Judges 3:12–31
12 And the people of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and the Lord strengthened Eglon the king of Moab against Israel, because they had done what was evil in the sight of the Lord. 13 He gathered to himself the Ammonites and the Amalekites, and went and defeated Israel. And they took possession of the city of palms. 14 And the people of Israel served Eglon the king of Moab eighteen years.
15 Then the people of Israel cried out to the Lord, and the Lord raised up for them a deliverer, Ehud, the son of Gera, the Benjaminite, a left-handed man. The people of Israel sent tribute by him to Eglon the king of Moab. 16 And Ehud made for himself a sword with two edges, a cubit1 in length, and he bound it on his right thigh under his clothes. 17 And he presented the tribute to Eglon king of Moab. Now Eglon was a very fat man. 18 And when Ehud had finished presenting the tribute, he sent away the people who carried the tribute. 19 But he himself turned back at the idols near Gilgal and said, “I have a secret message for you, O king.” And he commanded, “Silence.” And all his attendants went out from his presence. 20 And Ehud came to him as he was sitting alone in his cool roof chamber. And Ehud said, “I have a message from God for you.” And he arose from his seat. 21 And Ehud reached with his left hand, took the sword from his right thigh, and thrust it into his belly. 22 And the hilt also went in after the blade, and the fat closed over the blade, for he did not pull the sword out of his belly; and the dung came out. 23 Then Ehud went out into the porch2 and closed the doors of the roof chamber behind him and locked them.
24 When he had gone, the servants came, and when they saw that the doors of the roof chamber were locked, they thought, “Surely he is relieving himself in the closet of the cool chamber.” 25 And they waited till they were embarrassed. But when he still did not open the doors of the roof chamber, they took the key and opened them, and there lay their lord dead on the floor.
26 Ehud escaped while they delayed, and he passed beyond the idols and escaped to Seirah. 27 When he arrived, he sounded the trumpet in the hill country of Ephraim. Then the people of Israel went down with him from the hill country, and he was their leader. 28 And he said to them, “Follow after me, for the Lord has given your enemies the Moabites into your hand.” So they went down after him and seized the fords of the Jordan against the Moabites and did not allow anyone to pass over. 29 And they killed at that time about 10,000 of the Moabites, all strong, able-bodied men; not a man escaped. 30 So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of Israel. And the land had rest for eighty years.
31 After him was Shamgar the son of Anath, who killed 600 of the Philistines with an oxgoad, and he also saved Israel.
1 A cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimeters 2 The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain
Section Overview
The account of Ehud includes all seven elements of the judge cycle identified in the Othniel narrative. The report of his death, however, does not appear until Judges 4:1, the opening verse of the Deborah and Barak narrative. Only these first two judge accounts employ all seven formulaic elements. The account of Ehud is filled with humor, irony, wordplay, and graphic scenes of deliverance. If these events were to be depicted on television or film, they would certainly come with a strong parental warning.
The Ehud account comprises four sections. In the first, Moab subdues Israel (3:12–14). This situation is reversed in the fourth section, as Israel subdues Moab (vv. 27–30). The two central sections contain the account of the Lord’s raising up of Ehud (v. 15) and Ehud’s assassination of Eglon (vv. 16–26). The account of this assassination occupies eleven of the nineteen verses in this judge cycle—it is the clear focus of the author.
Section Outline
II.A.2. Ehud (3:12–30; major)
a. Israel Subdued by Moab (3:12–14)
b. The Lord Raises Up a Deliverer, Ehud (3:15)
c. Ehud Assassinates Eglon (3:16–26)
d. Moab Subdued by Israel (3:27–30)
II.A.3. Shamgar (3:31; minor)
Response
The account of Ehud and Eglon, Israel and Moab, is a literary masterpiece with memorable detail, wordplay, and innuendo. Here we encounter the seriousness of Israel’s sin as she returns to the worship of a fattened calf, recalling her worship of the golden calf in Exodus 32. We also encounter God’s grace and mercy to his people. The Lord does not leave Israel in her sin but allows the people to suffer the consequences of that sin under Moabite oppression in order to provoke repentance and a return to covenant faithfulness. When his people cry out, the Lord moves with compassion for his people and raises up a savior to deliver them. The Lord himself is the hero of the story. He strengthens Eglon to punish Israel. He raises up a savior to deliver his people. He gives the enemy over into the hand of his people. In spite of Israel’s recurring unfaithfulness, the Lord is always working to bring his people back to himself. Psalm 107:21–22 teaches God’s people how to respond to his miraculous deliverance:
Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love,
for his wondrous works to the children of man!
