Then Samson went down to Timnah with his father and his mother, and came to the vineyards of Timnah; and behold, a young lion roared at him. Yahweh’s Spirit came mightily on him, and he tore him as he would have torn a young goat with his bare hands, but he didn’t tell his father or his mother what he had done. He went down and talked with the woman, and she pleased Samson well. After a while he returned to take her, and he went over to see the carcass of the lion; and behold, there was a swarm of bees in the body of the lion, and honey. He took it into his hands, and went on, eating as he went. He came to his father and mother and gave to them, and they ate, but he didn’t tell them that he had taken the honey out of the lion’s body.
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Judges 14:5-9 sits inside this longer paragraph.
Then Samson went down to Timnah with his father and his mother, and came to the vineyards of Timnah; and behold, a young lion roared at him. Yahweh’s Spirit came mightily on him, and he tore him as he would have torn a young goat with his bare hands, but he didn’t tell his father or his mother what he had done. He went down and talked with the woman, and she pleased Samson well. After a while he returned to take her, and he went over to see the carcass of the lion; and behold, there was a swarm of bees in the body of the lion, and honey. He took it into his hands, and went on, eating as he went. He came to his father and mother and gave to them, and they ate, but he didn’t tell them that he had taken the honey out of the lion’s body. His father went down to the woman; and Samson made a feast there, for the young men used to do so. When they saw him, they brought thirty companions to be with him.
Parallel Translations
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Then Samson went down to Timnah with his father and his mother, and came to the vineyards of Timnah; and behold, a young lion roared at him.
Yahweh’s Spirit came mightily on him, and he tore him as he would have torn a young goat with his bare hands, but he didn’t tell his father or his mother what he had done.
He went down and talked with the woman, and she pleased Samson well.
After a while he returned to take her, and he went over to see the carcass of the lion; and behold, there was a swarm of bees in the body of the lion, and honey.
He took it into his hands, and went on, eating as he went. He came to his father and mother and gave to them, and they ate, but he didn’t tell them that he had taken the honey out of the lion’s body.
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Then went Samson down, and his father and his mother, to Timnath, and came to the vineyards of Timnath: and, behold, a young lion roared against him.
And the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him, and he rent him as he would have rent a kid, and he had nothing in his hand: but he told not his father or his mother what he had done.
And he went down, and talked with the woman; and she pleased Samson well.
And after a time he returned to take her, and he turned aside to see the carcase of the lion: and, behold, there was a swarm of bees and honey in the carcase of the lion.
And he took thereof in his hands, and went on eating, and came to his father and mother, and he gave them, and they did eat: but he told not them that he had taken the honey out of the carcase of the lion.
Show all 3 translations
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Then went Samson down, and his father and his mother, to Timnah, and came to the vineyards of Timnah; and, behold, a young lion roared against him.
And the spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him, and he rent him as one would have rent a kid, and he had nothing in his hand; but he told not his father or his mother what he had done.
And he went down, and talked with the woman; and she pleased Samson well.
And after a while he returned to take her, and he turned aside to see the carcass of the lion; and, behold, there was a swarm of bees in the body of the lion, and honey.
And he scraped it out into his hands, and went on, eating as he went, and he came to his father and mother, and gave unto them, and they did eat; but he told them not that he had scraped the honey out of the body of the lion.
Examined in Scripture Analysis
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Historical claims about the natural world, weighed against the scientific record.
Cross-references (17)
- Judges 3:10 (v6) Yahweh’s Spirit came on him, and he judged Israel; and he went out to war, and Yahweh delivered Cushan Rishathaim king of Mesopotamia into…
- Zechariah 4:6 (v6) Then he answered and spoke to me, saying, “This is Yahweh’s word to Zerubbabel, saying, ‘Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit,’…
- Judges 13:25 (v6) Yahweh’s Spirit began to move him in Mahaneh Dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol.
- 1 Samuel 11:6 (v6) God’s Spirit came mightily on Saul when he heard those words, and his anger burned hot.
- 1 Samuel 17:34-37 (v6) David said to Saul, “Your servant was keeping his father’s sheep; and when a lion or a bear came, and took a lamb out of the flock, I went…
Show all 17 cross-references
- 1 Samuel 17:46 (v6) Today, Yahweh will deliver you into my hand. I will strike you, and take your head from off you. I will give the dead bodies of the army of…
- Isaiah 42:2 (v6) He will not shout, nor raise his voice, nor cause it to be heard in the street.
- 1 John 3:8 (v6) He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. To this end the Son of God was revealed: that he might…
- Judges 15:8 (v6) He struck them hip and thigh with a great slaughter; and he went down and lived in the cave in Etam’s rock.
- Judges 15:15 (v6) He found a fresh jawbone of a donkey, put out his hand, took it, and struck a thousand men with it.
- Judges 16:30 (v6) Samson said, “Let me die with the Philistines!” He bowed himself with all his might; and the house fell on the lords, and on all the people…
- 1 Samuel 14:25-30 (v9) All the people came into the forest; and there was honey on the ground. When the people had come to the forest, behold, honey was dripping,…
- Matthew 11:29 (v6) Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and you will find rest for your souls.
- Judges 11:29 (v6) Then Yahweh’s Spirit came on Jephthah, and he passed over Gilead and Manasseh, and passed over Mizpah of Gilead, and from Mizpah of Gilead…
- Proverbs 25:15 (v9) By patience a ruler is persuaded. A soft tongue breaks the bone.
- Genesis 29:21 (v8) Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I may go in to her.”
- Matthew 1:20 (v8) But when he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, don’t be…
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this passage (16 sources)
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Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv6, 8 Whereby he had strength and boldness.
