Judges 3: 1 – 31
I Get The Point
1 Now these are the nations which the LORD left, that He might test Israel by them, that is, all who had not known any of the wars in Canaan 2 (this was only so that the generations of the children of Israel might be taught to know war, at least those who had not formerly known it), 3 namely, five lords of the Philistines, all the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and the Hivites who dwelt in Mount Lebanon, from Mount Baal Hermon to the entrance of Hamath. 4 And they were left, that He might test Israel by them, to know whether they would obey the commandments of the LORD, which He had commanded their fathers by the hand of Moses.5 Thus the children of Israel dwelt among the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 6 And they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their daughters to their sons; and they served their gods. 7 So the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD. They forgot the LORD their God, and served the Baals and Asherahs. 8 Therefore the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel, and He sold them into the hand of Cushan-Rishathaim king of Mesopotamia; and the children of Israel served Cushan-Rishathaim eight years. 9 When the children of Israel cried out to the LORD, the LORD raised up a deliverer for the children of Israel, who delivered them: Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother. 10 The Spirit of the LORD came upon him, and he judged Israel. He went out to war, and the LORD delivered Cushan-Rishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand; and his hand prevailed over Cushan-Rishathaim. 11 So the land had rest for forty years. Then Othniel the son of Kenaz died. 12 And the children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the LORD. So the LORD strengthened Eglon king of Moab against Israel, because they had done evil in the sight of the LORD. 13 Then he gathered to himself the people of Ammon and Amalek, went and defeated Israel, and took possession of the City of Palms. 14 So the children of Israel served Eglon king of Moab eighteen years. 15 But when the children of Israel cried out to the LORD, the LORD raised up a deliverer for them: Ehud the son of Gera, the Benjamite, a left-handed man. By him the children of Israel sent tribute to Eglon king of Moab. 16 Now Ehud made himself a dagger (it was double-edged and a cubit in length) and fastened it under his clothes on his right thigh. 17 So he brought the tribute to Eglon king of Moab. (Now Eglon was a very fat man.) 18 And when he had finished presenting the tribute, he sent away the people who had carried the tribute. 19 But he himself turned back from the stone images that were at Gilgal, and said, “I have a secret message for you, O king.” He said, “Keep silence!” And all who attended him went out from him. 20 So Ehud came to him (now he was sitting upstairs in his cool private chamber). Then Ehud said, “I have a message from God for you.” So he arose from his seat. 21 Then Ehud reached with his left hand, took the dagger from his right thigh, and thrust it into his belly. 22 Even the hilt went in after the blade, and the fat closed over the blade, for he did not draw the dagger out of his belly; and his entrails came out. 23 Then Ehud went out through the porch and shut the doors of the upper room behind him and locked them. 24 When he had gone out, Eglon’s servants came to look, and to their surprise, the doors of the upper room were locked. So they said, “He is probably attending to his needs in the cool chamber.” 25 So they waited till they were embarrassed, and still he had not opened the doors of the upper room. Therefore they took the key and opened them. And there was their master, fallen dead on the floor.
26 But Ehud had escaped while they delayed, and passed beyond the stone images and escaped to Seirah. 27 And it happened, when he arrived, that he blew the trumpet in the mountains of Ephraim, and the children of Israel went down with him from the mountains; and he led them. 28 Then he said to them, “Follow me, for the LORD has delivered your enemies the Moabites into your hand.” So they went down after him, seized the fords of the Jordan leading to Moab, and did not allow anyone to cross over. 29 And at that time they killed about ten thousand men of Moab, all stout men of valor; 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 six hundred men of the Philistines with an ox goad; and he also delivered Israel.
In chapter 2 we have witnessed the results of compromise. I will tell you from personal experience that once you give in just a little you are set for future major trouble. If you spot a little lead in you pipes and fail to get it fix, you know that ultimately you will be facing major plumbing repair. In life we see the same thing happen to the Israelites. They did not obey Jehovah Elyon – The Lord Most High. And the results we major headaches and heartaches for future generations.
1 Now these are the nations which the LORD left, that He might test Israel by them, that is, all who had not known any of the wars in Canaan 2 (this was only so that the generations of the children of Israel might be taught to know war, at least those who had not formerly known it), 3 namely, five lords of the Philistines, all the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and the Hivites who dwelt in Mount Lebanon, from Mount Baal Hermon to the entrance of Hamath. 4 And they were left, that He might test Israel by them, to know whether they would obey the commandments of the LORD, which He had commanded their fathers by the hand of Moses.5 Thus the children of Israel dwelt among the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. 6 And they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their daughters to their sons; and they served their gods.
