Judges 14:11
in Judges 14And when the Philistines saw him, they selected thirty men to accompany him.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And it came to pass, when they saw him, that they brought thirty companions to be with him.
KJV
And it came to pass, when they saw him, that they brought thirty companions to be with him.
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This verse in Judges 14
Commentary
6 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
Thirty companions - These were “the children of the bride-chamber” (Mat 9:15; see Jdg 14:20). From the number of them it may be inferred that Samson’s family was of some wealth and importance.
This site's exposition
his father went down unto
on Judges 14:10-11
The word rendered feast here is mishteh, built on the verb to drink, and it is the ordinary word for the banquet at Genesis 21:8 and Esther 1:3. Numbers 6:3 bars a Nazarite from wine and from strong drink, and this verse puts him at the drinking feast the young men kept, while saying nothing about what he took. The thirty companions are read two ways: Albert Barnes takes their number as a mark of the standing of Samson's family, and Jamieson, Fausset and Brown take them for a watch set on a stranger by the bride's people.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
): When they saw him, what a comely man he was, and what an ingenuous graceful look he had, they brought him these to do him honour, and to improve by his conversation while he staid among them. Or, rather, when they saw him, what a strong stout man he was, they brought these, seemingly to be his companions, but really to be a guard upon him, or spies to observe him.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
And it came to pass; when they saw him,....
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
Samson, in some place obtained for the occasion, as he was a stranger. A large number of paranymphs, or "friends of the bridegroom," furnished, no doubt, by the bride's family, attended his party, ostensibly to honor the nuptials, but really as spies on his proceedings.
They brought thirty companions - These are called in Scripture children of the bride-chamber, and friends of the bridegroom. See the whole of this subject particularly illustrated in the observations at the end of Joh 3:25 (note).
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
Friends. Companions who formed the retinue of wedding attendants.
1 more on this passage, in their own words ▾
His father descended to discuss the woman. With regard to the woman.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 4 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
8 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיְהִ֖י | vayhi | and it was | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| כִּרְאוֹתָ֣ם | kirotam | when saw they | H7200 → | 1300 times |
| אוֹת֑וֹ | ʾoto | <obj.> him | H853 → | 10935 times |
| וַיִּקְחוּ֙ | vaiyikchu | and they took | H3947 → | 966 times |
| שְׁלֹשִׁ֣ים | sheloshim | thirty | H7970 → | 172 times |
| מֵֽרֵעִ֔ים | mereim | companions | H4828 → | 7 times |
| וַיִּהְי֖וּ | vaiyihyu | and they were | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| אִתּֽוֹ׃ | ʾito | with him | H854 → | 929 times |
וַיְהִ֖יand it was
vayhiH1961 →3559 times
כִּרְאוֹתָ֣םwhen saw they
kirotamH7200 →1300 times
אוֹת֑וֹ<obj.> him
ʾotoH853 →10935 times
וַיִּקְחוּ֙and they took
vaiyikchuH3947 →966 times
שְׁלֹשִׁ֣יםthirty
sheloshimH7970 →172 times
מֵֽרֵעִ֔יםcompanions
mereimH4828 →7 times
וַיִּהְי֖וּand they were
vaiyihyuH1961 →3559 times
אִתּֽוֹ׃with him
ʾitoH854 →929 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
John 3:29The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom stands and listens for him, and is overjoyed to hear the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete.
it leads to
- Hosea 2:19
So I will betroth you to Me forever; I will betroth you in righteousness and justice, in loving devotion and compassion.
- Isaiah 54:5
For your husband is your Maker—the LORD of Hosts is His name—the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer; He is called the God of all the earth.
- Ephesians 5:25–27
Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her
- Matthew 9:15
Jesus replied, “How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while He is with them? But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast.
- Ezekiel 16:8
Then I passed by and saw you, and you were indeed old enough for love. So I spread My cloak over you and covered your nakedness. I pledged Myself to you, entered into a…
- Hosea 2:19
Through
Matthew 9:15Jesus replied, “How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while He is with them? But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast.
it leads to
- Revelation 19:9
Then the angel told me to write, “Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.”
- John 3:29
The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom stands and listens for him, and is overjoyed to hear the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete.
- Revelation 21:2
I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
- Revelation 19:9
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About Judges
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.