Judges 15:1-7

1 But a little time after, when the days of wheat harvest nighed, Samson came, and would visit his wife, and he brought to her a goat kid; and when he would enter into her bed by custom, her father forbade him,
2 and said, I guessed that thou haddest hated her, and therefore I gave her to thy friend; but she hath a sister, which is younger and fairer than she, be she [a] wife to thee for her (let her be your wife instead!).
3 To whom Samson answered, From this day forth no blame shall be in me against [the] Philistines, for I shall do evils to you. (To whom Samson answered, From this day forth, none of the Philistines can blame me, though I shall do much evil to you.)
4 And he went, and took three hundred foxes, and he joined together their tails to tails, (one to one,) and he bound fire brands in (the) middle of the tails (and he tied torches in the middle of their tails),
5 which he kindled with fire, and (then) let them (go), that they should run about hither and thither (so that they would run about here and there); which went at once into the corns of [the] Philistines, by which kindled, both the corns borne now together, and (those) yet standing in the stubble, were (all) burnt, in so much that the flame (also) wasted (the) vineries, and (the) places of (the) olive trees.
6 And the Philistines said, Who did this thing? To whom it was said, Samson, the husband of (the) Timnite's daughter, for he took away Samson's wife, and gave her to another man. And (so) the Philistines went up, and burnt (up) both the woman and her father.
7 To the which Philistines Samson said, Though ye have done this thing, nevertheless yet I shall ask and take vengeance of you, and then I shall rest. (To which Philistines Samson said, Because ye have done this thing, now I shall take vengeance on all of you, and then I shall rest.)

Judges 15:1-7 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO JUDGES 15

This chapter relates, that Samson being denied his wife, did by a strange stratagem burn the corn fields, vineyards, and olives of the Philistines, Jud 15:1-5, and that because of their burning her and her father, he made a great slaughter of them, Jud 15:6-8, which brought the Philistines against the men of Judah, who took Samson and bound him, to deliver him to the Philistines, when he, loosing himself, slew a thousand of them with the jaw bone of an ass, Jud 15:9-17 and being athirst, God in a wonderful manner supplied him with water, Jud 15:18-20.

Copyright © 2001 by Terence P. Noble. For personal use only.