Whereby he had strength and boldness.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv5–9 Jdg 14:5 Then went Samson down, and his father…
Jdg 14:5 Then went Samson down, and his father and his mother, to Timnath, and came to the vineyards of Timnath: and, behold, a young lion roared against him.
Ver. 5. Then went Samson down, and his father and his mother.] Who were overcome by his importunity; and being loath to cross his desires, yielded to him, though against their own judgments.
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And, behold, a young lion.] Adultus leo, a lion in his full strength and utmost fierceness, met him with open mouth.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv5, 6, 8, 9 His father and his mother accompanied him, either because…
His father and his mother accompanied him, either because they were now acquainted with his design, or to order the circumstances of that action which they saw he was set upon, or to watch if they could find any occasion to take him off from his intention.
Came to the vineyards of Timnath, whither he had turned aside, either by a Divine impulse, or upon some real or pretended occasion.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv5–9 Then went Samson down, and his father and his…
Then went Samson down, and his father and his mother, to Timnath,.... They were prevailed upon to go with him, either because they perceived his affections were so strongly set upon a wife, that they thought it advisable to agree to it, lest it should be of bad consequence to him, or because he let them know that the thing was of God, and what was his design in it:
and came to the vineyards of Timnath; the land of Canaan was a land of vineyards, and particularly that part of it which was inhabited by the Philistines and Phoenicians; and though we nowhere read of the wine of Timnath, yet frequent mention is made in authors of the wine of Ashkelon, Gaza, and Sarepta, inhabited by the above people; these vineyards seem to have lain somewhat out of Samson's way; but hither he turned on some account or another from his parents, perhaps to eat some grapes:
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and, behold, a young lion roared against him; not a whelp, that is expressed by another word, but one more grown, and is afterwards called a lion simply; and, by the Targum, a lion, the son of lions or lionesses; which seeing him in the vineyards, where he was lurking, came out to meet him, and roared at him in a hideous manner, and came up to him to destroy him: these creatures, though now more rare in those parts, were at this time frequent, and in later times: see Sa1 17:34 and several writers (y) make mention of lions in Mesopotamia and Syria; and Strabo (z), and Pliny (a) speak of a city in Phoenicia near Sidon, called the city of lions, because perhaps it had been much infested with them; and for a like reason it may be some cities in the tribes of Judah and Simeon were called Lebaoth and Bethlebaoth, Jos 15:32.
(y) Strabo. Geograph. l. 16. p. 514. Curtius, l. 8. sect. 1. Plin. Nat. Hist. l. 8. c. 16. (z) Geograph, l. 16. p. 520. (a) Nat. Hist. l. 5. c. 20.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv5, 6, 8, 9 Father and mother - Who accompanied him, either because…
Father and mother - Who accompanied him, either because they were now acquainted with his design; or, to order the circumstances of that action which they saw he was set upon.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv5–8 Verse 5. A young lion roared against him.] Came…
Verse 5. A young lion roared against him.] Came fiercely out upon him, ready to tear him to pieces.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv5, 8 Jdg 14:5-6. And his father and mother — Who…
Jdg 14:5-6. And his father and mother — Who accompanied him, either because they were now acquainted with his design, or to order the circumstances of that action which they saw he was set upon. The Spirit of the Lord came mightily — Increased his courage and bodily strength. As he would have rent a kid — As soon and as safely. Told not, &c. — Lest by their means it should be publicly known; for he wisely considered, that it was not yet a fit time to awaken the jealousies and fears of the Philistines concerning him, as this would have done.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On v8 The formal dowry and gifts having been given by…
The formal dowry and gifts having been given by Samson’s father, an interval, varying according to the Oriental custom, from a few days to a full year, elapsed between the betrothal and the wedding, during which the bride lived with her friends. Then came the essential part of the marriage ceremony, namely, the removal of the bride from her father’s house to that of the bridegroom or his father.
The carcase of the lion - The lion, slain by him a year or some months before, had now become a mere skeleton, fit for bees to swarm into. It was a universal notion among the ancients that bees were generated from the carcass of an ox.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv5–8 Young lion, not quite so strong as an old…
Young lion, not quite so strong as an old one, but in its vigour. (Rabbins) (Calmet) --- Met him. Hebrew, "roared against him." (Haydock) --- His parents were at some distance. (Menochius) --- St. Augustine (in Psalm lxxxviii.) shews the application of this history to Christ’s establishing and adorning the church of the Gentiles with sweet and wholesome laws. (Du Hamel)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures 1864 · Public Domain On v5 Samson goes down to Timnah, with his parents, to…
Samson goes down to Timnah, with his parents, to speak with his bride-elect. On the way, he meets and tears a young lion.
Jdg_14:5-9.
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5Then went Samson [And Samson went] down, and his father and his mother, to Timnath [Timnathah], and [they] came to the vineyards of Timnath [Timnathah] and behold, a young lion roared against him [came to meet him, roaring]. 6And the Spirit of the Lord [Jehovah] came mightily [suddenly] upon him, and he rent him as he would have rent [as one rends] a kid, and he had nothing in his hand but [and] he told not his father or his mother what he had done. 7And he went down, and talked with the woman; and she pleased Samson well [was pleasing in the eyes of Samson]. 8And after a time he returned to take her, and he turned aside to see the carcass of the lion: and behold, there was a swarm of bees and honey in the carcass of the lion. 9And he took thereof in his hands, and went on [,] eating [as he went], and came to his father and mother, and he gave them, and they did eat: but he told not them [them not] that he had taken the honey out of the carcass of the lion.
