1 B ut some days later, in the time of wheat harvest, Samson went to visit his wife, taking along a kid; and he said, I will go unto my wife in the inner chamber. But her father would not allow him to go in.

And it cometh to pass, after days, in the days of wheat-harvest, that Samson looketh after his wife, with a kid of the goats, and saith, `I go in unto my wife, to the inner chamber;' and her father hath not permitted him to go in,

2 A nd her father said, I truly thought you utterly hated her, so I gave her to your companion. Is her younger sister not fairer than she? Take her, I pray you, instead.

and her father saith, I certainly said, that thou didst certainly hate her, and I give her to thy companion; is not her sister -- the young one -- better than she? Let her be, I pray thee, to thee, instead of her.'

3 A nd Samson said of them, This time shall I be blameless as regards the Philistines, though I do them evil.

And Samson saith of them, `I am more innocent this time than the Philistines, though I am doing with them evil.'

4 S o Samson went and caught 300 foxes or jackals and took torches and turning the foxes tail to tail, he put a torch between each pair of tails.

And Samson goeth and catcheth three hundred foxes, and taketh torches, and turneth tail unto tail, and putteth a torch between the two tails, in the midst,

5 A nd when he had set the torches ablaze, he let the foxes go into the standing grain of the Philistines, and he burned up the shocks and the standing grain, along with the olive orchards.

and kindleth fire in the torches, and sendeth out into the standing corn of the Philistines, and burneth from heap even unto standing corn, even unto vineyard -- olive-yard.

6 T hen the Philistines said, Who has done this? And they were told, Samson, the son-in-law of the Timnite, because he has taken his wife and has given her to his companion. And the Philistines came up and burned her and her father with fire.

And the Philistines say, `Who hath done this?' And they say, `Samson, son-in-law of the Timnite, because he hath taken away his wife, and giveth her to his companion;' and the Philistines go up, and burn her and her father with fire.

7 A nd Samson said to them, If this is the way you act, surely I will take revenge on you, and after that I will quit.

And Samson saith to them, `Though ye do thus, nevertheless I am avenged on you, and afterwards I cease!'

8 A nd he smote them hip and thigh, a great slaughter; and he went down and dwelt in the cleft of the rock of Etam.

And he smiteth them hip and thigh -- a great smiting, and goeth down and dwelleth in the cleft of the rock Etam.

9 T hen the Philistines came up and encamped in Judah and spread themselves in Lehi.

And the Philistines go up, and encamp in Judah, and are spread out in Lehi,

10 A nd the men of Judah said, Why have you come up against us? And they answered, We have come up to bind Samson, to do to him as he has done to us.

and the men of Judah say, `Why have ye come up against us?' and they say, `To bind Samson we have come up, to do to him as he hath done to us.'

11 T hen 3, 000 men of Judah went down to the cleft of the rock Etam and said to Samson, Have you not known that the Philistines are rulers over us? What is this that you have done to us? He said to them, As they did to me, so have I done to them.

And three thousand men of Judah go down unto the cleft of the rock Etam, and say to Samson, `Hast thou now known that the Philistines are rulers over us? and what this thou hast done to us?' And he saith to them, `As they did to me, so I did to them.'

12 A nd they said to him, We have come down to bind you, that we may deliver you into the hands of the Philistines. And Samson said to them, Swear to me that you will not fall upon me yourselves.

And they say to him, `To bind thee we have come down -- to give thee into the hand of the Philistines.' And Samson saith to them, `Swear to me, lest ye fall upon me yourselves.'

13 A nd they said to him, No, we will bind you fast and give you into their hand; but surely we will not kill you. So they bound him with two new ropes and brought him up from the rock.

And they speak to him, saying, No, but we certainly bind thee, and have given thee into their hand, and we certainly do not put thee to death;' and they bind him with two thick bands, new ones, and bring him up from the rock.

14 A nd when he came to Lehi, the Philistines came shouting to meet him. And the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon, and the ropes on his arms became as flax that had caught fire, and his bonds melted off his hands.

He hath come unto Lehi -- and the Philistines have shouted at meeting him -- and the Spirit of Jehovah prospereth over him, and the thick bands which on his arms are as flax which they burn with fire, and his bands are wasted from off his hands,

15 A nd he found a still moist jawbone of a donkey and reached out and took it and slew 1, 000 men with it.

and he findeth a fresh jaw-bone of an ass, and putteth forth his hand and taketh it, and smiteth with it -- a thousand men.

16 A nd Samson said, With the jawbone of a donkey, heaps upon heaps, with the jawbone of a donkey I have slain 1, 000 men!

And Samson saith, `With a jaw-bone of the ass -- an ass upon asses -- with a jaw-bone of the ass I have smitten a thousand men.'

17 A nd when he stopped speaking, he cast the jawbone from his hand; and that place was called Ramath-lehi.

And it cometh to pass when he finisheth speaking, that he casteth away the jaw-bone out of his hand, and calleth that place Ramath-Lehi;

18 S amson was very thirsty, and he prayed to the Lord and said, You have given this great deliverance by the hand of Your servant, and now shall I die of thirst and fall into the hands of the uncircumcised?

and he thirsteth exceedingly, and calleth unto Jehovah, and saith, `Thou -- Thou hast given by the hand of Thy servant this great salvation; and now, I die with thirst, and have fallen into the hand of the uncircumcised.'

19 A nd God split open the hollow place that was at Lehi, and water came out of it. And when he drank, his spirit returned and he revived. Therefore the name of it was called En-hakkore, which is at Lehi to this day.

And God cleaveth the hollow place which in Lehi, and waters come out of it, and he drinketh, and his spirit cometh back, and he reviveth; therefore hath called its name `The fountain of him who is calling,' which in Lehi unto this day.

20 A nd judged (defended) Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years.

And he judgeth Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years.