Lectionary Calendar
Sunday, August 17th, 2025
the Week of Proper 15 / Ordinary 20
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Easy-to-Read Version

Judges 14:10

Samson's father went down to see the Philistine woman. The custom was for the bridegroom to give a party. So Samson gave a party.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Feasts;   Samson;   Thompson Chain Reference - Courtship;   Home;   Love;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Marriage;   Philistines, the;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Feasts;   Miracle;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Nazirite;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Feast;   Timnath;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Insects;   Judges, Book of;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Levi;   Manoah;   Marriage;   Philistines;   Samson;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Marriage;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - Bride;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Reign of the Judges;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Lion;   Young Men;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Banquets;   Marriage;   Nazarite;   Song of Songs, the;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
His father went to visit the woman, and Samson prepared a feast there, as young men were accustomed to do.
Hebrew Names Version
His father went down to the woman: and Shimshon made there a feast; for so used the young men to do.
King James Version
So his father went down unto the woman: and Samson made there a feast; for so used the young men to do.
Lexham English Bible
His father went down to the woman, and Samson prepared there a feast, as young men were accustomed to doing this.
English Standard Version
His father went down to the woman, and Samson prepared a feast there, for so the young men used to do.
New Century Version
Samson's father went down to see the Philistine woman. And Samson gave a feast, as was the custom for the bridegroom.
New English Translation
Then Samson's father accompanied him to Timnah for the marriage. Samson hosted a party there, for this was customary for bridegrooms to do.
Amplified Bible
His father went down to the woman, and Samson prepared a feast there, for that was the customary thing for young men to do.
New American Standard Bible
Then his father went down to the woman; and Samson held a feast there, for the young men customarily did this.
Geneva Bible (1587)
So his father went down vnto the woman, and Samson made there a feast: for so vsed the yong men to doe.
Legacy Standard Bible
Daarop gaan sy vader na die vrou toe af, en Simson het daar 'n maaltyd berei; want so het die jongmanne gewoonlik gedoen.
Contemporary English Version
While Samson's father went to make the final arrangements with the bride and her family, Samson threw a big party, as grooms usually did.
Complete Jewish Bible
His father went down to the woman, and there Shimshon gave a banquet — this is what the young men used to do.
Darby Translation
And his father went down to the woman, and Samson made there a feast; for so used the young men to do.
George Lamsa Translation
So his father went down to the woman; and Samson made there a wedding feast for seven days; for so the young men used to do.
Good News Translation
His father went to the woman's house, and Samson gave a banquet there. This was a custom among the young men.
Literal Translation
And his father went down to the woman, and Samson made a feast there, for so the young men usually did.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And whan his father came downe to the woman, Samson made a feast there, as the yonge men vsed to do.
American Standard Version
And his father went down unto the woman: and Samson made there a feast; for so used the young men to do.
Bible in Basic English
Then Samson went down to the woman, and made a feast there, as was the way among young men.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And so his father went downe vnto the woman, and Samson made there a feast: for so vsed the younge men to do.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
And his father went down unto the woman; and Samson made there a feast; for so used the young men to do.
King James Version (1611)
So his father went downe vnto the woman, and Samson made there a feast: for so vsed the young men to doe.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And his father went down to the woman, and Sampson made there a banquet for seven days, for so the young men are used to do.
English Revised Version
And his father went down unto the woman: and Samson made there a feast; for so used the young men to do.
Berean Standard Bible
Then his father went to visit the woman, and Samson prepared a feast there, as was customary for the bridegroom.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And so his fadir yede doun to the womman, and made a feeste to his sone Sampson; for yonge men weren wont to do so.
Young's Literal Translation
And his father goeth down unto the woman, and Samson maketh there a banquet, for so the young men do;
Update Bible Version
And his father went down to the woman: and Samson made a feast there; for so the young men used to do.
Webster's Bible Translation
So his father went down to the woman: and Samson made there a feast; for so used the young men to do.
World English Bible
His father went down to the woman: and Samson made there a feast; for so used the young men to do.
New King James Version
So his father went down to the woman. And Samson gave a feast there, for young men used to do so.
New Living Translation
As his father was making final arrangements for the marriage, Samson threw a party at Timnah, as was the custom for elite young men.
New Life Bible
Then his father went down to the woman. Samson made a special supper there. The young men used to do this.
New Revised Standard
His father went down to the woman, and Samson made a feast there as the young men were accustomed to do.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And his father went down unto the woman, - and Samson made there a banquet, for, so, used the young men, to do.
Douay-Rheims Bible
So his father went down to the woman, and made a feast for his son Samson: for so the young men used to do.
Revised Standard Version
And his father went down to the woman, and Samson made a feast there; for so the young men used to do.
THE MESSAGE
His father went on down to make arrangements with the woman, while Samson prepared a feast there. That's what the young men did in those days. Because the people were wary of him, they arranged for thirty friends to mingle with him.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
Then his father went down to the woman; and Samson made a feast there, for the young men customarily did this.

