Judges 13 ~ 16

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13:1Then the children of Israel again did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, and Jehovah delivered them into the hand of the Philistines forty years. Compare
13:2And there was a certain man from Zorah, of the family of the Danites, whose name was Manoah; and his wife was barren and had borne no children. Compare
13:3And the Angel of Jehovah appeared to the woman and said to her, Now you are barren and have borne no children; but you will conceive and bear a son. Compare
13:4And now be careful not to drink wine or strong drink nor to eat anything unclean; Compare
13:5For you shall conceive and bear a son. And no razor shall come upon his head, for the boy will be a Nazarite to God from the womb; and he will begin to save Israel from the hand of the Philistines. Compare
13:6Then the woman came and told her husband, saying, A man of God came to me; and His appearance was like the appearance of an angel of God, very awesome. And I did not ask Him where He was from, nor did He tell me His name; Compare
13:7But He said to me, You shall conceive and bear a son. And now do not drink wine or strong drink, nor eat anything unclean; for the boy will be a Nazarite to God from the womb until the day of his death. Compare
13:8Then Manoah entreated Jehovah and said, Oh, my Lord! Let the man of God, whom You sent, come again to us, I pray; and let Him teach us what we should do with the boy that is to be born. Compare
13:9And God hearkened to the voice of Manoah; and the Angel of God came again to the woman while she was sitting in the field, but Manoah her husband was not with her. Compare
13:10And the woman hurried and ran off; and she told her husband and said to him, The man who came to me that day has just appeared to me. Compare
13:11And Manoah rose up and followed his wife and came to the man. And he said to Him, Are You the man who spoke to this woman? And He said, I am. Compare
13:12And Manoah said, Now when Your words come to pass, what rule shall the boy follow, and what shall he do? Compare
13:13And the Angel of Jehovah said to Manoah, Observe all that I spoke to this woman. Compare
13:14She is not to eat of anything that comes forth from the grapevine, nor is she to drink wine or strong drink, nor is she to eat anything unclean; she shall observe all that I commanded her. Compare
13:15And Manoah said to the Angel of Jehovah, Let us detain You, we pray, that we may prepare a kid for You. Compare
13:16And the Angel of Jehovah said to Manoah, If you detain Me, I will not eat your food; but if you prepare a burnt offering, offer it up to Jehovah. For Manoah did not know that He was the Angel of Jehovah. Compare
13:17Then Manoah said to the Angel of Jehovah, What is Your name, so that when Your words come to pass, we may honor You? Compare
13:18And the Angel of Jehovah said to him, Why do you ask about My name, since it is wonderful? Compare
13:19And Manoah took the kid with the meal offering and offered it up upon the rock to Jehovah; and He acted wondrously, while Manoah and his wife looked on. Compare
13:20And when the flame went up from the altar to heaven, the Angel of Jehovah went up in the flame of the altar, while Manoah and his wife looked on; and they fell on their faces to the ground. Compare
13:21And the Angel of Jehovah did not appear again to Manoah and his wife. Then Manoah knew that He was the Angel of Jehovah. Compare
13:22And Manoah said to his wife, We will surely die, for we have seen God. Compare
13:23But his wife said to him, If Jehovah had been pleased to kill us, He would not have taken a burnt offering and a meal offering from our hand, nor would He have shown us all these things or let us hear a thing like this at this time. Compare
13:24And the woman bore a son, and she called his name Samson. And the boy grew up, and Jehovah blessed him. Compare
13:25And the Spirit of Jehovah began to move him at Mahaneh-dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol. Compare
14:1And Samson went down to Timnah, and he saw a woman in Timnah from the daughters of the Philistines. Compare
14:2And he went up and told his father and mother and said, I have seen a woman in Timnah from the daughters of the Philistines. Now therefore get her for me as a wife. Compare
14:3But his father and mother said to him, Is there no woman among the daughters of your brothers or among all my people, that you must go and get a woman of the uncircumcised Philistines? And Samson said to his father, Get her for me, for she pleases me. Compare
14:4But his father and mother did not know this was of Jehovah, for He was looking for an opportunity against the Philistines. Now at that time the Philistines ruled over Israel. Compare
14:5So Samson went down with his father and mother to Timnah. And as they came to the vineyards of Timnah, suddenly a young lion roared against him. Compare
14:6And the Spirit of Jehovah rushed upon him, and he tore it apart as one might tear a kid apart with his bare hands. And he did not tell his father and mother what he had done. Compare
14:7And he went down and spoke to the woman, and she pleased Samson. Compare
14:8Then after some time, while he was returning to get her, he turned aside to see the carcass of the lion. And there it was, with a swarm of bees in the lion's body, and honey. Compare
14:9And he scraped it out into his hands and went away, eating it as he went. And he came to his father and mother and gave them some, and they ate it; but he did not tell them that he had scraped the honey from the body of the lion. Compare
14:10And his father went down to the woman; and Samson held a feast there, for so the young men used to do. Compare
14:11And when they saw him, they brought thirty companions to be with him. Compare
