To all things, there is a purpose.
It was the time of the judges.
The Lord had punished the children of Israel for their sins against him.
He had delivered them into the hands of the Philistines.
Conquerors of the people of Israel...
... they exploited their empire with cruel efficiency.
But they were also an advanced people.
In a world of bronze, they had discovered the secret of iron.
And with this, they crushed any disobedience swiftly and without mercy.
God's punishment of the people of Israel was severe...
... but he did not abandon them.
And their faith grew in their struggle against their Philistine oppressors.
Do not fear, woman.
The Lord of life has not forgotten you in your barrenness.
I am the messenger come to tell you that your womb will bear fruit.
You will conceive a son, a Nazarite dedicated to God.
He will eat no unclean food and drink no strong drink.
And he will grow stronger than a hundred men.
He is the Lord's gift, chosen to begin the liberation...
... of your people from the Philistine.
Look through me, and you will see where his future lies.
As a mark of obedience to the Lord...
... his hair shall never be cut.
This shall be the symbol of his alliance with God...
... and of his consecration to him.
His strength resides in the Lord.
This secret is his and yours alone.
Do not break this pact with the almighty.
Manoah!
A man back there at the well...
A strange man. Listen to me.
He appeared to me at the well.
- A Philistine? - No.
No. A stranger.
- What are you talking about? - Listen to me.
"The Lord of life, " he said.
He said...
... I would conceive and give birth to a son.
And if he said we were rich, would you believe that too?
He was an apparition. It was...
It was like a miracle.
Mara...
... you are barren.
You know that.
I have lain...
... with no one but you, Manoah.
The child will be ours.
And a gift to our people.
And the land yielded its harvest.
And upon it, God began to sow the seeds of justice for his people.
For they did not bow down their heads...
... or worship the false idols of their masters.
But after 40 long years...
... deliverance was at hand for the children of Israel.
Their prayers had been heard by the God with no face...
... and a name that is never spoken.
The one true God.
Do you...
... want to hold him?
But he's so small.
I might drop him.
- Amen. - Amen.
Samson.
Father...
... how will I know when it is time to fulfill my destiny?
The Lord will tell you.
- When? - When the time is right.
- A sign? - Perhaps.
What kind of a sign?
I don't know.
He gave you strength.
He will also give you understanding.
I am but one man. One.
A Nazarite bonded to the Lord.
There's no need to search for signs.
Your birth was the sign.
The stranger said, "Chosen to deliver his people"?
Those were his words.
To deliver his people.
It will be hard.
Every gift is also a burden.
- Father says he's lazy. - And slow-witted.
Samson.
Put them in the net!
- Samson. - Let me down.
- Samson, no. - Let me out of this net now.
Samson, get us down.
Samson, get us out of here.
Stop, Samson. Stop.
- Let me out. - Samson, stop now.
- Let me down out of this net. - Samson.
- Let us down.
Let us down now!
Samson was gentle, good, thoughtful...
... and unsure, as all men are, of the purpose of his life.
He began to walk the long road to understanding and faith.
A journey which must be made by every man alone.
That's it, Your Highness. That's it. Watch your guard.
In the palace of the king of the Philistines...
... another young man was learning the skills of life...
... through the games he played.
Watch your guard.
Intelligence, attention, concentration. I watch you.
You're like a butterfly. You're here, you're there, you're gone.
Focus your attention.
Your Highness...
... focus your mind completely.
Yes. Yes, I know.
Try again, general?
As you wish, Your Highness.
Never underestimate your enemy.
No, Father.
- Good day, Delilah. - General Tariq.
You may rise.
I wonder what her father would think of her now, eh, commander?
A true friend and a fine soldier.
Who, I'm told, never underestimated his enemy.
Here, use this one, commander.
- An Israelite sword. - What's an Israelite sword?
Bronze.
They're a very primitive people.
Who have only ever found a single god to worship.
Attack.
Even a broken sword will kill you...
... if you let down your guard, Your Highness.
You remind us every day of the reasons why my father...
... values you so highly, commander.
He's possessed of a soldier's most powerful weapon:
His intelligence.
My name is Yoram.
I was more than 10 years younger than Samson.
