Samson, Delilah, and Balaam: Allusion and Meaning in the Book of Judges

The story of Samson and Delilah contains a wide array of puzzling motifs. The persistent efforts of Delilah to obtain Samson’s secret, his capitulation after her fourth try, the blinding of Samson, his crushing of the pillars of the pagan sanctuary (one of multiple commonalities with the story of Hercules), numerous striking turns of phrase, and other notable motifs continue to resist a compelling, unified explanation. On close inspection, a series of striking parallels to the story of Balaam proves highly illuminating. As long as Samson resists selling out to the enemy, Delilah stands in analogy to Balaam--who seeks to help subdue Israel--whereas Samson bears an equivalence to Balaam`s donkey (itself a symbol of Israel), which resists Balaam`s efforts. The moment Samson gives up, however, it is he who stands in comparison to Balaam, having effectively joined the enemy. Further, by way of some subtle contrasts to Balaam`s ultimate embrace of Israel, the text casts Samson`s last-ditch act of loyalty to Israel in tragic terms: whereas Balaam casts his lot with Israel, Samson dies as a Philistine. This sustained allusion to the Balaam story marks a culmination of a series of equivalences between Samson and several biblical figures, and sheds light on the progression of the various stories about this enigmatic character. In conjunction with other newly identified parallels, it also emerges that when the text deploys motifs found in Hercules, it does so in a way that contributes meaningfully to the theological objectives of the biblical story.