Judges 16
1 One day Samson went to Gaza [city in the Philistia area]. He spent some time with a prostitute.
Pea naʻe ʻalu ʻa Samisoni ki Kesa, ʻo ne mamata ʻi ai ki he fefine angahala, pea ʻalu ia kiate ia.
2 People soon found out that Samson was there, so the men of Gaza gathered together at the city gate and waited all night. They said to themselves, “When it dawns tomorrow morning, we will kill him [when he tries to leave the city].”
Pea naʻe tala ki he kakai Kesa, ʻo pehē, Kuo haʻu ʻa Samisoni ki heni. Pea naʻa nau ʻāʻi ʻa Samisoni ʻi ai, pea naʻe toka ʻae malumu kiate ia ʻi he pō kotoa ko ia ʻi he matapā ʻoe kolo, ʻonau longo pe ʻi he pō kotoa, ko ʻenau pehē, “ʻI he ʻapongipongi ʻoka ʻaho, te tau tāmateʻi ia.”
3 But Samson did not stay there all night. At midnight, he got up. He went to the city gate, he took hold of its two posts, and he lifted it up out of the ground, with its [connecting cross] bar still attached. He put it on his shoulders and carried it [many miles] uphill to Hebron.
Pea naʻe mohe ʻa Samisoni ʻo aʻu ki he tuʻuapō, pea ʻi heʻene tuʻuapō, naʻe tuʻu ʻa Samisoni, ʻo ne ʻave ʻae matapā lōua ʻoe kolo, mo hono ongo pou, pea ʻalu mo ia, mo hono fakamaʻu kotoa pē, pea naʻa ne hili ia ki hono uma, pea fua hake kotoa pē ki he tumutumu ʻoe moʻunga ʻoku ʻi he ʻao ʻo Hepeloni.
4 Later Samson fell in love with a woman named Delilah, [and started to live with her]. She lived in Sorek Valley [in the Philistia area].
Pea hili ia, pea pehē, naʻe ʻofa ia ki he fefine ʻi he teleʻa ʻo Soleki, ʻaia naʻe hingoa ko Tilila.
5 The Philistine leaders went to her and said, “Find out from Samson what makes him so strong. And find out how we can subdue him and tie him up securely. If you do that, each of us will give you 1,100 pieces of silver.”
Pea naʻe haʻu ʻae houʻeiki ʻoe kau Filisitia kiate ia, ʻonau pehē kiate ia, “Ke ke fakakolekole kiate ia, pea vakai pe ʻoku tuʻu ʻi he hā ʻene mālohi lahi, pea ko e hā ʻae meʻa ko ia te mau lavaʻi ai ia, koeʻuhi ke mau haʻi ia pea fakavaivaiʻi ia: pea te mau taki taha ʻatu kiate koe ha konga siliva ʻe taha afe ma teau.”
6 So Delilah said to Samson, “Please tell me what makes you so strong, and tell me how someone can subdue you and tie you up.”
Pea naʻe pehē ʻe Tilila kia Samisoni, “ʻOku ou kole kiate koe, tala mai kiate au, ʻOku ʻi he hā ʻa ho mālohi lahi, pea ʻe faʻa haʻi koe ʻaki ʻae ha ke fakavaivai koe.”
7 Samson said, “If someone ties me with seven new bowstrings, ones that are not dry yet, I will become as weak as other men.”
Pea naʻe pehē ʻe Samisoni kiate ia, “Kapau tenau haʻi ʻaki au ʻae afo mata ʻe fitu ʻaia naʻe ʻikai tauaki te u vaivai ai ʻo hangē ko ha tangata kehe.”
8 So [after Delilah told that to the Philistine leaders], they brought seven new bowstrings to Delilah.
Pea naʻe toki ʻomi kiate ia ʻe he houʻeiki ʻoe kau Filisitia ʻae afo mata ʻe fitu ʻaia naʻe ʻikai tauaki, pea naʻa ne haʻi ʻaki ia.
9 Then she hid the men in one of the rooms in her house. Then [while Samson was sleeping], she tied him up with the bowstrings. Then she called out, “Samson! The Philistines have come here to capture you!” But Samson snapped the bowstrings as easily as though they were strings that had been singed in a fire. So the Philistines did not find out what made Samson so strong.
