Teks -- Judges 3:1-31 (NET)

3:1 These 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. 3:2 He 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. 3:3 These were the nations: 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. 3:4 They were left to test Israel, so the Lord would know if his people would obey the commands he gave their ancestors through Moses. 3:5 The Israelites lived among the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites. 3:6 They took the Canaanites’ daughters as wives and gave their daughters to the Canaanites; they worshiped their gods as well.

Othniel: A Model Leader

3:7 The Israelites did evil in the Lord’s sight. They forgot the Lord their God and worshiped the Baals and the Asherahs. 3:8 The Lord was furious with Israel and turned them over to King Cushan-Rishathaim of Aram-Naharaim. They were Cushan-Rishathaim’s subjects for eight years. 3:9 When the Israelites cried out for help to the Lord, he raised up a deliverer for the Israelites who rescued them. His name was Othniel son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother. 3:10 The Lord’s spirit empowered him and he led Israel. When he went to do battle, the Lord handed over to him King Cushan-Rishathaim of Aram and he overpowered him. 3:11 The land had rest for forty years; then Othniel son of Kenaz died.

Deceit, Assassination, and Deliverance

3:12 The Israelites again did evil in the Lord’s sight. The Lord gave King Eglon of Moab control over Israel because they had done evil in the Lord’s sight. 3:13 Eglon formed alliances with the Ammonites and Amalekites. He came and defeated Israel, and they seized the City of Date Palm Trees. 3:14 The Israelites were subject to King Eglon of Moab for eighteen years. 3:15 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. 3:16 Ehud made himself a sword– it had two edges and was eighteen inches long. He strapped it under his coat on his right thigh. 3:17 He brought the tribute payment to King Eglon of Moab. (Now Eglon was a very fat man.) 3:18 After Ehud brought the tribute payment, he dismissed the people who had carried it. 3:19 But he went back once he reached the carved images at Gilgal. He said to Eglon, “I have a secret message for you, O king.” Eglon said, “Be quiet!” All his attendants left. 3:20 When Ehud approached him, he was sitting in his well-ventilated upper room all by himself. Ehud said, “I have a message from God for you.” When Eglon rose up from his seat, 3:21 Ehud reached with his left hand, hand, pulled the sword from his right thigh, and drove it into Eglon’s belly. 3:22 The handle went in after the blade, and the fat closed around the blade, for Ehud did not pull the sword out of his belly. 3:23 As Ehud went out into the vestibule, he closed the doors of the upper room behind him and locked them. 3:24 When Ehud had left, Eglon’s servants came and saw the locked doors of the upper room. They said, “He must be relieving himself in the well-ventilated inner room.” 3:25 They 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. Right before their eyes was their master, sprawled out dead on the floor! 3:26 Now Ehud had escaped while they were delaying. When he passed the carved images, he escaped to Seirah. 3:27 When he reached Seirah, he blew a trumpet in the Ephraimite hill country. The Israelites went down with him from the hill country, with Ehud in the lead. 3:28 He said to them, “Follow me, for the Lord is about to defeat your enemies, the Moabites!” They followed him, captured the fords of the Jordan River opposite Moab, and did not let anyone cross. 3:29 That day they killed about ten thousand Moabites– all strong, capable warriors; not one escaped. 3:30 Israel humiliated Moab that day, and the land had rest for eighty years. 3:31 After Ehud came Shamgar son of Anath; he killed six hundred Philistines with an oxgoad and, like Ehud, delivered Israel.

Tafsiran/Catatan -- Catatan Kata/Frasa (per frasa)

Wesley: Jdg 3:1 - Had not known

That is, such as had no experience of those wars, nor of God's extraordinary power and providence manifested in them.

Wesley: Jdg 3:2 - Teach them war

That by the neighbourhood of such warlike enemies, they might be purged from sloth and security, and obliged them to innure themselves to martial exercises, and to stand continually upon their guard, and consequently to keep close to that God whose assistance they had so great and constant need of.

Wesley: Jdg 3:3 - Five lords

Whereof three had been in some sort subdued, Jdg 1:18. but afterwards recovered their strength.

Wesley: Jdg 3:3 - Canaanites

Properly so called, who were very numerous, and dispersed through several parts of the land, whence they gave denomination to all the rest of the people.

Wesley: Jdg 3:3 - Zidonions

The people living near Zidon, and subject to its jurisdiction.

Wesley: Jdg 3:3 - Baal

hermon - Which was the eastern part about Lebanon.

Wesley: Jdg 3:4 - To know

That is, that they and others might know by experience.

Wesley: Jdg 3:6 - Served their gods

Were drawn to idolatry by the persuasions and examples of their yoke - fellows.

Wesley: Jdg 3:7 - And the groves

That is, in the groves, in which the Heathens usually worshipped their Baalim or idols.

Wesley: Jdg 3:8 - Served

That is, were made subject to him. Mesopotamia was that part of Syria which lay between the two great rivers, Tigris and Euphrates. This lay at such a distance, that one would not have thought Israel's trouble should have come from such a far country: which shews so much the more of the hand of God in it.

Wesley: Jdg 3:9 - Cried

That is, prayed fervently for deliverance.

Wesley: Jdg 3:10 - Came upon him

With extraordinary influence, endowing him with singular wisdom and courage, and stirring him up to this great undertaking.

Wesley: Jdg 3:10 - Judged Israel

That is, pleaded and avenged the cause of Israel against their oppressors.

Wesley: Jdg 3:11 - Forty years

It rested about forty years, or the greatest part of forty years: it being most frequent in scripture to use numbers in such a latitude. Nor is it unusual either in scripture, or in other authors, for things to be denominated from the greater part; especially, when they enjoyed some degrees of rest and peace even in their times of slavery.

Wesley: Jdg 3:12 - Strengthened Eglon

By giving him courage, and power, and success against them.

Wesley: Jdg 3:13 - City of Palm

trees - That is, Jericho. Not the city which was demolished, but the territory belonging to it. Here he fixed his camp, for the fertility of that soil, and because of its nearness to the passage over Jordan, which was most commodious both for the conjunction of his own forces which lay on both sides of Jordan; to prevent the conjunction of the Israelites in Canaan with their brethren beyond Jordan; and to secure his retreat into his own country.

Wesley: Jdg 3:14 - Eighteen years

The former servitude lasted but eight years; this eighteen: for if smaller troubles do not the work, God will send greater.

Wesley: Jdg 3:15 - A Benjamite

This tribe was next to Eglon, and doubtless most afflicted by him; and hence God raiseth a deliverer.

Wesley: Jdg 3:15 - Left handed

Which is here noted, as a considerable circumstance in the following story.

Wesley: Jdg 3:16 - A cubit length

Long enough for his design, and not too long for concealment.

Wesley: Jdg 3:16 - His right thigh

Which was most convenient both for the use of his left hand, and for avoiding suspicion.

Wesley: Jdg 3:17 - The present

Which was to be paid to him as a part of his tribute.

Wesley: Jdg 3:18 - Sent the people

He accompanied them part of the way, and then dismissed them, and returned to Eglon alone, that so he might have more easy access to him.

Wesley: Jdg 3:19 - Turned again

As if he had forgot some important business.

Wesley: Jdg 3:19 - Keep silence

'Till my servants be gone: whom he would not have acquainted with a business which he supposed to be of great importance.

Wesley: Jdg 3:20 - A summer parlour

Into which he used to retire from company: which is mentioned as the reason why his servants waited so long ere they went in to him, Jdg 3:25.

Wesley: Jdg 3:20 - A message

To be delivered not in words, but by actions. He designedly uses the name Elohim, which was common to the true God, and false ones; and not Jehovah, which was peculiar to the true God; because Ehud not knowing whether the message came; not from his own false god, he would more certainly rise, and thereby give Ehud more advantage for his blow; whereas he would possibly shew his contempt of the God of Israel by sitting still to hear his message.

Wesley: Jdg 3:20 - He arose

In token of reverence to God.

Wesley: Jdg 3:23 - Went forth

With a composed countenance and gait, being well assured, that God, who by his extraordinary call had put him upon that enterprise, would by his special providence carry him through it.

Wesley: Jdg 3:23 - Upon him

Upon or after himself.

Wesley: Jdg 3:23 - Locked them

Either pulling it close after him, as we do when doors have spring locks; or taking the key with him.

Wesley: Jdg 3:24 - Covereth his feet

This phrase is used only here, and 1Sa 24:3. A late judicious interpreter expounds it, of composing himself to take a little sleep, as was very usual to do in the day - time in those hot countries. And when they did so in cool places, such as this summer parlour unquestionably was, they used to cover their feet. And this may seem to be the more probable, both because the summer parlour was proper for this use, and because this was a more likely reason of their long waiting at his door, lest they should disturb his repose. And this sense best agrees with Saul's case in the cave, when being asleep, David could more securely cut off the lap of his garment.

Wesley: Jdg 3:25 - Ashamed

Or, confounded, not knowing what to say or think; lest they should either disturb him, or be guilty of neglect towards him.

Wesley: Jdg 3:25 - A key

Another key, it being usual in princes courts to have divers keys for the same door.

Wesley: Jdg 3:27 - The children of Israel

Whom doubtless he had prepared by his emissaries gathered together in considerable numbers.

Wesley: Jdg 3:28 - Fords of Jordan

Where they passed over Jordan, that neither the Moabites that were got into Canaan, might escape, nor any more Moabites come over Jordan to their succour.

Wesley: Jdg 3:30 - Fourscore years

Chiefly that part of it which lay east of Jordan: for the other side of the country, which lay south - west, was even then infested by the Philistines.

Wesley: Jdg 3:31 - An ox goad

As Samson did a thousand with the jaw - bone of an ass; both being miraculous actions, and not at all incredible to him that believes a God, who could easily give strength to effect this. It is probable Shamgar was following the plough, when the Philistines made an inroad into the country. And having neither sword nor spear, when God put it into his heart to oppose them, he took the instrument that was next at hand. It is no matter how weak the weapon is, if God direct and strengthen the arm.

JFB: Jdg 3:1 - these are the nations which the Lord left, to prove Israel

This was the special design of these nations being left, and it evinces the direct influence of the theocracy under which the Israelites were placed. These nations were left for a double purpose: in the first instance, to be instrumental, by their inroads, in promoting the moral and spiritual discipline of the Israelites; and also to subserve the design of making them acquainted with war, in order that the young, more especially, who were total strangers to it, might learn the use of weapons and the art of wielding them.

JFB: Jdg 3:5-7 - the children of Israel dwelt among the Canaanites

The two peoples by degrees came to be on habits of intercourse. Reciprocal alliances were formed by marriage till the Israelites, relaxing the austerity of their principles, showed a growing conformity to the manners and worship of their idolatrous neighbors.

JFB: Jdg 3:8-11 - sold them

That is, "delivered them"

JFB: Jdg 3:8-11 - into the hand of Chushan-rishathaim

Or, Chushan, "the wicked." This name had been probably given him from his cruel and impious character.

JFB: Jdg 3:8-11 - served Chushan-rishathaim eight years

By the payment of a stipulated tribute yearly, the raising of which must have caused a great amount of labor and privation.

JFB: Jdg 3:9 - when the children of Israel cried unto the Lord

In their distress they had recourse to earnest prayer, accompanied by humble and penitent confession of their errors.

JFB: Jdg 3:9 - Othniel

(See on Jos 15:16; Jdg 1:13). His military experience qualified him for the work, while the gallant exploits he was known to have performed, gained him the full confidence of his countrymen in his ability as a leader.

JFB: Jdg 3:10 - The Spirit of the Lord came upon him and he judged Israel, and went out to war

Impelled by a supernatural influence, he undertook the difficult task of government at this national crisis--addressing himself to promote a general reformation of manners, the abolition of idolatry, and the revival of pure religion. After these preliminary measures, he collected a body of choice warriors to expel the foreign oppressors.

JFB: Jdg 3:10 - the Lord delivered Chushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand; and his hand prevailed against Chushan-rishathaim

No details are given of this war, which, considering the resources of so potent a monarch, must have been a determined struggle. But the Israelitish arms were crowned through the blessing of God with victory, and Canaan regained its freedom and independence.

JFB: Jdg 3:11 - Othniel . . . died

How powerful the influence of one good man is, in church or state, is best found in his loss [BISHOP HALL].

JFB: Jdg 3:12-14 - the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the Lord

The Israelites, deprived of the moral and political influences of Othniel, were not long in following their native bias to idolatry.

JFB: Jdg 3:12-14 - the Lord strengthened Eglon the king of Moab

The reigning monarch's ambition was to recover that extensive portion of his ancient territory possessed by the Israelites. In conjunction with his neighbors, the Ammonites and the Amalekites, sworn enemies of Israel, he first subjected the eastern tribes; then crossing the Jordan, he made a sudden incursion on western Canaan, and in virtue of his conquests, erected fortifications in the territory adjoining Jericho [JOSEPHUS], to secure the frontier, and fixed his residence there. This oppressor was permitted, in the providence of God, to triumph for eighteen years.

JFB: Jdg 3:15 - Ehud the son of Gera

Descended from Gera, one of Benjamin's sons (Gen 46:21).

JFB: Jdg 3:15 - left-handed

This peculiarity distinguished many in the Benjamite tribe (Jdg 20:16). But the original word is rendered in some versions "both-handed," a view countenanced by 1Ch 12:2.

JFB: Jdg 3:15 - by him the children of Israel sent a present unto Eglon the king of Moab

The yearly tribute, which, according to Eastern fashion, would be borne with ostentatious ceremony and offered (Jdg 3:18) by several messengers.

JFB: Jdg 3:16 - Ehud made him a dagger . . . and he did gird it . . . upon his right thigh

The sword was usually worn on the left side; so that Ehud's was the more likely to escape detection.

JFB: Jdg 3:19 - quarries

Rather, "graven images" (Deu 7:25; Jer 8:19; Jer 51:52); statues of Moabite idols, the sight of which kindled the patriotic zeal of Ehud to avenge this public insult to Israel on its author.

JFB: Jdg 3:19 - I have a secret errand unto thee, O king: who said, Keep silence

"Privacy"--a signal for all to withdraw.

JFB: Jdg 3:20 - a summer parlour

Hebrew, "chamber of cooling"--one of those retired edifices which Oriental grandees usually have in their gardens, and in which they repose during the heat of the day.

JFB: Jdg 3:21-26 - Ehud put forth his left hand

The whole circumstance of this daring act--the death of Eglon without a shriek, or noise--the locking of the doors--the carrying off the key--the calm, unhurried deportment of Ehud--show the strength of his confidence that he was doing God service.

JFB: Jdg 3:27 - he blew a trumpet in the mountain of Ephraim

Summoned to arms the people of that mountainous region, which, adjoining the territory of Benjamin, had probably suffered most from the grievous oppression of the Moabites.

JFB: Jdg 3:28 - they went down after him, and took the fords

(See on Jos 2:7). With the view of preventing all escape to the Moabite coast, and by the slaughter of ten thousand men [Jdg 3:29], Ehud rescued his country from a state of ignominious vassalage.

JFB: Jdg 3:31 - after him was Shamgar

No notice is given of the tribe or family of this judge; and from the Philistines being the enemy that roused him into public service, the suffering seems to have been local--confined to some of the western tribes.

JFB: Jdg 3:31 - slew . . . six hundred men with an oxgoad

This instrument is eight feet long and about six inches in circumference. It is armed at the lesser end with a sharp prong for driving the cattle, and on the other with a small iron paddle for removing the clay which encumbers the plough in working. Such an instrument, wielded by a strong arm, would do no mean execution. We may suppose, however, for the notice is very fragmentary, that Shamgar was only the leader of a band of peasants, who by means of such implements of labor as they could lay hold of at the moment, achieved the heroic exploit recorded.

Clarke: Jdg 3:1 - Now these are the nations

Now these are the nations - The nations left to prove the Israelites were the five lordships or satrapies of the Philistines, viz., Gath, Askelon, Ashdod, Ekron, and Gaza; the Sidonians, the Hivites of Lebanon, Baal-hermon, etc.; with the remains of the Canaanites, viz., the Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, and Jebusites. Those who were left to be proved were those Israelites that had not seen all the wars of Canaan.

Clarke: Jdg 3:2 - That - Israel might know, to teach them war

That - Israel might know, to teach them war - This was another reason why the Canaanites were left in the land, that the Israelites might not forget military discipline, but habituate themselves to the use of arms, that they might always be able to defend themselves against their foes. Had they been faithful to God, they would have had no need of learning the art of war; but now arms became a sort of necessary substitute for that spiritual strength which had departed from them. Thus Gods in his judgments leaves one iniquitous nation to harass and torment another. Were all to turn to God, men need learn war no more.

Clarke: Jdg 3:4 - To know whether they would hearken

To know whether they would hearken - This would be the consequence of the Canaanites being left among them: if they should be faithful to God, their enemies would not be able to enslave them; should they be rebellious, the Lord would abandon them to their foes.

Clarke: Jdg 3:6 - And they took their daughters

And they took their daughters - They formed matrimonial alliances with those proscribed nations, served their idols, and thus became one with them in politics and religion.

Clarke: Jdg 3:7 - Served Baalim and the groves

Served Baalim and the groves - No groves were ever worshipped, but the deities who were supposed to be resident in them; and in many cases temples and altars were built in groves, and the superstition of consecrating groves and woods to the honor of the deities was a practice very usual with the ancients. Pliny assures us that trees, in old times, served for the temples of the gods. Tacitus reports this custom of the old Germans; Quintus Curtius, of the Indians; and Caesar, and our old writers, mention the same of the Druids in Britain. The Romans were admirers of this way of worship and therefore had their luci or groves in most parts of the city, dedicated to some deity. But it is very probable that the word אשרות asheroth which we translate groves, is a corruption of the word עשתרות ashtaroth , the moon or Venus, (see on Jdg 2:13 (note)), which only differs in the letters ע ת, from the former. Ashtaroth is read in this place by the Chaldee Targum, the Syriac, the Arabic, and the Vulgate, and by one of Dr. Kennicott’ s MSS.

Clarke: Jdg 3:8 - Chushan-rishathaim

Chushan-rishathaim - Kushan, the wicked or impious; and so the word is rendered by the Chaldee Targum, the Syriac, and the Arabic, wherever it occurs in this chapter

Clarke: Jdg 3:8 - King of Mesopotamia

King of Mesopotamia - King of ארם נהרים Aram naharayim , "Syria of the two rivers;"translated Mesopotamia by the Septuagint and Vulgate. It was the district situated between the Tigris and Euphrates, called by the Arabian geographers Maverannaher, "the country beyond the river,"it is now called Diarbek. See the note on Act 2:9

Clarke: Jdg 3:8 - Served Chushan - eight years

Served Chushan - eight years - He overran their country, and forced them to pay a very heavy tribute.

Clarke: Jdg 3:9 - Raised up - Othniel, the son of Kenaz

Raised up - Othniel, the son of Kenaz - This noble Hebrew was of the tribe of Judah, and nephew and son-in-law to Caleb, whose praise stands without abatement in the sacred records. Othniel had already signalized his valor in taking Kirjath-sepher, which appears to have been a very hazardous exploit. By his natural valor, experience in war, and the peculiar influence of the Divine Spirit, he was well qualified to inspire his countrymen with courage, and to lead them successfully against their oppressors.

Clarke: Jdg 3:10 - His hand prevailed

His hand prevailed - We are not told or what nature this war was, but it was most decisive; and the consequence was an undisturbed peace of forty years, during the whole life of Othniel. By the Spirit of the Lord coming upon him, the Chaldee understands the spirit of prophecy; others understand the spirit of fortitude and extraordinary courage, as opposed to the spirit of fear or faintness of heart; but as Othniel was judge, and had many offices to fulfill besides that of a general, he had need of the Spirit of God, in the proper sense of the word, to enable him to guide and govern this most refractory and fickle people; and his receiving it for these purposes, shows that the political state of the Jews was still a theocracy. No man attempted to do any thing in that state without the immediate inspiration of God, the pretension to which was always justified by the event.

Clarke: Jdg 3:12 - The children of Israel did evil

The children of Israel did evil - They forgat the Lord and became idolaters, and God made those very people, whom they had imitated in their idolatrous worship, the means of their chastisement

Clarke: Jdg 3:12 - The Lord strengthened Eglon the king of Moab

The Lord strengthened Eglon the king of Moab - The success he had against the Israelites was by the especial appointment and energy of God

He not only abandoned the Israelites, but strengthened the Moabites against them. Eglon is supposed to have been the immediate successor of Balak. Some great men have borne names which, when reduced to their grammatical meaning, appear very ridiculous: the word עגלון Eglon signifies a little calf!

Clarke: Jdg 3:13 - The city of palm trees

The city of palm trees - This the Targum renders the city of Jericho; but Jericho had been destroyed by Joshua, and certainly was not rebuilt till the reign of Ahab, long after this, 1Ki 16:34. However, as Jericho is expressly called the city of palm trees, Deu 34:3, the city in question must have been in the vicinity or plain of Jericho, and the king of Moab had seized it as a frontier town contiguous to his own estates. Calmet supposes that the city of palm trees means En-gaddi.

Clarke: Jdg 3:15 - Ehud the son of Gera - a man left handed

Ehud the son of Gera - a man left handed - איש אטר יד ימינו ish itter yad yemino , a man lame in his right hand, and therefore obliged to use his left. The Septuagint render it ανδρα αμφοτεροδεξιον, an ambidexter, a man who could use both hands alike. The Vulgate, qui utraque manu pro dextera utebatur , a man who could use either hand as a right hand, or to whom right and left were equally ready. This is not the sense of the original, but it is the sense in which most interpreters understand it. It is well known that to be an ambidexter was in high repute among the ancients: Hector boasts of it: -

Αυταρ εγων εν οιδα μαχας τ, ανδροκτασιας τε·

Οιδ ’ επι δεξια, οιδ ’ επ ’ αριστερα νωμησαι βων

Αζαλεην, το μοι εστι ταλαυρινον πολεμιζειν.

Iliad, lib. vii., ver. 237

"But am in arms well practiced; many a Gree

Hath bled by me, and I can shift my shiel

From right to left; reserving to the las

Force that suffices for severest toil.

Cowper

Asteropaeus is also represented by Homer as an ambidexter, from which he derives great advantages in fight: -

Ὡς φατ ’ απειλησας· ὁ δ ’ ανεσχετο διος Αχιλλευς

Πηλιαδα μελιην· ὁ δ ’ ὁμαρτη δουρασιν αμφις

Ἡρως Αστεροπαιος, επει περιδεξιος ηε.

Iliad, lib. xxi., ver. 161

So threatened he. Then raised Achilles hig

The Pelian ash: - and his two spears at onc

Alike, (a practiced warrior), with both hand

Asteropaeus hurled.

Cowper

We are informed by Aristotle, that Plato recommended to all soldiers to acquire by study and exercise an equal facility of using both hands. Speaking of Plato, he says: Και την εν τοις πολεμικοισασκεσιν, ὁπως αμφιδεξιοι γινωνται κατα την μελετην, ὡς δεον μη την μεν χρησιμον ειναι ταιν χεροιν, την δε αχρηστον . - De Repub., lib. ii., cap. 12. "He (Plato) also made a law concerning their warlike exercises, that they should acquire a habit of using both hands alike; as it is not fit that one of the hands should be useful and the other useless."In Jdg 20:16 of this book we have an account of seven hundred men of Benjamin, each of whom was אטר יד ימינו itter yad yemino , lame of his right hand, and yet slinging stones to a hair’ s breadth without missing: these are generally thought to be ambidexters

Clarke: Jdg 3:15 - Sent a present unto Eglon

Sent a present unto Eglon - This is generally understood to be the tribute money which the king of Moab had imposed on the Israelites.

Clarke: Jdg 3:16 - A dagger which had two edges, of a cubit length

A dagger which had two edges, of a cubit length - The word גמד gomed , which we translate cubit, is of very doubtful signification. As the root seems to signify contracted, it probably means an instrument made for the purpose shorter than usual, and something like the Italian stiletto. The Septuagint translate it by σπιθαμη, a span, and most of the versions understand it in the same sense

Clarke: Jdg 3:16 - Upon his right thigh

Upon his right thigh - Because he was left-handed. Ordinarily the sword is on the left side, that it may be readily drawn out by the right hand; but as Ehud was left-handed, to be convenient his sword must be on the right side.

Clarke: Jdg 3:17 - Eglon was a very fat man

Eglon was a very fat man - The איש בריא ish bari of the text is translated by the Septuagint ανηρ αστειος σφοδρα, a very beautiful or polite man, and in the Syriac, a very rude man. It probably means what we call lusty or corpulent.

Clarke: Jdg 3:18 - Made an end to offer the present

Made an end to offer the present - Presents, tribute, etc., in the eastern countries were offered with very great ceremony; and to make the more parade several persons, ordinarily slaves, sumptuously dressed, and in considerable number, were employed to carry what would not be a burden even to one. This appears to have been the case in the present instance.

Clarke: Jdg 3:19 - He - turned - from the quarries

He - turned - from the quarries - פסילים pesilim . Some of the versions understand this word as meaning idols or graven images, or some spot where the Moabites had a place of idolatrous worship. As פסל pasal signifies to cut, hew, or engrave, it may be applied to the images thus cut, or to the place, or quarry whence they were digged: but it is most likely that idols are meant. Some think that trenches are meant, and that pesilim here may mean the boundaries of the two countries: and when Ehud had got thus far, he sent away the people that were with him, under pretense of having a secret message to Eglon, and so got rid of his attendants, in presence of whom he could not have executed his scheme, nor have secured his escape afterwards. But I do not see the evidence of this mode of interpretation.

Clarke: Jdg 3:20 - He was sitting in a summer parlor

He was sitting in a summer parlor - Besides the platforms, says Dr. Shaw, which were upon the ancient houses of the East, and which are found there to this day, it is probable that heretofore, as well as at present, most of the great houses had a smaller one annexed, which seldom consisted of more than one or two rooms and a terrace. Others, built as they frequently are above the porch or gateway, have, if we except the ground-floor, all the conveniences belonging to the house, properly so called. There is a door of communication from them into the gallery of the house, kept open or shut at the discretion of the master of the house, besides another door which opens immediately from a privy stairs down into the porch or street, without giving the least disturbance to the house. In these back houses strangers are usually lodged and entertained; hither the men are wont to retire from the hurry and noise of their families, to be more at leisure for meditation or diversions; and they are often used for wardrobes and magazines. These the Arabs call oleah , which exactly answers to the Hebrew word עלית aliyath found in this place; and without doubt such was the apartment in which Eglon received Ehud, by the privy stairs belonging to which he escaped, after having killed Eglon. The doors of the Eastern buildings are large, and their chambers spacious, conveniences well adapted to those hotter climates; but in the present passage something more seems to be meant; at least there are now other conveniences in the East to give coolness to particular rooms, which are very common. In Egypt the cooling their rooms is effected by openings at the top, which let in the fresh air. Mons. Maillet informs us that their halls are made very large and lofty, with a dome at the top, which towards the north has several open windows, so constructed as to throw the north wind down into the rooms; and by this means, though the country is excessively hot, they can make the coolness of those apartments so great, as often not to be borne without being wrapped in furs. Eglon’ s was a chamber; and some contrivance to mitigate the heat of it was the more necessary, as he appears to have kept his court at Jericho, Jdg 3:13, Jdg 3:28, where the heat is so excessive as sometimes to prove fatal. See Harmer’ s Observations

Clarke: Jdg 3:20 - I have a message from God unto thee

I have a message from God unto thee - דבר אלהים לי אליך debar elohim li aleycha , a word of the gods to me, unto thee. It is very likely that the word elohim is used here to signify idols, or the pesilim mentioned above, Jdg 3:19. Ehud, having gone so far as this place of idolatry, might feign he had there been worshipping, and that the pesilim had inspired him with a message for the king; and this was the reason why the king commanded silence, why every man went out, and why he rose from his seat or throne, that he might receive it with the greater respect. This, being an idolater, he would not have done to any message coming from the God of Israel. I have a message from God unto thee is a popular text: many are fond of preaching from it. Now as no man should ever depart from the literal meaning of Scripture in his preaching, we may at once see the absurdity of taking such a text as this; for such preachers, to be consistent, should carry a two-edged dagger of a cubit length on their right thigh, and be ready to thrust it into the bowels of all those they address! This is certainly the literal meaning of the passage, and that it has no other meaning is an incontrovertible truth.

Clarke: Jdg 3:22 - The haft also went in after the blade

The haft also went in after the blade - As the instrument was very short, and Eglon very corpulent, this might readily take place

Clarke: Jdg 3:22 - And the dirt came out

And the dirt came out - This is variously understood: either the contents of the bowels issued through the wound, or he had an evacuation in the natural way through the fright and anguish. The original, פרשדונה parshedonah , occurs only here, and is supposed to be compounded of פרש peresh , dung, and שדה shadah , to shed, and may be very well applied to the latter circumstance; so the Vulgate understood it: Statinque per secreta naturae alvi stercora proruperunt .

Clarke: Jdg 3:24 - He covereth his feet

He covereth his feet - He has lain down on his sofa in order to sleep; when this was done they dropped their slippers, lifted up their feet, and covered them with their long loose garments. But the versions, in general, seem to understand it as implying a certain natural act.

Clarke: Jdg 3:26 - Passed beyond the quarries

Passed beyond the quarries - Beyond the pesilim , which appear to have been the Moabitish borders, where they had set up those hewn stones as landmarks, or sacred boundary stones.

Clarke: Jdg 3:28 - Took the fords of Jordan

Took the fords of Jordan - It is very likely that the Moabites, who were on the western side of Jordan, hearing of the death of Eglon, were panic-struck, and endeavored to escape over Jordan at the fords near Jericho, when Ehud blew his trumpet in the mountains of Ephraim, and thus to get into the land of the Moabites, which lay on the east of Jordan; but Ehud and his men, seizing the only pass by which they could make their escape, slew ten thousand of them in their attempt to cross at those fords. What is called here the fords was doubtless the place where the Israelites had passed Jordan when they (under Joshua) took possession of the promised land.

Clarke: Jdg 3:29 - All lusty, and all men of valor

All lusty, and all men of valor - Picked, chosen troops, which Eglon kept among the Israelites to reduce and overawe them.

Clarke: Jdg 3:30 - The land had rest fourscore years

The land had rest fourscore years - This is usually reckoned from the deliverance under Othniel, that being a term from which they dated every transaction, as in other cases they dated from the exodus, from the building of Solomon’ s temple, etc., and as other nations did from particular events: the Romans, from the building of the city; the Mohammedans, from the Hijreh, or flight of Mohammed to Medina; the Christians, from the birth of Christ, etc., etc. But see the preface, and the different chronological schemes there mentioned.

Clarke: Jdg 3:31 - And after him was Shamgar the son of Anath

And after him was Shamgar the son of Anath - Dr. Hales supposes that "Shamgar’ s administration in the West included Ehud’ s administration of eighty years in the East; and that, as this administration might have been of some continuance, so this Philistine servitude which is not noticed elsewhere, might have been of some duration; as may be incidentally collected from Deborah’ s thanksgiving, Jdg 5:6.

Clarke: Jdg 3:31 - Slew - six hundred men with an ox-goad

Slew - six hundred men with an ox-goad - מלמד הבקר malmad habbakar , the instructer of the oxen. This instrument is differently understood by the versions: the Vulgate has vomere , with the coulter or ploughshare, a dreadful weapon in the hand of a man endued with so much strength; the Septuagint has αροτροποδι των βοων, with the ploughshare of the oxen; the Chaldee, Syriac, and Arabic, understand it of the goad, as does our translation

1.    That the ox-goad, still used in Palestine, is a sufficiently destructive weapon if used by a strong and skillful hand, is evident enough from the description which Mr. Maundrell gives of this implement, having seen many of them both in Palestine and Syria: "It was observable,"says he, "that in ploughing they used goads of an extraordinary size; upon measuring of several I found them about eight feet long, and at the bigger end about six inches in circumference. They were armed at the lesser end with a sharp prickle for driving the oxen, and at the other end with a small spade or paddle of iron, strong and massy, for cleansing the plough from the clay that encumbers it in working."See his Journey from Aleppo, etc., 7th edit., pp. 110, 111. In the hands of a strong, skillful man, such an instrument must be more dangerous and more fatal than any sword. It is worthy of remark that the ox-goad is represented by Homer to have been used prior to this time in the same way. In the address of Diomed to Glaucus, Iliad. lib. vi., ver. 129, Lycurgus is represented as discomfiting Bacchus and the Bacchanals with this weapon. The siege of Troy, according to the best chronologers, happened within the time of the Israelitish judges

Ουκ αν εγωγε θεοισιν επουρανιοισι μαχοιμην·

Ουδε γαρ ουδε Δρυαντος υἱος κρατερος Λυκουργος

Σευε κατ ’ ηγαθεον Νυσσηΐον· αἱ δ ’ ἁμα πασα

Θυσθλα χαμαι κατεχευαν, ὑπ ’ ανδροφονοιο Λυκουργο

Θεινομεναι βουπληγι.

"I fight not with the inhabitants of heaven

That war Lycurgus, son of Dryas, waged

Nor long survived. - From Nyssa’ s sacred height

He drove the nurses of the frantic god

Thought drowning Bacchus: to the ground they cas

All cast, their leafy wands; while, ruthless, h

Spared not to smite them with his murderous goad.

