Dommernes 14
1 Ein gong bar det so til at Samson gjekk ned til Timna; der fekk han sjå ei filistargjenta.
One day when Samson was in Timnah [town], he saw a young Philistine woman there.
2 Då han kom heim att, sagde han det med far sin og mor si: «Eg såg ei filistargjenta i Timna; henne lyt de festa til kona åt meg!»
When he returned home, he told his mother and father, “I saw a young Philistine woman in Timnah, and I want you to get her for me so I can marry her.”
3 Då sagde foreldri hans til honom: «Finst det då ingi gjenta hjå frendarne dine eller i heile vårt folk, sidan du vil ganga av og få deg ei kona hjå dei u-umskorne filistarane?» Men Samson svara far sin: «Henne lyt du festa åt meg! Ho er den som eg likar.»
His mother and father objected very strongly. They said, “Is there no woman from our tribe, or from the other Israeli tribes, that you could marry? Why must you go to the heathen Philistines to get a wife?” But Samson told his father, “Get her for me! She is the one I want!”
4 Foreldri hans skyna ikkje at dette kom frå Herren; for han søkte eit høve til å koma innpå filistarane - den gongen rådde filistarane i Israel.
His mother and father did not realize that Yahweh was arranging this. He was preparing a way for [Samson to defeat] the Philistines, who were ruling over Israel at that time.
5 So gjekk Samson og foreldri hans ned til Timna. Då dei kom til vinhagarne utanfor byen, for ei ung løva burande imot honom;
So, as Samson was going down to Timnah, followed by his mother and father, a young lion attacked Samson near the vineyards close to Timnah.
6 då kom Herrens ande yver honom, og han tok løva, og sleit henne sund med berre nevarne, som det skulde vore eit kid; men han sagde’kje med foreldri sine kva han hadde gjort.
Then Yahweh’s Spirit came upon Samson powerfully, with the result that he tore the lion apart with his hands. He did it [as easily] as if it were a young goat. But he did not tell his mother and father about it.
7 So gjekk han ned og tala med gjenta; og han lika henne framifrå godt.
When they arrived in Timnah, Samson talked with the young woman, and he liked her very much. [And his father made arrangements for the wedding].
8 Um ei tid for han ned att og vilde gifta seg med henne. So tok han av vegen, vilde sjå løva som han hadde drepe; då fann han eit biebol med honning i skrovet hennar.
Later, when Samson returned to Timnah for the wedding, he turned off the path to see the carcass of the lion. He discovered that [after other creatures had eaten all the flesh], a swarm of bees [had made a hive in the skeleton and] had made some honey.
9 Han tok honningen ut, og heldt honom i henderne og åt, med han gjekk frametter, og då han kom til foreldri sine, gav han dei og, og dei åt; men han sagde det ikkje med deim at han hadde funne honningen i løveskrovet.
So he scooped some of the honey into his hands and ate some of it as he was walking along. He also gave some of it to his mother and father, but he did not tell them that he had taken the honey from the skeleton of the lion, [because anyone dedicated to God was not to touch any corpse].
10 Då far hans kom ned til bruri, gjorde Samson eit gjestebod der, som dei unge mennerne hadde for vis.
As his father was making the final arrangements for the marriage, Samson gave a party [for the young men in that area]. That was the custom for men to do when they were about to be married.
11 Og so snart dei fekk sjå honom, fann dei honom tretti fylgjesmenner; dei var stødt med honom,
Thirty young man were invited to the party.
12 og ein dag sagde Samson til deim: «No vil eg bjoda dykk ei gåta! Løyser de henne åt meg innan dei sju gjestebodsdagarne er ute, og løyser de henne rett, so skal eg gjeva dykk tretti fine skjortor og tretti festklædningar;
Samson said to them, “Allow me to tell you a riddle. If you tel me the meaning of my riddle during these seven days of the celebration, I will give each of you a linen robe and an extra set of clothes.
13 men kann de ikkje løysa henne, skal de gjeva meg tretti fine skjortor og tretti festklædningar.» «Seg fram gåta di, so me fær høyra henne!» svara dei.
But if you cannot tell me the meaning, you must each give me a linen robe and an extra set of clothes.” They replied, “All right. Tell us your riddle.”
14 Då sagde han: «Av ein etar kom etand’, av den sterke kom søtt.» So leid det tri dagar, og dei var ikkje god til å løysa gåta.
So he said, “From the thing that eats came something to eat; out of something strong came something sweet.” But for three days they could not tell him the meaning of the riddle.
15 Den sjuande dagen sagde dei til bruri: «Få mannen din til å segja oss løysningi på gåta, elles brenner me upp både deg og folket ditt! Er det for å arma oss ut at de hev bede oss hit?»
On the fourth day, they said to Samson’s bride, “Ask your husband to tell you the meaning of the riddle. If you do not do that, we will burn down your father’s house, with you inside it! Did you invite us here only to make us poor [by forcing us to buy a lot of clothes for your husband]?”
16 Då gret bruri framfyre honom, og sagde: «Du held ikkje av meg! Du berre hatar meg! Du hev bode landsmennerne mine ei gåta, men meg hev du ikkje sagt korleis ho skal løysast!» «Eg hev’kje sagt det med far min og mor mi; skulde eg so segja det med deg?» svara Samson.
So Samson’s wife came to him, crying, and said to him, “You do not really love me. You hate me! You have told a riddle to my friends, but you have not told me the meaning of the riddle!” He replied, “I have not told the meaning of the riddle even to my mother and father, so why should I tell it to you?”
17 Men ho hekk yver honom og gret alle dei sju dagarne som gjestebodet varde, og den sjuande dagen sagde han det med henne, av di ho plåga honom so. So løyste ho gåta for landsmennerne sine,
She continued to cry every time she was with him, all during the rest of the celebration. Finally, on the seventh day, because she continued to nag him, he told her the meaning of the riddle. Then she told it to the young men.
18 og fyrr soli gladde den sjuande dagen, kom mennerne i byen og sagde til honom: «Kva er søtar’ enn honning? Kva er sterkar’ enn løva?» Då svara Samson: «Hadde de’kje pløgt med mi kviga, so hadde de’kje løyst mi gåta.»
So, before sunset on the seventh day, the young men came to Samson and said to him, “What/Nothing is sweeter than honey [RHQ]. What/Nothing is stronger than a lion [RHQ]!” Samson replied, “[You should not force a heifer to] plow a field [MET]. Similarly, if you had not forced my bride to ask me about the riddle [MET], you would not have known the answer to my riddle!”
19 Og Herrens ande kom yver honom; han gjekk ned til Askalon, og slo i hel tretti filistarar, tok klædi deira, og let deim som hadde løyst gåta få deim til høgtidsklede; og harm som han var, for han heim att til garden åt far sin.
Then Yahweh’s Spirit powerfully took control of Samson. He went down to [the coast at] Ashkelon [town], and killed 30 men. He took their clothes [and went back to Timnah] and gave them to the men who had told him the meaning of the riddle. But he was very angry about what had happened, so he went back home to live with his mother and father.
20 Men kona hans vart gjevi til den fylgjesmannen, som han hadde valt seg til brursvein.
So (Samson’s wife was given/the bride’s father gave Samson’s wife) to the man who who had been Samson’s best man at the wedding, [but Samson did not know that].
