1 Later, during the wheat harvest, Samson went to visit the young woman he thought was still his wife. He brought along a young goat as a gift and said to her father, “I want to go into my wife's bedroom.”
“You can't do that,” he replied. 2 “When you left the way you did, I thought you were divorcing her. So I arranged for her to marry one of the young men who were at your party. But my younger daughter is even prettier, and you can have her as your wife.”
3 “This time,” Samson answered, “I have a good reason for really hurting some Philistines.”
Samson Takes Revenge
4 Samson went out and caught 300 foxes and tied them together in pairs with oil-soaked rags around their tails. 5 Then Samson took the foxes into the Philistine wheat fields that were ready to be harvested. He set the rags on fire and let the foxes go. The wheat fields went up in flames, and so did the stacks of wheat that had already been cut. Even the Philistine vineyards and olive orchards burned.
6 Some of the Philistines started asking around, “Who could have done such a thing?”
“It was Samson,” someone told them. “He married the daughter of that man in Timnah, but then the man gave Samson's wife to one of the men at the wedding.”
The Philistine leaders went to Timnah and burned to death Samson's wife and her father.
7 When Samson found out what they had done, he went to them and said, “You killed them! And I won't rest until I get even with you.” 8 Then Samson started hacking them to pieces with his sword.
Samson left Philistia and went to live in the cave at Etam Rock. 9 But it wasn't long before the Philistines invaded Judah and set up a huge army camp at Jawbone.
10 The people of Judah asked, “Why have you invaded our land?”
The Philistines answered, “We've come to get Samson. We're going to do the same things to him that he did to our people.”
11 Three thousand men from Judah went to the cave at Etam Rock and said to Samson, “Don't you know that the Philistines rule us, and they will punish us for what you did?”
“I was only getting even with them,” Samson replied. “They did the same things to me first.”
12 “We came here to tie you up and turn you over to them,” said the men of Judah.
“I won't put up a fight,” Samson answered, “but you have to promise not to hurt me yourselves.”
13-14 “We promise,” the men said. “We will only tie you up and turn you over to the Philistines. We won't kill you.” Then they tied up his hands and arms with two brand-new ropes and led him away from Etam Rock.
When the Philistines saw that Samson was being brought to their camp at Jawbone, they started shouting and ran toward him. But the Lord's Spirit took control of Samson, and Samson broke the ropes, as though they were pieces of burnt cloth. 15 Samson glanced around and spotted the jawbone of a donkey. The jawbone had not yet dried out, so it was still hard and heavy. Samson grabbed it and started hitting Philistines—he killed 1,000 of them! 16 After the fighting was over, he made up this poem about what he had done to the Philistines:
I used a donkey's jawbone
to kill a thousand men;
I beat them with this jawbone
over and over again.
17 Samson tossed the jawbone on the ground and decided to call the place Jawbone Hill. It is still called that today.
18 Samson was so thirsty that he prayed, “Our Lord, you helped me win a battle against a whole army. Please don't let me die of thirst now. Those heathen Philistines will carry off my dead body.”
19 Samson was tired and weary, but God sent water gushing from a rock. Samson drank some and felt strong again.
Samson named the place Caller Spring, because he had called out to God for help. The spring is still there at Jawbone.
20 Samson was a leader of Israel for 20 years, but the Philistines were still the rulers of Israel.
1 Kombunda yoruveze rworive momayuva womakondero wovikokotwa, Simson wa kavarura omukazendu we ne mu twarere ongombona. Neye wa tja nai ku ihe yomukazendu we: “Me vanga okuhita metuwo romukazendu wandje.”
Nungwari ihe yomukazendu ke mu yandjerere okuhita. 2 Nu ihe yomukazendu wa tja ku Simson: “Ami, tjiri, mba tjangovasi ko na ko na tja na ye, opu mbe mu yandjera ku umwe womapanga woye ngwe ku ṱikire morukupo kutja a rire omukazendu we. Nungwari ingwi omuangu womukazendu woye omuwa pu ye. Eye ongu ma sokurira omukazendu woye moruveze rwe.”
