Judges 16
1 One day Samson went to Gaza, where he saw a prostitute and went in to spend the night with her.
Then went Samson to Gazzah, and saw there a harlot, and went in unto her.
2 When the Gazites heard that Samson was there, they surrounded that place and lay in wait for him all night at the city gate. They were quiet throughout the night, saying, “Let us wait until dawn; then we will kill him.”
And it was told to the Gazzites, saying, Samson is come hither: and they compassed him in, and lay in wait for him all the night in the gate of the city, and held themselves quiet all the night, saying, By the time it is light in the morning will we kill him.
3 But Samson lay there only until midnight, when he got up, took hold of the doors of the city gate and both gateposts, and pulled them out, bar and all. Then he put them on his shoulders and took them to the top of the mountain overlooking Hebron.
And Samson lay till midnight; but he arose at midnight, and took hold of the doors of the city-gate, and the two door-posts, and tore them away with the bolt, and put them upon his shoulders, and carried them up to the top of the mount that is before Hebron.
4 Some time later, Samson fell in love with a woman in the Valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah.
And it came to pass after this, that he loved a woman in the valley of Shorek, whose name was Delilah.
5 The lords of the Philistines went to her and said, “Entice him and find out the source of his great strength and how we can overpower him to tie him up and subdue him. Then each one of us will give you eleven hundred shekels of silver.”
And the lords of the Philistines came up unto her, and said unto her, Persuade him, and see wherein his great strength lieth, and by what means we may prevail over him, that we may bind him to subdue him: and we will give thee every one of us eleven hundred pieces of silver.
6 So Delilah said to Samson, “Please tell me the source of your great strength and how you can be tied up and subdued.”
And Delilah said to Samson, Tell me, I pray thee, wherein thy great strength lieth, and wherewith thou canst be bound to subdue thee.
7 Samson told her, “If they tie me up with seven fresh bowstrings that have not been dried, I will become as weak as any other man.”
And Samson said unto her, If they bind me with seven moist cords which have not yet been dried, then shall I become weak, and be like any other of mankind.
8 So the lords of the Philistines brought her seven fresh bowstrings that had not been dried, and she tied him up with them.
And the lords of the Philistines brought up to her seven moist cords which had not yet been dried, and she bound him with them.
9 While the men were hidden in her room, she called out, “Samson, the Philistines are here!” But he snapped the bowstrings like a strand of yarn seared by a flame. So the source of his strength remained unknown.
And she had men lying in wait, sitting near her in the chamber. And she said unto him, The Philistines are upon thee, Samson. And he tore the cords, as a thread of tow is torn when it toucheth the fire; and his strength was not perceived.
10 Then Delilah said to Samson, “You have mocked me and lied to me! Now please tell me how you can be tied up.”
And Delilah said unto Samson, Behold, thou hast deceived me, and told me lies; now do tell me, I pray thee, wherewith thou canst be bound.
11 He replied, “If they tie me up with new ropes that have never been used, I will become as weak as any other man.”
And he said unto her, If they bind me fast with new ropes that have never been used in work, then shall I become weak, and be like any other of mankind.
12 So Delilah took new ropes, tied him up with them, and called out, “Samson, the Philistines are here!” But while the men were hidden in her room, he snapped the ropes off his arms like they were threads.
And Delilah took new ropes, and bound him therewith, and said unto him, The Philistines are upon thee, Samson. And the liers in wait were sitting in the chamber. But he tore them from off his arms like a thread.
13 Then Delilah said to Samson, “You have mocked me and lied to me all along! Tell me how you can be tied up.” He told her, “If you weave the seven braids of my head into the web of a loom and tighten it with a pin, I will become as weak as any other man.”
And Delilah said unto Samson, Hitherto thou hast deceived me, and told me lies; do tell me wherewith thou canst be bound. And he said unto her, If thou weavest the seven locks of my head with the web.
14 So while he slept, Delilah took the seven braids of his hair and wove them into the web. Then she tightened it with a pin and called to him, “Samson, the Philistines are here!” But he awoke from his sleep and pulled out the pin with the loom and the web.
And she fastened it with the pin, and said unto him, The Philistines are upon thee, Samson. And he awakened out of his sleep, and tore away the pin of the loom, with the web.
15 “How can you say, ‘I love you,’” she asked, “when your heart is not with me? This is the third time you have mocked me and failed to reveal to me the source of your great strength!”
And she said unto him, How canst thou say, I love thee, when thy heart is not with me? these three times hast thou deceived me, and hast not told me wherein thy great strength lieth.