I see a verse here that catches my concern and it is this, ‘1 Now these are the nations which the LORD left, that He might test Israel by them, that is, all who had not known any of the wars in Canaan 2 (this was only so that the generations of the children of Israel might be taught to know war, at least those who had not formerly known it)’ What we read here is that God wanted the children who did not ever experience being soldiers and fighting a war to learn how to do it.
Have you ever been critical or heard other people be critical of some parents who send their kids to martial arts school. Hey, aren’t we suppose to be as Christians to always turn your cheek to assaults?
Was it different for El Shaddai – Almighty God - to teach the Israelites how to fight but now we should all be holy rollers? You tell me this is an issue that all parents must battle with. I do not think you are wrong for either position. We are in the world but not of the world. I do believe that we need to teach our kids to defend themselves and those who are in need of protection or help.
Ultimately, they did not obey God. They intermarried with these other native residents. In today’s world some people call this racism. Actually, it is not. If you even go to Israel today you will see people of all colors but significantly one race – they are Jewish. So, why did our Holy God want the Israelites to not intermarry with other cultures. The answer is that He was directing a traceable genealogy from Adam to the Messiah. You will note at different times and in different books of the bible you have listed genealogies. These records do not change but continue to extend into future generations.
We will continually read this phrase, ‘did what was evil in the sight of their God Yahweh.’
7 So the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD. They forgot the LORD their God, and served the Baals and Asherahs.
Exactly what evil were they doing that got God so upset? It is a continual variety of sinful circumstances that hurt our Great Holy God. They disobeyed Him. They ceased to worship Him fully. They lived lives contrary to His laws. I would say that these are pretty good reasons to be upset over.
Most of the Israelites did not start out determined to be idolaters. They just added the idols to the worship of Yahweh Elohe Yisrael – The Lord God Of Israel. However, before long the true and living God is replaced by all these phony gods.
We face a similar danger as we make friends with those who do not know our Holy Ruler. Ultimately, we get into ungodly practices. We need to remember that friendships with unbelievers are important be we must accept people into our lives without compromising or adopting their life patterns or behaviors.
It is difficult to imagine these people turning away from the active living God for idols of wood, stone, and metals, yet we must not be smug in our attitudes for we also do the same with other gods such as sports, hobbies, and other activities.
So, what is so attractive in being drawn to these phony religious pursuits? Let me give you a few of the possible reasons. These are the bait that Satan throws at us sinful people.
1. Short range benefits
2. Self gratification immediately
3. Sensuality approved
4. Low ethical standards tolerated
5. Other’s sins approved
6. Visible idols worshiped
7. Selfishness condoned
8. Business relations improved
9. Practices loosely regulated and not demanded
10. Compromise and cooperation practiced
11. No concern for others expected.
Can you see how this is attractive to the flesh?
8 Therefore the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel, and He sold them into the hand of Cushan-Rishathaim king of Mesopotamia; and the children of Israel served Cushan-Rishathaim eight years.
The name Cushan-Rishathaim means ‘Double Wickedness’. How would you like someone with this name ruling over you. Some of you might be thinking, ‘kind of sounds like my boss’. Either way to me it sounds like the odds are stacked up against you. You hate each day. You beg for deliverance and like our Lord did for the Israelites, He will do likewise for us. He sent help.
9 When the children of Israel cried out to the LORD, the LORD raised up a deliverer for the children of Israel, who delivered them: Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother.
Do you remember who this guy is? Well, for some of our friends who have just joined us, let us take a quick review look at chapter 1 which talks about Othniel, “12 Then Caleb said, “Whoever attacks Kirjath Sepher and takes it, to him I will give my daughter Achsah as wife.” 13 And Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother, took it; so he gave him his daughter Achsah as wife.”
Looking around at a man to select to be a deliver for His people our Lord easily knew who to pick, it was Othniel.
10 The Spirit of the LORD came upon him, and he judged Israel. He went out to war, and the LORD delivered Cushan-Rishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand; and his hand prevailed over Cushan-Rishathaim. 11 So the land had rest for forty years. Then Othniel the son of Kenaz died.
In His Great Mercy the Lord gave the people 40 years of peace. And how did they thank Him for all this loving care?
12 And the children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the LORD. So the LORD strengthened Eglon king of Moab against Israel, because they had done evil in the sight of the LORD.
