e of the city, and were quiet all the night, saying,
"Let be till morning light, then we will kill him."

And Samson lay till midnight, and arose at midnight, and laid hold of
the doors of the gate of the city, and the two posts, and plucked them
up, bar and all, and put them upon his shoulders, and carried them up
to the top of the mountain that is before Hebron.

_How Samson Was Betrayed by His Own Weakness Into
the Hands of His Enemies_.

And it came to pass afterward, that he loved a woman in the valley of
Sorek, whose name was Delilah. And the lords of the Philistines came
up to her, and said unto her, {177} "Entice him, and see wherein his
great strength lieth, and by what means we may prevail against him,
that we may bind him to afflict him: and we will give thee everyone of
us eleven hundred pieces of silver."

And Delilah said to Samson, "Tell me, I pray thee, wherein thy great
strength lieth, and wherewith thou mightest be bound to afflict thee."

And Samson said to her, "If they bind me with seven green withes that
were never dried, then shall I become weak, and be as another man."

Then the lords of the Philistines brought up to her seven green withes
which had not been dried, and she bound him with them. Now she had men
lying in wait abiding in the inner chamber. And she said unto him,
"The Philistines be upon thee, Samson."

And he broke the withes, as a string of tow is broken when it toucheth
the fire. So his strength was not known.

And Delilah said to Samson, "Behold, thou hast mocked me, and told me
lies: now tell me, I pray thee, wherewith thou mightest be bound."

And he said to her, "If they only bind me with new ropes wherewith no
work hath been done, then shall I become weak, and be as another man."

So Delilah took new ropes, and bound him therewith, and said unto him,
"The Philistines be upon thee, Samson."

And the men who were lying in wait were abiding in the inner chamber.
And he broke them from off his arms like a thread.

And Delilah said to Samson, "Hitherto thou hast {178} mocked me, and
told me lies: tell me wherewith thou mightest be bound."

And he said to her, "If thou weavest the seven locks of my head with
the web in the loom." And she fastened it with the pin, and said unto
him, "The Philistines be upon thee, Samson." And he awaked out of his
sleep, and plucked away the pin of the beam, and the web.

And she said to him, "How canst thou say, I love thee, when t