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The Book of Judges

⭑ World English Bible Catholic :: King James Version ⭑

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- Chapter 15 -

1
But after a while, in the time of wheat harvest, Samson visited his wife with a young goat. He said, “I will go in to my wife’s room.” But her father wouldn’t allow him to go in.
2
Her father said, “I most certainly thought that you utterly hated her; therefore I gave her to your companion. Isn’t her younger sister more beautiful than she? Please, take her instead.”
3
Samson said to them, “This time I will be blameless in the case of the Philistines when I harm them.”
4
Samson went and caught three hundred foxes, and took torches, and turned tail to tail, and put a torch in the middle between every two tails.
5
When he had set the torches on fire, he let them go into the standing grain of the Philistines, and burned up both the shocks and the standing grain, and also the olive groves.
6
Then the Philistines said, “Who has done this?” They said, “Samson, the son-in-law of the Timnite, because he has taken his wife and given her to his companion.” The Philistines came up, and burned her and her father with fire.
7
Samson said to them, “If you behave like this, surely I will take revenge on you, and after that I will cease.”
8
He struck them hip and thigh with a great slaughter; and he went down and lived in the cave in Etam’s rock.
9
Then the Philistines went up, encamped in Judah, and spread themselves in Lehi.
10
The men of Judah said, “Why have you come up against us?” They said, “We have come up to bind Samson, to do to him as he has done to us.”
11
Then three thousand men of Judah went down to the cave in Etam’s rock, and said to Samson, “Don’t you know that the Philistines are rulers over us? What then is this that you have done to us?” He said to them, “As they did to me, so I have done to them.”
12
They said to him, “We have come down to bind you, that we may deliver you into the hand of the Philistines.” Samson said to them, “Swear to me that you will not attack me yourselves.”
13
They spoke to him, saying, “No, but we will bind you securely and deliver you into their hands; but surely we will not kill you.” They bound him with two new ropes, and brought him up from the rock.
14
When he came to Lehi, the Philistines shouted as they met him. Then the LORD’s Spirit came mightily on him, and the ropes that were on his arms became as flax that was burned with fire; and his bands dropped from off his hands.
15
He found a fresh jawbone of a donkey, put out his hand, took it, and struck a thousand men with it.
16
Samson said, “With the jawbone of a donkey, heaps on heaps; with the jawbone of a donkey I have struck a thousand men.”
17
When he had finished speaking, he threw the jawbone out of his hand; and that place was called Ramath Lehi.(a)
18
He was very thirsty, and called on the LORD and said, “You have given this great deliverance by the hand of your servant; and now shall I die of thirst, and fall into the hands of the uncircumcised?”
19
But God split the hollow place that is in Lehi, and water came out of it. When he had drunk, his spirit came again, and he revived. Therefore its name was called En Hakkore, which is in Lehi, to this day.
20
He judged Israel twenty years in the days of the Philistines.

Footnotes

(a)15:17 “Ramath” means “hill” and “Lehi” means “jawbone”.
1
But it came to pass within a while after, 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.
2
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.(a)
3
And Samson said concerning them, Now shall I be more blameless than the Philistines, though I do them a displeasure.(b)
4
And Samson went and caught three hundred foxes, and took firebrands, and turned tail to tail, and put a firebrand in the midst between two tails.(c)
5
And when he had set the brands on fire, he let them go into the standing corn of the Philistines, and burnt up both the shocks, and also the standing corn, with the vineyards and olives.
6
Then the Philistines said, Who hath done this? And they answered, Samson, the son in law of the Timnite, because he had taken his wife, and given her to his companion. And the Philistines came up, and burnt her and her father with fire.
7
And Samson said unto them, Though ye have done this, yet will I be avenged of you, and after that I will cease.
8
And he smote them hip and thigh with a great slaughter: and he went down and dwelt in the top of the rock Etam.
9
Then the Philistines went up, and pitched in Judah, and spread themselves in Lehi.
10
And the men of Judah said, Why are ye come up against us? And they answered, To bind Samson are we come up, to do to him as he hath done to us.
11
Then three thousand men of Judah went to the top of the rock Etam, and said to Samson, Knowest thou not that the Philistines are rulers over us? what is this that thou hast done unto us? And he said unto them, As they did unto me, so have I done unto them.(d)
12
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.
13
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 cords, and brought him up from the rock.
14
And when he came unto Lehi, the Philistines shouted against him: and the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him, and the cords that were upon his arms became as flax that was burnt with fire, and his bands loosed from off his hands.(e)
15
And he found a new jawbone of an ass, and put forth his hand, and took it, and slew a thousand men therewith.(f)
16
And Samson said, With the jawbone of an ass, heaps upon heaps, with the jaw of an ass have I slain a thousand men.(g)
17
And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking, that he cast away the jawbone out of his hand, and called that place Ramath–lehi.(h)
18
And he was sore athirst, and called on the Lord , and said, Thou hast given this great deliverance into the hand of thy servant: and now shall I die for thirst, and fall into the hand of the uncircumcised?
19
But God clave an hollow place that was in the jaw, and there came water thereout; and when he had drunk, his spirit came again, and he revived: wherefore he called the name thereof En–hakkore, which is in Lehi unto this day.(i) (j)
20
And he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years.

Footnotes

(a)15:2 take…: Heb. let her be thine
(b)15:3 more…: or, blameless from the Philistines though, etc
(c)15:4 firebrands: or, torches
(d)15:11 went: Heb. went down
(e)15:14 loosed: Heb. were melted
(f)15:15 new: Heb. moist
(g)15:16 heaps upon…: Heb. an heap, two heaps
(h)15:17 Ramath–lehi: that is, the lifting up of the jawbone, or, casting away of the jawbone
(i)15:19 En–hakkore: that is, the well of him that called or, cried
(j)15:19 the jaw: or, Lehi, as called in this chapter
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