If you glance back at verse 8 you will note that the Lord ‘sold them’ as slaves. He rescued them from this slavery. Now, He deliberately raises an enemy to bring against His people.
13 Then he gathered to himself the people of Ammon and Amalek, went and defeated Israel, and took possession of the City of Palms. 14 So the children of Israel served Eglon king of Moab eighteen years.
Please notice the increase of time of punishment. The first rebellion’s discipline lasted 8 years. Now they go through great tribulation for eighteen years. It appears that in their hatred towards the God Who loves them, they would not call out to Him for deliverance. Please note in the next verse it appears that after eighteen years of hardships they finally look again to their true God.
15 But when the children of Israel cried out to the LORD, the LORD raised up a deliverer for them: Ehud the son of Gera, the Benjamite, a left-handed man. By him the children of Israel sent tribute to Eglon king of Moab.
If you are familiar with physiology then you are aware that the left side of the brain controls the right side of the body and vice versa. Therefore, our Holy King picked a man in his right mind [ left handed ]to lead the Israelites.
The people were required to come up with a pay off to king Eglon or as our modern day street bullies call it – protection.
16 Now Ehud made himself a dagger (it was double-edged and a cubit in length) and fastened it under his clothes on his right thigh. 17 So he brought the tribute to Eglon king of Moab. (Now Eglon was a very fat man.) 18 And when he had finished presenting the tribute, he sent away the people who had carried the tribute. 19 But he himself turned back from the stone images that were at Gilgal, and said, “I have a secret message for you, O king.” He said, “Keep silence!” And all who attended him went out from him. 20 So Ehud came to him (now he was sitting upstairs in his cool private chamber). Then Ehud said, “I have a message from God for you.” So he arose from his seat. 21 Then Ehud reached with his left hand, took the dagger from his right thigh, and thrust it into his belly. 22 Even the hilt went in after the blade, and the fat closed over the blade, for he did not draw the dagger out of his belly; and his entrails came out. 23 Then Ehud went out through the porch and shut the doors of the upper room behind him and locked them. 24 When he had gone out, Eglon’s servants came to look, and to their surprise, the doors of the upper room were locked. So they said, “He is probably attending to his needs in the cool chamber.” 25 So they waited till they were embarrassed, and still he had not opened the doors of the upper room. Therefore they took the key and opened them. And there was their master, fallen dead on the floor.
26 But Ehud had escaped while they delayed, and passed beyond the stone images and escaped to Seirah. 27 And it happened, when he arrived, that he blew the trumpet in the mountains of Ephraim, and the children of Israel went down with him from the mountains; and he led them. 28 Then he said to them, “Follow me, for the LORD has delivered your enemies the Moabites into your hand.” So they went down after him, seized the fords of the Jordan leading to Moab, and did not allow anyone to cross over. 29 And at that time they killed about ten thousand men of Moab, all stout men of valor; not a man escaped. 30 So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of Israel. And the land had rest for eighty years.
Most people were right handed. Therefore, Elgon’s guards overlooked the fact that a weapon would be strapped on the opposite side of Ehud’s body.
It is kind of gruesome to see what happened. The bible does not pull any punches in telling things exactly like it is. The ultimate significance of Ehud’s bravery if you note is that our Merciful God this time allowed eighty years of peace.
We can take away a few lessons from Ehud’s act. For one thing we can understand that if we do something wrong, let us not be stubborn and turn away from our Holy Father. Let us immediately confess our sins and seek His help in overcoming our shortcomings.
Ehud was unique compared to others being left-handed. If this type of quality fits you, then ask our Holy Master how He can use your special abilities and gifts for His purposes.
We end this chapter with a mention of Shamgar, who is listed as a Judge but only has one verse.
31 After him was Shamgar the son of Anath, who killed six hundred men of the Philistines with an ox goad; and he also delivered Israel.
This verse seems out of place. Missing is the normal prelude of apostasy and sin. In the next chapter we continue with Ehud. It talks about his death. So, it seems that our Precious Holy Spirit just placed this important fact of this hero in for us, then He continues on with the historical record. We note here that Shamgar delivered Israel but was not a listed as a Judge.
We need to remember as we go through the book of Judges that the nation of Israel comprises of 12 tribes who each receive land appropriations. You will note that some areas are affected by oppression and in some situations not all the tribes equally. The reason I bring this up for our consideration is that perhaps Ehud was still Judge and there was peace for eighty years. Perhaps in this time frame the Philistines pushed their weight around and Shamgar was the leader who delivered the people who were affected by the Philistines.
