‘ Thus says the Lord GOD:“ Because the Philistines dealt vengefully and took vengeance with a spiteful heart, to destroy because of the old hatred,”

主耶和华如此说：“因非利士人向犹大人报仇，就是以恨恶的心报仇雪恨，永怀仇恨，要毁灭他们，

“主耶和华如此说：因非利士人报仇，就是心存轻蔑报仇；他们永怀仇恨，意图毁灭，

“主耶和华如此说：因非利士人报仇，就是心存轻蔑报仇；他们永怀仇恨，意图毁灭，

“主耶和华说，‘非利士人心存仇恨，为了报世仇要毁灭犹大，

主耶和华这样说：“因为非利士人向犹大人报仇雪恨，心存轻蔑报仇雪恨，他们永远怀恨，要毁灭犹大，

主耶和華如此說：「因非利士人向猶大人報仇，就是以恨惡的心報仇雪恨，永懷仇恨，要毀滅他們，

「主耶和華如此說：因非利士人報仇，就是心存輕蔑報仇；他們永懷仇恨，意圖毀滅，

「主耶和華如此說：因非利士人報仇，就是心存輕蔑報仇；他們永懷仇恨，意圖毀滅，

「主耶和華說，『非利士人心存仇恨，為了報世仇要毀滅猶大，

主耶和華這樣說：“因為非利士人向猶大人報仇雪恨，心存輕蔑報仇雪恨，他們永遠懷恨，要毀滅猶大，

『永恆主這麼說：非利士人對猶大人既行了報仇的事，既滿心懷着輕蔑之意而報仇，以永存的仇恨心要毁滅他們，

主耶和華曰、非利士人心存蔑視、而行報復、從其永憾、圖滅我民、

主耶和華曰、非利士人藏匿舊怨、中心叵測、以害我民、

主天主如是云、非利士人攻我民、狂傲復仇、欲翦滅之、乃從其舊恨、

“ This is what the Sovereign Lord says:‘ Because the Philistines acted in vengeance and took revenge with malice in their hearts, and with ancient hostility sought to destroy Judah,

The Lord and King says,“ Deep down inside them, the Philistines hated Judah. So the Philistines tried to get even with them. They had been Judah’s enemies for many years. So they tried to destroy them.”

“ Thus says the Lord God: Because the Philistines acted revengefully and took vengeance with malice of soul to destroy in never-ending enmity,

“ This is what the Sovereign Lord says: The people of Philistia have acted against Judah out of bitter revenge and long standing contempt.

“‘ This is what the Lord GOD says: Because the Philistines acted in vengeance and took revenge with deep contempt, destroying because of their perpetual hatred,

‘ This is what the Lord God says:“ Because the Philistines have acted in revenge, and have taken vengeance with malice in their souls to destroy with everlasting hostility,”

Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Because the Philistines have dealt by revenge, and have taken vengeance with despite of soul to destroy with perpetual enmity;

This is what the Lord God says:“ Because the Philistines acted in vengeance and took revenge with deep contempt, destroying because of their ancient hatred,

Thus saith the Lord GOD; Because the Philistines have dealt by revenge, and have taken vengeance with a despiteful heart, to destroy[ it] for the old hatred;

“ This is what the sovereign LORD says:‘ The Philistines have exacted merciless revenge, showing intense scorn in their effort to destroy Judah with unrelenting hostility.

“‘ The Lord Yahweh says:“ Because the Philistines have taken revenge, and have taken vengeance with contempt of soul to destroy with perpetual hostility;”

‘ For thus says the Lord God:“ Because you clapped your hands, stamped your feet, and rejoiced in heart with all your disdain for the land of Israel,

“ Do not rejoice, all you of Philistia, Because the rod that struck you is broken; For out of the serpent’s roots will come forth a viper, And its offspring will be a fiery flying serpent.The firstborn of the poor will feed, And the needy will lie down in safety; I will kill your roots with famine, And it will slay your remnant.Wail, O gate! Cry, O city! All you of Philistia are dissolved; For smoke will come from the north, And no one will be alone in his appointed times.”

