Judges 16:30

And Samson said, Let me die with the Philistines. And he bowed himself with all his might; and the house fell upon the lords, and upon all the people that were therein. So the dead which he slew at his death were more than they which he slew in his life.

King James Version · Read in your translation · Open the Explore console

Word by word — the Hebrew

Word	Hebrew	Strong’s	Meaning
Samson	שִׁמְשׁ֗וֹן shim.Shon	H8123	Shimshon · proper noun, a man's name
said	וַיֹּ֣אמֶר vai.Yo.mer	H559	to say (used with great latitude) · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
die	תָּמ֣וֹת ta.Mot	H4191	to die (literally or figuratively) · verb, qal imperfect, 3rd person feminine singular
Philistines	פְּלִשְׁתִּים֒ pe.lish.Tim	H6430	a Pelishtite or inhabitant of Pelesheth · noun, gentilic masculine plural absolute
bowed	וַיֵּ֣ט vai.Yet	H5186	to stretch or spread out · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
might	בְּכֹ֔חַ be.Kho.ach	H3581	vigor · preposition + noun, common masculine singular absolute
house	הַבַּ֙יִת֙ ha.Ba.yit	H1004	a house (in the greatest variation of applications · definite article + noun, common masculine singular absolute
fell	וַיִּפֹּ֤ל vai.yi.Pol	H5307	to fall · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
lords	הַסְּרָנִ֔ים ha.se.ra.Nim	H5633	an axle · definite article + noun, common masculine plural absolute
people	הָעָ֖ם ha.'Am	H5971	a people (as a congregated unit) · definite article + noun, common masculine singular absolute
dead	הַמֵּתִים֙ ha.me.Tim	H4191	to die (literally or figuratively) · definite article + verb, qal active participle, masculine plural absolute
slew	הֵמִ֣ית he.Mit	H4191	to die (literally or figuratively) · verb, hiphil perfect, 3rd person masculine singular
death	בְּמוֹת֔וֹ be.mo.To	H4194	death (natural or violent) · preposition + noun, common masculine singular construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
more	רַבִּ֕ים ra.Bim	H7227	abundant (in quantity · adjective, masculine plural absolute
slew	הֵמִ֖ית he.Mit	H4191	to die (literally or figuratively) · verb, hiphil perfect, 3rd person masculine singular
life	בְּחַיָּֽיו be.chai.Yav	H2416	alive · preposition + noun, common masculine plural construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).

Cross-references

Matthew 16:25 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.
Philippians 2:8 And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
Matthew 24:38-39 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered…
Acts 21:13 Then Paul answered, What mean ye to weep and to break mine heart? for I am ready not to be bound only, but also to die at Jerusalem for the…
Philippians 2:17 Yea, and if I be offered upon the sacrifice and service of your faith, I joy, and rejoice with you all.
1 Thessalonians 5:2 For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.
Genesis 3:15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his hee…
Job 20:5 That the triumphing of the wicked is short, and the joy of the hypocrite but for a moment?

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Judges 16:22–end

Though the last stage of Samson's life was inglorious, and one could wish there were a veil drawn over it, yet this account here given of his death may be allowed to lessen, though it does not quite roll away, the reproach of it; for there was honour in his death. No doubt he greatly repented of his sin, the dishonour he had by it done to God and his forfeiture of the honour God had put upon him; for that God was reconciled to him appears, 1. By the return of the sign of his Nazariteship (Jdg 16:22): His hair began to grow again, as when he was shaven, that is, to be as thick and as long as when it was cut off. It is probable that their general thanksgiving to Dagon was not long deferred, be…

Read the whole note in the console

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Judges 16:28

Samson called unto the Lord--His penitent and prayerful spirit seems clearly to indicate that this meditated act was not that of a vindictive suicide, and that he regarded himself as putting forth his strength in his capacity of a public magistrate. He must be considered, in fact, as dying for his country's cause. His death was not designed or sought, except as it might be the inevitable consequence of his great effort. His prayer must have been a silent ejaculation, and, from its being revealed to the historian, approved and accepted of God.

John Gill on Judges 16:30

And Samson said, let me die with the Philistines,.... He sought their death, and was content to lose his own life to be avenged on them; in neither of which did he act a criminal part as a judge of Israel; and from a public spirit he might desire the death of their enemies, and seek to effect it by all means possible; and was the more justifiable at this time, as they were not only insulting him, the representative of his nation, but were affronting the most high God with their idolatries, being now in the temple of their idol, and sacrificing to him. As for his own death, he did not simply desire that, only as he could not be avenged on his enemies without it, he was willing to submit to it…

Read the whole note in the console

The Church Fathers

The Spirit, therefore, "asks" and "intercedes," but we "pray." And Joshua's words commanding the sun to stand over [Gibeon] seem to me to be an intercession also.… And in Judges, Samson in my opinion said in intercession: "Let me die with the foreigners—when he bent in his strength and the house fell upon the princes and all the people that were there." Even though it is not written that Joshua and Samson "interceded" but that they "said," nevertheless their words seem to be an "intercession," which we must judge to be different from a "prayer," if we are to give words their proper meaning.
— Origen of Alexandria, ON PRAYER 14.5

The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).

Dictionary and topics

Dagon — Little fish; diminutive from dag = a fish, the fish-god; the national god of the Philistines (Judg. 16:23). This idol had the body of a fish with the head and hands of a man. It was an…
Gaza — Called also Azzah, which is its Hebrew name (Deut. 2:23; 1 Kings 4:24; Jer. 25:20), strong, a city on the Mediterranean shore, remarkable for its early importance as the chief centre of a great…
Gaza · .Sam — .Sam
Miracles Wrought Through Servants Of God · Gideon: Dagon’s house pulled down — Gideon: Dagon’s house pulled down
Philistines · Lords of — Lords of
Revenge · .By Sam — .By Sam
Samson · his enemies — his enemies
Suicide · .Sam — .Sam
Types Of Christ · Samson — Samson

Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).

Judges 16:30

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Judges 16:22–end

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Judges 16:28

John Gill on Judges 16:30

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

Judges 16:30

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Judges 16:22–end

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Judges 16:28

John Gill on Judges 16:30

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

Keil & Delitzsch on Judges 16:22–end

Rashi on Judges 16:29