the answer to her own people.

And she wept before him the seven days, while their feast lasted: and it came to pass on the seventh day, that he told her, because she lay sore upon him: and she told the riddle to the children of her people.

18Before the sun went down on the seventh day, the men of the town said to him, "What is sweeter than honey? What is stronger than a lion?" Samson said, "You used my young cow to plow. That is the only reason you found my answer."

And the men of the city said unto him on the seventh day before the sun went down, What is sweeter than honey? And what is stronger than a lion? And he said unto them, If ye had not plowed with my heifer, ye had not found out my riddle.

NoteTo plow is to cut up hard dirt with a blade pulled by an animal. A heifer is a young cow. Samson was saying they used his wife to dig out his answer.

19The Spirit of the LORD came on Samson. He went down to the town of Ashkelon and killed thirty men there. He took their clothes and gave them to the men who had answered his riddle. Then he went to his father's house, still very angry.

And the Spirit of the LORD came upon him, and he went down to Ashkelon, and slew thirty men of them, and took their spoil, and gave change of garments unto them which expounded the riddle. And his anger was kindled, and he went up to his father’s house.

NoteAshkelon was another Philistine city, down by the sea. It was more than a day's walk away. The King James says he took their "spoil," which means things taken from people you have beaten in a fight.

20Samson's wife was given to another man. It was the friend who had stood with Samson at the feast.

But Samson’s wife was given to his companion, whom he had used as his friend.

NoteThis friend was the man who had stood beside Samson at the feast, like a best man. He was supposed to help Samson, not take his wife.

1Later, at wheat harvest time, Samson went to see his wife. He brought a young goat as a gift. He said, "I am going into my wife's room." But her father would not let him in.

But it came to pass within a while after, in the time of wheat harvest, that Samson visited his wife with a kid; and he said, I will go in to my wife into the chamber. But her father would not suffer him to go in.

NoteWheat harvest was late spring, when the grain was cut. Bringing a young goat was like bringing a present. Samson had walked away angry after his wedding party. Now he came back.

2Her father said, "I really thought you hated her for good. So I gave her to your friend. Her younger sister is prettier. Please take her instead."

And her father said, I verily thought that thou hadst utterly hated her; therefore I gave her to thy companion: is not her younger sister fairer than she? take her, I pray thee, instead of her.

NoteThe friend was one of the young men who stood with Samson at his wedding, a bit like a best man today. Long ago a father chose who his daughter married.

3Samson said about them, "This time no one can blame me for hurting the Philistines."

And Samson said concerning them, Now shall I be more blameless than the Philistines, though I do them a displeasure.

NoteThe Philistines were a strong people who lived near Israel. They had better weapons, and at this time they were in charge.

4Samson went out and caught three hundred foxes. He tied them together in pairs, tail to tail. He put a burning torch between each pair of tails.

And Samson went and caught three hundred foxes, and took firebrands, and turned tail to tail, and put a firebrand in the midst between two tails.

NoteA torch is a stick with fire burning on one end. The animals Samson caught were wild, a bit like small dogs.

5He lit the torches and let the foxes loose in the Philistines' grain fields. The cut piles of grain burned. The standing grain burned too. So did the grape vines and the olive trees.

And when he had set the brands on fire, he let them go into the standing corn of the Philistines, and burnt up both the shocks, and also the standing corn, with the vineyards and olives.

NoteGrain is the plant that bread is made from. Cut grain was stacked in piles to dry. Burning the fields meant no food and no money for the whole year.

6The Philistines asked, "Who did this?" People told them, "Samson did. He married the Timnite's daughter. Then her father gave her to Samson's friend." So the Philistines came and burned the woman and her father to death.

Then the Philistines said, Who hath done this? And they answered, Samson, the son in law of the Timnite, because he had taken his wife, and given her to his companion. And the Philistines came up, and burnt her and her father with fire.

NoteA Timnite was a man from the town of Timnah. That was the town Samson's wife came from.

7Samson said to them, "Since you did this, I will pay you back. After that I will stop."

And Samson said unto them, Though ye have done this, yet will I be avenged of you, and after that I will cease.

8He attacked them hard and killed many of them. Then he went down and stayed at the rock of Etam.

And he smote them hip and thigh with a great slaughter: and he went down and dwelt in the top of the rock Etam.

NoteEtam was a huge rock with caves in it. It was a good place to hide, and hard to climb up to.

9Then the Philistines came up and camped in the land of Judah. They spread out near a place called Lehi.

Then the Philistines went up, and pitched in Judah, and spread themselves in Lehi.

NoteJudah was one part of Israel, the land of one big family group. Lehi is a place name. The word means "jawbone."

