Samson and Delilah

One big hall full of people wey dey laugh, dey feast. Thousands more crowd for di roof. Dem bring one blind prisoner come inside make e entertain dem. E ask di boy wey dey lead am for only one thing. Make I touch di pillars.

Samson dey lead Israel as judge, and e still be di strongest man wey anybody don ever see. One time, for di Philistine city of Gaza, im enemies lock di city gates and wait to kill am for morning. But Samson get up for midnight, hold di gates, with di posts and everything, pull dem comot, and carry dem go up one hill. Nobody fit stop am. But Samson get one weakness, and e no dey im muscles. E fall in love with one woman for di valley of Sorek. Her name na Delilah.

Di rulers of di Philistines come meet Delilah with one offer. Use sweet mouth for am. Find out di secret of im great strength, and how we go take tie am and overpower am. Each one of us go give you eleven hundred pieces of silver. Na plenty money. So Delilah ask Samson. Tell me di secret of your great strength. How person fit tie you? Samson play along. Tie me with seven fresh bowstrings wey never dry, and I go weak like any other person. So she do am, while men hide wait for di next room. Samson, di Philistines don come for you! E cut di bowstrings like thread wey near fire.

She try again. You don make me look like fool. You tell me lie. New ropes wey nobody never use, e talk. She tie am. E cut dem from im arms like thread. Then: weave di seven locks of my hair enter di cloth for your loom. She do am while e dey sleep. E wake up and pull di whole loom comot. By now e clear wetin Delilah dey do. And yet Samson still dey come back. How you go talk say you love me, she talk, when your heart no dey with me? Three times you don make me look like fool. She dey worry am day after day, until e tire reach to die. And at last e tell her everything. Razor never touch my head, because I be Nazirite to God from my mama womb. If dem shave my head, my strength go leave me.

Delilah know say dis time na di truth. She send call di Philistine rulers, and dem come with di silver for dia hand. She make Samson sleep for her knees, and call one man make e shave di seven locks of im hair. Samson, di Philistines don come for you! E wake up think say, I go go out like before and shake myself free. But e no know say Di Lord don leave am. Dat one fit be di saddest line for di whole story. Di Philistines seize am and dig comot im eyes. Dem carry am go down to Gaza, tie am with bronze chain, and put am to grind grain for di prison, round and round, like animal wey dey turn mill. And then di book of Judges add one quiet sentence. Di hair of im head begin grow again.

Di Philistine rulers gather for one big sacrifice to dia god Dagon. Our god don hand Samson our enemy over to us! As dem dey happy, dem call Samson make e come entertain dem. One young servant hold im hand lead am enter, and stand am between di pillars. Make I touch di pillars wey hold di temple, Samson talk, so I fit lean on dem. Di house full, and about three thousand men and women dey for di roof, dey watch. Then Samson pray. Lord God, remember me. Abeg give me strength, only dis one time, O God, make I fit pay di Philistines back with one blow for my two eyes. E hold di two middle pillars, one with im right hand, one with im left. Make I die with di Philistines! E push with all im strength, and di temple crash down. Samson die with di people wey dey inside. Im brothers and family come carry am go house, and bury am for di tomb of im papa, Manoah. E don lead Israel for twenty years.

One man fit bring down building by pushing two pillars? Archaeology give us picture of how dem fit build temple like dis. For Tell Qasile, one Philistine site wey dey inside di city of Tel Aviv now, di archaeologist Amihai Mazar find one temple from dat time. Two wooden pillars wey stand for stone bases, near each other for di middle of di hall, na im hold im roof. Remove dat two supports, and di roof go fall. No be Samson temple be dat, because Samson own dey Gaza. But e show say im story fit di way dem dey build Philistine temples.

Samson and Delilah. You go find am for Judges, chapter sixteen. Samson give im secret away small by small, and e lose plenty pass im hair. But even inside di darkness of prison, im hair begin grow, and e call God again. So see one question wey you go carry dey go. Which small small compromise fit slowly wear your loyalty to God away?