Judges 14:1-11

New American Standard Bible

Samson’s Marriage

14 Then Samson went down to Timnah, and he saw a woman in Timnah, one of the daughters of the Philistines. ² So he came ^[a]back and told his father and ^[b]mother, “I saw a woman in Timnah, one of the daughters of the Philistines; so now, get her for me as a wife.” ³ But his father and his mother said to him, “Is there no woman among the daughters of your ^(A)relatives, or among all ^[c]our people, that you go to ^(B)take a wife from the uncircumcised Philistines?” Yet Samson said to his father, “Get her for me, because she is right ^[d]for me.” ⁴ However, his father and mother did not know that ^(C)this was of the Lord, for He was seeking an occasion against the Philistines. And at that time the Philistines were ruling over Israel.

⁵ Then Samson went down to Timnah with his father and mother, and came as far as the vineyards of Timnah; and behold, a young lion came roaring toward him. ⁶ And ^(D)the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon him, so that ^(E)he tore it apart as one tears apart a young goat, though he had nothing in his hand; but he did not tell his father or mother what he had done. ⁷ So he went down and talked to the woman; and she ^[e]looked pleasing to Samson. ⁸ When he returned later to take her, he turned aside to look at the carcass of the lion; and behold, a swarm of bees and honey were in the body of the lion. ⁹ So he took out ^[f]the honey on his ^[g]hands and went on, eating as he went. When he came to his father and mother, he gave some to them and they ate it; but he did not tell them that he had took the honey out of the body of the lion.

¹⁰ Then his father went down to the woman; and Samson held a feast there, for the young men customarily did this. ¹¹ When they saw him, they brought thirty companions to be with him.