Original Word: יָמַשׁ
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: yamash
Pronunciation: yah-MASH
Phonetic Spelling: (yaw-mash')
KJV: feel
Word Origin: [a primitive root]

1. to touch

feel

A primitive root; to touch -- feel.

Word Origin
another reading for mush, q.v.

יָמַשׁ verb (si vera lectio) touch,

Hiph`il Imperative suffix והימשׁני Kt (i.e. וְהֵימִשֵׁנִי) Judges 16:26 (יַהֲמִישֵׁנִי Qr) and let me touch (no doubt text error for הֲמִשֵּׁנִי from משׁשׁ, q. v.)

Semantic Range and Texture

יָמַשׁ carries the idea of palpating with the hands, feeling one’s way when sight is absent or limited. It is a tactile verb, describing deliberate touch for orientation, support, or discovery. Because the sense of touch functions where vision fails, the word subtly evokes vulnerability, dependence, and the quest for stability.

Canonical Occurrence

Judges 16:26 presents the single use: “Samson said to the servant who held his hand, ‘Lead me where I can feel the pillars that support the temple, so I can lean against them.’”. The request occurs after Samson’s eyes have been gouged out, underscoring physical blindness and the need to rely on touch.

Historical Setting

The Philistine temple in Gaza housed thousands on its roof while lords and citizens mocked Israel’s judge. Architectural excavations in the Levant confirm halls supported by two central load-bearing columns—precisely what Samson sought to “feel.” The verb situates the narrative within a realistic architectural environment and provides a tactile bridge between Samson’s human weakness and impending display of God’s power.

Theological Motifs

1. Dependence in Darkness

Samson, once guided by sight and self-confidence, now gropes like any other blind captive. His condition illustrates how the Lord humbles the mighty (Judges 16:20–21) yet remains willing to work through them when they call (16:28).
2. Sensory Contrast: Touch versus Sight

Scripture often contrasts sight (perception, revelation) with touch (limited knowledge). Samson’s reliance on יָמַשׁ parallels Israel’s spiritual state in Judges—“everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Judges 21:25), but sight apart from God proved unreliable.
3. Judgment and Mercy

Samson’s blindness is judgment for sin, yet the ability to feel the pillars becomes the means of final victory. The narrative reveals how divine mercy may appropriate the very consequences of sin to accomplish deliverance.

New Testament Resonances

Acts 17:27 pictures the nations “to seek Him and perhaps reach out for Him and find Him,” using similar imagery of groping toward truth. Physical touch becomes a metaphor for the soul’s search for God. 1 John 1:1 echoes experiential confirmation—“our hands have touched”—of the incarnate Word, reversing the ignorance suggested by יָמַשׁ and testifying to fulfilled revelation in Christ.

Ministry Implications

• God can redeem seasons of limitation. Like Samson, believers who lose customary supports may discover fresh opportunities for His power (2 Corinthians 12:9).
• Sensory humility fosters dependence. Churches that prize clarity of vision must still cultivate readiness to “feel after” God’s guidance through prayer and Scripture when circumstances obscure the way (Psalm 119:105).
• Compassion for the physically impaired. Recognizing Samson’s need to feel, ministries can prioritize accessibility, reflecting Christ’s concern for every member of the body (1 Corinthians 12:22).

Practical Exhortation

When vision fails—whether literal or figurative—yield to the Spirit who enables faith to take hold of unseen pillars of promise (Hebrews 11:1). As Samson found strength once his hands embraced the columns, so the church finds power when it clings to the steadfast structures of God’s Word and character.

וַהֲמִשֵׁ֙נִי֙ והמשני vahamiSheni wa·hă·mi·šê·nî wahămišênîInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts