In the 12th century BC, the Jewish state actually split into 12 independent republics (tribes), for which only the unity of religion and law, as well as the consciousness of its brotherhood by blood, served as a union. Each republic had its own ruler, and only in case of serious danger could they be united by a common leader. And since the Jews had plenty of enemies, the need for such people arose quite often. These leaders were chosen by the people, and they were called Judges.
According to the Bible, the Judges of Israel are people whom God directed in difficult times for the just rule and salvation of the Jewish people. One of these Judges was Samson - the biblical hero and hero.
Good news and cause for quarrel
Despite the fact that love and harmony reigned between Sarah - the future mother of Samson - and her husband Manoy, they did not have children, which is why they suffered a lot. And then one day an angel appeared to a woman, sent by God himself. The messenger said that soon she was going to give birth to a son who would lead the struggle of her people against the Philistines. The angel warned that during pregnancy Sarah is forbidden to drink wine, and when the boy is born, he will not be allowed to cut his hair. Soon a child pleasing to the Lord was born.
Samson belonged to the tribe of Dan. His tribe lived on the very border with the Philistines, and therefore was subjected to constant oppression from them. True, there was no open war between them then. There was even a mutually beneficial trade, but relations became more and more tense.
Samson very early began to look at women. One day he came to his parents and said that he saw a beautiful Philistine woman, with whom he fell in love, and wanted to marry her.
- Why do you need a Philistine? Find the best worthy girl among your people, - answered the father.
Promotional video:
- No, I only want to marry her!
The parents did not know that this was the will of God, for the Lord wanted to give Samson a serious reason for a quarrel with the Philistines.
The next day the young man went to the Philistine city of Timnatu to talk to his beloved. On the way, a lion attacked him. But Samson killed the predator with his bare hands.
Donkey jaw
Samson invited the woman to become his wife and received consent. The wedding took place in Timnat. The tipsy guests demanded that Samson give them a riddle. And Samson said:
“If you can guess my riddle in seven days of the wedding feast, then I promise you 30 capes and 30 changes of clothes. If you don’t guess, then, on the contrary, I will get the same from you.
And Samson asked his own riddle.
On the seventh day, the Philistines, who were very anxious to get clothes, came to the newlywed with threats. They stated that if she did not find out the answer and did not tell it, she would be burned alive. The frightened woman persuaded her husband to open up and relayed the answer to the Philistines. They immediately "solved" the riddle. The bogatyr understood everything, but he gave up the loss, and he himself, angry at the guests and his wife who outwitted him, returned to his parents.
After a few days, cooled down. Samson decided to return to his wife. But he was met by his father-in-law, who said that during this time he had married his daughter to another.
Samson could not forgive the Philistines for such meanness. He caught three hundred foxes, tied them in pairs and, inserting lighted torches between their tails, released them onto the Philistine gardens and arable land. And there was a fire that destroyed all the enemy crops. And Samson himself went to live in a gorge on the territory of the brotherly tribe of Judah.
Then the Philistines gathered a huge detachment and demanded the extradition of the hero. In order not to put the hospitable people at risk. Samson himself surrendered to the enemies, who immediately bound him. But “the spirit of the Lord descended on him,” the hero easily tore the ropes, grabbed the jaw of a dead donkey and killed many Philistines with it.
Harlot
One evening, while in Gaza, Samson saw a beautiful harlot and immediately desired her. The harlot treated him favorably and invited him into her house. The hero with his long hair and powerful figure was difficult to confuse with someone, many locals recognized him, and while Samson indulged in love pleasures, the house of the harlot was surrounded. Fearing the heroic strength of their enemy, the Philistines hoped to deal with him at night, in the dark, when Samson approached the city gates, which would be locked. And trying to break them, he will be distracted, and then the Philistines will seize him.
However, when the hero was about to leave Gaza at midnight, in one motion he tore off the city gates along with the jambs and the bolt, loaded them onto his back and, mocking his enemies, lifted them to the highest mountain opposite Hebron.
So the second meeting with the Philistine woman almost ended tragically for Samson. But this did not teach him anything either.
Betrayal and revenge
And for the third time Samson fell in love with the Philistine. Her name was Delilah. The tribesmen tried to persuade her to find out what the hero's heroic strength was, promising to pay 1100 shekels of silver for this. And Delilah agreed, she began to elicit his secret from Samson. He told lies three times. The Philistines tried to attack him, but retreated, suffering heavy losses. In the end, Delilah was still able to convince Samson of her exorbitant love and that her questions were nothing more than an innocent female curiosity. Then the hero admitted that his strength was in his hair, and if he had shaved, he "would have become like all people." Delilah immediately sold the secret to her fellow tribesmen. And she herself poured sleeping pills into Samson's drink and "Shaved seven strands from his head, and his strength left him."
The delighted Philistines immediately gouged out Samson's eyes and bound him with heavy copper chains.
Samson spent so much time in captivity that his hair had time to grow back, and with it, his former strength returned to him.
Once the Philistines were feasting in honor of their deity Dagon. They gathered in a huge house, which could accommodate about three thousand people. When everyone had drunk well, they decided to bring Samson to the house in order to jointly mock the blind enemy. "And they told him that he would stand between the pillars on which the house rests." Then the hero felt these pillars. “And he rested strongly, and the house fell on the princes and on all the people that were in it. He himself died, and he destroyed a lot of enemies. " Upon learning of what had happened, the Jews came to Gaza and took Samson's ashes, which they buried in his father's tomb.
Was he really?
One of the mysteries of the Bible, the answer to which has not yet been found, is whether Samson really existed.
Having no serious facts for either affirmation or denial, scientists have been arguing on this topic for a long time, but rather lazily.
Spanish historian Juan Noriega ironically: “Find me the most powerful man who, with the help of a donkey or any other jaw, will kill a thousand of his armed enemies, and I will immediately believe that Samson really existed. Until then, let me remain unconvinced - this is a fictional hero."
The famous American historian Michael Grant has a different opinion: “People often endow their heroes with fabulous qualities, ascribing to them something that is impossible in real life. But these events themselves are historically reliable, reflecting the struggle of the Jews with the Philistines pressing them. The donkey jaw is just one of the folklore details. Samson became famous as a violent giant, a folk hero, famous for his irrepressible strength and obscene antics. But for all that, he was probably a historical figure, a leader of stubborn resistance who deserved a good name. Moreover, in the descriptions of his life, such everyday details are given that, sitting on the heap, you cannot imagine."
“But the Bible contains a sequential list of all 12 Judges of Israel, including Samson. So how can you doubt the authenticity of his existence? - the French historian Jean Theardier is indignant.
The Italian writer Giovanni Maldini claims that the Jews in those days could not marry representatives of other peoples in any way: "Never and in no case, and therefore all talk about the authenticity of Samson is a lie."
But, studying the writings that are gradually being discovered during excavations, scientists have established that Maldini is wrong, because marriages between Jews and Philistines were not so rare at that time.
It is the excavations that help to reveal many biblical secrets, so let's hope that the mystery of the legendary Samson will also someday be revealed.
Magazine "Secrets of the XX century" № 41. Boris Levin