Old/New Testament

Samson Goes to the City of Gaza

16 One day Samson went to Gaza. He saw a prostitute there. He went in to spend the night with her. ² Someone told the people of Gaza, “Samson has come here!” So they surrounded the place and hid and waited for him. Remaining very quiet, they stayed near the city gate all night. They said to each other, “When dawn comes, we will kill Samson!”

³ But Samson only stayed with the prostitute until midnight. Then he got up and took hold of the doors and the two posts of the city gate. He tore them loose, along with the bar. Then he put them on his shoulders. And he carried them to the top of the hill that faces the city of Hebron!

Samson and Delilah

⁴ After this, Samson fell in love with a woman named Delilah. She lived in the Valley of Sorek. ⁵ The kings of the Philistines went to Delilah. They said, “Try to find out what makes Samson so strong. Try to trick him into telling you. Find out how we could capture him and tie him up. Then we will be able to control him. If you do this, each one of us will give you 28 pounds of silver.”

⁶ So Delilah said to Samson, “Tell me why you are so strong. How could someone tie you up and take control of you?”

⁷ Samson answered, “Someone would have to tie me up. He would have to use seven new bowstrings that have not been dried. If he did that, I would be as weak as any other man.”

⁸ Then the kings of the Philistines brought seven new bowstrings to Delilah. They had not been dried. She tied Samson with them. ⁹ Some men were hiding in another room. Delilah said to Samson, “Samson, the Philistines are about to capture you!” But Samson easily broke the bowstrings. They broke like pieces of string burned in a fire. So the Philistines did not find out the secret of Samson’s strength.

¹⁰ Then Delilah said to Samson, “You’ve made me look foolish. You lied to me. Please tell me. How could someone tie you up?”

¹¹ Samson said, “They would have to tie me with new ropes that have not been used before. Then I would become as weak as any other man.”

¹² So Delilah took new ropes and tied Samson. Some men were hiding in another room. Then she called out to him, “Samson, the Philistines are about to capture you!” But he broke the ropes as easily as if they were threads.

¹³ Then Delilah said to Samson, “Until now, you have made me look foolish. You have lied to me. Tell me how someone could tie you up.”

He said, “Use the loom.^[a] Weave the seven braids of my hair into the cloth. Tighten it with a pin. Then I will become as weak as any other man.”

Then Samson went to sleep. So Delilah wove the seven braids of his hair into the cloth. ¹⁴ Then she fastened it with a pin.

Again she called out to him, “Samson, the Philistines are about to capture you!” Samson woke up and pulled up the pin and the loom with the cloth.

¹⁵ Then Delilah said to him, “How can you say, ‘I love you,’ when you don’t even trust me? This is the third time you have made me look foolish. You haven’t told me the secret of your great strength.” ¹⁶ She kept bothering Samson about his secret day after day. He became so tired of it he felt he was going to die!

¹⁷ So he told her everything. He said, “I have never had my hair cut. I have been set apart to God as a Nazirite since I was born. If someone shaved my head, then I would lose my strength. I would become as weak as any other man.”

¹⁸ Delilah saw that he had told her everything sincerely. So she sent a message to the kings of the Philistines. She said, “Come back one more time. He has told me everything.” So the kings of the Philistines came back to Delilah. They brought the silver they had promised to give her. ¹⁹ Delilah got Samson to go to sleep. He was lying in her lap. Then she called in a man to shave off the seven braids of Samson’s hair. In this way she began to make him weak. And Samson’s strength left him.

²⁰ Then she called out to him, “Samson, the Philistines are about to capture you!”

He woke up and thought, “I’ll get loose as I did before and shake myself free.” But he did not know that the Lord had left him.

²¹ Then the Philistines captured Samson. They tore out his eyes. And they took him down to Gaza. They put bronze chains on him. They put him in prison and made him grind grain. ²² But his hair began to grow again.

Samson Dies

²³ The kings of the Philistines gathered to celebrate. They were going to offer a great sacrifice to their god Dagon. They said, “Our god has given us Samson our enemy.” ²⁴ When they saw him, they praised their god. They said,

²⁵ The people were having a good time at the celebration. They said, “Bring Samson out to perform for us.” So they brought Samson from the prison. He performed for them. They made him stand between the pillars of the temple of Dagon. ²⁶ A servant was holding his hand. Samson said to him, “Let me feel the pillars that hold up the temple. I want to lean against them.” ²⁷ Now the temple was full of men and women. All the kings of the Philistines were there. There were about 3,000 men and women on the roof.^[b] They watched Samson perform. ²⁸ Then Samson prayed to the Lord. He said, “Lord God, remember me. God, please give me strength one more time. Let me pay these Philistines back for putting out my two eyes!” ²⁹ Then Samson held the two center pillars of the temple. These two pillars supported the whole temple. He braced himself between the two pillars. His right hand was on one, and his left hand was on the other. ³⁰ Samson said, “Let me die with these Philistines!” Then he pushed as hard as he could. And the temple fell on the kings and all the people in it. So Samson killed more of the Philistines when he died than when he was alive.

