Judges 3
3
1These are the nations the Lord did not force to leave. He wanted to test the Israelites who had not fought in the wars of Canaan. 2(The only reason the Lord left those nations in the land was to teach the descendants of the Israelites who had not fought in those wars how to fight.) 3These are the nations: the five rulers of the Philistines, all the Canaanites, the people of Sidon, and the Hivites who lived in the Lebanon mountains from Mount Baal Hermon to Lebo Hamath. 4Those nations were in the land to test the Israelites—to see if they would obey the commands the Lord had given to their ancestors by Moses.
5The people of Israel lived with the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites. 6The Israelites began to marry the daughters of those people, and they allowed their daughters to marry the sons of those people. Israel also served their gods.
Othniel, the First Judge
7The Israelites did what the Lord said was wrong. They forgot about the Lord their God and served the idols of Baal and Asherah. 8So the Lord was angry with Israel and allowed Cushan-Rishathaim king of Northwest Mesopotamia to rule over the Israelites for eight years. 9When Israel cried to the Lord, the Lord sent someone to save them. Othniel son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother, saved the Israelites. 10The Spirit of the Lord entered Othniel, and he became Israel’s judge. When he went to war, the Lord handed over to him Cushan-Rishathaim king of Northwest Mesopotamia. 11So the land was at peace for forty years. Then Othniel son of Kenaz died.
Ehud, the Judge
12Again the people of Israel did what the Lord said was wrong. So the Lord gave Eglon king of Moab power to defeat Israel because of the evil Israel did. 13Eglon got the Ammonites and the Amalekites to join him. Then he attacked Israel and took Jericho, the city of palm trees. 14So the people of Israel were ruled by Eglon king of Moab for eighteen years.
15When the people cried to the Lord, he sent someone to save them. He was Ehud, son of Gera from the people of Benjamin, who was left-handed. Israel sent Ehud to give Eglon king of Moab the payment he demanded. 16Ehud made himself a sword with two edges, about eighteen inches long, and he tied it to his right hip under his clothes. 17Ehud gave Eglon king of Moab the payment he demanded. Now Eglon was a very fat man. 18After he had given Eglon the payment, Ehud sent away the people who had carried it. 19When he passed the statues near Gilgal, he turned around and said to Eglon, “I have a secret message for you, King Eglon.”
The king said, “Be quiet!” Then he sent all of his servants out of the room. 20Ehud went to King Eglon, as he was sitting alone in the room above his summer palace.
Ehud said, “I have a message from God for you.” As the king stood up from his chair, 21Ehud reached with his left hand and took out the sword that was tied to his right hip. Then he stabbed the sword deep into the king’s belly! 22Even the handle sank in, and the blade came out his back. The king’s fat covered the whole sword, so Ehud left the sword in Eglon. 23Then he went out of the room and closed and locked the doors behind him.
24When the servants returned just after Ehud left, they found the doors to the room locked. So they thought the king was relieving himself. 25They waited for a long time. Finally they became worried because he still had not opened the doors. So they got the key and unlocked them and saw their king lying dead on the floor!
26While the servants were waiting, Ehud had escaped. He passed by the statues and went to Seirah. 27When he reached the mountains of Ephraim he blew the trumpet. The people of Israel heard it and went down from the hills with Ehud leading them.
28He said to them, “Follow me! The Lord has helped you to defeat your enemies, the Moabites.” So Israel followed Ehud and captured the crossings of the Jordan River. They did not allow the Moabites to cross the Jordan River. 29Israel killed about ten thousand strong and able men from Moab; not one escaped. 30So that day Moab was forced to be under the rule of Israel, and there was peace in the land for eighty years.
Shamgar, the Judge
31After Ehud, Shamgar son of Anath saved Israel. Shamgar killed six hundred Philistines with a sharp stick used to guide oxen.
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The Holy Bible, New Century Version, Copyright © 2005 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.
