The Daily Audio Bible
Today's audio is from the CSB. Switch to the CSB to read along with the audio.
Samson Wins over the Philistines
15 But later Samson visited his wife during grain gathering time with a young goat. Samson said, “I will go in to my wife in her room.” But her father did not let him go in. 2 Her father said, “I thought you hated her. So I gave her to your friend. Is not her younger sister more beautiful than she? Let her be yours instead.” 3 Samson said to him, “This time I will be without blame when I hurt the Philistines.” 4 So Samson went and caught 300 foxes. He tied them together tail to tail. And he put a fire stick between the tails of every two foxes. 5 Then he set fire to the sticks and let the foxes go into the standing grain of the Philistines. So the standing grain and cut grain and vines and olive trees were burned up. 6 The Philistines said, “Who did this?” And they were told, “Samson, the son-in-law of the Timnite, because the Timnite took his wife and gave her to his friend.” So the Philistines came and burned her and her father with fire. 7 Samson said to them, “For sure I will punish you for acting like this. After that I will stop.”
8 He killed many of them without mercy. Then Samson went down and lived in the opening of the rock of Etam.
9 The Philistines went and set up their tents in Judah, and spread out in Lehi. 10 The men of Judah said, “Why have you come up against us?” The Philistines said, “We have come to take Samson and do to him as he did to us.” 11 Then 3,000 men of Judah went down to the opening of the rock of Etam and said to Samson, “Do you not know that the Philistines rule over us? What is this that you have done to us?” Samson said to them, “I have done to them as they did to me.” 12 They said to him, “We have come to take you and give you to the Philistines.” Samson said to them, “Promise me that you will not kill me.” 13 So they said to him, “No, we will only tie you up and give you to them. We will not kill you.” So they tied him with two new ropes and brought him up from the rock.
14 When Samson came to Lehi, the Philistines came with a loud noise to meet him. The Spirit of the Lord came upon Samson with power. The ropes on his arms became as weak as a burning plant, and fell from his hands. 15 Samson found a jawbone of a donkey and took it in his hand. He killed 1,000 men with it. 16 Then Samson said, “With the bone of a donkey there are bodies upon bodies. With the bone of a donkey I have killed 1,000 men.” 17 When he was done speaking, he threw the bone from his hand. And he called that place Ramath-lehi. 18 Then Samson became very thirsty. He called to the Lord and said, “You have taken us away from trouble by the hand of Your servant. Now must I die of thirst and fall into the hands of those who have not gone through our religious act?” 19 But God broke open a place in Lehi, and water came out of it. When Samson drank, his strength returned. He received new life. So he called the place En-hakkore. It is in Lehi to this day. 20 Samson ruled Israel for twenty years in the days of the Philistines.
Samson and Delilah
16 Samson went to Gaza and saw a woman who sold the use of her body there. He went in to her. 2 The Gazites were told, “Samson has come here.” So they gathered around the place and waited for him all night at the gate of the city. They were quiet all night, saying, “Let us wait until the morning light. Then we will kill him.” 3 But Samson lay until late at night. Then he got up and took hold of the doors of the city gate and the pieces that held them. He pulled them up together with the locks and put them on his shoulders. And he carried them up to the top of the mountain beside Hebron.
4 After this Samson loved a woman in the valley of Sorek. Her name was Delilah. 5 The leaders of the Philistines came to her, saying, “Tempt Samson to tell you the secret of his powerful strength. Find out how we can get power over him so we can tie him and hold him. Then we will each give you 1,100 pieces of silver.” 6 So Delilah said to Samson, “I beg you. Tell me the secret of your powerful strength. Tell me how one can get power over you and tie you up and hold you.” 7 Samson said to her, “They must tie me with seven new ropes that have not been dried. Then I will become weak and be like any other man.” 8 So the leaders of the Philistines brought her seven new ropes that had not been dried. And Delilah tied Samson with them. 9 She had men hiding and waiting in another room. She said to him, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” But he broke the ropes like a string breaks when it touches fire. So they did not find the secret of his strength.
