The Israelites are being oppressed by the Philistines, who are not Jewish. In modern Sunday School applications, this is understood to mean "not Christian".

Samson is a mighty warrior who fights the Philistines single-handedly, and kills rather large numbers of them against all odds.

He marries Delilah, who tricks him into telling her the secret of his strength. She then cuts his hair and turns him over to the Philistines.

The Philistines put out his eyes and make fun of him at a big party at the pagan temple. But Samson talks God into giving him back his strength one last time. He pushes apart the pillars of the temple, which brings it crashing down and ruins the party, teaching the Philistines one more lesson about who is the baddest god in the OT.

COMMENTARY
Fun Bible Stories recommends you either read the narrative that begins on the right hand column of this page, or better, read the original in Judges 13 -16 in any version of the Bible.

"Soon they were captured by the Philistines, a people who hated God." This is a typical statement from a Bible site for children. In this case, the author is describing the oppression of the Israelites at the hands of the Philistines. The language is important, because it demonstrates one of the fundamental characteristics of Christian marketing: the need to create enemies. In fact, there is nowhere in the Bible itself that says the Phillistines hated God, and the concept is absurd (unless you are a Baptist preacher). In fact, in the actual Samson account, the only provocation is done by Samson, and not by the Philistines (see more in the right hand column).

Next, consider that the Philistines had occupied the area long before the Israelites found their way from Egypt. So it wasn't that the Philistines captured the Israelites or even occupied their territory. On the contrary, the tribes of Israel decided to settle on land owned by other people. In this context, large sections of the OT are justifications of aggression by the 12 tribes that resonate to this day (see Noah/Flood).

Samson (who is one of the Judges) is the next in a long line of warlords and prophets elected by Jahweh to save the Israelites from their self-inflicted problems. In the kid's version, after practicing on a hapless lion, Samson opens a can of whoopass on the Philistine army. He kills a couple thousand Philistines with the jawbone of an ass - presumably a large ass. We may further assume he couldn't locate his spear or blow or even battle axe. Perhaps this is a mistranslation, and his weapon was actually a battle ass.

In Genesis 13, the intervention of an angel to cause the pregnancy of Samson's mom (who has no name) is the first of many such incidents thoughout the Bible. By the time we get to Jesus, however, the angel has been upgraded to the Holy Ghost, who apparently has a more hands on approach to the task.

Likewise, in Genesis 14, we discover that Samson's sociopathic behavior is part of a Jahweh scheme to create a pretext for punishing Philistines. This establishes a pattern that runs throughout the Bible: we are not sure why a diety who created the universe needs to resort to such elaborate set pieces when he could undoubtedly just smite the Philistines and be done with it. There is suspicion that this is all for his amusement. Apparently, the bad tempered behavior, whore mongering, unethical treatment of wedding guests, etc are no problem as far as Jahweh is concerned. It's all about the hair.

Although the Bible is filled with assholes, Samson stands out. According to the any mainstream version of the Bible in your parlor, he would also appear to be one of the dumbest dudes in the old testament. Read on to see what we mean:

FUN FACTS

• Samson's first issues with the Philistines are triggered when he tries to cheat them at his wedding feast to a Philistine woman. His deeds are not directly related to the oppression of the Chosen, and in fact, his fellow Danites turn him over the Philistines.
• Samson's second confrontation comes after spending a night with a prostitute.
• The Delilah sequence involves three separate incidents. In the first two, he fibs to Delilah about the source of his strength. She binds him with fresh bowstrings and also with new ropes, but he snaps both when the Philistines try to capture him. One wonders if most reasonable men at this point might become suspicious of the little wife. But he goes ahead and tells her the secret anyway. Is Samson the dumbest hero in the Bible?
• Samson doesn't destroy a temple, but rather, the pillars he pushes down are in the home of one of the local Philistine lords. Although the part is indeed in honor of the Philistine god Dagon, the temple detail is another embellishment to push the "our god vs your god" button.
• In the actual text, Samson comes across as a petulant, womanizing bully who has forsaken his vows as a holy man. There is no moral fabric to the story, except for the fact the God has chosen him prior to his birth as an instrument of "justice" (although, it is never clear what the sins of Philistines are).
• In Hebrew, Samson means Sun or "Of the Sun" and is often associated with the solar diety and Hercules. The Samson Story as it appears in the Bible:
  
  JUDGES 13: An angel appears to Manoah, an Israelite from the tribe of Dan, in the city of Zorah, and to his unnamed wife, who had been unable to conceive. This angel proclaims that the couple will soon have a son who will begin to deliver the Israelites from the Philistines. Does this sound familiar (see commentary, left column)? This prediction does not take place.
  