‘ Thus says the Lord GOD:“ Because of what Edom did against the house of Judah by taking vengeance, and has greatly offended by avenging itself on them,”

The Philistines also had invaded the cities of the lowland and of the South of Judah, and had taken Beth Shemesh, Aijalon, Gederoth, Sochoh with its villages, Timnah with its villages, and Gimzo with its villages; and they dwelt there.

all the mixed multitude, all the kings of the land of Uz, all the kings of the land of the Philistines( namely, Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and the remnant of Ashdod);

Thus says the Lord:“ For three transgressions of Gaza, and for four, I will not turn away its punishment, Because they took captive the whole captivity To deliver them up to Edom.But I will send a fire upon the wall of Gaza, Which shall devour its palaces.I will cut off the inhabitant from Ashdod, And the one who holds the scepter from Ashkelon; I will turn My hand against Ekron, And the remnant of the Philistines shall perish,” Says the Lord GOD.

Zabad his son, Shuthelah his son, and Ezer and Elead. The men of Gath who were born in that land killed them because they came down to take away their cattle.

And the word of Samuel came to all Israel. Now Israel went out to battle against the Philistines, and encamped beside Ebenezer; and the Philistines encamped in Aphek.Then the Philistines put themselves in battle array against Israel. And when they joined battle, Israel was defeated by the Philistines, who killed about four thousand men of the army in the field.And when the people had come into the camp, the elders of Israel said,“ Why has the Lord defeated us today before the Philistines? Let us bring the ark of the covenant of the Lord from Shiloh to us, that when it comes among us it may save us from the hand of our enemies.”So the people sent to Shiloh, that they might bring from there the ark of the covenant of the Lord of hosts, who dwells between the cherubim. And the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were there with the ark of the covenant of God.And when the ark of the covenant of the Lord came into the camp, all Israel shouted so loudly that the earth shook.Now when the Philistines heard the noise of the shout, they said,“ What does the sound of this great shout in the camp of the Hebrews mean?” Then they understood that the ark of the Lord had come into the camp.

Ashkelon shall see it and fear; Gaza also shall be very sorrowful; And Ekron, for He dried up her expectation. The king shall perish from Gaza, And Ashkelon shall not be inhabited.“ A mixed race shall settle in Ashdod, And I will cut off the pride of the Philistines.I will take away the blood from his mouth, And the abominations from between his teeth. But he who remains, even he shall be for our God, And shall be like a leader in Judah, And Ekron like a Jebusite.I will camp around My house Because of the army, Because of him who passes by and him who returns. No more shall an oppressor pass through them, For now I have seen with My eyes.

Gebal, Ammon, and Amalek; Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre;

The Syrians before and the Philistines behind; And they shall devour Israel with an open mouth. For all this His anger is not turned away, But His hand is stretched out still.

“ Indeed, what have you to do with Me, O Tyre and Sidon, and all the coasts of Philistia? Will you retaliate against Me? But if you retaliate against Me, Swiftly and speedily I will return your retaliation upon your own head;Because you have taken My silver and My gold, And have carried into your temples My prized possessions.Also the people of Judah and the people of Jerusalem You have sold to the Greeks, That you may remove them far from their borders.“ Behold, I will raise them Out of the place to which you have sold them, And will return your retaliation upon your own head.I will sell your sons and your daughters Into the hand of the people of Judah, And they will sell them to the Sabeans, To a people far off; For the Lord has spoken.”Proclaim this among the nations:“ Prepare for war! Wake up the mighty men, Let all the men of war draw near, Let them come up.Beat your plowshares into swords And your pruning hooks into spears; Let the weak say,‘ I am strong.’”Assemble and come, all you nations, And gather together all around. Cause Your mighty ones to go down there, O Lord.“ Let the nations be wakened, and come up to the Valley of Jehoshaphat; For there I will sit to judge all the surrounding nations.Put in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Come, go down; For the winepress is full, The vats overflow— For their wickedness is great.”Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! For the day of the Lord is near in the valley of decision.The sun and moon will grow dark, And the stars will diminish their brightness.The Lord also will roar from Zion, And utter His voice from Jerusalem; The heavens and earth will shake; But the Lord will be a shelter for His people, And the strength of the children of Israel.“ So you shall know that I am the Lord your God, Dwelling in Zion My holy mountain. Then Jerusalem shall be holy, And no aliens shall ever pass through her again.”And it will come to pass in that day That the mountains shall drip with new wine, The hills shall flow with milk, And all the brooks of Judah shall be flooded with water; A fountain shall flow from the house of the Lord And water the Valley of Acacias.“ Egypt shall be a desolation, And Edom a desolate wilderness, Because of violence against the people of Judah, For they have shed innocent blood in their land.But Judah shall abide forever, And Jerusalem from generation to generation.For I will acquit them of the guilt of bloodshed, whom I had not acquitted; For the Lord dwells in Zion.”

