Brook of Sorek
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The Brook of Sorek, also called the Valley of Sorek, (in Hebrew "נחל שורק" naḥal soreq), mentioned in the Book of Judges 16:4 of the Hebrew Bible, is probably a point on the border between the ancient Philistines and the Tribe of Dan of the ancient Israelites.
It was the place where Delilah lived, and Samson came there to meet her for the first time. It was also the place she enticed him to tell her the secret of his strength, and where he was eventually captured by the Philistines:
- "And Samson went to Gaza...And it came to pass afterward, that he loved a woman in the brook/valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah. And the lords of the Philistines came up to her, and said to her: 'Entice him, and see wherein his great strength lies, and by what means we may prevail against him, that we may bind him to afflict him..." [1] (Judges 16)
The Midrash (Numbers Rabbah 9) states that the sorek is a "fruitless tree" (the word רק req means "empty" in Hebrew), implying a moral lesson and metaphor suggesting that Samson's involvement in his affair with Delilah was eventually "fruitless". However, another etymology suggests that "sorek" means "special vine" and refers to the grapes and wines grown in the area.
