1
After some time, in the time of wheat harvest, Samson went to visit his wife, bringing a young goat, and said, “I want to go into the chamber to be with my wife.” But her father would not let him go in.
2
Her father said, “I was sure that you utterly hated her, so I gave her to your companion. Is not her younger sister more beautiful than she? Take her, then, instead of her.”
3
Then Samson said to them, “This time I shall be blameless toward the Philistines, if I do harm to them.”
4
So Samson went and caught three hundred foxes, took torches, tied tail to tail, and put a torch between each pair of tails.
5
Then he lit the torches and let the foxes go into the standing grain of the Philistines, and he burned up the shocks of grain, the standing grain, and the olive orchards.
6
Then the Philistines said, “Who has done this?” And they answered, “Samson, the son-in-law of the man of Timnah, because he took Samson’s wife and gave her to his companion.” Then the Philistines went up there and burned the woman and her father.
7
And Samson said to them, “If this is how you act, I will not stop until I have taken revenge on you.”
8
And he struck them with a great blow, crushing them. Then he went down and stayed in a cave in the rock of Etam.
9
Then the Philistines came up and camped in the land of Judah, and spread out toward Lehi.
10
And the men of Judah said, “Why have you come up against us?” And they answered, “We have come to bind Samson and to deal with him as he has dealt with us.”
11
Then three thousand men of Judah went down to the cave in the rock of Etam and said to Samson, “Do you not know that the Philistines rule over us? What is this that you have done to us?” But he answered them, “As they have done to me, so I have done to them.”
12
And they said to him, “We have come down to bind you and to deliver you into the hand of the Philistines.” But Samson said to them, “Swear to me that you yourselves will not attack me.”
13
And they said to him, “No, we will only bind you and deliver you into their hand; we will not kill you.” So they bound him with two new ropes and brought him up from the rock.
14
After he came to Lehi, and the Philistines came toward him shouting, the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him, and the ropes that were on his arms became like flax that has been burned in the fire, and his bonds fell away from his hands.
15
Then he found a fresh jawbone of a donkey, reached out his hand, took it, and struck down a thousand men with it.
16
And Samson said:
“With the jawbone of a donkey, heaps upon heaps,
with the jawbone of a donkey I have struck down a thousand men.”
17
When he had finished speaking, he threw the jawbone from his hand. And that place was called Ramath Lehi.
18
When he was very thirsty, he cried out to the LORD, saying, “You have given this great victory by the hand of Your servant; now shall I die of thirst and fall into the hand of these uncircumcised men?”
19
Then God split open the hollow place that was in Lehi, and water came out of it. He drank, and his strength returned and he was revived. Therefore the spring was called En Hakkore, which is still in Lehi to this day.
20
He judged Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years.
🔥🦊💪 Summary of Judges 15 – Samson’s Revenge and Strength from God
Judges 15 shows the continuation of Samson’s story, who did not live under divine control, yet was still used by God to oppose the Philistines. He vented his anger and desire for revenge, even killing 1,000 men with only a donkey’s jawbone. In all this, we see God’s great power at work even through a person full of inner conflict.
📌 1. Samson Comes for His Wife (verses 1–3)
- After some time, Samson came to his father-in-law’s house bringing a young goat.
- He wanted to see his wife, but his father-in-law refused, because his wife had been given to another man.
- His father-in-law offered her younger sister as a substitute, but Samson refused and promised to take revenge.
🎯 Personal anger is often more dangerous than an outside enemy.
📌 2. Burning the Philistines’ Fields with 300 Foxes (verses 4–5)
- Samson caught 300 foxes, tied torches between their tails, and released them into the Philistines’ fields.
- The wheat fields, vineyards, and olive trees were all burned up.
🎯 Samson’s destructive act was not a divine war strategy, but an outburst of personal anger that God used to strike Israel’s enemies.
📌 3. The Philistines Strike Back, and Samson Strikes Again (verses 6–8)
- The Philistines killed Samson’s wife and her father in retaliation.
- Samson then attacked them and struck them severely.
- He then hid himself in the cave of the rock of Etam.
🎯 The cycle of revenge never ends unless it is broken by love or true justice.
📌 4. Samson Is Handed Over by His Own People (verses 9–13)
- The Philistines came and camped in Judah to capture Samson.
- 3,000 men of Judah came to Samson and asked him to surrender.
- Samson agreed on the condition that they would not kill him themselves.
- They bound him with two new ropes and handed him over.
🎯 Tragic! The Israelites feared the enemy more than they valued their deliverer.
📌 5. Samson Kills 1,000 Men with a Donkey’s Jawbone (verses 14–17)
- When he came to the Philistine camp, the Spirit of the LORD came upon Samson.
- His ropes fell away like burned thread.
- He took a fresh donkey’s jawbone and killed 1,000 Philistines.
- He sang:
“With a donkey’s jawbone, I have piled them up in heaps…”
🎯 God’s power is not limited by weapons or circumstances — even a beast’s jawbone can become an instrument of victory.
📌 6. Samson Thirsts and God Provides Water (verses 18–20)
- After the battle, Samson was very thirsty and cried out to God:
“You have given this victory… must I now die of thirst?”
- God split the rock at Lehi, and water came out. Samson drank, and his spirit revived.
- He judged Israel for 20 years in the days of the Philistines.
🎯 Though Samson’s life was often ruled by emotion, he still knew whom to cry out to — God still answered and sustained him.
📖 Main Lessons
- God can use personal actions for His great plan.
- Personal anger, if not controlled, will bring ruin.
- God’s people sometimes choose compromise rather than resistance.
- True strength comes from God, not from tools or strategy.
- God remains faithful to provide for those who cry out to Him.
✨ Spiritual Meaning (New Testament)
“Vengeance is Mine, says the Lord.”
“My strength is made perfect in weakness.”
“My God will supply all your needs…”
🎯 God does not only want to use your strength, but also to change your heart so it is aligned with His.
“With the jawbone of a donkey I have killed a thousand men.” – Judges 15:16
“You have given victory… must I now die of thirst?” – verse 18
“The Lord split the rock at Lehi, and water came out of it.” – verse 19