3 Nu Simson wa tja ku wo: “Otjikando hi ami me rire omuhinandjo tji mba tjiti navi kOvafilisti.” 4 Simson otja ya na kapata ozombandje omasere yetatu. Tjazumba arire tja toora omamunine na kutu omitjira vyozombandje nḓa kovivarivari kumwe, na kutu omamunine nga pokati kavyo. 5 Neye wa kamburisa omamunine nga na hingire ozombandje movikunino vyOvafilisti vyovikokotwa na movikokotwa, mbi hiya kondwa. Komuhingo mbwi otja nyosa omikuta vyovikokotwa, novikokotwa mbi hiya kondwa puna omivite nomiṋinga wina. 6 NOvafilisti va pura ave tja: “Owaṋi ngwa tjiti nai?” Nowo va zira nai: “OSimson, ingwi omukwe wOmutimna, omukwe we ihe tjinga e mu yeka omukazendu ne mu yandja kepanga ra Simson.” Ovafilisti otji ve ya nave nyosa omukazendu ngwi nonganda ya ihe.
7 Simson wa tja nai ku wo: “Tji mamu tjiti nao, ami, tjiri, himee suva, ngunda ambi hiye mu sutisa otjiṋa hi.”
8 Neye we ve rwisa noutwe na zepa ovengi tjinene. Nu wa ya na kakara mondimba ya Etam.
Simson ma havere Ovafilisti
9 NOvafilisti ve ya, ave tono ozondanda mOjuda nave rwisa otjihuro Lehi. 10 NOvajuda va pura ave tja: “Mamu tu rwisire tjike?”
Nowo va zira nai: “Eṱe twe ya okupandeka Simson nokumutjita otja eye tje tu tjita.” 11 Novarumendu Ovajuda omayovi yetatu va ya kondimba ya Etam, nave katja nai ku Simson: “Ove ko nokutjiwa kutja Ovafilisti ve tu honaparera are? Nambano ove wa tjiti tjike ku eṱe?”
Neye wa zira a tja: “Owo punga ava tjita ku ami, ami opunga amba tjita ku wo.”
12 Nowo va tja ku ye: “Eṱe twe ya okukupandeka kutja tu kekuyandje kOvafilisti.”
Simson wa tja: “Ndji yaneneye kutja kaweṋe oveni mbu mamu ndji zepa.”
13 Nowo ve mu zira ave tja: “Ayee, kako; eṱe matu ku pandeke uriri nokukuyandja ku wo. Nungwari, tjiri, eṱe katu nokukuzepa.” Nowo otji ve mu pandeka nozongoze mbari ozombe nave mu pitisa mondimba okumutwara kozondanda zOvafilisti.
14 Nu tje ya kOlehi, Ovafilisti ve mu tjakanena nombimbi. Nungwari ombepo ya Muhona ya harisa Simson omasa, neye wa pora inḓa ozongoze nḓa pandeka omaoko we tjimuna ozosepa nḓa pi momuriro; nomapando otji ya poṋoṋoka pomaoko we. 15 Nu tjazumba otja muna eṱupa roruyeo orutarazu rwokasino, arire tje ri toora na zepa na ro ovarumendu eyovi rimwe. 16 Nu Simson wa imbura a tja:
“Neṱupa roruyeo rwokasino ami mbe ve tona; neṱupa roruyeo rwokasino ami mba zepa ovarumendu eyovi rimwe.” 17 Tja za nokuravaera omambo nga arire tja nakaura indwi oruyeo ndwa ri na ro meke re. Nu poṋa mbo we pe ruka Ramat-Lehi, okutja Ondunda yOruyeo.
18 Simson wa ṱonyota tjinene, notja ravaera ku Muhona a tja: “Ove omuini wa yandja outoṋi mbwi ounene komukarere woye; nambano hi ṱonyota, mbi koke nu mbi kamburwe i Ovafilisti ovanavisenginina are?” 19 Ndjambi wa taura oruuwa mOndunda yOruyeo imo mOlehi, nu mu ro mwa pupa omeva. Simson wa nwa, a hara omasa na kotora omuinyo. Komuhingo mbwi oruharwi ndo ndu ri mOlehi opu rwa rukirwa Oruharwi rwOmuravaere nga ku ndinondi.
20 Simson wa ri omunane mOisrael oure wozombura omirongo vivari moruveze rwouhonapare wOvafilisti.
