Heroes of Israel Part 20

And Samson's wife wept before him, and said, "Thou dost but hate me, and lovest me not: thou hast put forth a riddle unto the children of my people, and hast not told it me."

And he said unto her, "Behold, I have not told it my father nor my mother, and shall I tell thee?"

And she wept before him the seven days, while their feast lasted: and it came to pa.s.s on the seventh day, that he told her, because she pressed him sore: and she told the riddle to the children of her people. And the men of the city said unto him on the seventh day before the sun went down, "What is sweeter than honey? and what is stronger than a lion?"

And he said unto them,

"If ye had not plowed with my heifer, Ye had not found out my riddle."

And the spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him, and he went down to Ashkelon, and smote thirty men of them, and took their spoil, and gave the changes of raiment unto them that declared the riddle. And his anger was kindled, and he went up to his father's house. But Samson's wife was given to his companion, whom he had used as his friend.

=--50. Samson's Strength= (Judg. 15:1-17; 16:1-3)

A. THE STORY OF THE FOXES

But it came to pa.s.s after a while, in the time of wheat harvest, that Samson visited his wife with a kid; and he said, "I will go in to my wife into the chamber."

But her father would not suffer him to go in. And her father said, "I verily thought that thou hadst utterly hated her; therefore I gave her to thy companion: is not her younger sister fairer than she? take her, I pray thee, instead of her."

And Samson said unto them, "This time shall I be blameless in regard to the Philistines, when I do them a mischief."

And Samson went and caught three hundred foxes, and took firebrands, and turned tail to tail, and put a firebrand in the midst between every two tails. And when he had set the brands on fire, he let them go into the standing grain of the Philistines, and burnt up both the shocks and the standing grain, and also the oliveyards.

Then the Philistines said, "Who hath done this?"

And they said, "Samson, the son-in-law of the Timnite, because he hath taken his wife, and given her to his companion."

And the Philistines came up, and burnt her and her father with fire.

And Samson said unto them, "If ye do after this manner, surely I will be avenged of you, and after that will I cease."

And he smote them hip and thigh with a great slaughter: and he went down and dwelt in the cleft of the rock of Etam.

B. THE STORY OF THE JAWBONE

Then the Philistines went up, and pitched in Judah, and spread themselves in Lehi. And the men of Judah said, "Why are ye come up against us?"

And they said, "To bind Samson are we come up, to do to him as he hath done to us."

Then three thousand men of Judah went down to the cleft of the rock of Etam, and said to Samson, "Knowest thou not that the Philistines are rulers over us? what then is this that thou hast done unto us?"

And he said unto them, "As they did unto me, so have I done unto them."

And they said unto him, "We are come down to bind thee, that we may deliver thee into the hand of the Philistines."

And Samson said unto them, "Swear unto me, that ye will not fall upon me yourselves."

And they spake unto him, saying, "No; but we will bind thee fast, and deliver thee into their hand: but surely we will not kill thee."

And they bound him with two new ropes, and brought him up from the rock.

When he came unto Lehi, the Philistines shouted as they met him: and the spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him, and the ropes that were upon his arms became as flax that was burnt with fire, and his bands dropped from off his hands. And he found a new jawbone of an a.s.s, and put forth his hand, and took it, and smote a thousand men therewith. And Samson said,

"With the jawbone of an a.s.s, heaps upon heaps, With the jawbone of an a.s.s have I smitten a thousand men."

And it came to pa.s.s, when he had made an end of speaking, that he cast away the jawbone out of his hand.

C. THE STORY OF THE GATES OF GAZA

And Samson went to Gaza. And it was told the Gazites, saying, "Samson is come hither." And they compa.s.sed him in, and laid wait for him all night in the gate of the city, and were quiet all the night, saying, "Let be till morning light, then we will kill him."

And Samson lay till midnight, and arose at midnight, and laid hold of the doors of the gate of the city, and the two posts, and plucked them up, bar and all, and put them upon his shoulders, and carried them up to the top of the mountain that is before Hebron.

=--51. Samson's Weakness= (Judg. 16:4-22)

And it came to pa.s.s afterward, that he loved a woman, whose name was Delilah. And the lords of the Philistines came up unto her, and said unto her, "Entice him, and see wherein his great strength lieth, and by what means we may prevail against him, that we may bind him to afflict him: and we will give thee every one of us eleven hundred pieces of silver."

And Delilah said to Samson, "Tell me, I pray thee, wherein thy great strength lieth, and wherewith thou mightest be bound to afflict thee."

And Samson said unto her, "If they bind me with seven new bowstrings that were never dried, then shall I become weak, and be as another man."

Then the lords of the Philistines brought up to her seven new bowstrings which had not been dried, and she bound him with them. Now she had liers in wait abiding in the inner chamber. And she said unto him, "The Philistines be upon thee, Samson."

And he brake the bowstrings as a string of tow is broken when it touches the fire. So his strength was not known.

And Delilah said unto Samson, "Behold, thou hast mocked me, and told me lies: now tell me, I pray thee, wherewith thou mightest be bound."

And he said unto her, "If they only bind me with new ropes wherewith no work hath been done, then shall I become weak, and be as another man."

So Delilah took new ropes, and bound him therewith, and said unto him, "The Philistines be upon thee, Samson."

And the liers in wait were abiding in the inner chamber. And he brake them from off his arms like a thread.

And Delilah said unto Samson, "Hitherto thou hast mocked me, and told me lies: tell me wherewith thou mightest be bound."

And he said unto her, "If thou weavest the seven locks of my head with the web."

And she fastened it with the pin, and said unto him, "The Philistines be upon thee, Samson."

And he awaked out of his sleep, and plucked away the pin of the beam, and the web.

And she said unto him, "How canst thou say, 'I love thee,' when thine heart is not with me? thou hast mocked me these three times, and hast not told me wherein thy great strength lieth."

And it came to pa.s.s, when she pressed him daily with her words, and urged him, that his soul was vexed unto death. And he told her all his heart, and said unto her, "There hath not come a razor upon mine head: for I have been a n.a.z.irite unto G.o.d from my birth: if I be shaven, then my strength will go from me, and I shall become weak, and be like any other man."

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."