The meaning of this fable is: Lycurgus, king of Thrace, finding his subjects addicted to drunkenness, proscribed the cultivation of the vine in his dominions, and instituted agriculture in its stead; thus θυσθλα, the thyrsi , were expelled, βουπληγι, by the ox-goad. The account, however, shows that Shamgar was not the only person who used the ox-goad as an offensive weapon. If we translate βουπληξ a cart-whip, the parallel is lost

2.    It appears that Shamgar was merely a laboring man; that the Philistines were making an inroad on the Israelites when the latter were cultivating their fields; that Shamgar and his neighbors successfully resisted them; that they armed themselves with their more portable agricultural instruments; and that Shamgar, either with a ploughshare or an ox-goad, slew six hundred of those marauders

3.    The case of Ehud killing Eglon is a very serious one; and how far he was justified in this action is with all a question of importance, and with not a few a question of difficulty. "Is it right to slay a tyrant?"I, without hesitation, answer, No individual has a right to slay any man, except it be in his own defense, when a person attacks him in order to take away his life. "But may not any of his oppressed subjects put an end to the life of a tyrant?"No. The state alone can judge whether a king is ruling contrary to the laws and constitution of that state; and if that state have provided laws for the punishment of a ruler who is endeavoring to destroy or subvert that constitution, then let him be dealt with according to those laws. But no individual or number of individuals in that state has any right to dispose of the life of the ruler but according to law. To take his life in any other way is no less than murder. It is true God, the author of life and the judge of all men, may commission one man to take away the life of a tyrant. But the pretension to such a commission must be strong, clear, and unequivocal; in short, if a man think he have such a commission, to be safe, he should require the Lord to give him as full an evidence of it as he did to Moses; and when such a person comes to the people, they should require him to give as many proofs of his Divine call as the Hebrews did Moses, before they should credit his pretensions. "But had not Ehud a Divine call?"I cannot tell. If he had, he did not murder Eglon; if he had not, his act, however it succeeded, was a murderous act; and if he had no message from God, (and there is no proof that he had), then he was a most base and hypocritical assassin. The sacred historian says nothing of his motives nor call; he mentions simply the fact, and leaves it without either observation or comment, and every reader is left to draw his own inference. The life of any ruler can only be at the disposal of the constitution, or that system of rules, laws, and regulations, by which the people he rules should be governed; if he rule not according to these, he is, ipso facto, deposed from his government. If he break the constitution, to the great injury or ruin of his subjects, then he is to be judged by those laws according to which he must have pledged himself to govern. If a king be deposed on any other account, it is rebellion. If his life be taken away by any means but those provided by the constitution, it is murder. No pretended or proved tyranny can justify his being taken off in any other way, or on any other account. And what constitution in the civilized world provides for the death of the supreme magistrate? It is true the good people, as they were called, of England and France, have each under a pretense of law, beheaded their king; and they endeavored to justify their conduct on the ground that those kings had broken the constitution: this being proved, they should have been deposed. But by what law, either of those nations or of the civilized world, were their lives taken away? Let it be remembered that the inflation of the punishment of death, either against or without law, is murder.

Defender: Jdg 3:14 - eighteen years

The listed periods of servitude in the book of Judges total 111 years and included subjection to no less than nine different nations. Israel's periods of apostasy were costly."

TSK: Jdg 3:1 - the nations // prove // as had not

am 2561, bc 1443, An, Ex, Is, 48

the nations : Jdg 2:21, Jdg 2:22; Deu 7:22

prove : Deu 8:2, Deu 8:16; 2Ch 32:31; Job 23:10; Pro 17:3; Jer 6:27, Jer 17:9, Jer 17:10; Zec 13:9; Joh 2:24; 1Pe 1:7, 1Pe 4:12; Rev 2:23

as had not : Jdg 2:10

TSK: Jdg 3:2 - might know // to teach

might know : Gen 2:17, Gen 3:5, Gen 3:7; 2Ch 12:8; Mat 10:34-39; Joh 16:33; 1Co 9:26, 1Co 9:27; Eph 6:11-18; 1Ti 6:12; 2Ti 2:3, 2Ti 4:7

to teach : Their fathers fought by a divine power. God taught their hands to war and their fingers to fight, that they might be the instruments of destruction to the wicked nations on whom the curse rested; but now that they had forfeited His favour, they must learn what it is to fight like other men.

TSK: Jdg 3:3 - five lords // Canaanites // Sidonians // in mount

five lords : Jdg 10:7, Jdg 14:4; Jos 13:3; 1Sa 4:1, 1Sa 4:2, 1Sa 6:18, 1Sa 13:5, 1Sa 13:19-23, 1Sa 29:2

Canaanites : Jdg 4:2, Jdg 4:23, Jdg 4:24; Gen 10:15-19; Num 13:29

Sidonians : Jdg 10:12, Jdg 18:7; Gen 49:13; Jos 11:8-13, Jos 19:28

in mount : Num 34:8; Deu 1:7, Deu 3:9; Jos 11:3, Jos 13:5

TSK: Jdg 3:4 - to prove

to prove : Jdg 3:1, Jdg 2:22; Exo 15:25; Deu 33:8; 1Co 11:19; 2Th 2:9-12

TSK: Jdg 3:5 - dwelt // Canaanites

dwelt : Jdg 1:29-32; Psa 106:34-38

Canaanites : Gen 10:15-18, Gen 15:19-21; Exo 3:8, Exo 3:17; Deu 7:1; Jos 9:1; Neh 9:8

TSK: Jdg 3:6

Exo 34:16; Deu 7:3, Deu 7:4; 1Ki 11:1-5; Ezr 9:11, Ezr 9:12; Neh 13:23-27; Eze 16:3

TSK: Jdg 3:7 - did evil // the groves

did evil : Jdg 3:12, Jdg 2:11-13

the groves : Jdg 6:25; Exo 34:13; Deu 16:21; 1Ki 16:33, 1Ki 18:19; 2Ki 23:6, 2Ki 23:14; 2Ch 15:16, 2Ch 24:18, 2Ch 33:3, 2Ch 33:19, 2Ch 34:3, 2Ch 34:7

TSK: Jdg 3:8 - was hot // he sold // Chushanrishathaim // Mesopotamia

am 2591, bc 1413, An, Ex, Is, 78

was hot : Jdg 2:14, Jdg 2:20; Exo 22:24; Deu 29:20; Psa 6:1, Psa 85:3

he sold : Jdg 2:14, Jdg 4:9; Deu 32:30; 1Sa 12:9; Isa 50:1; Rom 7:14

Chushanrishathaim : Hab 3:7

Mesopotamia : Heb. Aram -naharaim . Aram-naharayim, ""Syria of the two rivers,""or Mesopotamia, ""between the rivers,""is a famous province situated between the Tigris and Euphrates. It is called by Arabian geographers, Maverannaher , ""the country beyond the river;""and is now called Diarbek.

TSK: Jdg 3:9 - cried // raised up // deliverer // Othniel

am 2599, bc 1405, An, Ex, Is, 86

cried : Jdg 3:15, Jdg 4:3, Jdg 6:7, Jdg 10:10; 1Sa 12:10; Neh 9:27; Psa 22:5, Psa 78:34, Psa 106:41-44; Psa 107:13-19

raised up : Jdg 2:16

deliverer : Heb. saviour

Othniel : Jdg 1:13

TSK: Jdg 3:10 - the Spirit // came // Mesopotamia

the Spirit : Jdg 6:34, Jdg 11:29, Jdg 13:25, Jdg 14:6, Jdg 14:19; Num 11:17, Num 27:18; 1Sa 10:6, 1Sa 11:6, 1Sa 16:13; 2Ch 15:1, 2Ch 20:14; Psa 51:11; 1Co 12:4-11; Heb 6:4

came : Heb. was

Mesopotamia : Heb. Aram

TSK: Jdg 3:11 - the land // Othniel

the land : Jdg 3:30, Jdg 5:31, Jdg 8:28; Jos 11:23; Est 9:22

Othniel : Jdg 3:9; Jos 15:17; 1Ch 4:13

TSK: Jdg 3:12 - did evil // and the Lord // the king

am 2662, bc 1342, An, Ex, Is, 148

did evil : Jdg 2:19; Hos 6:4

and the Lord : Exo 9:16; 2Ki 5:1; Isa 10:15, Isa 37:26, Isa 45:1-4; Eze 38:16; Dan 4:22; Dan 5:18; Joh 19:11

the king : 1Sa 12:9

TSK: Jdg 3:13 - Ammon // the city

Ammon : Jdg 5:14; Psa 83:6

the city : Jdg 1:16; Deu 34:3; Psa 83:7

TSK: Jdg 3:14 - served

served : Lev 26:23-25; Deu 28:40, Deu 28:47, Deu 28:48

TSK: Jdg 3:15 - cried unto // a Benjamite // lefthanded // sent a present

am 2679, bc 1325, An, Ex, Is, 166

cried unto : Jdg 3:9; Psa 50:15, Psa 78:34, Psa 90:15; Jer 29:12, Jer 29:13, Jer 33:3

a Benjamite : or, the son of Jemini

lefthanded : Heb. shut of his right hand, This Hebrew phrase intimates that, either through disease or disuse, he made little or no use of the right hand, but of his left only, and so was the less fit for war, because he would most likely wield a dagger awkwardlycaps1 . ycaps0 et God chose this left-handed man to be the minister of his retributive justice. It was God’ s right hand that gained Israel the victory, Psa 44:3; not the right hand of the instruments he employed. Jdg 20:16; 1Ch 12:2

sent a present : 1Sa 10:27; Pro 18:16, Pro 19:6, Pro 21:14; Isa 36:16

TSK: Jdg 3:16 - two edges // upon

two edges : Psa 149:6; Heb 4:12; Rev 1:16, Rev 2:12

upon : Jdg 3:21; Psa 45:3; Son 3:8

TSK: Jdg 3:17 - a very fat

a very fat : Jdg 3:29 *marg. 1Sa 2:29; Job 15:27; Psa 73:7, Psa 73:19; Jer 5:28, Jer 50:11; Eze 34:20

TSK: Jdg 3:19 - quarries // a secret // And all that

quarries : or graven images, Jos 4:20

a secret : Jdg 3:20; 2Ki 9:5, 2Ki 9:6; Act 23:18, Act 23:19

And all that : Gen 45:1

TSK: Jdg 3:20 - a summer parlour // I have // he arose

a summer parlour : Heb. a parlour of cooling, The aleeyah , or upper chamber, seems to have been of the same description as the oleah of the Arabs, but properly ventilated, described by Dr. Shaw, who says, that to most of their houses there is a smaller one annexed, which sometimes rises one story higher than the house; at other times, it consists of one or two rooms only, and a terrace; while others that are built, as they frequently are, over the porch or gateway, have, if we except the ground floor, which they want, all the conveniences that belong to the house itself. There is a door of communication from them into the gallery of the house; besides another, which opens immediately from a private staircase, down into the porch or street, without giving the least disturbance to the house. In these back houses strangers are usually lodged and entertained; and to them likewise the men are wont to retire from the noise and hurry of their families, to be more at leisure for mediation or diversions. Amo 3:15

I have : Jdg 3:19; 2Sa 12:1-15, 2Sa 24:12; Mic 6:9

he arose : Psa 29:1; Jer 10:7

TSK: Jdg 3:21 - thrust it

thrust it : Num 25:7, Num 25:8; 1Sa 15:33; Job 20:25; Zec 13:3; 2Co 5:16

TSK: Jdg 3:22 - the dirt came out

the dirt came out : or, it came out at the fundament, Jdg 3:22

TSK: Jdg 3:24 - covereth

covereth : etc. or, doeth his easement, 1Sa 24:3

TSK: Jdg 3:26 - the quarries

the quarries : Jdg 3:19

TSK: Jdg 3:27 - he blew // mountain

he blew : Jdg 5:14, Jdg 6:34; 1Sa 13:3; 2Sa 20:22; 2Ki 9:13

mountain : Jdg 7:24, Jdg 17:1, Jdg 19:1; Jos 17:15, Jos 17:18

TSK: Jdg 3:28 - Follow // the Lord // the fords

Follow : Jdg 4:10, Jdg 7:17

the Lord : Jdg 7:9, Jdg 7:15; 1Sa 17:47

the fords : Jdg 12:5; Jos 2:7

TSK: Jdg 3:29 - lusty

lusty : Heb. fat, Jdg 3:17; Deu 32:15; Job 15:27; Psa 17:10

TSK: Jdg 3:30 - And the land

And the land : Jdg 3:11, Jdg 5:31

TSK: Jdg 3:31 - Shamgar // an ox goad // also // Israel

Shamgar : Jdg 5:6, Jdg 5:8

an ox goad : This implement, Mr. Maundrell informs us, in Palestine and Syria is of an extraordinary size. He measured several, and ""found them about eight feet long; and at the bigger end about six inches in circumference. They were armed at the lesser end with a sharp prickle for driving the oxen; and at the other end with a small paddle of iron, strong and massive, for cleansing the plough from the clay. In the hand of a powerful man such an instrument must be more dangerous and fatal than a sword.""Jdg 15:15; 1Sa 13:19-22, 1Sa 17:47, 1Sa 17:50; 1Co 1:17

also : Jdg 2:16

Israel : ""So part is called Israel.""Jdg 4:1, 3-24, Jdg 10:7, Jdg 10:17, 11:4-33; 1Sa 4:1 ""It seems to concern only the country next to the Philistines.""

Tafsiran/Catatan -- Catatan Kata/Frasa (per Ayat)

Poole: Jdg 3:2 - Might know, to teach them war

Might know, to teach them war that by the neighbourhood of such warlike potent enemies, they might be purged from sloth and security, and obliged to inure themselves to martial exercises, and to stand continually upon their guard, and consequently to keep close to that God whose assistance they had so great and constant need of.

Poole: Jdg 3:3 - Five lords of the Philistines // The Canaanites // The Sidonians // Mount Baal-hermon

Five lords of the Philistines whereof three had been in some sort subdued, Jud 1:18 , but afterwards rescued themselves, and recovered their former strength. See Poole on "Jud 1:18" .

The Canaanites properly so called, who were very numerous, and dispersed through several parts of the land whence they gave denomination to all the rest of the people.

The Sidonians the people living near Sidon, and subject to its jurisdiction.

Mount Baal-hermon was the eastern part of Mount Lebanon: see Deu 3:8,9 .

Poole: Jdg 3:4 - To know

To know i.e. that they and others might know by experience.

Poole: Jdg 3:6

Were drawn to idolatry by the persuasions and examples of their yoke-fellows, through the just judgment of God, punishing their sinful marriages by giving them up to idolatry.

Poole: Jdg 3:7 - Baalim

i.e. In the groves, in which the heathens usually worshipped their Baalims or idols. Or, the groves are here put metonymically for the idols of the groves, which are distinguished here from their

Baalim which seem to have been worshipped in other places, as the prophets of Baal are distinguished from the prophets of the groves , 1Ki 18:19 .

Poole: Jdg 3:8

i.e. Were made subject and tributary to him.

Poole: Jdg 3:9 - Cried unto the Lord // Caleb’ s younger brother

Cried unto the Lord i.e. prayed fervently for deliverance.

Caleb’ s younger brother ; of which See Poole "Jud 1:13" .

Poole: Jdg 3:10 - The Spirit of the Lord came upon him // He judged Israel

The Spirit of the Lord came upon him with extraordinary influences, endowing him with singular wisdom, and courage, and resolution; and stirring him up to this great undertaking. Compare Jud 6:34 11:29 .

He judged Israel i.e. pleaded and avenged the cause of Israel against their oppressors; as that phrase is oft used, as Deu 32:36 Psa 10:18 43:1 .

Poole: Jdg 3:11 - The land had rest // the land

The land had rest either, first, It rested about forty years, or the greatest part of forty years; it being most frequent in Scripture to use numbers in such a latitude. Thus the Israelites are said to bear their iniquities forty years in the wilderness , Num 14:34 , when there wanted near two years of that number; and to dwell in Egypt four hundred and thirty years , when there wanted many years of that number. Thus Joseph’ s kindred , sent for and called by him into Egypt, are numbered seventy-five souls, Act 7:14 , although they were but seventy, as is affirmed, Gen 46:27 Exo 1:5 . So here

the land is said to

rest forty years , although they were in servitude eight of those years, Jud 3:8 . And in like manner the land is said to have rest eighty years , though eighteen of them they served the king of Moab, Jud 3:14 . And so in some other instances. Nor is it strange and unusual, either in Scripture or in other authors, for things to be denominated from the greater part, as here it was; especially when they did enjoy some degrees of rest and peace, even in their times of slavery, which here they did. Or, secondly, It rested , i.e. began to rest, or recovered its interrupted rest, in the fortieth year , either after Joshua’ s death, or after the first and famous rest procured for them by Joshua, as is noted, Heb 4:9 , when he destroyed and subdued the Canaanites, and gave them quiet possession of the land; and the land had rest from war , as is said, Jos 11:23 14:15 . So there is this difference between the years of servitude and oppression, and those of rest, that in the former he tells us how long it lasted; in the latter, when it began; by which, compared with the other years, it was easy also to know how long the rest lasted. To strengthen this interpretation, two things must be noted.

1. That resting is here put for beginning to rest, as to beget is put for beginning to beget , Gen 5:32 11:26 ; and to reign , for to begin to reign , 2Sa 2:10 ; and to build , 1Ki 6:15,36 , for to begin to build , 2Ch 3:1 .

2. That forty years is put for the fortieth year ; the cardinal number for the ordinal, which is common both in the Holy Scripture, as Gen 1:5 2:11 Exo 12:2 Hag 1:1 Mar 16:2 and in other authors.

Poole: Jdg 3:12 - Strengthened Eglon

Strengthened Eglon by giving him courage, and power, and success against them.

Poole: Jdg 3:13

i.e. Jericho, as may be gathered from Deu 24:3 Jud 1:16 2Ch 28:15 . Not the city, which was demolished, but the territory belonging to it. Here he fixed his camp, partly for the admirable fertility of that soil; and partly because of its nearness to the passage over Jordan, which was most commodious, both for the conjunction of his own forces, which lay on both sides of Jordan; and to prevent the conjunction of the Israelites in Canaan with their brethren beyond Jordan; and to secure his retreat into his own country, which therefore the Israelites prevented, Jud 3:28 .

Poole: Jdg 3:15 - A Benjamite // Left-handed

A Benjamite Heb. the son of Gemini , who was of the tribe of Benjamin, 2Sa 16:11 19:17 1Ki 2:8 . This tribe was next to him and doubtless most afflicted by him; and hence God raiseth a deliverer.

Left-handed which is here noted, partly as a mark of his courage, and strength, and activity; see Jud 20:16 ; and principally as a considerable circumstance in the following story, whereby he might more advantageously and unsuspectedly give the deadly blow.

Poole: Jdg 3:16 - A cubit length // Upon his right thigh

A cubit length long enough for his design, and not too long for carriage and concealment.

Upon his right thigh which was most convenient, both for the use of his left hand, and for the avoiding of suspicion.

Poole: Jdg 3:17 - The present // A very fat man

The present was to be paid to him as a part of his tribute.

A very fat man and therefore more unwieldy and unable to ward off Ehud’ s blow.

Poole: Jdg 3:18

He accompanied them part of the way, and then dismissed them, and returned to Eglon alone, that so he might have more easy access to him, and privacy with him; and that he might the better make his escape.

Poole: Jdg 3:19 - He turned again // From the quarries // Keep silence

He turned again as if he had forgot and neglected some important business.

From the quarries either, first, Whence they hewed stones. Or, secondly, The twelve stones which Joshua set up there; by the sight whereof he was animated to his work. Or, thirdly, The idols, as the word also signifies, which that heathen king might place there, either in spite and contempt to the Israelites, who had that place in great veneration; or that he might ascribe his conquest of the land to his idols, as the Israelites did to the true God, by setting up this monument in the entrance or beginning of it.

Keep silence till my servants be gone; whom he would not have acquainted with a business which he supposed to be of great and close importance.

Poole: Jdg 3:20 - Which he had for himself alone // I have a message // From God // He arose out of his seat

They had divers houses and chambers, some for winter , others for summer . See Jer 36:22 Amo 3:15 .

Which he had for himself alone into which he used to retire himself from company; which is mentioned as the reason why his servants waited so long ere they went in to him, Jud 3:25 .

I have a message to be delivered not in words, but by actions; Heb. a word , or thing , or business . So that there is no need to charge Ehud with a lie, as some do.

From God: this he saith to amuse him, by raising his expectation and wonder, to divert him from any apprehension of his danger, and to oblige him to rise out of his seat, which he knew he would do from the common practice of the heathens in their intercourses with God. And he designedly useth the name Elohim, which was common to the true God and false ones, and not Jehovah, which was peculiar to the true God, because Ehud not knowing whether the message came not from his own false god, he would more certainly rise, and thereby give Ehud more advantage for his blow; whereas he would possibly show his contempt of the God of Israel by sitting still to hear his message.

He arose out of his seat in token of humble subjection and reverence to God; see Num 23:18 2Ki 23:3 ; which condemns those Christians that behave themselves irreverently in the presence and service of the true God.

Poole: Jdg 3:22

i.e. His excrements came forth, not at the wound, which closed up, but at the fundament, as is usual when persons die either a natural or violent death.

Poole: Jdg 3:23 - Ehud went forth // Upon him // Locked them

Ehud went forth with a composed countenance and gait, without any fear; being well assured that God, who by his extraordinary call had put him upon that enterprise, would by his special providence preserve him, and carry him through it.

Upon him either upon the king, or upon or after himself.

Locked them either by pulling it close after him, as we do when doors have spring-locks; or by taking the key with him for more caution; and this he did, that they supposing the king to be retired, might wait till he was gone.

Poole: Jdg 3:24

Covereth his feet: this phrase is used only here and 1Sa 24:3 . It is commonly understood in both places, of easing nature; because the men not then wearing breeches, as we do, but long coats, they did in that act cover their feet, as women do: but a late judicious interpreter expounds it of composing himself to take a little sleep or rest, as was very usual to do in the day-time in those hot countries, 2Sa 4:5 11:2 . And when they did so in cool places, such as this summer parlour unquestionably was, they used to cover their feet, as appears from Rth 3:7 . And this may seem to be the more probable, both because the summer parlour was more proper for this use than for the former; and because this was a more likely reason of their long waiting at his door, lest they should disturb his repose. And this sense best agrees with Saul’ s case in the cave, when being asleep David could more securely cut off the lap of his garment, 1Sa 24:3 , where See Poole "1Sa 24:3" . annotations.

Poole: Jdg 3:25 - Ashamed // A key

Ashamed or, confounded , not knowing what to say or think; lest they should either disturb him, or be guilty of neglect towards him.

A key another key , it being usual in princes’ courts to have divers keys for the same door.

Poole: Jdg 3:27 - the children of Israel

Doubtless he had prepared

the children of Israel and by his emissaries gathered together in considerable numbers.

Poole: Jdg 3:28 - The fords

The fords where they passed over Jordan, that neither the Moabites that were got into Canaan might escape, nor any more Moabites come over Jordan to their succour.

Poole: Jdg 3:30

How these are to be understood, See Poole "Jud 3:11" . Instead of eighty , some copies read eight years.

Poole: Jdg 3:31 - Slew six hundred men with an ox-goad

Slew six hundred men with an ox-goad as Samson did a thousand with the jaw-bone of an ass; both being miraculous actions, and not at all incredible to him that believes a God, who could easily give strength both to the persons and to their weapons to effect this.

Haydock: Jdg 3:1 - With

With, &c. Hebrew [and] Protestants, "And the haft also went in after the blade, and the fat closed upon the blade, so that he could not draw the dagger out of his belly, and the dirt came out." By the word belly, the Jews mean all the vital parts. (Calmet) ---- The wound was so deep, that Aod did not think proper to strive long to extract his sword; and indeed, being all bloody, it would have only tended to excite suspicion. (Haydock) ---

The Chaldean agrees with the Vulgate in rendering parshedona "excrements," though it seem to be rather irregularly in construction with a masculine [], &c. If we should read peristana, "a porch," the difficulty would be avoided. (Calmet) ---

Septuagint, "( 23 ) and Aod went out into the porch, ( prostada ) and he shut the doors of the upper chamber....( 24 ) and he himself went out." (Haydock)

Haydock: Jdg 3:1 - Instruct // And all // He that hath been experienced in many things, multiplieth prudence

Instruct. The original is translated try, ver. 4, and chap. ii. 22. ---

And all. Hebrew, "as many of Israel as had not," &c. (Haydock) ---

Those who had served under Josue, were so strongly impressed with a sense of the divine power and severity, that they never forgot them: but there was a danger lest their children should grow careless, if they were suffered to enjoy a constant state of prosperity. Virtue or power is made perfect in infirmity, 2 Corinthians xii. 9. (Calmet) ---

He that hath been experienced in many things, multiplieth prudence, Ecclesiasticus xxxiv. 10.

Haydock: Jdg 3:2 - And be

And be. Hebrew, "at least, such as before knew nothing thereof." Though war be in itself an evil, the passions of men render it necessary, and God makes use of it as a scourge, to punish the wicked, and at the same time to keep all under due restraint. (Haydock) ---

Too long a peace has proved sometimes fatal to states and to the virtue of individuals. In adversity we call upon God, and adhere to him with greater fervour and constancy. The Jews were so prone to evil, that, if they were permitted to enjoy tranquility for a few years, they presently forgot themselves and the author of all their good, and even turned their backs upon the only true God. Their enemies forced them to have recourse to Him. (Calmet)

Haydock: Jdg 3:3 - Princes // All the Chanaanites, &c., who dwelt in Libanus // Baal Hermon

Princes, ( satrapas ) a Persian word. (Menochius) ---

These heads of the five great cities of the Philistines, are called Seranim, (Haydock) but never kings, whether they were governors of so many petty states, united in the same form of republican or aristocratical government, or independent of each other. See Josue xiii. Three of these cities are said to have been take by Juda, (chap. i. 18,) unless the Septuagint be more accurate, as this passage would seem to insinuate. (Calmet) ---

They might have thrown off the yoke in a short time, as we before observed. These five cities were Gaza, Geth, Ascalon, Azotus, and Accaron. (Haydock) ---

All but Geth were on the Mediterranean sea. (Calmet) ---

All the Chanaanites, &c., who dwelt in Libanus, with some others, who were dispersed though the country, ver. 5. (Haydock) ---

These chiefly inhabited the environs of Sidon. ---

Baal Hermon. The idol of Baal might probably be adored on this mountain. (Menochius) ---

We find Baal-gad in the same neighbourhood, and both may mean the same city. (Calmet)

Haydock: Jdg 3:4 - Not

Not. Various reasons are assigned, on the part of God, for not exterminating these nations at once. But their being spared so long, must be imputed to the disobedience of the Israelites, otherwise they would surely never have been tolerated with their idol-worship in the land of promise, to contaminate, by their wicked example, the manners of God's people. If they would have redeemed their lives, they must at least have given up the land and their idols. As the Israelites proved so little zealous in destroying the latter, they were justly punished by God, in being deprived of what would have contributed to make them richer and more comfortable in this world. (Haydock)

Haydock: Jdg 3:6 - Gods

Gods. This was the fatal consequence which God had foretold, Deuteronomy vii. 4. (Haydock)

Haydock: Jdg 3:7 - Astaroth

Astaroth. Hebrew Asheroth, Septuagint, "the groves," (Menochius) of which Astaroth was the goddess, (Calmet) like Diana, chap. ii. 11. Various trees were sacred to idols. (Menochius)

Haydock: Jdg 3:8 - Chusan // Rasathaim // Mesopotamia // Eight years

Chusan. This name leads us to conclude that this prince was of Scythian extraction, a descendant of Chus: (Calmet) it signifies "black," or an Ethiopian." (Menochius) ---

Rasathaim was perhaps the place of his nativity. As it means "of two sorts of malice," Arias thinks that the Syrian kings took this title to shew that they would punish or repress all crimes against the civil or criminal law, (Menochius) those which affected the property as well as the lives of their subjects. (Haydock) ---

Mesopotamia. In Hebrew Aram naharayim. Syria of the two rivers; so called because it lies between the Euphrates and the Tigris. It is absolutely called Syria, ver. 10. (Challoner) ---

Eight years, by manual labour and presents, testifying their submission to their oppressor, who might not perhaps live among them. (Calmet) ---

Moir's edition, by mistake, reads eighty years. The Hebrews were equally fallible, chap. iii. 30. (Haydock)

Haydock: Jdg 3:9 - Saviour // Caleb

Saviour. "We must remark, that the man by whom God grants us safety, is styled a saviour," (St. Augustine, q. 18,) though Christ is the proper and principal Saviour. (Worthington) ---

Caleb. Septuagint, "the younger son of Cenez, who was the brother of Caleb." (Haydock) ---

Othoniel was one of the ancients. If he could not prevent the people from falling into idolatry, he rescued them from it. (Calmet)

Haydock: Jdg 3:10 - In him // Him

In him, to instruct and enable him both to rout the enemy, and to govern the people with prudence. (Haydock) ---

Chaldean, "the spirit of prophecy." The oracle excited him to attack Chusan. (Josephus, [Antiquities?] v. 3.) He was entrusted with an extraordinary authority, in a wonderful manner, and God gave him all those virtues which were requisite for his exalted station. (Calmet) ---

Him. Hebrew, "his hand was strong upon Chusan Rasathaim." He gained a complete victory over him, (Haydock) the particulars of which are not mentioned, though they must have been very interesting and extraordinary, as the power of Chusan was so extensive. (Calmet)

Haydock: Jdg 3:11 - Died

Died, "forty years after Josue, according to the chronology of Usher, which we follow," (Calmet) or rather Usher translates the land began to rest "in the fortieth year" from the peace of Josue. He places the death to that leader in the year of the world 2570, and the end of Chusan's dominion 2599; so that, if we deduct 40 years from this last date, we shall come to the year 2559, the sixth of Josue's administration, when he began to divide the conquered lands. He supposes that the peace of Othoniel lasted about 62 years, when Eglon disturbed it for eighteen years. "Aod delivered Israel. After him Samgar appeared, and the land rested till the 80 th year from the peace of Othoniel." Houbigant censures this indiscriminate use of cardinal and of ordinal numbers, and the blending times of servitude with those of peace; (Haydock) and "surely this method of reckoning is very harsh, and contrary to the usual acceptation of words." (Calmet) ---

Yet it is adopted by many. (Worthington) ---

IT may suit to form a system, but can have no solid foundation. (Haydock) ---

The epoch from which Usher dates is no where so distinctly specified, as that we should suppose that the author of the Book of Judges had it in view. Moreover, by this method, we are left to guess how long each of the judges reigned, or how long the peace which they had procured, subsisted. Usher admits that they years of servitude are specified; and, why not also the years of peace, since they are expressed exactly in the same manner? If the ordinal numbers 40th, 80th, &c., were intended, b would be prefixed, as [in] Deuteronomy i. 3.; and this grammatical observation along, suffices to overturn the calculation of Usher. (Houbigant, Proleg.) ---

Salien dates from the death of Josue in 2600, and allows that 40 years elapsed from that period till the decease of Othoniel; including the years which some attribute to the ancients, and to the anarchy; (chap. xvii., &c., to the end,) and also the eight years of servitude; so that instead of a rest of 40 years, we shall find that all was in confusion the greatest part of the time. The idolatry of Israel, which shortly brought on the servitude under Eglon, commenced immediately after the conclusion of these 40 years, when Salien begins to enumerate the years of Aod's government. Thus he does from one judge to another. This system does not indeed make the text bend to uphold it, but it supposes that the sacred writer includes anarchy and servitude under the name of rest. In these matters much is to be supplied by conjecture, and hence the chronological difficulties which infidels propose, to invalidate the authority of the Scripture, can have but little weight, till the learned shall have discovered the exact disposition of former times. The first judge of Israel was of the tribe of Juda. The second was chosen from the almost ruined tribe of Benjamin, as the learned commonly place the dreadful catastrophe which befel that tribe during the anarchy which ensued, and the death of Josue and of the ancients. Aod had no share in the crime. (Haydock)

Haydock: Jdg 3:12 - Eglon

Eglon, signifies "a calf." (Calmet) ---

God made use of this prince to scourge his people, with the assistance of the neighbouring nations. He took Engaddi, in the plains of Jericho, and was thus enabled to keep an eye both upon his own subjects and the conquered Israelites. (Calmet) ---

Here he probably met with his untimely end. (Haydock)

Haydock: Jdg 3:15 - Aod // Right // Presents

Aod, signifies "praise," whence perhaps Josephus calls him Judes which has the same import. (Menochius) ---

He was a descendant of Jemini or Benjamin, by his son Gera, Genesis xlvi. 1. ---

Right. Septuagint and many interpreters agree, that Aod was "Ambidexter," a quality which Plato exhorted those who were designed for war, to strive to acquire. Several of the heroes before Troy are praised on this account; and the Scripture takes particular notice of 700 citizens of Gabaa, who could use both hands alike, and could hit even a hair with a stone, chap. xx. 16. The Jews explain itter, very absurdly; Aod "had his right hand maimed or tied:" (Calmet) and Protestants render "a man left-handed." (Haydock) ---

This would be a very awkward recommendation for a warrior, though it is pretended that such are more resolute, and more difficult to encounter than others. The number of the men at Gabaa who are praised for their skill, as well as the brave men of David, (1 Paralipomenon xii. 2,) shews sufficiently that the term does not mean left-handed. But the Scripture here takes notice that Aod could use his left hand so well, because he placed his dagger, contrary to custom, on his right side, and the motions of his left hand would not be so narrowly watched. Rufin does not agree with the present text of Josephus, which indeed seems very confused saying, "that all the strength of Aod lay in his left hand." Gelenius also translates, utraque manu ex æquo promptus; (Antiquities v. 5,) so that perhaps the Greek of Josephus may have been altered. ---

Presents; that is, tribute; an odious expression, instead of which the Scripture often puts presents, 1 Kings x. 27., and 1 Paralipomenon xviii. 2. No tribute was imposed in Persia till the reign of Darius Hystaspes; the subject had to make presents to the king. (Herodotus iii. 89.) (Calmet)