16 Finally, after she had pressed him daily with her words and pleaded until he was sick to death,
And it came to pass, when she worried him daily with her words, and urged him, that his soul became impatient to die;
17 Samson told her all that was in his heart: “My hair has never been cut, because I have been a Nazirite to God from my mother’s womb. If I am shaved, my strength will leave me, and I will become as weak as any other man.”
And he told her all his heart, and said unto her, A razor hath not passed over my head; for a Nazarite of God have I been from my mother's womb; if I were shaved, my strength would depart from me, and I should become weak, and be like all other men.
18 When Delilah realized that he had revealed to her all that was in his heart, she sent this message to the lords of the Philistines: “Come up once more, for he has revealed to me all that is in his heart.” Then the lords of the Philistines came to her, bringing the money in their hands.
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 told me all his heart. Then came the lords of the Philistines up unto her, and brought the money in their hand.
19 And having lulled him to sleep on her lap, she called a man to shave off the seven braids of his head. In this way she began to subdue him, and his strength left him.
And she made him sleep upon her knees; and she called a man, and caused him to shave off the seven locks of his head; and she began to subdue him, and his strength departed from him.
20 Then she called out, “Samson, the Philistines are here!” When Samson awoke from his sleep, he thought, “I will escape as I did before and shake myself free.” But he did not know that the LORD had departed from him.
And she said, The Philistines are upon thee, Samson. And he awoke out of his sleep, and thought, I will go out as at other times before, and shake myself free. But he knew not that the Lord had departed from him.
21 Then the Philistines seized him, gouged out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza, where he was bound with bronze shackles and forced to grind grain in the prison.
And the Philistines seized him, and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gazzah, and bound him with fetters of copper; and he had to grind in the prison-house.
22 However, the hair of his head began to grow back after it had been shaved.
But the hair of his head began to grow again after it was shaved off.
23 Now the lords of the Philistines gathered together to offer a great sacrifice to their god Dagon. They rejoiced and said, “Our god has delivered Samson our enemy into our hands.”
And the lords of the Philistines gathered themselves together to offer a great sacrifice unto Dagon their god, and to rejoice; and they said, Our god hath delivered into our hand Samson our enemy.
24 And when the people saw him, they praised their god, saying: “Our god has delivered into our hands our enemy who destroyed our land and multiplied our dead.”
And when the people saw him, they praised their god; for they said, Our god hath delivered into our hand our enemy, and the destroyer of our country, and him who hath slain so many of us.
25 And while their hearts were merry, they said, “Call for Samson to entertain us.” So they called Samson out of the prison to entertain them. And they stationed him between the pillars.
And it came to pass, when their heart was merry, that they said, Call for Samson, that he may make sport for us. And they called for Samson out of the prison-house; and he made sport before them; and they placed him between the pillars.
26 Samson said to the servant who held his hand, “Lead me where I can feel the pillars supporting the temple, so I can lean against them.”
And Samson said unto the lad that held him by the hand, Suffer me [to go] and let me feel the pillars whereupon the house is supported, that I may lean upon them.
27 Now the temple was full of men and women; all the lords of the Philistines were there, and about three thousand men and women were on the roof watching Samson entertain them.
Now the house was full of men and women; and there were all the lords of the Philistines; and upon the roof were about three thousand men and women, that looked on while Samson made sport.
28 Then Samson called out to the LORD: “O Lord GOD, please remember me. Strengthen me, O God, just once more, so that with one vengeful blow I may pay back the Philistines for my two eyes.”
And Samson called unto the Lord, and said, O Lord Eternal, remember me, I pray thee, and do thou strengthen me only this once, O God, that I may be avenged for one of my two eyes on the Philistines.
29 And Samson reached out for the two central pillars supporting the temple. Bracing himself against them with his right hand on one pillar and his left hand on the other,
And Samson threw his arms around the two middle pillars upon which the house was supported, and he leaned on them, [on] one with his right hand, and [on] the other with his left.
30 Samson said, “Let me die with the Philistines.” Then he pushed with all his might, and the temple fell on the lords and all the people in it. So in his death he killed more than he had killed in his life.
And Samson said, Let me die with the Philistines. And he bent [them] with might, and the house fell upon the lords, and upon all the people that were therein. So the dead whom he slew at his death were more than those whom he had slain in his life.
31 Then Samson’s brothers and his father’s family came down, carried him back, and buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the tomb of his father Manoah. And he had judged Israel twenty years.
Then came down his brothers and all the house of his father, and they took him up, and carried him up, and buried him between Zor'ah and Eshtaol, in the burying-place of Manoach his father. And he had judged Israel twenty years.