EXEGETICAL AND DOCTRINAL
Jdg_14:5. And Samson went down, with his father and mother, to Timnathah. The parents give way; at all events, they now first go down, with Samson, to see the maiden, and ascertain more about her. The proper object of the journey appears from Jdg_14:7, where we are told that Samson “talked with the woman, and she pleased him.” Hitherto he had only seen her (Jdg_14:1). His parents urge him to “speak with her,” in order to convince himself of her character;2 and he determines to do so. On this account, the statement of Jdg_14:3 is repeated in Jdg_14:7 : “she pleased him” now, after speaking with her, as formerly after seeing her; he therefore persists in his suit, and appoints the time of his marriage. The hope of the parents that the woman, by her want of agreeableness and spirit, would discourage their son, is not realized. No such want seems to have existed, so far as he was concerned.
And a young lion came to meet him, roaring. Samson went to Timnathah to look for a wife, not to engage in a lion-hunt. The comparison of his lion-fight with that of Hercules in Nemea, is altogether superficial and uncritical; and the idea that his victory is to be regarded as the first of twelve exploits,3 has no foundation either in his spirit or history. The Nemean victory, as I hope yet to show elsewhere, is the expression of a mythical symbolism, and is accordingly, to a certain extent, an epos complete in itself. Samson’s conflict with the lion is an incidental occurrence. It was neither the object of his expedition originally, nor did it come to be its central point of interest afterwards. The chief difference between the two stories lies in the totally different vocations of the heroes: Hercules wrestles with beasts, conquers the hostility which, according to the Hellenic myth, inheres in Nature; Samson is a conqueror of men, a national hero who triumphs over the enemies of his people and their faith, a champion of freedom, whose strength is so great that he can well afford to expend a little portion of it in a passing encounter with a lion. Samson is not elected to take the field against lions and foxes,—that would never have given him a name in the history of Israel; but his strength and dexterity are great enough to enable him to make use of even lions and foxes, dead or alive, as means of his national conflict. Among his exploits, only the blows are reckoned, which he inflicted on the Philistines,—not the occasional means which he employed in their delivery. As little as David’s royal vocation was rooted in the battles of his shepherd days with lions and bears, so little was Samson’s destiny as a hero the outgrowth of his victory over the lion whom he did not seek, but who quite unexpectedly roared out against him. He had left his parents a little space, and when near the vine hills of Timnathah had entered into a wilderness skirting the road, when the monster rushed upon him.
Jdg_14:6. And the Spirit of Jehovah came upon him, וַתִּצְלַח רוּחַ. The peculiar force of צָלַח is, that it expresses the fortunateness of an occurrence, its happening just at the right time. In the very moment of need, the “Spirit of Jehovah” came upon him. In five passages where the expression “Spirit of Jehovah” occurs (Jdg_3:10; Jdg_6:34; Jdg_11:29; Jdg_13:25, and here), the Chaldee translation renders it “spirit of heroic strength” (geburah); for God also is a Gibbor, a Hero, and the translator wishes in this way to distinguish between the spirit of prophecy, the spirit of divine speech, which was also a spirit of God (cf. e. g., the Targum on Num_24:2 to Num_27:11, and also 1Sa_10:6, etc., רוּחַ נְבוּאָה), and the spirit of heroic action. But the original, very justly, makes no distinction; for in the view of divine doctrine all that man does is referred to the Spirit-source. Nothing succeeds without God. Samson needs that moral strength which does not fear the lion. The might, not of his arms, but of his soul, was of the first importance. For courageous undertakings, there is need of divine inspirations. Hence, the attack of Samson on the lion is here ascribed to an impulse of the Spirit of God, as well as Jephthah’s resolution to attack Ammon in his own country (Jdg_11:29). And it is to be further noted, that in every case the expression is, not the Spirit of Elohim, but the Spirit of Jehovah; for it was He on whom Israel was to believe, and from whom, for his own glory and the salvation of Israel, proceeded the power which Samson possessed against the enemies who knew not Jehovah.
And he rent him. It was a terrible lion that came to meet him: a כְּפיר, a term especially used when the rapacious and bloodthirsty nature of the lion is to be indicated. Bochart explains the compound name כְּפִיר אְרָיוֹת very beautifully by means of גְּרִי עִזִּים, especially here, where the fierceness of the lion is opposed to the weakness of a hoedus, kid of the goats. שָׁסַע is equivalent to σχίζω, to rend asunder. As the lion comes rushing towards him, Samson awaits him, seizes him, and rends his jaws asunder. And this he did as easily as if it were a kid of the goats. For the remark, “as one rends a kid,” does not imply that it was customary always to rend kids in this manner, but simply means that a kid could not have been more easily overcome than this powerful lion was. According to some ancient statements, Hercules choked his arms; and it is undoubtedly with reference to this that Josephus says of Samson also, that he strangled (ἄγχει) the monster. According to a French romance, Iwain, the romantic hero of the Round Table, derived his epithet, “Knight of the Lion,” from the fact that after a long struggle he had choked a lion: “il prist Lionian parmi la gorge as poinz.… si l’estrangla.” Cf. Holland, Chretien de Troyes, p. 161.
And he had nothing in his hand. He had gone forth to look for a wife, not expecting a battle. If, however, it be nevertheless surprising that a young man like Samson carried no weapons, we are to seek for the reason of it in the domination of the Philistines. Those tyrants suffered no weapons in the hands of the conquered, and hindered and prohibited the introduction of them and the traffic in them (cf. 1Sa_13:20). The suspicion of the enemy had found matter enough for its exercise, if young men like Samson had come armed into their cities. But even without arms, the heroic strength of Samson everywhere evinces itself; for not iron, but the Spirit, gives victory. Pausanias (Jdg_6:5) tells of Polydamas, a hero of Scotussa in Elis, who lived about 400 b. c., that he overcame a great and strong lion on Olympus, without a weapon of any kind.
