Judg 3:15 | NETfull | STEP | When the Israelites cried out for help to the Lord , he raised up a deliverer for them. His name was Ehud son of Gera the Benjaminite, a left-handed man. The Israelites sent him to King Eglon of Moab with their tribute payment.

Judges 3:15

15 When the Israelites cried out for help to the Lord, he ^{▼▼ 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 This has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.} raised up a deliverer for them.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. ^{▼▼ 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. ^{▼▼ Heb “The Israelites sent by his hand an offering to Eglon, king of Moab.”}