Judges 14

KJ3 Literal Translation — Chapter 14 of 21

¹ And Samson went down to Timnath and saw a woman in Timnath, of the daughters of the Philistines.

² And he came up and told his father and mother, and said, I have seen a woman in Timnath, of the daughters of the Philistines. And now get her for me for a wife.

³ And his father and his mother said to him, Is there not a woman among the daughters of your brothers, and among all my people, that you must go to take a woman from the uncircumcised Philistines? And Samson said to his father, Get her for me, for she pleases me very much.

Read full chapter in the Bible Reader

Chapter Summary

Samson desires a wife of the Philistines. 5 he kills a lion. 8 Later he finds honey in the carcass. 10 Samson's marriage feast. 12 His wife reveals his riddle. 20 His wife is given to another.

Key Hebrew Words

חִידָה riddle H2420 · TWOT 616a

אַרְיֵה lion H738 · TWOT 158a

דְּבַשׁ honey H1706 · TWOT 400a

רוּחַ Spirit H7307 · TWOT 2131a

בֶּ֫גֶד garment, change of clothes H899 · TWOT 198a

מִשְׁתֶּה feast H4960 · TWOT 2477c

People & Context

Samson

Sees a Philistine woman at Timnath, tears a lion barehanded, and poses a riddle at his wedding feast

The Timnite Woman

Philistine woman of Timnath whom Samson takes to wife; pressured, she betrays the riddle to her people

The Thirty Companions

Philistine wedding guests who fail the riddle, then coerce Samson's wife to wheedle out its answer

Timeline

Samson Demands a Philistine Wife

Samson sees a Philistine woman in Timnath and demands his parents get her for him. They object to her uncircumcised origins, unaware this is an occasion from Jehovah.

Judges 14:1-4

Samson Kills the Lion

Traveling to Timnath, a young lion roars at Samson. The Spirit of Jehovah comes upon him, and he tears the lion apart barehanded, telling no one.

Judges 14:5-6

Samson Discovers Honey

Returning to marry the woman, Samson finds a bee-swarm and honey in the lion's carcass. He eats it and gives some to his parents without revealing its source.

Judges 14:7-9

Read Judges 14 in the KJ3 Reader

Word-for-word literal translation with Hebrew interlinear, Strong's numbers, and audio.

Open in Bible Reader

Judges 13 Judges Judges 15