1. Judges 16:19 (ESV)
  2. Exposition

Who shaved Samson’s hair?

Judges 16:19 (ESV)

19 She made him sleep on her knees. And she called a man and had him shave off the seven locks of his head. Then she began to torment him, and his strength left him.

The ESV says that Delilah called a man and had him shave off the seven locks of [Samson’s] head. This follows the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Old Testament). In this case, the man could be a servant of Delilah, a barber, a Philistine warrior, or otherwise. The Hebrew text has Delilah doing the shaving. One commentator suggests the man is Samson himself, whom Delilah calls to test how soundly he is sleeping before she takes the razor.1 Sasson also believes that the Hebrew’s and she shaved should be retained. This could be the original reading. Alternately, the Hebrew could be revocalized, which would result in, and she caused [him] to be shaved, a sense close to the Septuagint and numerous Hebrew manuscripts.2