10 Delilah said to Samson, “See, you have fooled me and told me lies. Now tell me, I beg you, how can you be tied?” 11 Samson said to her, “They must tie me with new ropes which have never been used. Then I will become weak and be like any other man.” 12 So Delilah took new ropes, tied Samson with them, and said, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” Men were hiding and waiting in another room. But Samson broke the ropes from his arms like a string.
13 Then Delilah said to Samson, “You have fooled me and told me lies until now. Tell me how you can be tied.” Samson said to her, “You must work the seven strings of my hair into the cloth you are making and hold it there with a nail. Then I will become weak and be like any other man.” 14 So while Samson slept, Delilah took the seven strings of his hair and worked them into the cloth. She held it in place with the nail. Then she said to him, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” But he awoke from his sleep and pulled away the nail, the cloth maker and the cloth.
15 Delilah said to Samson, “How can you say, ‘I love you,’ when your heart is not with me? You have lied to me these three times. You have not told me the secret of your powerful strength.” 16 She asked him day after day until his soul was troubled to death. 17 So he told her all that was in his mind. He said to her, “My hair has never been cut. For I have been a Nazirite to God from the time I was born. If my hair is cut, my strength will leave me. I will become weak and be like any other man.”
18 Delilah saw that Samson had told her the truth. She sent and called the leaders of the Philistines, saying, “Come once again. For he has told me all he knows.” So the leaders of the Philistines came to her. And they brought the money in their hands. 19 She made Samson sleep on her knees. Then she called for a man to cut off the seven parts of Samson’s hair. She began to hurt Samson, and his strength left him. 20 She said, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” He awoke from his sleep and said, “I will go out as I have at other times. I will shake myself free.” But he did not know that the Lord had left him. 21 The Philistines took hold of him and cut out his eyes. They brought him down to Gaza and tied him with brass chains. Samson was made to grind grain in the prison. 22 But the hair of his head started to grow again after it was cut off.
The Death of Samson
23 Now the leaders of the Philistines gathered to give a large gift to their god Dagon. They were happy, for they said, “Our god has given us Samson, the man who has fought against us.” 24 The people praised their god when they saw Samson. They said, “Our god has given us the one who fought against us, destroyed our country, and killed many of us.” 25 After the people had had much to drink, they said, “Bring Samson here so we can have some fun with him.” So they called Samson out of prison and made fun of him. They made him stand between the stone pillars that held up the building. 26 Samson said to the boy who was holding his hand, “Let me feel the tall pillars that hold up the building. I want to rest against them.” 27 Now the building was full of men and women. All the leaders of the Philistines were there, and there were about 3,000 men and women on the roof looking down and laughing at Samson.
28 Then Samson called to the Lord and said, “O Lord God, I beg You. Remember me. Give me strength only this once, O God. So I may now punish the Philistines for my two eyes.” 29 Samson took hold of the two center pillars that held up the building. He pushed against them, with his right hand on one and his left hand on the other. 30 Samson said, “Let me die with the Philistines!” Then he pushed with all his strength so that the building fell on the leaders and all the people in it. He killed more at his death than he killed in his life. 31 Then his brothers and all those of his father’s house came and took him. They brought him up and buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the grave of his father Manoah. Samson had ruled Israel for twenty years.
The Powerful Work at the Wedding of Cana
2 Three days later there was a wedding in the town of Cana in the country of Galilee. The mother of Jesus was there. 2 Jesus and His followers were asked to come to the wedding. 3 When the wine was all gone, the mother of Jesus said to Him, “They have no more wine.” 4 Jesus said to her, “Woman, what is that to you and to Me. It is not time for Me to work yet.” 5 His mother said to the helpers, “Do whatever He says.”