I loved him as a brother.
We were both Nazarites, dedicated to God at birth.
Did I know even then...
... that within him lay the destiny of our people?
Perhaps I knew only that I would be with him until the end.
There was no warning?
The Philistines came from over there...
... out of the sunset.
There was no time to run.
And we had no arms.
My father...
... my mother...
... and my brothers.
They killed them all.
I was not spared but overlooked.
The only one who escaped.
Naomi...
... I'm sorry.
Sorry?
For bringing back that memory.
It never leaves.
Come with me. You will hear. You will learn.
Please, Samson. Come with me.
For me.
For you, anything. Except one of those meetings.
I have to go.
Naomi...
... you are far too gentle for the harsh words of rebellion.
And you can hardly even lift a sword.
- It is you who has been chosen. - I doubt it.
- Your mother refuses... - Naomi, stop this.
If I am to be called, God will call me.
Not you and your rabble.
I am a Nazarite.
I pray. I try.
But there is a great absence.
Seas can open, Samson. Bushes can burn.
For Moses and for you.
I am one man. How can one man destroy the Philistines? Tell me.
- Our army will... - Your army has wooden clubs...
... and swords of bronze. - And righteousness.
Why is it that every people think they alone are the righteous ones?
You doubt it?
Anyway, righteousness never stopped the Philistine spear that killed your mother.
Righteousness did not give them weapons of iron.
Do not make me beg.
Open your eyes.
I have seen nothing.
I have heard nothing.
- I am nothing. - A man is what he chooses to be.
And I choose nothing.
Why?
Tell me, Samson. What are you frightened of?
Nothing.
- Then what do you want? - I want...
... everything.
Come, come.
How is it, Ira...
... that we are still bent beneath the heel of these Philistines?
It's God's punishment.
When our people abandoned his ways...
... he brought them down on us that we might atone for our sins.
But things are better than they were.
No more burned villages...
... no more young people taken into slavery.
And the fruit of suffering...
... is wisdom.
Then we must be the wisest people on earth.
Ira...
... you are the elder of our village.
- I need your counsel. - It's freely given...
... and often wrong.
What's Samson done now?
Nothing. And more nothing.
He leads an empty life.
It's as if he believed the world owed him something.
Moses, too, was raised as a prince.
My sons are just the same.
And without Samson's special gifts.
"Samson caught us in the net. Samson caught us in the... "
Tell me. Has Samson ever cried?
For one hour after he was born.
It's as if he feared the pain that life had in store for him.
- Since then, never. - Truly, he is remarkable.
His temperament is kind, his wit is quick.
And his strength...
He has all the gifts but one:
Purpose. It is the fuel of life.
Come on.
Pull.
- Naomi. - What?
Maybe we should go.
They come by every day at about this time.
No. It's your turn, Yoram.
Go on. It's your turn.
- Come on. Philistines. Let's go. - No.
Go. Fetch Samson, quickly.
Hey!
I've never seen goats riding on goats.
Why don't you get off and milk them, huh?
Go.
Does the smell come from the beasts or from the masters, huh?
Samson!
Samson, come quick!
The Philistines, they have Naomi.
Samson, please hurry.
Move away. Move.
Come on. Come on, quickly!
Come on, let's go.
Pig!
Your mother was a donkey. And yours, a mule.
Hold her.
I have two swords here.
Impaling you with either will give me great satisfaction.
Best be the iron one.
Save the other for your mother.
Israelite whore.
- Naomi, stay there. I'll help him. - No, no.
Stay here.
Samson!
Get out!
Go!
You broke them!
Without a weapon, Samson broke them.
You have been chosen. How can you doubt it?
Samson!
Without a weapon, Samson broke them.
Please, Manoah. Let us in. At least talk to these people.
You know us all. There's nothing that we don't give to this house.
I'm not letting any of you in here. Go now.
- You hear me? I said, now. - This is important.
Mara, you must speak to him. We need him. A leader.
- Someone our people will stand with. - I need him too.
- Mara, these are the... - I know who they are.
- Carpenters, shepherds, plowmen. - The leaders of our rebellion.
Rebellion. How many weapons do you have? How many made of iron?
