SUPER-HERO SAMSON———————————————
According to the prediction of the angel, “the woman bore a son, and called his name Samson; and the child grew, and the Lord blessed him.”
“And Samson (after he had grown to man’s estate), went down to Timnath, and saw a woman in Timnath of the daughters of the Philistines. And he came up and told his father and his mother, and said, I have seen a woman in Timnath of the daughters of the Philistines; now therefore get her for me to wife.” Samson’s father and mother preferred that he should take a woman among the daughters of their own tribe, but Samson wished for the maid of the Philistines, “for,” said he, “she pleaseth me well.” The parents, after coming to the conclusion that it was the will of the Lord, that he should marry the maid of the Philistines, consented.
SAMSON SUPER-HERO EVENT 1
“Then went Samson down, and his father and his mother, to Timnath, and came to the vineyards of Timnath, and, behold, a young lion roared against him (Samson). And the spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him, and he rent him (the lion) as he would have rent a kid, and he had nothing in his hand.” This was Samson’s first Super-Hero event, which he told not to any one, not even his father, or his mother.
SAMSON SUPER-HERO EVENT 2
He then continued on his way, and went down and talked with the woman, and she pleased him well. And, after a time, he returned to take her, and he turned aside to see the carcass of the lion, and behold, “there was a swarm of bees, and honey, in the carcass of the lion.” Samson made a feast at his wedding, which lasted for seven days. At this feast, there were brought thirty companions to be with him, unto whom he said: “I will now put forth a riddle unto you, if ye can certainly declare it me, within the seven days of the feast, and find it out, then I will give you thirty sheets, and thirty changes of garments. But, if ye cannot declare it me, then shall ye give me thirty sheets, and thirty changes of garments.” And they said unto him, “Put forth thy riddle, that we may hear it.” And he answered them: “Out of the eater came forth meat, and out of the strong came forth sweetness.” This riddle the thirty companions could not solve. “And it came to pass, on the seventh day, that they said unto Samson’s wife: ‘Entice thy husband, that he may declare unto us the riddle.'” She accordingly went to Samson, and told him that he could not love her; if it were so, he would tell her the answer to the riddle. After she had wept and entreated of him, he finally told her, and she gave the answer to the children of her people. “And the men of the city said unto him, on the seventh day, before the sun went down, ‘What is sweeter than honey, and what is stronger than a lion?'” Samson, upon hearing this, suspected how they managed to find out the answer, whereupon he said unto them: “If ye had not ploughed with my heifer, ye had not found out my riddle.” Samson was then at a loss to know where to get the thirty sheets, and the thirty changes of garments; but, “the spirit of the Lord came upon him, and he went down to Ashkelon, and slew thirty men of them, and took their spoil, and gave change of garments unto them which expounded the riddle.” This was the hero’s second exploit.
SAMSON SUPER-HERO EVENT 3
His anger being kindled, he went up to his father’s house, instead of returning to his wife. But it came to pass, that, after a while, Samson repented of his actions, and returned to his wife’s house, and wished to go in to his wife in the chamber; but her father would not suffer him to go. And her father said: “I verily thought that thou hadst utterly hated her, therefore, I gave her to thy companion. Is not her younger sister fairer than she? Take her, I pray thee, instead of her.” This did not seem to please Samson, even though the younger was fairer than the older, for he “went and caught three hundred foxes, and took firebrands, and turned (the foxes) tail to tail, and put a firebrand in the midst between two tails. And when he had set the brands on fire, he let them go into the standing corn of the Philistines, and burned up both the shocks and also the standing corn, with the vineyards and olives.” This was Samson’s third exploit.
SAMSON SUPER-HERO EVENT 4
When the Philistines found their corn, their vineyards, and their olives burned, they said: “Who hath done this?” “And they answered, ‘Samson, the son-in-law of the Timnite, because he had taken his wife, and given her to his companion.’ And the Philistines came up, and burned her and her father with fire. And Samson said unto them: ‘Though ye have done this, yet will I be avenged of you, and after that I will cease.’ And he smote them hip and thigh with a great slaughter, and he went and dwelt in the top of the rock Etam.” This “great slaughter” was Samson’s fourth exploit.
SAMSON SUPER-HERO EVENT 5
“Then the Philistines went up, and pitched in Judah, and spread themselves in Lehi. And the men of Judah said: ‘Why are ye come up against us?’ And they answered: ‘To bind Samson are we come up, and to do to him as he hath done to us.’ Then three thousand men of Judah went up to the top of the rock Etam, and said to Samson: ‘Knowest thou not that the Philistines are rulers over us? What is this that thou hast done unto us?’ And he said unto them: ‘As they did unto me, so have I done unto them.’ And they said unto him: ‘We are come down to bind thee, that we may deliver thee into the hands of the Philistines.’ And Samson said unto them: ‘Swear unto me that ye will not fall upon me yourselves.’ And they spake unto him, saying, ‘No; but we will bind thee fast, and deliver thee into their hands: but surely we will not kill thee.’ And they bound him with two new cords, and brought him up from the rock. And when he came unto Lehi, the Philistines shouted against him; and the spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him, and the cords that were upon his arms became as flax that was burned with fire, and his bands loosed from off his hands. And he found a new jaw-bone of an ass, and put forth his hand and took it, and slew a thousand men with it.” This was Samson’s fifth exploit.