Pea naʻe tuʻu teuteu ʻi ai ʻae kau tangata, ʻo nofo mo ia ʻi he potu fale. Pea naʻe pehē ʻe ia kiate ia, “Samisoni kuo hoko ʻae kau Filisitia kiate koe.” Pea naʻe motumotuhi ʻe ia ʻae ngaahi afo, ʻo hangē ko e motu ha foʻi filo vaivai ʻoka lave ki ai ʻae afi. Pea ko ia naʻe ʻikai ʻilo ai ʻene mālohi.
10 Then Delilah said to Samson, “You have deceived me and lied to me! Now tell me [the truth, ] how someone can tie you up securely.”
Pea naʻe pehē ʻe Tilila kia Samisoni, “Vakai, kuo ke manuki kiate au, ʻo lea loi kiate au: ko eni, ʻoku ou kole kiate koe, ke ke tala mai kiate au ʻaia ʻe faʻa haʻi ʻaki koe.”
11 Samson replied, “If someone ties me with new ropes, ones that have never been used, I will be as weak as other men.”
Pea pehē ʻe ia kiate ia, “Kapau tenau haʻi au ʻaki ʻae ngaahi maea foʻou ʻaia naʻe ʻikai ngāueʻaki, te u vaivai ai, ʻo hoko ʻo hangē ko e tangata kehe.”
12 So again, [she told the Philistine leaders, and] they [came and] hid in the room as they had done before. And again, while Samson was sleeping, she took the new ropes and tied him up with them. Then she called out, “Samson! The Philistines have come to capture you!” But Samson snapped the ropes on his arms as easily as if they were threads.
Ko ia naʻe toe ʻai ʻe Tilila ʻae ngaahi maea foʻou, pea haʻi ʻaki ia, ʻo ne pehē kiate ia, “Samisoni kuo ʻiate koe ʻae kau Filisitia.” Pea naʻe ʻi ai ʻae kau toitoi naʻe nofo mo ia ʻi he potu fale. Pea naʻa ne motuhi ia mei hono nima ʻo hangē ha foʻi filo tuitui.
13 Then Delilah said, “You have deceived me and lied to me [again]! Please tell me how someone can tie you up securely!” Samson replied, “If you weave the seven braids of my hair into the threads you are weaving on the loom, and then fasten those threads with the pin [that makes the threads tight], then I will be as weak as other men.” So again, while Samson was sleeping on her lap, Delilah held the seven braids of his hair, and wove them into the threads on the loom,
Pea pehē ʻe Tilila kia Samisoni, “Kuo ke fai manuki pē kiate au pea lea loi mai: tala mai kiate au, ʻe haʻi koe ʻaki ʻae hā?” Pea naʻe pehē ʻe ia kiate ia, “Kapau te ke fī ha vāhenga louʻulu ʻe fitu ʻo hoku ʻulu fakataha mo e lalanga.”
14 and she tightened them with the pin. Then she called out, “Samson! The Philistines have come to capture you!” But Samson woke up and pulled out the pin, and pulled his hair from the threads on the loom.
Pea naʻa ne fakamaʻu ʻaki ia ʻae faʻo ʻo ne pehē kiate ia, “Samisoni kuo ʻiate koe ʻae kau Filisitia.” Pea naʻe ʻā hake ia mei heʻene mohe, pea ne ʻalu ia mo e faʻo ʻoe fuʻu ʻakau, pea mo e lalanga.
15 Then Delilah said to him, “How can you say that you love me when you do not tell me the truth about yourself? You have deceived me three times, and you still have not told me what really makes you so strong!”
Pea pehē ʻe ia kiate ia, “ʻOku fēfē hoʻo pehē, ʻOku ou ʻofa kiate koe, ka ʻoku ʻikai ʻiate au hoʻo ʻofa? Kuo ke kākaaʻi au ʻo liunga tolu, pea ʻoku teʻeki siʻi tala kiate au pē ʻoku tuʻu ʻi he hā ʻa hoʻo mālohi lahi.”
16 Day after day she nagged him like that. He thought he would die from her nagging [IDM].
Pea naʻe hoko ʻo pehē, ʻi heʻene taukave ʻene lea kiate ia ʻi he ʻaho kotoa pē ʻo fakafiuʻi ia, naʻe mamahi ai hono laumālie ʻo tei mate;
17 Finally Samson told her the truth. He said, “I have been set apart for God since the day I was born. And because of that, my hair has never been cut. If my hair were shaved off, my strength would be gone, and I would be as weak as other men.”
