If you are looking for Judges 15 Bible study questions, this page gives you observation, interpretation and application questions for the whole chapter, with a leader’s note under each one. It suits a small group, a Sunday class or personal study. The chapter is one of the most vivid stories in Judges, so the questions move from what happens in the text to what it asks of readers today.
Judges 15 at a Glance
Judges 15 opens with Samson returning to his wife after a time apart, only to find that her father has given her to another man. Samson responds with a series of retaliations against the Philistines, first by burning their crops and then by attacking them in turn. The Philistines move against Judah, and the men of Judah bind Samson to hand him over, but the Spirit of the LORD comes on him and he overpowers his enemies.
The chapter closes with Samson exhausted and thirsty, crying out to the LORD, who provides water from the ground at Lehi. The final verse gives a summary note that Samson judged Israel for twenty years during Philistine rule. Leaders can follow this sequence of conflict, deliverance and provision when using the questions below.
Observation Questions
Use these questions first, before anyone offers an interpretation. Ask the group to point to the text itself, and to read the relevant verses aloud before answering. Keep the focus on what the story says happened.
Judges 15:14
When he came to Lehi, the Philistines shouted as they met him. Then the LORD’s Spirit came mightily on him, and the ropes that were on his arms became as flax that was burned with fire, and his bands dropped from off his hands.
(WEB)
This verse marks the turning point of the chapter, when the Spirit of the LORD comes on Samson. Reading it aloud helps the group see that the victory that follows is presented as God’s act. Pause after reading to ask what they notice first.
Judges 15:18-19
18 He was very thirsty, and called on the LORD, and said, “You have given this great deliverance by the hand of your servant; and now shall I die of thirst, and fall into the hands of the uncircumcised?” 19 But God split the hollow place that is in Lehi, and water came out of it. When he had drunk, his spirit came again, and he revived. Therefore its name was called En Hakkore, which is in Lehi, to this day.
(WEB)
Here Samson cries out in thirst and God provides water at Lehi. Reading these verses together reminds the group of God’s care in moments of depletion. Use this passage to invite prayer about current needs.
Judges 15:11
Then three thousand men of Judah went down to the cave in Etam’s rock, and said to Samson, “Don’t you know that the Philistines are rulers over us? What then is this that you have done to us?” He said to them, “As they did to me, so I have done to them.”
(WEB)
The men of Judah confront Samson with a question about their situation under Philistine rule. Reading the question aloud lets the group hear the fear and resentment behind it. Discuss how the verse frames Samson’s actions from their point of view.
Judges 15:4-5
4 Samson went and caught three hundred foxes, and took torches, and turned tail to tail, and put a torch in the middle between every two tails. 5 When he had set the torches on fire, he let them go into the standing grain of the Philistines, and burned up both the shocks and the standing grain, and also the olive groves.
(WEB)
These verses describe the foxes and the fire that destroy Philistine crops. Reading them aloud helps the group picture the scale of the attack. Use the passage to talk about how retaliation affects whole communities.
Judges 15:20
He judged Israel twenty years in the days of the Philistines.
(WEB)
The chapter ends with a summary of Samson judging Israel for twenty years. Reading this closing verse helps the group reflect on how the story is framed for later readers. Ask them to consider what it adds to the events they have studied.
Memory Verse for Judges 15
A Closing Prayer for the Group
Father, we come to you with the same mixture of anger, fear and weakness that runs through this chapter. We confess the times we have reacted quickly and wanted revenge more than peace. Give us wisdom to know when to stop and courage to choose reconciliation where we can. When we are thirsty and spent, meet us as you met Samson at Lehi, and give us living water for the day ahead. Keep our words honest and our hearts open to your Spirit as we go out from this study. Amen.