And he told not his father or his mother what he had done. It is certainly instructive to institute a comparison between Samson and the numerous lion-conquerors of history and tradition. For it reveals Samson’s greatness of soul in a most significant way. To him, the victory over the lion is precisely not one of the twelve labors which in the Heraclean mythus is glorified by tradition and art. He wears no lion’s skin in consequence of it. He makes so little ado about it, that he does not even inform his parents of it, probably in order not to startle them at the thought of the danger to which he has been exposed. For, at that time, he could not yet have thought of his subsequent fanciful conceit. There is nothing unusual about his appearance and demeanor, when he again overtakes them. He exhibits neither excitement nor uncommon elation. The divine spirit that slumbered in him has just been active; but the deed he performed under its impulse appeared to him, as great deeds always do to great souls, to have nothing of a surprising character about it, but to be perfectly natural. Others are impressed to astonishment by what to such persons are but natural life utterances. What we call geniality, what in Samson appears as the result of divine consecration, cannot exhibit itself more beautifully. It is the fullness of spirit and strength in men, out of which exploit and heroism flow as streams flow from their sources. To this very day, it is only small spirits, albeit often in thick books, who watch like griffons over each little thought that occurs to them, fearing to lose the mirror in which they see themselves reflected, and the lion-skin with which proprietorship invests them. Of Samson’s victory nothing had ever been heard, had it not furnished him with the means for indulging in a national raillery against the Philistines.
What subjects of ostentation these conflicts with lions have everywhere been. Neither the great Macedonian nor the Roman Emperors, could dispense with them. An Alexandrian poet procured for himself a life-long pension from the Emperor Hadrian, by showing him a flowering lotus sprung from the blood of a lion whom the Emperor had slain. (More definite references to this and following passages, as also discussions of them, will be contained in my Hierozoicon. Other material, being already found in Bochart and the older commentators (cf. Serarius ad locum), may here be passed over.) The extravagance of the later writers of romance, both eastern and western, was no longer content with common lion-encounters for their heroes. The Arabian Antar conquers a lion although the hero’s feet are fettered. For Rustem and Wolfdieterich such exploits are performed even by their horses. It was only when the crusades put the knightly spirit to the test in the land of the lion, that Europeans experienced the historical terribleness of such conflicts. And few of them had the strength and resoluteness of Godfrey of Bouillon, who stood his ground against a bear, or of the bold and powerful Wicker von Schwaben, who, near Joppa, killed a great lion with the sword in his hand (Albert Aquensis, vii. 70; Wilken, Gesch. der Kreuzzüge, ii. 109). Yet these men are not myths, because such deeds are ascribed to them; nor do we suspect only mythical echoes in the stories that are told of them.
The deed of Samson is executed with such ease and freedom, and represented with such simplicity and naturalness, that if the narrative were not historical, it would be impossible to account for its origin. And yet, according to some, it is a mythical reflection of the legend concerning Hercules. The theories of these critics have their false basis in the Hellenistic one-sidedness by which the relation, according to which the myth must receive its symbols from nature and history, is often quite reversed, so that historical life-utterances are attenuated into ideas and mythical phantasies. It is as easy to show that every lion-conqueror, down to Gérard of our own days,—yea, that all menageries to the contrary notwithstanding, the lion himself must be declared mythical, as it is to prove that Samson’s encounter with a lion, in a region where the animal was then indigenous, related without the least approach to ostentation, and performed in the greatness of an unassuming spirit, cannot be historical.
Jdg_14:8. And after a time he returned. The betrothal had taken place, the wedding was to follow.4 Samson and his parents descended the same road again. As the hero came to the spot where on their recent journey he turned off from the road, and had the adventure with the lion, the incident came again into his mind, and he turned aside once more, in order to see what had become of the dead lion. Then he found that a swarm of bees had settled themselves in the skeleton of the beast.
The swarm of bees is significantly spoken of as the עֲדַת דְּבֹרִים, the congregation of bees. Commonly, עֵדָה designates the congregation of the Israelitish people, as regulated by the law. It is only on account of its wonderful social organization that a swarm of bees, but no other brute multitude,5 was denoted by the same name.6 Horapollo, in his work on Hieroglyphics (lib. i. 62), informs us that when the Egyptians wished to picture the idea of a people of law (πειθήνιον λαόν), they did it by the figure of a bee.
The skeleton of the lion had been thoroughly dried up by the heat, for which process, as Oedmann7 long ago remarked, scarcely twenty-four hours are required in the East. In this case many days had intervened. That bees readily settle in situations like the present, long since freed from all offensive odors, is well known from what expositors have adduced from Bochart and others. The instance of the swarm found settled in the head of the slain Onesilaus, in Amathus, may also, familiar as it is, be alluded to (Herodot. v. 114). The opinion of the ancients, that bees originate out of the carcasses of steers, wasps out of those of asses, and other insects out of dead horses and mules, may perhaps have some connection with the observation of phenomena like that which here met Samson’s eye (cf. Voss, Idololatria, lib. iv. p. 556, and others).