Now David came to Nob, to Ahimelech the priest. And Ahimelech was afraid when he met David, and said to him,“ Why are you alone, and no one is with you?”So David said to Ahimelech the priest,“ The king has ordered me on some business, and said to me,‘ Do not let anyone know anything about the business on which I send you, or what I have commanded you.’ And I have directed my young men to such and such a place.Now therefore, what have you on hand? Give me five loaves of bread in my hand, or whatever can be found.”And the priest answered David and said,“ There is no common bread on hand; but there is holy bread, if the young men have at least kept themselves from women.”Then David answered the priest, and said to him,“ Truly, women have been kept from us about three days since I came out. And the vessels of the young men are holy, and the bread is in effect common, even though it was consecrated in the vessel this day.”So the priest gave him holy bread; for there was no bread there but the showbread which had been taken from before the Lord, in order to put hot bread in its place on the day when it was taken away.Now a certain man of the servants of Saul was there that day, detained before the Lord. And his name was Doeg, an Edomite, the chief of the herdsmen who belonged to Saul.And David said to Ahimelech,“ Is there not here on hand a spear or a sword? For I have brought neither my sword nor my weapons with me, because the king’s business required haste.”So the priest said,“ The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom you killed in the Valley of Elah, there it is, wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod. If you will take that, take it. For there is no other except that one here.” And David said,“ There is none like it; give it to me.”Then David arose and fled that day from before Saul, and went to Achish the king of Gath.And the servants of Achish said to him,“ Is this not David the king of the land? Did they not sing of him to one another in dances, saying:‘ saul has slain his thousands, And David his ten thousands’?”Now David took these words to heart, and was very much afraid of Achish the king of Gath.So he changed his behavior before them, pretended madness in their hands, scratched on the doors of the gate, and let his saliva fall down on his beard.Then Achish said to his servants,“ Look, you see the man is insane. Why have you brought him to me?Have I need of madmen, that you have brought this fellow to play the madman in my presence? Shall this fellow come into my house?”

The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah the prophet against the Philistines, before Pharaoh attacked Gaza.Thus says the Lord:“ Behold, waters rise out of the north, And shall be an overflowing flood; They shall overflow the land and all that is in it, The city and those who dwell within; Then the men shall cry, And all the inhabitants of the land shall wail.At the noise of the stamping hooves of his strong horses, At the rushing of his chariots, At the rumbling of his wheels, The fathers will not look back for their children, Lacking courage,Because of the day that comes to plunder all the Philistines, To cut off from Tyre and Sidon every helper who remains; For the Lord shall plunder the Philistines, The remnant of the country of Caphtor.Baldness has come upon Gaza, Ashkelon is cut off With the remnant of their valley. How long will you cut yourself?“ O you sword of the Lord, How long until you are quiet? Put yourself up into your scabbard, Rest and be still!How can it be quiet, Seeing the Lord has given it a charge Against Ashkelon and against the seashore? There He has appointed it.”