And let them offer sacrifices of thanksgiving,
and tell of his deeds in songs of joy! (Ps. 107:21–22)
A cubit was about 18 inches or 45 centimeters
The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain
3:12 The account of Ehud opens with the standard statement of Israel’s doing evil in the sight of the Lord. The nature of the evil is not identified, but the statement appears twice in this verse in order to highlight the Lord’s just punishment of Israel. Moab is able to prevail against Israel only because the Lord strengthens Eglon to do so, for Israel has done “what was evil.” In the accounts of the judges the Lord himself is the primary agent of activity. It is the Lord who strengthens Eglon (v. 12), it is the Lord who raises up a deliverer (v. 15), and it is the Lord who gives the Moabites into the hand of the Israelites.
3:13–14 Eglon, the king of Moab, joins forces with the Ammonites and the Amalekites, and together they capture the “city of palms,” Jericho (cf. Deut. 34:3; 2 Chron. 28:15). The capture of this city is strategic because of its proximity to the Jordan and thus easy passage into Moab and Ammon east of the Jordan and the Dead Sea. Moab’s oppression of Israel lasts eighteen years before Israel cries out to the Lord for help. During this time it is said that “Israel served Eglon.” This statement serves as a subtle condemnation of Israel that is lost in translation. The name “Eglon” is a combination of the Hebrew for “calf” plus a diminutive ending: “little calf.” And the Hebrew verb translated as “serve” can also be rendered “worship” (cf. comment on 3:8). This subtle wordplay means the statement could be rendered “Israel worshiped the little calf,” a likely allusion to Israel’s worship of the golden calf in Exodus 32 and thus also the nature of Israel’s evil, which was omitted in Judges 3:12.
3:15 The text now records Israel’s cry for help and the Lord’s response. Once again the Lord “raised up” a “deliverer” (or “savior”) to rescue his people from oppression (cf. 2:16). The characterization of a judge as someone raised up by God to save or deliver his people casts him as a type of Christ, the one raised by the Father to deliver his people fully and finally.
The text provides three important details about Ehud. First, he is a Benjaminite, the son of Gera. In the presentation of the tribes in Judges 1, Judah is mentioned first and Benjamin second. Following this pattern, the first judge is from Judah and now the second is from Benjamin. Next, it is recorded that Ehud is “left-handed” (lit., “bound in the right hand”). The exact nature of this description is debated. It could be that he is crippled in the right hand and so forced to use his left hand, or perhaps he has trained himself to use his left hand as an advantage in warfare. This same expression occurs in 20:16, in which the Benjaminites have “700 chosen men who were left-handed; every one could sling a stone at a hair and not miss” (cf. 1 Chron. 12:2). As such it appears that Ehud is a specially trained warrior, and this detail prepares us for the way in which he will assassinate Eglon. Finally, we are told that part of Israel’s subjugation by Moab requires tribute from Israel, which Ehud is assigned to deliver. This will provide the occasion for his defeat of Eglon.
3:16–17 The narrator provides two additional details to prepare us for the events about to unfold. Ehud makes for himself a concealed weapon, a small sword with “two edges” that he hides under his clothes on his right thigh. This location provided ready access for a left-handed warrior. The expression “two edges” is “two mouths” in Hebrew, perhaps for the devouring of its victim, a humorous description in light of Eglon’s characterization as a “very fat man.” The little calf of Israel’s oppression (cf. comment on 3:13–14) has become the fattened calf ready for slaughter. Soon Ehud’s sword will be lost in Eglon’s fat (v. 22).
3:18–20 The scene is quickly set for Ehud’s private assassination of Eglon. After Ehud delivers the tribute, he dismisses his assistants and returns to the king with a “secret message,” his own personal “message from God.” In this case the word of the Lord is literally a sharp, two-edged sword (cf. Heb. 4:12). However, this sword will pierce not soul and spirit but rather flesh and fat. The king also dismisses his attendants, and the two men stand alone in the king’s “cool roof [upper] chamber.” This will be a different type of “upper room experience” for Eglon. Judges 3:20 concludes with the king’s rising from the throne, leaving readers with anticipation of what will follow. The irony continues. In verse 15 the Lord raised up Ehud to deliver Israel. Now here in verses 20 Eglon raises himself up (same verb in Hebrew) for deliverance to begin.
