Samson Gets Even With the Philistines
1Later on, Samson went to visit his wife. He took a young goat with him. He went at the time the wheat was being gathered. He said, “I’m going to my wife’s room.” But her father wouldn’t let him go in.
2Her father said, “I was sure you hated her. So I gave her to your companion. Isn’t her younger sister more beautiful? Take her instead.”
3Samson said to them, “This time I have a right to get even with the Philistines. I’m going to hurt them badly.” 4So he went out and caught 300 foxes. He tied them in pairs by their tails. Then he tied a torch to each pair of tails. 5He lit the torches. He let the foxes loose in the fields of grain that belonged to the Philistines. He burned up the grain that had been cut and stacked. He burned up the grain that was still growing. He also burned up the vineyards and olive trees.
6The Philistines asked, “Who did this?” They were told, “Samson did. He’s the son-in-law of the man from Timnah. Samson did it because his wife was given to his companion.”
So the Philistines went up and burned the woman and her father to death. 7Samson said to the Philistines, “Is that how you act? Then I promise I won’t stop until I pay you back.” 8He struck them down with heavy blows. He killed many of them. Then he went down and stayed in a cave. It was in the rock of Etam.
9The Philistines went up and camped in Judah. They spread out near Lehi. 10The people of Judah asked, “Why have you come to fight against us?”
“We’ve come to take Samson as our prisoner,” they answered. “We want to do to him what he did to us.”
11Then 3,000 men from Judah went to get Samson. They went down to the cave in the rock of Etam. They said to Samson, “Don’t you realize the Philistines are ruling over us? What have you done to us?”
Samson answered, “I only did to them what they did to me.”
12The men of Judah said to him, “We’ve come to tie you up. We’re going to hand you over to the Philistines.”
Samson said, “Promise me you won’t kill me yourselves.”
13“We agree,” they answered. “We’ll only tie you up and hand you over to them. We won’t kill you.” So they tied him up with two new ropes. They led him up from the rock. 14Samson approached Lehi. The Philistines came toward him shouting. Then the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully on Samson. The ropes on his arms became like burned thread. They dropped off his hands. 15He found a fresh jawbone of a donkey. He grabbed it and struck down 1,000 men.
16Then Samson said,
“By using a donkey’s jawbone
I’ve made them look like donkeys.
By using a donkey’s jawbone
I’ve struck down 1,000 men.”
17Samson finished speaking. Then he threw the jawbone away. That’s why the place was called Ramath Lehi.
18Samson was very thirsty. So he cried out to the Lord. He said, “You have helped me win this great battle. Do I have to die of thirst now? Must I fall into the power of people who haven’t even been circumcised? They aren’t your people.” 19Then God opened up the hollow place in Lehi. Water came out of it. When Samson drank the water, his strength returned. He felt as good as new. So the spring was called En Hakkore. It’s still there in Lehi.
20Samson led Israel for 20 years. In those days the Philistines were in the land.
Samson Aweretɔ Wɔ Filistifo So
1Akyiri no, awitwabere mu no, Samson faa abirekyi ba sɛ ɔde rekɔkyɛ ne yere. Ɔpɛɛ sɛ anka ɔkɔda ne nkyɛn, nanso ɔbea no agya amma no mu kwan.
2Ɔbea no agya no kae se, “Medwenee sɛ na wotan no, ɛno nti, mede no ama ɔbarima a na odi wʼanan ase wɔ mo ayeforohyia mu no. Nanso hwɛ ne nuabea ho yɛ fɛ sen no. Ware no si anan.”
3Samson kae se, “Saa bere yi, obiara rentumi mmɔ me sobo wɔ biribiara a merebɛyɛ mo Filistifo ho.” 4Afei ofii hɔ kɔe, kɔkyeree sakraman ahaasa. Ɔkyekyeree sakraman abien abien dua bɔɔ ho, na ɔkyekyeree ogyatɛn fam dua abien biara ho. 5Ɔsɔɔ ogyatɛn no na ɔmaa sakraman no tuu mmirika faa Filistifo mfuw mu. Ɔhyew wɔn awi nyinaa pasaa; nea wɔahyehyɛ wɔ san so ne nea wontwae nyinaa. Ɔsɛee wɔn bobeturo ne ngonnua nyinaa.
