Judges 16:4-22
1599 Geneva Bible
4 And after this he loved a woman by the [a]river of Sorek, whose name was Delilah:
5 Unto whom came the princes of the Philistines, and said unto her, Entice him, and see wherein his great strength lieth, and by what means we may overcome him, that we may bind him, and punish him, and every one of us shall give thee eleven hundred [b]shekels of silver.
6 ¶ And Delilah said to Samson, Tell me, I pray thee, wherein thy great strength lieth, and wherewith thou mightest be bound, to do thee hurt.
7 Samson then answered unto her, If they bind me with seven [c]green cords, that were never dried, then shall I be weak, and be as another man.
8 And the princes of the Philistines brought her seven green cords that were not dry, and she bound him therewith.
9 (And she had [d]men lying in wait with her in the chamber) Then she said unto him, The Philistines be upon thee, Samson. And he brake the cords, as a thread of tow is broken, when [e]it feeleth fire: so his strength was not known.
10 ¶ After Delilah said unto Samson, See, thou hast mocked me, and told me lies. I pray thee now, [f]tell me wherewith thou mightest be bound.
11 Then he answered her, If they bind me with new ropes that never were occupied, then shall I be weak, and be as another man.
12 Delilah therefore took new ropes, and bound him therewith, and said unto him, The Philistines be upon thee, Samson: (and men lay in wait in the chamber) and he brake them from his arms, as a thread.
13 ¶ Afterward Delilah said to Samson, Hitherto thou hast beguiled me, and told me lies: tell me how thou mightest be bound. [g]And he said unto her, If thou plattedst seven locks of mine head with the threads of the woof.
14 And she fastened it with a pin, and said unto him, The Philistines be upon thee, Samson. And he awoke out of his sleep, and went away with the [h]pin of the web, and the woof.
15 Again she said unto him, How canst thou say, [i]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.
16 And because she was importunate upon him with her words continually, and vexed him, his soul was pained unto the death.
17 Therefore he told her all his [j]heart, and said unto her, There never came razor upon mine head: for I am a Nazirite unto God from my mother’s womb: therefore if I be shaven, my strength will go from me, and I shall be weak and be like all other men.
18 And when Delilah saw that he had told her all his heart, she sent, and called for the Princes of the Philistines, saying, Come up once again: for he hath showed me all his heart. Then the Princes of the Philistines came up unto her, and brought the money in their hands.
19 And she made him sleep upon her knees, and she called a man, and made him to shave off the seven locks of his head, and she began to vex him, and his strength was gone [k]from him.
20 Then she said, The Philistines be upon thee, Samson. And he awoke out of his sleep, and thought, I will go out now as at other times, and shake myself, but he knew not that the Lord was departed from him.
21 Therefore the Philistines took him, and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with fetters: and he did grind in the prison house.
22 And the hair of his head began to [l]grow again after that it was shaven.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Judges 16:4 Or, plain.
- Judges 16:5 Of the value of a shekel, read Gen. 23:15.
- Judges 16:7 Or, new withes.
- Judges 16:9 Certain Philistines in a secret chamber.
- Judges 16:9 When fire cometh near it.
- Judges 16:10 Though her falsehood tended to make him lose his life, yet his affection so blinded him, that he could not beware.
- Judges 16:13 It is impossible if we give place to our wicked affections, but at length we shall be destroyed.
- Judges 16:14 Or, beam.
- Judges 16:15 For this Samson used to say, I love thee.
- Judges 16:17 Thus his immoderate affections toward a wicked woman caused him to lose God’s excellent gifts, and become slave unto them whom he should have ruled.
- Judges 16:19 Not for the loss of his hair, but for the contempt of the ordinance of God, which was the cause that God departed from him.
- Judges 16:22 Yet had he not his strength again, till he had called upon God, and reconciled himself.
Geneva Bible, 1599 Edition. Published by Tolle Lege Press. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations in articles, reviews, and broadcasts.
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