Judges Chapter 15 verse 15 Holy Bible
And he found a fresh jawbone of an ass, and put forth his hand, and took it, and smote a thousand men therewith.
read chapter 15 in ASV
And taking up the mouth-bone of an ass newly dead, which he saw by chance on the earth, he put to death a thousand men with it.
read chapter 15 in BBE
And he found a fresh jawbone of an ass, and put out his hand and seized it, and with it he slew a thousand men.
read chapter 15 in DARBY
And he found a new jawbone of an ass, and put forth his hand, and took it, and slew a thousand men therewith.
read chapter 15 in KJV
And he found a fresh jaw-bone of an ass, and put forth his hand, and took it, and slew a thousand men with it.
read chapter 15 in WBT
He found a fresh jawbone of a donkey, and put forth his hand, and took it, and struck a thousand men therewith.
read chapter 15 in WEB
and he findeth a fresh jaw-bone of an ass, and putteth forth his hand and taketh it, and smiteth with it -- a thousand men.
read chapter 15 in YLT
Pulpit Commentary
Pulpit CommentaryVerse 15. - A most vivid and stirring description! The Spirit of the Lord (Judges 14:19), with that suddenness which marks his extraordinary movements (1 Kings 18:12; 2 Kings 2:16; Acts 2:2; Acts 8:39, etc.), came upon Samson, and mightily strengthened him in his outer man. The strong new cords snapped asunder in an instant, and before the Philistines could recover from their terror at seeing their great enemy free, he had snatched up the heavy jawbone of an ass recently dead, and with it smote the flying Philistines till a thousand of them had fallen under his blows.
Ellicott's Commentary
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers(15) A new jawbone.--Literally, a moist jawbone--i.e., the jawbone of an animal recently dead, and before the bone had become brittle. In this instance, at any rate, Samson might feel himself absolved from the rule of ceremonial cleanness, which forbad him as a Nazarite to touch carcases. A jawbone is a mighty magic weapon in one of the Polynesian legends (Grey, Polyn. Mythology, p. 35), but that throws no light on this narrative.Slew a thousand men.--The verb is rather smote than "slew," and the expression (whether due to poetry or not) is to be taken generally, like "Saul has slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands." If Goliath was able single-handed to strike terror into the whole army of Israel, Samson with his long locks and colossal strength would be still more likely to strike a terror into the Philistines, and all the more because a supernatural awe was doubtless attached by this time to his name and person. The very fact that, though armed only with this wretched weapon of offence, he yet dared to rush upon the Philistines would make them fly in wilder panic (Joshua 23:10). "One man of you shall chase a thousand; for the Lord your God He it is that fighteth for you, as He hath promised you." (Comp. Leviticus 26; Deuteronomy 32:30.) So we read that one of David's heroes slew three hundred men (1Chronicles 11:11; comp. 2Samuel 23:8). The Philistines, dull and superstitious, seem to have been peculiarly liable to these panics (1Samuel 14:4-18). Bishop Patrick quotes a striking parallel from a song on the Emperor Aurelian. . . .