3:21 The account of the execution of Eglon is filled with graphic detail. Ehud’s training as a left-handed warrior catches the king off guard, and the once-concealed sword is thrust into the belly of Eglon. The word translated “thrust” appears with some frequency in Judges. When used with a weapon it means “to thrust,” but when used with a horn or trumpet this same verb means “to blow, sound.” So, for example, in verse 21 Ehud “thrusts” the sword, but in verse 27 Ehud “sounded” the trumpet. Jael thrusts a tent peg through the head of Sisera (4:21), and Delilah thrusts Samson’s hair into the peg of a loom (16:14). In each instance this verb is used to describe the subjugation or defeat of an opponent.
3:22–23 Eglon is large, while the sword is small. This sword is the last thing this fat king consumes. The fat of the robust king envelopes the sword, and Ehud does not remove it. The Hebrew word for the “blade” of the sword is also the word for “flame,” appearing again in 13:20 when “the angel of the Lord went up in the flame of the altar.” Since Eglon is characterized as the fattened calf ready for sacrifice, the use of the word “flame” for the blade of the sword appears to be intentional wordplay.
The end of 3:22 is shocking: “and the dung came out.” The exact meaning of the word for “dung” is uncertain; it could also mean something like “bowels” or “entrails.” Since this noun appears only here in the Hebrew Bible, it is difficult to determine its exact meaning with certainty. However, since the king’s attendants suspect he is using the privy behind the locked doors (v. 24), the interpretation “dung” or “excrement” well suits the context.
Verses 22–23 are linked by repetition of words and sounds. At the end of verse 22 the dung “came out” of Eglon, and in verse 23 Ehud “went out” from the room. Additionally, the word for “porch” looks and sounds like that for “dung” in the previous verse. The exact meaning of this word is also unknown, but it appears to refer to an architectural feature of the room. The closing, and locking, of the doors gives Ehud time to escape and sets the scene for what follows.
3:24–26 The discovery of the dead king is somewhat comical. The king’s servants wait behind locked doors, thinking that he is relieving himself (lit., “covering his feet”; cf. 1 Sam. 24:3), either because of the smell emanating from the room or because this is the regular practice of the overweight king. The servants wait to unlock the doors until they are embarrassed by the delay; this is what gives Ehud the time needed to escape.
3:27–30 In Judges 3:12–14 Moab subdued Israel because the Lord had “strengthened” Eglon against Israel. Now Israel will subdue Moab because the Lord “has given” Moab into the hand of Israel. This recognition of divine agency promotes the truth of God’s sovereignty over the events of history (Isa. 43:11–13). The Lord allowed Moab to oppress Israel because of her sin. This oppression provoked Israel to cry out to the Lord in repentance. It is the Lord’s kindness to discipline those he loves so that they might continue in faith and faithfulness to the covenant (Heb. 12:6).
Upon escape Ehud summons the Ephraimites, and together they defeat the Moabites. By seizing the fords of the Jordan, Israel prevents the Moabites from crossing back into Moab and prevents additional Moabite forces from coming to their assistance. The fords of the Jordan appear will again in Judges with the accounts of Gideon and Jephthah.
The victory over Moab is complete. Ten thousand perish in battle; not a single Moabite escapes. The description of the Moabite warriors is telling: they are “all strong, able-bodied men” (or “all fat and all men of war”). This description of the warriors correlates with the earlier description of Eglon as “very fat” (Judg. 3:17). For eighteen years Moab had oppressed Israel and grown fat (literally!) on Israel’s tribute. The warriors of Moab not only looked like their king but also shared his same fate. The victory over Moab inaugurates a period of rest for the land that lasts eighty years, twice that experienced under Othniel.
3:31 Shamgar is the first minor judge in the book. The account is written with reference to Ehud (“After him”), but it also serves to introduce the Deborah and Barak narratives that immediately follow. We only know the name of the judge’s father, the fact that he kills six hundred Philistines with an “oxgoad” (a long stick with something like a nail or spike at its tip), and that he “saved” Israel. He is not associated with any tribe; his name means “sojourner there,” similar (in reverse) to the name of the son of Moses, “Gershom, for he said, ‘I have been a sojourner in a foreign land’” (Ex. 2:22). The inclusion of the six minor judges in Judges gives us twelve total judges, no doubt representing the twelve tribes of Israel and God’s care for the whole of his people.