This is another amazing essay from one of my students.
Thank you Anat!
Shimshon
Perek 13
Shimshon is one of the most famous prophets. His life had its ups and down, including two loves, fits of rage, and a heroic death. When Bnai Yisrael continued the circle in the book of Shoftim, or judges, the story of Shimshon began. Bnai Yisrael had been under the rule of the Pleshtim for 40 years. His father was from the tribe of Dan, and his name was Manoach. His mother had trouble having a child when an angel visited her. The angel told her, “Right now you are not pregnant, but you shall have a son. But you may not drink and freshly pressed or intoxicating wine or anything ritually defiled. You may not cut his hair because the boy will be a Nazarite from the womb. And he shall save Bnai Yisrael from the Pleshtim.” The woman, Shimshon’s mother, told her husband, “A man of Hashem came to me who resembled the appearance of an angel of Hashem- extremely awesome. I didn’t ask him where he was from and he didn’t tell me his name. “Then she repeated what the angel had told her. Manoach begged Hashem to send them the man who had talked to his wife so he could instruct them what to do, again. Hashem accepted the prayer, and sent the angel again, and the couple verified that the angel was the same as before. Then Manoach asked the angel or the regulations of which their son should follow. The angel repeated his previous instruction. Manoach offered to host him, but the angel replied he could not eat, but they should offer Hashem an Olah offering. The Olah offering is completely burnt on the altar, and corresponds to the highest level of communication between us and God. Manoach repeated his question, “What is your name, we want to honor your instructions?” What does that mean? According to Rashi, he meant he wanted to fulfill the mission. Then Manoach offered the goat to Hashem. Just like in the Byt Hamigdash, fire came from heaven and the sacrifice was accepted. The angel no longer “revealed” itself to them. Just them Manoach realized that the visitor had been an angel. Manoach told his wife that they were probably going to die. But she replied, “If he was going to kill us then wouldn’t have accepted the Olah and meal offerings. He would not have revealed all this to us, and at this time, he would not have told us of appraised us in this way. What does that mean? According to Rashi it mean! s that he would not have given them a set of criteria about their son.” She gave birth; the boy grew up, and named him Shimshon. Shimshon has the word shemish in it, or sun. Hashem was the sun and shield. Just as Hashem protected his nation, Shimshon protected his generation. Hashem was with him, for example, Hashem gave him visions.
Perek 14
Shimshon met a Pelishtite woman, who he fell in love with. He told his parents that he wanted to marry her, but they said no.“Is there no one among the daughters of your kinsmen or any of my people, suitable as a wife, that you must go out and take a wife from the uncircumcised Pelishtim?”Shimshon said, “Take her for me, for she appears appropriate in my eyes.”Neither of his parents knew that Hashem had decreed it. So Shimshon said an accusation against the Pelishtim. Why? Rashi says that, that way he would be able to meet the Pelishtim. When Shimshon went with his parents to Timnah, he passed through a vineyard. A young lion came toward him, intent on attacking. Shimshon, with Hashem, tore it to pieces; without a weapon. He continued on, and talked with the woman’s relatives. When he came a few days later to claim her, he noticed that there was a beehive in the remains of the lion. He took some of the honey and continued he even gave some to his parents. His father visited the woman’s relatives, and thought her appropriate. At his marriage feast he gave the 30 companions a riddle. If they solved it he would give them 30 linen suits and 30 linen cloths. The riddle was, “From that which eats came forth that which is eaten; from power came sweetness.” They had seven days to solve the riddle. On the 7th day, they told his wife to make her husband tell her answer to the riddle for them. If not they would burn her and her fathers house in flames. So she tried to make Shimshon tell her. Finally he told her the answer, and she told the men. The answered,“What can be sweeter than honey and what is more powerful than the lion” Shimshon answered them, “If you had not plowed with my calf, you would not have solved my riddle.” But he had to pay them the linen rewards. So he went to Ashkelon, with Hashem, killed 30 men, and gave their suits to those who had solved the riddle. He was enraged with his wife, and went to his father’s house. His bride became attached to a friend, or wedding attendant.
