Judges 16:11
in Judges 16He replied, “If they tie me up with new ropes that have never been used, I will become as weak as any other man.”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And he said unto her, If they only bind me with new ropes wherewith no work hath been done, then shall I become weak, and be as another man.
KJV
And he said unto her, If they bind me fast with new ropes that never were occupied, then shall I be weak, and be as another man.
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This verse in Judges 16
Commentary
10 notes on this verseIf they bind me fast with new ropes - Samson wishes to keep up the opinion which the Philistines held; viz., that his mighty strength was the effect of some charm; and therefore he says, Seven green withs which had not been dried; new ropes that were never occupied; weave the seven locks of my hair with the web, etc.; the green withs, the new ropes, and the number seven, are such matters as would naturally be expected in a charm or spell.
This site's exposition
You have mocked me and lied to me
on Judges 16:10-12
The “new ropes that have never been used” are what the men of Judah used at 15:13, and 15:14 says those ropes became like burnt flax. He is handing Delilah the record of his own deliverances as a game. Men wait hidden in her room for this attempt as for the first, so he gives this answer knowing a trap has already been laid for him once.
This site's exposition
new ropes that have never been used
Adam Clarke reads the three answers as one strategy. Undried cords, unused ropes and the number seven are the things a charm or spell would call for, and Samson feeds the Philistine belief that his strength came from magic. The lie is shaped to their superstition.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers3 voices
Samson, still firm of purpose, intimated to her that, if he were bound by seven ropes which had never been used, he would fall into the hands of the enemy, but this also was in vain.
What was the meaning of Samson? If I say he signified Christ, it seems to me that I speak the truth. However, the thought immediately occurs to anyone who reflects: Was Christ overcome by the flattery of a woman? How is Christ understood to have …
Like the famed Samson, whose power lay in the strength of his hair, whose locks were endowed with sacred might, he must throttle and bring low the lion by means of the strong arms of prayers and pluck the sweet fruit of notable victory from …
The Medieval Church1 voice
A commentator
BonaventureCollationes de Septem Donis, Collation 5 · Written in the 13th century.
proposed
It is said that Samson, according to the instruction of the Angel, did not permit a razor to come upon his head; but his hair grew, and he became the strongest of men. It was a wondrous thing that with his hair he was strong, …
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
But first, it is probable, that Samson had in some measure repented of his sin, and begged of God pardon and assistance. 2.This singular strength and courage was not in itself a grace, but a gift, and it was such a gift as did not so much depend on the disposition of his mind, but on the right ordering of his body, by the rule given to him, and others of that order.
2 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
And he said unto her,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
Occupied - The margin, “wherewith work hath not been done,” is better.
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
With ropes. Thick rope. 1 Unlike the thin string specified in v.
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. 5 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
16 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיֹּ֣אמֶר | vaiyomer | and he said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| אֵלֶ֔יהָ | ʾeleiha | to her | H413 → | 5510 times |
| אִם־ | ʾim- | <if> | H518 → | 1069 times |
| אָס֤וֹר | ʾasor | certainly [if] <to bind> | H631 → | 72 times |
| יַאַסְר֙וּנִי֙ | yaasruni | they will bind me | H631 → | 72 times |
| בַּעֲבֹתִ֣ים | baavotim | with ropes | H5688 → | 24 times |
| חֲדָשִׁ֔ים | chadashim | new | H2319 → | 53 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֛ר | ʾasher | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| לֹֽא־ | lo'- | not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| נַעֲשָׂ֥ה | naasah | it has been done | H6213 → | 2628 times |
| בָהֶ֖ם | vahem | with <the> them | ||
| מְלָאכָ֑ה | melakhah | work | H4399 → | |
| וְחָלִ֥יתִי | vechaliti | and I will be weak | H2470 → | 76 times |
| וְהָיִ֖יתִי | vehayiti | and I will be | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| כְּאַחַ֥ד | keachad | like one of | H259 → | 971 times |
| הָאָדָֽם׃ | haadam | <the> humankind | H120 → | 551 times |
וַיֹּ֣אמֶרand he said
vaiyomerH559 →5305 times
אֵלֶ֔יהָto her
ʾeleihaH413 →5510 times
אִם־<if>
ʾim-H518 →1069 times
אָס֤וֹרcertainly [if] <to bind>
ʾasorH631 →72 times
יַאַסְר֙וּנִי֙they will bind me
yaasruniH631 →72 times
בַּעֲבֹתִ֣יםwith ropes
baavotimH5688 →24 times
חֲדָשִׁ֔יםnew
chadashimH2319 →53 times
אֲשֶׁ֛רwhich
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
לֹֽא־not
lo'-H3808 →5168 times
נַעֲשָׂ֥הit has been done
naasahH6213 →2628 times
בָהֶ֖םwith <the> them
vahem
מְלָאכָ֑הwork
melakhahH4399 →
וְחָלִ֥יתִיand I will be weak
vechalitiH2470 →76 times
וְהָיִ֖יתִיand I will be
vehayitiH1961 →3559 times
כְּאַחַ֥דlike one of
keachadH259 →971 times
הָאָדָֽם׃<the> humankind
haadamH120 →551 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
Ephesians 4:25Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one another.
it leads to
- Colossians 3:9
Do not lie to one another, since you have taken off the old self with its practices,
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Colossians 3:9
Through
Proverbs 29:25The fear of man is a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD is set securely on high.
it leads to
- Psalms 118:8
It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in man.
- Luke 12:4
I tell you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more.
- Proverbs 18:10
The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe.
- Psalms 91:14
“Because he loves Me, I will deliver him; because he knows My name, I will protect him.
- Psalms 118:8
Through
Proverbs 13:3He who guards his mouth protects his life, but the one who opens his lips invites his own ruin.
it leads to
- Proverbs 21:23
He who guards his mouth and tongue keeps his soul from distress.
- Proverbs 18:21
Life and death are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit.
- Proverbs 18:7
A fool’s mouth is his ruin, and his lips are a snare to his soul.
- Proverbs 21:23
About Judges
This page draws on 9 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Ambrose of Milan, Letter 19; Bonaventure, Collationes de Septem Donis, Collation 5; Caesarius of Arles, SERMON 118.3; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Paulinus of Nola, POEM 24.529-581.