Judges 3
1These were the nations the Lord permitted to remain so he could use them to test Israel—he wanted to test all those who had not experienced battle against the Canaanites. ▼▼tn Heb “did not know the wars of Canaan.”
2He left those nations simply because he wanted to teach the subsequent generations of Israelites, who had not experienced the earlier battles, how to conduct holy war. ▼ ▼▼sn The stated purpose for leaving the nations (to teach the subsequent generations…how to conduct holy war) seems to contradict 2:22 and 3:4, which indicate the nations were left to test Israel’s loyalty to the Lord. However, the two stated purposes can be harmonized. The willingness of later generations to learn and engage in holy war would measure their allegiance to the Lord (see B. G. Webb, Judges [JSOTSup], 114-15).
3These were the nations: ▼▼tn The words “These were the nations,” though not present in the Hebrew text, are supplied in the translation for clarity.
the five lords of the Philistines, all the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and the Hivites living in Mount Lebanon, from Mount Baal Hermon to Lebo Hamath. ▼▼tn Or “the entrance to Hamath.”
4They were left to test Israel, so the Lord would know if his people would obey the commands he gave their ancestors through Moses. ▼▼tn Heb “to know if they would hear the commands of the Lord which he commanded their fathers by the hand of Moses.”
5 The Israelites lived among the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites. 6They took the Canaanites’ daughters as wives and gave their daughters to the Canaanites; ▼▼tn Heb “to their sons.”
they worshiped ▼▼tn Or “served”; or “followed” (this term occurs in the following verse as well).
their gods as well. Othniel: A Model Leader
7 The Israelites did evil in the Lord’s sight. ▼▼tn Heb “in the eyes of the Lord.”
They forgot the Lord their God and worshiped the Baals and the Asherahs. ▼▼sn The Asherahs were local manifestations of the Canaanite goddess Asherah.
8The Lord was furious with Israel ▼▼tn Or “The Lord’s anger burned (or raged) against Israel.”
and turned them over to ▼▼tn Heb “sold them into the hands of.”
King Cushan Rishathaim ▼▼tn Or “Cushan the Doubly Wicked.”
of Armon Haraim. ▼▼tc Armon Haraim. Traditionally Aram-Naharaim, and sometimes understood as a place in Mesopotamia. This reading accepts the consonantal text but divides the words after the nun (נ) instead of before. The consonants ארמן הרים could be read with a dual ending as ʾArmon Haraim, meaning “Citadel of the Two Mountains,” or with a plural ending as ʾArmon Harim, meaning “Citadel of the Mountains.” In either case, Cushan Rishathaim is probably a remaining Canaanite king with a fortress in the hill country of Israel. See Beitzel, The Moody Atlas of Bible Lands, 106.
They were Cushan Rishathaim’s subjects ▼▼tn Or “they served Cushan Rishathaim.”
for eight years. 9When the Israelites cried out for help to the Lord, he ▼▼tn Heb “the Lord.”
raised up a deliverer for the Israelites who rescued ▼▼tn Or “delivered.”
them. His name was Othniel son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother. ▼▼tn “Caleb’s younger brother” may refer to Othniel or to Kenaz (in which case Othniel is Caleb’s nephew).
10The Lord’s Spirit empowered him ▼▼tn Heb “was on him.”
and he led Israel. When he went to do battle, the Lord handed over to him King Cushan Rishathaim of Armon, ▼▼tc Armon. Traditionally Aram. See note at Judges 3:8. This is either Armon, with restored nun (נ), being short for Armon Haraim, or perhaps the entire phrase was original.
and Othniel overpowered him. ▼▼tn Heb “his hand was strong against Cushan Rishathaim.”
11The land had rest for 40 years; then Othniel son of Kenaz died. Deceit, Assassination, and Deliverance
12 The Israelites again did evil in the Lord’s sight. ▼▼tn Heb “in the eyes of the Lord” (also later in this verse).
The Lord gave King Eglon of Moab control over Israel ▼▼tn Heb “strengthened Eglon…against Israel.”
because they had done evil in the Lord’s sight. 13Eglon formed alliances with ▼▼tn Heb “and he gathered to him.”
the Ammonites and Amalekites. He came and defeated Israel, and they seized the city of date palm trees. ▼ 14The Israelites were subject to ▼▼tn Or “the Israelites served Eglon.”
King Eglon of Moab for 18 years. 15 When the Israelites cried out for help to the Lord, he ▼▼tn Heb “the Lord.” This has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.
raised up a deliverer for them. His name was Ehud son of Gera the Benjaminite, a left-handed man. ▼▼tn The phrase, which refers to Ehud, literally reads “bound/restricted in the right hand,” apparently a Hebrew idiom for a left-handed person. See Judg 20:16, where 700 Benjaminites are described in this way. Perhaps the Benjaminites purposely trained several of their young men to be left-handed warriors by restricting the use of the right hand from an early age so the left hand would become dominant. Left-handed men would have a distinct military advantage, especially when attacking city gates. See B. Halpern, “The Assassination of Eglon: The First Locked-Room Murder Mystery,” BRev 4 (1988): 35.
The Israelites sent him to King Eglon of Moab with their tribute payment. ▼▼tn Heb “The Israelites sent by his hand an offering to Eglon, king of Moab.”
