Sansón se venga de los filisteos

15 Pasado algún tiempo, durante la cosecha de trigo, Sansón tomó un cabrito y fue a visitar a su esposa.

—Voy a la habitación de mi esposa —dijo él.

Pero el padre de ella no le permitió entrar, sino que dijo:

—Yo estaba tan seguro de que la odiabas que se la di a tu amigo. ¿Pero acaso no es más atractiva su hermana menor? Tómala para ti, en lugar de la mayor.

Sansón respondió:

—¡Esta vez sí que no respondo por el daño que cause a los filisteos!

Así que fue y cazó trescientas zorras, las ató cola con cola en parejas y a cada pareja le amarró una antorcha. Luego prendió fuego a las antorchas y soltó a las zorras por los sembrados de los filisteos. Así incendió el trigo que ya estaba en gavillas y el que todavía estaba en pie, junto con los viñedos y olivares.

Cuando los filisteos preguntaron: «¿Quién hizo esto?», les dijeron: «Sansón, el yerno del timnateo, porque este le quitó a su esposa y se la dio a su amigo».

Por eso los filisteos fueron y la quemaron a ella y a su padre. Pero Sansón dijo: «Puesto que actuaron de esa manera, ¡no pararé hasta que me haya vengado de ustedes!». Y los atacó tan furiosamente que causó entre ellos una tremenda masacre. Luego se fue a vivir a una cueva que está en la peña de Etam.

Los filisteos subieron y acamparon en Judá, incursionando cerca de Lejí. 10 Los hombres de Judá preguntaron:

—¿Por qué han venido a luchar contra nosotros?

—Hemos venido a tomar prisionero a Sansón —respondieron—, para hacerle lo mismo que nos hizo a nosotros.

11 Entonces tres mil hombres de Judá descendieron a la cueva en la peña de Etam y dijeron a Sansón:

—¿No te das cuenta de que los filisteos nos gobiernan? ¿Por qué nos haces esto?

—Simplemente les he hecho lo que ellos me hicieron a mí —contestó él.

12 Ellos dijeron:

—Hemos venido a atarte, para entregarte en manos de los filisteos.

—Júrenme que no me matarán ustedes mismos —dijo Sansón.

13 —De acuerdo —respondieron ellos—. Solo te ataremos y te entregaremos en sus manos. No te mataremos.

Entonces lo ataron con dos sogas nuevas y lo sacaron de la peña. 14 Cuando se acercaba a Lejí, los filisteos salieron a su encuentro con gritos de victoria. En ese momento, el Espíritu del Señor vino sobre él con poder y las sogas que ataban sus brazos se volvieron como fibra de lino quemada; además las ataduras de sus manos se deshicieron. 15 Al encontrar una quijada de burro que todavía estaba fresca, la agarró y con ella mató a mil hombres.

16 Entonces dijo Sansón:

«Con la quijada de un asno
    los he amontonado.[a]
Con una quijada de asno
    he matado a mil hombres».

17 Cuando terminó de hablar, arrojó la quijada y llamó a aquel lugar Ramat Lejí.[b]

18 Como tenía mucha sed clamó al Señor: «Tú le has dado a tu siervo esta gran victoria. ¿Acaso voy ahora a morir de sed y a caer en manos de los incircuncisos?». 19 Entonces Dios abrió la hondonada que hay en Lejí y de allí brotó agua. Cuando Sansón la bebió, recobró sus fuerzas y se reanimó. Por eso al manantial que todavía hoy está en Lejí se le llamó Enacoré.[c]

20 Y Sansón lideró a Israel durante veinte años en tiempos de los filisteos.

Footnotes

  1. 15:16 los he amontonado. Alt. los he convertido en asnos; en hebreo, las palabras que significan asno y montón son idénticas.
  2. 15:17 En hebreo, Ramat Lejí significa colina de la quijada.
  3. 15:19 En hebreo, Enacoré significa manantial del que clama.

Samson’s Revenge

15 Later on, during the wheat harvest,(A) Samson took a young goat as a gift and visited his wife. ‘I want to go to my wife in her room,’ he said. But her father would not let him enter.

‘I was sure you hated her,’ her father said, ‘so I gave her to one of the men who accompanied you. Isn’t her younger sister more beautiful than she is? Why not take her instead? ’

Samson said to them, ‘This time I will be blameless(B) when I harm the Philistines.’ So he went out and caught three hundred foxes.(C) He took torches, turned the foxes tail-to-tail, and put a torch between each pair of tails. Then he ignited the torches and released the foxes into the standing corn of the Philistines. He burned the piles of corn and the standing corn as well as the vineyards and olive groves.(D)

Then the Philistines asked, ‘Who did this? ’

They were told, ‘It was Samson, the Timnite’s son-in-law, because he took Samson’s wife and gave her to his companion.’ So the Philistines went to her and her father and burned them to death.

Then Samson told them, ‘Because you did this, I swear that I won’t rest until I have taken vengeance on you.’ He tore them limb from limb[a] and then went down and stayed in the cave at the rock of Etam.

The Philistines went up, camped in Judah, and raided Lehi. 10 So the men of Judah said, ‘Why have you attacked us? ’

They replied, ‘We have come to tie Samson up and pay him back for what he did to us.’

