Shofetim 15:14

14 And when he came unto Lechi, the Pelishtim shouted against him; and the Ruach of Hashem came mightily upon him, and the avotim that were upon his arms became as flax that was burned with eish, and his binding loosed from off his hands.

Shofetim 15:14 Meaning and Commentary

Judges 15:14

And when he came unto Lehi
The place which was afterwards so called, from what happened there at this time, and where the Philistines were spread, ( Judges 15:9 ) this, according to Bunting F11, was six miles from Etam:

the Philistines shouted against him:
for joy that they had got him into their hands, and in the circumstances he was, being bound, so that they had nothing to fear from him:

and the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him:
as it at times did, and had done before; the Targum is,

``the Spirit of might from the Lord,''

which gave him courage and resolution of mind, and great strength of body, even while he was speaking, as a token of the wonders God more than he had at other times:

and the cords that were upon his arms became as flax that was burnt
with fire;
as easily parted as the flax when fire takes it, which is consumed at once:

and his bonds loosed off from his hands;
by which it appears that both arms and hands were bound with the cords; his arms were pinioned close to his body, as well as his hands were tied together; and these, as in the original, "melted away" F12, like wax before the fire, or snow before the sun, so easily were these bands separated from him; this may be an emblem of Christ's loosing himself from the cords of death, ( Acts 2:24 ) .


FOOTNOTES:

F11 Travels, p. 116.
F12 (womy) "diffuxerunt", Tigurine version; "liquefacta sunt", Piscator.

Shofetim 15:14 In-Context

12 And they said unto him, We are come down to bind thee, that we may deliver thee into the yad Pelishtim. And Shimshon said unto them, Swear unto me, that ye will not fall upon me yourselves.
13 And they spoke unto him, saying, No; but we will bind thee fast, and deliver thee into their yad; but surely we will not kill thee. And they bound him with two avotim chadashim (new ropes), and brought him up from the rock.
14 And when he came unto Lechi, the Pelishtim shouted against him; and the Ruach of Hashem came mightily upon him, and the avotim that were upon his arms became as flax that was burned with eish, and his binding loosed from off his hands.
15 And he found a new jawbone of a chamor, and put forth his yad and took it and slaughtered a thousand men therewith.
16 And Shimshon said, With the lechi (jawbone) of a chamor heaps upon heaps, with the jaw of a chamor have I slain a thousand men.
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