Samson: Endgame

Judges Chapter 16, the Strange and the Spectacular

Verses: 31

Is It Read At Synagogue?: No.

Famous Quotes/Phrases: It’s probably Samson’s final plea to God in Verse 28, in which he asks for one last burst of strength to take revenge on the Philistines who had blinded them.

Basic Plot: Among the chapters of the Book of Judges, this is probably the best-known in popular culture. Samson’s appetite for women is constant, as the chapter opens with him sleeping with a prostitute. He runs away from the woman before he can be captured. He is not so lucky, however, after falling in love with a woman named Delilah. Philistine leaders offer her 1,100 shekels if she can reveal the secret to Samson’s strength. Samson lies to her three times, breaking free each time, until he finally confides that since he is a Nazirite, he will lose his strength if his hair is cut.

Delilah tells the Philistines, who then cut Samson’s hair, gouge out his eyes, and make him into their slave. They bring him to their temple to make a sacrifice to celebrate his capture. Samson knows that God has abandoned him for allowing his hair to be cut and breaking his ties as a Nazirite, but pleads with God for one last burst of strength. God enables him to tear down the pillars of the temple, sending 3,000 Philistines — and Samson himself — to their demise.

What’s Strange: Biblical scholar Susan Ackerman notes numerous parallels between Samson’s mother, whom we met in Judges Chapter 13, and Delilah; among these connections is the fact that, until Delilah tells Samson’s secret to the Philistines, the two women are the only people who know that Samson’s incredible power is connected to his status as a Nazirite. Ackerman writes in her book Warrior, Dancer, Seductress, Queen: Women in Judges and Biblical Israel: “Knowledge, Judges 16 implies, is power. As long as the secret of his uncut hair was safe with his mother, so was Samson. But when Delilah solves the mystery of Samson’s might, she is able to claim his great strength of herself. In the end, then, the man who previously had been the master of all challenges is mastered by a woman, and the Philistines whom Samson theretofore had conquered become his conquerors.”

What’s Spectacular: I thought it would be fitting for me to conclude our study of Samson by bringing up yet another parallel to a modern-day superhero — this time, Samson compares favorably to Iron Man. [SPOILER ALERT: If you haven’t seen the movie Avengers: Endgame and were hoping to, you might want to stop reading now … but the movie came out more than five years ago, so I think I can go ahead.] Tony Stark’s final act on earth is to sacrifice himself in order to vanquish his enemies and save innocent people. Samson’s final act on earth is … well, the same. What’s more, both Samson and Iron Man are, at times, boorish womanizers who also achieve feats of great strength.

I don’t think this comparison works completely, though, since Stark/Iron Man has displayed moments of goodness throughout the Marvel Cinematic Universe films, whereas it can be argued that Samson’s death represents the first selfless thing he’s ever done. Still, we tend to love those who have moments of redemption even at the end of their lives. I’m glad that not every superhero is like Samson, but if we were to see him as an early prototype for a comic-book hero, he’s not a bad first draft.

Shabbat Shalom!