16:1 One day Samson went to Gaza, where he saw a prostitute. He went in to spend the night with her.
16:2 The people of Gaza were told, “Samson is here!” So they surrounded the place and lay in wait for him all night at the city gate. They made no move during the night, saying, “At dawn we’ll kill him.”
16:3 But Samson lay there only until the middle of the night. Then he got up and took hold of the doors of the city gate, together with the two posts, and tore them loose, bar and all. He lifted them to his shoulders and carried them to the top of the hill that faces Hebron.
16:4 Some time later, he fell in love with a woman in the Valley of Sorek whose name was Delilah.
16:5 The rulers of the Philistines went to her and said, “See if you can lure him into showing you the secret of his great strength and how we can overpower him so we may tie him up and subdue him. Each one of us will give you eleven hundred shekels of silver.”
16:6 So Delilah said to Samson, “Tell me the secret of your great strength and how you can be tied up and subdued.”
16:7 Samson answered her, “If anyone ties me with seven fresh thongs that have not been dried, I’ll become as weak as any other man.”
16:8 Then the rulers of the Philistines brought her seven fresh thongs that had not been dried, and she tied him with them.
16:9 With men hidden in the room, she called to him, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you!” But he snapped the thongs as easily as a piece of string snaps when it comes close to a flame. So the secret of his strength was not discovered.
16:10 Then Delilah said to Samson, “You have made a fool of me; you lied to me. Come now, tell me how you can be tied.”
16:11 He said, “If anyone ties me securely with new ropes that have never been used, I’ll become as weak as any other man.”
16:12 So Delilah took new ropes and tied him with them. Then, with men hidden in the room, she called to him, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you!” But he snapped the ropes off his arms as if they were threads.
16:13 Delilah then said to Samson, “Until now, you have been making a fool of me and lying to me. Tell me how you can be tied.” He replied, “If you weave the seven braids of my head into the fabric on the loom and tighten it with the pin, I’ll become as weak as any other man.” So while he was sleeping, Delilah took the seven braids of his head, wove them into the fabric
16:14 and tightened it with the pin. Again she called to him, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you!” He awoke from his sleep and pulled up the pin and the loom, with the fabric.
16:15 Then she said to him, “How can you say, ‘I love you,’ when you won’t confide in me? This is the third time you have made a fool of me and haven’t told me the secret of your great strength.”
16:16 With such nagging she prodded him day after day until he was tired to death.
16:17 So he told her everything. “No razor has ever been used on my head,” he said, “because I have been a Nazirite set apart to God since birth. If my head were shaved, my strength would leave me, and I would become as weak as any other man.”
16:18 When Delilah saw that he had told her everything, she sent word to the rulers of the Philistines, “Come back once more; he has told me everything.” So the rulers of the Philistines returned with the silver in their hands.
16:19 Having put him to sleep on her lap, she called a man to shave off the seven braids of his hair, and so began to subdue him. And his strength left him.
16:20 Then she called, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you!” He awoke from his sleep and thought, “I’ll go out as before and shake myself free.” But he did not know that the LORD had left him.
16:21 Then the Philistines seized him, gouged out his eyes and took him down to Gaza. Binding him with bronze shackles, they set him to grinding in the prison.
16:22 But the hair on his head began to grow again after it had been shaved.
16:23 Now the rulers of the Philistines assembled to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god and to celebrate, saying, “Our god has delivered Samson, our enemy, into our hands.”
16:24 When the people saw him, they praised their god, saying, “Our god has delivered our enemy into our hands, the one who laid waste our land and multiplied our slain.”
16:25 While they were in high spirits, they shouted, “Bring out Samson to entertain us.” So they called Samson out of the prison, and he performed for them. When they stood him among the pillars,
16:26 Samson said to the servant who held his hand, “Put me where I can feel the pillars that support the temple, so that I may lean against them.”
16:27 Now the temple was crowded with men and women; all the rulers of the Philistines were there, and on the roof were about three thousand men and women watching Samson perform.
16:28 Then Samson prayed to the LORD, “O Sovereign LORD, remember me. O God, please strengthen me just once more, and let me with one blow get revenge on the Philistines for my two eyes.”
16:29 Then Samson reached toward the two central pillars on which the temple stood. Bracing himself against them, his right hand on the one and his left hand on the other,
16:30 Samson said, “Let me die with the Philistines!” Then he pushed with all his might, and down came the temple on the rulers and all the people in it. Thus he killed many more when he died than while he lived.
16:31 Then his brothers and his father’s whole family went down to get him. They brought him back and buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the tomb of Manoah his father. He had led Israel twenty years.
16:1 And Samson went down to Gaza; and there he saw a harlot and went in unto her.