Mara, God's will brought us your son to destroy the enemies of our people.
Manoah, you must speak to Samson.
- With his father's urging, he might... - What am I to urge?
That he die before his time?
The son Mara and I prayed for all our life.
- Manoah, listen to us. - I've heard you.
Our son is the Lord's instrument.
And in the Lord's time, he will obey.
In God's good time. Not in yours.
You should have insisted.
- Why wouldn't he listen? - I don't know, you were there.
You saw how...
Oh, Lord, tell me what to do.
Enslave him, Father.
Burn his village before the Israelites rally to a new hero.
There is nothing to be gained by burning an Israelite village.
- In a week, it will be old news. - Legends grow, Father.
Ask your courtiers what they have heard.
Single-handed, two patrols. Some say 10.
Only an empty head can be full of these tales.
And what do you think, Commander Tariq?
I think all people need their heroes.
If they don't exist, they must create them.
- You know what it means? - What?
- His name, Samson. - Tell me.
- "Son of the sun. " - The son of the sun.
And your name.
Mine?
"Delilah, " it's an ancient word. It means "desire. "
And do you think that appropriate, commander?
In every way.
But the son of the sun.
I'd like to see this Samson for myself.
You're a loose woman, Delilah.
And if I weren't...
... I'd find that remark offensive, general.
His hair is long.
He wears it in seven braids.
Some kind of religious significance.
Is there anything you don't know?
I'll never know how to please a loose woman.
Our requests of a man are very modest.
That is the principal part of our charm.
Only by very modest request...
... could any man meet your expectations.
Except perhaps this Israelite hero.
Men like him are either quickly forgotten...
... or never forgotten. - Nothing certain, eh?
Nothing but death.
Is that it? It seems very little.
And encompasses everything.
No!
Strong, yes, but with a sweet modesty.
Did you see how he ran? Like a gazelle.
A woman would die for a man like that.
Out of the way, fool.
A gazelle is so much more graceful than a baboon, is it not?
General?
If the future of our people is to be secured...
... perhaps the time has come to think of different stratagems.
Such as?
The greatest victory any general can achieve.
Peace.
I knew something had happened.
You haven't been fighting over a woman, have you?
All the single girls are in love with you. Some of the married ones too.
- It wasn't a fight over Naomi, was it? - No.
- Who then? - No one.
- I saw... - Saw what?
A woman...
... like no other. - No woman gave you these wounds.
Samson, be careful.
Father.
- Father... - Now, wait.
- General, continue. - Well, it would take time.
But once they saw how a lasting treaty would benefit them...
... we could focus our attention elsewhere.
- A treaty? With who? What is this? - This is something kings must learn...
... and princes must practice.
- It's called listening. - No one in this royal house should listen...
... to any proposal for a treaty with the tribes of Israel.
Their subjugation is their treaty.
It's only by listening that one hears.
The general's proposals have merit.
- Continue. - Lf we might consider...
... making official peace with them, turning them into independent allies...
Allies? The Israelites?
Better to plunge your hand into a basket of vipers.
The art of making a decision is firstly to know what your choices are.
General.
What would we achieve by having a vassal state on our eastern borders?
Nothing but a breeding ground for rebellion, draining my manpower...
... and your treasury. - Our treasury.
You always know where I'm vulnerable, eh?
But we would allow them access to the sea and allow them to trade.
My experience of life, beginning with my own family...
... is that by giving some of what is wanted...
... only whets the appetite for more. - We would continue...
... to maintain complete control, Majesty.
The illusion of independence.
It would take a magician mightier than any I've met.
And their religion? No, no, general.
Beliefs are more dangerous than a hundred armies.
Our gods have the tail of fish...
... because our ancestors were seafaring people.
What does it matter if a handful of our people decide to believe in a single deity?
- It's poor exchange. - Perhaps so.
But I sometimes feel that a single sun in the sky is better than two or three...
... that would burn us all alive.
But if we control the Israelites by a treaty...
No, commander. This is treason.
You do not accommodate an enemy. You eliminate him.
At what sacrifice?
A thousand of our young men? Five thousand?
