Judges 14:11
New International Version
When the people saw him, they chose thirty men to be his companions.

New Living Translation
When the bride’s parents saw him, they selected thirty young men from the town to be his companions.

English Standard Version
As soon as the people saw him, they brought thirty companions to be with him.

Berean Standard Bible
And when the Philistines saw him, they selected thirty men to accompany him.

King James Bible
And it came to pass, when they saw him, that they brought thirty companions to be with him.

New King James Version
And it happened, when they saw him, that they brought thirty companions to be with him.

New American Standard Bible
When they saw him, they brought thirty companions to be with him.

NASB 1995
When they saw him, they brought thirty companions to be with him.

NASB 1977
And it came about when they saw him that they brought thirty companions to be with him.

Legacy Standard Bible
Now it happened that when they saw him, they took thirty companions to be with him.

Amplified Bible
When the people saw him, they brought thirty companions (wedding attendants) to be with him.

Christian Standard Bible
When the Philistines saw him, they brought thirty men to accompany him.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
When the Philistines saw him, they brought 30 men to accompany him.”

American Standard Version
And it came to pass, when they saw him, that they brought thirty companions to be with him.

Contemporary English Version
When the Philistines saw what Samson was like, they told 30 of their young men to stay with him at the party.

English Revised Version
And it came to pass, when they saw him, that they brought thirty companions to be with him.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
When [her family] saw him, they chose 30 of their friends to be with him.

Good News Translation
When the Philistines saw him, they sent thirty young men to stay with him.

International Standard Version
When they saw him, they brought 30 companions to accompany him.

Majority Standard Bible
And when the Philistines saw him, they selected thirty men to accompany him.

NET Bible
When the Philistines saw he had no attendants, they gave him thirty groomsmen who kept him company.

New Heart English Bible
It happened, when they saw him, that they brought thirty companions to be with him.

Webster's Bible Translation
And it came to pass, when they saw him, that they brought thirty companions to be with him.

World English Bible
When they saw him, they brought thirty companions to be with him.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
and it comes to pass, when they see him, that they take thirty companions, and they are with him.

Young's Literal Translation
and it cometh to pass when they see him, that they take thirty companions, and they are with him.

Smith's Literal Translation
And it will be when they saw him, and they will take thirty companions, and they will be with him.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
And when the citizens of that place saw him, they brought him thirty companions to be with him.

Catholic Public Domain Version
And when the citizens of that place had seen him, they presented to him thirty companions to be with him.

New American Bible
Out of their fear of him, they brought thirty men to be his companions.

New Revised Standard Version
When the people saw him, they brought thirty companions to be with him.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
And when they saw him, there came thirty men and became his groomsmen.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
And when they saw him, thirty men came and they were friends of the groom for him
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
And it came to pass, when they saw him, that they brought thirty companions to be with him.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
And it came to pass when they saw him, that they took thirty guests, and they were with him.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Samson's Riddle
10Then his father went to visit the woman, and Samson prepared a feast there, as was customary for the bridegroom. 11And when the Philistines saw him, they selected thirty men to accompany him. 12“Let me tell you a riddle,” Samson said to them. “If you can solve it for me within the seven days of the feast, I will give you thirty linen garments and thirty sets of clothes.…

Cross References
Genesis 29:22
So Laban invited all the men of that place and prepared a feast.

Matthew 22:2-4
“The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. / He sent his servants to call those he had invited to the banquet, but they refused to come. / Again, he sent other servants and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner. My oxen and fattened cattle have been killed, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’

John 2:1-10
On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, / and Jesus and His disciples had also been invited to the wedding. / When the wine ran out, Jesus’ mother said to Him, “They have no more wine.” ...

Matthew 9:15
Jesus replied, “How can the guests of the bridegroom mourn while He is with them? But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast.

Luke 5:34-35
Jesus replied, “Can you make the guests of the bridegroom fast while He is with them? / But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast.”

John 3:29
The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom stands and listens for him, and is overjoyed to hear the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete.

Revelation 19:7-9
Let us rejoice and be glad and give Him the glory. For the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His bride has made herself ready. / She was given clothing of fine linen, bright and pure.” For the fine linen she wears is the righteous acts of the saints. / Then the angel told me to write, “Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.”

1 Samuel 25:36
When Abigail returned to Nabal, there he was in the house, holding a feast fit for a king, in high spirits and very drunk. So she told him nothing until morning light.

Esther 1:5-7
At the end of this time, in the garden court of the royal palace, the king held a seven-day feast for all the people in the citadel of Susa, from the least to the greatest. / Hangings of white and blue linen were fastened with cords of fine white and purple material to silver rings on the marble pillars. Gold and silver couches were arranged on a mosaic pavement of porphyry, marble, mother-of-pearl, and other costly stones. / Beverages were served in an array of goblets of gold, each with a different design, and the royal wine flowed freely, according to the king’s bounty.