6 Six stone water jars were there. Each one held about one-half barrel of water. These water jars were used in the Jewish worship of washing. 7 Jesus said to the helpers, “Fill the jars with water.” They filled them to the top. 8 Then He said, “Take some out and give it to the head man who is caring for the people.” They took some to him. 9 The head man tasted the water that had become wine. He did not know where it came from but the helpers who took it to him knew. He called the man who had just been married. 10 The head man said to him, “Everyone puts out his best wine first. After people have had much to drink, he puts out the wine that is not so good. You have kept the good wine until now!”
11 This was the first powerful work Jesus did. It was done in Cana of Galilee where He showed His power. His followers put their trust in Him. 12 After this He went down to the city of Capernaum. His mother and brothers and followers went with Him. They stayed there a few days.
Jesus Stops the Buying and the Selling in the House of God (A)
13 It was time for the special religious gathering to remember how the Jews left Egypt. Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14 He went into the house of God and found cattle and sheep and doves being sold. Men were sitting there changing money. 15 Jesus made a whip of small ropes. He used it to make them all leave the house of God along with the sheep and cattle. He pushed their money off the tables and turned the tables over. 16 He said to those who sold doves, “Take these things out of here! You must not make My Father’s house a place for buying and selling!” 17 Then His followers remembered that it was written in the Holy Writings, “I am jealous for the honor of Your house.” (B)
The Jews Ask for Something Special to See
18 Then the Jews asked Him, “What can You do to show us You have the right and the power to do these things?” 19 Jesus answered them, “Destroy this house of God and in three days I will build it again.” 20 Then the Jews said, “It took forty-six years to build this house of God. Will You build it up in three days?” 21 Jesus was speaking of His body as the house of God. 22 After Jesus had been raised from the dead, His followers remembered He said this. They believed the Holy Writings and what He had said.
23 Jesus was in Jerusalem at the time of the special religious gathering to remember how the Jews left Egypt. Many people put their trust in Him when they saw the powerful works He did. 24 But Jesus did not trust them because He knew all men. 25 He did not need anyone to tell Him about man. He knew what was in man.
Praise for God’s Love
103 Praise the Lord, O my soul. And all that is within me, praise His holy name. 2 Praise the Lord, O my soul. And forget none of His acts of kindness. 3 He forgives all my sins. He heals all my diseases. 4 He saves my life from the grave. He crowns me with loving-kindness and pity. 5 He fills my years with good things and I am made young again like the eagle.
6 The Lord does what is right and fair for all who suffer under a bad power. 7 He made His ways known to Moses and His acts to the people of Israel. 8 The Lord is full of loving-pity and kindness. He is slow to anger and has much loving-kindness. 9 He will not always keep after us. And He will not keep His anger back forever. 10 He has not punished us enough for all our sins. He has not paid us back for all our wrong-doings. 11 For His loving-kindness for those who fear Him is as great as the heavens are high above the earth. 12 He has taken our sins from us as far as the east is from the west. 13 The Lord has loving-pity on those who fear Him, as a father has loving-pity on his children. 14 For He knows what we are made of. He remembers that we are dust.
15 The days of man are like grass. He grows like a flower of the field. 16 When the wind blows over it, it is gone. Its place will remember it no more. 17 But the loving-kindness of the Lord is forever and forever on those who fear Him. And what is right with God is given forever to their children’s children, 18 to those who keep His agreement and remember to obey His Law.
19 The Lord has set up His throne in the heavens. And His holy nation rules over all. 20 Praise the Lord, you powerful angels of His who do what He says, obeying His voice as He speaks! 21 Praise the Lord, all you armies of His who work for Him and do what pleases Him. 22 Praise the Lord, all His works in all places under His rule. Praise the Lord, O my soul!
17 He who has a quick temper acts in a foolish way, and a man who makes sinful plans is hated.
18 Those who are easy to fool are foolish, but the wise have much learning.
19 Sinful men will bow in front of the good, and at the gates of those who are right with God.
Copyright © 1969, 2003 by Barbour Publishing, Inc.