How many widows do you want to make before you say enough?
The Israelites lay claim to our kingdom...
... and we are contemplating giving it to them?
No. Only that we make peace...
... the price for which is small.
They believe their god will send them a savior to destroy us.
It is, above all else, this foolish belief that holds them in our power.
They wait patiently, passively.
Perhaps we should be encouraging them in this belief.
We should make an example of their new hero, this Samson.
Before it's too late.
Draw them too close, and they will discover...
... one of the secrets of our power, how to make iron.
That is true.
- Perhaps there are ways... - You wish them to learn...
... how to make real weapons, general?
Well, this year, next year. Whatever. They will learn.
Man climbs upon the shoulders of man.
But a treaty is not the answer. It's too dangerous.
Let us leave them as they are, waiting for their savior...
... and hope he does not come till our reign...
... and yours are no more than great memories.
- Yes, Your Majesty. - You're my first general.
And what is a first general without an army?
What is a scorpion when it loses its sting?
Your Highness.
Will you mourn me after my death, Sidqa?
Of course, Father.
Very good.
I want you to contact our agents.
Arrange for the capture of this Samson.
You will command the operation yourself.
I want him brought back to Gaza. Alive, if possible.
- Alive? - Yes, alive. Living, not dead.
More difficult, but essential.
- But it may be they already believe. - Myths and legends wrap themselves...
... around the dead and make them martyred heroes.
They are remembered.
I want this Samson brought back here to Gaza.
A prisoner. In chains of iron.
He'll be quickly forgotten.
Here is your money. Now show us where he lives.
A stranger.
He said...
Come, brother.
Our work is done here.
Father!
- Mara! Mara! Are you hurt? - Please, God...
Please, God, help him. Samson!
What are you doing? Where are you taking him?
- Let him go! - Samson!
Stay where you are.
With Samson gone, we shall lead the rebellion.
People will look to us to inspire them.
They'll bring their hopes, fears, doubts to us.
We will become the true judges of Israel.
See there in the stars...
... when Samson has been netted.
Help him! Help him!
Stop them!
You've got no right to do this!
- What is happening? - They've taken Samson.
What?
Where are they taking him?
Do something. Help him!
Do something!
Yoram, come on. Come on!
Samson! Let me through!
Go! Take him!
- Samson! - Go! Seize him! Go!
Stay back.
You, go on!
Manoah.
Go! Stop him!
You, get him!
Go on!
Where were you? We outnumbered them by more than 100.
Lead you?
Shall I kill him for you too?
- Where are you going? - Kill him yourself.
- Samson! - Samson!
Cowards! Traitors!
- We should have stayed to watch. - No.
Being at home asleep proclaims our innocence.
He'll be halfway to Gaza by now...
... in chains of iron.
Lord!
Yoram.
- We'll find somewhere to hide you. - Hide me?
They might come again.
- Let them. - Come.
You have a friend, one who will never betray us.
How many of them were there?
We outnumbered them by more than 100.
- You fought them like 200. - God is good.
Not one of them tried to help. Except you.
The others begged rebellion of me one day and abandoned me the next.
- They were frightened. - And you weren't.
I'm not old enough to know better.
Nor are my parents.
Naomi cracked a few skulls.
Love is a powerful conqueror of fear.
Surely if he had been taken...
... Father would have been told. He would have awoken us by now.
Father is asleep, and he's...
Where would he go?
They have to come back.
All the laws we have to live by are so difficult to keep.
Part of our strength is giving support to each other.
And helping each other...
... and guiding each other will reveal this temptation.
You were dedicated a Nazarite at birth?
- Yes. Like you, I belong to the Lord. - We belong to the Lord.
He is a strange master who tells us nothing, asks nothing of us.
His ways are unknowable.
He moves beyond our understanding.
Or not at all.
He gave you strength enough to break a lion's neck.
You knew.
You what?
- Nothing. - Nothing.
There are many ways to be strong.
Samson. What are you... ?
- We heard voices. - What's he doing here?
The Philistines tried to capture him. He beat them back.
- He did? - God be praised.
Yes. God be praised.
- With him here, we will all be in danger. - What if they come back again?
- Tonight? - They won't look here.
