Judges 16:9

16:9 They hid ¹  in the bedroom and then she said to him, “The Philistines are here, ²  Samson!” He snapped the bowstrings as easily as a thread of yarn snaps when it is put close to fire. ³  The secret of his strength was not discovered. ⁴ 

Judges 16:17

16:17 Finally he told her his secret. ⁵  He said to her, “My hair has never been cut, ⁶  for I have been dedicated to God ⁷  from the time I was conceived. ⁸  If my head ⁹  were shaved, my strength would leave me; I would become weak, and be just like all other men.”

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¹ tn Heb “And the ones lying in wait were sitting for her.” The grammatically singular form וְהָאֹרֵב (vÿha’orev) is collective here, referring to the rulers as a group (so also in v. 16).

² tn Heb “are upon you.”

³ tn Heb “when it smells fire.”

⁴ tn Heb “His strength was not known.”

⁵ tn Heb “all his heart.”

⁶ tn Heb “a razor has not come upon my head.”

⁷ tn Or “set apart to God.” Traditionally the Hebrew term נָזִיר (nazir) has been translated “Nazirite.” The word is derived from the verb נָזַר (nazar, “to dedicate; to consecrate; to set apart”).

⁸ tn Heb “from the womb of my mother.”

⁹ tn Heb “I.” The referent has been made more specific in the translation (“my head”).