A secret hidden and revealed in the threads: Jg 16:4-22

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Paulo Jackson Nóbrega de Sousa

Abstract

The stories from the Samson cycle are very well known in the popular imagination.  Utilizing Narrative Analysis in dialogue with the Literary-Historical Method, this article seeks to explain exegetically the story present in Judges 16:4-22.  A dynamic and promising relationship between content and form, aesthetic beauty and theological message is established by a fine literary threading.  The study begins with a morphosyntactic verbal analysis of the narrative and direct speech, studying, in turn, the narrative chain, the notion of time and the repetitive scheme of “3+1” in order to define the plot and understand the action of the characters in each scene.  In addition to the threads that are interwoven, the pericope invites us to contemplate the beautiful and unified tissue.  Delilah, paid by the Philistines, intends to discover the secret of Samson’s force with the objective to subdue and humiliate him.  After three failed attempts, she finally accomplishes her purpose.  The secret is hidden and revealed in the “threads” that become a symbol of human life and, in a particular way, of the history of Israel that fails to recognize the origin of its strength, that is to say, God.

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How to Cite
SOUSA, Paulo Jackson Nóbrega de. A secret hidden and revealed in the threads: Jg 16:4-22. HORIZONTE - Journal of Studies in Theology and Religious Sciences, Belo Horizonte, v. 13, n. 38, p. 907–940, 2015. DOI: 10.5752/P.2175-5841.2015v13n38p907. Disponível em: https://periodicos.pucminas.br/horizonte/article/view/P.2175-5841.2015v13n38p907. Acesso em: 9 aug. 2025.
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Artigos/Articles: Temática Livre/Free subject
Author Biography

Paulo Jackson Nóbrega de Sousa, Professor da FAJE e da PUC-Minas

É mestre em Exegese Bíblica pelo Pontifício Instituto Bíblico (Roma - 2001) e doutor em Teologia pela Pontifícia Universidade Gregoriana (Roma - 2010), validados pela Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio de Janeiro. É professor do Departamento de Teologia na Faje e na PUC-Minas. Tem experiência na área de Teologia Bíblica e em línguas bíblicas. Atua principalmente nos seguintes temas: Pentateuco, Cartas Paulinas e Apocalipse. Desenvolve pequisa na área de Eclesiologia Paulina.