14:12And Samson said to them, Let me now put forth a riddle to you. If you fully explain it to me within the seven days of the feast and find it out, I will give you thirty fine linen garments and thirty changes of clothing; Compare
14:13But if you cannot explain it to me, you shall give me thirty fine linen garments and thirty changes of clothing. And they said to him, Put forth your riddle, let us hear it. Compare
14:14And he said to them, / Out of the eater came forth food, / And out of the strong came forth sweetness. And they could not explain the riddle after three days. Compare
14:15Then on the fourth day they said to Samson's wife, Entice your husband to explain the riddle to us; otherwise we will burn you and your father's house with fire. Have you invited us here in order to impoverish us? Is it not so? Compare
14:16So Samson's wife wept before him and said, You only hate me, and you do not love me: You have put forth a riddle to the children of my people, but you have not explained it to me. And he said to her, Look, I have not explained it to my own father and mother. Should I then explain it to you? Compare
14:17And she wept before him the rest of the seven days that they had the feast. But on the seventh day he explained it to her, for she pressed him. Then she explained the riddle to the children of her people. Compare
14:18And the men of the city said to him on the seventh day before sunset, What is sweeter than honey, / And what is stronger than a lion? And he said to them, If you had not plowed with my heifer, / You would not have found out my riddle. Compare
14:19Then the Spirit of Jehovah rushed upon him; and he went down to Ashkelon and struck thirty men among them; and he took their clothing and gave the changes of clothing to those who had explained the riddle. And his anger burned, and he went up to his father's house. Compare
14:20And Samson's wife was given to his best man, who had been his friend. Compare
15:1Then after some time, during the days of the wheat harvest, Samson visited his wife with a kid. And he said, Let me go into the chamber to my wife; but her father would not allow him to go in. Compare
15:2And her father said, I surely thought that you utterly hated her, so I gave her to your best man. Is not her younger sister better than she? Let her be yours instead of her. Compare
15:3Then Samson said to them, This time I will be blameless with regard to the Philistines when I do them harm. Compare
15:4And Samson went and caught three hundred foxes; and he took torches and turned the foxes tail to tail and put one torch in between every two tails. Compare
15:5Then he set the torches on fire and sent the foxes into the Philistines' standing grain and burned up the shocks and the standing grain as well as the vineyards and the olive groves. Compare
15:6And the Philistines said, Who has done this? And they said, Samson, the son-in-law of the Timnite, because he took his wife and gave her to his best man. And the Philistines went up and burned her and her father with fire. Compare
15:7And Samson said to them, If this is how you act, I will surely take revenge on you, and then I will stop. Compare
15:8And he struck them hip and thigh, a great slaughter. And he went down and dwelt in the cleft of the rock of Etam. Compare
15:9And the Philistines rose up and encamped in Judah, and they spread out against Lehi. Compare
15:10And the men of Judah said, Why have you come up against us? And they said, We have come up to bind Samson, so that we can do to him as he has done to us. Compare
15:11Then three thousand men of Judah went down to the cleft of the rock of Etam; and they said to Samson, Do you not know that the Philistines rule over us? Then what is this that you have done to us? And he said to them, As they have done to me, so I have done to them. Compare
15:12And they said to him, We have come down to bind you up so that we can deliver you into the hand of the Philistines. And Samson said to them, Swear to me that you will not fall upon me yourselves. Compare
15:13And they spoke to him, saying, No, we will only bind you and deliver you into their hand, but we certainly will not put you to death. And they bound him with two new ropes and brought him up from the rock. Compare
15:14When he came into Lehi, the Philistines came shouting to meet him. And the Spirit of Jehovah rushed upon him, and the ropes that were on his arms became like flax when it burns in fire; and his bonds melted from off his hands. Compare
15:15And he found a fresh jawbone of an ass; and he stretched out his hand and took it, and struck a thousand men with it. Compare
15:16And Samson said, / With the jawbone of an ass, / A heap upon a double heap; / With the jawbone of an ass, / I have struck a thousand men dead. Compare
15:17And when he finished speaking, he cast the jawbone from his hand; and he called that place Ramath-lehi. Compare
15:18And he was very thirsty, and he called on Jehovah, saying, You have granted this great victory by the hand of Your servant. And will I now die of thirst and fall into the hand of the uncircumcised? Compare
15:19But God broke open the hollow place that is in Lehi, and water came forth from it. And when he drank, his spirit returned and he was revived; therefore he called the name of that place En-hakkore, which is in Lehi to this day. Compare
15:20And he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years. Compare
16:1And Samson went down to Gaza; and there he saw a harlot and went in unto her. Compare
16:2And this was told to the Gazites, saying, Samson has come here. So they surrounded him and set an ambush for him all night long in the gate of the city. And they were quiet all night long, saying among themselves, We will stay here until the light of morning; then we will slay him. Compare