10The men of Judah asked, "Why have you come to fight us?" They answered, "We came to tie up Samson. We will do to him what he did to us."

And the men of Judah said, Why are ye come up against us? And they answered, To bind Samson are we come up, to do to him as he hath done to us.

11So three thousand men of Judah went up to the rock of Etam. They said to Samson, "Don't you know the Philistines rule over us? Look what you have done to us!" He said, "I only did to them what they did to me."

Then three thousand men of Judah went to the top of the rock Etam, and said to Samson, Knowest thou not that the Philistines are rulers over us? what is this that thou hast done unto us? And he said unto them, As they did unto me, so have I done unto them.

NoteThe Philistines were the bosses of the land then. The men of Judah had to obey them. That is why they were afraid of what Samson had done.

12They said, "We came to tie you up and hand you to the Philistines." Samson said, "Promise me that you yourselves will not kill me."

And they said unto him, We are come down to bind thee, that we may deliver thee into the hand of the Philistines. And Samson said unto them, Swear unto me, that ye will not fall upon me yourselves.

13They said, "No. We will only tie you up tight and hand you over. We will not kill you." So they tied him with two new ropes and led him up from the rock.

And they spake unto him, saying, No; but we will bind thee fast, and deliver thee into their hand: but surely we will not kill thee. And they bound him with two new cords, and brought him up from the rock.

NoteNew ropes were the strongest kind. Old ropes wear thin and snap.

14When Samson came to Lehi, the Philistines came out shouting at him. Then the Spirit of the LORD came on him with great power. The ropes on his arms burned away like thread in a fire. They fell right off his hands.

And when he came unto Lehi, the Philistines shouted against him: and the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him, and the cords that were upon his arms became as flax that was burnt with fire, and his bands loosed from off his hands.

Note"The Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him" means God's own power came on Samson. It made him strong enough to do this.

15He found a fresh jawbone from a donkey. He reached down, picked it up, and killed a thousand men with it.

And he found a new jawbone of an ass, and put forth his hand, and took it, and slew a thousand men therewith.

NoteA jawbone is the bone that holds the bottom teeth. A fresh bone was still hard and heavy. An old dry bone would have cracked.

16Then Samson said, "With a donkey's jawbone I piled them up in heaps. With a donkey's jawbone I killed a thousand men."

And Samson said, With the jawbone of an ass, heaps upon heaps, with the jaw of an ass have I slain a thousand men.

NoteSamson said this like a short song. In his language, the word for donkey sounded like the word for heap.

17When he finished speaking, he threw the jawbone away. He named that place Ramath-lehi, which means "jawbone hill."

And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking, that he cast away the jawbone out of his hand, and called that place Ramathlehi.

18Samson was very thirsty. He called out to the LORD, "You gave your servant this great victory. Must I now die of thirst? Will these Philistines catch me?"

And he was sore athirst, and called on the LORD, and said, Thou hast given this great deliverance into the hand of thy servant: and now shall I die for thirst, and fall into the hand of the uncircumcised?

NoteThe King James calls the Philistines "the uncircumcised." Israelite families had a small body mark to show they belonged to God. People without that mark were called by this name. Samson calls himself God's servant, someone who works for God.

19So God opened up a low, hollow spot at Lehi, and water came out. Samson drank, and his strength came back. He felt well again. He named that spring En-hakkore, and it is still in Lehi today.

But God clave an hollow place that was in the jaw, and there came water thereout; and when he had drunk, his spirit came again, and he revived: wherefore he called the name thereof Enhakkore, which is in Lehi unto this day.

20Samson was a judge in Israel for twenty years. This happened while the Philistines ruled the land.

And he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years.

NoteA judge was a leader who ruled the people and rescued them from their enemies.

1Samson went to the city of Gaza. There he saw a prostitute, a woman men paid to sleep with. He went in to spend the night with her.

Then went Samson to Gaza, and saw there an harlot, and went in unto her.

NoteGaza was a big city of the Philistines. The Philistines were a people who lived near Israel and often fought them.

2People in Gaza heard that Samson was there. They surrounded the place and waited near the city gate all night. They stayed quiet and said, "At dawn we will kill him."

And it was told the Gazites, saying, Samson is come hither. And they compassed him in, and laid wait for him all night in the gate of the city, and were quiet all the night, saying, In the morning, when it is day, we shall kill him.

NoteA wall went all the way around the city. The gate was the only way in or out. So the men waited there to catch Samson.

3But Samson only stayed until midnight. Then he got up and grabbed the city gate doors. He pulled them out with both posts and the bar. He put them on his shoulders and carried them to a hilltop near Hebron.

