What is the meaning of Judges 15:4?

Then Samson went out

• Fresh from the Philistines’ murder of his wife, Samson deliberately leaves to settle the score (Judges 15:3).

• His pattern of Spirit-driven initiative continues (Judges 14:6, 19; 13:25).

• Like Moses leaving Midian to face Egypt (Exodus 4:19-20), Samson steps out to act as God’s instrument of judgment.

---

And caught three hundred foxes

• The number is literal, underscoring an extraordinary feat that only God-empowered strength could achieve (compare Judges 14:5-6).

• Three hundred recalls Gideon’s 300, another sign that salvation can come through unlikely means (Judges 7:7).

• Foxes—animals known for crafty ruin (Songs 2:15)—become agents of ruin against the crafty Philistines.

---

And he took torches

• Fire repeatedly pictures divine judgment (Deuteronomy 4:24).

• Gideon’s men wielded torches to rout Midian (Judges 7:16); Samson now uses them against Philistia.

• The choice of fire hints at covenant curses that consume an enemy’s harvest (Exodus 22:6).

---

Turned the foxes tail-to-tail

• Pairing the animals forces erratic, wide-ranging movement, maximizing damage.

• The tactic reflects shrewd planning, not random rage (cf. Matthew 10:16, being “shrewd as serpents” in approach).

• The Philistines will experience the same chaos they inflicted on Samson (Judges 15:6).

---

And fastened a torch between each pair of tails

• One torch per pair yields 150 roaming blazes, enough to wipe out “standing grain, vineyards, and olive groves” (Judges 15:5).

• The strike cripples Philistine economics without direct bloodshed, a measured but decisive blow (similar to Ehud’s single strike on Eglon, Judges 3:21-22).

• This fire answers the Philistines’ earlier burning of Samson’s wife—divine justice responding in kind (Galatians 6:7, “whatever a man sows, he will reap”).

---

summary

Judges 15:4 presents a literal, Spirit-enabled judgment: Samson intentionally steps out, captures 300 foxes, equips them with torches, couples them tail-to-tail, and unleashes moving fires that devastate Philistine crops. The account highlights God’s power, Samson’s God-given ingenuity, and the certainty that those who oppress God’s people will meet fiery recompense.