Saul reigned one year; and when he had reigned two years over Israel,Saul chose for himself three thousand men of Israel. Two thousand were with Saul in Michmash and in the mountains of Bethel, and a thousand were with Jonathan in Gibeah of Benjamin. The rest of the people he sent away, every man to his tent.And Jonathan attacked the garrison of the Philistines that was in Geba, and the Philistines heard of it. Then Saul blew the trumpet throughout all the land, saying,“ Let the Hebrews hear!”Now all Israel heard it said that Saul had attacked a garrison of the Philistines, and that Israel had also become an abomination to the Philistines. And the people were called together to Saul at Gilgal.Then the Philistines gathered together to fight with Israel, thirty thousand chariots and six thousand horsemen, and people as the sand which is on the seashore in multitude. And they came up and encamped in Michmash, to the east of Beth Aven.When the men of Israel saw that they were in danger( for the people were distressed), then the people hid in caves, in thickets, in rocks, in holes, and in pits.And some of the Hebrews crossed over the Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead. As for Saul, he was still in Gilgal, and all the people followed him trembling.Then he waited seven days, according to the time set by Samuel. But Samuel did not come to Gilgal; and the people were scattered from him.So Saul said,“ Bring a burnt offering and peace offerings here to me.” And he offered the burnt offering.Now it happened, as soon as he had finished presenting the burnt offering, that Samuel came; and Saul went out to meet him, that he might greet him.And Samuel said,“ What have you done?” Saul said,“ When I saw that the people were scattered from me, and that you did not come within the days appointed, and that the Philistines gathered together at Michmash,then I said,‘ The Philistines will now come down on me at Gilgal, and I have not made supplication to the Lord.’ Therefore I felt compelled, and offered a burnt offering.”And Samuel said to Saul,“ You have done foolishly. You have not kept the commandment of the Lord your God, which He commanded you. For now the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever.But now your kingdom shall not continue. The Lord has sought for Himself a man after His own heart, and the Lord has commanded him to be commander over His people, because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you.”

