Samson Awadeɛ Ne Nʼaborɔme No
1Dabi a na Samson wɔ Timna14.1 Timna yɛ kuro bi a na ɛwɔ Dan (Yos 19.43). Na Filistifoɔ te saa kuro yi mu ansa na Israelfoɔ rebɛfa hɔ. no, ɔhunuu Filistini ababaawa bi. 2Ɔsane kɔɔ efie no, ɔka kyerɛɛ nʼagya ne ne maame sɛ, “Mahunu Filistini ababaawa bi wɔ Timna a mepɛ sɛ meware no.”
3Nʼagya ne ne maame ampene so kaa no anibereɛ so sɛ, “Enti, yɛn abusua yi mu anaa Israelfoɔ yi mu, ɔbaa baako mpo nni mu a wotumi ware no? Adɛn na ɛsɛ sɛ wokɔ Filistifoɔ abosonsomfoɔ mu kɔpɛ ɔyere?”
Nanso, Samson ka kyerɛɛ nʼagya sɛ, “Kɔyɛ ne ho adeɛ ma me. Ɔno ara na mepɛ.” 4Nʼagya ne ne maame anhunu sɛ Awurade na ɔreyɛ nʼadwuma, repɛ akwannya bi a ɔbɛfa so atia Filistifoɔ a saa ɛberɛ no na wɔdi Israelfoɔ so.
5Samson ne nʼawofoɔ rekɔ Timna no, gyata ba bi to hyɛɛ Samson so wɔ beaeɛ bi a ɛbɛn Timna bobe nturo. 6Amonom hɔ ara, Awurade Honhom baa ne so wɔ ahoɔden mu, na ɔde ne nsa hunu waee gyata no apantan. Ɔwaee te sɛ deɛ ɔrewae abirekyie ba bi apantan. Nanso, wanka deɛ ɔyɛeɛ yi ankyerɛ nʼawofoɔ. 7Samson duruu Timna no, ɔne ɔbaa no kasaeɛ na nʼani gyee ne ho.
8Akyire no a ɔresane akɔ Timna akɔhyia ayeforɔ no, ɔmane kɔhwɛɛ gyata no funu no. Ɔhunuu sɛ nwowa kuo akɔyɛ ɛwoɔ wɔ mu. 9Ɔkɔtii ɛwoɔ no bi dii wɔ ɛkwan so. Ɔmaa nʼawofoɔ no bi ma wɔdiiɛ. Nanso, wanka ankyerɛ wɔn sɛ ɔnyaa ɛwoɔ no wɔ gyata funu no mu.
10Afei, ɛberɛ a nʼagya reyɛ ahoboa ama awaregyeɛ no, Samson too ɛpono wɔ Timna, sɛdeɛ amanneɛ kyerɛ saa ɛberɛ no. 11Wɔtoo nsa frɛɛ mmeranteɛ aduasa a wɔfiri kuro no mu sɛ wɔmmɛka ne ho. 12Samson ka kyerɛɛ wɔn sɛ, “Momma menka aborɔme bi nkyerɛ mo. Sɛ nnanson apontoɔ yi mu, motumi yi ano a, mɛma mo serekyetam ntadeɛ aduasa ne ntadeɛ ahodoɔ bi nso aduasa. 13Sɛ moantumi anyi ano nso a, mo nso mobɛma me serekyetam ntadeɛ aduasa ne ntadeɛ ahodoɔ bi nso aduasa.”
Wɔka kyerɛɛ no sɛ, “Ka aborɔme no ma yɛntie.”
14Ɔkaa no sɛ,
“Deɛ ɔdie mu na wɔnya biribi a wɔdie;
ɔhoɔdenfoɔ mu na ɔdɛ firi ba.”
Nnansa akyi no, na wɔntumi nyii ano.
15Ne nna ɛnan soɔ no, wɔkɔka kyerɛɛ Samson yere sɛ, “Gye aborɔme no mmuaeɛ firi wo kunu hɔ ma yɛn, anyɛ saa a, yɛbɛhye wo ne wʼagya fie ama wɔawu. Motoo nsa frɛɛ yɛn wɔ ha sɛ morebɛsisi yɛn anaa?”
16Enti, Samson yere de su baa ne nkyɛn bɛkaa sɛ, “Wonnɔ me. Wotan me! Woaka aborɔme bi akyerɛ me nkurɔfoɔ, nanso, wonkyerɛɛ me aseɛ.”