If they come back again, search the village?
- Then what?! - We'll be taken to Gaza in chains!
He can't stay here!
Jehiel, Amram, leave us.
If you are in fear of your lives...
... find another place to sleep. - Father...
- The Philistines... - lf the Philistines come, they come.
- Now, leave us! - Come, brother.
My son.
Has your father ever told you how proud he is of you?
But my sons...
"Samson caught us in a net. Samson caught us in... "
A net.
How else did they know where you slept?
Jehiel.
Amram.
Oh, no.
No.
No. My own sons.
Traitors. Fools!
If a man sins against another, God may intervene in his favor...
... but if a man sins against the Lord and his consecrated, who shall intercede?
Father, somebody's been lying to you.
Jehiel. Amram.
- They betrayed me. - Samson, no!
- We haven't sinned, Father. - You have disgraced me.
- We haven't... - My own sons have torn out my heart.
No, Samson!
- No! - Samson, no.
You beg for once, only to die.
No!
Samson, don't kill them. I beg of you.
Samson. Samson!
We thought that we were attacked by a superior Israelite force.
You keep telling me they have no superior force.
Never underestimate the enemy.
In the circumstances, I thought it prudent to withdraw, to regroup.
- Back here in Gaza? - Well, ready for another day.
But he was just one man.
- One man. - But with the strength of 50.
- And others attacked us. - With bare hands?
It was dark. Who knew what weapons?
Did they all have the jawbone of an ass?
The gods give an ignorant Israelite peasant Samson for a son...
... and they give me the king of Gaza.
You.
I have but one duty, that's to outlive my heir.
Is there no justice in the stars? Get out of my sight.
- Father... - Are you deaf as well as brainless?
I said, get out of my sight. Go.
I want an emissary to inquire...
... and report to me on exactly what happened.
Yes, my lord.
Well, General Tariq, is there justice in the stars?
Apparently not.
The number of kings who outlive their heirs does not give us grounds for confidence.
Samson!
- Samson. - Go back to the village.
- Where are you going? - Away. I don't know.
Samson, I am lost without you.
Ever since I was born, you've been there.
Since I was born I've been told...
... that God punished our people because they failed to heed him.
Perhaps if I can distance myself from my people for a while...
... I can hear his word and obey.
Go.
Back to the village.
Now your manhood begins.
As does mine.
I wouldn't if I were you.
Looking is one thing, but touching...
... that's something else.
The men could turn nasty, and you could end up...
... with one less body part than God gave you, if you know what I mean.
You're an Israelite.
Amrok.
Lost in the desert as a child.
Raised by the Philistines.
A wanderer by upbringing, and a curious man by nature.
Homeward bound after...
... three weary years of putting one foot in front of the other.
- And you? - Samson.
I expected a giant, a wrestler. But you look like any other man.
- You are the one they speak of? - And betrayed.
But you, an Israelite, have lived amongst the Philistines.
I was taken in by a family.
- Good people. - How could you live with them...
... when they crushed your own people under their heel?
Have you seen so little of life that you don't know?
When a people are controlled by a strong king...
... it is the king's will that prevails, not the people's.
It wasn't the king who destroyed our villages in the old days.
Yes, but those who did are fed by him, advanced by him, rewarded by him.
The court controls everything.
If men devised a weapon to destroy the courts...
... in one single blow, all of Gaza is destroyed.
They are cruel people.
- Because they are afraid. - Afraid?
Of losing what they have.
If you could drive them into the sea and take their land...
... you would, wouldn't you? - Right now I would not raise my finger...
... against them. - Then we can be friends.
Friend.
The prince of the Philistines seeks my head.
Friendship with me could be dangerous.
The best friendships are always risky.
The prince who seeks your head must first find his own.
Tomorrow night we'll feast with my father in Timnah.
Timnah.
- Are these your father's fields? - As far as the eye can see.
You chose your parents well.
- Hello. - Amrok.
- Welcome back. - Thank you.
Master. Master!
- How is your wife? - Master.
Your son.
- Your son is back! - Thank you.
Master. Your son. He's come back.
Let me speak for you. Then everything will be all right, you'll see.