Ko ia naʻa ne fakahā kiate ia hono loto kotoa pē, ʻo ne pehē kiate ia, “Naʻe ʻikai hoko ha tele ki hoku ʻulu; he ko e Fakamavahe au ki he ʻOtua mei he manāva ʻo ʻeku faʻē: kapau ʻe tekefua au, pea ʻe mole ai ʻeku mālohi ʻiate au, pea te u hoko ʻo vaivai, pea te u hangē ko e tangata kehe.”
18 Delilah realized that this time he had told her the truth. So she summoned the Philistine leaders again, saying, “Come back one more time, because Samson has really told me everything [about why he is so strong]”. So the Philistine leaders returned and brought to Delilah the money [that they promised to give her].
Pea ʻi he mamata ʻe Tilila kuo ne fakahā kiate ia hono loto kotoa, naʻe fekau ia ʻo ui ke haʻu ʻae houʻeiki ʻoe kau Filisitia, ʻo ne pehē, “Mou haʻu ke toe tā tuʻo taha, he kuo ne fakahā kiate au ʻa hono loto kotoa.” Pea naʻe haʻu ai ʻae ngaahi ʻeiki ʻoe kau Filisitia kiate ia, pea naʻe ʻomi ʻae ngaahi paʻanga ʻi honau nima.
19 Again she lulled Samson to sleep, with his head in her lap. Then she called one of the Philistine men to come and shave off Samson’s hair. As he did that, Samson began to get weaker. And finally his strength was all gone.
Pea naʻa ne fakamohe ia ki hono tui; pea naʻa ne ui ke haʻu ha tangata, ke ne tele ke ʻosi hono tope louʻulu ʻe fitu; pea naʻa ne kamata fakavaivai ia, pea naʻe mole ʻene mālohi ʻiate ia.
20 Then [after she tied him up], she called out, “Samson! The Philistines have come to capture you!” He woke up and thought, “I will do as I did before. I will shake [these ropes] off myself and be free!” But he did not realize that Yahweh had left him.
Pea pehē ʻe ia, “Samisoni, ʻoku ʻiate koe ʻae kau Filisitia.” Pea naʻe ʻā hake ia mei heʻene mohe, pea ne pehē, “Te u ʻalu atu ʻo hangē ko ʻeku faʻa ʻalu, ʻo tupetupeʻi au.” Pea naʻe ʻikai mahalo ʻe ia kuo ʻalu ʻa Sihova ʻiate ia.
21 So the Philistine men seized him and gouged out his eyes. Then they took him to Gaza. There they put him in prison and bound him with bronze chains. They made him [turn a millstone to] grind grain [every day].
Ka naʻe puke ia ʻe he kau Filisitia, ʻonau kapeʻi hono mata, pea naʻe ʻohifo ia ki Kesa, pea haʻi ʻaki ia ʻae meʻa haʻi palasa; pea naʻe fai ʻe ia ʻae momosi meʻa ʻi he fale fakapōpula.
22 But his hair started to grow again.
Ka naʻe toe kamata tupu hono louʻulu ʻi he hili ʻene tekefua.
23 [Several months later] the Philistine leaders celebrated a big festival. During the festival they offered sacrifices to their god Dagon. They praised him, saying, “Our god has enabled us to defeat our great enemy Samson!”
Pea naʻe fakataha ʻae ngaahi ʻeiki ʻoe kau Filisitia koeʻuhi kenau ʻatu ha feilaulau lahi kia Takoni ko honau ʻotua, pea kenau fiefia: he naʻa nau pehē, “Kuo tuku ʻe hotau ʻotua ʻa Samisoni, ko hotau fili ki hotau nima.”
24 And when the other people saw Samson, they also praised their god Dagon, saying, “Samson ruined our crops and killed many of our people, but our god has put our enemy into our hands. Our god helped us to capture the one who has killed so many of us!”
Pea ʻi he mamata kiate ia ʻae kakai, naʻa nau fakamālō ki honau ʻotua: he naʻa nau pehē, “Kuo tuku ʻe hotau ʻotua ki hotau nima ʻa hotau fili, mo e fakaʻauha ʻo hotau fonua, ʻaia naʻa ne tāmateʻi hotau toko lahi.”