Bees must have a place of refuge from the weather. It has been observed, in recent times, that at present the bees of southern Palestine are smaller in size, and of a lighter yellow brown color than those of Germany (Ritter, xiv. 283). The term דְּבַשׁ, honey, is connected with דְּכוֹרָה, bee (by an interchange of r and s). It is a remarkable fact, to which I have already directed attention in my Berlin Wochenblatt, 1863, that our German [and by consequence, our English] names for wax and honey are perfectly identical with the Semitic terms for the same objects, although in an inverted relation. The Hebrew דְּבַשׁ (pronounce: dvash), honey, answers to the German Wachs (O. H. G. wahs), English, “wax;” and the Hebrew דּוֹנָנ (donag), wax, to the German Honig (honec), English, “honey;” and this is the only proper explanation to be given of the etymology of these German words.
Jdg_14:9. And he took thereof. The word רָדָה, according to my view, has nothing to do either with a signification “to tread,” or with the idea of “seizing,” “making one’s self master of;” but has preserved its original meaning in the later usus linguœ of the Mishna and Talmud, where it bears the signification “to draw out,” as bread is drawn out of the oven. The examples given by Buxtorff are borrowed from the Aruch of R. Nathan (172 a), where they may be found still more plain. Of bread in the oven it is said, ונותן בסל רודה, “it is drawn out and put into the basket.” R. Nathan also justly explains our passage by this signification. For Samson, in like manner, drew the honeycomb out of the hive, and put it on the palm of his hand (כַּף). Kimchi takes it in the same way (in his dictionary of roots, sub voce, near the close). Hence also, פרדה, mirda, is the oven-fork, with which things are drawn-out of the fire, Latin rutabulum. It is easily seen that a widely diffused root comes to view here (comp. forms like rutrum, rutellum, from eruo, erutum, Greek ῥύω, ῥυτήρ, ρυστάζω, etc.).
He drew out the honey, and as he had no other vessel, took it on his hand, and refreshed himself with it in the heat of the day, as Jonathan strengthened himself with it after the battle (1Sa_14:29). He also gave to his parents, who likewise relished it; but neither did he now tell them whence he had taken it. It would have involved telling them the history of the encounter with the lion; and though they might not now have been terrified by it, they would doubtless have caused a great deal of talk about it.
Roskoff,8 in his book Die Simsonssage und der Heraklesmythus, 1860, p. 65, thinks that the circumstance of Samson’s eating of honey taken from the lion’s skeleton, is a proof that the rule by which the Nazarite was required to abstain from anything unclean had not yet received its later extension, and that consequently the Mosaic law was not yet in existence. We cannot regard this position as very well founded. For this reason, if no other, that the Book which is intimately acquainted with the Mosaic law, relates this act of Samson without the addition of any explanatory remark. And it has very good reason for adding no explanation; for the objection proceeds upon a view of Samson’s Nazaritic character which is foreign to the Book, and greatly affects the proper understanding of his history. The truth is, the hero was not at all such a Nazarite as the sixth chapter of Numbers contemplates. The introduction to his history clearly shows that definite prescriptions concerning food and drink were given only to his mother; concerning himself,9 nothing more is said than that no razor is to come upon his head. It is only upon this latter obligation, as the history shows, that the strength of his Nazariteship depends. The Nazariteship, abstractly considered, is an image of the general priesthood. On Samson particularly there rests a glimmer of that gospel freedom, with reference to which the Apostle says to the disciples: “All things are yours.” From the consecration of his spirit, Samson has a typical strength by which to the pure all things are pure. Samson can do everything, and that, as the ancients explained of their Samson-Nazarite, without sin-offerings; only one thing he may not do,—desecrate this his consecration, sin against this spirit itself. But this his freedom is naturally held within bounds by his calling. It must have war against the Philistines for its cause and goal. The Apostle’s meaning is, All things are yours, if ye be Christ’s. Samson may do everything, when the honor of his God against the hereditary enemy is at stake. This freedom was given him, not that he might live riotously, as with Delilah—for which reason he fell—but only to do battle. Herein lies the key to the profound observation of the narrator, when the parents of Samson did not approve of his proposed marriage with the woman of Timnah: “They knew not that this was an occasion from God.” The whole Samson was an occasion from God against the Philistines. It is therefore also with a profound purpose that the hero himself is not commanded to abstain from wine and unclean things. He is born, to a certain extent, in a state of pure consecration, in which for the ends of this consecration everything becomes pure to him. He continues to be the hero, even when he eats that which is unclean, and marries foreign women, which yet, according to Jdg_3:6, forms one of the causes of divine judgments; but he falls, when in divulging his secret he does that which, though not in itself forbidden, profanes his consecration.
Samson’s character, in that spiritual freedom which makes war on the Philistines, is a type of the true Christian freedom,—so long as it does not consume itself.
It would therefore lead to useless hair-splitting, to inquire whether it was right in Samson to bring of the honey to his parents without telling them whence he had taken it. He brought it as an evidence of his childlike heart, and committed no wrong. It was a Talmudic question, whether the honey was unclean, although the rule enjoined on Samson’s mother extended only to the time of her son’s birth. He was silent about the history of the honey, in order to avoid boasting.
HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL
Samson is stronger than lions and more cunning than foxes. He must be this in order to conquer the Philistines. For there is no one to assist him. The Philistines have enervated, terrified, desecrated Israel. Israel, on their account, has no more faith in its faith. It is afraid of the strength of its own spirit. Desirous of peace at any price, it has surrendered even its own sentiments and beliefs.