Contextual Overview

10 Samson's father went down to see the Philistine woman. The custom was for the bridegroom to give a party. So Samson gave a party. 11 When the Philistines saw that he was having a party, they sent 30 men to be with him. 12 Then Samson said to the 30 men, "I want to tell you a story. This party will last for seven days. Try to find the answer during that time. If you can answer the riddle in that time, I will give you 30 linen shirts and 30 changes of clothes. 13 But if you cannot find the answer, you must give me 30 linen shirts and 30 changes of clothes." So the 30 men said, "Tell us your riddle, we want to hear it." 14 Samson told them this riddle: "Out of the eater came something to eat. Out of the strong came something sweet." The 30 men tried for three days to find the answer, but they couldn't. 15 On the fourth day, the men came to Samson's wife. They said, "Did you invite us here just to make us poor? You must trick your husband into telling us the answer to the riddle. If you don't get the answer for us, we will burn you and everyone in your father's house to death." 16 So Samson's wife went to him and began crying. She said, "You just hate me! You don't really love me! You told my people a riddle, and you will not tell me the answer." Samson said to her, "Look, I have not even told my father and mother. So why should I tell you?" 17 Samson's wife cried for the rest of the seven days of the party. So he finally gave her the answer to the riddle on the seventh day. He told her because she kept bothering him. Then she went to her people and told them the answer to the riddle. 18 So before the sun went down on the seventh day of the party, the Philistine men had the answer. They came to Samson and said, "What is sweeter than honey? What is stronger than a lion?" Then Samson said to them, "If you had not plowed with my cow, you would not have solved my riddle!" 19 Samson was very angry. The Spirit of the Lord came on Samson with great power. He went down to the city of Ashkelon and killed 30 Philistine men. He took all the clothes and property from the dead bodies and gave them to the men who had answered his riddle. Then he went to his father's house.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

made there: Genesis 29:22, Esther 1:7-22, Ecclesiastes 10:19, Matthew 22:2-4, John 2:9, Revelation 19:9

Reciprocal: Genesis 21:8 - feast Genesis 29:27 - week Esther 2:18 - made a great Mark 2:19 - Can Luke 5:34 - the children John 3:29 - the friend

Cross-References

Genesis 11:3
Then they said to each other, "Let's make some bricks of clay and bake them in the fire." Then they used these bricks as stones, and they used tar as mortar.
Genesis 19:17
So after the two men brought Lot and his family out of the city, one of the men said, "Now run to save your life! Don't look back at the city, and don't stop anywhere in the valley. Run until you are in the mountains. If you stop, you will be destroyed with the city!"
Genesis 19:30
Lot was afraid to stay in Zoar, so he and his two daughters went to live in the mountains in a cave.
Joshua 8:24
During the fighting, the army of Israel chased the men from Ai into the fields and into the desert. So the army of Israel finished killing all the men from Ai in the fields and in the desert. Then the Israelites went back to Ai and killed all the people who were still alive in the city.
Psalms 83:10
You destroyed the enemy at Endor, and their bodies rotted on the ground.
Isaiah 24:18
People will hear about the danger, and they will be afraid. Some of them will run away, but they will fall into holes and be trapped. Some of them will climb out of the holes, but they will be caught in another trap. The floodgates in the sky above will open, and the floods will begin. The foundations of the earth will shake.
Jeremiah 48:44
People will be afraid and run away, and they will fall into the deep holes. Anyone who climbs out of the deep holes will be caught in the traps. I will bring the year of punishment to Moab." This is what the Lord said.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

So his father went down unto the woman,.... At Timnath, whom Samson had espoused; the Targum is,

"about the business of the woman;''

about the consummation of the marriage with her; they all three went, the father, the mother, and the son, as appears from the preceding verse:

for Samson made a feast, for so used the young men to do; at the time of marriage; this was the nuptial feast common in all nations; but it seems the custom now and here was for the bridegroom to make it; whereas from other instances we learn, that the father of the bridegroom used to make it, :- and the Vulgate Latin version here renders it,

and he made a feast for his son Samson; the Septuagint, Syriac, and Arabic versions add, seven days, and so long this feast was kept,

Judges 14:12. Now this marriage of Samson with a daughter of the Philistines was a type of the marriage of Christ with his people, especially with the Gentile church, such as were not of the commonwealth of Israel, but sinners of the Gentiles, very ignorant of divine things, reproached by the Jews, and their calling an offence to them; and may fitly express the love of Christ to his church, though unworthy of it, which is a love of complacency and delight, arising from his own good will and pleasure, and not owing to any superior beauty, excellence, worth, or worthiness in them, they being no better than others, children of wrath, even as others, see Judges 15:2 as well as there is an agreement in the manner of his obtaining and betrothing her, which was by applying to his father to get her for him, and being got and given, be betrothed her; so Christ asked his people of his father to be his spouse, which request being obtained, he betrothed them to himself in righteousness; and the Gospel feast, or ministry of the word, is kept and continued on account of it,

Psalms 21:2.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Made a feast ... - This was the wedding-feast, protracted in this instance seven days, in that of Tobias (Tobit 8:19) fourteen days. It was an essential part of the marriage ceremony Genesis 29:22; Esther 2:18; Matthew 22:2-4; Revelation 19:7, Revelation 19:9.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Judges 14:10. Samson made there a feast — The marriage feast, when he went to marry his espoused wife.


 
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