Why are “thirty companions” “brought” to Samson?

Who exactly are these companions of Samson’s? Were they given so that he could have people to socialize with? It is important to notice that the text says, As soon as the people saw him, they brought thirty companions. This implies that these companions were probably not so much friends of Samson as security forces who were put on him, because there may have been fear of him. Furthermore, the Hebrew text says not that they brought the men to Samson, but that they took the thirty companions to Samson, which suggests that these companions were conscripted by the young men for this role.¹ (Perhaps they were actually friends of the Philistines.)

Notably, the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Old Testament) has, When the people were afraid of him, they appointed… The implication is that it would take a whole group of young men to restrain Samson if he got out of hand (it was a drinking feast, after all!).