Judges 15:19 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And God split open the hollow place that is at Lehi, and water came out from it. And when he drank, his spirit returned, and he revived. Therefore the name of it was called En-hakkore; it is at Lehi to this day.

NIV: Then God opened up the hollow place in Lehi, and water came out of it. When Samson drank, his strength returned and he revived. So the spring was called En Hakkore, and it is still there in Lehi.

NASB: But God split the hollow place that is in Lehi so that water came out of it. When he drank, his strength returned and he revived. Therefore he named it En-hakkore, which is in Lehi to this day.

CSB: So God split a hollow place in the ground at Lehi, and water came out of it. After Samson drank, his strength returned, and he revived. That is why he named it En-hakkore, which is still in Lehi today.

NLT: So God caused water to gush out of a hollow in the ground at Lehi, and Samson was revived as he drank. Then he named that place 'The Spring of the One Who Cried Out,' and it is still in Lehi to this day.

KJV: But God clave an hollow place that was in the jaw, and there came water thereout; and when he had drunk, his spirit came again, and he revived: wherefore he called the name thereof Enhakkore, which is in Lehi unto this day.

NKJV: So God split the hollow place that is in Lehi, and water came out, and he drank; and his spirit returned, and he revived. Therefore he called its name En Hakkore, which is in Lehi to this day.

That Samson did not die in this incident is truly miraculous. Empowered by God's Spirit, he wiped out an entire Philistine army with nothing more than the jawbone of a donkey. It's not surprising that he'd be intensely thirsty after such an ordeal—so much so that he thought he'd die. That led to Samson's first recorded prayer, though it was demanding and accusatory towards God (Judges 15:14–18). That said, Samson at least gave the Lord credit for the victory and humbled himself just enough to make the request.

The Lord responds to Samson's request immediately. He splits open a nearby rock, which gushes water. Samson drinks and is revived. God graciously gives Samson what he asks, despite Samson's pride and selfishness.

The new spring is later called "En-hakkore," which literally means "the spring of him who called." The Bible does not explicitly say if Samson decided on this name. His initial celebration of victory was self-centered, so it wouldn't be shocking to know he'd named the location of this miracle after himself. Those in Israel reading this book closer to the time of Samson would likely have known about the spring at the place called Lehi. The term Lehi, itself, means "jawbone," likely a name given because of the events of this chapter.

Judges 15:9–20 describes the result of a Philistine incursion meant to capture Samson. The Israelites in Judah hand Samson over when he volunteers to have his hands tied with new rope. However, when he sees the Philistine forces, Samson is empowered by God's Spirit. He snaps his restraints and attacks. Using only jawbone of a donkey, he slaughters the enemy troops and shouts out a clever poem about his victory. God then answers Samson's plea for water.

Samson returns to Timnah to visit his bride, after leaving in a rage when she spoiled his unfair riddle. Her father thought Samson had abandoned her, so she was given to another man. Samson responds by tying animals to torches and setting them loose in Philistine wheat fields. He also burns the harvested crops and olive orchards. The Philistines kill Samson's former bride and father-in-law in retaliation. Samson's vengeance ensues. When the men of Judah turn Samson over to a Philistine army the Lord's Spirit empowers him. Samson slaughters the enemy soldiers with the jawbone of a donkey, and God rescues him from thirst with a miraculous spring of water.

Judges 15 describes a cycle of retribution which continues to spiral from the events of the previous chapter. This results in a Philistine army attempting to capture and kill Samson. Instead, God empowers him to kill masses of the enemy with only a donkey's jawbone. This furthers the Lord's intent to disrupt Philistine control over Israel (Judges 13:5). It does not seem to alter Samson's carnal nature, as his weakness for women continues in the following chapter.

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).