And Samson lay till midnight, and arose at midnight, and took the doors of the gate of the city, and the two posts, and went away with them, bar and all, and put them upon his shoulders, and carried them up to the top of an hill that is before Hebron.

NoteCity gate doors were huge and made of heavy wood. A thick bar locked them shut at night. Hebron was a town far away, a long day's walk.

4Later Samson fell in love with a woman named Delilah. She lived in the valley of Sorek.

And it came to pass afterward, that he loved a woman in the valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah.

NoteA valley is low ground between hills. Sorek was near where Samson grew up.

5The Philistine leaders came to her and said, "Find out what makes him so strong. Learn how we can tie him up and beat him. Each of us will pay you eleven hundred pieces of silver."

And the lords of the Philistines came up unto her, and said unto her, Entice him, and see wherein his great strength lieth, and by what means we may prevail against him, that we may bind him to afflict him: and we will give thee every one of us eleven hundred pieces of silver.

NoteThe Philistines had five leaders, one for each of their big cities. Eleven hundred pieces of silver was a huge pile of money. One person could live on it for many years.

6So Delilah said to Samson, "Please tell me why you are so strong. What could tie you up so someone could hurt you?"

And Delilah said to Samson, Tell me, I pray thee, wherein thy great strength lieth, and wherewith thou mightest be bound to afflict thee.

7Samson said, "Tie me with seven fresh bowstrings that are still damp. Then I will be as weak as anyone else."

And Samson said unto her, If they bind me with seven green withs that were never dried, then shall I be weak, and be as another man.

NoteA bowstring is the tight string on a bow that shoots arrows. Back then they were made from animal parts. A fresh one was still damp and very strong.

8The Philistine leaders brought her seven fresh bowstrings that were still damp. She tied Samson up with them.

Then the lords of the Philistines brought up to her seven green withs which had not been dried, and she bound him with them.

9Men were hiding in her room, waiting. She called out, "Samson, the Philistines are here!" He snapped the bowstrings like string burned by fire. So no one learned his secret.

Now there were men lying in wait, abiding with her in the chamber. And she said unto him, The Philistines be upon thee, Samson. And he brake the withs, as a thread of tow is broken when it toucheth the fire. So his strength was not known.

10Delilah said to Samson, "You made fun of me. You told me lies. Now please tell me what could tie you up."

And Delilah said unto Samson, Behold, thou hast mocked me, and told me lies: now tell me, I pray thee, wherewith thou mightest be bound.

11He said, "Tie me with new ropes that have never been used. Then I will be as weak as anyone else."

And he said unto her, If they bind me fast with new ropes that never were occupied, then shall I be weak, and be as another man.

12So Delilah took new ropes and tied him up. Men were hiding in the room again. She called out, "Samson, the Philistines are here!" He snapped the ropes off his arms like thread.

Delilah therefore took new ropes, and bound him therewith, and said unto him, The Philistines be upon thee, Samson. And there were liers in wait abiding in the chamber. And he brake them from off his arms like a thread.

13Delilah said, "You keep making fun of me and telling me lies. Tell me what could tie you up." He said, "Weave the seven braids of my hair into the cloth on a loom."

And Delilah said unto Samson, Hitherto thou hast mocked me, and told me lies: tell me wherewith thou mightest be bound. And he said unto her, If thou weavest the seven locks of my head with the web.

NoteA loom is a wooden frame used for making cloth. Threads are stretched across it and woven together. Delilah wove his hair right into the cloth.

14So she wove his hair in and fastened it tight with a pin. Then she called, "Samson, the Philistines are here!" He woke up and pulled the pin, the loom, and the cloth right out.

And she fastened it with the pin, and said unto him, The Philistines be upon thee, Samson. And he awaked out of his sleep, and went away with the pin of the beam, and with the web.

NoteThe pin was a wooden peg that held the cloth tight on the loom.

15She said, "How can you say you love me when your heart is not with me? You have made fun of me three times. You still have not told me why you are so strong."

And she said unto him, How canst thou say, I love thee, when thine heart is not with me? thou hast mocked me these three times, and hast not told me wherein thy great strength lieth.

16Day after day she kept asking and begging him. She wore him down until he was sick and tired of it.

And it came to pass, when she pressed him daily with her words, and urged him, so that his soul was vexed unto death;

17So he told her everything. He said, "My hair has never been cut. I have belonged to God in a special way since I was born. If my hair is cut off, my strength will leave. I will be as weak as anyone else."

