Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)

A Prayer for Help, and Praise for Its Answer.

A Psalm of David.

Samson’s Marriage

14 Then Samson went down to Timnah and 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; now therefore, get her for me as a wife.” ³ Then his father and his mother said to him, “Is there no woman among the daughters of your ^[c](A)relatives, or among all ^[d]our people, that you go to ^(B)take a wife from the uncircumcised Philistines?” But Samson said to his father, “Get her for me, for she ^[e]looks good to me.” ⁴ However, his father and mother did not know that ^(C)it was of the Lord, for He was seeking an occasion against the Philistines. Now 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 (D)The Spirit of the Lord ^[f]came upon him mightily, so that ^(E)he tore him as one tears 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 ^[g]looked good 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 scraped ^[h]the honey into his ^[i]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 scraped the honey out of the body of the lion.

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

Samson’s Riddle

¹² Then Samson said to them, “Let me now ^(F)propound a riddle to you; if you will indeed tell it to me within the seven days of the feast, and find it out, then I will give you thirty linen wraps and thirty ^(G)changes of clothes. ¹³ But if you are unable to tell me, then you shall give me thirty linen wraps and thirty changes of clothes.” And they said to him, “Propound your riddle, that we may hear it.” ¹⁴ So he said to them,

But they could not tell the riddle in three days.

¹⁵ Then it came about on the ^[j]fourth day that they said to Samson’s wife, “^(H)Entice your husband, so that he will tell us the riddle, ^(I)or we will burn you and your father’s house with fire. Have you invited us to impoverish us? Is this not so?” ¹⁶ Samson’s wife wept before him and said, “^(J)You only hate me, and you do not love me; you have propounded a riddle to the sons of my people, and have not told it to me.” And he said to her, “Behold, I have not told it to my father or mother; so should I tell you?” ¹⁷ However she wept before him seven days while their feast lasted. And on the seventh day he told her because she pressed him so hard. She then told the riddle to the sons of her people. ¹⁸ So the men of the city said to him on the seventh day before the sun went down,

And he said to them,

¹⁹ Then ^(K)the Spirit of the Lord ^[k]came upon him mightily, and he went down to Ashkelon and killed thirty of them and took their spoil and gave the changes of clothes to those who told the riddle. And his anger burned, and he went up to his father’s house. ²⁰ But Samson’s wife was ^(L)given to his companion who had been his ^[l]friend.

^3 (A)I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, ⁴ always offering prayer with joy in ^(B)my every prayer for you all, ⁵ in view of your ^[a](C)participation in the ^(D)gospel ^(E)from the first day until now. ⁶ For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until ^(F)the day of Christ Jesus. ^7 [b]For ^(G)it is only right for me to feel this way about you all, because I ^(H)have you in my heart, since both in my ^[c](I)imprisonment and in the ^(J)defense and confirmation of the ^(K)gospel, you all are partakers of grace with me. ⁸ For ^(L)God is my witness, how I long for you all with the ^[d]affection of ^(M)Christ Jesus. ⁹ And this I pray, that ^(N)your love may abound still more and more in ^(O)real knowledge and all discernment, ¹⁰ so that you may ^[e](P)approve the things that are excellent, in order to be sincere and blameless ^[f]until ^(Q)the day of Christ; ¹¹ having been filled with the ^(R)fruit of righteousness which comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

The Gospel Is Preached

¹² Now I want you to know, brethren, that my circumstances ^(S)have turned out for the greater progress of the ^(T)gospel, ¹³ so that my ^[g](U)imprisonment in the cause of Christ has become well known throughout the whole ^[h]praetorian guard and to ^(V)everyone else, ¹⁴ and that most of the ^[i]brethren, trusting in the Lord because of my ^[j](W)imprisonment, have ^(X)far more courage to speak the word of God without fear.