Shimshon met a Pelishtite woman, who he fell in love with. He told his parents that he wanted to marry her, but they said no.“Is there no one among the daughters of your kinsmen or any of my people, suitable as a wife, that you must go out and take a wife from the uncircumcised Pelishtim?”Shimshon said, “Take her for me, for she appears appropriate in my eyes.”Neither of his parents knew that Hashem had decreed it. So Shimshon said an accusation against the Pelishtim. Why? Rashi says that, that way he would be able to meet the Pelishtim. When Shimshon went with his parents to Timnah, he passed through a vineyard. A young lion came toward him, intent on attacking. Shimshon, with Hashem, tore it to pieces; without a weapon. He continued on, and talked with the woman’s relatives. When he came a few days later to claim her, he noticed that there was a beehive in the remains of the lion. He took some of the honey and continued he even gave some to his parents. His father visited the woman’s relatives, and thought her appropriate. At his marriage feast he gave the 30 companions a riddle. If they solved it he would give them 30 linen suits and 30 linen cloths. The riddle was, “From that which eats came forth that which is eaten; from power came sweetness.” They had seven days to solve the riddle. On the 7th day, they told his wife to make her husband tell her answer to the riddle for them. If not they would burn her and her fathers house in flames. So she tried to make Shimshon tell her. Finally he told her the answer, and she told the men. The answered,“What can be sweeter than honey and what is more powerful than the lion” Shimshon answered them, “If you had not plowed with my calf, you would not have solved my riddle.” But he had to pay them the linen rewards. So he went to Ashkelon, with Hashem, killed 30 men, and gave their suits to those who had solved the riddle. He was enraged with his wife, and went to his father’s house. His bride became attached to a friend, or wedding attendant.
Perek 15
Shimshon visited his wife with a kid, young goat, during harvest time, and asked to see his wife. But his father in law refused, saying, “I assumed you hated her, so I gave her (marriage) to your friend. Isn’t her younger sister better than her? Please, take her sister to be yours in place of her.”Shimshon said, “Now I am innocent with regard to the Pleshtim, as I inflict injury upon them.” Shimshon captured 300 foxes, he took torches, twisted each tail into the next, and placed a torch in the center, between the two tails. What does it mean he twisted the tail? Rashi explains that it means that he twisted others. Then, Shimshon set fire to the torches, and dispatched the foxes into the Pelishtite grain fields. They ran for there freedom, burning the haystacks to the standing grain to the olive orchard. I interpret this as they burned some crops, but mostly they ended up lighting haystacks. Haystacks are produce, very flammable, and are probably next to buildings, fields, or more crops. Therefore, the damage was increased by having haystacks on fire, spreading the fire. I also have a question. How were foxes more suited for this job than any other animal? I think, based on what I have learned, there are a few reasons. First foxes might have been easier to catch than other animals. Second, foxes are known as animals with a sly character. Third, foxes run on the ground, while other animals might hid in a tree or fly over the fields. And finally, foxes have long tails, which could help hold the torches in place. When the Pelishtim found the damage, they asked who had done it, they were told Shimshon did it, and explained why. So they burned his previous wife and her father. Shimshon asked them “Is this the way you behave? Nothing but vengeance against you, and only afterward will I stop.” So he struck them down, cavalry and infantry, with a tremendous blow. He settled on the cliff of Eitam. The Pelishtim descended and encamped in Yehudah. The men of Yehudah asked, “Why have you come against us?”They replied, “We have come to tie down Shimshon so we can treat him as he has treated us. (Midah kenehged Midah). 3.000 men descended from Yehudah to the cliff. They said to Shimshon, “Were you not aware that the Pelishtim rule over us? What have you done to us?Shimshon replied, “Just as they treated my, I treated them”They said to him, “We have descended to tie you down and deliver you unto the hands of the Pelishtim.”Shimshon said, “Swear to me that you will not execute me yourselves. “They said, “No, we will merely tie you down and deliver you into their hands, but we shall surely not execute you.” They tied him with two new ropes and brought him up from the cliff. He was made fun of, Hashem visited him, the ropes on his arm’s burned, and he was free. He found a moist cheekbone of a donkey, and struck down a thousand men with it. He was thirsty, cried to Hashem, and Hashem made a miracle, water flowed out of the jawbone. He judged Bnai Yisreal for 20 years.
