He says to her: "If I am bound with new ropes that have not been used, then I shall become weak and be like any other man" (וַיֹּאמֶר לָהּ אִם־קָשֹׁר־תִּקְשְׁרִי בַחֲבָלִים חֲדָשִׁים אֲשֶׁר לֹא־הוּשְׁמַשׁוּ וְדָלֹתִי). His second answer shifts from bowstrings to ropes (חֲבָלִים), maintaining the pattern of false revelation. The new ropes (חֲדָשִׁים) specifically unused suggest that only virgin materials might bind him, a detail that reveals his continued engagement with the game. The answer follows the same formula as the first: a binding material + the promise of weakness. His continued cooperation after the first trap is exposed suggests either a desire to prove his strength repeatedly or a willingness to indulge Delilah that overrides self-preservation. The repetition of the identical phrase ``I would become weak like any other man'' indicates that Samson is offering variations on a theme, all false.

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