Story Producer 140 - Samson

Title Options:The Lord chose Samson to deliver Israel from their oppressors.The story about Samson [a man strong and weak].God used a disobedient man to deliver his people.

When the people who lived in Israel [Land] sinned against the Lord, he allowed a foreign tribe called Philistines to rule [dominate] over Israel forty years.

During those years, there was a woman who lived with her husband in a village. She had never borne children. One day, the Lord’s angel appeared to her and said, “You will bear a son!

“You must not drink wine or eat forbidden food! You must dedicate [devote / give] the boy to the Lord. To show this [as a sign of that] you must not cut his hair! For it is he who will rescue Israel from the Philistines!”

Some months later, the woman bore a son, and her husband said to their relatives, “His name is Samson!” The boy grew up, and the Lord blessed him.

One day, when Samson had grown up, he said to this parents, “I have seen a young Philistine woman [marriageable girl] whom I want to marry. Please, arrange for her to come here to be my wife!”

But his parents said, “We want you to marry an Israelite girl!” But Samson would not heed [listen to] their advice, so his parents arranged for Samson to marry the Philistine girl.

One day, while on his way to visit the girl’s family, Samson killed a lion, but did not tell anyone about it. On his way home a few days later, Samson saw that bees had made a nest [honeycomb] in the lion’s dead body [carcass], and were producing [making] honey.

Thirty Philistine men attended [came to] Samson’s wedding feast [ceremony] that lasted seven days. The first day, Samson said to them, “I shall tell you a riddle [proverb]. If you tell me what the riddle means [is], then I shall give you some fine clothes!” The men agreed.

Samson told them the riddle: “Out of the eater came something to eat. Out of the strong came something sweet!”

Four days later, the Philistine men said to Samson’s bride [wife], “Make your husband [Samson] tell you what the riddle means. Then you must tell us. If you do not, then we will kill your parents and you!”

When Samson and his wife were alone, she wept [cried] and said to him, “You do not love me! You told those men a riddle, but you have not told me what it means! Tell me!” She wept every day until Samson told her [the meaning] on the seventh day.

Then she went and told the Philistine men [what the riddle meant]. Before sundown, they came and said to Samson, “What is sweeter than honey? What is stronger than a lion? [Nothing is sweeter than honey! A lion is a very strong eater!]” Samson became very angry, because his wife had told them what the riddle meant.

Suddenly, God’s Spirit came upon [to] Samson and made him to be very strong. He went to another Philistine town where he killed thirty [rich] men and took their clothes. He then brought those clothes and gave them to the thirty men who had told what his riddle meant. Afterwards, while still angry, Samson went to his father’s house, but he did not take [bring] his wife [new bride] with him.

Later, Samson went to his wife’s village to see her. But her father said to him, “I thought that you hated your wife, so I have given her to [marry] another man. Listen, her younger sister is prettier than she. You may marry her sister [instead]!”

Samson replied, “I will get revenge on you Philistines for [because of] what you have done to me!” So he left there. He went and caught 300 foxes, and tied burning torches [fire] to their tails.

He then let the foxes run loose in Philistines’ grain fields which burned [set on fire] all their grain. He himself destroyed many vineyards [gardens] and orchards [fruit trees] belonging to them.

When the Philistines saw what Samson had done, they became very angry. So they seized Samson’s wife and her father, and they killed them with fire.

This made Samson angrier [more angry] than before. He swore [promised], “I will repay [take vengeance on] the Philistines for all that they have done to [against] me!” Samson began attacking many Philistine men, and killing them.Afterwards, Samson went and stayed in a cave [at a lonely place].

So a Philistine army came and made camp near an Israelite town. When the Israelites asked them, “Why have you come against [to attack] us?” The Philistines replied, “We have come to capture Samson!”

So 3000 Israelite men went to Samson and said to him, “You know that the Philistines have become rulers over us! But you have made them angry towards us!” Samson replied, “I have only done to them as they have done to me!”

The Israelite men said, “We shall now tie you with ropes and give [deliver] you to the Philistines!”

Samson replied, “I shall let you tie me up [with ropes], but you must not kill me!” So the men tied him up with two strong ropes.

When they led [brought] Samson to the Philistines, the Philistines ran towards him. Suddenly, God’s Spirit came upon [to] Samson and made him be very strong. Samson [easily] broke the ropes as though they were only rotten threads.

Samson seized a jawbone from a dead donkey. Wielding [Swinging] the jawbone as a weapon, Samson killed about a thousand Philistines that day.

For the next twenty years, Samson ruled over Israel, and he fought often with the Philistines. During those years, Samson loved another Philistine woman whose name was Delilah.

One day five Philistine kings came and said to Delilah, “Make Samson tell you what makes him so strong, and what someone must do to overpower him! If you do so, then we shall give you 5,500 pieces of silver [much money or valuable coins].

Later, Delilah said to Samson, “Please tell me, What makes you so strong? And what would someone have to do to overpower you?”

Samson replied [lied], “If someone tied me up with seven new bowstrings [cords / ropes], then he could overpower me!”

While Samson was asleep, Delilah tied him up with seven new bowstrings [cords / ropes]. Then she shouted, “Philistines are coming!”

Samson jumped up from his bed, breaking the bowstrings as though they were burned threads.

Delilah then pretended to be angry and said, “You deceived [fooled] me! Now, tell me truly how to make you weak!” She asked him this many times.

Each time Samson would give her a different answer, and each time she would shout, “Philistines are coming!” But when nothing made Samson weak, she knew that he had lied to her again.

For many days, Delilah kept nagging him [demanding], “What makes you so strong? Tell me your secret!”

When Samson grew tired [impatient] with Delilah’s nagging, he told her the truth: “God has said that I must not cut my hair, lest I lose my strength!”

So while Samson was asleep, Delilah let a man into Samson’s room [hut]. The man quietly cut Samson’s hair. When he [Samson] woke up, he had no more [big] strength [he only had strength as a normal man], because God’s Spirit had left him.

Then the Philistines bound [tied] Samson with iron [chains] and gouged [cut or burned] out his eyes. Next, they tied him to a grain-grinding mill, and made him turn it as an ox [bull] does. But Samson’s hair slowly began to grow long again.

One day, all the Philistine kings gathered to make a sacrifice to their [false god] idol, thanking it for giving them victory over Samson. About 3000 people gathered inside the idol’s temple.

Then they brought Samson into the idol’s temple, so they could laugh at [mock] him. They sang a song, “We praise our idol who has given us victory over our enemy [Samson], over the man who ruined our crops and killed our men!”

A young boy was leading Samson who [because he] was blind. Samson said to the boy, “Lead me to the two big columns [stone posts] that hold up [support] the roof for this [idol’s] temple, for I want to rest by leaning against those columns!”

Then Samson prayed, “O Lord! Please make me strong again, so that I can repay [take vengeance on] these Philistines for what they have done to me!”

Samson stood between the two columns, putting one hand against each column. He then prayed, “O Lord! Please let [make] me die with these Philistines!”

Samson then pushed hard against the two columns, until they fell [collapsed]. Then the temple roof fell down, killing many Philistines inside the temple. Samson died at the same time.

In this way, Samson killed more Philistines on the day that [when] he died, than he had killed during all his past years.