Now the Philistines gathered their armies together to battle, and were gathered at Sochoh, which belongs to Judah; they encamped between Sochoh and Azekah, in Ephes Dammim.And Saul and the men of Israel were gathered together, and they encamped in the Valley of Elah, and drew up in battle array against the Philistines.The Philistines stood on a mountain on one side, and Israel stood on a mountain on the other side, with a valley between them.And a champion went out from the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, from Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span.He had a bronze helmet on his head, and he was armed with a coat of mail, and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of bronze.And he had bronze armor on his legs and a bronze javelin between his shoulders.Now the staff of his spear was like a weaver’s beam, and his iron spearhead weighed six hundred shekels; and a shield-bearer went before him.Then he stood and cried out to the armies of Israel, and said to them,“ Why have you come out to line up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and you the servants of Saul? Choose a man for yourselves, and let him come down to me.If he is able to fight with me and kill me, then we will be your servants. But if I prevail against him and kill him, then you shall be our servants and serve us.”And the Philistine said,“ I defy the armies of Israel this day; give me a man, that we may fight together.”When Saul and all Israel heard these words of the Philistine, they were dismayed and greatly afraid.Now David was the son of that Ephrathite of Bethlehem Judah, whose name was Jesse, and who had eight sons. And the man was old, advanced in years, in the days of Saul.The three oldest sons of Jesse had gone to follow Saul to the battle. The names of his three sons who went to the battle were Eliab the firstborn, next to him Abinadab, and the third Shammah.David was the youngest. And the three oldest followed Saul.But David occasionally went and returned from Saul to feed his father’s sheep at Bethlehem.And the Philistine drew near and presented himself forty days, morning and evening.Then Jesse said to his son David,“ Take now for your brothers an ephah of this dried grain and these ten loaves, and run to your brothers at the camp.And carry these ten cheeses to the captain of their thousand, and see how your brothers fare, and bring back news of them.”Now Saul and they and all the men of Israel were in the Valley of Elah, fighting with the Philistines.So David rose early in the morning, left the sheep with a keeper, and took the things and went as Jesse had commanded him. And he came to the camp as the army was going out to the fight and shouting for the battle.For Israel and the Philistines had drawn up in battle array, army against army.And David left his supplies in the hand of the supply keeper, ran to the army, and came and greeted his brothers.Then as he talked with them, there was the champion, the Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, coming up from the armies of the Philistines; and he spoke according to the same words. So David heard them.And all the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him and were dreadfully afraid.So the men of Israel said,“ Have you seen this man who has come up? Surely he has come up to defy Israel; and it shall be that the man who kills him the king will enrich with great riches, will give him his daughter, and give his father’s house exemption from taxes in Israel.”Then David spoke to the men who stood by him, saying,“ What shall be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes away the reproach from Israel? For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should defy the armies of the living God?”And the people answered him in this manner, saying,“ So shall it be done for the man who kills him.”Now Eliab his oldest brother heard when he spoke to the men; and Eliab’s anger was aroused against David, and he said,“ Why did you come down here? And with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your pride and the insolence of your heart, for you have come down to see the battle.”And David said,“ What have I done now? Is there not a cause?”Then he turned from him toward another and said the same thing; and these people answered him as the first ones did.Now when the words which David spoke were heard, they reported them to Saul; and he sent for him.Then David said to Saul,“ Let no man’s heart fail because of him; your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.”And Saul said to David,“ You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for you are a youth, and he a man of war from his youth.”But David said to Saul,“ Your servant used to keep his father’s sheep, and when a lion or a bear came and took a lamb out of the flock,I went out after it and struck it, and delivered the lamb from its mouth; and when it arose against me, I caught it by its beard, and struck and killed it.Your servant has killed both lion and bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, seeing he has defied the armies of the living God.”Moreover David said,“ The Lord, who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul said to David,“ Go, and the Lord be with you!”So Saul clothed David with his armor, and he put a bronze helmet on his head; he also clothed him with a coat of mail.David fastened his sword to his armor and tried to walk, for he had not tested them. And David said to Saul,“ I cannot walk with these, for I have not tested them.” So David took them off.Then he took his staff in his hand; and he chose for himself five smooth stones from the brook, and put them in a shepherd’s bag, in a pouch which he had, and his sling was in his hand. And he drew near to the Philistine.So the Philistine came, and began drawing near to David, and the man who bore the shield went before him.And when the Philistine looked about and saw David, he disdained him; for he was only a youth, ruddy and good-looking.So the Philistine said to David,“ Am I a dog, that you come to me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods.And the Philistine said to David,“ Come to me, and I will give your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field!”Then David said to the Philistine,“ You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied.This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you and take your head from you. And this day I will give the carcasses of the camp of the Philistines to the birds of the air and the wild beasts of the earth, that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.Then all this assembly shall know that the Lord does not save with sword and spear; for the battle is the LORD’s, and He will give you into our hands.”So it was, when the Philistine arose and came and drew near to meet David, that David hurried and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine.Then David put his hand in his bag and took out a stone; and he slung it and struck the Philistine in his forehead, so that the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell on his face to the earth.So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone, and struck the Philistine and killed him. But there was no sword in the hand of David.Therefore David ran and stood over the Philistine, took his sword and drew it out of its sheath and killed him, and cut off his head with it. And when the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled.Now the men of Israel and Judah arose and shouted, and pursued the Philistines as far as the entrance of the valley and to the gates of Ekron. And the wounded of the Philistines fell along the road to Shaaraim, even as far as Gath and Ekron.Then the children of Israel returned from chasing the Philistines, and they plundered their tents.And David took the head of the Philistine and brought it to Jerusalem, but he put his armor in his tent.When Saul saw David going out against the Philistine, he said to Abner, the commander of the army,“ Abner, whose son is this youth?” And Abner said,“ As your soul lives, O king, I do not know.”So the king said,“ Inquire whose son this young man is.”Then, as David returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, Abner took him and brought him before Saul with the head of the Philistine in his hand.And Saul said to him,“ Whose son are you, young man?” So David answered,“ I am the son of your servant Jesse the Bethlehemite.”

For Gaza shall be forsaken, And Ashkelon desolate; They shall drive out Ashdod at noonday, And Ekron shall be uprooted.Woe to the inhabitants of the seacoast, The nation of the Cherethites! The word of the Lord is against you, O Canaan, land of the Philistines:“ I will destroy you; So there shall be no inhabitant.”The seacoast shall be pastures, With shelters for shepherds and folds for flocks.The coast shall be for the remnant of the house of Judah; They shall feed their flocks there; In the houses of Ashkelon they shall lie down at evening. For the Lord their God will intervene for them, And return their captives.

