¹⁰ So the men of Judah said, “Why have you come up against us?” And they said, “We have come up to bind Samson in order to do to him as he did to us.” ¹¹ Then 3,000 men of Judah went down to the cleft of the rock of Etam and said to Samson, “Do you not know ^(A)that the Philistines are rulers over us? What then is this that you have done to us?” And he said to them, “As they did to me, so I have done to them.” ¹² And they said to him, “We have come down to bind you so that we may give you into the hand of the Philistines.” And Samson said to them, “Swear to me that you yourselves will not ^[a]kill me.” ¹³ So they said to ^[b]him, “No, but we will bind you fast and give you into their hands; yet surely we will not put you to death.” Then they bound him with two new ropes and brought him up from the rock.

²⁰ So now, O king, according to all the desire of your soul to come down, come down here; and ^(A)our part shall be to surrender him into the king’s hand.”