6 myths
The Nazirite strongman who fought the Philistines, was betrayed by Delilah, and brought down the temple of Dagon with his final prayer.
6 myths on JewishMythology.com retell how Jewish tradition imagines samson, drawn from the Hebrew Bible, Midrash, Talmud, Kabbalah, and later Jewish literature. Each story below synthesizes primary sources into a single narrative; follow any myth to read it, and from there into the source passages behind it.
Two handbreadths separated Jacob from Esau. Jacob scattered Simeon and Levi across the tribes. And the Targum hears Samson's name in the blessing of Dan.
On his deathbed Jacob blessed Dan and saw Samson fighting alone, and for one breath he believed the Messiah had finally come to Israel.
When Jacob blessed Dan and compared him to Judah, the tribal princes went silent. Dan led the rearguard, gathered the lost, and produced Samson.
The Kehatites carry the Ark near enough to die. A Nazirite redirects desire into a vow. Then Balak hires a prophet to curse what vows and holy order protect.
He had lied to her three times and escaped three times. On the fourth asking, he was exhausted and told her everything she needed to destroy him.
Manoah pressed a messenger for his name, and the answer was that he changes shape every hour and cannot be called anything at all.