My son.
My son, my son.
Father, this is Samson.
- Samson? - Yes. My Israelite friend.
Samson, this is my father.
If you are my son's friend...
... then you are my honored guest.
My house is your house.
- Rani. - Amrok.
Dear brother.
Samson, this is my sister, Rani. Rani, this is Samson.
This is for your wife.
- Oh, this is beautiful. - It's beautiful.
It is beautiful.
Only sung by women in the presence of a man at certain times.
Samson.
Drink.
Thank you.
Wait, wait.
I saw you once before in the land of the Israelites.
- It was only for a moment. - You were working in a field.
- I remember. - You remember.
As you do.
Do you ever dream, Sidqa?
Yes.
I do.
Since I was a child, I have never dreamed.
Never.
The doctors tell me you're getting stronger.
That's true.
You thought your time had come, didn't you, Sidqa?
A little longer.
Child, tell me what it is you want.
If it is within my power, I shall grant it.
I want...
Yes?
I want Samson as my husband.
He is a good man.
But is he not an enemy of our people?
Not of mine.
- You love him? - With all my heart.
Has he spoken words of love to you?
A woman sees the heart of a man through the doorway of his eyes.
And you see... ?
A man who loves me as I love him.
- That's what she said? - Her exact words.
But could she truly love me, an Israelite...
... as a wife must love her husband? Is such a thing possible?
My mother and father would say, "Never. "
My teacher would say, "Think again. "
And have you thought again?
It is all I think of.
And each time the thought fills me with happiness.
Then the question is...
... could you truly love her, a Philistine, like a husband must love his wife?
As surely as the sun dies beyond the hills each night.
Come and speak to her. Tell her how you feel.
- She knows. She sees it. - Yes, she knows.
But women like you to tell them. Especially if it's the truth.
And what about these stories that he has slain our soldiers...
... that the Israelites beg him to lead their army against us?
He's here.
He refused them, and they betrayed him. He's a man of peace.
As am I.
You know him now.
You know he's an honorable man.
Will you, that are kind and just...
... let rumor or gossip stand in his way?
It is said he humiliated Prince Sidqa himself.
From what we are told, this is not difficult.
True.
But if they found he was hiding in my home...
... if they came for him...
I'm not thinking of myself.
But the danger to you...
... to Rani...
They would surely kill us all.
Father, I am an Israelite.
- You are my... - Hear me out.
- You are my son. - Hear me out.
I'm an Israelite.
But I honor you as my father.
Perhaps Rani's love for him...
... is the very way towards peace between our two peoples.
And the king himself is wise.
Is he not?
Well...
... if I were to send a message to Gaza...
... if the king gave it his blessing...
Then all would be well.
This farmer from Timnah is a traitor.
- You must deny his request. - Sidqa...
... when I'm gone and the throne is yours, let me give you a word of advice:
Always, always ignore those of your counselors...
... who say "you must. "
But, Father...
... now we know where Samson is. - Yes, my son.
Now we know.
A Timnite woman.
They're supposed to be very beautiful, are they not?
If she were that beautiful, she'd be here, in the palace.
If you say so.
Do not humor me, commander.
I'd hate to think you believe me jealous.
And are you jealous?
- What's the man to me? - I don't know.
He saved your life.
I owe him thanks.
No more than that.
So he is unimportant.
Nothing.
Then why are you telling me about him?
Because I tell you what I hear in the court.
And I you.
And the arrangement makes us both formidably well informed.
So the poor Israelite is to be denied even one night of marital pleasure.
You feel sorry for an enemy of our people?
Enemy? Where are his armies? Whose downfall does he seek?
You're remarkable, Delilah.
I had assumed that you would share the anger...
... of our prince with this Israelite.
The prince and I have very different tastes.
The prince will never be known for his taste...
... but for the size of his feet.
He'll never fit his father's shoes.
You know, General Tariq...
... I've known you all my life.
But at this moment, I know you not at all.
I'm a man...
... in the wrong place at the wrong time.
For whatever it's worth...
... I too have known myself all my life...
... and yet not at all.
Cut it out.
My son.
Mother? Yoram.
Sit. Drink. You've traveled far.