Haydock: Jdg 3:16 - He made // Hand // Garment // Thigh

He made, or procured, though it was formerly honourable for a person to do such things himself. (Calmet) ---

Hand. Hebrew gomed, is translated by the Protestants, "of a cubit length," (Haydock) though the term is never used elsewhere for that measure. Septuagint have spithame, a measure of 12 fingers. ---

Garment. The sagum, as well as the Septuagint mandua, from the Hebrew mad, denote a military garment. But such a dress might have rendered Aod suspected, (Calmet) unless an uniform might then be deemed a suitable dress for an ambassador. (Haydock) ---

Thigh. The Jews wore the sword there; (Psalm xliv. 4,) and it would be more convenient on the left thigh, as the nations of Gaul and Germany had it, while the Roman cavalry wore the sword on the right; and the infantry had two swords, the long one on the left, and a shorter, about an hand's length, on the right. (Josephus, Jewish Wars iii. 3.) (Lipsius)

Haydock: Jdg 3:17 - Fat

Fat. The ancient version used by St. Augustine had , "lean," which he justly took in an ironical sense. Septuagint asteios, signifies "beautiful and genteel." (Calmet) ---

Serarius explains it in the same sense as the Vulgate. (Menochius)

Haydock: Jdg 3:18 - Him

Him; or according to the Hebrew, Septuagint, and Chaldean, "he sent away the men who had brought the presents." (Calmet) ---

But is seems he followed after them as far as Galgal, (Haydock) whence he returned, as if he had been consulting the oracle, and had orders to communicate something of importance to the king, unless we translate, "He dismissed, &c., ( 19. ) and as he was returned from the idols at Galgal, he said," &c., at the same interview. (Calmet) He would not expose his companions to danger. (Menochius)

Haydock: Jdg 3:19 - Idols // Silence

Idols. Hebrew pesilim. Some take these to be only heaps of stones. Protestants, "quarries." (Haydock) ---

But the Septuagint, &c., represent them as "carved" idols. The same expression is used [in] Exodus xx. 4., &c. The Moabites had probably placed idols here, to profane that sacred place, which was resorted to out of devotion by the Israelites, Osee iv. 14., and Amos iv. 5. Here also the prophets inform us that the ten tribes adored and consulted idols; resembling perhaps that of Michas, chap. xvii. 4. ---

Silence to Aod, (Calmet) that none of the people might be able to divulge the secret. Hebrew, "be thou silent." (Menochius)

Haydock: Jdg 3:20 - Alone // A word // Throne

Alone. Hebrew, "Aod approached unto him, and he was sitting in a summer parlour, which he had for himself, alone." It seems to have been a private closet, to which he retired for greater secrecy, as his officers concluded that he was there only to ease nature. (Haydock) ---

It might be rendered, "a hall of audience." (Calmet) ---

But the place where Aod presented the tribute, was more probably of this description, and Eglon retired thence into a back parlour, and was followed by Aod, alone, ver. 24. (Haydock) ---

A word. What Aod, who was judge and chief magistrate of Israel, did on this occasion, was by a special inspiration of God: but such things are not to be imitated by private men. (Challoner; St. Augustine, q. 20.; Numbers xxv.) Worthington) ---

Hebrew, "a thing (message, &c.) from God, (Aleim) or the gods." Probably the king would imagine that he was speaking of the idols at Galgal, and being full of awe for them, would be off his guard, and rise up out of respect. See Numbers xxiii. 18., and Exodus iii. 5. (Calmet) ---

But as the word Elohim was only abusively applied to idols and to great men, Aod might say with truth, that he had a word or an errand from Elohim to the king, without minding in what sense Eglon would take the expression. See St. Augustine, q. 20., and Origen, hom. 4. Though God permitted this king to attack his people, and to scourge them for a time, he did not approve of his injustice, and now authorized the chief magistrate of Israel to revenge their wrongs. (Haydock) ---

God is the arbiter of our lives, and may order whatsoever he pleases to put us to death. But the doctrine of J. Huss, who preached, "It is lawful for every subject to kill any tyrant," was condemned in the Council of Constance. David severely punished the man wo pretended that he had slain Saul. The first Christians never entered into any revolt against those cruel and impious emperors who oppressed them, and whose title to the throne was evidently unjust. See Romans xiii. 1. Under what government are all satisfied, or of the same religion with the sovereign? Even if any should pretend that they have an order from God to kill a tyrant, they must give proof of their commission to the lawful superiors, or them must expect to be treated as fanatical impostors. (Calmet) ---

Throne; or Hebrew, "seat." The throne of state would not probably be placed in a retired chamber. (Haydock) ---

The king rose up out of respect to the deity; (Menochius) and at the same moment, Aod plunged the dagger into his bowels. (Haydock)

Haydock: Jdg 3:24 - Door // Nature // Parlour

Door. Lyranus would prefer porticum, "the porch," as the Chaldean explains the Hebrew by exedra, a portico highly ornamented with pillars and seats, where the princes formerly used to administer justice. Homer give a grand description of the portico of Alcinous. (Odessey) (Haydock) ---

See that of Solomon described, 3 Kings vii. 6. (Calmet) ---

The Roman Septuagint adds after prostada, what may perhaps be a second version, "and he went through those who were drawn up," of the guards. He shewed no signs of fear. (Haydock) ---

It was not necessary for him to take the key with him, as a common one was used for several chambers, and was necessary only to unloose some bands, with which the doors were fastened. The keys in the East are very large, and of a very different construction from ours. (Calmet) ---

Nature. Hebrew, "he covereth his feet." The ancients did not wear breeches: they covered themselves with great care. (Calmet) See Deuteronomy xxiii. 13. (Haydock) ---

Parlour. Hebrew, "chamber." Septuagint, "bed-chamber."

Haydock: Jdg 3:25 - Ashamed

Ashamed, perceiving that their hopes had been vain, (Calmet) and not knowing what to do, (Menochius) they began to fear the worst. (Haydock)

Haydock: Jdg 3:26 - Confusion

Confusion. Hebrew, "tarrying," as they waited a long time before they ventured to open the door.

Haydock: Jdg 3:27 - Seirath

Seirath seems to have been on the road from Galgal to Mount Ephraim. Some conjecture that Josephus speaks of it under the name of Syriad, (Calmet) where he saw the inscriptions, which he asserts were left by the children of Seth before the deluge. (Haydock) ---

They might perhaps be the idols which are mentioned here.

Haydock: Jdg 3:28 - Fords

Fords. That none, from the other side, might come to the assistance of the Moabites, (Menochius) who were at their prince's court, in the territory of Jericho, and that none of these might make their escape. (Haydock)

Haydock: Jdg 3:29 - Strong

Strong. Hebrew literally, "the fatness," denoting what is most excellent, Psalm xxi. 30., and lxxvii. 31. (Calmet) ---

Eglon would have his chief nobility and most valiant soldiers round his person. (Haydock)

Haydock: Jdg 3:30 - Eighty

Eighty. The Hebrews use the letter p to express this number; and, as it is very like their c, which stands for 20, Houbigant suspects that he first number is a mistake of the transcribers. Usher confesses that it is "extremely improbable" that Aod should have governed so long, after he had slain Eglon, as he must have been at that time, about 40 years old; and the Israelites were not often so constant for such a length of time. (Houbigant, Proleg.) ---

But this difficulty does not affect Usher, as he brings Aod forward only in the 80th year from the peace of Othoniel; and instead of allowing him 80 years of peaceful sway, he says Samgar appeared after him; but, it seems, both together did not reign a year, since in that 80th year, he commences the servitude, which Jabin brought upon Israel, from the year of the world 2679 till 2699, and peace was not restored by Barac for about 20 years! (Haydock)

Haydock: Jdg 3:31 - Samgar // Hundred // Plough-share // Defended

Samgar. His reign seems to have been short, and only perhaps extended over the tribes of Juda, Simeon, and Dan, while Debbora governed in another part. Some exclude him from the list of judges. But Josephus, Origen, &c., allow his title, with most of the moderns. (Calmet) ---

The Alex.[Alexandrian?] Chronicle gives his reign of 24 years, which Salien would understand, as if he had acted under the orders of Aod, when the latter was grown too old, if the author had not said that "after the death of Aod, Samgar, his son, judged Israel 24 years," which he subtracts from the 80 years allotted to Aod. He makes Bocci succeed Abisue in the pontificate, at the same time, which Salien admits, in the year of the world 2696. ---

Hundred. Septuagint, "as far as 600," which might be at different times, when the Philistines were dispersed through the country in order to plunder. ---

Plough-share. Septuagint aratropodi. (Haydock) ---

Some translate the Hebrew, "an ox-goad." Maundrell describes those, which are used in Palestine, as eight feet long; and, at the thick end, 10 inches round, with a kind of spade, to clean the plough, while the other end is very sharp. Samgar might probably use such an instrument. From its being mentioned, we may gather that he did not engage the enemy in a pitched battle, (Calmet) but as he could find an opportunity. Thus Samson slew 1000 of the same nation with the jaw-bone of an ass, chap xv. (Haydock) ---

Defended. Hebrew and Septuagint, "saved," which shews that he was a proper judge. (Menochius) ---

It is true, he did not rescue the Israelites entirely, but he stood up in their defence. (Calmet) ---

The duration of his government is not specified, nor is it said that the land rested, because he ruled for a short time only: Josephus says not quite a year; and the roads were continually infested with the incursions of the Philistines on the south, and of the Chanaanites on the North, chap. v. 6. Samgar seems to have been a ploughman, and he seized the first weapon that came to hand. The Hungarians and Spaniards formerly defended themselves against the attacks of the Turks and Moors with their plough-shares, in memory of which the Spaniards long after went armed to plough. The most valiant Roman generals, Camillus, Curius, Cincinnatus, and Fabricius, were called from the plough to the Dictatorship; and Pliny ([Natural History?] xviii.) observes, that "countrymen make the best soldiers."

Gill: Jdg 3:1 - Now these are the nations which the Lord left to prove Israel by them // even as many of Israel as had not known all the wars of Canaan

Now these are the nations which the Lord left to prove Israel by them,.... Which are later mentioned, Jdg 3:3,

even as many of Israel as had not known all the wars of Canaan; those that Joshua, and the people of Israel under him, had with the Canaanites, when they first entered the land and subdued it; being then not born, or so young as not to have knowledge of them, at least not able to bear arms at that time.

Gill: Jdg 3:2 - Only that the generations of the children of Israel might know and teach them war // at least such as before knew nothing thereof

Only that the generations of the children of Israel might know and teach them war,.... That is, the following nations were left in the land, that the young generations of Israel might by their wars and conflicts with them learn the art of war, and be inured to martial discipline; which, if none had been left to engage with, they had been ignorant of: besides, their fathers in Joshua's time, as Jarchi and Kimchi observe, had no need to learn the art of war, for God fought for them; they did not get possession of the land by their own arm, and by their sword, but by the power of God in a miraculous way; but now this was not to be expected, and the Canaanites were left among them to expel, that they might be trained up in the knowledge of warlike affairs, and so be also capable of teaching their children the military art; which they should make use of in obeying the command of God, by driving out the remains of the Canaanites, and not give themselves up to sloth and indolence; though some think that the meaning is, that God left these nations among them, that they might know what war was, and the sad effects of it; and the difference of fighting with their enemies alone, as other men, and the Lord fighting along with them, and for them, as he did for their fathers:

at least such as before knew nothing thereof; being either unborn, or at an age incapable of bearing arms, or learning the art of war.

Gill: Jdg 3:3 - Namely, five lords of the Philistines // and all the Canaanites // and the Sidonians // and the Hivites that dwelt in Mount Lebanon // from Mount Baalhermon // unto the entering in of Hamath

Namely, five lords of the Philistines,.... The places they were lords of were Gaza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gath, and Ekron; see Jos 13:3; three of these, Gaza, Ashkelon, and Ekron, had been taken from them by Judah, since the death of Joshua, Jdg 1:18; but they soon recovered them again, perhaps by the help of the other two. The Philistines were a people originally of Egypt, but came from thence and settled in these parts, and were here as early as in the times of Abraham, and were very troublesome neighbours to the Israelites in later times; see Gen 10:14,

and all the Canaanites; these were a particular tribe or nation in the land so called, which inhabited by the sea, and by the coast of Jordan, Num 13:29; otherwise this is the general name for the seven nations:

and the Sidonians; the inhabitants of the famous city of Sidon, which had its name from the firstborn of Canaan, Gen 10:15,

and the Hivites that dwelt in Mount Lebanon; on the north of the land of Canaan:

from Mount Baalhermon; the eastern part of Lebanon, the same with Baalgad, where Baal was worshipped:

unto the entering in of Hamath; the boundary of the northern part of the land, which entrance led into the valley between Libanus and Antilibanus; see Num 34:8.

Gill: Jdg 3:4 - And they were to prove Israel by them // to know whether they would hearken to the commandments, of the Lord // which he commanded their fathers by the hand of Moses

And they were to prove Israel by them,.... They were left in the land, as to inure them to war, and try their courage, so to prove their faithfulness to God:

to know whether they would hearken to the commandments, of the Lord,

which he commanded their fathers by the hand of Moses; even all the commandments of the Lord delivered to them by Moses, moral, civil, and ceremonial, and particularly those that concerned the destruction of the Canaanites, their altars, and their idols, Deu 7:1.

Gill: Jdg 3:5 - And the children of Israel dwelt among the Canaanites // the Hittites, and Amorites, and Perizzites, and Hivites, and Jebusites

And the children of Israel dwelt among the Canaanites,.... As if they had been only sojourners with them, and not conquerors of them; and dwelt by sufferance, and not as proprietors and owners; such were their sloth and indolence, and such the advantage the inhabitants of the land got over them through it, and through their compliances with them; and this was the case not only of one sort of them, the Canaanites, but of the rest:

the Hittites, and Amorites, and Perizzites, and Hivites, and Jebusites; who all had cities in the several parts of the land, with whom the children of Israel were mixed, and with whom they were permitted to dwell.

Gill: Jdg 3:6 - And they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their daughters to their sons // and served their gods

And they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their daughters to their sons,.... The Israelites intermarried with the inhabitants of the land, contrary to the express command of God, Deu 7:3; whereby they confounded their families, debased their blood, and were ensnared into idolatry, as follows: perhaps to these unlawful marriages, in their first settlement in the land of Canaan, reference is had in Eze 16:3, "thy father was an Amorite and thy mother an Hittite"; an Amorite marrying a daughter of Israel, and an Israelitish man an Hittite woman:

and served their gods; this was the natural consequence of their intermarriages, which the Lord foresaw, and therefore cautioned them against them, Exo 34:15.

Gill: Jdg 3:7 - And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord // and forgot the Lord their God // and served Baalim, and the groves

And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord,.... Both by marrying with Heathens, and worshipping their gods:

and forgot the Lord their God; as if they had never heard of him, or known him, their Maker and Preserver, who had done so many great and good things for them:

and served Baalim, and the groves; of Baalim, see Jdg 2:11; the groves mean either idols worshipped in groves, as Jupiter was worshipped in a grove of oaks, hence the oak of Dodona; and Apollo in a grove of laurels in Daphne: there were usually groves where idol temples were built; and so in Phoenicia, or Canaan, Dido the Sidonian queen built a temple for Juno in the midst of the city, where was a grove of an agreeable shade ^d: so Barthius ^e observes, that most of the ancient gods of the Heathens used to be worshipped in groves. And groves and trees themselves were worshipped; so Tacitus says ^f of the Germans, that they consecrated groves and forests, and called them by the names of gods. Groves are here put in the place of Ashtaroth, Jdg 2:13; perhaps the goddesses of that name were worshipped in groves; and if Diana is meant by Astarte, Servius ^g says that every oak is sacred to Jupiter and every grove to Diana; and Ovid ^h speaks of a temple of Diana in a grove. But as they are joined with Baalim, the original of which were deified kings and heroes, the groves may be such as were consecrated to them; for, as the same writer observes ⁱ, the souls of heroes were supposed to have their abode in groves; See Gill on Exo 34:13 and See Gill on Deu 7:5. It was in this time of defection that the idolatry of Micah, and of the Danites, and the war of Benjamin about the Levite's concubine, happened, though related at the end of the book; so Josephus ^k places the account here.

Gill: Jdg 3:8 - Therefore the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel // and he sold them into the hand of Chushanrishathaim, king of Mesopotamia // and the children of Israel served Chushanrishathaim eight years

Therefore the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel,.... Because of their idolatry; see Jdg 2:14,

and he sold them into the hand of Chushanrishathaim, king of Mesopotamia; or Aramnaharaim; that is, Syria, between the two rivers, which were Tigris and Euphrates; hence the Greek name of this place is as here called Mesopotamia. Josephus ^l calls him king of Assyria, and gives him the name of Chusarthus; and indeed Chushanrishathaim seems to be his whole name, though the Targum makes Rishathaim to be an epithet, and calls him Cushan, the wicked king of Syria; the word is of the dual number, and signifies two wickednesses; which, according to the mystical exposition of the Jews ^m, refers to two wicked things Syria did to Israel, one by Balaam the Syrian, and the other by this Cushan. Mr. Bedford ⁿ thinks it may be rendered,"Cushan, king of the two wicked kingdoms;''the Assyrian monarchy being at this time like two kingdoms, Babylon being the metropolis of the one, and Nineveh of the other; but it is question whether the monarchy was as yet in being. Hillerus ^o makes Cushan to be an Arab Scenite, from Hab 3:7; and Rishathaim to denote disquietudes; and it represents him as a man very turbulent, never quiet and easy, and so it seems he was; for not content with his kingdom on the other side Euphrates, he passed over that, and came into Canaan, to subject that to him, and add it to his dominions. Kimchi says that Rishathaim may be the name of a place, and some conjecture it to be the same with the Rhisina of Ptolemy ^p; but it seems rather a part of this king's name, who came and fought against Israel, and the Lord delivered them into his hands:

and the children of Israel served Chushanrishathaim eight years; became tributaries to him during that space of time, but when that began is not easy to say. Bishop Usher ^q places it in A. M. 2591, and before Christ 1413.

Gill: Jdg 3:9 - And when the children of Israel cried unto the Lord // the Lord raised up a deliverer to the children of Israel // who delivered them // even Othniel, the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother

And when the children of Israel cried unto the Lord,.... Towards the close of the eight years' bondage, as it may be supposed, groaning under the oppressive taxes laid upon them, and the bondage they were brought into: and

the Lord raised up a deliverer to the children of Israel; he heard their cry, and sent them a saviour, whose spirit he stirred up, and whom he qualified for this service:

who delivered them; out of the hands of the king of Mesopotamia, and freed them from his oppressions:

even Othniel, the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother; the same that took Debir, and married Achsah, the daughter of Caleb, Jdg 1:12; who now very probably was a man in years.

Gill: Jdg 3:10 - And the Spirit of the Lord came upon him // and he judged Israel // and he went out to war // and the Lord delivered Chushanrishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand; and his hand prevailed against Chushanrishathaim

And the Spirit of the Lord came upon him,.... Moved him to engage in this work of delivering Israel, inspired him with courage, and filled him with every needful gift, qualifying him for it; the Targum interprets it the spirit of prophecy; it seems father to be the spirit of counsel and courage, of strength and fortitude of body and mind:

and he judged Israel; took upon him the office of a judge over them, and executed it; very probably the first work he set about was to reprove them for their sins, and convince them of them, and reform them from their idolatry, and restore among them the pure worship of God; and this he did first before he took up arms for them:

and he went out to war; raised an army, and went out at the head of them, to fight with their oppressor:

and the Lord delivered Chushanrishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand; and his hand prevailed against Chushanrishathaim; gave him the victory over him and his army, so that he fell into his hands, became his captive, and perhaps was slain by him.

Gill: Jdg 3:11 - And the land had rest forty years // and Othniel the son of Kenaz died

And the land had rest forty years,.... As it should seem from the time of this deliverance; though, according to Ben Gersom and Abarbinel, the eight years' servitude are to be included in them; and Bishop Usher ^r reckons these forty years from the rest first settled in the land by Joshua; but the former sense seems best:

and Othniel the son of Kenaz died: not at the end of the forty years; it is not likely he should live so long, but when he died is not certain; Eusebius ^s says he judged Israel fifty years.

Gill: Jdg 3:12 - And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the Lord // and the Lord strengthened Eglon the king of Moab against Israel // because they had done evil in the sight of the Lord

And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the Lord,.... Fell into idolatry again, which was a great evil in the sight of God, and what they were prone to fall into:

and the Lord strengthened Eglon the king of Moab against Israel; put it into his heart to invade them, and encouraged him to it, and gave him success; what kings reigned over Moab between Balak and this king we know not: it is a commonly received notion of the Jews, that Ruth was the daughter of Eglon; see Rth 1:4; and it was about this time that Elimelech with his two sons went into Moab, and when many of those things recorded in the book of Ruth were transacted:

because they had done evil in the sight of the Lord; which had greatly provoked him to anger, and was the cause of stirring up the king of Moab against them.

Gill: Jdg 3:13 - And he gathered unto him the children of Ammon and Amalek // and went and smote Israel // and possessed the city of the palm trees

And he gathered unto him the children of Ammon and Amalek,.... Either the Lord gathered them to Eglon, inclined them to enter into a confederacy with him, to assist in the war against Israel; or the king of Moab got them to join with him in it, they being his neighbours, and enemies to Israel, and especially Amalek:

and went and smote Israel; first the two tribes and a half, which lay on that side Jordan Moab did, whom it is reasonable to suppose he would attack first; and having defeated them, he came over Jordan:

and possessed the city of the palm trees; Jericho, as the Targum, which was set with palm trees; see Deu 34:3; not the city itself, for that was destroyed by Joshua, and not rebuilt until the time of Ahab; but the country, about it, or, as Abarbinel thinks, a city that was near it; here Josephus says ^t he had his royal palace; it is probable he built a fort or garrison here, to secure the fords of Jordan, and his own retreat; as well as to keep up a communication with his own people, and prevent the tribes of the other side giving any assistance to their brethren, if able and disposed to do it.

Gill: Jdg 3:14 - So the children of Israel served Eglon king of Moab eighteen years.

So the children of Israel served Eglon king of Moab eighteen years. Ten years longer than they served the king of Mesopotamia, Jdg 3:8, as a severer correction of them for their relapse into idolatry.

Gill: Jdg 3:15 - But when the children of Israel cried unto the Lord // the Lord raised them up a deliverer // Ehud the son of Gera, a Benjamite, a man lefthanded // and by him the children of Israel sent a present unto Eglon the king of Moab

But when the children of Israel cried unto the Lord,.... After being long oppressed, and groaning under their burdens, and brought to a sense of their sins, and humiliation for them, they asked forgiveness of God, and deliverance from their bondage; for it is very probable they were until towards the close of those years stupid and hardened, and did not consider what was the reason of their being thus dealt with:

the Lord raised them up a deliverer; another saviour, one that he made use of as an instrument of their deliverance:

Ehud the son of Gera, a Benjamite, a man lefthanded; who is described by his parentage, a son of Gera, but who his father was is not known; by his tribe a Benjamite, in which Jericho was, Eglon possessed, and so might be more oppressed than any other part; and therefore the Lord stirred up one of that tribe to be the deliverer; and by his being a lefthanded man, as several of that tribe were, Jdg 20:16; though a Benjamite signifies a son of the right hand; and he perhaps was one of those lefthanded Benjamites that fled to the rock Rimmon, as Dr. Lightfoot ^u conjectures, Jdg 20:47; for that affair, though there related, was before this: the Septuagint calls him an "ambidexter", one that could use both hands equally alike; but the Hebrew phrase signifies one that is "shut up in his right hand" ^w; who has not the true use of it, cannot exercise it as his other hand, being weak and impotent, or contracted through disuse, or some disease; or, as Josephus ^x expresses it, who could use his left hand best, and who also calls him a young man of a courageous mind and strong of body, and says he dwelt at Jericho, and was very familiar with Eglon, and who by his gifts and presents had endeared himself to all about the king:

and by him the children of Israel sent a present unto Eglon the king of Moab; either their yearly tribute, or rather a gift unto him, to soften him, and reconcile him to them, and make their bondage easier; or to give him access to him with more confidence and safety, though it does not seem that they knew anything of Ehud's design.

Gill: Jdg 3:16 - But Ehud made him a dagger, which had two edges, of a cubit length // and he did gird it under his raiment // upon his right thigh

But Ehud made him a dagger, which had two edges, of a cubit length,.... A little sword, as Josephus calls it ^y, with two edges, that it might cut both ways, and do the execution he designed by it, and was about half a yard long; which he could the more easily conceal, and use for his purpose:

and he did gird it under his raiment; that it might not be seen, and give occasion of suspicion; this was a military garment, the "sagum", as the Vulgate Latin version, which was coarse, and made of wool, and reached to the ankle, and was buttoned upon the shoulder, and put over the coat ^z; the Septuagint makes use of a word Suidas ^a interprets a coat of mail:

upon his right thigh; whereas a sword is more commonly girt upon the left; though some observe, from various writers, that the eastern people used to gird their swords on their right thigh; or this was done that it might be the less discernible and suspected, and chiefly as being most convenient for him, a lefthanded man, to draw it out upon occasion.

Gill: Jdg 3:17 - And he brought a present unto Eglon king of Moab // and Eglon was a very fat man

And he brought a present unto Eglon king of Moab,.... Accompanied by two servants, as Josephus says ^b, and who doubtless bore the presents; for that there were such with him that did is clear from Jdg 3:18; nor can it be thought that so great a personage as a judge in Israel should go alone and carry a present in his own hands; though it is possible, when come to the king of Moab, he might take it from his servants, and deliver it to him with his own hands:

and Eglon was a very fat man: and so the less active, and unable to decline and avoid the stroke, he might see, when about to be given him.

Gill: Jdg 3:18 - And when he had made an end to offer the present // he sent away the people that bare the present

And when he had made an end to offer the present,.... Had delivered the several things contained in it, and very probably made a speech to the king in the name of the people of Israel from whom he brought it:

he sent away the people that bare the present; not the servants of Eglon that introduced him, as if they assisted in bringing in the present to the king; for over them he could not have so much power as to dismiss them at pleasure; but the children of Israel that came along with him, and carried the present for him: these he dismissed, not in the presence of the king of Moab, but after he had taken his leave of him, and when he had gone on some way in his return home; and this he did for the greater secrecy of his design, and that he might when he had finished it the more easily escape alone, and be without any concern for or care of the safety of others.

Gill: Jdg 3:19 - But he himself turned again from the quarries that were by Gilgal // and said // I have a secret errand unto thee, O king // who said, keep silence // and all that stood by him went out from him

But he himself turned again from the quarries that were by Gilgal,...., For so far he accompanied the men that came with him. These quarries were places where they dug stones and hewed them, according to the Targum, and most Jewish writers; but some render the word "engravings", and understand them of inscriptions engraved on pillars here, which remained from the times of Seth the son of Adam; of which see more on Jdg 3:26; but according to the Vulgate Latin, and other versions, graven images or idols are meant, which the king of Moab set up here in contempt of the Israelites, it being a place where the ark remained some time, and circumcision had been performed, Jos 5:3; or in order to draw them into idolatry, those idols perhaps being made of the twelve stones they had set up there, Jos 4:20; or rather in honour of his gods, to invoke their assistance when he first entered into the land, or by way of gratitude and thankfulness for the subduing of it: and this it is thought by some stirred up the spirit of Ehud, and caused him to turn back, resolving to avenge this profaneness:

and said; when he came to the palace of the king of Moab, and into his presence:

I have a secret errand unto thee, O king; which he had forgot when with him before, as he might pretend; or something new had occurred unto him to acquaint him of, and which required privacy:

who said, keep silence; that is, the king of Moab said so either to Ehud, to be silent until be had sent out his servants that were about him, that they might not hear the secret; or to a person or persons that were speaking to him, whom he bid to desist and depart, it being his pleasure to hear Ehud before them; so Ben Gersom; but the former sense rather seems best:

and all that stood by him went out from him; his servants, his courtiers that were waiting upon him, or such as were admitted into his presence, to have audience of him, and deliver their messages, or make their petitions to him.

Gill: Jdg 3:20 - And Ehud came unto him // and he was sitting in a summer parlour, which he had for himself alone // and Ehud said, I have a message from God unto thee // and he arose out of his seat

And Ehud came unto him,.... Somewhat nearer him than he was before; it seems probable that Eglon retired from the presence chamber, where he received company, into his summer parlour; which was smaller and more private, and in which he had used to be alone, as follows, and whither Ehud went in unto him, as he directed him:

and he was sitting in a summer parlour, which he had for himself alone: into which he was wont to go and sit alone, for the sake of coolness and refreshment in the hot season of the year, which it seems it now was; a room this was, in which, as Kimchi and others observe, were many windows to let in air to cool and refresh; or it was in such a part of the palace that was cool, and sheltered from the heat of the sun; see Amo 3:15,

and Ehud said, I have a message from God unto thee; which was to kill him; and undoubtedly he was sent of God on this errand to him: whether it be rendered a "word" or "thing" from God, as it signifies both, it was true, and no lie; for it was the Lord that spoke to him by an impulse on his spirit, and the thing was from the Lord he was to do, for nothing less could have justified him in such an action; and therefore this instance can be no warrant for the assassination of princes; as Ehud did not this of himself, but of the Lord, so neither did he do it as a private man, but as a judge of Israel. Josephus ^c says, he told him that he had a dream at the order of God to declare unto him; but for this there is no warrant; however it seems pretty plain that his view in making mention of the name of God, and of Elohim, a name given to false gods as well as the true, rather than Jehovah, was to strike his mind with awe and reverence, and cause him to rise from his seat, that he might the better thrust him with his dagger; and it had the desired effect:

and he arose out of his seat; in reverence of God, from whom he expected to receive a message; this he did, though in his mind a blind ignorant idolater; in his body fat, corpulent, and unwieldy; and in his office a king, and a proud and tyrannical man. The above writer says, that, for joy at the dream he was to hear, he rose from his throne.

Gill: Jdg 3:21 - And Ehud put forth his left hand, and took the dagger from his right thigh // and thrust it into his belly

And Ehud put forth his left hand, and took the dagger from his right thigh,.... Being, as before observed, a lefthanded man; Jdg 3:15, and this he could the better do, without being taken notice of by the king, who, if he saw him move his left hand, would have no suspicion of his going to draw a dagger with it, and which also was hidden under his raiment, Jdg 3:16,

and thrust it into his belly; Josephus ^d says into his heart; it is certain the wound was mortal, and must have been in a part on which, life depended.

Gill: Jdg 3:22 - And the haft went in, after the blade // and the fat closed upon the blade // so that he could not draw the dagger out of his belly // and the dirt came out

And the haft went in, after the blade,.... The handle of the dagger, as well as the blade; so strong and violent was the thrust, he determining to do his business effectually:

and the fat closed upon the blade; being an excessive fat man, the wound made by the dagger closed up at once upon it, through the fat:

so that he could not draw the dagger out of his belly; being not able to take hold of the haft or handle, that having slipped in through the fat after the blade, so that he was obliged to leave it in him:

and the dirt came out; the margin of our Bibles is, "it came out at the fundament"; that is, the dagger did, the thrust being so strong and vehement; but that is not so likely, the dagger being so short, and Eglon a very fat man. The Targum is,"his food went out;''which was in his bowels; but as the wound was closed up through fat, and the dagger stuck fast in it, it could not come out that way: rather therefore this is to he understood of his excrements, and of their coming out at the usual place, it being common for persons that die a violent death, and indeed others, to purge upon it; some, as Kimchi observes, interpret it of the place where the guards were, the guard room, through which Ehud went out, but that is expressed in another word in Jdg 3:23; the Syriac and Arabic versions read, "he went out in haste", that is, Ehud.

Gill: Jdg 3:23 - Then Ehud went forth through the porch // and shut the doors of the parlour upon him, and locked them

Then Ehud went forth through the porch,.... Which the Targum interprets by "exedra", a place, as Kimchi, where there were many seats, either for the people to sit in while waiting to have admittance into the presence of the king, or where the guards sat, and may be called the guard room; through this Ehud passed with all serenity and composure of mind imaginable, without the least show of distress and uneasiness in his countenance, being fully satisfied that what he had done was right, and according to the will of God:

and shut the doors of the parlour upon him, and locked them; joined the doors of the parlour, as the Targum, the two folds of the door, shut them close together upon Eglon within the parlour, and bolted them within, or drew the bolt on the inside, which he was able to do with a key for that purpose; of which see more on Jdg 3:25; and which it is probable he took away along with him; this must be understood as done before he went through the porch, and therefore should be rendered, "when" or "after he had shut the doors", &c. ^e; wherefore in the Vulgate Latin version this clause is put first.

Gill: Jdg 3:24 - When he was gone out, his servants came // and when they saw that behold the doors of the parlour were locked // they said, surely // he covereth his feet in his summer chamber

When he was gone out, his servants came,.... When Ehud was gone through the porch, and out of the palace, the servants of Eglon, who had been put out, came to the parlour door to reassume their former place, and finish their business with the king, or in order to wait upon him as usual:

and when they saw that behold the doors of the parlour were locked; which they supposed were done by the king himself with inside, having no suspicion of Ehud:

they said, surely, or "perhaps", as Noldius ^f renders it:

he covereth his feet in his summer chamber; that is, was easing nature; and, as the eastern people wore long and loose garments, when they sat down on such an occasion, their feet were covered with them; or they purposely gathered them about their feet to cover them, and so this became a modest expression for this work of nature, see 1Sa 24:3; though some think that in that place, and also in this, is meant lying down to sleep; and that Eglon's servants supposed that he had laid himself down on his couch in his summer chamber to take sleep, when it was usual to cover the feet with long garments, to hide those parts of nature which otherwise might be exposed; and it must be owned that this seems more agreeable to a summer parlour than the former, and better accounts for the servants waiting so long as they did; and Josephus ^g is express for it, that his servants thought he had fallen asleep. Indeed, the Jews in later times used the phrase in the first sense ^h, which seems to be taken from hence.