16:3But Samson lay only until midnight; then he rose at midnight and grasped the doors of the gate of the city and the two posts, and he plucked them up along with the bar; and he put them on his shoulders and brought them up to the top of the mountain that is in front of Hebron. Compare
16:4Then after this he fell in love with a woman in the valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah. Compare
16:5And the lords of the Philistines came to her; and they said to her, Entice him, and find out how it is that his strength is so great, and how we can prevail against him and bind him so that we may afflict him; and we each will give you eleven hundred pieces of silver. Compare
16:6So Delilah said to Samson, Tell me please, How is it that your strength is so great, and how could you be bound so that you could be afflicted? Compare
16:7And Samson said to her, If they bind me with seven new cords that are not dried out, I will become weak and be like any other man. Compare
16:8So the lords of the Philistines brought up to her seven new cords that were not dried out, and she bound him with them. Compare
16:9And there was an ambush staying with her in the inner chamber; and she said to him, The Philistines are upon you, Samson! And he snapped the cords, as when a strand of tow is snapped when it touches fire. So his strength was not known. Compare
16:10Then Delilah said to Samson, You have just mocked me and told me lies; now tell me please, How can you be bound? Compare
16:11And he said to her, If they bind me up with new ropes with which no work has been done, I will become weak and be like any other man. Compare
16:12So Delilah took new ropes and bound him with them; and she said to him, The Philistines are upon you, Samson! And there was an ambush staying in the inner chamber. But he broke them off his arms like a thread. Compare
16:13Then Delilah said to Samson, Until now you have mocked me and told me lies; tell me how you can be bound. And he said to her, If you weave the seven locks of my head with the web and fasten them with the pin onto the wall, I will become weak and be like any other man. Compare
16:14So while he slept, Delilah took the seven locks of his head and wove them into the web; and she fastened them with the pin. Then she said to him, The Philistines are upon you, Samson! And he awoke from his sleep and plucked up the pin of the loom and the web. Compare
16:15Then she said to him, How can you say, I love you, when your heart is not with me? These three times you have mocked me and have not told me how it is that your strength is so great. Compare
16:16And after she pressed him with her words every day and urged him, his soul was tired to death. Compare
16:17And he told her all his heart and said to her, No razor has ever come upon my head, for I have been a Nazarite to God from my mother's womb. If I were shaved, my strength would leave me, and I would become weak and be like all men. Compare
16:18And when Delilah saw that he had told her all his heart, she sent word and called for the lords of the Philistines, saying, Come up once more, for he has told me all his heart. And the lords of the Philistines came up to her, and they brought the silver in their hand. Compare
16:19And she put him to sleep in her lap and called for a man; and she had him shave off the seven locks of his head. And she began to afflict him, and his strength left him. Compare
16:20Then she said, The Philistines are upon you, Samson! And he awoke from his sleep and said, I will go out as at other times and shake myself free. But he did not know that Jehovah had left him. Compare
16:21And the Philistines grabbed him and gouged out his eyes. And they took him down to Gaza and bound him with bronze fetters; and he ground at the mill in the prison house. Compare
16:22But the hair on his head began to grow back after it had been shaved off. Compare
16:23And the lords of the Philistines gathered to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god and to rejoice. And they said, Our god has delivered Samson our enemy into our hand. Compare
16:24And when the people saw him they praised their god, for they said, Our god has delivered our enemy into our hand, even him who desolated our land, who slew many of us. Compare
16:25And when their hearts were merry, they said, Call for Samson, that he may entertain us. So they called for Samson from the prison house, and he performed before them. Then they made him stand between the pillars. Compare
16:26And Samson said to the youth who held him by his hand, Let me feel the pillars upon which the house rests, that I may rest against them. Compare
16:27Now the house was full of men and women, and all the lords of the Philistines were there; and on the roof there were about three thousand men and women, who were looking on while Samson performed. Compare
16:28And Samson called on Jehovah and said, O Lord Jehovah, remember me, I pray; and strengthen me, I pray, this one time only, O God, that I may be avenged of the Philistines at once for my two eyes. Compare
16:29And Samson grasped the two middle pillars upon which the house rested and leaned against them, one with his right hand and the other with his left. Compare
16:30And Samson said, Let me die with the Philistines. And he bowed with all his strength, and the house fell upon the lords and all the people who were in it. So the dead that he killed in his death were more than those that he killed in his life. Compare
16:31Then his brothers and all his father's house went down and bore him away, and they brought him up and buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol, in the tomb of Manoah his father. Now he had judged Israel twenty years. Compare

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