³¹ Samson’s brothers and his whole family went down to get his body. They brought him back and buried him in the tomb of Manoah, his father. That tomb is between the cities of Zorah and Eshtaol. Samson was a judge for the people of Israel for 20 years.

Micah’s Idols

17 There was a man named Micah. He lived in the mountains of Ephraim. ² He said to his mother, “You remember the 28 pounds of silver that were taken from you. I heard you say a curse about it. I have the silver with me. I took it.”

His mother said, “The Lord bless you, my son!”

³ Micah gave the 28 pounds of silver to his mother. Then she said, “I will give this silver to the Lord. I will have my son make a carved idol and an idol of melted silver. So I will give the silver back to you.”

⁴ So he gave the silver back to his mother. She took about 5 pounds of the silver and gave it to a silversmith. He used it to make a carved idol and an idol of melted silver. The idols were put in Micah’s house. ⁵ Micah had a temple for worshiping idols. He made a vest for a priest and some household idols. Then Micah chose one of his sons to be his priest. ⁶ At that time the Israelites did not have a king. So everyone did what he thought was right.

⁷ There was a young man who was a Levite.^[c] He was from the city of Bethlehem in the land of Judah. He had been living with the people of Judah. ⁸ He left Bethlehem to look for another place to live. On his way he came to Micah’s house. It was in the mountains of Ephraim. ⁹ Micah asked him, “Where have you come from?”

He answered, “I’m a Levite from Bethlehem in Judah. I’m looking for a place to live.”

¹⁰ Then Micah said to him, “Live with me. Be my father and my priest. I will give you 4 ounces of silver each year. I will also give you clothes and food.” So the Levite went in. ¹¹ The young Levite agreed to live with Micah. He became like one of Micah’s own sons. ¹² Micah made him a priest. And he lived in Micah’s house. ¹³ Then Micah said, “Now I know the Lord will be good to me. I know this because I have a Levite as my priest!”

Dan’s Family Captures Laish

18 At that time the Israelites did not have a king. The people of Dan were still looking for a land where they could live. They wanted a land of their own. The other tribes of Israel already had their own lands. But the Danites did not yet have their own land. ² So they chose five soldiers from all their family groups. These five men were from the cities of Zorah and Eshtaol. They sent the men to spy out and explore the land. They were told, “Go, explore the land.”

So they came to the mountains of Ephraim. They came to Micah’s house, where they spent the night. ³ When they came near Micah’s house, they recognized the voice of the young Levite.^[d] So they stopped at Micah’s house. They asked the young Levite, “Who brought you to this place? What are you doing here? Why are you here?”

⁴ He told them what Micah had done for him. “He has hired me. I am his priest.”

⁵ They said to him, “Please ask God something for us. Will our search for a place to live be successful?”

⁶ The priest said to them, “Go in peace. The Lord is pleased with your journey.”

⁷ So the five men left. They came to the city of Laish. They saw that the people there lived in safety. They were like the people of Sidon. They lived in peace and were not afraid of others. They had plenty of everything. They lived a long way from the Sidonians. And they had no dealings with anyone else.

⁸ The five men went back to Zorah and Eshtaol. Their relatives asked them, “What did you find?”

⁹ They answered, “We have seen the land. And it is very good. We should attack them. Aren’t you going to do something? Don’t wait! Let’s go and take that land! ¹⁰ When you go, you will see there is plenty of land. There is plenty of everything! The people are not expecting an attack. Surely God has given that land to us!”

¹¹ So 600 men of Dan left Zorah and Eshtaol. They were ready for war. ¹² On their way they stopped near the city of Kiriath Jearim in Judah. They set up camp there. That is why the place is named Mahaneh Dan^[e] to this very day. It is west of Kiriath Jearim. ¹³ From there they traveled on to the mountains of Ephraim. Then they came to Micah’s house.

¹⁴ So the five men who had explored the land around Laish spoke. They said to their relatives, “There is a vest for a priest in one of these houses. And there are household gods in these houses. There are also a carved idol and an idol of melted silver in these houses. You know what to do.” ¹⁵ So they stopped at the Levite’s house. This was also Micah’s house. And they greeted the Levite. ¹⁶ The 600 men of Dan stood at the gate entrance. They wore their weapons of war. ¹⁷ The five spies went into the house. They took the carved idol, the vest for a priest, the household idols and the silver idol. The priest and the 600 men ready for war stood by the gate entrance.

¹⁸ When the spies went into Micah’s house and took the carved image, the vest for a priest, the household idols and the silver idol, the priest asked them, “What are you doing?”

¹⁹ They answered, “Be quiet! Don’t say a word. Come with us. Be our father and our priest. Is it better for you to be a priest for the people in one man’s house? Or is it better for you to be a priest for a tribe and family group in Israel?” ²⁰ This made the Levite happy. So he took the vest for a priest, the household idols and the carved idol. And he went with the men of Dan. ²¹ They left Micah’s house. They put their little children, their animals and everything they owned in front of them.

