Judges 16:17-19
New English Translation
17 Finally he told her his secret.[a] He said to her, “My hair has never been cut,[b] for I have been dedicated to God[c] from the time I was conceived.[d] If my head[e] were shaved, my strength would leave me; I would become weak and be just like all other men.” 18 When Delilah saw that he had told her his secret,[f] she sent for[g] the rulers of the Philistines, saying, “Come up here again, for he has told me[h] his secret.”[i] So the rulers of the Philistines went up to visit her, bringing the silver in their hands. 19 She made him go to sleep on her lap[j] and then called a man in to shave off[k] the seven braids of his hair.[l] She made him vulnerable[m] and his strength left him.
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- Judges 16:17 tn Heb “all his heart.”
- Judges 16:17 tn Heb “a razor has not come upon my head.”
- Judges 16:17 tn Or “set apart to God.” Traditionally the Hebrew term נָזִיר (nazir) has been translated “Nazirite.” The word is derived from the verb נָזַר (nazar, “to dedicate; to consecrate; to set apart”).
- Judges 16:17 tn Heb “from the womb of my mother.”
- Judges 16:17 tn Heb “I.” The referent has been made more specific in the translation (“my head”).
- Judges 16:18 tn Heb “all his heart.”
- Judges 16:18 tn Heb “she sent and summoned.”
- Judges 16:18 tc The translation follows the Qere, לִי (li, “to me”) rather than the Kethib, לָהּ (lah, “to her”).
- Judges 16:18 tn Heb “all his heart.”
- Judges 16:19 tn Heb “on her knees.” The expression is probably euphemistic for sexual intercourse. See HALOT 160-61 s.v. בֶּרֶךְ.
- Judges 16:19 tn Heb “she called for a man and she shaved off.” The point seems to be that Delilah acted through the instrumentality of the man. See J. A. Soggin, Judges (OTL), 254.
- Judges 16:19 tn Heb “head.” By metonymy the hair of his head is meant.
- Judges 16:19 tn Heb “She began to humiliate him.” Rather than referring to some specific insulting action on Delilah’s part after Samson’s hair was shaved off, this statement probably means that she, through the devious actions just described, began the process of Samson’s humiliation which culminates in the following verses.
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