11 Then three thousand men of Judah went to the cave at the rock of Etam, and they asked Samson, ‘Don’t you realise that the Philistines rule us?(E) What have you done to us? ’

‘I have done to them what they did to me,’ he answered.[b]

12 They said to him, ‘We’ve come to tie you up and hand you over to the Philistines.’

Then Samson told them, ‘Swear to me that you yourselves won’t kill me.’

13 ‘No,’ they said,[c] ‘we won’t kill you, but we will tie you up securely and hand you over to them.’ So they tied him up with two new ropes(F) and led him away from the rock.

14 When he came to Lehi, the Philistines came to meet him shouting. The Spirit of the Lord came powerfully on him, and the ropes that were on his arms and wrists became like burnt flax and fell off. 15 He found a fresh jawbone of a donkey, reached out his hand, took it, and killed a thousand men with it. 16 Then Samson said:

With the jawbone of a donkey
I have piled them in heaps.
With the jawbone of a donkey
I have killed a thousand men.

17 When he finished speaking, he threw away the jawbone and named that place Jawbone Hill.[d] 18 He became very thirsty and called out to the Lord, ‘You have accomplished this great victory through your servant. Must I now die of thirst and fall into the hands of the uncircumcised? ’ 19 So God split a hollow place in the ground at Lehi, and water came out of it. After Samson drank, his strength returned, and he revived.(G) That is why he named it Hakkore Spring,[e] which is still in Lehi today. 20 And he judged Israel for twenty years in the days of the Philistines.

Footnotes

  1. 15:8 Lit He struck them hip and thigh with a great slaughter
  2. 15:11 Lit answered them
  3. 15:13 Lit said to him
  4. 15:17 Hb Ramath-lehi
  5. 15:19 = Spring of the One Who Cried Out

15 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.

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.

And Samson said concerning them, Now shall I be more blameless than the Philistines, though I do them a displeasure.

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.

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.

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.

And Samson said unto them, Though ye have done this, yet will I be avenged of you, and after that I will cease.

And he smote them hip and thigh with a great slaughter: and he went down and dwelt in the top of the rock Etam.

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.

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.

15 And he found a new jawbone of an ass, and put forth his hand, and took it, and slew a thousand men therewith.

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.

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 Ramathlehi.

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 Enhakkore, which is in Lehi unto this day.

20 And he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years.

Samson Defeats the Philistines

15 After a while, in the time of wheat harvest, it happened that Samson visited his wife with a (A)young goat. And he said, “Let me go in to my wife, into her room.” But her father would not permit him to go in.

Her father said, “I really thought that you thoroughly (B)hated her; therefore I gave her to your companion. Is not her younger sister better than she? Please, take her instead.”

And Samson said to them, “This time I shall be blameless regarding the Philistines if I harm them!” Then Samson went and caught three hundred foxes; and he took torches, turned the foxes tail to tail, and put a torch between each pair of tails. When he had set the torches on fire, he let the foxes go into the standing grain of the Philistines, and burned up both the shocks and the standing grain, as well as the vineyards and olive groves.

Then the Philistines said, “Who has done this?”

And they answered, “Samson, the son-in-law of the Timnite, because he has taken his wife and given her to his companion.” (C)So the Philistines came up and burned her and her father with fire.

Samson said to them, “Since you would do a thing like this, I will surely take revenge on you, and after that I will cease.” So he attacked them hip and thigh with a great slaughter; then he went down and dwelt in the cleft of the rock of (D)Etam.

Now the Philistines went up, encamped in Judah, and deployed themselves (E)against Lehi. 10 And the men of Judah said, “Why have you come up against us?”

So they answered, “We have come up to [a]arrest Samson, to do to him as he has done to us.”

11 Then three thousand men of Judah went down to the cleft of the rock of Etam, and said to Samson, “Do you not know that the Philistines (F)rule over us? What is this you have done to us?”

And he said to them, “As they did to me, so I have done to them.”

12 But they said to him, “We have come down to arrest you, that we may deliver you into the hand of the Philistines.”

Then Samson said to them, “Swear to me that you will not kill me yourselves.”

13 So they spoke to him, saying, “No, but we will tie you securely and deliver you into their hand; but we will surely not kill you.” And they bound him with two (G)new ropes and brought him up from the rock.

14 When he came to Lehi, the Philistines came shouting against him. Then (H)the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him; and the ropes that were on his arms became like flax that is burned with fire, and his bonds [b]broke loose from his hands. 15 He found a fresh jawbone of a donkey, reached out his hand and took it, and (I)killed a thousand men with it. 16 Then Samson said:

“With the jawbone of a donkey,
Heaps upon heaps,
With the jawbone of a donkey
I have slain a thousand men!”

17 And so it was, when he had finished speaking, that he threw the jawbone from his hand, and called that place [c]Ramath Lehi.

18 Then he became very thirsty; so he cried out to the Lord and said, (J)“You have given this great deliverance by the hand of Your servant; and now shall I die of thirst and fall into the hand of the uncircumcised?” 19 So God split the hollow place that is in [d]Lehi, and water came out, and he drank; and (K)his spirit returned, and he revived. Therefore he called its name [e]En Hakkore, which is in Lehi to this day. 20 And (L)he judged Israel (M)twenty years (N)in the days of the Philistines.

Footnotes

  1. Judges 15:10 Lit. bind
  2. Judges 15:14 Lit. were melted
  3. Judges 15:17 Lit. Jawbone Height
  4. Judges 15:19 Lit. Jawbone, Judg. 15:14
  5. Judges 15:19 Lit. Spring of the Caller