Lexicon :: Strong's G246 - allophylos

“Do not make a treaty with the inhabitants of the land, or else when they prostitute themselves with their gods and sacrifice to their gods, they will invite you, and you will eat their sacrifices.

These nations included the five rulers of the Philistines and all of the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and the Hivites who lived in the Lebanese mountains from Mount Baal-hermon as far as the entrance to Hamath.[fn]

After Ehud, Shamgar son of Anath became judge. He also delivered Israel, striking down six hundred Philistines with a cattle prod.

Then the Israelites again did what was evil in the sight of the LORD. They worshiped the Baals and the Ashtoreths, the gods of Aram, Sidon, and Moab, and the gods of the Ammonites and the Philistines. They abandoned the LORD and did not worship him.

The LORD said to the Israelites, “When the Egyptians, Amorites, Ammonites, Philistines,

The Israelites again did what was evil in the LORD’s sight, so the LORD handed them over to the Philistines forty years.

“for indeed, you will conceive and give birth to a son. You must never cut his hair,[fn] because the boy will be a Nazirite to God from birth, and he will begin to save Israel from the power of the Philistines.”

Samson went down to Timnah and saw a young Philistine woman there.

Samson said to them, “This time I will be blameless when I harm the Philistines.”

Then he ignited the torches and released the foxes into the standing grain of the Philistines. He burned the piles of grain and the standing grain as well as the vineyards and olive groves.

The Philistines went up, camped in Judah, and raided Lehi.

When he came to Lehi, the Philistines came to meet him shouting. The Spirit of the LORD came powerfully on him, and the ropes that were on his arms and wrists became like burnt flax and fell off.

And he judged Israel twenty years in the days of the Philistines.

The Philistine leaders went to her and said, “Persuade him to tell you[fn] where his great strength comes from, so we can overpower him, tie him up, and make him helpless. Each of us will then give you 1,100 pieces of silver.”

The Philistine leaders brought her seven fresh bowstrings that had not been dried, and she tied him up with them.

Delilah took new ropes, tied him up with them, and shouted, “Samson, the Philistines are here! ” But while the men in ambush were waiting in her room, he snapped the ropes off his arms like a thread.

She fastened the braids with a pin and called to him, “Samson, the Philistines are here! ” He awoke from his sleep and pulled out the pin, with the loom and the web.

When Delilah realized that he had told her the whole truth, she sent this message to the Philistine leaders: “Come one more time, for he has told me the whole truth.” The Philistine leaders came to her and brought the silver with them.

Then she cried, “Samson, the Philistines are here! ” When he awoke from his sleep, he said, “I will escape as I did before and shake myself free.” But he did not know that the LORD had left him.

Now the Philistine leaders gathered together to offer a great sacrifice to their god Dagon. They rejoiced and said:

Our god has handed over

our enemy Samson to us.

The temple was full of men and women; all the leaders of the Philistines were there, and about three thousand men and women were on the roof watching Samson entertain them.

Samson said, “Let me die with the Philistines.” He pushed with all his might, and the temple fell on the leaders and all the people in it. And those he killed at his death were more than those he had killed in his life.

And Samuel’s words came to all Israel.

Israel went out to meet the Philistines in battle and[fn] camped at Ebenezer while the Philistines camped at Aphek.

The Philistines heard the sound of the war cry and asked, “What’s this loud shout in the Hebrews’ camp? ” When the Philistines discovered that the ark of the LORD had entered the camp,

“Show some courage and be men, Philistines! Otherwise, you’ll serve the Hebrews just as they served you. Now be men and fight! ”

The messenger answered, “Israel has fled from the Philistines, and also there was a great slaughter among the people. Your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, are both dead, and the ark of God has been captured.”

After the Philistines had captured the ark of God, they took it from Ebenezer to Ashdod,

So they called all the Philistine rulers together and asked, “What should we do with the ark of Israel’s God? ”

“The ark of Israel’s God should be moved to Gath,” they replied. So they moved the ark of Israel’s God.

The Ekronites called all the Philistine rulers together. They said, “Send the ark of Israel’s God away. Let it return to its place so it won’t kill us and our people! ”[fn] For the fear of death pervaded the city; God’s hand was oppressing them.

When the ark of the LORD had been in Philistine territory for seven months,

They asked, “What guilt offering should we send back to him? ”

And they answered, “Five gold tumors and five gold mice corresponding to the number of Philistine rulers, since there was one plague for both you[fn] and your rulers.

The men did this: They took two milk cows, hitched them to the cart, and confined their calves in the pen.

The cows went straight up the road to Beth-shemesh. They stayed on that one highway, lowing as they went; they never strayed to the right or to the left. The Philistine rulers were walking behind them to the territory of Beth-shemesh.

When the five Philistine rulers observed this, they returned to Ekron that same day.