Judges 14:10 - Printer Friendly

ESV: His father went down to the woman, and Samson prepared a feast there, for so the young men used to do.

NIV: Now his father went down to see the woman. And there Samson held a feast, as was customary for young men.

NASB: Then his father went down to the woman; and Samson held a feast there, for the young men customarily did this.

CSB: His father went to visit the woman, and Samson prepared a feast there, as young men were accustomed to do.

NLT: As his father was making final arrangements for the marriage, Samson threw a party at Timnah, as was the custom for elite young men.

KJV: So his father went down unto the woman: and Samson made there a feast; for so used the young men to do.

NKJV: So his father went down to the woman. And Samson gave a feast there, for young men used to do so.

Samson and his father have returned to the Philistine city of Timnah. They are there to finalize the marriage between Samson and his Philistine bride (Judges 14:1–3). With his father's help, Samson has prepared the week-long wedding feast, customarily hosted by the groom. Such wedding feasts often became an extended drinking party involving large amounts of wine and alcohol.

If Samson participated in drinking wine, this would have been another violation of the Nazirite vow (Numbers 6:1–21). Before Samson's birth, he was designated as a Nazirite by "the angel of the LORD" (Judges 13:5), though the only restriction explicitly named was for him to never cut his hair. Whether he was violating an aspect of his God-given vows, here, is a relatively minor point. Samson seems to have paid little attention to any requirements of a Nazirite vow, other than leaving his hair long. Nor did he seem especially worried about the laws given to citizens of Israel. He has already violated God's law by seeking to marrying a woman from an idol-worshipping culture (Exodus 34:15–16). He's broken it by scraping honey from the carcass of an animal (Leviticus 5:2).

Rather than embracing his mission of opposing the oppressive Philistines, it seems, Samsons would rather make an alliance with them. Of course, God doesn't need Samson's obedience to accomplish His plans. In fact, Samson's obstinate and reckless nature will be the means God uses to disrupt Philistine control (Judges 14:4).

Judges 14:10–20 explains the disastrous outcome of Samson's attempted marriage to a Philistine woman. As was the custom, a weeklong wedding feast is held. Thirty Philistines companions are assigned to Samson. He makes an exorbitant bet with them, making a riddle about his killing of the young lion (Judges 14:5–6). The men threaten the future bride, who pesters Samson until he tells her the secret, which she gives to the groomsmen. Enraged at her betrayal, and empowered by the Lord's Spirit, Samson assaults thirty Philistine men in another town (Judges 14:4). He takes their clothes as the payment for the wager. Because Samson angrily abandons the wedding feast, his bride is given to another man.

Samson (Judges 13:24–25) is now old enough to marry. He demands his parents arrange marriage to a Philistine woman with whom he is infatuated. When attacked by a lion, Samson rips the animal apart with his bare hands, empowered by the Holy Spirit. Later, he finds a beehive and honey in the lion's carcass. At the wedding feast, Samson proposes a wager based on this secret. His thirty Philistine companions become frustrated when they can't solve it. They threaten Samson's bride, and she manipulates him to get the secret. Samson attacks thirty Philistines in another town to pay the wager.

This chapter leaps forward from Samson's birth (Judges 13:5, 24–25) to somewhere in his adulthood. He demands a Philistine woman for a wife. At the wedding feast, he proposes a bet with thirty Philistine men. They learn the answer to his trick question by threatening to kill the bride. Samson attacks thirty Philistines in another town to secure the payment for the wager. His bride is given to one of the men who threatened her. Samson will return, expecting marital rights, only to be told she has been given to someone else (Judges 15:1–2).

The Book of Judges describes Israel's history from the death of Joshua to shortly before Israel's first king, Saul. Israel fails to complete God's command to purge the wicked Canaanites from the land (Deuteronomy 7:1–5; 9:4). This results in a centuries-long cycle where Israel falls into sin and is oppressed by local enemies. After each oppression, God sends a civil-military leader, labeled using a Hebrew word loosely translated into English as "judge." These appointed rescuers would free Israel from enemy control and govern for a certain time. After each judge's death, the cycle of sin and oppression begins again. This continues until the people of Israel choose a king, during the ministry of the prophet-and-judge Samuel (1 Samuel 1—7).