Delilah Series

Delilah

Delilah's name means "delicate" or "dainty one." The Philistines approach Delilah and offer to pay her handsomely if she can find out why Samson is so strong.

What Does Delilah Mean?

If you are familiar with biblical stories, you will immediately recognize the name Delilah. Delilah is an ancient name of Hebrew and Arabic origins. In both Hebrew and Arabic, the name means "delicate." Delilah was the love interest of Samson, who was famed for his great strength. The source of his strength was a mystery until the Philistines offered Delilah a bribe to reveal it.

Eventually, Delilah realized that Samson's strength came from his long hair. As he slept, she had Samson's hair cut causing him to lose his strength and be handed over to the Philistines. The name Delilah has since shed any negative connotations and has become popular in works of fiction and music.

The Plain White T's hit song, "Hey There Delilah," is the most popular song to date with the name Delilah. Florence and the Machine, Tom Jones, and Queen also have songs named "Delilah."

• Origin: Delilah is a name of Hebrew and Arabic origins.

• Gender: Delilah is a typically feminine name, but it can be given to a baby of any gender.

• Pronunciation: deh-lie-lah

Although many baby names are separated by gender, the majority of family's believe that sex does not need to play a role in your name selection process. It is important to select a name that you feel suits your new baby the best.

Delilah

She is loved by Samson, a Nazirite who possesses great strength and serves as the final Judge of Israel. The lords of the Philistines bribed Delilah to discover the source of his strength. After three failed attempts at doing so, she finally goads Samson into telling her that his strength is from his hair. Delilah orders a servant to cut Samson's hair, enabling her to turn him over to the Philistines.

In the Hebrew Bible, Samson was the last of the judges of the ancient Israelites mentioned in the Book of Judges and one of the last leaders who "judged" Israel before the institution of the monarchy. He is sometimes considered an Israelite version of the famous Near Eastern folk hero also embodied by the Sumerian Enkidu and the Greek Hercules. Delilah has been the subject of both rabbinic and Christian commentary; rabbinic literature identifies her with Micah's mother in the biblical narrative of Micah's Idol, while some Christians have compared her to Judas Iscariot, the man who betrayed Jesus. Scholars have noted similarities between Delilah and other women in the Bible, such as Jael and Judith. They have discussed whether the story of Samson's relationship with Delilah displays a negative attitude towards foreigners. Notable depictions of Delilah include John Milton's closet drama Samson Agonistes and Cecil B. DeMille's 1949 Hollywood film Samson and Delilah. Her name has become associated with treacherous and voluptuous women.

Delilah was a woman of Sorek. She is the only woman in Samson's story who is named. The Bible says that Samson loved her (Judges 16:4) but not that she loved him. The two were not said to be married, and the idea that they had a sexual relationship is, in the words of Josey Bridges Snyder, "at most implicit in the biblical text."The lords of the Philistines bribed her to discover the source of Samson's great strength, each offering to give her 1,100 silver coins. Three times she failed.

First, at his suggestion, she bound him with "seven green withes" (cords), but these he quickly snapped in two. Then she tied him with new ropes: these also failed. Then, she fastened the locks of his hair to the loom but with the same result. Finally, after many complaints that Samson did not trust her, he told her that his strength lay in his hair. Then, when he was asleep, she ordered a servant to cut Samson's hair. She then woke him and delivered him into the hands of the waiting Philistine chiefs.

The Bible does not mention her fate, and, as James D. G. Dunn and John William Rogerson note in Eerdmans Commentary on the Bible, it never discusses whether Delilah felt guilt for her actions.

Religious views

Jewish interpretations

Josephus and Pseudo-Philo both view Delilah as a Philistine and a prostitute; Josey Bridges Snyder theorizes that this may be because the Book of Judges portrays Samson as attracted to both Philistine women (Judges 14:1) and prostitutes (Judges 16:1). Pseudo-Philo also writes that Delilah was Samson's wife.

The Talmud says that Delilah used sex to get Samson to reveal his secret, even though the biblical text does not state that the two had a sexual relationship, while *midrash state that Delilah harassed Samson verbally and physically during sex to get him to tell her the source of his strength. Midrashim on Delilah reveal negative attitudes toward non-Jewish women and are supposed to "demonstrate the havoc that a foreign woman could wreak." The *midrash says that Samson lost his strength because of his relationship with Delilah, a foreign woman, and not because his hair was cut, and that the angel who foretold Samson's birth to his mother knew that Delilah would cause him to break his Nazirite vow.