1 Later, during the wheat harvest, Samson went to visit the young woman he thought was still his wife. He brought along a young goat as a gift and said to her father, “I want to go into my wife's bedroom.”
“You can't do that,” he replied. 2 “When you left the way you did, I thought you were divorcing her. So I arranged for her to marry one of the young men who were at your party. But my younger daughter is even prettier, and you can have her as your wife.”
3 “This time,” Samson answered, “I have a good reason for really hurting some Philistines.”
Samson Takes Revenge
4 Samson went out and caught 300 foxes and tied them together in pairs with oil-soaked rags around their tails. 5 Then Samson took the foxes into the Philistine wheat fields that were ready to be harvested. He set the rags on fire and let the foxes go. The wheat fields went up in flames, and so did the stacks of wheat that had already been cut. Even the Philistine vineyards and olive orchards burned.
6 Some of the Philistines started asking around, “Who could have done such a thing?”
“It was Samson,” someone told them. “He married the daughter of that man in Timnah, but then the man gave Samson's wife to one of the men at the wedding.”
The Philistine leaders went to Timnah and burned to death Samson's wife and her father.
7 When Samson found out what they had done, he went to them and said, “You killed them! And I won't rest until I get even with you.” 8 Then Samson started hacking them to pieces with his sword.
Samson left Philistia and went to live in the cave at Etam Rock. 9 But it wasn't long before the Philistines invaded Judah and set up a huge army camp at Jawbone.
10 The people of Judah asked, “Why have you invaded our land?”
The Philistines answered, “We've come to get Samson. We're going to do the same things to him that he did to our people.”
11 Three thousand men from Judah went to the cave at Etam Rock and said to Samson, “Don't you know that the Philistines rule us, and they will punish us for what you did?”
“I was only getting even with them,” Samson replied. “They did the same things to me first.”
12 “We came here to tie you up and turn you over to them,” said the men of Judah.
“I won't put up a fight,” Samson answered, “but you have to promise not to hurt me yourselves.”
13-14 “We promise,” the men said. “We will only tie you up and turn you over to the Philistines. We won't kill you.” Then they tied up his hands and arms with two brand-new ropes and led him away from Etam Rock.
When the Philistines saw that Samson was being brought to their camp at Jawbone, they started shouting and ran toward him. But the Lord's Spirit took control of Samson, and Samson broke the ropes, as though they were pieces of burnt cloth. 15 Samson glanced around and spotted the jawbone of a donkey. The jawbone had not yet dried out, so it was still hard and heavy. Samson grabbed it and started hitting Philistines—he killed 1,000 of them! 16 After the fighting was over, he made up this poem about what he had done to the Philistines:
I used a donkey's jawbone
to kill a thousand men;
I beat them with this jawbone
over and over again.
17 Samson tossed the jawbone on the ground and decided to call the place Jawbone Hill. It is still called that today.
18 Samson was so thirsty that he prayed, “Our Lord, you helped me win a battle against a whole army. Please don't let me die of thirst now. Those heathen Philistines will carry off my dead body.”
19 Samson was tired and weary, but God sent water gushing from a rock. Samson drank some and felt strong again.
Samson named the place Caller Spring, because he had called out to God for help. The spring is still there at Jawbone.
20 Samson was a leader of Israel for 20 years, but the Philistines were still the rulers of Israel.
Simsons sakauj filistiešus
1 Kviešu pļaujamā laikā Simsons ieradās apciemot savu sievu, paņēmis līdzi kazlēnu. Viņš teica: “Es iešu pie savas sievas guļamistabā,” – bet viņas tēvs neļāva tam iet. 2 Viņas tēvs teica: “Es tiešām domāju, ka tu viņu ienīsti, un atdevu to tavam pavadonim. Vai viņas jaunākā māsa nav vēl labāka par viņu? Ņem to sev viņas vietā!” 3 Un Simsons tam atbildēja: “Šoreiz gan es neesmu vainīgs, ka darīšu ļaunu filistiešiem!” 4 Simsons gāja un saķēra trīs simtus šakāļu, ņēma lāpas, sasēja asti ar asti un iesprauda pa lāpai starp katrām divām astēm. 5 Viņš pielaida lāpām uguni un palaida tos filistiešu labībā. Tā viņš aizdedzināja gan status, gan nenopļauto labību, gan vīnadārzus, gan olīvkokus. 6 Filistieši runāja: “Kas to ir izdarījis?” Un tiem teica: “Simsons, timnieša znots, jo tas ir ņēmis viņa sievu un atdevis to viņa pavadonim!” Tad filistieši nāca un sadedzināja viņu un viņas tēvu. 7 Bet Simsons tiem sacīja: “Ja jūs tā darāt, es jums nudien atriebšos un tikai tad mitēšos!” 8 Un viņš lielā slaktiņā tiem sadragāja lielus un gūžas. Tad viņš devās lejā un apmetās Ētāmas klints plaisā.
9 Filistieši devās augšup, uzslēja nometni Jūdā un devās tālāk uz Lehī. 10 Tad Jūdas vīri teica: “Kāpēc jūs esat nākuši pret mums?” Un tie atbildēja: “Mēs esam nākuši, lai saistītu Simsonu! Lai darītu viņam, kā viņš ir darījis mums!” 11 Tad trīs tūkstoši Jūdas vīru devās lejā uz Ētāmas klints plaisu un teica Simsonam: “Vai tad tu nezini, ka filistieši valda pār mums? Ko tu mums esi izdarījis?!” Un viņš tiem atbildēja: “Kā tie man darījuši, tā es tiem atdarīju!” 12 Tie viņam sacīja: “Mēs esam atnākuši tevi saistīt un nodot filistiešu rokās.” Un viņš tiem teica: “Zvēriet, ka paši man neuzbruksiet!” 13 Tie viņam sacīja: “Tiešām nē! Siet mēs tevi sasiesim un nodosim viņu rokās, bet nāvēt mēs tevi nenonāvēsim!” Tā viņi to sasēja ar divām jaunām virvēm un devās ar viņu prom no klints. 14 Kad viņš nonāca Lehī, filistieši aurodami viņu sagaidīja. Piepeši pār viņu nāca Kunga Gars, un virves ap viņa rokām kļuva kā apdeguši linu diegi un saites uz viņa rokām izira. 15 Viņš atrada svaigu ēzeļa žokļa kaulu , izstiepa roku, satvēra to un nosita ar to tūkstoš vīru. 16 Un Simsons teica:
“Ar ēzeļa žokļa kaulu
guldīju daudzum daudzus,
ar ēzeļa žokļa kaulu
nositu tūkstoš vīru!”
17 Beidzis runāt, viņš nosvieda žokļa kaulu un nosauca to vietu: Rāmat-Lehī . 18 Viņš bija ļoti izslāpis un sauca uz Kungu: “Ar sava kalpa rokām tu esi devis šo lielo atbrīvošanu, un nu man jāmirst slāpēs un jākrīt neapgraizīto rokās!” 19 Un Dievs pāršķēla dobumu žokļa kaulā, un no tā izplūda ūdens. Viņš dzēra un atspirga, un viņā atgriezās dzīvība. Tāpēc šo vietu sauc: Ēn-Korē , kas atrodas Lehī līdz pat šai dienai. 20 Un viņš bija Israēla soģis filistiešu laikā divdesmit gadus.