Gill: Jdg 3:25 - And they tarried until they were ashamed // and, behold, he opened not the doors of the parlour // therefore they took a key and opened them // and, behold, their lord was fallen dead on the earth

And they tarried until they were ashamed,.... And knew not what to think of it, or what methods to take to be satisfied of the truth of the matter, and what should be the meaning of the doors being kept locked so long:

and, behold, he opened not the doors of the parlour; this was what surprised them, and threw them into this confusion of mind, that they knew not what course to take for fear of incurring the king's displeasure, and yet wondered the doors were not opened for so long a time:

therefore they took a key and opened them; this is the first time we read of a key, which only signifies something to open with; and the keys of the ancients were different from those of ours; they were somewhat like a crooked sickle ⁱ, which they put in through a hole in the door, and with it could draw on or draw back a bolt, and so could lock or unlock with inside, see Son 5:4; and at this day the keys in the eastern countries are unlike ours. Chardin ^k says, that a lock among the eastern people is like a little harrow, which enters half way into a wooden staple, and the key is a wooden handle with points at the end of it, which are pushed into the staple, and so raise this little harrow:

and, behold, their lord was fallen dead on the earth; lay prostrate on the floor of the parlour, dead.

Gill: Jdg 3:26 - And Ehud escaped while they tarried // and passed beyond the quarries, and escaped to Seirath

And Ehud escaped while they tarried,.... While the servants of the king of Moab tarried waiting for the opening of the doors of the parlour, this gave him time enough to make his escape, so as to be out of the reach of pursuers; or else the sense is, that even when they had opened the doors, and found the king dead, while they were in confusion at it, not knowing what to ascribe it to, the dagger being enclosed in the wound, and perhaps but little blood, if any, issued out, being closed up with fat, and so had no suspicion of his being killed by Ehud; but rather supposing it to be an accidental fall from his seat, and might call in the physicians to examine him, and use their skill, if there were any hopes of recovery; all which prolonged time, and facilitated the escape of Ehud:

and passed beyond the quarries, and escaped to Seirath; he got beyond the quarries, which were by Gilgal, which shows that it could not be at Jericho where the king of Moab was, as Josephus thinks, but either in his own country beyond Jordan, though no mention is made of Ehud's crossing Jordan, or however some place nearer the fords of Jordan; since Gilgal, from whence he returned, and whither he came again after he had killed the king of Moab, lay on that side of Jericho which was towards Jordan; and this Seirath he escaped to was in or near the mountain of Ephraim, as appears from Jdg 3:27,, but of it we have no account elsewhere; but it is thought by some learned men ^l to be the place where Seth's pillars stood, and they to be the engravings here spoken of, which we translate "quarries": the words of Josephus ^m are, that the posterity of Seth, who very much studied astronomy, having heard that Adam foretold the destruction of the universe at one time by fire, and at another by water, erected two pillars, one of stone, and the other of brick, on which they inscribed their inventions (in astronomy), that they might be preserved, and which remain to this day in the land of Siriad; but this account of Josephus seems to be taken from a fabulous relation of Manetho, the Egyptian, and is abundantly confuted by Dr. Stillingfleet ⁿ. Jarchi interprets this of Seirath, a thick wood or forest, the trees of which grew as thick as the hair on a man's head, and so a proper place to escape to, and hide in: it may be it was the woody part of the mount Ephraim, see Jos 17:18.

Gill: Jdg 3:27 - And it came to pass, when he was come // that be blew a trumpet in the mountain of Ephraim // and the children of Israel went down with him from the mount, and he before them

And it came to pass, when he was come, That is, to Seirath, Jdg 3:26, in the tribe of Ephraim:

that be blew a trumpet in the mountain of Ephraim; which being an high mountain, the sound of the trumpet was heard afar off; and if Ehud's design was known to the Israelites, what he intended to do, this might be the token agreed on, should he succeed, to call them together, see Jer 31:6,

and the children of Israel went down with him from the mount, and he before them; being there assembled together, and which might be the place before appointed for their rendezvous, and where and when he took the command of them, and went before them as their general.

Gill: Jdg 3:28 - And he said unto them, follow after me // for the Lord hath delivered your enemies the Moabites into your hands // and they went down after him // and took the fords of Jordan towards Moab // and suffered not a man to pass over

And he said unto them, follow after me,.... This he said to encourage them, putting himself at the head of them showing himself ready to expose his own life, if there was any danger:

for the Lord hath delivered your enemies the Moabites into your hands; which he concluded from the success he had had in cutting off the king of Moab which had thrown the Moabites into great confusion and distress, and from an impulse on his mind from the Lord, assuring him of this deliverance:

and they went down after him: from the mountain of Ephraim:

and took the fords of Jordan towards Moab; where the river was fordable, and there was a passage into the country of Moab, which lay on the other side Jordan; this they did to prevent the Moabites, which were in the land of Israel, going into their own land upon this alarm, and those in the land of Moab from going over to help them:

and suffered not a man to pass over; neither out of Israel into Moab, nor out of Moab into Israel.

Gill: Jdg 3:29 - And they slew of Moab at that time about ten thousand men // all lusty, and all men of valour // and there escaped not a man

And they slew of Moab at that time about ten thousand men,.... Who had been sent into the land of Israel to keep it in subjection, or had settled themselves there for their better convenience, profit, and pleasure; it is very probable there were some of both sorts:

all lusty, and all men of valour; the word for "lusty" signifies "fat", living in ease for a long time, and in a plentiful country were grown fat; and, according to Ben Gersom, it signifies rich men, such as had acquired wealth by living in the land of Canaan; or who came over Jordan thither and settled about Jericho, because of the delightfulness of the place, and others were stout and valiant soldiers, whom the king of Moab had placed there to keep the land in subjection he had subdued, and to subdue what remained of it; but they were all destroyed:

and there escaped not a man; for there being no other way of getting into the land of Moab but at the fords of Jordan they fell into the hands of the Israelites possessed of them, as they made up unto them.

Gill: Jdg 3:30 - So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of Israel // and the land had rest fourscore years

So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of Israel,.... Or the Moabites were broken, as the Targum, that is, their forces in the land of Israel; for the land of Moab itself was not subdued and brought into subjection to the Israelites; but they were so weakened by this stroke upon them, that they could not detain the Israelites under their power any longer:

and the land had rest fourscore years; eighty years, which, according to Ben Gersom, are to be reckoned from the beginning of their servitude, and that the rest properly was but sixty two years, and so both rest and servitude were eighty years, as R. Isaiah; and, according to Abarbinel, the rest was from the death of Othniel; and our Bishop Usher ^o reckons this eightieth year from the former rest restored to it by Othniel; but others ^p are of opinion that there were several judges at a time in several parts of the land, and that the land was at rest in one part when there was war in another; and so that at this time it was only the eastern part of the land that had rest, while the western parts were distressed by the Philistines, and the northern parts by Jabin king of Canaan, as in Jdg 3:31.

Gill: Jdg 3:31 - And after him was Shamgar the son of Anath // which slew of the Philistines six hundred men // with an ox goad // and he also delivered Israel

And after him was Shamgar the son of Anath,.... That is, after the death of Ehud, when the people of Israel were in distress again from another quarter, this man was raised up of God to be a judge and deliverer of them; but who he was, and who his father, and of what tribe, we nowhere else read:

which slew of the Philistines six hundred men; who invaded the land, and came in an hostile manner into it; or rather, as it seems from Jdg 5:6; they entered as a banditti of thieves and robbers, who posted themselves in the highways, and robbed travellers as they passed, so that they were obliged to leave off travelling, or go through bypaths, and not in the public road; and this man, who seems to have been called from the plough to be a judge of Israel, as some among the Romans were called from thence to be dictators and deliverers of them from the Gauls:

with an ox goad; which he had used to push on his oxen with at ploughing, cleared the country of them, and with no other weapon than this slew six hundred of them, either at certain times, or in a body together; which is no ways incredible, being strengthened and succeeded by the Lord, any more than Samson's slaying a thousand men with the jawbone of an ass, Jdg 15:15. So Lycurgus is said to put to flight the forces of Bacchus with an ox goad ^q which is said to be done near Carmel, a mountain in Judea, which makes it probable that this is hammered out of the sacred history; or that Shamgar and Lycurgus are the same, as Bochart conjectures ^r. The ox goad, as now used in those parts, is an instrument fit to do great execution with it, as Mr. Maundrell ^s, who saw many of them, describes it; on measuring them, he found them to be eight feet long, at the bigger end six inches in circumference, at the lesser end was a sharp prickle for driving the oxen, and at the other end a small spade, or paddle of iron, for cleansing the plough from the clay:

and he also delivered Israel, from those robbers and plunderers, and prevented their doing any further mischief in the land, and subjecting it to their power, and so may very properly be reckoned among the judges of Israel; but how long he judged is not said, perhaps his time is to be reckoned into the eighty years of rest before mentioned; or, as Abarbinel thinks, into the forty years of Deborah, the next judge; and who also observes, that their Rabbins say, Shamgar judged but one year.

Tafsiran/Catatan -- Catatan Ayat / Catatan Kaki

NET Notes: Jdg 3:1

¹ tn Heb “did not know the wars of Canaan.”

NET Notes: Jdg 3:2

¹ tn The Hebrew syntax of v. 2 is difficult. The Hebrew text reads literally, “only in order that the generations of the Israelites might know, to teach them war – only those who formerly did not know them.”

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).

NET Notes: Jdg 3:3

¹ tn The words “These were the nations,” though not present in the Hebrew text, are supplied in the translation for clarity.

² tn Or “the entrance to Hamath.”

NET Notes: Jdg 3:4

¹ tn Heb “to know if they would hear the commands of the Lord which he commanded their fathers by the hand of Moses.”

NET Notes: Jdg 3:6

¹ tn Heb “to their sons.”

² tn Or “served”; or “followed” (this term occurs in the following verse as well).

NET Notes: Jdg 3:7

¹ tn Heb “in the eyes of the Lord.”

² sn The Asherahs were local manifestations of the Canaanite goddess Asherah.

NET Notes: Jdg 3:8

¹ tn Or “The Lord’s anger burned (or raged) against Israel.”

² tn Heb “sold them into the hands of.”

³ tn Or “Cushan the Doubly Wicked.”

⁴ tn Or “they served Cushan-Rishathaim.”

NET Notes: Jdg 3:9

¹ tn Heb “the Lord.”

² tn Or “delivered.”

³ tn “Caleb’s younger brother” may refer to Othniel or to Kenaz (in which case Othniel is Caleb’s nephew).

NET Notes: Jdg 3:10

¹ tn Heb “was on him.”

² tn Heb “his hand was strong against Cushan-Rishathaim.”

NET Notes: Jdg 3:12

¹ tn Heb “in the eyes of the Lord” (also later in this verse).

² tn Heb “strengthened Eglon…against Israel.”

NET Notes: Jdg 3:13

¹ tn Heb “and he gathered to him.”

NET Notes: Jdg 3:14

¹ tn Or “the Israelites served Eglon.”

NET Notes: Jdg 3:15

¹ tn Heb “the Lord.” This has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.

² 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.

³ tn Heb “The Israelites sent by his hand an offering to Eglon, king of Moab.”

NET Notes: Jdg 3:16

¹ 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.

NET Notes: Jdg 3:18

¹ tn Heb “the tribute payment.”

NET Notes: Jdg 3:19

¹ tn Or “returned” (i.e., to Eglon’s palace).

² tn The words “when he reached” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The Hebrew text simply reads “from.”

³ tn Or “idols.”

⁴ tn The words “to Eglon” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

⁵ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Eglon) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁶ tn Or “Hush!”

NET Notes: Jdg 3:20

¹ 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.

² tn Heb “word of [i.e., from] God.”

³ tn Or “throne.”

NET Notes: Jdg 3:21

¹ tn Heb “his”; the referent (Eglon) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

NET Notes: Jdg 3:22

¹ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Ehud) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

² tn The Hebrew text has “and he went out to the [?].” The meaning of the Hebrew word פַּרְשְׁדֹנָה (parshÿdonah) which occurs only here in the OT, is uncertain. The noun has the article prefixed and directive suffix. The word may be a technical architectural term, indicating the area into which Ehud moved as he left the king and began his escape. In this case Ehud is the subject of the verb “went out.” The present translation omits the clause, understanding it as an ancient variant of the first clause in v. 23. Some take the noun as “back,” understand “sword” (from the preceding clause) as the subject, and translate “the sword came out his [i.e., Eglon’s] back.” But this rendering is unlikely since the Hebrew word for “sword” (חֶרֶב, kherev) is feminine and the verb form translated “came out” (וַיֵּצֵא, vayyetse’) is masculine. (One expects agreement in gender when the subject is supplied from the preceding clause. See Ezek 33:4, 6.) See B. Lindars, Judges 1-5, 146-48, for discussion of the options.

NET Notes: Jdg 3:23

¹ 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.

NET Notes: Jdg 3:24

¹ tn Heb “his.”

² tn Heb “covering his feet” (i.e., with his outer garments while he relieves himself).

³ 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.

NET Notes: Jdg 3:25

¹ tn The words “the doors” are supplied.

² tn Heb “See, their master, fallen to the ground, dead.”

NET Notes: Jdg 3:27

¹ tn Heb “When he arrived.”

² tn That is, “mustered an army.”

³ tn Heb “now he was before them.”

NET Notes: Jdg 3:28

¹ 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.”

² tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied for clarity.

³ tn Or “against Moab,” that is, so as to prevent the Moabites from crossing.

NET Notes: Jdg 3:29

¹ tn Heb “They struck Moab that day – about ten thousand men.”

NET Notes: Jdg 3:31

¹ tn Heb “him”; the referent (Ehud) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

² tn Heb “was.”

³ tn Heb “also he”; the referent (Ehud) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

Geneva Bible: Jdg 3:1

Now these [are] the nations which the LORD left, to prove Israel by them, [even] as many [of Israel] as had not known all the ^{( a )} wars of Canaan;

^{( a )} Which were achieved by the hand of God, and not by the power of man.

Geneva Bible: Jdg 3:2

Only that the generations of the children of Israel might know, to teach them war, at the least such as before knew ^{( b )} nothing thereof;

^{( b )} For they trusted in God and he fought for them.

Geneva Bible: Jdg 3:6

And they took ^{( c )} their daughters to be their wives, and gave their daughters to their sons, and served their gods.

^{( c )} Contrary to God's commandment, (Deu 7:3).

Geneva Bible: Jdg 3:7

And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD, and forgat the LORD their God, and served Baalim and the ^{( d )} groves.

^{( d )} Or Ashteroth, trees or woods erected for idolatry.

Geneva Bible: Jdg 3:10

And the ^{( e )} Spirit of the LORD came upon him, and he judged Israel, and went out to war: and the LORD delivered Chushanrishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand; and his hand prevailed against Chushanrishathaim.

^{( e )} He was stirred up by the Spirit of the Lord.

Geneva Bible: Jdg 3:11

And the land had rest ^{( f )} forty years. And Othniel the son of Kenaz died.

^{( f )} That is, 32 under Joshua and 8 under Othniel.

Geneva Bible: Jdg 3:12

And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the LORD: and the LORD ^{( g )} strengthened Eglon the king of Moab against Israel, because they had done evil in the sight of the LORD.

^{( g )} So that the enemies of God's people have no power over them, but by God's appointment.

Geneva Bible: Jdg 3:19

But he himself turned again from the ^{( h )} quarries that [were] by Gilgal, and said, I have a secret errand unto thee, O king: who said, Keep ^{( i )} silence. And all that stood by him went out from him.

^{( h )} Or, as some read from the places of idols.

^{( i )} Till all be departed.

Geneva Bible: Jdg 3:30

So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of Israel. And the ^{( k )} land had rest fourscore years.

^{( k )} Meaning, the Israelites.

Geneva Bible: Jdg 3:31

And after him was Shamgar the son of Anath, which slew of the Philistines six hundred men with an ox ^{( l )} goad: and he also delivered Israel.

^{( l )} So that it is not the number, nor the means that God regards, when he will get the victory.

Tafsiran/Catatan -- Catatan Rentang Ayat

MHCC: Jdg 3:1-7

As the Israelites were a type of the church on earth, they were not to be idle and slothful. The Lord was pleased to try them by the remains of the devoted nations they spared. Temptations and trials detect the wickedness of the hearts of sinners; and strengthen he graces of believers in their daily conflict with Satan, sin, and this evil world. They must live in this world, but they are not of it, and are forbidden to conform to it. This marks the difference between the followers of Christ and mere professors. The friendship of the world is more fatal than its enmity; the latter can only kill the body, but the former murders many precious souls.

MHCC: Jdg 3:8-11

The first judge was Othniel: even in Joshua's time Othniel began to be famous. Soon after Israel's settlement in Canaan their purity began to be corrupted, and their peace disturbed. But affliction makes those cry to God who before would scarcely speak to him. God returned in mercy to them for their deliverance. The Spirit of the Lord came upon Othniel. The Spirit of wisdom and courage to qualify him for the service, and the Spirit of power to excite him to it. He first judged Israel, reproved and reformed them, and then went to war. Let sin at home be conquered, that worst of enemies, then enemies abroad will be more easily dealt with. Thus let Christ be our Judge and Lawgiver, then he will save us.

MHCC: Jdg 3:12-30

When Israel sins again, God raises up a new oppressor. The Israelites did ill, and the Moabites did worse; yet because God punishes the sins of his own people in this world, Israel is weakened, and Moab strengthened against them. If lesser troubles do not do the work, God will send greater. When Israel prays again, God raises up Ehud. As a judge, or minister of Divine justice, Ehud put to death Eglon, the king of Moab, and thus executed the judgments of God upon him as an enemy to God and Israel. But the law of being subject to principalities and powers in all things lawful, is the rule of our conduct. No such commissions are now given; to pretend to them is to blaspheme God. Notice Ehud's address to Eglon. What message from God but a message of vengeance can a proud rebel expect? Such a message is contained in the word of God; his ministers are boldly to declare it, without fearing the frown, or respecting the persons of sinners. But, blessed be God, they have to deliver a message of mercy and of free salvation; the message of vengeance belongs only to those who neglect the offers of grace. The consequence of this victory was, that the land had rest eighty years. It was a great while for the land to rest; yet what is that to the saints' everlasting rest in the heavenly Canaan.

MHCC: Jdg 3:31

The side of the country which lay south-west, was infested by the Philistines. God raised up Shamgar to deliver them; having neither sword nor spear, he took an ox-goad, the instrument next at hand. God can make those serviceable to his glory and to his church's good, whose birth, education, and employment, are mean and obscure. It is no matter what the weapon is, if God directs and strengthens the arm. Often he works by unlikely means, that the excellency of the power may appear to be of God.

Matthew Henry: Jdg 3:1-7

We are here told what remained of the old inhabitants of Canaan. 1. There were some of them that kept together in united bodies, unbroken (Jdg 3:3): The five lords of the Philistines, namely, Ashdod, Gaza, Askelon, Gath, and Ekron, 1Sa 6:17. Three of these cities had been in part reduced (Jdg 1:18), but it seems the Philistines (probably with the help of the other two, which strengthened their confederacy with each other thenceforward) recovered the possession of them. These gave the greatest disturbance to Israel of any of the natives, especially in the latter times of the judges, and they were never quite reduced until David's time. There was a particular nation called Canaanites, that kept their ground with the Sidonians, upon the coast of the great sea. And in the north the Hivites held much of Mount Lebanon, it being a remote corner, in which perhaps they were supported by some of the neighbouring states. But, besides these, 2. There were every where in all parts of the country some scatterings of the nations (Jdg 3:5), Hittites, Amorites, etc., which, by Israel's foolish connivance and indulgence, were so many, so easy, and so insolent, that the children of Israel are said to dwell among them, as if the right had still remained in the Canaanites, and the Israelites had been taken in by their permission and only as tenants at will.

Now concerning these remnants of the natives observe,

I. How wisely God permitted them to remain. It is mentioned in the close of the foregoing chapter as an act of God's justice, that he let them remain for Israel's correction. But here another construction is put upon it, and it appears to have been an act of God's wisdom, that he let them remain for Israel's real advantage, that those who had not known the wars of Canaan might learn war, Jdg 3:1, Jdg 3:2. It was the will of God that the people of Israel should be inured to war, 1. Because their country was exceedingly rich and fruitful, and abounded with dainties of all sorts, which, if they were not sometimes made to know hardship, would be in danger of sinking them into the utmost degree of luxury and effeminacy. They must sometimes wade in blood, and not always in milk and honey, lest even their men of war, by the long disuse of arms, should become as soft and as nice as the tender and delicate woman, that would not set so much as the sole of her foot to the ground for tenderness and delicacy, a temper as destructive to every thing that is good as it is to every thing that is great, and therefore to be carefully watched against by all God's Israel. 2. Because their country lay very much in the midst of enemies, by whom they must expect to be insulted; for God's heritage was a speckled bird; the birds round about were against her, Jer 12:9. It was therefore necessary they should be well disciplined, that they might defend their coasts when invaded, and might hereafter enlarge their coast as God had promised them. The art of war is best learnt by experience, which not only acquaints men with martial discipline, but (which is no less necessary) inspires them with a martial disposition. It was for the interest of Israel to breed soldiers, as it is the interest of an island to breed sea-men, and therefore God left Canaanites among them, that, by the less difficulties and hardships they met with in encountering them, they might be prepared for greater, and, by running with the footmen, might learn to contend with horses, Jer 12:5. Israel was a figure of the church militant, that must fight its way to a triumphant state. The soldiers of Christ must endure hardness, 2Ti 2:3. Corruption is therefore left remaining in the hearts even of good Christians, that they may learn war, may keep on the whole armour of God, and stand continually upon their guard. The learned bishop Patrick offers another sense of Jdg 3:2 : That they might know to teach them war, that is, they shall know what it is to be left to themselves. Their fathers fought by a divine power. God taught their hands to war and their fingers to fight; but now that they have forfeited his favour let them learn what it is to fight like other men.

II. How wickedly Israel mingled themselves with those that did remain. One thing God intended in leaving them among them was to prove Israel (Jdg 3:4), that those who were faithful to the God of Israel might have the honour of resisting the Canaanites' allurements to idolatry, and that those who were false and insincere might be discovered, and might fall under the shame of yielding to those allurements. Thus in the Christian churches there must needs be heresies, that those who are perfect may be made manifest, 1Co 11:19. Israel, upon trial, proved bad. 1. They joined in marriage with the Canaanites (Jdg 3:6), though they could not advance either their honour or their estate by marrying with them. They would mar their blood instead of mending it, and sink their estates instead of raising them, by such marriages. 2. Thus they were brought to join in worship with them; they served their gods (Jdg 3:6), Baalim and the groves (Jdg 3:7), that is, the images that were worshipped in groves of thick trees, which were a sort of natural temples. In such unequal matches there is more reason to fear that the bad will corrupt the good than to hope that the good will reform the bad, as there is in laying two pears together, the one rotten and the other sound. When they inclined to worship other gods they forgot the Lord their God. In complaisance to their new relations, they talked of nothing by Baalim and the groves, so that by degrees they lost the remembrance of the true God, and forgot there was such a Being, and what obligations they lay under to him. In nothing is the corrupt memory of man more treacherous than in this, that it is apt to forget God; because out of sight, he is out of mind; and here begins all the wickedness that is in the world: they have perverted their way, for they have forgotten the Lord their God.

Matthew Henry: Jdg 3:8-11

We now come to the records of the government of the particular judges, the first of which was Othniel, in whom the story of this book is knit to that of Joshua, for even in Joshua's time Othniel began to be famous, by which it appears that it was not long after Israel's settlement in Canaan before their purity began to be corrupted and their peace (by consequence) disturbed. And those who have taken pains to enquire into the sacred chronology are generally agreed that the Danites' idolatry, and the war with the Benjamites for abusing the Levite's concubine, though related in the latter end of this book, happened about this time, under or before the government of Othniel, who, though a judge, was not such a king in Israel as would keep men from doing what was right in their own eyes. In this short narrative of Othniel's government we have,

I. The distress that Israel was brought into for their sin, Jdg 3:8. God being justly displeased with them for plucking up the hedge of their peculiarity, and laying themselves in common with the nations, plucked up the hedge of their protection and laid them open to the nations, set them to sale as goods he would part with, and the first that laid hands on them was Chushan-rishathaim, king of that Syria which lay between the two great rivers of Tigris and Euphrates, thence called Mesopotamia, which signifies in the midst of rivers. It is probable that this was a warlike prince, and, aiming to enlarge his dominions, he invaded the two tribes first on the other side Jordan that lay next him, and afterwards, perhaps by degrees, penetrated into the heart of the country, and as far as he went put them under contribution, exacting it with rigour, and perhaps quartering soldiers upon them. Laban, who oppressed Jacob with a hard service, was of this country; but it lay at such a distance that one could not have thought Israel's trouble would come from such a far country, which shows so much the more of the hand of God in it.

II. Their return to God in this distress: When he slew them, then they sought him whom before they had slighted. The children of Israel, even the generality of them, cried unto the Lord, Jdg 3:9. At first they made light of their trouble, and thought they could easily shake off the yoke of a prince at such a distance; but, when it continued eight years, they began to feel the smart of it, and then those cried under it who before had laughed at it. Those who in the day of their mirth had cried to Baalim and Ashtaroth now that they are in trouble cry to the Lord from whom they had revolted, whose justice brought them into this trouble, and whose power and favour could alone help them out of it. Affliction makes those cry to God with importunity who before would scarcely speak to him.

III. God's return in mercy to them for their deliverance. Though need drove them to him, he did not therefore reject their prayers, but graciously raised up a deliverer, or saviour, as the word is. Observe, 1. Who the deliverer was. It was Othniel, who married Caleb's daughter, one of the old stock that had seen the works of the Lord, and had himself, no question, kept his integrity, and secretly lamented the apostasy of his people, but waited for a divine call to appear publicly for the redress of their grievances. He was now, we may suppose, far advanced in years, when God raised him up to this honour, but the decays of age were no hindrance to his usefulness when God had work for him to do. 2. Whence he had his commission, not of man, nor by man; but the Spirit of the Lord came upon him (Jdg 3:10), the spirit of wisdom and courage to qualify him for the service, and a spirit of power to excite him to it, so as to give him and others full satisfaction that it was the will of God he should engage in it. The Chaldee says, The spirit of prophecy remained on him. 3. What method he took. He first judged Israel, reproved them, called them to account for their sins, and reformed them, and then went out to war. This was the right method. Let sin at home be conquered, that worst of enemies, and then enemies abroad will be the more easily dealt with. Thus let Christ be our Judge and Law-giver, and then he will save us, and on no other terms, Isa 33:22. 4. What good success he had. He prevailed to break the yoke of the oppression, and, as it should seem, to break the neck of the oppressor; for it is said, The Lord delivered Chushan-rishathaim into his hand. Now was Judah, of which tribe Othniel was, as a lion's whelp gone up from the prey. 5. The happy consequence of Othniel's good services. The land, though not getting ground, yet had rest, and some fruits of the reformation, forty years; and the benefit would have been perpetual if they had kept close to God and their duty.

Matthew Henry: Jdg 3:12-30

Ehud is the next of the judges whose achievements are related in this history, and here is an account of his actions.

I. When Israel sins again God raises up a new oppressor, Jdg 3:12-14. It was an aggravation of their wickedness that they did evil again after they had smarted so long for their former iniquities, promised so fair when Othniel judged them, and received so much mercy from God in their deliverance. What, and after all this, again to break his commandments! Was the disease obstinate to all the methods of cure, both corrosives and lenitives? It seems it was. Perhaps they thought they might make the more bold with their old sins because they saw themselves in no danger from their old oppressor; the powers of that kingdom were weakened and brought low. But God made them know that he had variety of rods wherewith to chastise them: He strengthened Eglon king of Moab against them. This oppressor lay nearer to them than the former, and therefore would be the more mischievous to them; God's judgments thus approached them gradually, to bring them to repentance. When Israel dwelt in tents, but kept their integrity, Balak king of Moab, who would have strengthened himself against them, was baffled; but now that they had forsaken God, and worshipped the gods of the nations round about them (and perhaps those of the Moabites among the rest), here was another king of Moab, whom God strengthened against them, put power into his hands, though a wicked man, that he might be a scourge to Israel. The staff in his hand with which he beat Israel was God's indignation; howbeit he meant not so, neither did his heart think so, Isa 10:6, Isa 10:7. Israelites did ill, and, we may suppose, Moabites did worse; yet because God commonly punishes the sins of his own people in this world, that, the flesh being destroyed, the spirit may be saved, Israel is weakened and Moab strengthened against them. God would not suffer the Israelites, when they were the stronger, to distress the Moabites, nor give them any disturbance, though they were idolaters (Deu 2:9); yet now he suffered the Moabites to distress Israel, and strengthened them on purpose that they might: Thy judgments, O God! are a great deep. The king of Moab took to his assistance the Ammonites and Amalekites (Jdg 3:13), and this strengthened him; and we are here told how they prevailed. 1. They beat them in the field: They went and smote Israel (Jdg 3:13), not only those tribes that lay next them on the other side Jordan, who, though first settled, being frontier-tribes, were most disturbed; but those also within Jordan, for they made themselves masters of the city of palm-trees, which, it is probable, was a strong-hold erected near the place where Jericho had stood, for that was so called (Deu 34:3), into which the Moabites put a garrison, to be a bridle upon Israel, and to secure the passes of Jordan, for the preservation of the communication with their own country. It was well for the Kenites that they had left this city (Jdg 1:16) before it fell into the hands of the enemy. See how quickly the Israelites lost that by their own sin which they had gained by miracles of divine mercy. 2. They made them to serve (Jdg 3:14), that is, exacted tribute from them, either the fruits of the earth in kind or money in lieu of them. They neglected the service of God, and did not pay him his tribute; thus therefore did God recover from them that wine and oil, that silver and gold, which they prepared for Baal, Hos 2:8. What should have been paid to the divine grace, and was not, was distrained for, and paid to the divine justice. The former servitude (Jdg 3:8) lasted but eight years, this eighteen; for, if less troubles do not do the work, God will send greater.

II. When Israel prays again God raises up a new deliverer (Jdg 3:15), named Ehud. We are here told,

1. That he was a Benjamite. The city of palm-trees lay within the lot of this tribe, by which it is probable that they suffered most, and therefore stirred first to shake off the yoke. It is supposed by the chronologers that the Israelites' war with Benjamin for the wickedness of Gibeah, by which that whole tribe was reduced to 600 men, happened before this, so that we may well think that tribe to be now the weakest of all the tribes, yet out of it God raised up this deliverer, in token of his being perfectly reconciled to them, to manifest his own power in ordaining strength out of weakness, and that he might bestow more abundant honour upon that part which lacked, 1Co 12:24.

2. That he was left-handed, as it seems many of that tribe were, Jdg 20:16. Benjamin signifies the son of the right hand, and yet multitudes of them were left-handed; for men's natures do not always answer their names. The lxx. say he was an ambidexter, one that could use both hands alike, supposing that this was an advantage to him in the action he was called to; but the Hebrew phrase, that he was shut of his right hand, intimates that, either through disease of disuse, he made little or no use of that, but of his left hand only, and so was the less fit for war, because he must needs handle his sword but awkwardly; yet God chose this left-handed man to be the man of his right hand, whom he would make strong for himself, Psa 80:17. It was God's right hand that gained Israel the victory (Psa 44:3), not the right hand of the instruments he employed.

3. We are here told what Ehud did for the deliverance of Israel out of the hands of the Moabites. He saved the oppressed by destroying the oppressors, when the measure of their iniquity was full and the set time to favour Israel had come.

(1.) He put to death Eglon the king of Moab; I say, put him to death, not murdered or assassinated him, but as a judge, or minister of divine justice, executed the judgments of God upon him, as an implacable enemy to God and Israel. This story is particularly related.

[1.] He had a fair occasion of access to him. Being an ingenious active man, and fit to stand before kings, his people chose him to carry a present in the name of all Israel, over and above their tribute, to their great lord the king of Moab, that they might find favour in his eyes, Jdg 3:15. The present is called mincha in the original, which is the word used in the law for the offerings that were presented to God to obtain his favour; these the children of Israel had not offered in their season to the God that loved them; and now, to punish them for their neglect, they are laid under a necessity of bringing their offerings to a heathen prince that hated them. Ehud went on his errand to Eglon, offered his present with the usual ceremony and expressions of dutiful respect, the better to colour what he intended and to prevent suspicion.

[2.] It should seem, from the first, he designed to be the death of him, God putting it into his heart, and letting him know also that the motion was from himself, by the Spirit that came upon him, the impulses of which carried with them their own evidence, and so gave him full satisfaction both as to the lawfulness and the success of this daring attempt, of both which he would have had reason enough to doubt. If he be sure that God bids him do it, he is sure both that he may do it and that he shall do it; for a command from God is sufficient to bear us out, and bring us off, both against our consciences and against all the world. That he compassed and imagined the death of this tyrant appears by the preparation he made of a weapon for the purpose, a short dagger, but half a yard long, like a bayonet, which might easily be concealed under his clothes (Jdg 3:16), perhaps because none were suffered to come near the king with their swords by their sides. This he wore on his right thigh, that it might be the more ready to his left hand, and might be the less suspected.

