1. Judges 14:1–16:31 (ESV)
  2. Structure and outline

The structure of Judges 14—16

Judges 14:1–16:31 (ESV)

1 Samson went down to Timnah, and at Timnah he saw one of the daughters of the Philistines.

There are two movements spanning these chapters. The first movement begins with Samson going down to Timnah in Judges 14:1 and climaxes in the slaughter of the Philistines at Ramath-Lehi in Judges 15:14–20. The second movement begins with Samson’s going down to Gaza in Judges 16:1 and climaxes in the slaughter of the Philistines and his own death in the temple of Gaza in Judges 16:30. Both movements end with a note that Samson judged Israel for twenty years (Judges 15:20 and Judges 16:31).1