Judges 15:1-8

Amplified Bible

Samson Burns Philistine Crops

15 But after a while, in the time of wheat harvest, Samson went to visit his wife with a young goat [as a gift of reconciliation]; and he said, “I will go in to my wife in her room.” But her father would not allow him to go in. ² Her father said, “I really thought you utterly hated her; so I gave her to your companion. Is her younger sister not more beautiful than she? Please take her [as your wife] instead.” ³ Samson said to them, “This time I shall be blameless in regard to the Philistines when I do them harm.” ⁴ So Samson went and caught three hundred foxes, and took torches and turning the foxes tail to tail, he put a torch between each pair of tails. ⁵ When he had set the torches ablaze, he let the foxes go into the standing grain of the Philistines, and he burned up the heap of sheaves and the standing grain, along with the vineyards and olive groves. ⁶ Then the Philistines said, “Who did this?” And they were told, “Samson, the son-in-law of the Timnite, because he took Samson’s wife and gave her to his [chief] companion [at the wedding feast].” So the Philistines came up and burned her and her father with fire. ⁷ Samson said to them, “If this is the way you act, be certain that I will take revenge on you, and [only] after that I will stop.” ⁸ Then he struck them ^[a]without mercy, a great slaughter; and he went down and lived in the cleft of the rock of Etam.