16Ehud made himself a sword—it had two edges and was 18 inches long. ▼▼tn The Hebrew term גֹּמֶד (gomed) denotes a unit of linear measure, perhaps a cubit (the distance between the elbow and the tip of the middle finger—approximately 18 inches [45 cm]). Some suggest it is equivalent to the short cubit (the distance between the elbow and the knuckles of the clenched fist—approximately 13 inches [33 cm]) or to the span (the distance between the end of the thumb and the end of the little finger in a spread hand—approximately 9 inches [23 cm]). See BDB 167 s.v.; HALOT 196 s.v.; B. Lindars, Judges 1-5, 142.
He strapped it under his coat on his right thigh. 17He brought the tribute payment to King Eglon of Moab. (Now Eglon was a very fat man.) 18 After Ehud brought the tribute payment, he dismissed the people who had carried it. ▼▼tn Heb “the tribute payment.”
19But he went back ▼▼tn Or “returned” (i.e., to Eglon’s palace).
once he reached ▼▼tn The words “once he reached” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The Hebrew text simply reads “from.”
the carved images ▼▼tn Or “idols.”
at Gilgal. He said to Eglon, ▼▼tn The words “to Eglon” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
“I have a secret message for you, O king.” Eglon ▼▼tn Heb “he”; the referent (Eglon) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
said, “Be quiet!” ▼▼tn Or “Hush!”
All his attendants left. 20When Ehud approached him, he was sitting in his well-ventilated ▼▼tn Or “cool.” This probably refers to a room with latticed windows which allowed the breeze to pass through. See B. Lindars, Judges 1-5, 144.
upper room all by himself. Ehud said, “I have a message from God ▼▼tn Heb “word of [i.e., from] God.”
for you.” When Eglon rose up from his seat, ▼▼tn Or “throne.”
21Ehud reached with his left hand, pulled the sword from his right thigh, and drove it into Eglon’s ▼▼tn Heb “his”; the referent (Eglon) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
belly. 22The handle went in after the blade, and the fat closed around the blade, for Ehud ▼▼tn Heb “he”; the referent (Ehud) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
did not pull the sword out of his belly. ▼▼tc The Hebrew text has “and he went out to the [?].” The word פַּרְשְׁדֹנָה (parshedonah) occurs only here, and is of uncertain meaning. The noun has the directional suffix, meaning “to the parshedon.” Some translations (e.g. KJV, NRSV, NASB, ESV, NKJV) take it as a reference to feces or intestinal organs coming out. This would interpret the noun ending as feminine (not directional). But the verb (וַיֵּצֵא, vayyetseʾ) is masculine so this does not explain the text, even though the notion might fit the context. The subject is either Ehud or the blade–either would match the verb form–and the word in question tells where the subject went out. If the blade (לַהַב, lahav) is the subject, then פַּרְשְׁדֹנָה (parshedonah) might be an anatomical reference describing the exit point; if Ehud is the subject, then the word is probably a technical architectural term. The entire phrase is missing from the LXX. The present translation omits the clause, understanding it as an ancient variant of the first clause in v. 23. See B. Lindars, Judges 1-5, 146-48, for discussion of the options.
23As Ehud went out into the vestibule, ▼▼tn Again the precise meaning of the Hebrew word, used only here in the OT, is uncertain. Since it is preceded by the verb “went out” and the next clause refers to Ehud closing doors, the noun is probably an architectural term referring to the room (perhaps a vestibule; see HALOT 604 s.v. מִסְדְּרוֹן) immediately outside the king’s upper chamber. As v. 24 indicates, this vestibule separated the upper room from an outer room where the king’s servants were waiting.
he closed the doors of the upper room behind him and locked them. 24 When Ehud had left, Eglon’s ▼▼tn Heb “his.”
servants came and saw the locked doors of the upper room. They said, “He must be relieving himself ▼▼tn Heb “covering his feet” (i.e., with his outer garments while he relieves himself).
in the well-ventilated inner room.” ▼▼tn The Hebrew expression translated “well-ventilated inner room” may refer to the upper room itself or to a bathroom attached to or within it.
25They waited so long they were embarrassed, but he still did not open the doors of the upper room. Finally they took the key and opened the doors. ▼▼tn The words “the doors” are supplied.
Right before their eyes was their master, sprawled out dead on the floor! ▼▼tn Heb “See, their master, fallen to the ground, dead.”
26Now Ehud had escaped while they were delaying. When he passed the carved images, he escaped to Seirah. 27 When he reached Seirah, ▼▼tn Heb “When he arrived.”
he blew a trumpet ▼▼tn That is, “mustered an army.”
in the Ephraimite hill country. The Israelites went down with him from the hill country, with Ehud in the lead. ▼▼tn Heb “now he was before them.”
28He said to them, “Follow me, for the Lord is about to defeat your enemies, the Moabites!” ▼▼tn Heb “for the Lord has given your enemies, Moab, into your hand.” The verb form (a Hebrew perfect, indicating completed action from the standpoint of the speaker) emphasizes the certainty of the event. Though it had not yet taken place, the Lord speaks of it as a “done deal.”
They followed him, captured the fords of the Jordan River ▼▼tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied for clarity.
opposite Moab, ▼▼tn Or “against Moab,” that is, so as to prevent the Moabites from crossing.
and did not let anyone cross. 29That day they killed about 10,000 Moabites ▼▼tn Heb “They struck Moab that day—about ten thousand men.”
—all strong, capable warriors; not one escaped. 30Israel humiliated Moab that day, and the land had rest for 80 years. 31 After Ehud ▼▼tn Heb “him”; the referent (Ehud) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
came ▼▼tn Heb “was.”
Shamgar son of Anath. He killed 600 Philistines with an oxgoad. So he also delivered Israel.
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