< Judges 15 >
1 And it comes to pass after [some] days, in the days of wheat-harvest, that Samson looks after his wife, with a kid of the goats, and says, “I go in to my wife, to the inner chamber”; and her father has not permitted him to go in,
But within a while after, in the time of wheate haruest, Samson visited his wife with a kid, saying, I wil go in to my wife into the chamber: but her father would not suffer him to goe in.
2 and her father says, “I certainly said that you surely hated her, and I give her to your companion; is her younger sister not better than she? Please let her be to you instead of her.”
And her father sayde, I thought that thou hadst hated her: therefore gaue I her to thy companion. Is not her yonger sister fayrer then shee? take her, I pray thee, in stead of the other.
3 And Samson says of them, “I am more innocent this time than the Philistines, though I am doing evil with them.”
Then Samson saide vnto them, Nowe am I more blamelesse then the Philistims: therefore will I doe them displeasure.
4 And Samson goes and catches three hundred foxes, and takes torches, and turns tail to tail, and puts a torch between the two tails, in the midst,
And Samson went out, and tooke three hundreth foxes, and tooke firebrands, and turned them taile to taile, and put a firebrand in ye middes betweene two tailes.
5 and kindles fire in the torches, and sends [them] out into the standing grain of the Philistines, and burns [it] from heap even to standing grain, even to vineyard [and] olive-yard.
And when he had set the brandes on fire, he sent them out into the standing corne of the Philistims, and burnt vp both the rickes and the standing corne with the vineyardes and oliues.
6 And the Philistines say, “Who has done this?” And they say, “Samson, son-in-law of the Timnite, because he has taken away his wife, and gives her to his companion”; and the Philistines go up, and burn her and her father with fire.
Then the Philistims sayde, Who hath done this? And they answered, Samson the sonne in law of the Timnite, because hee had taken his wife, and giuen her to his companion. Then the Philistims came vp and burnt her and her father with fire.
7 And Samson says to them, “Though you do thus, nevertheless I am avenged on you, and afterward I cease!”
And Samson saide vnto them, Though yee haue done this, yet wil I be auenged of you, and then I wil cease.
8 And he strikes them hip and thigh [with] a great striking, and goes down and dwells in the cleft of the rock of Etam.
So hee smote them hippe and thigh with a mightie plague: then hee went and dwelt in the top of the rocke Etam.
9 And the Philistines go up, and encamp in Judah, and are spread out in Lehi,
Then the Philistims came vp, and pitched in Iudah, and were spred abroad in Lehi.
10 and the men of Judah say, “Why have you come up against us?” And they say, “We have come up to bind Samson, to do to him as he has done to us.”
And the men of Iudah sayde, Why are yee come vp vnto vs? And they answered, To binde Samson are we come vp, and to do to him as hee hath done to vs.
11 And three thousand men of Judah go down to the cleft of the rock of Etam, and say to Samson, “Have you now known that the Philistines are rulers over us? And what [is] this you have done to us?” And he says to them, “As they did to me, so I did to them.”
Then three thousande men of Iudah went to the top of the rocke Etam, and sayde to Samson, Knowest thou not that the Philistims are rulers ouer vs? Wherefore then hast thou done thus vnto vs? And he answered them, As they did vnto me, so haue I done vnto them.
12 And they say to him, “We have come down to bind you—to give you into the hand of the Philistines.” And Samson says to them, “Swear to me, lest you fall on me yourselves.”
Againe they sayd vnto him, Wee are come to binde thee, and to deliuer thee into the hande of the Philistims. And Samson sayde vnto them, Sweare vnto me, that yee will not fall vpon me your selues.
13 And they speak to him, saying, “No, but we certainly bind you, and have given you into their hand, and we certainly do not put you to death”; and they bind him with two thick bands, new ones, and bring him up from the rock.
And they answered him, saying, No, but we will bynde thee and deliuer thee vnto their hande, but we will not kill thee. And they bound him with two newe cordes, and brought him from the rocke.
14 He has come to Lehi—and the Philistines have shouted at meeting him—and the Spirit of YHWH prospers over him, and the thick bands which [are] on his arms are as flax which they burn with fire, and his bands are melted from off his hands,
When hee came to Lehi, the Philistims shouted against him, and the Spirite of the Lord came vpon him, and the cordes that were vpon his armes, became as flaxe that was burnt with fire: for the bandes loosed from his handes.
15 and he finds a fresh jawbone of a donkey, and puts forth his hand and takes it, and strikes down one thousand men with it.
And he found a new iawebone of an asse, and put forth his hand, and caught it, and slewe a thousand men therewith.
16 And Samson says, “With the jawbone of a donkey, heap on heaps—I have struck down one thousand men with the jawbone of a donkey!”
Then Samson sayd, With the iaw of an asse are heapes vpon heapes: with the iawe of an asse haue I slaine a thousand men.
17 And it comes to pass, when he finishes speaking, that he casts away the jawbone out of his hand, and calls that place Ramath-Lehi;
And when he had left speaking, hee cast away the iawebone out of his hande, and called that place, Ramath-Lehi.
18 and he thirsts exceedingly, and calls to YHWH, and says, “You have given this great salvation by the hand of Your servant; and now, I die with thirst, and have fallen into the hand of the uncircumcised.”
And he was sore a thirst, and called on the Lord, and sayde, Thou hast giuen this great deliuerance into the hand of thy seruaunt: and nowe shall I dye for thirst, and fall into the handes of the vncircumcised?
19 And God cleaves the hollow place which [is] in Lehi, and waters come out of it, and he drinks, and his spirit comes back, and he revives; therefore [one] has called its name “The fountain of him who is calling,” which [is] in Lehi to this day.
Then God brake the cheeke tooth, that was in the iawe, and water came thereout: and when he had drunke, his Spirit came againe, and he was reuiued: wherefore the name therof is called, Enhakkore, which is in Lehi vnto this day.
20 And he judges Israel in the days of the Philistines [for] twenty years.
And hee iudged Israel in the dayes of the Philistims twentie yeeres.