After this it came to pass that David attacked the Philistines and subdued them. And David took Metheg Ammah from the hand of the Philistines.Then he defeated Moab. Forcing them down to the ground, he measured them off with a line. With two lines he measured off those to be put to death, and with one full line those to be kept alive. So the Moabites became David’s servants, and brought tribute.David also defeated Hadadezer the son of Rehob, king of Zobah, as he went to recover his territory at the River Euphrates.David took from him one thousand chariots, seven hundred horsemen, and twenty thousand foot soldiers. Also David hamstrung all the chariot horses, except that he spared enough of them for one hundred chariots.When the Syrians of Damascus came to help Hadadezer king of Zobah, David killed twenty-two thousand of the Syrians.Then David put garrisons in Syria of Damascus; and the Syrians became David’s servants, and brought tribute. So the Lord preserved David wherever he went.And David took the shields of gold that had belonged to the servants of Hadadezer, and brought them to Jerusalem.Also from Betah and from Berothai, cities of Hadadezer, King David took a large amount of bronze.When Toi king of Hamath heard that David had defeated all the army of Hadadezer,then Toi sent Joram his son to King David, to greet him and bless him, because he had fought against Hadadezer and defeated him( for Hadadezer had been at war with Toi); and Joram brought with him articles of silver, articles of gold, and articles of bronze.King David also dedicated these to the Lord, along with the silver and gold that he had dedicated from all the nations which he had subdued—from Syria, from Moab, from the people of Ammon, from the Philistines, from Amalek, and from the spoil of Hadadezer the son of Rehob, king of Zobah.And David made himself a name when he returned from killing eighteen thousand Syrians in the Valley of Salt.He also put garrisons in Edom; throughout all Edom he put garrisons, and all the Edomites became David’s servants. And the Lord preserved David wherever he went.So David reigned over all Israel; and David administered judgment and justice to all his people.Joab the son of Zeruiah was over the army; Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder;Zadok the son of Ahitub and Ahimelech the son of Abiathar were the priests; Seraiah was the scribe;Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over both the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David’s sons were chief ministers.

Now Samson went down to Timnah, and saw a woman in Timnah of the daughters of the Philistines.So he went up and told his father and mother, saying,“ I have seen a woman in Timnah of the daughters of the Philistines; now therefore, get her for me as a wife.”Then his father and mother said to him,“ Is there no woman among the daughters of your brethren, or among all my people, that you must go and get a wife from the uncircumcised Philistines?” And Samson said to his father,“ Get her for me, for she pleases me well.”But his father and mother did not know that it was of the Lord— that He was seeking an occasion to move against the Philistines. For at that time the Philistines had dominion over Israel.So Samson went down to Timnah with his father and mother, and came to the vineyards of Timnah. Now to his surprise, a young lion came roaring against him.And the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him, and he tore the lion apart as one would have torn apart a young goat, though he had nothing in his hand. But he did not tell his father or his mother what he had done.Then he went down and talked with the woman; and she pleased Samson well.After some time, when he returned to get her, he turned aside to see the carcass of the lion. And behold, a swarm of bees and honey were in the carcass of the lion.He took some of it in his hands and went along, eating. When he came to his father and mother, he gave some to them, and they also ate. But he did not tell them that he had taken the honey out of the carcass of the lion.So his father went down to the woman. And Samson gave a feast there, for young men used to do so.And it happened, when they saw him, that they brought thirty companions to be with him.Then Samson said to them,“ Let me pose a riddle to you. If you can correctly solve and explain it to me within the seven days of the feast, then I will give you thirty linen garments and thirty changes of clothing.But if you cannot explain it to me, then you shall give me thirty linen garments and thirty changes of clothing.” And they said to him,“ Pose your riddle, that we may hear it.”So he said to them:“ Out of the eater came something to eat, And out of the strong came something sweet.” Now for three days they could not explain the riddle.But it came to pass on the seventh day that they said to Samson’s wife,“ Entice your husband, that he may explain the riddle to us, or else we will burn you and your father’s house with fire. Have you invited us in order to take what is ours? Is that not so?”Then Samson’s wife wept on him, and said,“ You only hate me! You do not love me! You have posed a riddle to the sons of my people, but you have not explained it to me.” And he said to her,“ Look, I have not explained it to my father or my mother; so should I explain it to you?”