[3.] He contrived how to be alone with him, which he might the more easily be now that he had not only made himself known to him, but ingratiated himself by the present, and the compliments which perhaps, on this occasion, he had passed upon him. Observe, how he laid his plot. First, He concealed his design even from his own attendants, brought them part of the way, and then ordered them to go forward towards home, while he himself, as if he had forgotten something behind him, went back to the king of Moab's court, Jdg 3:18. There needed but one hand to do the execution; had more been engaged they could not so safely have kept counsel, nor so easily have made an escape. Secondly, He returned from the quarries by Gilgal (Jdg 3:19), from the graven images (so it is in the margin) which were with Gilgal, set up perhaps by the Moabites with the twelve stones which Joshua had set up there. Some suggest that the sight of these idols stirred up in him such an indignation against the king of Moab as put him upon the execution of that design which otherwise he had thought to let fall for the present. Or, perhaps, he came so far as to these images, that, telling from what place he returned, the king of Moab might be the more apt to believe he had a message from God. Thirdly, He begged a private audience, and obtained it in a withdrawing-room, here called a summer parlour. He told the king he had a secret errand to him, who thereupon ordered all his attendants to withdraw, Jdg 3:19. Whether he expected to receive some private instructions from an oracle, or some private informations concerning the present state of Israel, as if Ehud would betray his country, it was a very unwise thing for him to be all alone with a stronger and one whom he had reason to look upon as an enemy; but those that are marked for ruin are infatuated, and their hearts hid from understanding; God deprives them of discretion.

[4.] When he had him alone he soon dispatched him. His summer parlour, where he used to indulge himself in ease and luxury, was the place of his execution. First, Ehud demands his attention to a message from God (Jdg 3:20), and that message was a dagger. God sends to us by the judgments of his hand, as well as by the judgments of his mouth. Secondly, Eglon pays respect to a message from God. Though a king, though a heathen king, though rich and powerful, though now tyrannizing over the people of God, though a fat unwieldy man that could not easily rise nor stand long, though in private and what he did was not under observation, yet, when he expected to receive orders form heaven, he rose out of his seat; whether it was low and easy, or whether it was high and stately, he quitted it, and stood up when God was about to speak to him, thereby owning God his superior. This shames the irreverence of many who are called Christians, and yet, when a message from God is delivered to them, study to show, by all the marks of carelessness, how little they regard it. Ehud, in calling what he had to do a message from God, plainly avouches a divine commission for it; and God's inclining Eglon to stand up to it did both confirm the commission and facilitate the execution. Thirdly, The message was delivered, not to his ear, but immediately, and literally, to his heart, into which the fatal knife was thrust, and was left there, Jdg 3:21, Jdg 3:22. His extreme fatness made him unable to resist or to help himself; probably it was the effect of his luxury and excess; and, when the fat closed up the blade, God would by this circumstance show how those that pamper the body do but prepare for their own misery. However, it was an emblem of his carnal security and senselessness. His heart was a fat as grease, and in that he thought himself enclosed. See Psa 119:70; Psa 17:10. Eglon signifies a calf, and he fell like a fatted calf, by the knife, an acceptable sacrifice to divine justice. Notice is taken of the coming out of the dirt or dung, that the death of this proud tyrant may appear the more ignominious and shameful. He that had been so very nice and curious about his own body, to keep it easy and clean, shall now be found wallowing in his own blood and excrements. Thus does God pour contempt upon princes. Now this act of Ehud's may justify itself because he had special direction from God to do it, and it was agreeable to the usual method which, under that dispensation, God took to avenge his people of their enemies, and to manifest to the world his own justice. But it will by no means justify any now in doing the like. No such commissions are now given, and to pretend to them is to blaspheme God, and made him patronize the worst of villanies. Christ bade Peter sheathe the sword, and we find not that he bade him draw it again.

[5.] Providence wonderfully favoured his escape, when he had done the execution. First, The tyrant fell silently, without any shriek or out-cry, which might have been overheard by his servants at a distance. How silently does he go down to the pit, choked up, it may be, with his own fat, which stifled his dying groans, though he had made so great a noise in the world, and had been the terror of the mighty in the land of the living! Secondly, The heroic executioner of this vengeance, with such a presence of mind as discovered not only no consciousness of guilt, but a strong confidence in the divine protection, shut the doors after him, took the key with him, and passed through the guards with such an air of innocence, and boldness, and unconcernedness, as made them not at all to suspect his having done any thing amiss. Thirdly, The servants that attended in the antechamber, coming to the door of the inner parlour, when Ehud had gone, to know their master's pleasure, and finding it locked and all quiet, concluded he had lain down to sleep, had covered his feet upon his couch, and gone to consult his pillow about the message he had received, and to dream upon it (Jdg 3:24), and therefore would not offer to open the door. Thus by their care not to disturb his sleep they lost the opportunity of revenging his death. See what comes of men's taking state too much, and obliging those about them to keep their distance; some time or other it may come against them more than they think of. Fourthly, The servants at length opened the door, and found their master had slept indeed his long sleep, Jdg 3:25. The horror of this tragical spectacle, and the confusion it must needs put them into, to reflect upon their own inconsideration in not opening the door sooner, quite put by the thoughts of sending pursuers after him that had done it, whom now they despaired of overtaking. Lastly, Ehud by this means made his escape to Sierath, a thick wood; so some, Jdg 3:26. It is not said any where in this story what was the place in which Eglon lived now; but, there being no mention of Ehud passing and repassing Jordan, I am inclined to think that Eglon had left his own country of Moab, on the other side Jordan, and made his principal residence at this time in the city of palm-trees, within the land of Canaan, a richer country than his own, and that there he was slain, and then the quarries by Gilgal were not far off him. There where he had settled himself, and thought he had sufficiently fortified himself to lord it over the people of God, there he was cut off, and proved to be fed for the slaughter like a lamb in a large place.

(2.) Ehud, having slain the king of Moab, gave a total rout to the forces of the Moabites that were among them, and so effectually shook off the yoke of their oppression. [1.] He raised an army immediately in Mount Ephraim, at some distance form the headquarters of the Moabites, and headed them himself, Jdg 3:27. The trumpet he blew was indeed a jubilee-trumpet, proclaiming liberty, and a joyful sound it was to the oppressed Israelites, who for a long time had heard no other trumpets than those of their enemies. [2.] Like a pious man, and as one that did all this in faith, he took encouragement himself, and gave encouragement to his soldiers, from the power of God engaged for them (Jdg 3:28): " Follow me, for the Lord hath delivered your enemies into your hands; we are sure to have God with us, and therefore may go on boldly, and shall go on triumphantly."[3.] Like a politic general, he first secured the fords of Jordan, set strong guards upon all those passes, to cut off the communications between the Moabites that were in the land of Israel (for upon them only his design was) and their own country on the other side Jordan, that if, upon the alarm given them, they resolved to fly, they might not escape thither, and, if they resolved to fight, they might not have assistance thence. Thus he shut them up in that land as their prison in which they were pleasing themselves as their palace and paradise. [4.] He then fell upon them, and put them all to the sword, 10,000 of them, which it seems was the number appointed to keep Israel in subjection (Jdg 3:29): There escaped not a man of them. And they were the best and choicest of all the king of Moab's forces, all lusty men, men of bulk and stature, and not only able-bodied, but high spirited too, and men of valour, Jdg 3:29. But neither their strength nor their courage stood them in any stead when the set time had come for God to deliver them into the hand of Israel. [5.] The consequence of this victory was that the power of the Moabites was wholly broken in the land of Israel. The country was cleared of these oppressors, and the land had rest eighty years, Jdg 3:30. We may hope that there was likewise a reformation among them, and a check give to idolatry, by the influence of Ehud which continued a good part of this time. It was a great while for the land to rest, fourscore years; yet what is that to the saints' everlasting rest in the heavenly Canaan?

Matthew Henry: Jdg 3:31

When it is said the land had rest eighty years, some think it meant chiefly of that part of the land which lay eastward on the banks of Jordan, which had been oppressed by the Moabites; but it seems, by this passage here, that the other side of the country which lay south-west was in that time infested by the Philistines, against whom Shamgar made head. 1. It seems Israel needed deliverance, for he delivered Israel; how great the distress was Deborah afterwards related in her song (Jdg 5:6), that in the days of Shamgar the highways were unoccupied, etc.; that part of the country which lay next to the Philistines was so infested with plunderers that people could not travel the roads in safety, but were in danger of being set upon and robbed, nor durst they dwell in the unguarded villages, but were forced to take shelter in the fortified cities. 2. God raised him up to deliver them, as it should seem, while Ehud was yet living, but superannuated. So inconsiderable were the enemies for number that it seems the killing of 600 of them amounted to a deliverance of Israel, and so many he slew with an ox-goad, or, as some read it, a plough-share. It is probable that he was himself following the plough when the Philistines made an inroad upon the country to ravage it, and God put it into his heart to oppose them; the impulse being sudden and strong, and having neither sword nor spear to do execution with, he took the instrument that was next at hand, some of the tools of his plough, and with that killed so many hundred men and came off unhurt. See here, (1.) That God can make those eminently serviceable to his glory and his church's good whose extraction, education, and employment, are very mean and obscure. He that has the residue of the Spirit could, when he pleased, make ploughmen judges and generals, and fishermen apostles. (2.) It is no matter how weak the weapon is if God direct and strengthen the arm. An ox-goad, when God pleases, shall do more than Goliath's sword. And sometimes he chooses to work by such unlikely means, that the excellency of the power may appear to be of God.

Keil-Delitzsch: Jdg 3:1-6

Nations which the Lord left in Canaan : with a repetition of the reason why this was done.

Jdg 3:1-2

The reason, which has already been stated in Jdg 2:22, viz., "to prove Israel by them,"is still further elucidated here. In the first place (Jdg 3:1), את־ישׂראל is more precisely defined as signifying "all those who had not known all the wars of Canaan," sc., from their own observation and experience, that is to say, the generation of the Israelites which rose up after the death of Joshua. For " the wars of Canaan "were the wars which were carried on by Joshua with the almighty help of the Lord for the conquest of Canaan. The whole thought is then still further expanded in Jdg 3:2 as follows: " only (for no other purpose than) that the succeeding generations (the generations which followed Joshua and his contemporaries) of the children of Israel, that He (Jehovah) might teach them war, only those who had not known them (the wars of Canaan)."The suffix attached to ידעוּם refers to "the wars of Canaan,"although this is a feminine noun, the suffix in the masculine plural being frequently used in connection with a feminine noun. At first sight it would appear as though the reason given here for the non-extermination of the Canaanites was not in harmony with the reason assigned in Jdg 2:22, which is repeated in Jdg 3:4 of the present chapter. But the differences are perfectly reconcilable, if we only give a correct explanation of the two expression, "learning war,"and the "wars of Canaan."Learning war in the context before us is equivalent to learning to make war upon the nations of Canaan. Joshua and the Israelites of his time had not overcome these nations by their own human power or by earthly weapons, but by the miraculous help of their God, who had smitten and destroyed the Canaanites before the Israelites. The omnipotent help of the Lord, however, was only granted to Joshua and the whole nation, on condition that they adhered firmly to the law of God (Jos 1:7), and faithfully observed the covenant of the Lord; whilst the transgression of that covenant, even by Achan, caused the defeat of Israel before the Canaanites (Josh 7). In the wars of Canaan under Joshua, therefore, Israel had experienced and learned, that the power to conquer its foes did not consist in the multitude and bravery of its own fighting men, but solely in the might of its God, which it could only possess so long as it continued faithful to the Lord. This lesson the generations that followed Joshua had forgotten, and consequently they did not understand how to make war. To impress this truth upon them-the great truth, upon which the very existence as well as the prosperity of Israel, and its attainment of the object of its divine calling, depended; in other words, to teach it by experience, that the people of Jehovah could only fight and conquer in the power of its God-the Lord had left the Canaanites in the land. Necessity teaches a man to pray. The distress into which the Israelites were brought by the remaining Canaanites was a chastisement from God, through which the Lord desired to lead back the rebellious to himself, to keep them obedient to His commandments, and to train them to the fulfilment of their covenant duties. In this respect, learning war, i.e., learning how the congregation of the Lord was to fight against the enemies of God and of His kingdom, was one of the means appointed by God to tempt Israel, or prove whether it would listen to the commandments of God (Jdg 3:4), or would walk in the ways of the Lord. If Israel should so learn to war, it would learn at the same time to keep the commandments of God. But both of these were necessary for the people of God. For just as the realization of the blessings promised to the nation in the covenant depended upon its hearkening to the voice of the Lord, so the conflicts appointed for it were also necessary, just as much for the purification of the sinful nation, as for the perpetuation and growth of the kingdom of God upon the earth.

Jdg 3:3-4

The enumeration of the different nations rests upon Jos 13:2-6, and, with its conciseness and brevity, is only fully intelligible through the light thrown upon it by that passage. The five princes of the Philistines are mentioned singly there. According to Jos 13:4., "all the Canaanites and the Sidonians and the Hivites," are the Canaanitish tribes dwelling in northern Canaan, by the Phoenician coast and upon Mount Lebanon. " The Canaanites: "viz., those who dwelt along the sea-coast to the south of Sidon. The Hivites: those who were settled more in the heart of the country, "from the mountains of Baal-hermon up to the territory of Hamath." Baal-hermon is only another name for Baal-gad , the present Banjas , under the Hermon (cf. Jos 13:5). When it is stated still further in Jdg 3:4, that "they were left in existence (i.e., were not exterminated by Joshua) to prove Israel by them,"we are struck with the fact, that besides the Philistines, only these northern Canaanites are mentioned; whereas, according to Judg 1, many towns in the centre of the land were also left in the hands of the Canaanites, and therefore here also the Canaanites were not yet exterminated, and became likewise a snare to the Israelites, not only according to the word of the angel of the Lord (Jdg 2:3), but also because the Israelites who dwelt among these Canaanitish tribes contracted marriages with them, and served their gods. This striking circumstance cannot be set aside, as Bertheau supposes, by the simple remark, that "the two lists (that of the countries which the tribes of Israel did not conquer after Joshua's death in Judg 1, and the one given here of the nations which Joshua had not subjugated) must correspond on the whole,"since the correspondence referred to really does not exist. It can only be explained on the ground that the Canaanites who were left in the different towns in the midst of the land, acquired all their power to maintain their stand against Israel from the simple fact that the Philistines on the south-west, and several whole tribes of Canaanites in the north, had been left by Joshua neither exterminated nor even conquered, inasmuch as they so crippled the power of the Israelites by wars and invasions of the Israelitish territory, that they were unable to exterminate those who remained in the different fortresses of their own possessions. Because, therefore, the power to resist the Israelites and oppress them for a time resided not so much in the Canaanites who were dwelling in the midst of Israel, as in the Philistines and the Canaanites upon the mountains of Lebanon who had been left unconquered by Joshua, these are the only tribes mentioned in this brief survey as the nations through which the Lord would prove His people.

Jdg 3:5-6

But the Israelites did not stand the test. Dwelling in the midst of the Canaanites, of whom six tribes are enumerated, as in Exo 3:8, Exo 3:17, etc. (see at Deu 7:1), they contracted marriages with them, and served their gods, contrary to the express prohibition of the Lord in Exo 34:16; Exo 23:24, and Deu 7:3-4.

Keil-Delitzsch: Jdg 3:7-11

II. History of the People of Israel under the Judges - Judges 3:7-16:31

In order that we may be able to take a distinct survey of the development of the Israelites in the three different stages of the their history duringthe times of the judges, the first thing of importance to be done is to determine the chronology of the period of the judges , inasmuch as not only have greatly divergent opinions prevailed upon this point, but hypotheses have been set up, which endanger and to some extent directly overthrow the historical character of the accounts which the book of Judges contains.

(Note: Rud. Chr. v. Bennigsen , for example, reckons up fifty different calculations, and the list might be still further increased by the addition of both older and more recent attempts (see Winer , Bibl. Real-Wörterb. ii. pp. 327-8). Lepsius (Chronol. der. Aeg. i. 315-6, 365ff. and 377-8) and Bunsen (Aegypten, i. pp. 209ff. iv. 318ff., and Bibelwerk, i. pp. 237ff.), starting from the position maintained by Ewald and Bertheau , that the chronological data of the book of Judges are for the most part to be regarded as round numbers, have sought for light to explain the chronology of the Bible in the darkness of the history of ancient Egypt, and with their usual confidence pronounce it an indisputable truth that the whole of the period of the Judges did not last longer than from 169 to 187 years.)

If we take a superficial glance at the chronological data contained in the book, it appears a very simple matter to make the calculation required, inasmuch as the duration of the different hostile oppressions, and also the length of time that most of the judges held their office, or at all events the duration of the peace which they secured for the nation, are distinctly given. The following are the numbers that we find: -

1.	Oppression by Chushan-rishathaim,	(Jdg 3:8),	8 years.
	Deliverance by Othniel, and rest,	(Jdg 3:11),	40 years.
2.	Oppression by the Moabites,	(Jdg 3:14),	18 years.
	Deliverance by Ehud, and rest,	(Jdg 3:30),	80 years.
3.	Oppression by the Canaanitish king Jabin,	(Jdg 4:3),	20 years.
	Deliverance by Deborah and Barak, and rest,	(Jdg 5:31),	40 years.
4.	Oppression by the Midianites,	(Jdg 6:1),	7 years.
	Deliverance by Gideion, and rest,	(Jdg 8:28)	40 years.
	Abimelech's reign,	(Jdg 9:22),	3 years.
	Tola, judge,	(Jdg 10:2),	23 years.
	Jair, judge,	(Jdg 10:3),	22 years.
		Total,	301 years.
5.	Oppression by the Ammonites,	(Jdg 10:8),	18 years.
	Deliveance by Jephthah, who judged Israel,	(Jdg 12:7),	6 years.
	Ibzan, judge,	(Jdg 12:9),	7 years.
	Elon, judge,	(Jdg 12:11),	10 years.
	Abdon, judge,	(Jdg 12:14),	8 years.
6.	Oppression by the Philistines,	(Jdg 13:1),	40 years.
	At this time Samson judged Israel for 20 years	(Jdg 15:20; Jdg 16:31
		Total,	390 years.
For if to this we add -
( a .)	the time of Joshua, which is not distinctly mentioned, and	20 years.
( b .)	the time during which Eli was judge (1Sa 4:18)	40 years.
We obtain 450 years.

(Note: The earlier chronologists discovered a confirmation of this as the length of time that the period of the judges actually lasted in Act 13:20, where Paul in his speech at Antioch in Pisidia says, according to the textus receptus , "After that He gave unto them judges about the space of four hundred and fifty years until Samuel the prophet."The discrepancy between this verse and the statement in 1Ki 6:1, that Solomon built the temple in the four hundred and eightieth year after the children of Israel were come out of Egypt, many have endeavoured to remove by a remark, which is correct in itself, viz., that the apostle merely adopted the traditional opinion of the Jewish schools, which had been arrive at by adding together the chronological data of the book of Judges, without entering into the question of its correctness, as it was not his intention to instruct his hearers in chronology. But this passage cannot prove anything at all; for the reading given in the lect . rec . is merely founded upon Cod Al., Vat., Ephr. S. rescr., but according to the Cod. Sinait., ed. Tischendorf and several minuscula , as well as the Copt. Sahid. Arm. Vers. and Vulg ., is, καὶ καθελὠν ἔθνη ἑπτὰ ἐν γῇ Χαναὰν κατεκλληρονόμησεν αὐτοῖς τὴν γῆν αὐτῶν ὡς ἔτεσιν τετπακοσίοις καὶ πεντήκοντα, καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα ἔδωκεν κριτὰς ἕως Σαμουήλ τ. πρ. This text is rendered thus in the Vulgate: et destruens gentes septem in terra Chanaan sorte distribuit eis terram eorum quasi post quadringentos et quinquaginta annos: et post haec dedit judices usque ad Samuel prophetam , and can hardly be understood in any other sense than this, that Paul reckoned 450 as the time that elapsed between the call of Abraham (or the birth of Isaac) and the division of the land, namely 215 + 215 (according to the Alex. reading of Exo 12:40 : see the comm. on this passage) + 40 = 470, or about 450.)

And if we add still further -

( c .)	The times of Samuel and Saul combined,	40 years.
( d .)	The reign of David (2Sa 5:4; 1Ki 2:11),	40 years.
( e .)	The reign of Solomon to the building of the temple (1Ki 6:1),	3 years.
The whole time from the entrance of Israel into Canaan to the building of the temple amounted to,	533 years.

Or if we add the forty years spent in the wilderness, the time that elapsed between the exodus from Egypt and the building of the temple 573 years. But the interval was not so long as this; for, according to 1Ki 6:1, Solomon built the house of the Lord in the 480^th year after the children of Israel came out of Egypt, and in the fourth year of his reign. And no well-founded objections can be raised as to the correctness and historical credibility of this statement. It is true that the lxx have "the 440th year"instead of the 480^th ; but this reading is proved to be erroneous by Aquila and Symmachus , who adopt the number 480 in common with all the rest of the ancient versions, and it is now almost unanimously rejected (see Ewald , Gesch. ii. p. 479). In all probability it owed its origin to an arbitrary mode of computing the period referred to by reckoning eleven generations of forty years each (see Ed Preuss ; die Zeitrechnung der lxx pp. 78ff.). On the other hand, the number 480 of the Hebrew text cannot rest upon a mere reckoning of generations, since the year and month of Solomon's reign are given in 1Ki 6:1; and if we deduct this date from the 480, there remain 477 of 476 years, which do not form a cyclical number at all.

(Note: Bertheau has quite overlooked this when he endeavors to make the 480 years from the exodus to the building of the temple into a cyclical number, and appeals in support of this to 1Ch 6:5., where twelve generations are reckoned from Aaron to Ahimaaz, the contemporary of David. But it is perfectly arbitrary on his part to include Ahimaaz who was a boy in the time of David (2Sa 15:27, 2Sa 15:36; 2Sa 18:19, 2Sa 18:22, 2Sa 18:27.), as the representative of a generation that was contemporaneous with David; whereas it was not Ahimaaz, but his father Zadok, i.e., the eleventh high priest from Aaron, who anointed Solomon as king (1Ki 1:39; 1Ki 2:35), and therefore there had been only eleven high priests from the exodus to the building of the temple. If therefore this period was to be divided into generations of forty years each on the ground of the genealogies in the Chronicles, there could only be eleven generations counted, and this is just what the lxx have done.)

Again, the exodus of Israel from Egypt was an "epoch-making"event, which was fixed in the recollection of the people as no other ever was, so that allusions to it run through the whole of the Old Testament. Moreover, the very fact that it does not tally with the sum total of the numbers in the book of Judges is an argument in favor of its correctness; whereas all the chronological calculations that differ from this bring us back to these numbers, such, for example, as the different statements of Josephus, who reckons the period in question at 592 years in Ant. viii. 3, 1, and on the other hand, at 612 years in Ant. xx. 10 and c. Ap. ii. 2.

(Note: Josephus adds together the numbers which occur in the book of Jud Ges. Reckoning from the invasion of Chushan-rishathaim to the forty years' oppression of the Philistines (inclusive), these amount to 390 years, if we regard Samson's twenty years as forming part of the Philistine oppression, or to 410 years if they are reckoned separately. Let us add to this the forty years of the journey through the wilderness, the twenty-five years which Josephus assigns to Joshua (Ant. 5:1, 29), the forty years of Eli, the twelve years which he allots to Samuel before the election of Saul as king (6:13, 5), and the forty years which he reckons to Samuel and Saul together, and lastly, the forty and a half years of David's reign and the four years of Solomon's up to the time when the temple was built, and we obtain 40 + 25 + 40 + 12 + 40 + 401/2 + 4 = 2011/2 years; and these added to 390 make 5911/2, or added to 410 they amount to 611 years.)

Lastly, it may easily be shown that there are several things assumed in this chronological survey which have no foundation in the text. This applies both to the assumed succession of the Ammonitish and Philistine oppressions, and also to the introduction of the forty years of Eli's life as judge after or in addition to the forty years that the Philistines ruled over Israel.

The current view, that the forty years of the oppression on the part of the Philistines did not commence till after the death of Jephthah or Abdon, is apparently favored, no doubt, by the circumstance, that this oppression is not described till after the death of Abdon (Jdg 12:15), and is introduced with the usual formula, "And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the Lord,"etc. (Jdg 13:1). But this formula, taken by itself, does not furnish any certain proof that the oppression which it introduces did not take place till after what has been already described, especially in the absence of any more definite statement, such as the clause introduced into Jdg 4:1, "when Ehud was dead,"or the still more definite remark, that the land had rest so many years (Jdg 3:11, Jdg 3:30; Jdg 5:31; cf. Jdg 8:32). Now in the case before us, instead of any such statement as to time, we find the general remark in Jdg 10:6., that when the Israelites sank into idolatry again, Jehovah sold them into the hands of the Philistines, and into the hands of the children of Ammon; and after this there simply follows an account of the oppression on the part of the Ammonites, and the eventual deliverance effected by Jephthah (Judg 10:8-12:7), together with an enumeration of three judges who succeeded Jephthah (Jdg 12:8-15); but we learn nothing further about the oppression on the part of the Philistines which is mentioned in Jdg 10:7. When therefore, it is still further related, in Jdg 13:1, that the Lord delivered the Israelites into the hand of the Philistines forty years, this cannot possibly refer to another oppression on the part of the Philistines subsequent to the one noticed in Jdg 10:7; but the true explanation must be, that the historian proceeds here for the first time to describe the oppression noticed in Jdg 10:7, and introduces his description with the formula he generally adopted: "And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the Lord,"etc. The oppression itself, therefore, commenced at the same time as that of the Ammonites, and continued side by side with it; but it lasted much longer, and did not come to an end till a short time before the death of Elon the judge. This is confirmed beyond all doubt by the fact, that although the Ammonites crossed the Jordan to fight against Judah, Benjamin, and Ephraim, it was chiefly the tribes of Israel who dwelt on the other side of the Jordan that were oppressed by them (Jdg 10:8, Jdg 10:9), and that it was only by these tribes that Jephthah was summoned to make war upon them, and was elected as their head and prince (Jdg 11:5-11), and also that it was only the Ammonites in the country to the east of the Jordan whom he subdued then before the Israelites (Jdg 11:32, Jdg 11:33). From this it is very evident that Jephthah, and his successors Ibzan, Elon, and Abdon, were not judges over all Israel, and neither fought against the Philistines nor delivered Israel from the oppression of the enemies who invaded the land from the south-west; so that the omission of the expression, "the land had rest,"etc., from Judg 11 and Jdg 12:1-15, is very significant.

(Note: Even Hitzig , who denies that the oppression of the Philistines was contemporaneous with that of the Ammonites, is obliged to acknowledge that "it is true, the author first of all disposed very properly of the Ammonitish war before entering into the details of the war with the Philistines, with which it had no connection, and which was not brought to a close so soon."When therefore, notwithstanding this, he adduces as evidence that they were not contemporaneous, the fact that "according to the context, and to all analogy (cf. Jdg 4:1; Jdg 3:11, Jdg 3:12), the author intends to write, in Jdg 13:1, that after the death of Abdon, when there was no judge in Israel, the nation fell back into its former lawlessness, and as a punishment was given up to the Philistines,"a more careful study of the passages cited (Jdg 4:1; Jdg 3:11, Jdg 3:12) will soon show that the supposed analogy does not exist at all, since the expression, "the land had rest,"etc. really occurs in both instanced (se Jdg 3:11 and Jdg 3:31), whereas it is omitted before Jdg 13:1. The still further assertion, however, that the account of the Philistine war ought to have followed immediately upon that of the war with the Ammonites, if the intention was to describe this with equal fulness, has no force whatever. If neither Jephthah nor the three judges who followed him had anything to do with the Philistines, if they merely judged the tribes that were oppressed and threatened by the Ammonites, it was natural that everything relating to them should be attached to the account of the defeat of the Ammonites, in order that there might be no unnecessary separation of what was so intimately connected together. And whilst these objections are thus proved to have no force, the objection raised to the contemporaneous occurrence of the two oppressions is wrecked completely upon the distinct statement in Jdg 10:7, that Jehovah sold the Israelites into the hands of the Philistines and Ammonites, which Hitzig can only get over by declaring, without the slightest foundation, that the words "into the hands of the Philistines"are spurious, simply because they stand in the way of his own assumption.)

But if the Ammonitish and Philistine oppressions occurred at the same time, of course only one of them must be taken into account in our chronological calculations as to the duration of the period of the judges; and the one selected must be the one to the close of which the chronological data of the next period are immediately appended. But this is not the case with the account of the Ammonitish oppression, of the deliverance effected by Jephthah, and of the judges who succeeded him (Ibzan, Elon, and Abdon), because the chronological thread of this series of events is broken off with the death of Abdon, and is never resumed again. It is so, however, with the Philistine oppression, which is said to have lasted forty years, though the termination of it is not given in the book of Jud Ges. Samson merely began to deliver Israel out of the power of the Philistines (Jdg 13:5), but did not accomplish their complete deliverance. He judged Israel for twenty years in the days of the Philistines, i.e., during the oppression of the Philistines (Jdg 15:20); consequently the twenty years of his labours must not be taken into account in the chronology of the period of the judges, inasmuch as they are all included in the forty years of the Philistines' rule. At the death of Samson, with which the book of Judges closes, the power of the Philistines was not yet broken; and in Judg 4 of the first book of Samuel we find the Philistines still fighting against the Israelites, and that with such success that the Israelites were defeated by them, an even lost the ark of the covenant. This war must certainly be a continuation of the Philistine oppression, to which the acts of Samson belonged, since the termination of that oppression is not mentioned in the book of Judges; and on the other hand, the commencement of the oppression referred to in 1Sa 4:9. is not given in the book of Samuel. Consequently even Hitzig supports the view which I have expressed, that the forty years' supremacy of the Philistines, noticed in Jdg 13:1, is carried on into the book of Samuel, and extends to 1Sa 7:3, 1Sa 7:7, and that it was through Samuel that it was eventually brought to a termination (1Sa 7:10.). But if this is established, then the forty years during which Eli was judge cannot have followed the Philistine oppression and the deeds performed by Samson, and therefore must not be reckoned separately. For since Eli died in consequence of the account of the capture of the ark by the Philistines (1Sa 4:18), and seven months (1Sa 6:1) and twenty years elapsed after this catastrophe before the Philistines were defeated and humiliated by Samuel (1Sa 7:2), only the last half of the forty years of Eli's judicial life falls within the forty years of the Philistine rule over Israel, whilst the first half coincides with the time of the judge Jair. Eli himself was not a judge in the strict sense of the word. He was neither commander of the army, nor secular governor of the nation, but simply the high priest; and in this capacity he administered the civil law in the supreme court, altogether independently of the question whether there was a secular governor at the time or not. After the death of Eli, Israel continued for more than twenty years utterly prostrate under the yoke of the Philistines. It was during this period that Samson made the Philistines feel the power of the God of Israel, though he could not deliver the Israelites entirely from their oppression. Samuel laboured at the same time, as the prophet of the Lord, to promote the inward and spiritual strength of Israel, and that with such success, that the people came to Mizpeh at his summons, and there put away the strange gods that they had hitherto worshipped, and worshipped the Lord alone; after which the Lord hearkened to Samuel's prayer, and gave them a complete victory over the Philistines (1Sa 7:2-11). After this victory, which was gained not very long after the death of Samson, Samuel undertook the supreme government of Israel as judge, and eventually at their own desire, and with the consent of God, gave them a king in the person of Saul the Benjaminite. This was not till Samuel himself was old, and had appointed as his successors in the office of judge his own sons, who did not walk in their father's ways (1 Sam. 8-10). Even under Saul, however Samuel continued to the very end of his life to labour as the prophet of the Lord for the well-being of Israel, although he laid down his office of judge as soon as Saul had been elected king. He announced to Saul how he had been rejected by God on account of his disobedience; he anointed David as king; and his death did not occur till after Saul had began to be troubled by the evil spirit, and to plot for David's life (1Sa 25:1), as we may learn from the fact that David fled to Samuel at Ramah when Saul resolved to slay him (1Sa 19:18)

How long Samuel judged Israel between the victory gained at Ebenezer (1 Sam. 7) and the election of Saul as king of Israel, is not stated in the Old Testament, nor even the length of Saul's reign, as the text of 1Sa 13:1 is corrupt. But we shall not be very far from the truth, if we set down about forty years as the time covered by the official life of Samuel as judge after that event and the reign of Saul, and reckon from seventeen to nineteen years as the duration of Samuel's judgeship, and from twenty to twenty-two as the length of Saul's reign. For it is evident from the accounts that we possess of the lives and labours of Samuel and Saul, that Saul did not reign forty years (the time given by Paul in Act 13:21 according to the traditional opinion current in the Jewish schools), but at the most from twenty to twenty-two; and this is now pretty generally admitted (see at 1Sa 13:1). When David was chosen king of Judah at Hebron after the death of Saul, he was thirty years old (2Sa 5:1-4), and can hardly have been anointed king by Samuel at Bethlehem before the age of twenty. For though his father Jesse was still living, and he himself was the youngest of Jesse's eight sons, and was feeding the flock (1Sa 16:6-12), and even after this is still described as נער (1Sa 17:42, 1Sa 17:55), Jesse was זקן (an old man) at the time (1Sa 17:12), at any rate sixty years old or more, to that his eldest son might be forty years old, and David, the youngest, as much as twenty. For נער was not only applied to a mere boy, but to a young man approaching twenty; and the keeping of sheep was not merely as task performed by shepherd boys, but also by the grown-up sons of a family, among whom we must certainly reckon David, since he had already contended with lions and bears in the steppe, and slain these beasts of prey (1Sa 17:34-36), and shortly afterwards was not only recommended to king Saul by his courtiers, as "a mighty valiant man, and a man of war, and wise in speech,"to cheer up the melancholy king by his playing upon the harp (1Sa 16:18), but also undertook to fight with the giant Goliath (1 Sam. 17), and was placed in consequence over the men of war, and was afterwards made captain of a thousand, and betrothed to his daughter Michal (1Sa 18:5, 1Sa 18:13, 1Sa 18:17.). But if David was anointed by Samuel at the age of about twenty years, Saul could not have reigned more than ten years after that time, as David was made king at the age of thirty. And he cannot have reigned much longer before that time. For, apart from the fact that everything which is related of his former wars and deeds could easily have occurred within the space of ten years, the circumstance that Samuel lived till the last years of Saul's reign, and died but a few years before Saul's death (1Sa 25:1), precludes the assumption that he reigned any longer than that. For Samuel was already so old that he had appointed his sons as judges, whereupon the people desired a king, and assigned as the reason, that Samuel's sons did not walk in his ways (1Sa 8:1-4), from which it is very evident that they had already filled the office of judge for some considerable time. If we add to this the fact that Samuel was called to be a prophet before the death of Eli, and therefore was no doubt twenty-five or thirty years old when Eli died, and that twenty years and seven months elapsed between the death of Eli and the defeat of the Philistines, so that Samuel may have been about fifty years old at that time, and that he judged the people from this time forward till he had become an old man, and then gave the nation a king in the person of Saul, we cannot assign more than forty years as the interval between the defeat of the Philistines and the death of Saul, without attributing to Samuel an age of more than ninety years, and therefore we cannot reckon more than forty or thirty-nine years as the time that intervened between the installation of Samuel in his office as judge and the commencement of the reign of Saul.