  According to the angel, Samsaon was to be a "Nazirite" from birth and not shave his head of drink. When the angel returns to talk to Manoah, the latter prepares a sacrifice. The angel will allow the sacrifice to be for God only. He touches the sacrifice, setting it afire, then ascends to Heaven in the flames.
  
  JUDGES 14: When we first meet the adult Samson in Judges 14, he informs his parents he has met a hot Philistine woman and further instructs them to "get her for me" (as is the case with Samson's mother, the fiancee is never named). They complain and ask why he couldn't find a nice Jewish girl. What they don't know is that God has caused this behavior, as part of an elaborate plan to punish the Philistines for not being Jews.
  
  On the way down to Timnah to meet the Philistine woman, a lion roars at Samsom, who tears him apart with his bare hands. There is no particular reason given for this action. Returning weeks later with his father to marry the woman, Samson finds honey in the carcass of the same lion and shares it with his father. Thanks so, looks yummy. There is no particular reason given for this action either, but it is a key element in the next part of the story.
  
  At the wedding-feast, Samson poses a riddle to the thirty groomsmen who will soon be his in-laws (all Philistines): "Out of the eater came forth meat, and out of the strong came forth sweetness." This question is obviously based on the lion incident, and also impossible for them to answer. If they can solve it, he will give them thirty pieces of fine linen and garments, but if not, they must provide the same to him. The Philistines are infuriated by the riddle and tell his fiancee they will burn her and her father's household if she does not discover the answer to the riddle and tell it to them. At the urgent and tearful imploring of his bride, Samson tells her the solution. She rats him out, establishing a pattern that should have been a warning to the big guy.
  
  When his erstwhile in-laws answer the riddle correctly, Samson says memorably:
  
  "If you had not plowed with my heifer, you would not have solved my riddle."
  
  Whether she was offended by this observation is not mentioned, but there is no question that Samson is indignant that his in-laws have prevented him from cheating them. The situation rapidly deteriorates. Samson smashes up the town of Ashkelon, kills thirty citizens and steals their stuff. He uses the possessions to pay off his debt and leaves. Meantime, his bride is given to the best man by her father. A very pissed off Samson attaches torches to the tails of three hundred foxes, which run through the fields of the Philistines, burning their grain fields. The Philistines find out why Samson has burned their crops, and they burn Samson's wife and father-in-law to death. In revenge, Samson slaughters many more Philistines, smiting them "hip and thigh."
  
  JUDGES 15: Samson takes refuge in a cave in the rock of Etam and the Philistines send an army to Judah to find Samson. They men of Judah bind Samson and are about to hand him over to the Philistines when he breaks free. Using the jawbone of an ass, he slays one thousand Philistines. At that point, everyone apparently decides to call it a day. It is casually noted that Samson become Israel's leader for the next twenty years, but the Israelites appear to still be under Philistine rule.
  
  JUDGES 16: At some point, Samson goes to Gaza, where he visits a prostitute. His enemies wait at the gate of the city to ambush him, but he rips the gate up and carries it to "the hill that is in front of Hebron." No luck for the Philistines. At some point, he falls in love with Delilah, whom the Philistines immediately put on the payroll. She is to find the source of his strength. Samson, not wanting to reveal the secret, teases her, tell her that he will lose his strength should he be bound with fresh bowstrings. She ties him up with fresh bowstrings, but when he wakes up he snaps the strings. Busted? Not so much. She tries again and he tells her he can be bound with new ropes. She binds him with new ropes while he sleeps, and he snaps them, too. She asks again, and he says he can be bound if his locks are woven together. She weaves them together, but again, he undoes them when he wakes. See a problem yet, Samson?
  
  Finally, for no apparent reason, Samson tells Delilah that he will lose his strength with the loss of his hair. Delilah calls for a servant to shave Samson's seven locks, which breaks his Nazarite oath. With no strength, Samson is captured by the Philistines. and blinded. fter being blinded, Samson is brought to Gaza, imprisoned, and put to work grinding grain.
  
  One day the Philistine leaders assemble in the house of one of the lords for a Dagon party. They summon Samson so that he may entertain them. Three thousand more men and women gather on the roof to watch. Once inside the temple, Samson, his hair having grown long again, asks the servant who is leading him to the temple's central pillars if he may lean against them. God gives him back his strength - it is not clear whether it is because he prays or because his hair is now growing back. It is not clear whether the amount of strength is equal to the amount of hair that has grown, but whatever the details, he brings down the house and thousands more Philistines die. So, at the end of the day, God has killed thousands of Philistines and Samson, but the people of Israel appear to remain under Philistine rule.