25 By that time the people were half-drunk. They shouted, “Bring Samson out of the prison! Bring him here so that he can entertain us!” So they brought Samson from the prison and made fun of him. Then they made him stand in the center of the temple. They made him stand between the two pillars that held up the roof.
Pea naʻe hoko ʻo pehē, ʻi he fiefia ʻo honau loto, naʻa nau pehē, “Ui ke haʻu ʻa Samisoni, koeʻuhi ketau fakavele kata ai.” Pea naʻa nau ui ke haʻu ʻa Samisoni mei he fale fakapōpula; pea naʻa ne fai meʻa fakakata ʻi honau ʻao, pea naʻa nau tuku ia ʻi he vahaʻa ʻoe ongo pou.
26 Samson said to the servant who was leading him by his hand, “Place my hands against the two pillars. I want to rest against them.”
Pea naʻe pehē ʻe Samisoni ki he tamasiʻi naʻe puke hono nima, “Tuku au ke u ala ki he ongo pou ʻaia ʻoku faʻaki ki ai ʻae fale, koeʻuhi ke u faʻaki ki ai.”
27 At that time the temple was full of men and women. All the Philistine leaders were also there. And there were about 3,000 people on the roof, watching Samson and making fun of him.
Pea ko eni, naʻe fonu ʻae fale ʻi he kau tangata mo e kau fefine; pea naʻe ʻi ai ʻae ngaahi houʻeiki kotoa pē ʻoe kakai Filisitia; pea naʻe nofo ʻi he tuʻafale ʻae kau tangata mo e kau fefine ʻe toko tolu afe nai, ke mamata ki he fai meʻa fakakata ʻa Samisoni.
28 Then Samson prayed, saying, “Yahweh, my Lord, think about me again! Please give me strength one more time, so that I may get revenge on the Philistines for gouging out my eyes!”
Pea naʻe hū ʻa Samisoni kia Sihova, ʻo ne pehē, “ʻE Sihova ko e ʻOtua, ʻoku ou kole kiate koe, ke ke manatuʻi au; ʻoku ou kole kiate koe, ʻE ʻOtua, ke ke fakamālohi au, ke tuʻo taha ni, koeʻuhi ke u totongi leva ni ki he kakai Filisitia koeʻuhi ko hoku ongo mata.”
29 Then Samson put his hands on the two center pillars of the temple. He put his right hand on one pillar and his left hand on the other pillar.
Pea naʻe puke ʻe Samisoni ki he ongo pou ʻe ua ʻi loto ʻaia naʻe falala ai ʻae fale, ʻaia naʻa na poupou hake ia, ko e taha ʻi hono nima toʻomataʻu, mo e taha ʻi hono toʻohema.
30 Then he shouted [to God], “Let me die with the Philistines!”, and he pushed with all his strength. [The pillars collapsed], and the temple crashed down on the Philistine leaders and all the other Philistine people, [and they all died]. So Samson killed more people when he died than he had killed all during his life.
Pea naʻe pehē ʻe Samisoni, “Tuku au ke u mate mo e kakai Filisitia.” Pea naʻa ne tulolo ʻi hono mālohi kotoa; pea naʻe holo ʻae fale ki he ngaahi houʻeiki, pea ki he kakai kotoa pē naʻe ʻi ai. Ko ia ko e mate naʻa ne tāmateʻi ʻi heʻene pekia naʻe tokolahi hake ʻiate kinautolu naʻa ne tāmateʻi ʻi heʻene moʻui.
31 Later his brothers and their relatives went down [from Zorah to Gaza] to get his body. They took it back home and buried it between Zorah and Eshtaol, at the place where Samson’s father Manoah was buried. Samson had been Israel’s leader for 20 years.
Pea naʻe ʻalu hifo ʻa hono ngaahi kāinga mo kinautolu kotoa pē ʻi he fale ʻo ʻene tamai, ke toʻo ia, ʻo ʻalu hake mo ia, pea naʻe fai hono putu ʻi he vahaʻa ʻo Sola mo Esitaoli ʻi he tanuʻanga ʻo ʻene tamai ko Manoa. Pea naʻa ne fakamaauʻi ʻe ia ʻa ʻIsileli ʻi he taʻu ʻe uofulu.