According to this, the chronology of the times of the judges may be arranged as follows: -

a.	From the oppression of Cushan-rishathaim to the death of Jair the judge (vid. p. 202),	301 years.
b.	Duration of the Philistine oppression,	40 years.
c.	Judgeship of Samuel and reign of Saul,	39 years.
d.	David's reign (7 ½ and 33 years)	40 years.
e.	Solomon's reign to the building of the temple,	3 years.
		423 years.
a.	The wandering in the desert,	40 years.
b.	the time between the entrance into Canaan and the division of the land,	7 years.
c.	From the division of Canaan to the invasion of Chushan-rishathaim,	10 years.
		480 years.

These numbers are as thoroughly in harmony with 1Ki 6:1, and also with the statement made by Jephthah in his negotiations with the king of the Ammonites, that Israel dwelt in Heshbon and the cities along the bank of the Arnon for three hundred years (Jdg 11:26), as we could possibly expect so general a statement in round numbers to be. For instance, as the chronological data of the book of Judges give 301 years as the interval between the invasion of Chushan-rishathaim and the commencement of the Ammonitish oppression, and as only about ten years elapsed between the division of Canaan, after which the tribes on the east of the Jordan first established themselves firmly in Gilead, and the invasion of Chushan, the Israelites had dwelt 310 years in the land on the other side of the Jordan at the time of Jephthah's negotiations with the Ammonites, or at the most 328, admitting that these negotiations may possibly not have taken place till towards the end of the eighteen years' oppression on the part of the Ammonites, so that Jephthah could appeal with perfect justice to the fact that they had been in possession of the land for 300 years.

This statement of Jephthah, however, furnishes at the same time an important proof that the several chronological data contained in our book are to be regarded as historical, and also that the events are to be reckoned as occurring successively; so that we have no right to include the years of oppression in the years of rest, as is frequently done, or to shorten the whole period from Othniel to Jephthah by arbitrary assumptions of synchronisms, in direct opposition to the text. This testimony removes all foundation from the hypothesis that the number forty which so frequently occurs is a so-called round number, that is to say, is nothing more than a number derived from a general estimate of the different periods according to generations, or cyclical periods. For if the sum total of the different chronological notices tallies on the whole with the actual duration of the period in question as confirmed by this testimony, the several notices must be regarded as historically true, and that all the more because the greater part of these data consist of such numbers as 6, 8, 18, 20, 22, 23, which can neither be called round nor cyclical. Moreover, the purely cyclical significance of the number forty among the Israelites must first of all be proved. Even Ewald (Gesh. ii. pp. 480, 481) most justly observes, that "it is very easy to say that the number forty was a round number in the case of different nations; but this round number must first of all have had its origin in life, and therefore must have had its limited application."If, however, we look more closely at the different occasions on which the space of forty years is mentioned, between the exodus from Egypt and the building of the temple, we shall find that at any rate the first and last passages contain very definite notices of time, and cannot possibly be regarded as containing merely round or cyclical numbers. In the case of the forty years' wandering in the wilderness, this is placed beyond the reach of doubt by the fact that even the months are given of both the second and fortieth years (Num 10:11; Num 20:1; Deu 1:3), and the intervening space is distinctly stated to have been thirty-eight years (Deu 2:14). And the forty years that David is said to have reigned also give the precise number, since he reigned seven and a half years at Hebron, and thirty-three at Jerusalem (2Sa 5:4, 2Sa 5:5; 1Ki 2:11). Between these two extreme points we certainly meet with the number forty five times: viz., forty years of rest under Othniel (Jdg 3:11), the same under Barak and Deborah (Jdg 5:31), and the same again Gideon (Jdg 8:28); also forty years of the oppression by the Philistines (Jdg 13:1), and the forty years that Eli was judge (1Sa 4:18); and in addition to these, we find eighty years of rest after Ehud's victory (Jdg 3:30). But there are also twelve or thirteen passages in which we find either odd numbers, or at all events numbers that cannot be called cyclical or round (viz., Jdg 3:8, Jdg 3:14; Jdg 4:3; Jdg 6:1; Jdg 9:22; Jdg 10:2, Jdg 10:3; Jdg 12:7, Jdg 12:9, Jdg 12:11, Jdg 12:14; Jdg 15:20; Jdg 16:31). What is there then to justify our calling the number forty cyclical or round? It is the impossibility or improbability that in the course of 253 years Israel should have had rest from hostile oppression on three occasions for forty years, and on one for eighty? Is there anything impossible in this? Certainly not. Is there even an improbability? If there be, surely improbabilities have very often been perfectly true. And in the case before us, the appearance itself loses all significance, when we consider that although if we take entire years the number forty is repeated, yet it cannot be taken so literally as that we are to understand that entire years are intended every time. If David's reign is reckoned as forty years in 2Sa 5:4, although, according to 2Sa 5:5, he reigned seven years and six months in Hebron and thirty-three years in Jerusalem, it may also be the case that, although forty years is the number given in the book of Judges, the period referred to may actually have been only thirty-nine years and a half, or may have been forty and a half. To this must be added the fact that the time during which the war with the enemy lasted is also included in the years of rest; and this must always have occupied several months, and may sometimes have lasted even more than a year.

Now, if we give all these circumstances their due weight, every objection that can be raised as to the correctness and historical credibility of the chronological data of the book of Judges vanishes away, whilst all the attempts that have been made to turn these data into round or cyclical numbers are so arbitrary as to need no special refutation whatever.

(Note: The principal representatives of this hypothesis are Ewald and his pupil Bertheau . According to Ewald Gesch. ii. pp. 473ff.), the twelve judges from Othniel to Samson form the historical groundwork of the book, although there are distinct traces that there were many more such rulers, because it was only of these that any reminiscences had been preserved. When, therefore, after the expiration of the whole of this period, the desire arose to bring out into distinct prominence the most important points connected with it, the first thing that was done was to group together these twelve judges, with such brief remarks as we find in the case of five of them (Tola, Jair, Ibzan, Elon, and Abdon) in Jdg 10:1-5 and Jdg 12:8-15. In their case, too, the precise time was given, so far as it could be still remembered. But, independently of this, the attempt was also made to connect the order of the many alternations of war and peace during these 480 years which occurred, according to 1Ki 6:1, between the exodus from Egypt and the building of Solomon's temple, to certain grand and easily remembered divisions; and for this the number forty at once presented itself. For since, according to the oldest traditions, Israel spent forty years in the wilderness, and since David also reigned forty years, it might easily be regarded as a suitable thing to divide the whole into twelve equal parts, and to assign to each forty years a great hero and some striking event: e.g., (1) Moses and the wilderness; (2) Joshua and the prosperous rule of the elders; (3) the war with Chushan-rishathaim, and Othniel; (4) the Moabites and Ehud; (5) the Aramaeans and Jair; (6) the Canaanites under Jabin, and Deborah; (7) the Midianites and Gideon; (8) Tola, with whose opponents we are not acquainted; (9) the Ammonites and Philistines, or Jephthah and Samson; (10) the Philistines and Eli; (11) Samuel and Saul; (12) David. "Finally, then these twelve judges from Othniel to Samson were necessarily connected with this different mode of reckoning, so that the several numbers, as well as the order in which the judges occur, which show so evidently (?) that the last editor but one compiled the section extending from Judg 3-16 out of a great variety of sources, must have been the resultant of many chan Ges. "But Ewald looks in vain for any reason for this "must". And the question starts up at once, how could the idea ever have entered any one's mind of dividing these 480 years, from the exodus to the building of the temple, among the twelve judges in this particular manner; that to all the judges, concerning whom it was not known how long their period of labour lasted, forty years each were assigned, when it was known that Israel had wandered forty years in the wilderness, that Joshua had governed forty years with the elders, and Samuel and Saul together had ruled for the same time, and David also, so that there only remained for the judges from Othniel to Samson 480 - 4 x 40, i.e., only 320 years, or, deducting the first three or four years of Solomon's reign, only 317 or 316 years? These years, if divided among twelve judges, would give only twenty-six or twenty-seven years for each. Or how did they come to allot eighty years to Ehud, and only twenty-two to Jair and twenty-three to Tola, if the two latter had also conquered the hostile oppressors of Israel? And lastly, why was Shamgar left without any, when he delivered Israel from the Philistines? To these and many other questions the author of this hypothesis is unable to give any answer at all; and the arbitrary nature of his mode of manufacturing history is so obvious, that it is unnecessary to waste words in proving it. It is not better with Bertheau's hypothesis (Judg. pp. xvi.ff.). According to this hypothesis, out of the twelve generations from Moses to David which he derives from 1Ch 6:5., only six (or 240 years) belong to the judges from Othniel to Samson. These have been variously reckoned. One calculation takes them as six generations of forty years each; another reckons them more minutely, adopting smaller numbers which were assigned to the twelve judges and the son of Gideon. But six generations and twelve judges could not be combined in any other way than by assigning twenty years to each judge. Now there was not a single judge who judged Israel for twenty years, with the exception of Samson And the total number of the years that they judged is not 240, but 296 years (40 + 80 + 40 + 40 + 23 + 22 + 6 + 7 + 10 + 8 +20 + x ). Consequently we do not find any trace throughout the book, that the period of the judges was reckoned as consisting of six generations of forty years each. (Compare with this a more elaborate refutation by Bachmann , pp. 3ff.).)

Chonological Survey of the Principal Events from the Exodus to the Building of Solomon's Temple

The historical character of the chronological data of the book of Judges being thus established, we obtain a continuous chronology for the history of the Israelitish nation, as we may see from the following survey, to which we append a calculation of the years before Christ: -

Exodus of Israel from Egypt	-	1492
The law given at Sinai	-	1492-1491
Death of Aaron and Moses in the fortieth year of the wandering in the desert	40	1453
Conquest of Canaan by Joshua	7	1452-1445
From the division of the land to the invasion of Chushan-rishathaim	10	1445-1435
Death of Joshua	-	c. 1442
Wars of the tribes of Israel with the Canaanites	-	1442 onwards
Oppression by Chushan-rishathaim	8	1435-1427
Deliverance by Othniel, and rest	40	1427-1387
Oppression by the Moabites	18	1387-1369
Deliverance by Ehud, and rest	80	1369-1289
Victory of Shamgar over the Philistines	-	x
Oppression by Jabin	20	1289-1269
Deliverance by Deborah and Barak, and rest	40	1269-1229
Oppression by the Midianites	7	1229-1222
Deliverance by Gideon, and rest	40	1222-1182
Rule of Abimelech	3	1182-1179
Tola, judge	23	1179-1156
Jair, judge	22	1156-1134
Eli, high priest and judge forty years	-	1154-1114
After repeated apostasy, oppression
(a) In the East	(b) In the West
By the Ammonites, 18 years	By the Philistines	40	1134-1094
from 1134 to 1116 b.c.	Loss of the Ark	-	c. 1114
Jephthath, judge 6 years	Samson's deeds	-	1116-1096
from 1116 to 1110 b.c.	Samuel's prophetic labours	-	1114 onwards
Ibzan, judge 7 years	Defeat of the Philistines	- 1094
from 1110 to 1103 b.c.	Samuel, judge	19	1094-1075
Elon, judge 10 years	Saul, king	20	1075-1055
from 1103 to 1093 b.c.	David, king at Hebron	7	1055-1048
Abdon, judge 7 years	David, king at Jerusalem	33	1048-1015
from 1093 to 1085 b.c.	Solomon's reign to the building of the temple	3	1015-1012
	Total	480	years.

All that is required to establish our calculation as to the period of the judges, is to justify our estimate of ten years as the time that intervened between the division of the land and the invasion by Chushan-rishathaim, since the general opinion, founded upon the statement of Josephus (Ant. v. 1, 29), that Joshua was στρατηγός of the nation for twenty-five years after the death of Moses, and (6:5, 4) that his death was followed by a state of anarchy for eighteen years, is that it was at least thirty-five years. But Josephus at all events ought not to be appealed to, as he had no other sources of information with regard to the earlier portion of the Israelitish history than the Old Testament itself; and he so frequently contradicts himself in his chronological statements, that no reliance can be place upon them even in cases where their incorrectness cannot be clearly proved. And if we consider, on the other hand, that Joshua was an old man when the two great campaigns in the south and north of Canaan were over, and in fact was so advanced in years, that God commanded him to divide the land, although many districts were still unconquered (Jos 13:1.), in order that he might finish this part of his calling before his death, there is very little probability that he lived for twenty-five years after that time. The same words are used to describe the last days of his life in Jos 23:1, that had previously been employed to describe his great age (Jos 13:1.). No doubt the statement in Jos 23:1, to the effect that "many days after that the Lord had given rest unto Israel from all their foes,"Joshua called together the representatives of the nation, to renew the covenant of the nation with the Lord before his death, when taken in connection with the statement in Jos 19:50, that he built the city of Timnathserah, which the tribes had given him for an inheritance after the distribution of the land by lot was over, and dwelt therein, proving very clearly that there were certainly "many days"( Eng. Ver. "a long time") between the division of the land and the death of Joshua. But this is so comparative a term, that it hardly embraces more than two or three years. And Joshua might build, i.e., fortify Timnath-serah, and dwell therein, even if he only lived for two or three years after the division of the land. On the other hand, there appears to have been a longer interval than the seven or eight years allowed in our reckoning between the death of Joshua and the invasion of Chushan; since it not only includes the defeat of Adoni-bezek, the capture of Jerusalem, Hebron, and other towns, by the tribes of Judah and Simeon (Jdg 1:1-14), and the conquest of Bethel by the tribe of Joseph (Jdg 1:22.), but also the war of the congregation with the tribe of Benjamin (Judg 19-21). But it is only in appearance that the interval allowed is too short. All these events together would not require many years, but might very well have occurred within the space of about five years. And it is quite possible that the civil war of the Israelites might have been regarded by king Chushan-rishathaim as a favourable opportunity for carrying out his design of making Israel tributary to himself, and that he took advantage of it accordingly. The very fact that Othniel delivered Israel from this oppression, after it had continued for eight years, precludes us from postponing the invasion itself to a longer period after the death of Joshua. For Othniel was not Caleb's nephew, as many suppose, but his younger brother (see at Jos 15:17). Now Caleb was eighty-five years old when the distribution of the land commenced (Jos 14:10); so that even if his brother Othniel was thirty, or even forty years younger, he would still be fifty-five, or at any rate forty-five years old, when the division of the land commenced. If the statements of Josephus were correct, therefore, Othniel would have been ninety-one years old, or at any rate eighty-one, when he defeated the Aramaean king Chushan-rishathaim; whereas, according to our calculation, he would only have been fifty or sixty years old when Debir was taken, and sixty-three or seventy-three when Chushan was defeated. Now, even if we take the lower number as the correct one, this would be a sufficiently great age for such a warlike undertaking, especially when we consider that Othniel lived for some time afterwards, as is evident from the words of Jdg 3:11, "And the land had rest forty years: and Othniel the son of Kenaz died,"though they may not distinctly affirm that he did not die till the termination of the forty years' rest.

The fact that Caleb's younger brother Othniel was the first judge of Israel, also upsets the hypothesis which Bertheau has founded upon a mistaken interpretation of Judg 2:11-3:6, that a whole generation of forty years is to be reckoned between the death of Joshua and the invasion of Chushan, and also the misinterpretation of Jdg 2:7, Jdg 2:10 (cf. Jos 24:31), according to which the sinful generation did not grow up until after Joshua and all the elders who lived a long time after him were dead, - an interpretation which has no support in Jdg 2:7, since האריך ימים אחרי does not mean "to live long after a person", but simply "to survive him."The "other generation which knew not the Lord,"etc., that arose after the death of Joshua and the elders who outlived him, was not a different generation from the succeeding generations, which were given up to the power of their foes on account of their apostasy from the Lord, but the younger generation generally, which took the place of the older men who had seen the works of the Lord under Joshua; in other words, this is only a comprehensive expression for all the succeeding generations who forgot Jehovah their God and served Baalim. So much may be said in vindication of our calculations as to the period of the judges.

1. Times Of The Judges: Othniel; Ehud And Shamgar, Deborah And Barak - Judges 3:7-5:31

In this first stage of the times of the judges, which embraces a period of 206 years, the Israelites were oppressed by hostile nations on three separate occasions: first of all by the Mesopotamian king Chushan-rishathaim, whom they were obliged to serve for eighteen years, until Othniel brought them deliverance, and secured them rest for forty years (Jdg 3:7-11); secondly by the Moabitish king Eglon for eighteen years, until Ehud slew this king and smote the Moabites, and so humiliated them, that the land had rest for eighty years (Judg 3:12-30), whilst Shamgar also smote a host of Philistines during the same period (Jdg 3:31); and lastly by the Canaanitish king Jabin of Hazor, who oppressed them heavily for twenty years, until Barak gathered an army together at the summons of Deborah the prophetess and with her assistance, and completely defeated the foe (Judg 4). After this victory, which Deborah celebrated in a triumphal song, the land had rest again for forty years (Judg 5).

Oppression of Israel by Chushan-rishathaim, and Deliverance by Othniel - Jdg 3:7-11

Jdg 3:7-8

The first chastisement which the Israelites suffered for their apostasy from the Lord, is introduced with the same formula which had been used before to describe the times of the judges generally (Jdg 2:11-12), except that instead of את־יי ויּעזבוּ ("they forsook the Lord") we have here את־יי ויּשׁכּחוּ (" they forgot the Lord their God ") from Deu 32:18 (cf. 1Sa 12:9), and Asheroth (rendered "groves") instead of Ashtaroth (see at Jdg 2:13). As a punishment for this apostasy, the Lord sold them (Jdg 2:14) into the hand of Chushan-rishathaim , the king of Mesopotamia, whom they were obliged to serve for eight years. All that we know about this king of Mesopotamia is what is recorded here. His name, Chushan-rishathaim, is probably only a title which was given to him by the Israelites themselves. Rishathaim signifies "double wickedness," and the word was rendered as an appellative with this signification in the Targums and the Syriac and Arabic versions. Chushan is also formed as an adjective from Cush , and may denote the Cushites. According to M . v . Niebuhr (Gesch. Assurs u. Babels, p. 272), the rulers of Babylon at that time (1518-1273) were Arabs. "Arabs, however, may have included not only Shemites of the tribe of Joktan or Ishmael, but Cushites also."The invasion of Canaan by this Mesopotamian or Babylonian king has a historical analogy in the campaign of the five allied kings of Shinar in the time of Abraham (Gen 14).

Jdg 3:9-11

In this oppression the Israelites cried to the Lord for help, and He raised them up מושׁיע , a deliverer, helper, namely the Kenizzite Othniel , the younger brother and son-in-law of Caleb (see at Jos 15:17). "The Spirit of Jehovah came upon him." The Spirit of God is the spiritual principle of life in the world of nature and man; and in man it is the principle both of the natural life which we received through birth, and also of the spiritual life which we received through regeneration (vid., Auberlen , Geist des Menschen, in Herzog's Cycl. iv. p. 731). In this sense the expressions "Spirit of God"( Elohim ) and "Spirit of the Lord"(Jehovah) are interchanged even in Gen 1:2, compared with Gen 6:3, and so throughout all the books of the Old Testament; the former denoting the Divine Spirit generally in its supernatural causality and power, the latter the same Spirit in its operations upon human life and history in the working out of the plan of salvation. In its peculiar operations the Spirit of Jehovah manifests itself as a spirit of wisdom and understanding, of counsel and might, of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord (Isa 11:2). The communication of this Spirit under the Old Testament was generally made in the form of extraordinary and supernatural influence upon the human spirit. The expression employed to denote this is usually יי רוּח עליו ותּהי ("the Spirit of Jehovah came upon him:"thus here, Jdg 11:29; 1Sa 19:20, 1Sa 19:23; 2Ch 20:14; Num 24:2). This is varied, however, with the expressions יי רוּח עליו ( צלחה ) ותּצלח (Jdg 14:6, Jdg 14:19; Jdg 15:14; 1Sa 10:10; 1Sa 11:6; 1Sa 16:13) and את־פ לבשׁה יי רוּח , "the Spirit of Jehovah clothed the man"(Jdg 6:34; 1Ch 12:18; 2Ch 24:20). Of these the former denotes the operations of the Divine Spirit in overcoming the resistance of the natural will of man, whilst the latter represents the Spirit of God as a power which envelopes or covers a man. The recipients and bearers of this Spirit were thereby endowed with the power to perform miraculous deeds, in which the Spirit of God that came upon them manifested itself generally in the ability to prophesy (vid., 1Sa 10:10; 1Sa 19:20, 1Sa 19:23; 1Ch 12:18; 2Ch 20:14; 2Ch 24:20), but also in the power to work miracles or to accomplish deeds which surpassed the courage and strength of the natural man. The latter was more especially the case with the judges; hence the Chaldee paraphrases "the Spirit of Jehovah"in Jdg 6:34 as the spirit of might from the Lord;"though in the passage before us it gives the erroneous interpretation נבוּאה רוּח , "the spirit of prophecy." Kimchi also understands it as signifying "the spirit of bravery, under the instigation of which he was able fearlessly to enter upon the war with Chushan."But we are hardly at liberty to split up the different powers of the Spirit of God in this manner, and to restrict its operations upon the judges to the spirit of strength and bravery alone. The judges not only attacked the enemy courageously and with success, but t

Keil-Delitzsch: Jdg 3:12-14

In vv. 12-30 the subjugation of the Israelites by Eglon , the king of the Moabites, and their deliverance from this bondage, are circumstantially described. First of all, in Jdg 3:12-14, the subjugation . When the Israelites forsook the Lord again (in the place of וגו את־הרע ... ויּעשׂוּ , Jdg 3:7, we have here the appropriate expression ... הרע הרע לעשׂות , they added to do, i.e., did again, evil, etc., as in Jdg 4:1; Jdg 10:6; Jdg 13:1), the Lord made Eglon the king of the Moabites strong over Israel. על חזּק , to give a person strength to overcome or oppress another. כּי על , as in Deu 31:17, instead of the more usual אשׁר על (cf. Jer 4:28; Mal 2:14; Psa 139:14). Eglon allied himself with the Ammonites and Amalekites, those arch-foes of Israel, invaded the land, took the palm-city, i.e., Jericho (see at Jdg 1:16), and made the Israelites tributary for eighteen years. Sixty years had passed since Jericho had been burnt by Joshua. During that time the Israelites had rebuilt the ruined city, but they had not fortified it, on account of the curse pronounced by Joshua upon any one who should restore it as a fortress; so that the Moabites could easily conquer it, and using it as a base, reduce the Israelites to servitude.

Keil-Delitzsch: Jdg 3:15

But when the Israelites cried to the Lord for help, He set them free through the Benjaminite Ehud , whom He raised up as their deliverer. Ehud was "the son of Gera."This probably means that he was a descendant of Gera, since Gera himself, according to 1Ch 8:3, was a son of Bela the son of Benjamin, and therefore was a grandson of Benjamin; and Shimei the contemporary of David, a man belonging to the tribe of Benjamin, is also called a son of Gera in 2Sa 16:5; 2Sa 19:17. At the same time, it is possible that the name Gera does not refer to the same person in these different passages, but that the name was repeated again and again in the same family. " A man shut with regard to his right hand, "i.e., hindered in the use of his right hand, not necessarily crippled, but in all probability disabled through want of use from his youth upwards. That the expression does not mean crippled, is confirmed by the fact that it is used again in connection with the 700 brave slingers in the army of the Benjaminites in Jdg 20:16, and it certainly cannot be supposed that they were all actual cripples. So much is certain, however, that it does not mean ἀμφοτεροδέξιος , qui utraque manu pro dextera utebatur (lxx, Vulg .), since אטר signifies clausit (shut) in Psa 69:16. It is merely with reference to what follows that this peculiarity is so distinctly mentioned. - The Israelites sent a present by him to king Eglon. בידו does not mean in , but through , his hand, i.e., through his intervention, for others were actually employed to carry the present (Jdg 3:18), so that Ehud merely superintended the matter. Minchah , a gift or present, is no doubt a euphemism for tribute, as in 2Sa 8:2, 2Sa 8:6; 1Ki 5:1.

Keil-Delitzsch: Jdg 3:16

Ehud availed himself of the opportunity to approach the king of the Moabites and put him to death, and thus to shake off the yoke of the Moabites from his nation. To this end he provided himself with a sword, which had two edges ( פּיות from פּה , like שׂיו , Deu 22:1, from שׂה ), a cubit long ( גּמר , ἁπ. λεγ. , signified primarily a staff, here a cubit, according to the Syriac and Arabic; not "a span," σπιθαμή , lxx), and " did gird it under his raiment upon his right thigh ."

Keil-Delitzsch: Jdg 3:17

Provided with this weapon, he brought the present to king Eglon, who - as is also mentioned as a preparation for what follows - was a very fat man.

Keil-Delitzsch: Jdg 3:18-20

After presenting the gift, Ehud dismissed the people who had carried the present to their own homes; namely, as we learn from Jdg 3:19, after they had gone some distance from Jericho. But he himself returned from the stone-quarries at Gilgal, sc., to Jericho to king Eglon. הפּסילים מן refers to some place by Gilgal. In Deu 7:25; Isa 21:9; Jer 8:19, pesilim signifies idols. And if we would retain this meaning here, as the lxx, Vulg ., and others have done, we must assume that in the neighbourhood of Gilgal there were stone idols set up in the open air-a thing which is very improbable. The rendering "stone quarries,"from פּסל , to hew out stones (Exo 34:1, etc.), which is the one adopted in the Chaldee , and by Rashi and others, is more likely to be the correct one. Gilgal cannot be the Gilgal between Jericho and the Jordan, which was the first encampment of the Israelites in Canaan, as is commonly supposed, since Ehud passed the Pesilim on his flight from the king's dwelling-place to the mountains of Ephraim (Jdg 3:26, Jdg 3:27); and we can neither assume, as Bertheau does, that Eglon did not reside in the conquered palm-city (Jericho), but in some uncultivated place in the neighbourhood of the Jordan, nor suppose that after the murder of Eglon Ehud could possibly have gone from Jericho to the Gilgal which was half an hour's journey towards the east, for the purpose of escaping by a circuitous route of this kind to Seirah in the mountains of Ephraim, which was on the north-west of Jericho. Gilgal is more likely to be Geliloth , which was on the west of Jericho opposite to the ascent of Adummim ( Kaalat ed Dom ), on the border of Judah and Benjamin (Jos 18:17), and which was also called Gilgal (Jos 15:7). Having returned to the king's palace, Ehud sent in a message to him: "I have a secret word to thee, O king." The context requires that we should understand " he said "in the sense of "he had him told"(or bade say to him), since Ehud himself did not go in to the king, who was sitting in his room, till afterwards (Jdg 3:20). In consequence of this message the king said: הס , lit . be silent (the imperative of הסה fo ); here it is a proclamation, Let there be quiet. Thereupon all who were standing round (viz., his attendants) left the room, and Ehud went in (Jdg 3:20). The king was sitting "in his upper room of cooling alone."The "room of cooling"( Luther, Sommerlaube , summer-arbour) was a room placed upon the flat roof of a house, which was open to the currents of air, and so afforded a cool retreat, such as are still met with in the East (vid., Shaw , pp. 188-9). Then Ehud said, " A word of God I have to thee; "whereupon the king rose from his seat, from reverence towards the word of God which Ehud pretended that he had to deliver to him, not to defend himself, as Bertheau supposes, of which there is not the slightest intimation in the text.

Keil-Delitzsch: Jdg 3:21-22

But when the king stood up, Ehud drew his sword from under his garment, and plunged it so deeply into his abdomen that even the hilt followed the blade, and the fat closed upon the blade (so that there was nothing to be seen of it in front, because he did not draw the sword again out of his body), and the blade came out between the legs. The last words have been rendered in various ways. Luther follows the Chaldee and Vulgate , and renders it "so that the dirt passed from him,"taking the ἁπ. λεγ. פּרשׁדנה as a composite noun from פּרשׁ , stercus , and שׁדה , jecit . But this is hardly correct, as the form of the word פּרשׁדנה , and its connection with יצא , rather points to a noun, פּרשׁדן , with ה local. The explanation given by Gesenius in his Thes . and Heb. lex . has much more in its favour, viz., interstitium pedum , the place between the legs, from an Arabic word signifying pedes dissitos habuit , used as a euphemism for anus, podex . The subject to the verb is the blade.

(Note: At any rate the rendering suggested by Ewald , "Ehud went into the open air, or into the enclosure, the space in front of the Alija ,"is untenable, for the simple reason that it is perfectly irreconcilable with the next clause, "Ehud went forth,"etc. (consequently Fr. Böttcher proposes to erase this clause from the text, without any critical authority whatever). For if Ehud were the subject to the verb, the subject would necessarily have been mentioned, as it really is in the next clause, Jdg 3:23 .)

Keil-Delitzsch: Jdg 3:23

As soon as the deed was accomplished, Ehud went out into the porch or front hall, shut the door of the room behind him ( בּעדו , not behind himself, but literally round him, i.e., Eglon; cf. Gen 7:16; 2Ki 4:4) and bolted it (this is only added as a more precise explanation of the previous verb).

Keil-Delitzsch: Jdg 3:24-25

When the servants of Eglon came (to enter in to their lord) after Ehud's departure and saw the door of the upper room bolted, they thought "surely ( אך , lit . only, nothing but) he covers his feet"(a euphemism for performing the necessities of nature; cf. 1Sa 24:3), and waited to shaming (cf. 2 King Jdg 2:17; Jdg 8:11), i.e., till they were ashamed of their long waiting (see at Jdg 5:28). At length they opened the door with the key, and found their lord lying dead upon the floor.

Ehud's conduct must be judged according to the spirit of those times, when it was thought allowable to adopt any means of destroying the enemy of one's nation. The treacherous assassination of a hostile king is not to be regarded as an act of the Spirit of God, and therefore is not set before us as an example to be imitated. Although Jehovah raised up Ehud as a deliverer to His people when oppressed by Eglon, it is not stated (and this ought particularly to be observed) that the Spirit of Jehovah came upon Ehud, and still less that Ehud assassinated the hostile king under the impulse of that Spirit. Ehud proved himself to have been raised up by the Lord as the deliverer of Israel, simply by the fact that he actually delivered his people from the bondage of the Moabites, and it by no means follows that the means which he selected were either commanded or approved by Jehovah.

Keil-Delitzsch: Jdg 3:26-28

Ehud had escaped whilst the servants of Eglon were waiting, and had passed the stone quarries and reached Seirah. Seirah is a place that is never mentioned again; and, judging from the etymology (the hairy), it was a wooded region, respecting the situation of which all that can be decided is, that it is not to be sought for in the neighbourhood of Jericho, but "upon the mountains of Ephraim"(Jdg 3:27). For when Ehud had come to Seirah, he blew the trumpet "upon the mountains of Ephraim," to announce to the people the victory that was placed within their reach by the death of Eglon, and to summon them to war with the Moabites, and then went down from the mountain into the plain near Jericho; "and he was before them," i.e., went in front as their leader, saying to the people, " Follow me; for Jehovah has given your enemies the Moabites into your hand. "Then they went down and took (i.e., took possession of) the fords near Jericho (see at Jos 2:7), למואב , either " from the Moabites "or "towards Moab," and let no one (of the Moabites) cross over, i.e., escape to their own land.

Keil-Delitzsch: Jdg 3:29

Thus they smote at that time about 10,000 Moabites, all fat and powerful men, i.e., the whole army of the enemy in Jericho and on this side of the Jordan, not letting a man escape. The expression "at that time"seems to imply that they did not destroy this number in one single engagement, but during the whole course of the war.

Keil-Delitzsch: Jdg 3:30

Thus Moab was subdued under the hand of Israel, and the land had rest for eighty years.

