Judges 15:1-13 ▼

1 But within a while after, euen in the time of wheat haruest, Sason visited his wife with a kyd, saying: I wil go in to my wyfe into the chaumber. But her father woulde not suffer him to go in.

2 And her father sayde, I thought that thou haddest hated her, & therfore gaue I her to thy companion: Is not her younger sister fayrer then she? Take her I pray thee, in steade of the other.

3 Samson sayde vnto hym: Nowe am I more blamelesse then the Philistines, and therfore will I do them displeasure.

4 And Samson went out, and caught three hundred foxes, & toke firebrandes, and turned them tayle to tayle, and put a firebrand in the middes betweene two tayles.

5 And when he had set the brandes on fire, he sent them out into the standyng corne of the Philistines, & burnt vp both the reaped corne, and also the standing, with the vineyardes and oliues.

6 Then the Philistines sayd: Who hath done this? And they aunswered: Samson the sonne in lawe of the Thamnite, because he had taken his wife, & geuen her to his companion. And the Philistines came vp, and burnt her and her father with fire.

7 And Samson said vnto them: Though ye haue done this, yet will I be auenged of you, and then I will ceasse.

8 And he smote them legge and thygh with a myghtie plague, and then he went & dwelt in the toppe of the rocke Etam.

9 Then the Philistines came vp, and pytched in Iuda, and camped in Lehi.

10 And the men of Iuda sayde: Why are ye come vp vnto vs? They aunswered: To bynde Samson are we come vp, & to do to hym, as he hath done to vs.

11 Then three thonsande men of Iuda went to the toppe of the rocke Etam, & sayde to Samson: Wottest thou not that the Philistines are rulers ouer vs? Wherfore then hast thou done thus vnto vs? He aunswered them: As they dyd vnto me, so haue I done vnto them.

12 And they sayd vnto him agayne: We are come to bynde thee, and to deliuer thee into ye hande of the Philistines. And Samson said vnto them: Sweare vnto me, that ye shall not fal vpon me your selues.

13 They aunswered him, saying: No, but we will bynde thee, & delyuer thee vnto their handes: but we wyll not kyll thee. And they bounde hym with two new cordes, and brought him from the rocke.