Judges 16:17-28

¹⁷Therefore he tolde her all his heart, and said vnto her, There neuer came rasor vpon mine head: for I am a Nazarite vnto God from my mothers wombe: therefore if I bee shauen, my strength will goe from me, and I shalbe weake, and be like all other men.

¹⁸And when Delilah sawe that he had tolde her all his heart, she sent, and called for the Princes of ye Philistims, saying, Come vp once againe: for he hath shewed mee all his heart. Then the Princes of the Philistims came vp vnto her, and brought the money in their handes.

¹⁹And she made him sleepe vpon her knees, and she called a man, and made him to shaue off the seuen lockes of his head, and shee began to vexe him, and his strength was gone from him.

²⁰Then she said, The Philistims be vpon thee, Samson. And hee awoke out of his sleepe, and thought, I will go out now as at other times, and shake my selfe, but he knewe not that the Lord was departed from him.

²¹Therefore the Philistims tooke him, and put out his eyes, and brought him downe to Azzah, and bounde him with fetters: and hee did grinde in the prison house.

²²And the heare of his head began to growe againe after that it was shauen.

²³Then the Princes of the Philistims gathered them together for to offer a great sacrifice vnto Dagon their god, and to reioyce: for they said, Our god hath deliuered Samson our enemie into our handes.

²⁴Also when the people saw him, they praysed their god: for they sayde, Our god hath deliuered into our hands our enemie and destroyer of our countrey, which hath slayne many of vs.

²⁵And when their heartes were merie, they said, Call Samson, that he may make vs pastime. So they called Samson out of the prison house, and he was a laughing stocke vnto them, and they set him betweene the pillars.

²⁶Then Samson saide vnto the seruant that led him by the hande, Lead me, that I may touch the pillars that the house standeth vpon, and that I may leane to them.

²⁷(Nowe the house was full of men and women, and there were all the princes of the Philistims: also vpon the roofe were about three thousande men and women that behelde while Samson played)

²⁸Then Samson called vnto the Lord, and sayde, O Lord God, I pray thee, thinke vpon me: O God, I beseech thee, strengthen me at this time onely, that I may be at once auenged of the Philistims for my two eyes.