Beautiful, on this account, is the use which the ancient church made of Samson the Lion-slayer as a type of Christ. The rending lion is also an image of Satan, the destroyer of men. As Samson rends the lion’s jaws asunder with his hands, so Christ tears to pieces the kingdom of Satan and death. Hence the old custom of putting the picture of Samson the Lion-conqueror on church doors. But that lion who goes about seeking to snatch us away from Christ is still ever terrible. The battle with him is still daily new. The victory, however, is sure, if only we believe in the conquest of the true Samson. But if we have the Spirit only on our tongues, and not in our souls, we shall never conquer like Him. Only faith will enable us to stand. But every victory flows with honey; and with it we refresh father and mother. Every new victory strengthens the old love.
Starke: They who do the greatest works, make the least noise and boasting about them. Enmity and war are easily begun, but not so easily ended. The Philistines could readily make an enemy of Samson, but to make a friend of him was more difficult.—The Same: Christian, imitate, not Samson’s deed, but his faith and obedience.—Lisco: Samson’s life and deeds can be rightly judged only when viewed, not as those of a private person, but as the activity of a theocratic deliverer and judge.
[Wordsworth: “He told not his father or his mother,” though they were not far from him at the time (Jdg_14:5). So our Lord would not that any one should spread abroad his fame. He said, “Tell no man” (Mat_8:4; Mat_16:20). Hitherto, then, Samson, in his spiritual gifts, in his self-dedication to God, in his strength, courage, and victory, and in his meekness and humility, is an eminent type of Christ. But afterwards he degenerates, and becomes in many respects a contrast to Him. And thus, in comparing the type and the antitype, we have both encouragement and warning, especially as to the right use to be made of spiritual gifts, and as to the danger of their abuse.—Bp. Hall: The mercies of God are ill bestowed upon us, if we cannot step aside to view the monuments of his deliverances; dangers may be at once past and forgotten. As Samson had not found his honeycomb, if he had not turned aside to see his lion, so we shall lose the comfort of God’s benefits, if we do not renew our perils by meditation.—Tr.]
Footnotes:
[2]Cf. Abarbanel in locum. The offense of such marriages, the later Jews, with reference to Samson and Solomon, sought to avoid by assuming that the heathen had caused their women to be converted to the true religion. Cf. Danz, Baptismus Proselytorum, § 26; Meuschen, Nov. Test. in Talm., p. 263.
[3]This idea has been set forth with special plausibility by Bertheau, and is justly and ably combated by Keil.
[4]The assumption of earlier expositors, that an interval of a year must elapse between betrothal and marriage, is after all but an arbitrary one.
[5][The exception in Psa_68:31 (30), is only apparent.עֲדַת אַבִּירִים, “the congregation of bullocks,” like the beast of the reed,” is a metaphorical mode of designating a body of men—Tr.
[6]Hence also the Sept. συναγωγή.
[7]Vermischte Samml. aus der Naturkunde, vi. 135. Rosenmüller, Morgenland, No. 462.
[8]On a general refutation of whom we cannot here enter He agrees in his results, for the most part, with Bertheau and Ewald.
[9]Jerusalem Talmud, “Nazir,” cap. 1, Hal. 2, etc.
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures (Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical), ed. John Peter Lange, English translation edited by Philip Schaff (1864–1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv5, 7, 8 HE KILLS A LION. (Jdg 14:5-9)
HE KILLS A LION. (Jdg 14:5-9)
a young lion--Hebrew, a lion in the pride of his youthful prime. The wild mountain passes of Judah were the lairs of savage beasts; and most or all the "lions" of Scripture occur in that wild country. His rending and killing the shaggy monster, without any weapon in his hand, were accomplished by that superhuman courage and strength which the occasional influences of the Spirit enabled him to put forth, and by the exertion of which, in such private incidental circumstances, he was gradually trained to confide in them for the more public work to which he was destined.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv5–9 5. Then went Samson down, and his father and…
5. Then went Samson down, and his father and his mother — He overcame their scruples, and they accordingly accompanied him to Timnath to consummate the betrothal. The laws and customs of the age required the parents of the bridegroom to be parties in negotiating the marriage of a son, and for this purpose must Samson’s parents go down with him to the residence of the desired maiden.
The vineyards of Timnath — “There were then vineyards belonging to Timnath,” says Thomson, “as there now are in all these hamlets along the base of the hills and upon the mountain sides. These vineyards are very often far out from the villages, climbing up rough wadies and wild cliffs.”
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A young lion roared against him — His parents seem to have been in advance. “At present lions do not exist in Palestine, though they are said to be found in the desert on the road to Egypt. They abound on the banks of the Euphrates between Bussorah and Bagdad, and in the marshes and jungles near the rivers of Babylonia. But though they have now disappeared from Palestine, they must in ancient times have been numerous. The names Lebaoth, (Jos_15:32,)
Beth-lebaoth, (Jos_19:6,) Arieh, (2Ki_15:25,) and Laish, (Jdg_18:7,) were probably derived from the presence of lions, and point to the fact that they were at one time common. The strength, courage, and ferocity of the lion are proverbial. The terrible roar of the lion is expressed in Hebrew by four different words, between which the following distinction appears to be maintained: shaag (here and Psa_22:13; Psa_104:21; Amo_3:4) denotes the roar of the lion while seeking his prey; naham (Isa_5:29) expresses the cry which he utters when he seizes his victim; hagah (Isa_31:4) the growl with which he defies any attempt to snatch the prey from his teeth; while naar is descriptive of the cry of the young lions. Jer_51:38.” — Smith’s Bible Dictionary.
