Judges 16
1 Then went Samson to Gazzah, and saw there a harlot, and went in unto her.
He also went into Gaza. And there he saw a harlot woman, and he entered to her.
2 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.
And when the Philistines had heard of this, and it had become well known among them, that Samson had entered the city, they surrounded him, placing guards at the gate of the city. And there they were keeping watch all night in silence, so that, in the morning, they might kill him as he was going out.
3 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.
But Samson slept until the middle of the night, and rising up from there, he took both doors from the gate, with their posts and bars. And laying them upon his shoulders, he carried them to the top of the hill that looks toward Hebron.
4 And it came to pass after this, that he loved a woman in the valley of Shorek, whose name was Delilah.
After these things, he loved a woman who was living in the valley of Sorek. And she was called Delilah.
5 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.
And the leaders of the Philistines went to her, and they said: “Deceive him, and learn from him wherein lies his great strength, and how we may be able to overcome him and to impose restraints on him. And if you will do this, each one of us will give you one thousand one hundred silver coins.”
6 And Delilah said to Samson, Tell me, I pray thee, wherein thy great strength lieth, and wherewith thou canst be bound to subdue thee.
Therefore, Delilah said to Samson, “Tell me, I beg you, wherein lies your very great strength, and with what might you be bound, so that you could not break free?”
7 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.
And Samson answered her, “If I will be bound with seven cords, made of sinews not yet dry, but still damp, I will be weak like other men.”
8 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.
And the princes of the Philistines brought to her seven cords, such as he had described. And she bound him with these.
9 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.
And so, those hiding in ambush with her, in the bedroom, were expecting the end of the matter. And she cried out to him, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” And he broke the cords, as one would break a thread of flax, twisted for cutting and singed by fire. And so it was not known wherein lay his strength.
10 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.
And Delilah said to him: “Behold, you have mocked me, and you have spoken a falsehood. But at least now, tell me with what you may be bound.”
11 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.
And he answered her, “If I will be bound with new cords, which have never been used, I will be weak and like other men.”
12 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.
Again, Delilah tied him with these, and she cried out, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” For an ambush had been prepared in the bedroom. But he broke the bindings like the filaments of a web.
13 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.
And Delilah spoke to him again: “How long will you deceive me and tell me falsehoods? Reveal with what you ought to be bound.” And Samson responded to her, “If you weave the seven locks of my head with a loom, and if you tie these around a spike and fix it to the ground, I will be weak.”
14 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.
And when Delilah had done this, she said to him, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson.” And arising from sleep, he withdrew the spike with the hairs and the weaving.
15 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.
And Delilah said to him: “How can you say that you love me, when your soul is not with me? You have lied to me on three occasions, and you are not willing to reveal wherein lies your very great strength.”
16 And it came to pass, when she worried him daily with her words, and urged him, that his soul became impatient to die;
And when she had been very troublesome to him, and over many days had continually stayed nearby, giving him no time to rest, his soul was faint, and he was weary, even unto death.
17 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.
Then disclosing the truth of the matter, he said to her: “Iron has never been drawn across my head, for I am a Nazirite, that is, I have been consecrated to God from my mother’s womb. If my head will be shaven, my strength will depart from me, and I will be faint and will be like other men.”
18 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.
Then, seeing that he had confessed to her his whole soul, she sent to the leaders of the Philistines and ordered: “Come up just once more. For now he has opened his heart to me.” And they went up, taking with them the money that they had promised.
19 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.
But she made him sleep upon her knees, and recline his head upon her bosom. And she called a barber, and he shaved his seven locks of hair. And she began to push him away, and to repel him from herself. For immediately his strength departed from him.
20 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.
And she said, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” And awaking from sleep, he said in his mind, “I will break away and shake myself free, just as I did before.” For he did not know that the Lord had withdrawn from him.
21 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.
And when the Philistines had seized him, they immediately plucked out his eyes. And they led him, bound in chains, to Gaza. And enclosing him in a prison, they made him work a millstone.
22 But the hair of his head began to grow again after it was shaved off.
And now his hair began to grow back.
23 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.
And the leaders of the Philistines convened as one, so that they might offer great sacrifices to Dagon, their god. And they feasted, saying, “Our god has delivered our enemy, Samson, into our hands.”
24 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.
Then, too, the people, seeing this, praised their god, and they said the same, “Our god has delivered our adversary into our hands: the one who destroyed our land and who killed very many.”
25 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.
And rejoicing in their celebration, having now taken food, they instructed that Samson be called, and that he be mocked before them. And having been brought from prison, he was mocked before them. And they caused him to stand between two pillars.
26 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.
And he said to the boy who was guiding his steps, “Permit me to touch the pillars, which support the entire house, and to lean against them, so that I may rest a little.”
27 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.
Now the house was full of men and women. And all the leaders of the Philistines were there, as well as about three thousand persons, of both sexes, on the roof and in the upper level of the house, who were watching Samson being mocked.
28 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.
Then, calling upon the Lord, he said, “O Lord God remember me, and restore to me now my former strength, O my God, so that I may avenge myself against my enemies, and so that I may receive one vengeance for the deprivation of my two eyes.”
29 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.
And taking hold of both the pillars, on which the house rested, and holding one with his right hand and the other with his left,
30 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.
he said, “May my life die with the Philistines.” And when he had shaken the pillars strongly, the house fell upon all the leaders, and the rest of the multitude who were there. And he killed many more in his death than he had killed before in his life.
31 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.
Then his brothers and all his relatives, going down, took his body, and they buried it between Zorah and Eshtaol, in the burying place of his father, Manoah. And he judged Israel for twenty years.
