BIBLE BAD WOMEN  - Delilah                                      BIBLE ARCHAEOLOGY - Ancient Jewelry

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SHE DONE HIM WRONG

SAMSON THE STRONG MAN
Delilah was a woman with a checkered past, probably a successful courtesan. She was beautiful, almost certainly a Philistine and so a traditional enemy of any Hebrew. She lived in one of the cities in the valley of Sorek. 

One of her lovers was Samson, a brutal Hebrew warrior who described making love with his wife as 'plowing with my heifer...'. He had already been married once, and had been the cause of the death of his wife and her family. 

Despite his appalling record of violence, or perhaps because of it, he was a hero to the beleaguered Hebrew settlers who were trying to find a place for themselves in land already occupied by the Canaanites and Philistines. They looked for champions, and Samson's qualities made him ideal - not as a leader, because he did not have the cunning or intelligence for that role, but as a fearless warrior who could protect them.

Samson was enormously strong, and people at that time believed this must be because of some magic or secret that gave him extraordinary power. Magic, incantations and spells were popular - it was believed that the right magic could protect a person, or help overcome enemies. 

MAGIC, AND THE WOMAN DELILAH 
The leaders of the Philistine cities believed that magic of some kind must be behind Samson's invincible strength, and decided to find out what that magic was. Some of them approached Delilah and offered her an immense sum of money if she would find out the secret of Samson's strength.

Delilah agreed to help them. The money they offered was enough to free her from 'working' for the rest of her life. 

Three times she asked Samson what his secret was, and three times he gave her a false answer. It is hard to tell whether he was just tormenting her, or whether he knew the secret would be valuable to his enemies and was wary about telling it. 

'Some of the Philistine leaders approached Delilah and offered her an immense sum of money if she would find out the secret of Samson's strength. Delilah agreed to help them. The money they offered was enough to free her from 'working' for the rest of her life.'
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SAMSON TELLS HIS SECRET
Eventually he told her what he himself believed:  his strength came from his long hair which, since it had never been cut, was far more plentiful that any other man's. Was this true? Only in so far as he believed it - but belief is a powerful thing. He was not alone in this belief. The warriors of ancient Sparta deliberately let their hair grow long, believing it terrified their enemies into submission.

DELILAH ACTS
When Delilah was satisfied that she had a truthful answer at last, she called the Philistines. 'The time has come, for he has told his whole secret to me.' They brought the money with them. Then she told them the secret and lulled Samson to sleep in her lap. While he slept she allowed them to cut off his luxuriant hair. 

There is something moving in the picture of Samson sleeping with his head in Delilah's lap, unaware of the forces assembling against him. Unless she had reason to hate all Israelites, Delilah must have felt some pity for him.

Without his hair 'the seven locks of his hair'  - and therefore his strength - Samson was easily overpowered. In the words of the story, 'the Lord had left him'. 

SAMSON'S EYES ARE GOUGED OUT
Delilah may have expected a quick death for him, rather than the protracted torture which followed his capture. His eyes were gouged from their sockets and he was thrown into prison. 

After that, Delilah disappears from the story, but it is probably that the Philistines honored their promise of payment and Delilah enjoyed a comfortable retirement.

Samson lived. He was blind, but his hair began to grow back, and with it his strength came back. He waited for the right moment, and then took his revenge.....  (See Judges 16:23-31 for the end of this story)

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BIBLE REFERENCE
Judges 16:4-21

PEOPLE IN THE STORY
Delilah, a courtesan in one of the ancient Philistine cities, the lover of Samson
Samson, a legendary strong man who was a hero to the embattled Israelites
The Philistine leaders - strongmen in the port cities along the Mediterranean coast

FAMOUS QUOTES
'The time has come' Judges 16:18
'But the hair of his head began to grow again...' 16:22

INTERESTING WEBSITES - stories, pictures, reconstructions

Delilah as one of the Bible's Top Ten Bad Women
BIBLE TOP TEN BAD WOMEN: DELILAH

She done him wrong: Samson's side of the story
BIBLE PEOPLE: SAMSON

Wealth, and the freedom it gave - this is what Delilah wanted
BIBLE ARCHAEOLOGY: JEWELRY

Samson as one of the Bible's Top Ten Warriors
BIBLE TOP TEN WARRIORS: SAMSON

Samson as a great Bible hero - though I don't see it myself
BIBLE TOP TEN HEROES: SAMSON

In depth coverage of Delilah's story: the historical context, and some controversial theories
BIBLE WOMEN: DELILAH

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ACTIVITIES AND FOCUS QUESTIONS

Retelling the Story

Delilah has traditionally been portrayed as a temptress who betrayed a hero. Write the story from Delilah’s point of view, covering points such as:

What Delilah knew about Samson before she met him (read previous sections   of the story to find out about Samson’s earlier relationships with women)

Their first meeting, and what she thought of him

Samson’s love for Delilah

Delilah’s reaction when she was approached by the Philistine lords

The reasons why she agreed to help them

Her attempts to find out about Samson’s strength

The scene when Samson finally told her the truth

Her emotions when the Philistines tortured Samson

What happened to Delilah after Samson was taken away.

Research

Using your library or the internet, find out about the lay-out and construction of a Philistine temple. You might start your research by looking at the layout of the First Temple of Jerusalem - see  the model of the First Temple at BIBLE ARCHITECTURE: JERUSALEM. It seems to have been based on the design of Philistine temples, and may have been built by Philistine workmen. One such temple was excavated at Tell Q’asile, near Tel Aviv. It  had wooden pillars supporting a large balcony on which many people could stand.  

In depth study of one person's story
Choose one of the people whose stories are told on this site and develop a PowerPoint presentation about them.
The presentation must be at least 10 slides long and should include 
 *  a supporting image/picture/painting of each person 
 *  a map of Israel showing the cities and areas where the story took place.  
You may call up other websites to support your ideas.

In your presentation (approximately 10 minutes), answer the following questions:

1. What are the main events of the person's life? Tell the story.

2. What were their main qualities? What made them stand out from the crowd?

3. What obstacles did they face? Did they overcome them, or go with the flow? Explain.

4. How did they use their abilities to do God’s work?  

5. Which part of their story appeals to you most? Why?

You must include three short quotations from the Bible texts to illustrate the points you are making. 

Focus Questions
1. What are the most interesting moments in Delilah's story? 
2. In the story, who speaks and who listens? Who acts? Who gets what they want? If you were in the story, which person would you want to be friends with? Which person would you want to avoid?
3. What is God's interaction with the main characters? What does this tell you about the narrator's image of God? Do you agree with this image?
4. What is happening on either side of the story, in the chapters before and after it? Does this help you understand what is happening?
5. The narrator/editor has chosen to tell some things and leave other things out. What has been left out of the story that you would like to know?
6. Are the characteristics and actions of the people in the story still present in the world? How is the story relevant to modern life, especially your own?

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Bible Stories: People of the Old Testament
Delilah and Samson - Bible Study Resource