SAMSON SUPER-HERO EVENT 6
After slaying a thousand men he was “sore athirst,” and called unto the Lord. And “God clave a hollow place that was in the jaw, and there came water thereout, and when he had drunk, his spirit came again, and he revived.” “Then went Samson to Gaza and saw there a harlot, and went in unto her. And it was told the Gazites, saying, ‘Samson is come hither.’ And they compassed him in, and laid wait for him all night in the gate of the city, and were quiet all the night, saying: ‘In the morning, when it is day, we shall kill him.’ And Samson lay (with the harlot) till midnight, and arose at midnight, and took the doors of the gate of the city, and the two posts, and went away with them, bar and all, and put them upon his shoulders, and carried them up to the top of a hill that is in Hebron.” This was Samson’s sixth exploit.
SAMSON SUPER-HERO EVENT 7
“And it came to pass afterward, that he loved a woman in the valley of Soreck, whose name was Delilah. And the lords of the Philistines came up unto her, and said unto her: ‘Entice him, and see wherein his great strength lieth, and by what means we may prevail against him.'” Delilah then began to entice Samson to tell her wherein his strength lay. “She pressed him daily with her words, and urged him, so that his soul was vexed unto death. Then he told her all his heart, and said unto her: ‘There hath not come a razor upon mine head, for I have been a Nazarite unto God from my mother’s womb. If I be shaven, then my strength will go from me, and I shall become weak, and be like any other man.’ And when Delilah saw that he had told her all his heart, she went and called for the lords of the Philistines, saying: ‘Come up this once, for he hath showed me all his heart.’ Then the lords of the Philistines came up unto her, and brought money in their hands (for her). “And she made him (Samson) sleep upon her knees; and she called for a man, and she caused him to shave off the seven locks of his head; and she began to afflict him, and his strength went from him.” The Philistines then took him, put out his eyes, and put him in prison. And being gathered together at a great sacrifice in honor of their God, Dagon, they said: “Call for Samson, that he may make us sport.” And they called for Samson, and he made them sport. “And Samson said unto the lad that held him by the hand. Suffer me that I may feel the pillars whereupon the house standeth, that I may lean upon them. “Now the house was full of men and women; and all the lords of the Philistines were there; and there were upon the roof about three thousand men and women, that beheld while Samson made sport. “And Samson called unto the Lord, and said: ‘O Lord God, remember me, I pray thee, and strengthen me, I pray thee, only this once, O God, that I may be at once avenged of the Philistines for my two eyes.’ “And Samson took hold of the two middle pillars upon which the house stood and on which it was borne up, of the one with his right hand, and of the other with his left. And Samson said: ‘Let me die with the Philistines.’ And he bowed himself with all his might; and (having regained his strength) the house fell upon the lords, and upon the people that were therein. So the dead which he slew at his death, were more than they which he slew in his life.”
Thus ended the career of the “strong man” of the Hebrews.
NOW SUPER-HERO HERCULES ———————-
HERCULES SUPER-HERO EVENT 1
Samson killed a lion when he was but a youth. So likewise was it with Hercules. At the age of eighteen, Hercules slew an enormous lion. The valley of Nemea was infested by a terrible lion; Eurystheus ordered Hercules to bring him the skin of this monster. After using in vain his club and arrows against the lion, Hercules strangled the animal with his hands. He returned, carrying the dead lion on his shoulders;
To show the courage of Hercules, it is said that he entered the cave where the lion’s lair was, closed the entrance behind him, and at once grappled with the monster. Samson is said to have torn asunder the jaws of the lion, and we find him generally represented slaying the beast in that manner. So likewise, was this the manner in which Hercules disposed of the Nemean lion.
The skin of the lion, Hercules tore off with his fingers, and knowing it to be impenetrable, resolved to wear it henceforth. The statues and paintings of Hercules either represent him carrying the lion’s skin over his arm, or wearing it hanging down his back, the skin of its head fitting to his crown like a cap, and the fore-legs knotted under his chin.
HERCULES SUPER-HERO EVENT 2
Samson killed thirty men. Hercules, similarly, when returning to Thebes from the lion-hunt, and wearing its skin hanging from his shoulders, as a sign of his success, met the heralds of the King of the Minyæ, coming from Orchomenos to claim the annual tribute of a hundred cattle, levied on Thebes. Hercules cut off the ears and noses of the heralds, bound their hands, and sent them home.
HERCULES SUPER-HERO EVENT 3
Like Samson’s foxes that set afire the fields, with Hercules, the nearest to it in resemblance is when he encounters and kills the Learnean Hydra. During this encounter a fire-brand figures conspicuously, and the neighboring wood is set on fire
HERCULES SUPER-HERO EVENT 4
Just like Samson smote the Philistines, it is related of Hercules that he had a combat with an army of Centaurs, who were armed with pine sticks, rocks, axes, etc. They flocked in wild confusion, and surrounded the cave of Pholos, where Hercules was, when a violent fight ensued. Hercules was obliged to contend against this large armed force single-handed, but he came off victorious, and slew a great number of them. Hercules also encountered and fought against an army of giants, at the Phlegraean fields, near Cumae.