16:2 And this was told to the Gazites, saying, Samson has come here. So they surrounded him and set an ambush for him all night long in the gate of the city. And they were quiet all night long, saying among themselves, We will stay here until the light of morning; then we will slay him.
16:3 But Samson lay only until midnight; then he rose at midnight and grasped the doors of the gate of the city and the two posts, and he plucked them up along with the bar; and he put them on his shoulders and brought them up to the top of the mountain that is in front of Hebron.
16:4 Then after this he fell in love with a woman in the valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah.
16:5 And the lords of the Philistines came to her; and they said to her, Entice him, and find out how it is that his strength is so great, and how we can prevail against him and bind him so that we may afflict him; and we each will give you eleven hundred pieces of silver.
16:6 So Delilah said to Samson, Tell me please, How is it that your strength is so great, and how could you be bound so that you could be afflicted?
16:7 And Samson said to her, If they bind me with seven new cords that are not dried out, I will become weak and be like any other man.
16:8 So the lords of the Philistines brought up to her seven new cords that were not dried out, and she bound him with them.
16:9 And there was an ambush staying with her in the inner chamber; and she said to him, The Philistines are upon you, Samson! And he snapped the cords, as when a strand of tow is snapped when it touches fire. So his strength was not known.
16:10 Then Delilah said to Samson, You have just mocked me and told me lies; now tell me please, How can you be bound?
16:11 And he said to her, If they bind me up with new ropes with which no work has been done, I will become weak and be like any other man.
16:12 So Delilah took new ropes and bound him with them; and she said to him, The Philistines are upon you, Samson! And there was an ambush staying in the inner chamber. But he broke them off his arms like a thread.
16:13 Then Delilah said to Samson, Until now you have mocked me and told me lies; tell me how you can be bound. And he said to her, If you weave the seven locks of my head with the web and fasten them with the pin onto the wall, I will become weak and be like any other man.
16:14 So while he slept, Delilah took the seven locks of his head and wove them into the web; and she fastened them with the pin. Then she said to him, The Philistines are upon you, Samson! And he awoke from his sleep and plucked up the pin of the loom and the web.
16:15 Then she said to him, How can you say, I love you, when your heart is not with me? These three times you have mocked me and have not told me how it is that your strength is so great.
16:16 And after she pressed him with her words every day and urged him, his soul was tired to death.
16:17 And he told her all his heart and said to her, No razor has ever come upon my head, for I have been a Nazarite to God from my mother s womb. If I were shaved, my strength would leave me, and I would become weak and be like all men.
16:18 And when Delilah saw that he had told her all his heart, she sent word and called for the lords of the Philistines, saying, Come up once more, for he has told me all his heart. And the lords of the Philistines came up to her, and they brought the silver in their hand.
16:19 And she put him to sleep in her lap and called for a man; and she had him shave off the seven locks of his head. And she began to afflict him, and his strength left him.
16:20 Then she said, The Philistines are upon you, Samson! And he awoke from his sleep and said, I will go out as at other times and shake myself free. But he did not know that Jehovah had left him.
16:21 And the Philistines grabbed him and gouged out his eyes. And they took him down to Gaza and bound him with bronze fetters; and he ground at the mill in the prison house.
16:22 But the hair on his head began to grow back after it had been shaved off.
16:23 And the lords of the Philistines gathered to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god and to rejoice. And they said, Our god has delivered Samson our enemy into our hand.
16:24 And when the people saw him they praised their god, for they said, Our god has delivered our enemy into our hand, even him who desolated our land, who slew many of us.
16:25 And when their hearts were merry, they said, Call for Samson, that he may entertain us. So they called for Samson from the prison house, and he performed before them. Then they made him stand between the pillars.
16:26 And Samson said to the youth who held him by his hand, Let me feel the pillars upon which the house rests, that I may rest against them.
16:27 Now the house was full of men and women, and all the lords of the Philistines were there; and on the roof there were about three thousand men and women, who were looking on while Samson performed.
16:28 And Samson called on Jehovah and said, O Lord Jehovah, remember me, I pray; and strengthen me, I pray, this one time only, O God, that I may be avenged of the Philistines at once for my two eyes.
16:29 And Samson grasped the two middle pillars upon which the house rested and leaned against them, one with his right hand and the other with his left.
16:30 And Samson said, Let me die with the Philistines. And he bowed with all his strength, and the house fell upon the lords and all the people who were in it. So the dead that he killed in his death were more than those that he killed in his life.
16:31 Then his brothers and all his father s house went down and bore him away, and they brought him up and buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol, in the tomb of Manoah his father. Now he had judged Israel twenty years.