Keil-Delitzsch: Jdg 3:31

After him (Ehud) was, i.e., there rose up, Shamgar the son of Anath. He smote the Philistines, who had probably invaded the land of the Israelites, six hundred men, with an ox-goad, so that he also (like Othniel and Ehud, Jdg 3:9 and Jdg 3:15) delivered Israel. הבּקר מלמד , ἁπ. λεγ. , signifies, according to the Rabbins and the ancient versions, an instrument with which they trained and drove oxen; and with this the etymology agrees, as למד is used in Hos 10:11 and Jer 31:18 to denote the training of the young ox. According to Rashi , בּקר מלמד is the same as דּרבן , βούκεντρον , in 1Sa 13:21. According to Maundrell in Paulus' Samml. der merkw. Reisen nach d. Or . i. p. 139, the country people in Palestine and Syria use when ploughing goads about eight feet long and six inches in circumference at the thick end. At the thin end they have a sharp point to drive the oxen, and at the other end a small hoe, to scrape off any dirt that may stick to the plough. Shamgar may have smitten the Philistines with some such instrument as this, just as the Edonian prince Lycurgus is described by Homer (Il. vi. 135) as putting Dionysius and the Bacchantines to flight with a βουπλήξ . Nothing is recorded about the descent of Shamgar, either here or in the Song of Deborah, in Jdg 5:6. The heroic deed recorded of him must be regarded, as O. v. Gerlach affirms, as "merely the result of a holy inspiration that suddenly burst forth within him, in which he seized upon the first weapon that came to his hand, and put to flight the enemy when scared by a terror for God, just as Samson did on a later occasion."For he does not seem to have secured for the Israelites any permanent victory over the Philistines. Moreover, he is not called judge, nor is the period of his labours taken into account, but in Jdg 4:1 the renewed apostasy of Israel from the Lord is dated from the death of Ehud.

Constable: Jdg 1:1--3:7

I. THE REASONS FOR ISRAEL'S APOSTASY 1:1--3:6

The first major section in the book (1:1-3:6) explains very clearly why the period of the judges was a dark chapter in Israel's history. God revealed the reasons for Israel's apostasy and consequent national problems in terms too clear to miss.

The years immediately following Joshua's death saw a transition from success to failure. The events of this period set the scene for the amphictyony (rule by judges) and provide a background for the main part of the book (3:7-16:31).

"The Book of Judges may be viewed as having a two-part introduction (1:1-2:5 and 2:6-3:6) and a two-part epilogue (17:1-18:31 and 19:1-21:25). Parallel ideas and motifs link the first introduction (1:1-2:5) with the second epilogue (19:1-21:25), and in like manner the second introduction (2:6-3:6) with the first epilogue (17:1-18:31)."¹⁹

Constable: Jdg 3:1-6

3. God's purposes with Israel 3:1-6

The purposes for which God allowed the Canaanites to live among the Israelites were four. He wanted to punish Israel for her apostasy (2:3), and He wanted to test the Israelites' faithfulness to and love for Himself (2:22; 3:4). He also wanted to give the new generation of Israelites experience in warfare (3:2), namely, how to conduct war (by depending on Yahweh), not just how to fight. Furthermore, God allowed some Canaanites to remain in the land so it would not become wild before the Israelites could subdue it completely (Deut. 7:20-24).

Even though the Israelites had defeated some of the Canaanites in various battles during Joshua's day, significant groups within the Canaanite tribes remained in the land (vv. 3, 5).⁵⁶ The Sidonians (v. 3) were the Phoenicians, Sidon being Phoenicia's chief port until about 1100 B.C. when Tyre began to eclipse it.⁵⁷ These enemies (v. 5) represented the whole of Canaan: the Philistines on the southwest, the Sidonians on the northwest, the Hivites on the northeast, and the Canaanites on the southeast. The Israelites then proceeded to marry and worship with them (v. 6). From "the people served the Lord" (2:7) they had degenerated to the point that they "served their gods" (3:6).

"In these two verses [5-6] the narrator announces the theme of the book: the Canaanization of Israelite society."⁵⁸

"The Israelites descended three steps in their cultural accommodation to paganism: (a) they lived among the Canaanites, (b) they intermarried with them, and (c) they served their gods. Each step is a natural one leading on to the next."⁵⁹

Constable: Jdg 3:7--17:1

II. THE RECORD OF ISRAEL'S APOSTASY 3:7--16:31

Israel's Judges
Judge	Scripture	Israel's Oppressors		Length in Years
		Nation(s)	King(s)	Oppression	Judgeship	Peace
Othniel	3:7-11	Mesopotamia	Cushan-rishathaim	8(ca. 1358-1350 B.C.)		40(ca. 1350-1310 B.C.)
Ehud	3:12-30	Moab (with Ammon & Amalek)	Eglon	18		80
Shamgar	3:31	Philistia
Deborah	Chs. 4-5	Canaan	Jabin	20(ca. 1250-1230 B.C.)		40(ca. 1230-1190 B.C.)
Gideon	Chs. 6-8	Midian (with Amalek & Arabia)	Zebah & Zalmunna	7		40(ca. 1180-1140 B.C.)
Tola	10:1-2				23(ca. 1117-1094 B.C.)
Jair	10:3-5				22(ca. 1115-1093 B.C.)
Jephthah	10:8-12:7	Ammon		18(ca. 1123-1105 B.C.)	6
Ibzan	12:8-10				7
Elon	12:11-12				10
Abdon	12:13-15				8
Samson	Chs. 13-16	Philistia		40(ca. 1124-1084 B.C.)	20(ca. 1105-1085 B.C.)

"The judges are twelve in number, reckoning either Deborah or Barek as a judge and omitting Abimelech, whose status in fact depended wholly on his descent from Gideon, and who was in effect not a deliverer', and a judge' only in the sense of a local ruler on his own account."⁶⁰

Notice that the writer recorded seven examples of oppression and deliverance (by Othniel, Ehud, Shamgar, Deborah, Gideon, Jephthah, and Samson). This sevenfold scheme gives the impression of totality to Israel's degeneration. It also suggests that the writer viewed these disasters as fulfillments of the curses in Leviticus 26 where the number seven occurs four times (Lev. 26:18, 21, 24, and 28; cf. Deut. 28:25).⁶¹

The total number of judges cited is 12. By selecting 12 judges the writer may also have been suggesting that all 12 tribes of Israel had apostatized. One writer argued that these 12 judges each did their work in a different month, thus adding another impression of completeness to the record.⁶²

Certain formulaic expressions appear in 2:11-23 and then recur in the record of Israel's apostasy (3:7-16:31). However, as noted in the table below, they appear with less frequency as the narrative proceeds. Having established the pattern, the writer did not feel compelled to repeat these expressions as frequently since the reader learns to anticipate them as the narrative unfolds. The breakdown of these expressions is a rhetorical device that parallels and reflects the general moral and spiritual disintegration in Israel as a whole.⁶³

Expression	Othniel	Ehud	Deborah	Gideon	Jephthah	Samson
The Israelites did evil (2:11-13).	3:7	3:12	4:1	6:1	10:6	13:1
Yahweh gave them over (2:14).	3:8	3:12	4:2	6:1	10:7	13:1
The Israelites cried out (2:15, 18).	3:9	3:15	4:3	6:7	10:10
Yahweh raised up a deliverer (2:16, 18).	3:9	3:15
Yahweh gave the oppressor to the deliverer (2:18).	3:10	3:28
The land had rest.	3:11	3:30		5:31	8:28

Constable: Jdg 3:7-11

A. The first apostasy 3:7-11

The first of six periods of oppression by Israel's enemies began while Othniel, Caleb's younger brother, was still alive and strong (cf. Josh. 15:17; Judg. 1:13). The writer identified each of these periods with the phrase "the sons of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the LORD" (3:7, 12; 4:1; 6:1; 10:6; 13:1).

Many scholars now identify Asheroth (v. 7, NASB) with the Canaanite goddess Asherah (NIV) and the Ugaritic Athirat. They distinguish her from the Mesopotamian female deity Astarte.

"She was frequently represented as the tree of life, which is often depicted in Canaanite art as flanked by caprids which reach up to its fruit. . . . The tree of life is stylised in Canaanite art, and in the fertility cult was represented either by a natural tree, which was planted in the sanctuary, or by a stylised wooden pole, the aserah."⁶⁴

In the Hebrew text the phrase "the anger of the Lord was kindled" (v. 8) reads literally "the Lord's nose became hot." This is one of the most obvious examples of an anthropomorphism for God in the Old Testament. It pictures His anger most graphically.⁶⁵

Mesopotamia (v. 8) was at this time, ". . . the fertile land east of the river Orontes covering the upper and middle Euphrates and the lands watered by the rivers Habur and Tigris, i.e., modern E Syria and N Iraq."⁶⁶

The king's name was Cushan (v. 8). The last part of the hyphenated name Cushan-rishathaim means "doubly wicked." The Israelites who experienced his harsh rule over them for eight years probably added it to his given name.

In response to His people's cries for deliverance, God moved and empowered Othniel to lead the Israelites in throwing off their foreign yoke. Throughout Judges we read that God delivered the Israelites when they called out to him for salvation from their desperate situations (cf. 3:9, 15; 7:2, 9; 10:12; 18:10). He did not wait until they cleaned up their lives, the popular meaning of repentance.

". . . when Yahweh raised up a savior' for Israel he was not reacting to any repentance on Israel's part. If anything, he was responding to their misery rather than to their sorrow, to their pain rather than to their penitence."⁶⁷

God provided deliverance as grace in response to their helpless cry, not as a reward they had earned (cf. Joel 2:32; Acts 2:21; Rom. 10:13).⁶⁸

Othniel was already a prominent warrior in Israel and lived in Debir in Judah (Josh. 15:15-17; Judg. 1:11-13). Note again the early primacy of the tribe of Judah (cf. 1:3-20; 20:18). Having proved faithful earlier God selected Othniel for more important service here. At the proper time God endowed Othniel with an increased measure of grace by placing His Spirit on this man (v. 10; cf. Num. 24:2; Judg. 11:29; 1 Sam. 19:20, 23; 2 Chron. 20:14).

"In its peculiar operations the Spirit of Jehovah manifested itself as a spirit of wisdom and understanding, of counsel and might, of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord (Isa. xi. 2). The communication of this Spirit under the Old Testament was generally made in the form of extraordinary and supernatural influence upon the human spirit."⁶⁹

"Since Pentecost (Acts 2) a more general and permanent endowment of the Holy Spirit has been the privilege of every disciple."⁷⁰

Evidently Cushan controlled most if not all of Israel. This opinion rests on the fact that Mesopotamia lay northeast of Canaan, but Othniel lived in the southwest part of Canaan. In the cases of the other judges God normally raised up persons who lived in the areas in Israel that were closest to Israel's oppressing enemies. Cushan was the most powerful king that oppressed the Israelites during the judges period. By beginning with the record of his defeat, the writer announced that if Yahweh could deliver Israel from this "emperor" He could rescue them from any foe.⁷¹

After the "war" with the Mesopotamians (v. 10), a period of 40 years of peace followed (v. 11).⁷² During this time Othniel probably continued to judge Israel and then died (v. 11). Verse 11 probably indicates that Ehud followed Othniel chronologically.⁷³

"Many have noted that the narrator writes nothing negative about this man [Othniel]. This is intentional. The prologue has prepared the reader to expect a progressive degeneration in the moral and spiritual fiber of the nation. As the embodiment of the people, the leaders whom Yahweh raises in the nation's defense exhibit the same pattern."⁷⁴

The most important factor in the story of Othniel, I believe, was the fact that God's Spirit empowered him (v. 10). This was true of all the judges, though the writer did not always mention it. No one can accomplish anything significant spiritually without the Holy Spirit's enablement (cf. John 15:5). However with His assistance His people can be the agents of supernatural change and can carry out God's will.

The "minor judges" filled the same role in Israel as the "major judges" (Gideon, Samson, et al.).⁷⁵

"The reason why the accounts of the judges vary in length is that their stories vary in their instructional value regarding this subjective aspect of redemptive significance. That is, the accounts which are longer present those stories which provide the most helpful guidelines for the Christian life."⁷⁶

Constable: Jdg 3:12-30

1. Oppression under the Moabites and deliverance through Ehud 3:12-30

The Moabites and Ammonites were not only neighbors who both lived to the southeast of Canaan, but they were also descendants of the same ancestor, Lot. The Amalekites lived on Israel's southern border and were descendants of Esau. The Moabites had allied with the Ammonites and the Amalekites and had captured the site of Jericho (the "city of palm trees," v. 13). They had evidently rebuilt it since Joshua's conquest.⁷⁷ The Moabites had taken over the surrounding area and had forced Israel to serve them for 18 years (v. 14).

Jericho was in Benjamin's territory, so it was not unusual that God would raise up a judge from that tribe to lead Israel against the Moabites. We learn later that the Benjamites at this time were far from admirable on the whole (chs. 19-21). Yet God raised up a faithful man from this tribe to do His will. The English text's description of Ehud as left-handed (v. 15) is misleading. The Hebrew expression translated "a left-handed man" probably means "a man restricted as to his right hand."⁷⁸ Ehud may not have been able to use his right hand as well as his left. In spite of this abnormality God used him to bring a great victory to Israel.

Most commentators regard Ehud's methods as entirely legitimate.⁷⁹ Some, however, do not, as the following quotation illustrates.

"Ehud's conduct must be judged according to the spirit of those times, when it was thought allowable to adopt any means of destroying the enemy of one's nation. The treacherous assassination of a hostile king is not to be regarded as an act of the Spirit of God, and therefore is not set before us as an example to be imitated. Although Jehovah raised up Ehud as a deliverer to His people when oppressed by Eglon, it is not stated (and this ought particularly to be observed) that the Spirit of Jehovah came upon Ehud, and still less that Ehud assassinated the hostile king under the impulse of that Spirit. Ehud proved himself to have been raised up by the Lord as the deliverer of Israel, simply by the fact that he actually delivered his people from the bondage of the Moabites, and it by no means follows that the means which he selected were either commanded or approved by Jehovah."⁸⁰

The facts that Ehud did what he did as an act of war and that God nowhere condemned him for it lead me to believe he was correct in assassinating King Eglon (lit. fat ox). Note that Ehud had no other Israelites with him when he confronted Eglon. He stood alone for God.

It seems that Ehud delivered the Israelites' taxes, left Eglon, passed the "idols" (lit. sculptured stones) at Gilgal, and then returned to Eglon.⁸¹ He had prepared to execute Eglon before going to Jericho. Did he lose heart at first when he left Jericho? Did he receive fresh motivation to kill the king when he passed the Canaanite objects of worship at Gilgal and then return to Jericho to finish the job? This seems to be what happened.

The room in which Ehud met Eglon (v. 20) was on the flat roof of the house. Rooms built this way caught the prevailing currents of air and therefore provided a cool place of retreat from the hot weather.

Evidently Eglon did not expect Ehud to draw his sword with his left hand. He did not know he could do so. This was part of Ehud's strategy. The sword was a short cubit in length, about 16 inches.⁸² It went all the way through Eglon's fat body. It apparently contained no crosspiece (hilt) between the handle and the blade. The handle lodged in the fat while the point opened a hole in his back where his excrement oozed out.

"Thus by way of a humorous if vulgar twist, something unexpected comes out' of Eglon--his excrement. Such a grotesque occurrence would have been precisely the kind of detail that a story of this sort would have delighted in recounting and would be unlikely to omit. Although it no doubt strikes modern readers as vulgar and distasteful, in the context of the story it adds a note of extreme humiliation with respect to the Moabite king that would have delighted an Israelite audience, especially as it takes place at the very height of the drama: the national hero not only dispatched the enemy king with much cunning but in the process caused him to become besmirched with feces."⁸³

The writer may have recorded this last disgusting detail to draw a parallel with the unclean Moabites' departure from the land following Ehud's victory. Notice the cool way Ehud behaved after he slew the king in his cool room.

"With effective employment of ambiguity, irony, satire, hyperbole, and caricature, he [the writer] sketches a literary cartoon that pokes fun at the Moabites and brings glory to God. . . . Biblical historians seldom, if ever, wrote their pieces primarily so later readers could reconstruct historical events. Their agendas were generally theological and polemical, and few texts are as overt in the latter respect as ours."⁸⁴

Archaeologists have not yet identified the town of Seirah (v. 26), but it may have stood to the northwest of Gilgal in Ephraim's hill country (v. 27).

The Moabites who at this time were living west of the Jordan River would have fled back home eastward to their native country. For this reason the Israelites seized the fording place (v. 28).

Verse 29 is difficult to interpret for two reasons. First, the word translated "thousand" can also mean "military unit" (cf. 20:10). Second, it is not clear whether the Israelites killed these Moabites as they tried to cross the Jordan on this occasion. Perhaps this was the total Moabite force that the Israelites killed in their war with Moab. In either case this was a great victory for Israel.

The writer's primary emphasis in this pericope seems to be that God used a man whom others would have regarded as unusual, because he was left-handed, to affect a great victory. Ehud did not excuse himself from doing God's will because he was different, as many Christians do. He stepped out in faith in spite of his physical peculiarity. Israel too had physical abnormalities, but when she stepped out in trust and obedience God blessed her with success.

Constable: Jdg 3:31

2. Oppression under the Philistines and deliverance through Shamgar 3:31

Several factors suggest that Shamgar's victory took place sometime during the 98 years described in the previous section (vv. 12-30). First, 4:1 refers to Ehud, not Shamgar. Second, there is no reference to Israel doing evil in Yahweh's sight in this verse. Third, the length of the Philistine oppression was long. Fourth, the writer did not mention a number of years that the land enjoyed rest. Evidently during this 98-year period the Philistines also oppressed Israel.

David Washburn argued that the phrase "after him" may indicate the beginning of a new episode. If this is so, we should place Shamgar contemporary with Deborah rather than Ehud (cf. 5:6). He acknowledged, however, that it is impossible to determine when Shamgar slew the 600 Philistines.⁸⁵

The Philistines had been in Canaan since Abraham's day at least (Gen. 21:32; et al.). However during the period of the judges a major migration of the Sea Peoples from the Aegean area brought many new inhabitants into Canaan, perhaps about 1230 B.C. These peoples settled in the coastal areas of Canaan, especially in the South. They became the infamous Philistines who opposed and fought the Israelites until David finally brought them under Israel's control.

"The name Shamgar is non-Israelite and may have been of Hittite or Hurrian origin. This does not automatically infer that he was a Canaanite, although this is possible; it may witness to the intermingling of the Israelites with the native population. In any case his actions benefited Israel."⁸⁶

Peter Craigie believed that Shamgar may have been a Hurrian mercenary soldier rather than a Hebrew. His name "ben (son of) Anath" suggests that he might have been a religious Canaanite since Anath was a Canaanite goddess.⁸⁷ It seems unlikely, however, that he was a religious Canaanite because the writer identified him as a hero through whom God delivered His people. Another suggestion is that "son of Anath" indicated that Shamgar was like Anath, namely, of a warlike character.⁸⁸ Shamgar could have been the son of a mixed marriage or even a foreigner whom God used. Perhaps he was a proselyte to Yahweh worship. Whatever his background and whomever he may have served, his destruction of 600 Philistines accomplished God's will, specifically the destruction of the non-Israelite occupants of the land.

The writer did not record Shamgar's home town, but some commentators connect Beth-anath (lit. house of Anath) in Naphtali or Beth-anoth in Judah (Josh. 15:59) with him. Most assume Anath was the name of Shamgar's father.

An "oxgoad" was a stout stick 8 to 10 feet long used to train and drive oxen.

"At the thin end they have a sharp point to drive the oxen, and at the other end a small hoe, to scrape off any dirt that may stick to the plough."⁸⁹

Evidently Shamgar seized an opportunity to kill 600 Philistines with this unusual instrument that he used as a weapon (cf. 2 Sam. 23:11). The text does not say when he did this, all at once or one by one in guerrilla type warfare.

Though the writer did not call Shamgar a judge in the text, he was one of Israel's heroic deliverers (cf. 5:4). Few students of the book exclude him from the list of judges, though he may not have functioned in the nation as one.⁹⁰

The major lesson we should learn from Shamgar is that a shady personal background and lack of proper equipment do not keep God from working through people who commit to doing His will. Many Christians think that because they do not have a good background or the best tools they cannot serve God. If we commit ourselves to executing God's will and use whatever background and equipment we have, God can accomplish a great deal through us.

In this third chapter we see that God raised up unusual people and empowered them to do great acts for His glory. Often very distinguished people rise from humble backgrounds, as these judges did. Jesus' disciples are similar illustrations. A single individual committed to executing God's revealed will is all He needs. He uses all types of people but only those committed to His will who step out in faith. In the case of the judges, the will of God was the extermination of Israel's enemies.

Guzik: Jdg 3:1-31 - The First Three Judges

Judges 3 - The First Three Judges

A. The pagan nations left in Israel's midst.

1. (1-2) God's reason for allowing these nations to continue in Israel's appointed land.

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 (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),

a. These are the nations which the LORD left: God left these Canaanite nations behind because Israel was not faithful in driving them out.

i. In the same way, we can say to a person who has "pagan territory" in their life, "the reason is because you allow it to be there." And, at the most basic level, that is true.

b. That He might test Israel by them: It was within the power of God to eliminate those pagan nations without any help from Israel. God allowed the pagan nations to remain for a reason. The word test here is used in the sense of "proving." These nations would remain because God wanted to prove the faithfulness of Israel to Himself, and to improve their reliance on Him.

i. Likewise, the person who has "pagan territory" in their lives knows that God is able to change him instantly. Why doesn't God just do that? Why does it have to be so hard?

ii. God doesn't just instantly change every area of our lives so that our relationship with Him can be proved and improved; so that we will live a life of true partnership with God.

c. So that the generations of the children of Israel might be taught to know war: This is another reason why God allowed the Canaanites to remain where Israel did not drive them out. No one likes the struggle against sin, but the battle is good for us. The symbol of Christianity is a cross, not a feather bed.

i. Parents quickly learn that you don't really help your children if you make everything easy for them.

2. (3-4) The pagan nations are specifically listed.

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. 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.

a. Namely: We could perhaps make our own specific list of "pagan territory" in our lives; such a list is helpful because it forces you to identify your enemy.

b. That He might test Israel by them, to know whether they would obey: The reason that God didn't just eliminate these nations is again stated. It was to prove Israel's commitment to God's word. If they were faithful to the word of God the other nations would not hinder them and they would grow strong enough to drive them out completely.

B. The first judge: Othniel.

1. (5-7) The apostasy of Israel in the days of Othniel.

Thus the children of Israel dwelt among the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. And they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their daughters to their sons; and they served their gods. 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.

a. They took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their daughters to their sons: Simply, their sin was intermarriage with the pagan nations in their midst.

i. What led to their sin was subtler. First, it was the allowing of pagan territory in their midst. This was dangerous for them and dangerous for us.

ii. Second, romance led them into sin. There is nothing wrong with romance, but we have a terrible habit of falling in love with people that we have no real business falling in love with.

iii. Proverbs 4:23 says Keep (literally, guard or protect) your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life. If we don't guard our hearts, we can end up in trouble.

b. They forgot the LORD their God, and served the Baals and Asherahs: Their ungodly romances led them to the worship of the pagan gods Baal and Ashtoreth.

i. Jesus told us that following Him would require that we give up the things we love most (Mark 10:29-30). Often an ungodly romance falls into this exact category.

2. (8) Israel's servitude to the king of Mesopotamia.

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.

a. He sold them into the hand of Cushan-Rishathaim king of Mesopotamia: God gave Israel just what they wanted. They didn't want to serve God, so He allowed them to be in bondage to a pagan king. Israel reaped exactly what they sowed.

b. Eight years: It was many years of bondage before Israel cried out unto the LORD.

3. (9-11) God's deliverance through Othniel.

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. 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. So the land had rest for forty years. Then Othniel the son of Kenaz died.

a. When the children of Israel cried out to the LORD: After the eight years of bondage Israel finally cried out in dependence on God. It often takes many years of bondage and calamity before man look away from self and unto God.

b. The LORD raised up a deliverer . . . Othniel: Othniel was the son-in-law of the great hero Caleb (Judges 1:12-3) and his wife was also a woman of faith (Judges 1:13-15).

c. The Spirit of the LORD came upon him: This is enough to know about Othniel. The Holy Spirit empowered him for the job God called him to do.

i. Othniel lived the principle of Zechariah 4:6: Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the LORD of hosts.

C. The second judge: Ehud.

1. (12-14) The cycle continues: Israel sins and is sold into servitude.

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. Then he gathered to himself the people of Ammon and Amalek, went and defeated Israel, and took possession of the City of Palms. So the children of Israel served Eglon king of Moab eighteen years.

a. The children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the LORD: When God brought deliverance through the work of Othniel, Israel eventually drifted back from their dependence and obedience towards God. Their victory would not automatically last forever; it had to be maintained.

b. The children of Israel served Eglon: Israel's sin brought them into bondage. They suffered 8 years of bondage before they cried out to the LORD in the days of Othniel. Here they endure 18 stubborn years of bondage before they cried out to the LORD.

i. Sin always brings bondage; though it comes to us deceptively. The fish never contemplates the bondage of the hook when it goes after the bait; Satan snares us by making the bait attractive and hiding the hook.

ii. A news story told of a grease processing plant that opened up a 55-gallon drum of grease that came from a prison. Inside, they found a little bit of grease, but a dead prison inmate. He tried to escape by hiding in the barrel, but his quest for freedom became a means of bondage and death for him. He was deceived like we are deceived by sin, thinking that it can be a path to freedom. Instead, it only brings bondage and death.

2. (15) God raises up a deliverer for Israel: Ehud.

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.

a. When the children of Israel cried out to the LORD, the LORD raised up a deliverer: This shows the mercy of God. When Israel repeatedly drifted from God, He had every right to cast them off completely. Yet He still responded when they finally did call on Him for deliverance.

b. Ehud . . . a left-handed man: In the ancient world left-handed people were often forced to become right-handed. This made Ehud's standing as a left-handed man more unusual.

3. (16-26) Ehud's daring assassination of Eglon.

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. So he brought the tribute to Eglon king of Moab. (Now Eglon was a very fat man.) And when he had finished presenting the tribute, he sent away the people who had carried the tribute. 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. And 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. Then Ehud reached with his left hand, took the dagger from his right thigh, and thrust it into his belly. 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. Then Ehud went out through the porch and shut the doors of the upper room behind him and locked them. 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." 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. But Ehud had escaped while they delayed, and passed beyond the stone images and escaped to Seirah.

a. He brought the tribute to Eglon king of Moab: Israel had to pay this tribute money because they were under the domination of the king of Moab. Ehud came to Eglon as a messenger or courier.

b. I have a message from God for you: Ehud certainly told the truth when he said this. The message was, "Those who oppress the people of God touch the apple of His eye and will be judged for it."

i. This message from God was not good news for Eglon. His name means "a little calf" and in Eglon's case, it was a fatted calf.

c. Ehud reached with his left hand: Because most men fought with their right hand, it wasn't expected for a man to use his left hand with a dagger or a sword. This shows how cunning Ehud was and how unexpected the strike was to Eglon.

d. He is probably attending to his needs in the cool chamber: Without being coarse, we can see how real and true-to-life the Bible is. It describes normal, everyday functions but in a dignified way.

4. (27-30) Ehud leads the Israelites in battle against the Moabites.

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. 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. And at that time they killed about ten thousand men of Moab, all stout men of valor; not a man escaped. So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of Israel. And the land had rest for eighty years.

a. And he led them: As much cunning and courage as Ehud had, he could not do the work by himself. It was essential for brave and faithful men to rally around him. Ehud led, but he had to have followers.

i. In the same way, God raises up leaders in the church, but they can't do the work by themselves. The whole body needs to work together.

b. Follow me, for the LORD has delivered: Ehud asked the Israelites to follow him, because he was their leader. Yet he also encouraged them to look with faith to the LORD (for the LORD has delivered your enemies into your hand).

c. And the land had rest for eighty years: Ehud's cunning and courage, coupled with Israel's faithful following of a leader, brought Israel's longest period of freedom under the 400-year period of the Judges. Ehud is a dramatic example of how in the LORD, one man can make a difference, and how God will call others to work with that one man.

D. The third judge: Shamgar.

1. (31a) The brief story of Shamgar.

After him was Shamgar the son of Anath,

a. Shamgar the son of Anath: Shamgar is one of six individuals we call "minor" judges, because not much is written about them. Yet the work they did for God was just as important in their day as anyone else's work.

2. (31b) Shamgar's great accomplishment.

Who killed six hundred men of the Philistines with an ox goad; and he also delivered Israel.

a. Killed six hundred men of the Philistines: Shamgar was a man of great accomplishment. Perhaps so little is said about Shamgar because his story was so well known.

b. With an ox goad: Shamgar is an excellent example of serving for God. He simply used what God put in his hand - in his case, an ox goad.

i. An ox goad was a stick that was 8 feet long, and about 6 inches around at the big end. One end of the ox goad was pointy (for poking the ox), and the other end was like a chisel (for scraping the plow clean of dirt).

ii. "In the hands of a strong, skilful man, such an instrument must be more dangerous and more fatal than any sword." (Clarke).

c. He also delivered Israel: There was nothing spectacular about an ox goad. But God can use, and wants to use, whatever is in our hands. Shamgar was merely a laborer doing his job; but he took what was in his hand when prompted by God and did great things.

i. Shamgar was like Moses and his shepherd's staff or David and his sling shot. God used each of those simple things for great works.

© 2003 David Guzik - No distribution beyond personal use without permission

Pendahuluan / Garis Besar

JFB: Judges (Pendahuluan Kitab)

JUDGES is the title given to the next book, from its containing the history of those non-regal rulers who governed the Hebrews from the time of Joshua to that of Eli, and whose functions in time of peace consisted chiefly in the administration of justice, although they occasionally led the people in their wars against their public enemies. The date and authorship of this book are not precisely known. It is certain, however, that it preceded the Second Book of Samuel (compare Jdg 9:35 with 2Sa 11:21), as well as the conquest of Jerusalem by David (compare Jdg 1:21 with 2Sa 5:6). Its author was in all probability Samuel, the last of the judges (see Jdg 19:1; Jdg 21:25), and the date of the first part of it is fixed in the reign of Saul, while the five chapters at the close might not have been written till after David's establishment as king in Israel (see Jdg 18:31). It is a fragmentary history, being a collection of important facts and signal deliverances at different times and in various parts of the land, during the intermediate period of three hundred years between Joshua and the establishment of the monarchy. The inspired character of this book is confirmed by allusions to it in many passages of Scripture (compare Jdg 4:2; Jdg 6:14 with 1Sa 12:9-12; Jdg 9:53 with 2Sa 11:21; Jdg 7:25 with Psa 83:11; compare Jdg 5:4-5 with Psa 7:5; Jdg 13:5; Jdg 16:17 with Mat 2:13-23; Act 13:20; Heb 11:32).

