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Of the three known women romantically involved with Samson, only one is named—Delilah. This is an important clue since the naming of characters, “serves to emphasize their roles in a narrative.”[1] Indeed, though Samson had been on the Philistine’s most wanted list for twenty years now, Delilah would be, “the culmination of Samson’s vulnerability and downfall.”[2]
For when the Philistines learn that Samson has fallen for this woman, the Philistine lords approach Delilah and bribe her to betray Samson: “Seduce him, and see where his great strength lies, and by what means we may overpower him, that we may bind him to humble him. And we will each give you 1,100 pieces of silver” (Judges 16:5). It was a deal. However, Samson would not be so hasty to reveal the secret of his strength. Delilah, on three occasions, asked him for the key to his power but each answer he gave her turned out to be a lie. So, in a last-ditch effort, Delilah pleaded with him: “‘How can you say, “I love you,” when your heart is not with me? You have mocked me these three times, and have not told me where your great strength lies.’ And [so] it came to pass, when she pestered him daily with her words and pressed him, so that his soul was vexed to death, that he told her all his heart, and said to her, ‘No razor has ever come upon my head, for I have been a Nazarite to God from my mother’s womb. If I am shaven, then my strength will leave me…’” (Judges 16:15-17). Upon this revelation, Delilah lulls Samson off to sleep, shaves his head, and strips him of his power. Once Delilah alerts the Philistines, she takes her money and runs off of the pages of history, never to be heard from again.
“How can you say, ‘I love you,’ when your heart is not with me?”
Judges 16:15
Truly, her name was a significant detail in the narrative. But equally significant is that besides her name, not much is revealed about who she was. By design, “her characterization is ambiguous, keeping her a foil for Samson’s downfall, shifting the responsibility for his defeat onto his own shoulders.”[3] Still, who was this woman? Although her nationality is unknown, many scholars believe she was a Philistine, “since she lived in Philistine territory in the Sorek valley,”[4] and because she cooperated with the Philistines to capture Samson. On the other hand, some identify her as the mother of Micah the Danite, whose account is found in Judges 17, which would make her a Hebrew.[5] The meaning of her name is also uncertain, though it does sound like the Hebrew word for night: layla.[6] Since Samson’s name is connected with “sun,” some see her name as a foreshadowing—“a hint that Samson’s lights were about to go out.”[7] It is also possible that her name is derived from the Ethiopic word for “dangling curls.” “If this is the case, her name would be particularly ironic: The hero whose hair holds his strength is no match for the woman with locks of hair.” [8]
Ryan Hembree is a daily co-host, speaker, and writer of Bible Discovery. He also hosts a YouTube channel that shows the unity of the Bible and how science and Scripture fit together. Ryan also has an honorary Masters of Ministry in Creation Science from Phoenix University of Theology.
[1] Fleenor, R. (2016). Delilah. In J. D. Barry, D. Bomar, D. R. Brown, R. Klippenstein, D. Mangum, C. Sinclair Wolcott, … W. Widder (Eds.), The Lexham Bible Dictionary. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[2] Ibid.
[3] Ibid.
[4] Stephen Miller, Who’s Who and Where’s Where in the Bible, P.89.
[5] Fleenor, R. (2016). Delilah. In J. D. Barry, D. Bomar, D. R. Brown, R. Klippenstein, D. Mangum, C. Sinclair Wolcott, … W. Widder (Eds.), The Lexham Bible Dictionary. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
[6] Stephen Miller, Who’s Who and Where’s Where in the Bible, P.89.
[7] Ibid.
[8] Fleenor, R. (2016). Delilah. In J. D. Barry, D. Bomar, D. R. Brown, R. Klippenstein, D. Mangum, C. Sinclair Wolcott, … W. Widder (Eds.), The Lexham Bible Dictionary. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.
