Judges 16:23 (KJV)

Passage

Then the lords of the Philistines gathered them together for to offer a great sacrifice unto Dagon their god, and to rejoice: for they said, Our god hath delivered Samson our enemy into our hand.

Nearby Context

Judges 16:21 But the Philistines took him, and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with fetters of brass; and he did grind in the prison house.

Judges 16:22 Howbeit the hair of his head began to grow again after he was shaven.

Judges 16:23 Then the lords of the Philistines gathered them together for to offer a great sacrifice unto Dagon their god, and to rejoice: for they said, Our god hath delivered Samson our enemy into our hand.

Judges 16:24 And when the people saw him, they praised their god: for they said, Our god hath delivered into our hands our enemy, and the destroyer of our country, which slew many of us.

Judges 16:25 And it came to pass, when their hearts were merry, that they said, Call for Samson, that he may make us sport. And they called for Samson out of the prison house; and he made them sport: and they set him between the pillars.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "lords", "philistines", "gathered", "together", "offer", "great", "sacrifice", and "dagon". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "lords" and "philistines", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 22's "Howbeit the hair of his head began..." into verse 24's "And when the people saw him they...", so "lords" and "philistines" belong inside that flow. In Judges context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "lords" and "philistines" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.