Song of Solomon 3:11
Come out, O daughters of Zion, and gaze at King Solomon, wearing the crown with which his mother crowned him on the day of his wedding—the day of his heart’s rejoicing.

Matthew 25:1-10
“At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. / Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. / The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take along any extra oil. ...

Mark 2:19-20
Jesus replied, “How can the guests of the bridegroom fast while He is with them? As long as He is with them, they cannot fast. / But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; then they will fast.

Luke 14:8
“When you are invited to a wedding banquet, do not sit in the place of honor, in case someone more distinguished than you has been invited.

Psalm 45:14-15
In colorful garments she is led to the king; her virgin companions are brought before you. / They are led in with joy and gladness; they enter the palace of the king.

Isaiah 62:5
For as a young man marries a young woman, so your sons will marry you; and as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so your God will rejoice over you.


Treasury of Scripture

And it came to pass, when they saw him, that they brought thirty companions to be with him.

saw him

1 Samuel 10:23
And they ran and fetched him thence: and when he stood among the people, he was higher than any of the people from his shoulders and upward.

1 Samuel 16:6
And it came to pass, when they were come, that he looked on Eliab, and said, Surely the LORD'S anointed is before him.

thirty

Matthew 9:15
And Jesus said unto them, Can the children of the bridechamber mourn, as long as the bridegroom is with them? but the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken from them, and then shall they fast.

John 3:29
He that hath the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom's voice: this my joy therefore is fulfilled.

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Appeared Companions Thirty
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Appeared Companions Thirty
Judges 14
1. Samson desires a wife of the Philistines.
6. In his journey he kills a lion
8. In a second journey he finds honey in the carcass
10. Samson's marriage feast
12. His riddle by his wife is made known
19. He strikes down thirty Philistines
20. His wife is married to another.














When the people saw him
This phrase introduces the reaction of the Philistines to Samson's presence. The Hebrew root for "saw" is "ra'ah," which often implies more than just physical sight; it can suggest perception or understanding. In the context of Judges, the Philistines' perception of Samson is crucial, as they see him not just as a guest but as a potential threat due to his reputation and strength. Historically, the Philistines were a dominant force in the region, and their awareness of Samson's presence would have been significant, indicating the tension between the Israelites and the Philistines.

they brought thirty companions to be with him
The phrase "thirty companions" is significant in understanding the social customs of the time. In ancient Near Eastern cultures, weddings were communal events, and it was customary for the groom to have companions or attendants. The Hebrew word for "companions" is "merei'im," which can mean friends or associates. However, in this context, these companions were likely Philistine men assigned to watch over Samson, reflecting the underlying mistrust and the political tension between the Philistines and the Israelites. This arrangement sets the stage for the subsequent events in the narrative, highlighting the cultural and political dynamics at play.

(11) When they saw him.--The reason why this clause is added is somewhat obscure, and this is perhaps the reason why the LXX. and Josephus, without any warrant, render it "when they were afraid of him, which would involve a change in the reading.

They brought thirty companions.--It was necessary to the splendour of the marriage feast that there should be these paranymphs (shoshbenim, or "children of the bride-chamber," Matthew 9:15). The fact that Samson had brought none with him seems to prove that his marriage was highly unpopular among his own countrymen. Thirty, however, was a most unusual number.

Verse 11. - When they saw him, i.e. when the father and mother and friends of the bride saw him approaching, they went to meet him with the thirty companions who had been selected. We still see a strong resemblance to the wedding arrangements referred to in Matthew 9:15, and Matthew 25:1-12; only in this case they were young men instead of young women who went out to meet the bridegroom. We may observe, by the way, that the scale of the wedding feast, as regards numbers and duration, indicates that Samson s family was one of wealth and position.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
And when
וַיְהִ֖י (way·hî)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 1961: To fall out, come to pass, become, be

[the Philistines] saw him,
כִּרְאוֹתָ֣ם (kir·’ō·w·ṯām)
Preposition-k | Verb - Qal - Infinitive construct | third person masculine plural
Strong's 7200: To see

they selected
וַיִּקְחוּ֙ (way·yiq·ḥū)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine plural
Strong's 3947: To take

thirty
שְׁלֹשִׁ֣ים (šə·lō·šîm)
Number - common plural
Strong's 7970: Thirty, thirtieth

men to accompany him.
מֵֽרֵעִ֔ים (mê·rê·‘îm)
Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 4828: Friend, companion


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OT History: Judges 14:11 It happened when they saw him that (Jd Judg. Jdg)
Judges 14:10
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