15 Samson glanced around and spotted the jawbone of a donkey. The jawbone had not yet dried out, so it was still hard and heavy. Samson grabbed it and started hitting Philistines—he killed a thousand of them!
16 After the fighting was over, he made up this poem about what he had done to the Philistines:I used a donkey's jawboneto kill a thousand men;I beat them with this jawboneover and over again.
17 Samson tossed the jawbone on the ground and decided to call the place Jawbone Hill. It is still called that today.
18 Samson was so thirsty that he prayed, “Our Lord, you helped me win a battle against a whole army. Please don't let me die of thirst now. Those heathen Philistines will carry off my dead body.”
19 Samson was tired and weary, but God sent water gushing from a rock. Samson drank some and felt strong again.Samson named the place Caller Spring, because he had called out to God for help. The spring is still there at Jawbone.
20 Samson was a leader of Israel for twenty years, but the Philistines were still the rulers of Israel.