That he told her all his heart, and said unto her, There hath not come a razor upon mine head; for I have been a Nazarite unto God from my mother’s womb: if I be shaven, then my strength will go from me, and I shall become weak, and be like any other man.

NoteSamson was a Nazirite. That meant he made a promise to God to live in a special way. One rule was that he could never cut his hair.

18Delilah saw that he had told her the truth. She sent word to the Philistine leaders, "Come once more. He has told me everything." So they came, bringing the money with them.

And when Delilah saw that he had told her all his heart, she sent and called for the lords of the Philistines, saying, Come up this once, for he hath shewed me all his heart. Then the lords of the Philistines came up unto her, and brought money in their hand.

19She let him fall asleep on her lap. Then she called a man to shave off the seven braids of his hair. Samson grew weak, and his strength left him.

And she made him sleep upon her knees; and she called for a man, and she caused him to shave off the seven locks of his head; and she began to afflict him, and his strength went from him.

20She called out, "Samson, the Philistines are here!" He woke up and thought, "I will get free like I always do." But he did not know the LORD had left him.

And she said, The Philistines be upon thee, Samson. And he awoke out of his sleep, and said, I will go out as at other times before, and shake myself. And he wist not that the LORD was departed from him.

21The Philistines grabbed him and put out his eyes. They took him down to Gaza and chained him with bronze chains. There he had to grind grain in the prison.

But the Philistines took him, and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with fetters of brass; and he did grind in the prison house.

NoteTo grind grain, you push a heavy stone around and around. It crushes the grain into flour. It was hard work, usually given to animals or to slaves.

22But the hair on his head slowly started to grow back.

Howbeit the hair of his head began to grow again after he was shaven.

23The Philistine leaders met to give a big offering to their god Dagon. They celebrated and said, "Our god handed Samson our enemy over to us."

Then the lords of the Philistines gathered them together for to offer a great sacrifice unto Dagon their god, and to rejoice: for they said, Our god hath delivered Samson our enemy into our hand.

NoteDagon was a god the Philistines prayed to. An offering was a gift given to a god, often an animal.

24When the people saw Samson, they praised their god. They said, "Our god handed over our enemy. He ruined our land and killed many of us."

And when the people saw him, they praised their god: for they said, Our god hath delivered into our hands our enemy, and the destroyer of our country, which slew many of us.

25They were happy and having fun. They said, "Bring Samson out to entertain us." So they brought him from the prison, and he entertained them. They stood him between the pillars.

And it came to pass, when their hearts were merry, that they said, Call for Samson, that he may make us sport. And they called for Samson out of the prison house; and he made them sport: and they set him between the pillars.

NoteThey did not want a happy show. They wanted to laugh at Samson because he was blind and helpless.

26Samson spoke to the young man leading him by the hand. He said, "Let me touch the pillars that hold up this building. I want to lean on them."

And Samson said unto the lad that held him by the hand, Suffer me that I may feel the pillars whereupon the house standeth, that I may lean upon them.

NoteThe pillars were tall posts, like thick tree trunks. They held up the roof of the building.

27The building was packed with men and women. All the Philistine leaders were there. About three thousand more were on the roof, watching Samson.

Now the house was full of men and women; and all the lords of the Philistines were there; and there were upon the roof about three thousand men and women, that beheld while Samson made sport.

NoteRoofs back then were flat, like a floor. People could stand on top and look down.

28Samson prayed to the LORD. He said, "Lord GOD, please remember me. Please make me strong just one more time. Let me pay the Philistines back for my two eyes."

And Samson called unto the LORD, and said, O Lord God, remember me, I pray thee, and strengthen me, I pray thee, only this once, O God, that I may be at once avenged of the Philistines for my two eyes.

29Samson felt for the two middle pillars that held up the building. He put his right hand on one and his left hand on the other.

And Samson took hold of the two middle pillars upon which the house stood, and on which it was borne up, of the one with his right hand, and of the other with his left.

30Samson said, "Let me die with the Philistines." He pushed with all his might. The building fell on the leaders and everyone inside. He killed more people when he died than in his whole life.

And Samson said, Let me die with the Philistines. And he bowed himself with all his might; and the house fell upon the lords, and upon all the people that were therein. So the dead which he slew at his death were more than they which he slew in his life.

31His brothers and his father's family came and carried his body home. They buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol, in the grave of his father Manoah. Samson had led Israel as their judge for twenty years.

Then his brethren and all the house of his father came down, and took him, and brought him up, and buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the buryingplace of Manoah his father. And he judged Israel twenty years.

NoteA judge here does not mean someone in a courtroom. It means a leader God chose to help and rescue Israel. Zorah and Eshtaol were small towns where Samson's family lived.