Samson’s Riddle

¹⁰ Later on, when his father went down to visit^[a] the woman, Samson threw a party there, since young men customarily did this. ¹¹ When they saw him, they brought 30 companions to accompany him. ¹² “Let me tell you a riddle,” Samson told them. “If you can solve it during this week-long festival, I’ll give you 30 linen garments and 30 formal garments.^{[b] 13} But if you don’t solve it,^[c] then you’ll give me 30 linen garments and 30 formal garments.”^[d]

“Tell us your riddle and we’ll solve it,” they responded.

¹⁴ So he told them:

For three days they couldn’t solve the riddle.

¹⁵ The next^[e] day, they told Samson’s wife, “Coax your husband to explain the riddle or we’ll set fire to your father’s house—with you in it! You’ve invited us here to make us paupers, haven’t you?”

¹⁶ So Samson’s wife cried in front of him and accused him, “You only hate me. You don’t love me. You’ve told a riddle to my relatives, but you haven’t told the solution^[f] to me.”

Samson responded, “Look, I haven’t told my parents,^[g] either. Why^[h] should I tell you?”

¹⁷ So she kept on crying in front of him for the entire seven days of the wedding party. On the seventh day he told the solution^[i] to her because she nagged him, and then she told the solution to^[j] the riddle to her relatives.

¹⁸ Then the men of the city answered him just before sunset on the seventh day:

Samson^[k] responded,

¹⁹ Then the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon him, and he went down to Ashkelon, killed 30 men, took their belongings, and gave the garments to those who had told him the solution to^[l] the riddle. He remained furious, left for his father’s house, ²⁰ and Samson’s wife went to the best man at his wedding.^[m]