Ukwati wa Samsoni
1Samsoni anapita ku Timna ndipo kumeneko anaonako mtsikana wa Chifilisiti. 2Atabwerera kwawo, anawuza abambo ndi amayi ake kuti, “Ine ndaona mtsikana wa Chifilisiti ku Timna, tsono mukanditengere ameneyo kuti akhale mkazi wanga.”
3Koma abambo ndi amayi ake anayankha kuti, “Kodi palibe mkazi pakati pa abale akowa kapena pakati pa anthu a mtundu wako, kuti iwe upite kukapeza mkazi kwa Afilisti anthu osachita mdulidwe?”
Koma Samsoni anawuza abambo ake kuti, “Kanditengereni ameneyu basi, pakuti ndamukonda.” 4(Abambo ndi amayi ake sankadziwa kuti zimenezi zinali zochokera kwa Yehova, pakuti Yehova amafuna powapezera chifukwa Afilistiwo. Nthawi imeneyo nʼkuti Afilisti akulamulira Aisraeli). 5Choncho Samsoni pamodzi ndi abambo ake anapita ku Timna. Akuyandikira minda ya mpesa ya ku Timna, mwadzidzidzi anamva kubuma kwa mkango waungʼono ukubwera kumene kunali iye. 6Tsono Mzimu wa Yehova unafika ndi mphamvu pa Samsoni ndipo ngakhale analibe chida mʼmanja mwake, iye anakadzula mkangowo ngati akukadzula mwana wambuzi. Koma sanawuze abambo kapena amayi ake zimene anachitazo. 7Kenaka Samsoni anapita kukakambirana ndi mkaziyo, ndipo anamukonda mtsikanayo.
8Patapita nthawi, Samsoni anabwerera kukatenga mtsikana uja. Panjira anapatuka kukaona mkango unawupha uja, ndipo anangoona njuchi zili mu mkangowo pamodzi ndi uchi wake. 9Tsono anakomberako uchi uja mʼmanja mwake ndi kumapita akudya. Atabwereranso kwa abambo ndi amayi ake, anawapatsako uchiwo ndipo anadya. Koma sanawawuze kuti uchi umenewo anawufula mu mkango wakufa.
10Tsopano Samsoni anapita ku nyumba kwa mtsikanayo. Ndipo kumeneko Samsoni anakonza phwando monga ankachitira anyamata. 11Makolo a mkwatibwiyo atamuona, anasankha anyamata makumi atatu kuti akhale naye.
12Samsoni anawawuza kuti, “Bwanji ndikuphereni mwambi. Mukandiwuza tanthauzo lake asanathe masiku asanu ndi awiri aphwandowa, ndidzakupatsani zovala makumi atatu za bafuta ndi zina makumi atatu za tsiku la chikondwerero. 13Koma ngati simutha kundiwuza tanthauzo lake, inuyo mudzandipatsa zovala makumi atatu zabafuta ndi zina za tsiku la chikondwerero.”
Iwo anamuyankha kuti, “Tiwuze mwambi wakowo tiwumve.”
14Iye anati,
“Chakudya chinatuluka mu chinthu chodya chinzake;
ndipo chozuna chinatuluka mu chinthu champhamvu.”
Panapita masiku atatu anthuwo akulephera kumasulira mwambiwo.
15Tsiku lachinayi anthuwo anawuza mkazi wa Samsoni kuti, “Umunyengerere mwamuna wako kuti akuwuze tanthauzo la mwambiwu. Ngati sutero tikutentha iweyo pamodzi ndi nyumba ya abambo ako. Kodi unatiyitana kuti mudzatilande zinthu zathu?”
16Kenaka mkazi wa Samsoni anayamba kulira pamaso pake namuwuza kuti, “Inu mumandida ndipo simundikonda. Mwaphera anyamata a mtundu wathu mwambi, koma ine wosandiwuza tanthauzo lake.”
Samsoni anamuyankha kuti, “Taona sindinawuze abambo kapena amayi anga, ndiye ndiwuze iweyo?” 17Mkaziyo anamulirira masiku onse asanu ndi awiri aphwandowo. Choncho pa tsiku lachisanu ndi chiwiri anamuwuza tanthauzo lake popeza amamukakamiza. Ndipo mkaziyo anakawuza abale ake aja tanthauzo la mwambiwo.
18Pambuyo pake anthu a mu mzinda aja anamuwuza Samsoni pa tsiku lachisanu ndi chiwiri dzuwa lisanalowe kuti,
“Chozuna nʼchiyani choposa uchi?
Champhamvu nʼchiyani choposa mkango?”
Samsoni anawawuza kuti,
“Mukanapanda kutipula ndi ngʼombe yanga yayingʼono,
simukanatha kumasulira mwambi wangawu.”
19Ndipo Mzimu wa Yehova unafika pa iye mwamphamvu. Choncho anatsikira ku Asikeloni naphako anthu makumi atatu, natenga zovala zawo za tsiku la chikondwerero napereka kwa anthu amene anamasulira mwambi wake. Kenaka anabwerera ku nyumba ya abambo ake ndi mkwiyo waukulu. 20Ndipo mkazi wa Samsoniyo anamukwatitsa kwa amene anali mnzake womuperekeza pa ukwati paja.
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 towards 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 ploughed 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.