Shimshon visited his wife with a kid, young goat, during harvest time, and asked to see his wife. But his father in law refused, saying, “I assumed you hated her, so I gave her (marriage) to your friend. Isn’t her younger sister better than her? Please, take her sister to be yours in place of her.”Shimshon said, “Now I am innocent with regard to the Pleshtim, as I inflict injury upon them.” Shimshon captured 300 foxes, he took torches, twisted each tail into the next, and placed a torch in the center, between the two tails. What does it mean he twisted the tail? Rashi explains that it means that he twisted others. Then, Shimshon set fire to the torches, and dispatched the foxes into the Pelishtite grain fields. They ran for there freedom, burning the haystacks to the standing grain to the olive orchard. I interpret this as they burned some crops, but mostly they ended up lighting haystacks. Haystacks are produce, very flammable, and are probably next to buildings, fields, or more crops. Therefore, the damage was increased by having haystacks on fire, spreading the fire. I also have a question. How were foxes more suited for this job than any other animal? I think, based on what I have learned, there are a few reasons. First foxes might have been easier to catch than other animals. Second, foxes are known as animals with a sly character. Third, foxes run on the ground, while other animals might hid in a tree or fly over the fields. And finally, foxes have long tails, which could help hold the torches in place. When the Pelishtim found the damage, they asked who had done it, they were told Shimshon did it, and explained why. So they burned his previous wife and her father. Shimshon asked them “Is this the way you behave? Nothing but vengeance against you, and only afterward will I stop.” So he struck them down, cavalry and infantry, with a tremendous blow. He settled on the cliff of Eitam. The Pelishtim descended and encamped in Yehudah. The men of Yehudah asked, “Why have you come against us?”They replied, “We have come to tie down Shimshon so we can treat him as he has treated us. (Midah kenehged Midah). 3.000 men descended from Yehudah to the cliff. They said to Shimshon, “Were you not aware that the Pelishtim rule over us? What have you done to us?Shimshon replied, “Just as they treated my, I treated them”They said to him, “We have descended to tie you down and deliver you unto the hands of the Pelishtim.”Shimshon said, “Swear to me that you will not execute me yourselves. “They said, “No, we will merely tie you down and deliver you into their hands, but we shall surely not execute you.” They tied him with two new ropes and brought him up from the cliff. He was made fun of, Hashem visited him, the ropes on his arm’s burned, and he was free. He found a moist cheekbone of a donkey, and struck down a thousand men with it. He was thirsty, cried to Hashem, and Hashem made a miracle, water flowed out of the jawbone. He judged Bnai Yisreal for 20 years.