6Filistifo no bisae se, “Na hena na ɔyɛɛ saa amumɔyɛ yi?” Wɔn ara buae se, “Ɛyɛ Samson efisɛ nʼase barima a ofi Timna de Samson yere ama ɔbarima a na odi ne nan ase wɔ wɔn ayeforohyia mu no aware.” Enti Filistifo no kɔkyeree ɔbea no ne nʼagya hyew wɔn ma wowuwui.
7Samson suae se, “Esiane nea moayɛ yi nti, metua mo so ka na merennyae ara da kosi sɛ me bo bɛtɔ me yam!” 8Enti ɔde abufuw kɔtow hyɛɛ Filistifo no so kunkum wɔn mu bebree. Afei, ɔkɔtenaa ɔbodan bi a ɛwɔ ɔbotan bi mu wɔ Etam.
9Filistifo no nso kyeree nsraban wɔ Yuda sɛee Lehi kurow no de tuaa ne so ka. 10Yuda mmarima bisaa Filistifo no se, “Adɛn nti na motow hyɛ yɛn so saa?”
Filistifo no buae se, “Yɛaba sɛ yɛrebɛkyere Samson. Nea ɔyɛɛ yɛn no, yɛrebetua no so ka.” 11Enti Yudafo mpensa kɔɔ ɔbodan a ɛwɔ ɔbotan mu wɔ Etam no sɛ wɔrekɔkyere Samson. Wɔka kyerɛɛ Samson sɛ, “Wunnim sɛ Filistifo na wodi yɛn so? Dɛn na woreyɛ yɛn yi?”
Nanso Samson buae wɔn se, “Nea wɔyɛɛ me no na mituaa wɔn so ka.”
12Nanso Yuda mmarima ka kyerɛɛ no se, “Yɛaba sɛ yɛrebɛkyekyere wo na yɛde wo akɔma Filistifo.”
Samson kae se, “Monhyɛ me bɔ sɛ mo ankasa de, morenkum me.”
13Wobuae se, “Yɛbɛkyekyere wo de wo akɔma Filistifo. Yɛrenkum wo.” Enti wɔde hama foforo abien guu ne so kyekyeree no papee, twee no fii ɔbotan no mu.
14Samson duu Lehi no, Filistifo no bɔɔ ose. Na Awurade Honhom tumi mu ahoɔden baa Samson so. Ɔtetew ahama a egu ne nsa so no mu te sɛ nhoma nketewa bi a ogya aka, maa ne nyinaa tetew fii ne nsakɔn guu fam. 15Afei, ɔmaa afurum abogye bi a na ɛda fam so de kunkum Filistifo apem. 16Na Samson kae se,
“Mede afurum abogye,
Ahɔre wɔn sɛ siw!
Mede afurum abogye,
akunkum mmarima apem!”
17Na owiee kasa no, ɔtow abogye no kyenee. Na wɔtoo beae hɔ din Ramat-Lehi a ase ne Abogye bepɔw.
18Ɛbaa sɛ osukɔm dee Samson yiye nti osu frɛɛ Awurade sɛ, “Wonam wʼakoa ahoɔden so adi saa nkonim kɛse yi. Na enti osukɔm nkum me, na minwu wɔ saa abosonsomfo yi nsam ana?” 19Enti Awurade maa nsu pue fii tokuru bi mu wɔ Lehi asase so baabi. Na Samson nom bi no, ne ho san no. Na ɔtoo hɔ din se En-Hakore, na ɛda so wɔ Lehi de besi nnɛ.
20Samson yɛɛ Israel so temmufo mfe aduonu; bere a na Filistifo di Israel asase so no.