²² The men of Dan went a long way from Micah’s house. Then the men who lived near Micah were called out. They chased the men of Dan and caught up with them. ²³ The men with Micah shouted at the men of Dan. The men of Dan turned around. They said to Micah, “What’s the matter with you? Why have you called out your men to fight?”

²⁴ Micah answered, “You took my idols! I made those idols. You have also taken my priest. What do I have left? How can you ask me, ‘What’s the matter?’”

²⁵ The men of Dan answered, “You should not argue with us. Some of our men have hot tempers. If you shout at us, they might attack you. You and your family might be killed.” ²⁶ Then the men of Dan went on their way. Micah knew they were too strong for him. So he turned and went back home.

²⁷ So the men of Dan took what Micah had made. They also took his priest and went on to Laish. They attacked those peaceful people. The people of Laish had not expected an attack. The men of Dan killed them with their swords. Then they burned the city. ²⁸ There was no one to save the people of Laish. They lived too far from Sidon. And they had no dealings with anyone else. Laish was in a valley near Beth Rehob.

The people of Dan rebuilt the city in that place. And they lived there. ²⁹ They changed the name of Laish to Dan. They named it after their ancestor Dan. He was one of the sons of Israel.

³⁰ The people of Dan set up the idols in the city of Dan. They made Jonathan son of Gershom their priest. Gershom was the son of Moses. Jonathan and his sons were priests for the tribe of Dan. They served as priests until the Israelites were taken captive. ³¹ The people of Dan worshiped the idols Micah had made. They worshiped them as long as the Holy Tent of God was in Shiloh.

Jesus Heals a Soldier’s Servant

7 When Jesus finished saying all these things to the people, he went to Capernaum. ² In Capernaum there was an army officer. He had a servant who was so sick he was nearly dead. The officer loved the servant very much. ³ When the officer heard about Jesus, he sent some Jewish elders to him. The officer wanted the leaders to ask Jesus to come and heal his servant. ⁴ The men went to Jesus and begged him saying, “This officer is worthy of your help. ⁵ He loves our people, and he built us a synagogue.”

⁶ So Jesus went with the men. He was getting near the officer’s house when the officer sent friends to say, “Lord, you don’t need to come into my house. I am not good enough for you to be under my roof. ⁷ That is why I did not come to you myself. You only need to say the word, and my servant will be healed. ⁸ I, too, am a man under the authority of other men. And I have soldiers under my command. I tell one soldier, ‘Go,’ and he goes. And I tell another soldier, ‘Come,’ and he comes. And I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and my servant obeys me.”

⁹ When Jesus heard this, he was amazed. He turned to the crowd following him and said, “I tell you, this is the greatest faith I have seen anywhere, even in Israel.”

¹⁰ The men who had been sent to Jesus went back to the house. There they found that the servant was healed.

Jesus Brings a Man Back to Life

¹¹ The next day Jesus went to a town called Nain. His followers and a large crowd were traveling with him. ¹² When he came near the town gate, he saw a funeral. A mother, who was a widow, had lost her only son. A large crowd from the town was with the mother while her son was being carried out. ¹³ When the Lord saw her, he felt very sorry for her. Jesus said to her, “Don’t cry.” ¹⁴ He went up to the coffin and touched it. The men who were carrying it stopped. Jesus said, “Young man, I tell you, get up!” ¹⁵ And the son sat up and began to talk. Then Jesus gave him back to his mother.

¹⁶ All the people were amazed. They began praising God. They said, “A great prophet has come to us! God is taking care of his people.”

¹⁷ This news about Jesus spread through all Judea and into all the places around there.

John Asks a Question

¹⁸ John’s followers told him about all these things. He called for two of his followers. ¹⁹ He sent them to the Lord to ask, “Are you the One who is coming, or should we wait for another?”

²⁰ So the men came to Jesus. They said, “John the Baptist sent us to you with this question: ‘Are you the One who is coming, or should we wait for another?’”

²¹ At that time, Jesus healed many people of their sicknesses, diseases, and evil spirits. He healed many blind people so that they could see again. ²² Then Jesus said to John’s followers, “Go tell John the things that you saw and heard here. The blind can see. The crippled can walk. People with a harmful skin disease are healed. The deaf can hear, and the dead are given life. And the Good News is told to the poor. ²³ The person who does not lose faith is blessed!”

²⁴ When John’s followers left, Jesus began to tell the people about John: “What did you go out into the desert to see? A reed^[a] blown by the wind? ²⁵ What did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? No. People who have fine clothes live in kings’ palaces. ²⁶ But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, and I tell you, John is more than a prophet. ²⁷ This was written about John:

²⁸ I tell you, John is greater than any other man ever born. But even the least important person in the kingdom of God is greater than John.”

²⁹ (When the people heard this, they all agreed that God’s teaching was good. Even the tax collectors agreed. These were people who were already baptized by John. ³⁰ But the Pharisees and teachers of the law refused to accept God’s plan for themselves; they did not let John baptize them.)