4Some time later, Samson fell in love with a woman in the Valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah.
5The rulers of the Philistines went to her and said, 'Entice him and find out the secret of his great strength and how we can overpower him so that we may tie him up and subdue him. Each of us will give you eleven hundred pieces of silver.'
6So Delilah said to Samson, 'Please tell me the source of your great strength and how you can be tied up and subdued.'
7Samson answered her, 'If they tie me up with seven fresh bowstrings that have not been dried, I will become weak and be like any other man.'
8So the rulers of the Philistines brought her seven fresh bowstrings that had not been dried, and she tied him up with them.
9With men hidden in the room, she called out to him, 'Samson, the Philistines are upon you!' But he snapped the bowstrings as easily as a piece of string snaps when it comes close to a flame. So the secret of his strength was not discovered.
10Then Delilah said to Samson, 'You have made a fool of me and lied to me. Now tell me how you can be tied up.'
11He said to her, 'If anyone ties me securely with new ropes that have never been used, I will become as weak as any other man.'
12So Delilah took new ropes and tied him with them. Then she called out, 'Samson, the Philistines are upon you!' But men were hiding in the room, and he snapped the ropes off his arms as if they were threads.
13Delilah said to Samson, 'You have been making a fool of me and telling me lies. Now tell me how you can be bound.' He replied, 'If you weave the seven locks of my hair into the fabric on the loom and fasten it with the pin, I will become weak like any other man.'
14While he slept, Delilah took the seven locks of his hair, wove them into the fabric, and fastened them with the pin. Then she called to him, 'Samson, the Philistines are upon you!' But he awoke from his sleep and pulled out the pin, the loom, and the fabric.
15Then Delilah said to him, 'How can you say, “I love you,” when you won’t confide in me? This is the third time you have made a fool of me and have not told me the secret of your great strength.'
16With her nagging she pressed him day after day until he was sick to death of it.
17So he told her everything: 'No razor has ever been used on my head,' he said, 'because I have been a Nazirite dedicated to God from my mother’s womb. If my head were shaved, my strength would leave me, and I would become as weak as any other man.'
18When Delilah saw that he had told her everything, she sent word to the rulers of the Philistines, 'Come back once more; he has told me everything.' So the rulers of the Philistines returned with the silver in their hands.
19After putting him to sleep on her lap, she called for someone to shave off the seven locks of his hair, and so began to subdue him. And his strength left him.
20Then she called, 'Samson, the Philistines are upon you!' He awoke from his sleep and thought, 'I’ll go out as before and shake myself free.' But he did not know that the LORD had left him.