Perek 16
Shimshon went to Azah, and he visited a woman innkeeper. The Azirites heard, and surrounded him in ambush. A midnight, Shimshon grasped the city gate and the two doorposts, uprooted them, and placed them on his shoulders’. He carried them up to the summit of the mountains. He fell in love with a woman, Delilah. The Pelishtim nobles told her to find where his strength came from so they can capture him, tie him down and torture him, and they will each give her eleven hundred pieces of silver. So Delilah asked Shimshon, “Where his strength came from. How can you be tied down and tortured.? He responded that if he was tied down with seven moist cords he would lose his strength. The nobles brought her the seven moist cords, deployed in the room, and she tied him. She shouted, “The Pelishtim are upon you!” He snapped the cords easily and was free. Delilah was upset asked him the same question she had before. This repeated two more times with fresh ropes and with his hair woven on to a weaving mount. Finally he told her, “If you cut my hair I would be powerless.” She felt like he was telling the truth, and called the spy. They surrounded him, gave her the money, she cut his hair, and cried out to him. He tried to escape before he realized Hashem had left him. The Pelishtim captured him, gouged out his eyes, bound him, made him the prison miller, and his hair began growing again. The Pelishtim assembled to offer an enormous sacrifice to their god, Dagan, and to celebrate. They said, “Our god has delivered into our hands our enemy; destroyer of our country the one who had multiplied the number of our dead.” When they were drunk they had Shimshon brought to frolic for them. He entertained them, and then told the boy who was holding him by the hand to release him and let him rest on one of the buildings pillars. The whole building was supported, mainly, by two pillars. The building was filled with Pelishtite nobles, and 3,000 men and woman were on the roof. Shimshon cried out to Hashem, “My master, Hashem! Please remember me; please strengthen me, just this once O Hashem. Let me avenge one of my two eyes from the Pelishtim. Shimshon held on to the two supporting pillars, and cried “Let my soul perish with the Pelishtim!” What did he mean about using one of his eyes? Maybe, according to Rashi, he meant to use the reward for his second eye in the World to come. But let him use his award for his first eye now. He pushed on the pillars, they collapsed making the building collapse, and everyone, in it and on it, died. The people he killed in his death surpassed the number he killed during his lifetime. His brothers came down, and all his fathers house, and buried him. He was a judge who was known for his strength, his commitment to Hashem, his people, and to defeating his enemies
Shimshon went to Azah, and he visited a woman innkeeper. The Azirites heard, and surrounded him in ambush. A midnight, Shimshon grasped the city gate and the two doorposts, uprooted them, and placed them on his shoulders’. He carried them up to the summit of the mountains. He fell in love with a woman, Delilah. The Pelishtim nobles told her to find where his strength came from so they can capture him, tie him down and torture him, and they will each give her eleven hundred pieces of silver. So Delilah asked Shimshon, “Where his strength came from. How can you be tied down and tortured.? He responded that if he was tied down with seven moist cords he would lose his strength. The nobles brought her the seven moist cords, deployed in the room, and she tied him. She shouted, “The Pelishtim are upon you!” He snapped the cords easily and was free. Delilah was upset asked him the same question she had before. This repeated two more times with fresh ropes and with his hair woven on to a weaving mount. Finally he told her, “If you cut my hair I would be powerless.” She felt like he was telling the truth, and called the spy. They surrounded him, gave her the money, she cut his hair, and cried out to him. He tried to escape before he realized Hashem had left him. The Pelishtim captured him, gouged out his eyes, bound him, made him the prison miller, and his hair began growing again. The Pelishtim assembled to offer an enormous sacrifice to their god, Dagan, and to celebrate. They said, “Our god has delivered into our hands our enemy; destroyer of our country the one who had multiplied the number of our dead.” When they were drunk they had Shimshon brought to frolic for them. He entertained them, and then told the boy who was holding him by the hand to release him and let him rest on one of the buildings pillars. The whole building was supported, mainly, by two pillars. The building was filled with Pelishtite nobles, and 3,000 men and woman were on the roof. Shimshon cried out to Hashem, “My master, Hashem! Please remember me; please strengthen me, just this once O Hashem. Let me avenge one of my two eyes from the Pelishtim. Shimshon held on to the two supporting pillars, and cried “Let my soul perish with the Pelishtim!” What did he mean about using one of his eyes? Maybe, according to Rashi, he meant to use the reward for his second eye in the World to come. But let him use his award for his first eye now. He pushed on the pillars, they collapsed making the building collapse, and everyone, in it and on it, died. The people he killed in his death surpassed the number he killed during his lifetime. His brothers came down, and all his fathers house, and buried him. He was a judge who was known for his strength, his commitment to Hashem, his people, and to defeating his enemies
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