A recent ingenious attempt (in “Scribner’s Monthly” for July, 1871) to explain away the common and traditional sense of this passage, and to give a new solution of Samson’s riddle, demands, perhaps, a notice here. It asserts that Samson rent no young lion, but smashed or demolished a winepress, and renders this sentence, “Behold, the lion-cup called loudly to invite him.” It affirms that כפיר, young lion, is meant for כפור, a cup, and that cup of lions means a winepress, which was made of hewn stone and resembled a great cup or goblet, and was hence called cup of lions, or lion-cup. The roaring (שׁאג) is explained of the raging of wine when it is red in the cup. Samson being a Nazarite, wine was his enemy, and when he heard it raging, and saw it giving its colour in the mammoth cup, he treated it as a tempting foe, and rent the winepress to fragments. It is also claimed that מפלת, in Jdg_14:8 means properly a ruin, or heap, and is applicable to a broken winepress, but not to the dead carcass of a lion; and גֶוית rendered carcass in the same verse, is, when we leave out the matres lectionis וand י, the same word (גת) which is rendered winepress in chap. Jdg_6:11. Further, it is argued that a broken winepress would be a tempting receptacle for bees, while a dead carcass would be repulsive; and that by destroying this property of the Philistines he was injuring the enemies of his people and thus fulfilling his mission, while the rending of a lion would have been no act of destruction against the Philistines, but a blessing, in thus ridding their vineyards of dangerous beasts. The writer finally gives the following solution of the riddle: Out of the wine-press, which consumes or eats grapes by the million, came forth wine, one of the three leading meats of the Bible, (corn, wine, and oil;) and out of the strong (or the lion-cup, capable of overcoming the mightiest potentates of the earth) came forth sweetness, (or the honey Samson had taken out of the ruins of the winepress.)
To all this it may be easily replied: 1. The changing of כפיר into כפור is wholly arbitrary, and opens the way to such unbounded license in criticism as is not to be accepted unless for weightier reasons than this expositor has offered. 2. To speak of a winepress roaring to meet one, is, to say the least, a very strange expression, and a use of Hebrew that has no parallel in the Bible. שׁאג is often used of the roaring of the lion, but never of the fermentation of grapes, or the raging of strong drink. 3. The rent carcass of a lion may be as appropriately called a ruin (מפלת) as a smashed winepress, or the fallen trunk of a tree, (Eze_31:13,) or the misfortunes of the wicked, Pro_29:16. 4. To omit the two letters וand יfrom the word גוית, in which they each have the full power of a consonant, and thus make the word גת, is to set at defiance all sound principles of criticism. To omit or ignore the so-called matres lectionis, or assume that they are nowhere consonants, is violently to change the orthography of perhaps a tenth or more of all the words in the Hebrew language. 5. The notion that bees would not have entered a lion’s carcass is sufficiently refuted in our note on Jdg_14:8; and the idea that Samson, when suddenly attacked by a lion, would have paused to reflect whether he would injure or bless the Philistines by rending it, may be safely passed over without further notice. 6. Finally, this new solution of Samson’s riddle is less apt and clear than the traditional one, and is of too little worth to justify such a laboured effort and such arbitrary criticism as must be undertaken to make it even plausible. We should add, that, contrary to the evident import of Jdg_14:17, which says that Samson told his wife the riddle, and she explained it to the Philistines, this new exposition assumes that Samson, by a play on words, (like lion-cup and lion-cub,) deceived his wife, and so his thirty companions never correctly solved his riddle. In this case he surely should have demanded of them the thirty changes of garments, and not have succumbed to their treachery and fraud.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv5–9 5. and his father and his mother] A later…
5. and his father and his mother] A later addition made for the purpose of conforming Samson’s marriage to the ordinary type, in which the preliminaries were arranged by the parents. The encounter with the lion and the interview with the woman clearly shew that Samson was alone.
a young lion] The lion was once common in Palestine, especially in the desert S. of Judah (Isa_30:6), and in the valley of the Jordan; it has disappeared since the time of the crusades.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv5–9 (5) The vineyards of Timnath.—All this part of Palestine,…
(5) The vineyards of Timnath.—All this part of Palestine, and especially the neighbouring valley of Sorek (Jdg_16:4), was famous for its vines (Isa_5:2; Jer_2:21). The hills of Judah, which at that time were laboriously terraced up to the summit, like the hill-sides of the Italian valleys, were peculiarly favourable for vineyards (Gen_49:11). Now they are bleak and bare by the denudation of centuries, but might by labour be once more rendered beautiful and fruitful.
A young lion.—Literally, a lion of lions, like “a kid of goats” (Judges xiii, 15). That lions and other wild beasts were still common in Palestine, we see, both from the direct statement of the fact (1Ki_10:19; 2Ki_17:25, &c.), from the incidents which show it to have been so (1Sa_17:34; 2Sa_23:20; 1Ki_13:25; 1Ki_20:36), and from the names Arieh (2Ki_15:6), Lebaoth (“lionesses,” Jos_15:32), Beth Lebaoth (Jos_19:6), Shaalbim (“jackals”), Zeboim (“hyenas”), &c.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv5–9 Went down, showing that Timnath was on lower ground…
Went down, showing that Timnath was on lower ground than Zorah; it was in fact in the Shephelah. The vineyards of Timnath. The valley of Sorek, (Jud_1:16:4) so famous for its vines, (Isa_5:2 Jer_2:21) from which it derived its name (Sorek, translated in the above passages the choicest vine, and a noble vine), is thought to have been in the immediate neighbourhood. Probably the whole district under the hills was a succession of vineyards, like the country round Bordeaux. Samson had left the road along which his father and mother were walking, at a pace, perhaps, too slow for his youthful energy, and had plunged into the vineyards. Of a sudden a young lion, a term designating a lion between the age of a cub and a full-grown lion, brought there, perhaps, in pursuit of the foxes or jackals, which often had their holes in vineyards, (Son_2:15) roared against him.
