Judges 15:14

Jdg 15:14 [And] when he came unto Lehi, the Philistines shouted against him: and the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him, and the cords that [were] upon his arms became as flax that was burnt with fire, and his bands loosed from off his hands.

Ver. 14. The Philistines shouted against him.] But ere long Samson made them change their note, and turn their crowing into crying. Thus the hope of the wicked perisheth - their Hilary-term is very short. "In the transgression of an evil man there is a snare," - or, a cord, to strangle his joy with, - "but the righteous sing and rejoice." {Pro 29:6}

Became as flax.] Similia funibus ex lino ustulato.

And his bands loosed.] Heb., Melted; dissoluta dissilierunt.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Jdg 15:14. The Philistines shouted against him — Because they had now, as they supposed, their enemy in their hands. The cords became as flax, &c. — As easily broken by him. His bands loosed from off his hands — Hebrew, were melted; that is, were dissolved as things which are melted in the fire. “This,” says Henry, “typified the resurrection of Christ, by the power of the Spirit of holiness. In this he loosed the bands of death, it being impossible he should be holden of them. And thus he triumphed over the power of darkness, which had shouted against him.”

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Verse 14. When he came unto Lehi] This was the name of the place to which they brought him, either to put him to death, or keep him in perpetual confinement.

Shouted against him] His capture was a matter of public rejoicing.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(14) Shouted against him.—Rather, cheered as they came to meet him (LXX., ἠλάλαξαν εἰς συνάντησιν αὐτοῦ; Vulg., cum vociferantes occurrissent ei). The verb heerioo is an onomatopœia, like our “hurrah.” This was not a war cry, as in 1Sa_17:20, but a shout of

joy.

The cords that were upon his arms became as flax.—It seems clear that the poetical colour and rhythmic structure of the narrative are influenced by some poem which described the deeds of Samson.

That was burnt with fire.—In both the LXX. and the Vulg. we find the metaphor, “flax when it has smelt the fire.”

His bands loosed.—Literally, melted, or flowed off, a highly poetic expression. A legend of Hercules in Egypt, who suddenly burst his bonds and slew the Egyptians who were leading him to sacrifice, may possibly have been coloured by this event in the life of Samson. (See Rawlinson’s Herodotus, 2, p. 70.)

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

14. See on Jdg_14:19.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And when he came unto Lehi,.... The place which was afterwards so called, from what happened there at this time, and where the Philistines were spread, Jdg 15:9 this, according to Bunting (k), was six miles from Etam:

the Philistines shouted against him: for joy that they had got him into their hands, and in the circumstances he was, being bound, so that they had nothing to fear from him:

and the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him: as it at times did, and had done before; the Targum is,"the Spirit of might from the Lord,''which gave him courage and resolution of mind, and great strength of body, even while he was speaking, as a token of the wonders God more than he had at other times:

and the cords that were upon his arms became as flax that was burnt with fire; as easily parted as the flax when fire takes it, which is consumed at once:

and his bonds loosed off from his hands; by which it appears that both arms and hands were bound with the cords; his arms were pinioned close to his body, as well as his hands were tied together; and these, as in the original, "melted away" (l), like wax before the fire, or snow before the sun, so easily were these bands separated from him; this may be an emblem of Christ's loosing himself from the cords of death, Act 2:24.

(k) Travels, p. 116. (l) "diffuxerunt", Tigurine version; "liquefacta sunt", Piscator.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

The cords ... became as flax ... - i. e. were as weak against his strength as half-burned flax which yields to the least pressure.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Bone. Hebrew, "Lechi," as it was called after the slaughter made by Samson, ver. 15. It is about 20 miles to the east of Ascalon. (Calmet) --- Approach: literally, "the smell." This expression is often used to denote burning. (Septuagint; Chap xvi. 9.; Daniel iii. 94.)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

The Philistines shouted against him, for joy and triumph, because they had now their great enemy, as they supposed, in their hands.

His bands loosed, Heb. were melted, i.e. were dissolved, as things are which are melted in the fire.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

14. Shouted against him — Raised a joyful shout of triumph to meet him as a bound captive and prisoner. They exulted as if their victory was now complete.

The cords… his bands — “The description rises,” says Keil, “to a poetical parallelism, to depict the triumph which Samson celebrated over the Philistines in the power of the Spirit of Jehovah.”

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

When he came, i.e. as soon as he was come to Lehi, where the Philistine camp was (ver. 9). Shouted against him. Rather, shouted as they ran out to meet him. It expresses concisely the double action of their all going out to meet him, and shouting with joy when they saw him bound and, as they thought, in their power.

HOMILIES BY A.F. MUIR. Vers. 14-16. Imperfect means made effectual by Divine inspiration.

It was but the jawbone of an ass, yet it slew as many as might have fallen in a battle.

I IN THE CONFLICTS OF TRUTH IT IS OF CHIEF CONSEQUENCE THAT WE BE ON THE SIDE OF TRUTH, AND ANIMATED BY THE SPIRIT OF GOD.

II THROUGH GOD"S BLESSING THE GRANDEST RESULTS HAVE BEEN PRODUCED BY THE RUDEST AND SIMPLEST MEANS. The preaching of the gospel by unlettered fishermen. "The solitary monk that shook the world" with the disused weapon in God"s armoury. The "simple gospel" and the evils of our age.

III NOTWITHSTANDING OUTWARD ADVANTAGES, THE ENEMIES OF GOD ARE CERTAIN IN THE END TO BE DISCOMFITED.

IV THE ABSOLUTENESS AND SPLENDOUR OF SPIRITUAL ACHIEVEMENTS. Pentecost; missionary triumphs; the song of Moses and of the Lamb. M.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Shouted - Because they had now their enemy, as they supposed, in their hands. Loosed - Hebrew. were melted; that is, were dissolved, as things which are melted in the fire. This typified the resurrection of Christ, by the power of the Spirit of holiness. In this he loosed the bands of death, it being impossible he should be holden of them. And thus he triumphed over the powers of darkness, which had shouted against him.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

When he came

Samson was not travelling alone, he was being led by the men who had tied him with ropes. AT: "When they came" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)

Lehi

This is the name of a town in Judah. See how you translated this in Judges 15:9.

came on him with power

The phrase "came on" means that Yahweh's Spirit influenced Samson. In this case, he made him very strong. AT: "made Samson very strong" (See: Idiom)

The ropes on his arms became like burnt flax

Samson easily broken the ropes that bound his hands. The author describes how easily he broke the ropes by saying it was as if they had become burnt flax. AT: "He snapped the ropes on his arms as easily as if they had been stalks of burned flax" (See: Simile)

flax

fibers from the flax plant used for making threads and cloth

translationWords

Philistines

Yahweh

Holy Spirit

power

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

The spirit of Adonoy. A spirit of power, emanating from Adonoy.

His bonds which tied him down.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.