So is it true?
Is what true, Mother? That I live and work here among people who ask nothing of me?
- Yes, that is true. - You know of what I speak.
The story is abroad. Everyone speaks of it.
That you are to marry a Philistine. Is that true?
Her name is Rani. Yes, it is true.
The ceremony is tomorrow. And you are welcome.
I'm glad you're here.
Among all the women you might have chosen...
... was it God's will that you bring a stranger to your bed?
She is a good woman.
Her father is honorable, just and kind.
- And I love her, Mother. - And is this love...
... greater than the bonds that tie you to our people?
Greater than our traditions?
Do not turn your back on us by marrying a foreign woman.
Come back with us, Samson. Before it's too late.
My home is here now.
You have punished us enough.
- I beg you. - I have heard you, you have heard me.
That is an end to it.
Beware this woman, Samson.
Be it on your wedding day...
... or within the first circle of the moon...
... she will betray you.
- My father. - You have no father.
- And he has no son. - Mother.
Yoram.
Mother!
See? I bleed.
Like any other man.
Samson stayed in the land of the Philistines...
... where he had found a woman he loved.
And it seemed the king had given his approval for the marriage.
But those he sent to celebrate had come for another purpose.
And thus did Samson 's love for the Philistine woman...
... begin to fulfill the word of God.
Philistines.
I give you a riddle.
What's the prize? There has to be a prize.
Yes, there must be a prize.
Very well. If you solve the riddle...
... 30 linen garments. - And a flock of sheep.
And two shepherds. And 100 silver pieces.
Out of the eater...
... something to eat.
Out of the strong...
... something sweet.
Impossible.
Out of the strong? This is Samson himself.
No.
- Tell me the riddle, Samson. - Why, so you may win the prize?
No. To share in your enjoyment...
... as I hope to do throughout our life together.
- I don't think that that's... - Tell her. She's your wife.
No secrets.
- A man must trust his wife. - You won't trust me?
Excellent. You'll never get it.
My husband not only trusts me, he gives you a true riddle to solve.
You keep your guests very happ y.
I'm glad you're enjoying our wedding.
The king is well pleased, Harach.
Good. Good.
He honors us with your company.
And will bestow more honor with the answer to this riddle.
The riddle?
I need a pretext.
A reason.
A reason? For what?
A reason not to seize your land, cut off your thieving fingers.
Sir, you are my guest.
- This is outrageous. - The answer. I will have it.
Go.
Fetch it from your daughter.
Before I order your house burned to the ground.
Rani.
- Come here, Rani. Come. - My father calls.
Then go to him. But return to me.
All right.
Come, Samson. We submit.
Tell us the answer to your riddle.
A Philistine submit to an Israelite?
- Shame. - A father submits to his son.
You will never get to bed with my sister until this riddle is solved.
Now there's a good reason.
All right.
- I see I have you all. - All?
No.
- The answer is plain. - Tell us.
What is sweeter than honey?
And what is stronger than a lion?
It is surely a honeycomb.
A beehive inside...
... the entrails of a desert lion.
Right? The lion and the honey.
That's right, you have it.
That's no riddle.
How could anyone guess an answer like that?
How indeed?
Wife.
Why, Rani? Why?
- No. - Why, Rani? Why?
Why?
Samson!
It was me.
They threatened to burn down the house unless l...
She knew nothing.
- Rani. - Stop it.
No! Stop! Please!
No!
Take him!
Stop.
- Come, Rani. - Let me go.
Seize him!
Go!
Come on.
Samson.
Samson!
No. No, please.
See?
- See? - Yes.
You threatened the life of my father, of my friend, of my wife.
The garments are yours. You won them. Pick them up.
I said, pick them up.
Now go.
Go back to Gaza.
Tell them Samson did this.
And tell them I have only begun.
I have only begun!
- All of them? - Yes, Majesty.
His strength is not human.
- Not human? - The fields. The fields are on fire.
No. No!
No! Rani!
No! No!
Execute them.
Burn their fields.
No!
Here. Make it here. It belongs to your enemy.
My love, who I betrayed.
Rani!
Rani. Rani.
Oh, no.