Vers. 5, 6. The lion in the way.
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Very natural is this description. The wild beast in the vineyards, the weaponlessness of the hero, etc., are all in keeping with the character of the times. Local names still extant prove the former existence of lions in Palestine; the particular district was a border one between militant nations, and therefore likely to be less thoroughly brought under; and Israel as temporarily subdued had been deprived of arms. The young lover, full of his mistress, and not on the best terms with his parents, prefers to keep by himself, a little apart. All this is highly suggestive of parallel circumstances in the spiritual life: e.g.
I. YOUTH IS OFTEN SUBJECTED TO GREAT AND SUDDEN TEMPTATIONS. Our streets, the social circle, sexual relations, etc., all abound with concealed perils. These threaten the destruction of the soul.
II THESE ARE, FROM THEIR NATURE, GENERALLY ENCOUNTERED ALONE AND IN SECRET. Bulwer Lytton says somewhere, that boys learn many things at school of great value to them through life, that were never bargained for by their parents, or represented in the school-bill. The youthful sense of growing power, and assertion of independence, creates a little world of which guardians are but dimly conscious. There is, too, the inability of age to sympathise with youth; and the natural reticence concerning matters of affection, etc. Every youth is centre of a number of invisible but potent influences that may make or mar him for life; and he ought therefore to.he frequently commended to the care of his heavenly Father, and to be treated with gentleness and consideration by those in authority.
III THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD CAN RENDER TIMELY AND EFFECTUAL HELP. The phrase, "came suddenly upon him," expresses opportuneness.
The fearlessness and modesty of the spiritual hero are here strikingly illustrated.
I IF EARTHLY AFFECTION WILL MAKE MEN BRAVE GREAT DANGERS AND INCONVENIENCES, HOW MUCH MORE OUGHT THE LOVE OF GOD!
II WITH THE SPIRIT OF GOD NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE, AND HE MAKES ALL THINGS EASY AND SIMPLE TO THEM THAT BELIEVE.
III HUMILITY IS THE CHARACTERISTIC OF THE SPIRITUAL HERO. M.
HOMILIES BY W.F. ADENEY Vers. 5, 6. Samson and the lion.
I THE DANGER.
1. It came unsought. It is foolish for the bravest to court danger. We have only ground for meeting it bravely when we have not rashly provoked it.
2. It was unexpected. Had Samson expected to encounter the lion he would probably have chosen another path, or have armed himself against it. One of the worst features of the great dangers of life is that we can rarely foresee and provide against them.
3. It was when Samson was on a pleasurable journey. He went to seek a wife, and met a lion! The greatest trouble may spring upon us at the moment of highest elation. Earthly joy is no safeguard.
4. It was when Samson was acting in a questionable manner. He was seeking a wife among the Philistines. His parents disapproved of this course though their affection sought an excuse for it (ver. 3). His conduct was contrary to the law of God. (Exo_34:16) We may meet with trouble in the path of duty, bat we must expect to meet with it in the way of transgression. (Jon_1:4)
II THE TRIUMPH.
1. It was effected in the might of the Spirit of the Lord. Herein is the distinction between Samson and Hercules. The Jewish hero does not trust to his own muscular strength. Strong man as he is he can only do great things in God"s strength. This is the redeeming feature of his character. It shows him as one, though amongst the lowest, of the heroes of faith. If Samson needed the strength of inspiration, how much more do we weaker men need to be clothed in the panoply of God"s might before we can face the dangers of life!
2. The Spirit of God came upon Samson in especial force in his greatest need. God gives us strength according to our requirements. In our hour of weakness it seems impossible to face the future difficulty, but when this comes how wonderfully is the new strength bestowed to meet it. (Deu_33:25) We must not, however, abuse this truth and neglect natural expedients. Samson would have been wrong in going unarmed if he had expected to meet the lion. We have only a right to believe that God will help us in sudden emergencies when we are not rashly and negligently increasing the danger of them.
1. The Spirit of God helped Samson by inspiring him to an extraordinary exercise of his natural powers. It was to Samson the strong, a spirit of strength. God works in us through our natural faculties and helps us differently according to our various gifts. Though the might is God"s, the daring, the will, the effort must be ours. God gave him strength, yet Samson slew the lion with his own hands.
2. After victory, Samson modestly concealed his triumph. It is better to be more than we seem than to seem more than we are. If the source of our victory is God"s strength we have no ground for boasting. A.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv5, 7 Samson went down to Timnah
Samson went down to Timnah
The phrase "went down" is used here because Timnah is lower in elevation than where his father's house was. Timnah was a city in the Sorek Valley. Translate the name of this city the same way you did in Judges 14:1. (See: How to Translate Names)
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And, look, there one of the young lions came up
Here the word "look" is used to draw the readers attention to a surprising event that happens in the story. The phrase "came up" means that the lion came near him. AT: "Suddenly, a young lion came near him" (See: Idiom)
was roaring at him
"threatened him." This is the kind of noise that a lion makes when it threatens to attack something.
Yahweh's Spirit suddenly came on him
The phrase "came on" means that Yahweh's Spirit influenced Samson. In this case, he made him very strong. AT: "Yahweh's Spirit made him very strong" (See: Idiom)
tore ... apart
tore into two pieces
had nothing in his hand
Here it states that he had nothing in his hand to emphasize that he was not holding a weapon. AT: "did not have a weapon" (See: Litotes)
translationWords
Samson
vineyard
lions
Yahweh
Holy Spirit
hand
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.