Samson buaa ne yere no sɛ, “Saa ara na mʼagya ne me maame nso menkyerɛɛ wɔn aseɛ. Na adɛn enti na ɛsɛ sɛ meka kyerɛ wo?” 17Enti, ɔsu guu ne so biribiara ɔne no wɔ hɔ. Ɔkɔɔ so saa ara nna a aka na apontoɔ no aba nʼawieeɛ nyinaa. Nnanson so no, ɛsiane ha a ɔhaa no enti, ɔkyerɛɛ no aseɛ. Ɔno nso kaa aborɔme asekyerɛ no kyerɛɛ mmeranteɛ no.
18Na nnanson so, ansa na owia rebɛtɔ no, kuro no mu mmarima baa Samson nkyɛn bɛkyerɛɛ no aseɛ sɛ,
“Ɛdeɛn na ɛyɛ dɛ sene woɔ?
Ɛdeɛn na ɛwɔ ahoɔden sene gyata?”
Samson buaa wɔn sɛ, “Sɛ mo ne ɔfatwafoɔ no antu agyina, anka morennya aborɔme no asekyerɛ.”
19Afei, Awurade Honhom de ahoɔden kɛseɛ bi baa ne so. Ɔkɔɔ Askelon14.19 Na Askelon yɛ Filistia kuro. kuro mu. Ɔkunkumm mmarima aduasa faa wɔn agyapadeɛ nyinaa. Ɔde wɔn ntadeɛ maa mmarima a wɔyii aborɔme no ano no. Na Samson bo annwo deɛ ɛbaeɛ no ho yie enti ɔkɔɔ ne fie na ɔne nʼawofoɔ kɔtenaeɛ. 20Enti, wɔde ne yere no maa ɔbarima a na ɔdi Samson nan ase wɔ wɔn ayeforɔhyia mu no awadeɛ.
Samson’s Marriage
1Samson went down to Timnah and saw there a young Philistine woman. 2When he returned, he said to his father and mother, “I have seen a Philistine woman in Timnah; now get her for me as my wife.”
3His father and mother replied, “Isn’t there an acceptable woman among your relatives or among all our people? Must you go to the uncircumcised Philistines to get a wife?”
But Samson said to his father, “Get her for me. She’s the right one for me.” 4(His parents did not know that this was from the Lord, who was seeking an occasion to confront the Philistines; for at that time they were ruling over Israel.)
5Samson went down to Timnah together with his father and mother. As they approached the vineyards of Timnah, suddenly a young lion came roaring toward him. 6The Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon him so that he tore the lion apart with his bare hands as he might have torn a young goat. But he told neither his father nor his mother what he had done. 7Then he went down and talked with the woman, and he liked her.
8Some time later, when he went back to marry her, he turned aside to look at the lion’s carcass, and in it he saw a swarm of bees and some honey. 9He scooped out the honey with his hands and ate as he went along. When he rejoined his parents, he gave them some, and they too ate it. But he did not tell them that he had taken the honey from the lion’s carcass.
10Now his father went down to see the woman. And there Samson held a feast, as was customary for young men. 11When the people saw him, they chose thirty men to be his companions.
12“Let me tell you a riddle,” Samson said to them. “If you can give me the answer within the seven days of the feast, I will give you thirty linen garments and thirty sets of clothes. 13If you can’t tell me the answer, you must give me thirty linen garments and thirty sets of clothes.”
“Tell us your riddle,” they said. “Let’s hear it.”
14He replied,
“Out of the eater, something to eat;
out of the strong, something sweet.”
For three days they could not give the answer.
15On the fourth14:15 Some Septuagint manuscripts and Syriac; Hebrew seventh day, they said to Samson’s wife, “Coax your husband into explaining the riddle for us, or we will burn you and your father’s household to death. Did you invite us here to steal our property?”
16Then Samson’s wife threw herself on him, sobbing, “You hate me! You don’t really love me. You’ve given my people a riddle, but you haven’t told me the answer.”
“I haven’t even explained it to my father or mother,” he replied, “so why should I explain it to you?” 17She cried the whole seven days of the feast. So on the seventh day he finally told her, because she continued to press him. She in turn explained the riddle to her people.
18Before sunset on the seventh day the men of the town said to him,
“What is sweeter than honey?
What is stronger than a lion?”
Samson said to them,
“If you had not plowed with my heifer,
you would not have solved my riddle.”
19Then the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon him. He went down to Ashkelon, struck down thirty of their men, stripped them of everything and gave their clothes to those who had explained the riddle. Burning with anger, he returned to his father’s home. 20And Samson’s wife was given to one of his companions who had attended him at the feast.