Judges 3
3
The Lord Tests Israel
1These are the nations the Lord left in order to test Israel, since the Israelites had fought none of these in # Lit had known any of the wars with Canaan. # Jos 1–12 2This was to teach the future generations of the Israelites how to fight in battle, especially those who had not fought before. # Lit not known it 3These nations included: the five rulers # Jos 13:3; 1Sm 5:8,11 of the Philistines # Gn 10:14; Ex 13:17 and all of the Canaanites, the Sidonians, # Jos 13:4; 1Kg 5:6; Ezk 32:30 and the Hivites # Ex 38:17; Dt 20:17; Jos 9:1,7 who lived in the Lebanese mountains # LXX reads in Lebanon from Mount Baal-hermon as far as the entrance to Hamath. # Or as Lebo-hamath 4The Lord left them to test Israel, to determine if they would keep the Lord’s commands He had given their fathers through # Lit by the hand of Moses. # 1Kg 8:58; 2Kg 17:13; Ps 78:5; Jr 11:4 5But they settled among the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites. 6The Israelites took their daughters as wives for themselves, gave their own daughters to their sons, and worshiped their gods. # Ex 23:33; Dt 7:16
Othniel, the First Judge
7The Israelites did what was evil in the Lord’s sight; they forgot the Lord their God # Dt 8:11,14,19; 1Sm 12:9; Jr 3:21 and worshiped the Baals and the Asherahs. 8The Lord’s anger burned against Israel, and He sold them to # Lit into the hand of Cushan-rishathaim # Lit Doubly-Evil king of Aram-naharaim, # = Mesopotamia # Gn 24:10; Dt 23:3-4; 1Ch 19:6; Ps 60 title and the Israelites served him eight years.
9The Israelites cried out to the Lord. # Jdg 3:15; 6:6-7; 10:10 So the Lord raised up Othniel son of Kenaz, Caleb’s youngest brother, # Jdg 1:13 as a deliverer # Dt 28:29,31; Jdg 6:36; 1Sm 14:39; Is 19:20; 43:11; Hs 13:4 to save the Israelites. 10The Spirit of the Lord came on him, and he judged Israel. Othniel went out to battle, and the Lord handed over Cushan-rishathaim king of Aram to him, so that Othniel overpowered him. 11Then the land was peaceful # Jdg 3:30; 5:31; 8:28; 2Ch 14:1,5-6 40 years, and Othniel son of Kenaz died.
Ehud
12The Israelites again did what was evil in the Lord’s sight. He gave Eglon king of Moab # Nm 22:3; Dt 2:8-9; 32:49 power over Israel, because they had done what was evil in the Lord’s sight. 13After Eglon convinced the Ammonites and the Amalekites to join forces with him, he attacked and defeated Israel and took possession of the City of Palms. # = Jericho; Dt 34:3; Jdg 1:16; 2Ch 28:15 # Dt 34:3; Jdg 1:16; 2Ch 28:15 14The Israelites served Eglon king of Moab 18 years.
15Then the Israelites cried out to the Lord, and He raised up Ehud son of Gera, a left-handed # Jdg 20:16 Benjaminite, # = son of the right hand as a deliverer for them. The Israelites sent him to Eglon king of Moab with tribute # 2Sm 8:2,6; 2Ch 9:24; 17:11 money.
16Ehud made himself a double-edged sword 18 inches long. # Lit sword a gomed in length He strapped it to his right thigh under his clothes 17and brought the tribute to Eglon king of Moab, who was an extremely fat man. 18When Ehud had finished presenting the tribute, he dismissed the people who had carried it. 19At the carved images near Gilgal he returned and said, “King Eglon, I have a secret message for you.” The king called for silence, and all his attendants left him. 20Then Ehud approached him while he was sitting alone in his room upstairs where it was cool. Ehud said, “I have a word from God for you,” and the king stood up from his throne. # LXX reads “A word of my God for you, O king,” and Eglon rose up from the throne near him. 21Ehud # LXX reads It happened that when he rose up, Ehud immediately reached with his left hand, took the sword from his right thigh, and plunged it into Eglon’s belly. 22Even the handle went in after the blade, and Eglon’s fat closed in over it, so that Ehud did not withdraw the sword from his belly. And Eglon’s insides came out. 23Ehud escaped by way of the porch, closing and locking the doors of the upstairs room behind him.
24Ehud was gone when Eglon’s servants came in. They looked and found the doors of the upstairs room locked and thought he was relieving himself # Lit was covering his feet in the cool room. 25The servants waited until they became worried and saw that he had still not opened the doors of the upstairs room. So they took the key and opened the doors — and there was their lord lying dead on the floor!
26Ehud escaped while the servants waited. He crossed over the Jordan near the carved images and reached Seirah. 27After he arrived, he sounded the ram’s horn throughout the hill country of Ephraim. The Israelites came down with him from the hill country, and he became their leader. 28He told them, “Follow me, because the Lord has handed over your enemies, the Moabites, to you.” So they followed him, captured the fords of the Jordan leading to Moab, and did not allow anyone to cross over. # Jdg 12:5-6 29At that time they struck down about 10,000 Moabites, all strong and able-bodied men. Not one of them escaped. 30Moab became subject to Israel that day, and the land was peaceful 80 years.
Shamgar
31After Ehud, Shamgar son of Anath became judge. He delivered Israel by striking down 600 Philistines with an oxgoad.
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