HERCULES SUPER-HERO EVENT 5A
Samson was about to be killed and then broke loose from the cords and slew a thousand men with the jawbone of an ass, Hercules is similarly made prisoner by the Egyptians, who wish to take his life. While they are preparing to slay him, he breaks loose his bonds—having been tied with cords—and kills Buseris, the leader of the band, and the whole retinue. On another occasion, being refused shelter from a storm at Kos, he was enraged at the inhabitants, and accordingly destroyed the whole town.
HERCULES SUPER-HERO EVENT 5B
Samson after slewing a thousand Philistines developed a painful thirst, he called upon Jehovah to quench his thirst and water immediately gushed forth from “a hollow place that was in the jaw-bone.” Hercules, departing from the Indies (or rather Ethiopia), and conducting his army through the desert of Lybia, feels a burning thirst, and conjures Ihou, his father, to succor him in his danger. Instantly the (celestial) Ram appears. Hercules follows him and arrives at a place where the Ram scrapes the ground with his foot, and there instantly comes forth a spring of water.
HERCULES SUPER-HERO EVENT 6
Samson left the town at midnight, and took with him the gates of the city, and the two posts, on his shoulders. He carried them to the top of a hill, some fifty miles away, and left them there. This story very much resembles that of the “Pillars of Hercules,” called the “Gates of Cadiz.” “Hercules was represented naked, carrying on his shoulders two columns called the Gates of Cadiz.” “The Pillars of Hercules” was the name given by the ancients to the two rocks forming the gate to the Mediterranean at the Strait of Gibraltar.
HAIR
Samson had long hair. “There hath not come a razor upon my head,” says he, “for I have been a Nazarite unto God from my mother’s womb.”
Hecules had long hair. In the famous painting of Montfaucon’s “L’Antiquité Expliquée” Hercules is seen with hair reaching almost to his waist. Almost all Sun-gods are represented thus. Long hair and a long beard are mythological attributes of the Sun’s rays.
Samson lost his strength when his “seven locks” of his hair was cut off just as winter cuts off the Sun (Delilah means languishing). Mythical smiling Apollo is called unshaven, and mythical Minos cannot conquer the solar hero Nisos, till the latter loses his golden hair.” Phoibos Lykêgênes has sacred locks, of which no razor might pass, and on the head of Nisos they contain a mysterious power. The long locks of hair which flow over his shoulders are taken from his head by Skylla, while he is asleep, and, like another Delilah, she delivers him and his people to the power of Minos.
EYES
Towards the end of the Samson story, Samson’s eyes are put out. The Sun’s light is blotted out by clouds of darkness. Mythical Œdipus, a myth story that parallels that of Samson and Hercules, tears out his eyes, towards the end of his story. Samson was the name of the Sun in that region. In Arabic, “Shams-on” means the Sun. In Hebrew “Sham-eish” is close to the Samson name also. The seven locks of hair cut off represents the seven planets that the Sun shines on. The myth is basically a story of the Sun who gets weak when it’s rays are cut off by the enemy winter, then reimerges strong again in the spring and defeats his enemies.
TWO PILLARS
Hercules of Phenicia, as Sun-god, died at the Winter Solstice at the furthest west, two pillars are set up to mark the end of his journey through the land.
Samson died at the two pillars to end the Philistine’s grand banquet being held in honor of Dagon, the Fish-god.
KILLING THOUSANDS
Samson killed a thousand men with the jaw-bone of an ass. This is clearly mirrored from Judges 3:31;
31 And after him was Shamgar the son of Anath, which slew of the Philistines six hundred men with an ox goad: and he also delivered Israel. Judges 3:31
INDIA
India has it’s Samson/Hercules. He is called Belus. He is the same person that is called Bala, the brother of Crishna. Bala is represented as a stout man, with a club in his hand. He is also called Bala-rama. Bala and Crishna are considered the incarnation of Vishnou. In the Hindoo legend he encountered a tiger “whose mouth expanded like a cave, and whose voice resembled thunder.” Of course he slew it and like Samson, covered his body with it’s skin.
ASSYRIANS AND LYDIANS
These two nations worshiped a Sun-god named Sandan or Sandon. This God was a killer of lions. He is frequently depicted as hand fighting a lion or standing on the lion after he killed it.
NINEVAH
This country has a Samson/Hercules hero and king who fought and killed a lion and other beasts. Arceology has discovered bas-reliefs representations of this.
ANCIENT BABYLONIANS
Their Samson/Hercules, named Izdubar, is depicted destroying a lion, and other monsters. He is often depicted on the cylinders and engraved gems belonging to the early Babylonian monarchy.
GREECE
The Grecian Samson/hercules was Bellerophon. ….more coming
SCANDINAVIANS
Ancient Scandinavians had a Samson/Hercules named Thormore. He was also known by the Tutonic nations as Oden. more coming