Judges 16

Judges 16 is the final chapter of the Samson narrative, which spans chapters 13–16 of the Book of Judges. Judges 15 ends with the account of Samson killing a thousand Philistines at Lehi with the jawbone of a donkey and judging Israel for twenty years. Chapter 16 then relates Samson's final deeds and his death.

Outline

• Verses 1–3 Samson goes in to a harlot in Gaza. The men of Gaza lie in wait for him at the city gate, but at midnight Samson pulls up the doors of the gate, the two posts, and the bar, puts them on his shoulders, and carries them to the top of the hill that is before Hebron.
• Verses 4–5 Samson loves Delilah, a woman in the valley of Sorek. The lords (rulers) of the Philistines promise Delilah that each of them will give her eleven hundred pieces of silver if she discovers the secret of Samson's strength.
• Verses 6–14 Three times Samson gives a false secret: seven green withs that were never dried, new ropes that had never been used, and the seven locks of his hair woven into the web (the woof) of a loom. Delilah tries each one, but each time Samson breaks free.
• Verses 15–17 When Delilah presses him day after day, Samson confides that he has been a Nazirite from his mother's womb and that no razor has ever come upon his head.
• Verses 18–22 Delilah calls for a man to shave off the seven locks of Samson's hair, and his strength leaves him. Samson does not realize that the LORD has departed from him. The Philistines put out his eyes, bind him with fetters of brass, and set him to grind at the mill in the prison house at Gaza. Meanwhile, his hair begins to grow again.
• Verses 23–27 The Philistines offer a great sacrifice to their god Dagon and bring Samson out to entertain them. About three thousand men and women are also gathered on the roof of the temple.
• Verses 28–30 After crying out to the LORD, Samson pushes against the two middle pillars and brings down the temple. He kills more people at his death than he had killed during his life.
• Verse 31 His family takes up his body and buries him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the burying place of his father Manoah. Samson had judged Israel for twenty years.

Key Verses

• Judges 16:17 "There hath not come a razor upon mine head; for I have been a Nazarite unto God from my mother's womb." This verse reveals that Samson's strength was bound up with his status as one set apart as a Nazirite.
• Judges 16:20 "He wist not that the LORD was departed from him." Here the text itself explains the true reason he lost his strength.
• Judges 16:28 "Strengthen me, I pray thee, only this once, O God." Samson's final prayer brings the story to its conclusion.

Characters and Places

• Samson: Son of Manoah of the tribe of Dan; a judge who was born a Nazirite.
• Delilah: A woman who lived in the valley of Sorek. The text does not identify her ethnicity.
• The lords of the Philistines: The rulers of the Philistine cities.
• Dagon: The god worshiped by the Philistines.
• Gaza: A major Philistine city on the southern Mediterranean coast.
• The valley of Sorek: A valley running from the hill country of Judah to the western lowlands, near Samson's hometown of Zorah.
• Zorah and Eshtaol: The home region of Samson's family.

Points for Reflection

• The source of his strength: Many interpreters focus less on the hair itself than on the Nazirite vow and the presence of the LORD. In the preceding chapters Samson's strength appears when "the Spirit of the LORD" comes upon him, and verse 20 identifies the LORD's departure as the cause of its loss. The regulations for the Nazirite appear in Numbers 6.
• Distinguishing the text from later imagery: Paintings and films commonly depict Delilah cutting Samson's hair herself, but in the text she calls for a man to shave it (verse 19). The harlot in verse 1 is a different person from Delilah.
• Samson's death: Interpreters differ on whether verse 30 should be regarded as Samson taking his own life. Augustine is said to have held that Samson was following a secret command of the Spirit of God. Today some read the act as a sacrifice that fulfilled his calling, while others also point out the limitations of a prayer that sought revenge (verse 28).
• Connection to the New Testament: Hebrews 11:32 names Samson among the people of faith.

In the Korean Church

The story of "Samson and Delilah" is frequently treated in sermons and Sunday school. Common themes include the dangers of temptation and compromise, the consequences of taking lightly the gifts received from God, and repentance after failure along with Samson's final prayer.