JFB: Judges (Garis Besar)

• THE ACTS OF JUDAH AND SIMEON. (Jdg 1:1-3)
• ADONI-BEZEK JUSTLY REQUITED. (Jdg. 1:4-21)
• SOME CANAANITES LEFT. (Jdg 1:22-26)
• AN ANGEL SENT TO REBUKE THE PEOPLE AT BOCHIM. (Jdg 2:1-10)
• WICKEDNESS OF THE NEW GENERATION AFTER JOSHUA. (Jdg 2:11-19)
• NATIONS LEFT TO PROVE ISRAEL. (Jdg 3:1-4)
• BY COMMUNION WITH THESE THE ISRAELITES COMMIT IDOLATRY. (Jdg 3:5-7)
• OTHNIEL DELIVERS ISRAEL. (Jdg 3:8-11)
• EHUD SLAYS EGLON. (Jdg. 3:12-30)
• DEBORAH AND BARAK DELIVER ISRAEL FROM JABIN AND SISERA. (Jdg. 4:1-17)
• DEBORAH AND BARAK'S SONG OF THANKSGIVING. (Jdg. 5:1-31)
• THE ISRAELITES, FOR THEIR SINS, OPPRESSED BY MIDIAN. (Jdg 6:1-6)
• A PROPHET REBUKES THEM. (Jdg 6:7-10)
• AN ANGEL SENDS GIDEON TO DELIVER THEM. (Jdg 6:11-16)
• GIDEON'S PRESENT CONSUMED BY FIRE. (Jdg. 6:17-32)
• THE SIGNS. (Jdg 6:33-39)
• GIDEON'S ARMY. (Jdg 7:1-8)
• HE IS ENCOURAGED BY THE DREAM AND THE INTERPRETATION OF THE BARLEY CAKE. (Jdg 7:9-15)
• HIS STRATAGEM AGAINST MIDIAN. (Jdg 7:16-24)
• THE EPHRAIMITES OFFENDED, BUT PACIFIED. (Jdg 8:1-9)
• ZEBAH AND ZALMUNNA TAKEN. (Jdg. 8:10-27)
• MIDIAN SUBDUED. (Jdg 8:28)
• ABIMELECH IS MADE KING BY THE SHECHEMITES. (Jdg 9:1-6)
• JOTHAM BY A PARABLE REPROACHES THEM. (Jdg 9:7-21)
• GAAL'S CONSPIRACY. (Jdg. 9:22-49)
• ABIMELECH SLAIN. (Jdg 9:50-57)
• TOLA JUDGES ISRAEL IN SHAMIR. (Jdg 10:1-5)
• ISRAEL OPPRESSED BY THE PHILISTINES AND AMMONITES. (Jdg 10:6-9)
• THEY CRY TO GOD. (Jdg 10:10-15)
• THEY REPENT; GOD PITIES THEM. (Jdg 10:16-18)
• JEPHTHAH. (Jdg 11:1-3)
• THE GILEADITES COVENANT WITH JEPHTHAH. (Jdg 11:4-11)
• HIS VOW. (Jdg 11:29-31)
• HE OVERCOMES THE AMMONITES. (Jdg 11:32-33)
• THE EPHRAIMITES QUARRELLING WITH JEPHTHAH. (Jdg 12:1-3)
• DISCERNED BY THE WORD SIBBOLETH, ARE SLAIN BY THE GILEADITES. (Jdg 12:4-15)
• ISRAEL SERVES THE PHILISTINES FORTY YEARS. (Jdg 13:1)
• AN ANGEL APPEARS TO MANOAH'S WIFE. (Jdg 13:2-10)
• THE ANGEL APPEARS TO MANOAH. (Jdg 13:11-14)
• MANOAH'S SACRIFICE. (Jdg 13:15-23)
• SAMSON BORN. (Jdg 13:24-25)
• SAMSON DESIRES A WIFE OF THE PHILISTINES. (Jdg 14:1-5)
• HE KILLS A LION. (Jdg 14:5-9)
• HIS MARRIAGE FEAST. (Jdg 14:10-11)
• HIS RIDDLE. (Jdg 14:12-18)
• HE SLAYS THIRTY PHILISTINES. (Jdg 14:19-20)
• SAMSON IS DENIED HIS WIFE. (Jdg 15:1-2)
• HE BURNS THE PHILISTINES' CORN. (Jdg 15:3-8)
• HE IS BOUND BY THE MEN OF JUDAH, AND DELIVERED TO THE PHILISTINES. (Jdg 15:9-13)
• SAMSON CARRIES AWAY THE GATES OF GAZA. (Jdg 16:1-3)
• DELILAH CORRUPTED BY THE PHILISTINES. (Jdg 16:4-14)
• HE IS OVERCOME. (Jdg 16:15-20)
• THE PHILISTINES TOOK HIM AND PUT OUT HIS EYES. (Jdg 16:21-22)
• THEIR FEAST TO DAGON. (Jdg 16:23-25)
• HIS DEATH. (Jdg 16:26-31)
• MICAH RESTORING THE STOLEN MONEY TO HIS MOTHER, SHE MAKES IMAGES. (Jdg 17:1-4)
• THE DANITES SEEK OUT AN INHERITANCE. (Jdg. 18:1-26)
• THEY WIN LAISH. (Jdg 18:27-29)
• THEY SET UP IDOLATRY. (Jdg 18:30-31)
• A LEVITE GOING TO BETHLEHEM TO FETCH HIS WIFE. (Jdg 19:1-15)
• AN OLD MAN ENTERTAINS HIM AT GIBEAH. (Jdg 19:16-21)
• THE GIBEAHITES ABUSE HIS CONCUBINE TO DEATH. (Jdg 19:22-28)
• THE LEVITE, IN A GENERAL ASSEMBLY, DECLARES HIS WRONG. (Jdg 20:1-7)
• THEIR DECREE. (Jdg 20:8-17)
• THE PEOPLE BEWAIL THE DESOLATION OF ISRAEL. (Jdg 21:1-15)
• THE ELDERS CONSULT HOW TO FIND WIVES FOR THOSE THAT WERE LEFT. (Jdg 21:16-21)

TSK: Judges (Pendahuluan Kitab)

The book of Judges forms an important link in the history of the Israelites. It furnishes us with a lively description of a fluctuating and unsettled nation; a striking picture of the disorders and dangers which prevailed in a republic without magistracy; when " the high-ways were unoccupied, and the travellers walked through by-ways" (Jdg 5:6), when few prophets were appointed to control the people, and " every one did that which was right in his own eyes" (Jdg 17:6). It exhibits the contest of true religion with superstition; and displays the beneficial effects that flow from the former, and the miseries and evil consequences of impiety. It is a most remarkable history of the long-suffering of God towards the Israelites, in which we see the most signal instances of his justice and mercy alternately displayed. the people sinned, and were punished; they repented, and found mercy. These things are written for our warning. none should presume, for God is just; none need despair, for God is merciful. Independently of the internal evidence of the authenticity of this sacred book, the transactions it records are not only cited or alluded to by other inspired writers, but are further confirmed by the traditions current among heathen nations.

TSK: Judges 3 (Pendahuluan Pasal)

Overview

Jdg 3:1, The nations which were left to prove Israel; Jdg 3:5, By communion with them they commit idolatry; Jdg 3:8, Othniel delivered them from Chushan-rishathaim; Jdg 3:12, Ehud from Eglon; Jdg 3:31, and Shamgar from the Philistines.

Poole: Judges (Pendahuluan Kitab)

BOOK OF JUDGES

THE ARGUMENT

THE author of this book is not certainly known, whether it was Samuel, or Ezra, or some other prophet; nor is it material to know.

1. It matters not who was the king’ s secretary, or with what pen it was written, if it be once known that it was. the king who made the order or decree: it is sufficient that unto the Jews were committed to the oracles of God , Rom 3:2 , i.e. the Holy Scriptures of the Old Testament, one part of which this was, by confession of all; and that the Jews did not falsify their trust therein, but kept those holy books themselves, and delivered them to the world, entire, without addition or diminution; for neither Christ nor his apostles, who severely rebuke them for their mistakes and misunderstandings of some passages of Scripture, ever charge them with any perfidiousness about the canon or books of the Scripture. This book is called the Book of Judges , because it treats of the judges, or of the state of the commonwealth of Israel under all the judges, except Eli and Samuel, who being the last of the judges, and the occasions or instruments of the change of this government, are omitted in this book. The judges were a sort of magistrates inferior to kings, and could neither make new laws, nor impose any tributes, but were the supreme executors of God’ s laws and commands, and the generals of their armies.

Poole: Judges 3 (Pendahuluan Pasal)

CHAPTER 3

The nations left to prove Israel mentioned, Jud 3:1-4 . The Israelites marrying their daughters, and serving their gods, they are delivered up to the king of Mesopotamia; are rescued by Othniel, Jud 3:5-11 . Continuing to do evil, they are again punished and oppressed by the king of the Moabites; are rescued by Ehud: ten thousand Moabites are slain, Jud 3:12-30 . They are afterwards delivered from the Philistines by Shamgar, Jud 3:31 .

i.e. Such who had no experience of those wars, nor of God’ s extraordinary power and providence manifested in them.

MHCC: Judges (Pendahuluan Kitab)

The book of Judges is the history of Israel during the government of the Judges, who were occasional deliverers, raised up by God to rescue Israel from their oppressors, to reform the state of religion, and to administer justice to the people. The state of God's people does not appear in this book so prosperous, nor their character so religious, as might have been expected; but there were many believers among them, and the tabernacle service was attended to. The history exemplifies the frequent warnings and predictions of Moses, and should have close attention. The whole is full of important instruction.

MHCC: Judges 3 (Pendahuluan Pasal)

(Jdg 3:1-7) The nations left to prove Israel.

(Jdg 3:8-11) Othniel delivers Israel.

(v. 12-30) Ehud delivers Israel from Eglon.

(Jdg 3:31) Shamgar delivers and judges Israel.

Matthew Henry: Judges (Pendahuluan Kitab)

An Exposition, with Practical Observations, of The Book of Judges

This is called the Hebrew Shepher Shophtim , the Book of Judges, which the Syriac and Arabic versions enlarge upon, and call it, The Book of the Judges of the Children of Israel; the judgments of that nation being peculiar, so were their judges, whose office differed vastly from that of the judges of other nations. The Septuagint entitles it only Kritai , Judges. It is the history of the commonwealth of Israel, during the government of the judges from Othniel to Eli, so much of it as God saw fit to transmit to us. It contains the history (according to Dr. Lightfoot's computation) of 299 years, reckoning to Othniel of Judah forty years, to Ehud of Benjamin eighty years, to Barak of Naphtali forty years, to Gideon of Manasseh forty years, to Abimelech his son three years, to Tola of Issachar twenty-three, to Jair of Manasseh twenty-two, to Jephtha of Manasseh six, to Ibzan of Judah seven, to Elon of Zebulun ten, to Abdon of Ephriam eight, to Samson of Dan twenty, in all 299. As for the years of their servitude, as were Eglon is said to oppress them eighteen years and Jabin twenty years, and so some others, those must be reckoned to fall in with some or other of the years of the judges. The judges here appear to have been of eight several tribes; that honour was thus diffused, until at last it centred in Judah. Eli and Samuel, the two judges that fall not within this book, were of Levi. It seems, there was no judge of Reuben or Simeon, Gad or Asher. The history of these judges in their order we have in this book to the end of ch. 16. And then in the last five chapters we have an account of some particular memorable events which happened, as the story of Ruth did (Rth 1:1) in the days when the judges ruled, but it is not certain in which judge's days; but they are put together at the end of the book, that the thread of the general history might not be interrupted. Now as to the state of the commonwealth of Israel during this period, I. They do not appear here either so great or so good as one might have expected the character of such a peculiar people would be, that were governed by such laws and enriched by such promises. We find them wretchedly corrupted, and wretchedly oppressed by their neighbours about them, and nowhere in all the book, either in war or council, do they make any figure proportionable to their glorious entry into Canaan. What shall we say to it? God would hereby show us the lamentable imperfection of all persons and things under the sun, that we may look for complete holiness and happiness in the other world, and not in this. Yet, II. We may hope that though the historian in this book enlarges most upon their provocations and grievances, yet there was a face of religion upon the land; and, however there were those among them that were drawn aside to idolatry, yet the tabernacle-service, according to the law of Moses, was kept up, and there were many that attended it. Historians record not the common course of justice and commerce in a nation, taking that for granted, but only the wars and disturbances that happen; but the reader must consider the other, to balance the blackness of them. III. It should seem that in these times each tribe had very much its government in ordinary within itself, and acted separately, without one common head, or council, which occasioned many differences among themselves, and kept them from being or doing any thing considerable. IV. The government of the judges was not constant, but occasional; when it is said that after Ehud's victory the land rested eighty years, and after Barak's forty , it is not certain that they lived, much less that they governed, so long; but they and the rest were raised up and animated by the Spirit of God to do particular service to the public when there was occasion, to avenge Israel of their enemies, and to purge Israel of their idolatries, which are the two things principally meant by their judging Israel. Yet Deborah, as a prophetess, was attended for judgment by all Israel, before there was occasion for her agency in war, Jdg 4:4. V. During the government of the judges, God was in a more especial manner Israel's king; so Samuel tells them when they were resolved to throw off this form of government, 1Sa 12:12. God would try what his own law and the constitutions of that would do to keep them in order, and it proved that when there was no king in Israel every man did that which was right in his own eyes; he therefore, towards the latter end of this time, made the government of the judges more constant and universal that it was at first, and at length gave them David, a king after his own heart; then, and not till then, Israel began to flourish, which should make us very thankful for magistrates both supreme and subordinate, for they are ministers of God unto us for good. Four of the judges of Israel are canonized (Heb 11:32), Gideon, Barak, Samson, and Jephtha. The Learned bishop Patrick thinks the prophet Samuel was the penman of this Book.

Matthew Henry: Judges 3 (Pendahuluan Pasal)

In this chapter, I. A general account of Israel's enemies is premised, and of the mischief they did them (Jdg 3:1-7). II. A particular account of the brave exploits done by the first three of the judges. 1. Othniel, whom God raised up to fight Israel's battles, and plead their cause against the king of Mesopotamia (Jdg 3:8-11). 2. Ehud, who was employed in rescuing Israel out of the hands of the Moabites, and did it by stabbing the king of Moab (v. 12-30). 3. Shamgar, who signalized himself in an encounter with the Philistines (Jdg 3:31).

Constable: Judges (Pendahuluan Kitab)

Introduction

Title

The English title, Judges, comes to us from the Latin translation (Vulgate) that the Greek translation (Septuagint) influenced. In all three languages the title means "judges." This title is somewhat misleading, however, because most English-speaking people associate the modern concept of a judge with Israel's judges. As we shall see, judges then were very different from judges now. The Hebrew title is also Judges (Shophetim). The book received its name from its principle characters, as the Book of Joshua did.

The judge in Israel was not a new office during the period of history that this book records. Moses ordered the people to appoint judges in every Israelite town to settle civil disputes (Deut. 16:18). In addition, there was to be a chief justice at the tabernacle who would, with the high priest, help settle cases too difficult for the local judges (Deut. 17:9). Evidently there were several judges at the tabernacle who served as a supreme court (Deut. 19:17).

When Joshua died God did not appoint a man to succeed him as the military leader of the entire nation of Israel. Instead each tribe was to proceed to conquer and occupy its allotted territory. As the need arose God raised up several different individuals who were judges in various parts of Israel at various times to lead segments of the Israelites against local enemies. These judges were similar to modern mayors of towns. God endowed them with certain qualities and identified them in various ways as being those He had chosen to lead His people. This leadership sometimes involved military command. As God had raised up Moses and Joshua, and as he would raise up David (1 Sam. 16:13), so He also raised up the judges. The writer also described Yahweh as a judge in Judges (11:27). This points out the fact that the judges were God's agents in Israel who judged under Him at this period in the nation's history.

"Though the judge enjoyed great prestige, he was in no sense a king. His authority was neither absolute, nor permanent, nor in any case hereditary; it rested solely in those personal qualities (the charisma) that gave evidence that he was the man of Yahweh's spirit. It was a type of authority perfectly expressive of the faith and constitution of early Israel: the God-King's direct leadership of his people through his spirit-designated representative. . . .

"The judges were by no means men of identical character. Some (e.g., Gideon) rose to their task at the behest of a profound experience of divine vocation; one (Jephthah) was no better than a bandit who knew how to strike a canny bargain; one (Samson) was an engaging rogue whose fabulous strength and bawdy pranks became legendary. None, so far as we know, ever led a united Israel into battle. All, however, seem to have had this in common: they were men who, stepping to the fore in times of danger, by virtue only of those personal qualities (charisma) which gave evidence to their fellows that Yahweh's spirit was upon them, rallied the clans against the foe."¹

Judges is the second book of the Former Prophets section of the Hebrew Old Testament. As I pointed out in the notes on Joshua, the fact that the Hebrews placed the book in this section of their canon is significant. It demonstrates that they recognized it as God's selective history of the period designed to teach spiritual lessons more than simply to record historical facts. God revealed Himself through the events of life and history as well as through the sermons of the prophets.

Date and Writer

Internal references help us locate the approximate date of composition of this book. The clause, "In those days there was no king in Israel," (17:6; 18:1; 19:1; 21:25) suggests that someone wrote Judges during the monarchical period that followed the period of rule by judges (amphictyony). Someone probably wrote it after 1051 B.C. when Saul became king. However at the time of writing Jerusalem was still in the hands of the Jebusites (1:21). David captured Jerusalem about 1004 B.C. Therefore the writing of Judges seems to date between 1051 and 1004 B.C.

Jewish tradition suggests that Samuel wrote Judges.² This was the opinion of the writers of the Talmud, the collection of Jewish writings that grew up around revealed Scripture beginning very early in Israel's history. Samuel is a likely writer because of his role in Israel when someone wrote Judges. Samuel's ministry began about 1090 B.C. and apparently ended a few years before Saul's death (ca. 1021 B.C.). If Samuel wrote Judges, he probably did so between 1051 and about 1021 B.C.

Scope

In contrast to Joshua, which spans only about 35 years, Judges covers a much longer period of Israel's history.

The book opens shortly after the death of Joshua (1:1). God did not give us sufficient information to enable us to fix the date of Joshua's death. Leon Wood figured that he died about 1390 B.C.³ Eugene Merrill calculated his death at about 1366 B.C.⁴ The latest event the writer of Judges recorded is probably the death of Samson (16:30-31). Wood believed Samson died about 1055 B.C.⁵ Merrill wrote that he died near 1084 B.C.⁶ Consequently the Book of Judges records about 300 years of Israel's history (cf. 11:26).⁷ The period of rule by the judges, however, extended beyond the events the Book of Judges records to Saul's coronation in 1050 or 1051 B.C.⁸ According to Wood's chronology this was five years beyond the end of Judges and according to Merrill's it was 33 years beyond.

The judgeships of some of the individual judges apparently overlapped. Some ruled in one area of Israel while one or more others ruled elsewhere in some cases.⁹

The Book of Judges does not record the ministries of all Israel's judges. Eli and Samuel were also judges whose work the writer of 1 Samuel recorded. Only the judges whom the divine Author selected for inclusion appear in this book.

Purpose

Arthur Cundall suggested that one of the purposes of Judges may have been to provide apologetic justification for Israel's monarchy.¹⁰ William Dumbrell believed its purpose was primarily to show the sovereign grace of God in preserving Israel in spite of Israel.¹¹ Leon Wood wrote that its primary purpose was to show why Israel did not experience God's promised blessings.¹² Herbert Wolf believed the primary purpose was to show that Israel's spiritual condition determined its political and material situation.¹³ Daniel Block argued that it was to reveal the Canaanization of Israel in the premonarchic period of Israel's history.¹⁴ All these explanations seem to me to be in harmony with what the book records.

Message¹⁵

Joshua reveals that victory, success, and progress result when God's people trust and obey Him consistently. Judges shows that defeat, failure, and retrogression follow when they fail to trust and obey consistently. In this respect Joshua and Judges are like two sides of one coin. The former is a positive lesson and the latter a negative one.

Judges portrays the deterioration of the nation of Israel: what caused it, the course it followed, and the chaos that resulted.

Israel failed because her heart turned from Yahweh, and then her head forsook His covenant. Keil and Delitzsch wrote, "The writer writes throughout from a prophet's point of view. He applies the standard of the law to the spirit of the age by which the nation was influenced as a whole, and pronounces a stern and severe sentence upon all deviations from the path of rectitude set before it in the law."¹⁶

We could visualize the structure of the book as a descending spiral. Israel departed from God, fell under His discipline, repented, experienced deliverance from her oppressors, dedicated herself anew to Yahweh, experienced His blessing, and then apostatized again. In each cycle Israel seems to have sunk lower than she had been previously even though each cycle included a spiritual revival.

Judges reveals the course and process by which Israel deteriorated as a nation. The same process takes place on the personal level as well as on the national level, but it is easier to observe on the national level in Judges.

The root cause of Israel's deterioration was religious apostasy. The Israelites turned from God. They did not drive out the Canaanites as God had commanded (1:21, 27-33). Instead they made covenants with them (2:1-2). Rather than destroying the pagan altars, the Israelites served idols and forsook the Lord (2:11-12, 17, 19).

Their apostasy began with toleration of things that God had condemned and prohibited. In time the Israelites began to admire these things. Finally they conformed to them.

The story of Micah and the Danites (chs. 17-18) is a short illustration of the religious apostasy in Israel at this time. Chapters 17-21 are an appendix to the book.

Religious apostasy led to political disorganization in Israel. Shortly after Israel departed from God it began to come apart as a nation. The people stopped working together toward their God-given goal of possessing the entire land and began fighting with one another instead. At the beginning of the amphictyony the tribes were fairly united, but by the end of this period of Israel's history anarchy prevailed (21:25).

The government in Israel deteriorated from theocracy (rule by God) to anarchy (no rule or government). Israel became fragmented, weak, and unable to withstand her enemies. This is ironic because after Joshua died Israel was in position to begin to enjoy the benefits of the theocracy in the land for the first time. Until Judges opens, God was preparing Israel to enjoy the theocracy in the land.

There are several examples of tribal jealousies in Judges (e.g., 8:1-3; 12:1-6), but the worst example of political disorganization is the vignette that concludes the book. This is the civil war in which 11 of the tribes almost annihilated the twelfth, Benjamin (chs. 20-21). Instead of destroying the Canaanites, God's people allowed them to live among them while the Israelites proceeded to destroy one another.

Another evidence of Israel's deterioration as a nation was social chaos.

Three characteristics marked the social chaos in Israel during the period of the judges. Lawlessness characterized national life. People were afraid to go out in public and traveled the byways rather than the highways of the land (5:6). People committed violent crimes without fear of punishment (ch. 19). Blindness also characterized the people. They were blind to what was happening in their midst, namely, God using discipline after apostasy to bring them to repentance and deliverance. They were also blind to God's dealings with their ancestors in their history. Third, immorality marked Israel's social life. Even Samson, one of the judges, was a victim of this cancer.

The story of the Levite and his concubine who visited the town of Gibeah (ch. 19) is a slice of life out of the period of the judges that shows the immorality that characterized Israel's social life. The behavior demonstrated in this story was the fruit of departure from God. The sin that had previously characterized the Canaanites of Sodom (Gen. 19) now marked God's people. Chapter 19 is a third part of the appendix to the book.

God revealed this process of deterioration to warn all people. Spiritual apostasy leads to political disorganization and social chaos. Social and governmental evils rise out of spiritual conditions. When the Israelites repented and rededicated themselves to God, God brought political deliverance and restored social order.

Judges not only reveals what causes deterioration, but it also clarifies the steps to restoration. Israel's history during this period resembles a downward spiral. The general trend was downward. Nevertheless there were six revivals of the peoples' faith in God and commitment to him too. These revivals cycled in Israel's history at this time.

Israel began from a privileged position of divine blessing.

In time the people apostatized by turning away from God and His covenant to the gods and practices of the Canaanites.

To bring them back to Himself God disciplined His people by allowing them to fall under the control and domination of their enemies. Israel chose to bow down to idols, so God allowed the idolaters to bend her over in bondage. The Israelites tolerated the Canaanites, but God made the Canaanites intolerant of them. The people with the birthright to the land had to hide in caves and among the rocks fearing to show themselves (6:2). God disciplined them severely for their apostasy. In Joshua God dealt with sin primarily among the Canaanites, but in Judges He dealt with it primarily among the Israelites. However, God's discipline was always remedial. God designed it to bring the Israelites back to a consciousness of sin and their need for God.

When the Israelites cried out to Yahweh in repentance, God heard their cry and delivered them mercifully. I mean "repentance" in the general sense of turning to God, not in the specific sense of cleaning up the life. God did not give deliverance as a reward the people had earned, but as grace in response to their helpless cry, as the text makes clear.

When they truly repented, He delivered them by raising up a judge. In each case, deliverance came at the right moment. It always came by the right instrument. God raised up the right person in each case. In almost every case God used one person, either a man or a woman. Judges reveals how God remarkably works through all types of different individuals to accomplish His purposes. He raised up the judge whom He had prepared for the needs of his time and place. Each judge was just right for his mission. In almost every case God used one single individual to change the whole course of history in Israel. E. M. Bounds wrote, "The Holy Spirit does not flow through methods, but through man. He does not come on machinery, but on men. He does not anoint plans, but people--people of prayer."

As a result of this deliverance the people rededicated themselves anew to Yahweh. Spiritual revival was the result of God's physical deliverance.

The people then began to enjoy God's blessing again. God gave them rest from the oppression of their enemies. Arthur Cundall labeled these stages "sin, servitude, supplication, and salvation."¹⁷

God's methods are the same today as they were in the days of the judges.

The fact that the writer repeated this cycle of events six times in Judges points to its timeless quality and its universality. Charles Feinberg wrote, "If ever there were history with a purpose it is here."¹⁸

I would state the message of the Book of Judges therefore as follows. Apostasy leads to disorganization and chaos, but repentance results in deliverance and blessing. This is true nationally and personally.

Constable: Judges (Garis Besar)

Outline

I. The reason for Israel's apostasy 1:1-3:6

A. Hostilities between the Israelites and the Canaanites after Joshua's death 1:1-2:5

1. Initial successes and failures ch. 1

2. The announcement of God's discipline 2:1-5

B. Israel's conduct toward Yahweh and Yahweh's treatment of Israel in the period of the judges 2:6-3:6

1. Review of Joshua's era 2:6-10

2. The pattern of history during the judges' era 2:11-23

3. God's purposes with Israel 3:1-6

II. The record of Israel's apostasy 3:7-16:31

A. The first apostasy 3:7-11

B. The second apostasy 3:12-31

1. Oppression under the Moabites and deliverance through Ehud 3:12-30

2. Oppression under the Philistines and deliverance through Shamgar 3:31

C. The third apostasy chs. 4-5

1. The victory over Jabin and Sisera ch. 4

2. Deborah's song of victory ch. 5

D. The fourth apostasy 6:1-10:5

1. The story of Gideon 6:1-8:32

2. Israel's departure from Yahweh 8:33-35

3. The story of Abimelech ch. 9

4. The judgeships of Tola and Jair 10:1-5

E. The fifth apostasy 10:6-12:15

1. Renewed oppression 10:6-7

2. Oppression under the Ammonites 10:8-18

3. Deliverance through Jephthah 10:1-12:7

4. The judgeships of Ibzan, Elon, and Abdon 12:8-15

F. The sixth apostasy chs. 13-16

1. Samson's birth ch. 13

2. Samson's intended marriage to the Timnite ch. 14

3. Samson's vengeance on the Philistines ch. 15

4. Samson's final fatal victory ch. 16

III. The results of Israel's apostasy ch. 17-21

A. The idolatry of Micah and the Danites ch. 17-18

1. The idolatry of Micah ch. 17

2. The apostasy of the Danites ch. 18

B. The immorality of Gibeah and the Benjamites chs. 19-21

1. The atrocity in Gibeah ch. 19

2. The civil war in Israel ch. 20

3. The preservation of Benjamin ch. 21

Constable: Judges

Judges

Bibliography

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_____. Yahweh and the Gods of Canaan. Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1969.

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Block, Daniel I. "Gideon: A Rough Vessel." The Standard 77:2 (February 1987):25-27.

_____. Judges, Ruth. The New American Commentary series. Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1999.

_____. "The Period of the Judges: Religious Disintegration under Tribal Rule." In Israel's Apostasy and Restoration: Essays in Honor of Roland K. Harrison, pp. 39-58. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1988.

_____. "The Role of Language in Ancient Israelite Perception of National Identity." Journal of Biblical Literature 103:3 (September 1984):321-340.

_____. "Will the Real Gideon Please Stand Up? Narrative Style and Intention in Judges 6-9." Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society 40:3 (September 1997):353-66.

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_____. "The Centre Cannot Hold: Thematic and Textual Instabilities in Judges." Catholic Biblical Quarterly 52 (July 1990):410-31.

_____. "The Theological Dimension of the Samson Saga." Vetus Testamentum 33:1 (1983):30-45.

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_____. "The Theology of the Framework of Judges." Vetus Testamentum 36:4 (October 1986):385-96.

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Inrig, Gary. Hearts of Iron, Feet of Clay. Chicago: Moody Press, 1979.

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_____. "The Old Testament in its Context: 3 From Joshua to Solomon." Theological Students' Fellowship Bulletin 61 (1971):5-14.

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Copyright 2003 by Thomas L. Constable

Haydock: Judges (Pendahuluan Kitab)

INTRODUCTION.

THE BOOK OF JUDGES.

This Book is called Judges, because it contains the history of what passed under the government of the judges, who ruled Israel before they had kings. The writer of it, according to the more general opinion, was the prophet Samuel. (Challoner) --- Some are of opinion, that the judges might have each left records of their respective administration, (Menochius) which might be put in order by Samuel. The author of this book seems to have lived under the reign of Saul, before David had expelled the Jebusites, chap. xviii. 31. (Du Hamel) --- The captivity, which is mentioned [in] ver. 30, must be understood of that when the ark of God, as well as the idol Micha, and may of the people were taken by the Philistines. (Huet) --- Many passages of the Psalms, &c., are taken from this book, which shew its antiquity, Psalm lxvii. 8., and 2 Kings xi. 21. The divine Providence is here displayed in a very striking manner. (Du Hamel) --- The theocracy still subsisted and God generally chose these judges to be his ministers, and to deliver the people, on their repentance, from some dreadful calamity. (Haydock) --- They exercised a supreme power, yet without bearing the insignia of regal authority, or imposing taxes, or making any alteration in the established laws. The Suffetes, who were Carthaginian magistrates, seem to have taken their name from these Ssuptim. (Du Hamel) --- When God did not raise up judges, in an extraordinary manner, a kind of ananchy prevailed. (Haydock) --- Each of the tribes regarded only their own affairs, and the republic was dissolved. (Grotius) --- Prosperous and unfortunate days succeeded each other, in proportion as the people gave themselves up to repentance or to dissolution. Sicut se habebant peccata populi & misericordia Dei, alternaverunt prospera & adversa bellorum. (St. Augustine, City of God xviii. 23.) St. Jerome (ep. ad Eust. & ad Paulin.) exhorts us to penetrate the spiritual sense of the historical books, and he regards "the judges as so many figures" of the apostles, who established the church of Christ. Though some of them had been noted for their misconduct, they were reclaimed by the grace of God. Then all the judges, every one by name, whose heart was not corrupted, who turned not away from the Lord, that their memory might be blessed, &c., Ecclesiasticus xlvi. 13, 14. (Worthington) --- St. Paul mentions four of them, though the conduct of Jephte and of Samson might have been regarded as more exceptionable than that of Othoniel, who is said to have been filled with the spirit of the Lord, chap. iii. 10. Serarius doubts not but they are all in heaven. Salien (in the year of the world 2640,) supposes that the transactions recorded in the five last chapters, took place before this 40th year from the death of Josue, which was the last of Othoniel. With respect to the chronology of these times, there are many opinions. Houbigant endeavours to shew that the system of Usher is inadmissible, as well as that of Petau. Marsham maintains that many of the captivities, and of the Judges, related only to some tribes, so that the different years which are specified, must be referred to the same period of time. Thus while Jephte ruled over those on the east side of the Jordan, and fought against the Ammonites, other judges endeavoured to repel the armies of the Philistines on the west. See 3 Kings vi. 1., and Judges xi. 16. By this expedient, he finds no difficulty in shewing that 480 years elapsed from the departure out of Egypt till the building of the temple, and that the Israelites had occupied the country of the Ammonites during the space of 300 years. (Haydock) --- Houbigant seems to adopt this system in some respects, and he thinks that errors have crept into some of the numbers, so that Aod procured a peace of only 20 instead of 80 years, &c. He observes that the name of judge here designates, 1. A warrior, like Samson; 2. a person who passes sentence according to the law, which was the office of Heli; 3. one divinely commissioned to exercise the sovereign authority, as Samuel did, even after Saul had been elected king. (Proleg. Chronol.) Others have compared the power of these judges with that of the Roman Dictators, or the Archontes of Athens. (Serarius) --- They were properly God's lieutenants. Their revenue seems to have been very precarious, and their exterior deportment modest and unassuming. They were guided by the declarations of the high priests, when arrayed with the Urim and Thummim; and their business was to promote the observance of the true religion, and to defend the people of God. This book concludes with the history of Samson, describing the transactions of 317 years, (Calmet) according to the calculation of Usher, which has met with the approbation of many of the learned, and is therefore chiefly inserted in this edition, as it was in that which was published in 1791, at Dublin, by the care of the Rev. B. Mac Mahon, who seems to have made some alterations. It is not indeed free from many serious difficulties. But we have not leisure to examine them at present. See chap. iii. 11, 30. We shall only subjoin the chronological table of Houbigant, which is not very common, that the reader may perceive where they are chiefly at variance. Moses governed 40 years, Josue 20, the Ancients 20, king of Mesopotamia 8, Othoniel 40, Moabites 18, Aod 20, Samgar 0, the Chanaanites 20, Debora and Barac 40, Madianites 7, Gedeon 40, Abimelech 3, Thola 23, Ammonites 0, Jair 22, Jephte 6, Abesan 7, Ahialon 10, Abdon 8, Philistines 0, Samson 20, and with Heli 20, Heli and Samuel 25, Samuel and Saul 20, David 40, Solomon 3. In the 4th year of his reign the temple was begun, 480 years after the liberation from Egypt. Those to whom no years are assigned, lived at the same time with others whose years enter into the calculation. Thus Samgar gained a victory over the Philistines, while the Chanaanites held the Israelites in subjection, chap. iii. 31. For other particulars we must refer to the author. (Chron. sacra.) (Haydock)

Gill: Judges (Pendahuluan Kitab)

INTRODUCTION TO JUDGES

The title of this book in the Hebrew copies is Sepher Shophetim, the Book of Judges; but the Syriac and Arabic interpreters call it,

"the Book of the Judges of the Children of Israel;''

and the Septuagint only Judges; so called, not because it was written by them, though some think it was compiled out of annals and diaries kept by them; but it seems to be the work of one person only: the true reason of its name is, because it treats of the judges of Israel, gives an account of their lives and actions, and especially such as concerned their office; which office was different from that of kings, and seems only to have been occasional, and chiefly lay in delivering the people out of the hands of their enemies, when oppressed, distressed, or carried captive by them; in protecting them in the enjoyment of their country, rights, and liberties; in leading out their armies against their enemies when needful; and in settling differences, judging law suits, and administering justice. The government of the nation, during their time, was a theocracy. It is not certain who was the penman of this book; some ascribe it to King Hezekiah, others to Ezra; but the Jewish writers ^a are generally of opinion that it was written by Samuel, which is most likely, who was the last of the judges; and it seems plainly to be written before the times of David, us appears from a speech of Joab, 2Sa 11:21; and from some passages in Psa 68:8, which seem to refer or allude to Jdg 5:4; and from Jerusalem being called Jebus, which shows it to be inhabited by the Jebusites in the time of the writer of this book, whereas it was taken out of their hands by David; besides, Samuel himself refers to the annals of this book; 1Sa 12:9; and from whose testimonies, as well as from others in the New Testament, there is no doubt to be made of its being genuine and authentic, and written by divine inspiration; as is evident from the use the Apostle Paul, and the author of the epistle to the Hebrews, have made of it, Act 13:20; it is useful as an history, and without which the history of the people of Israel would not be complete; it containing an account of all their judges, excepting the two last, Eli and Samuel, of whom an account is given in the following books, and of some facts incidental to those times, related in an appendix at the end of it, concerning the idol of Micah, and the war of Benjamin; and furnishes out many useful moral observations concerning God's displeasure at sin in his own people Israel, and his corrections for it; and about his providential care of them in raising up for them deliverers in their time of need, as well as points at various virtues and excellencies in great and good men, worthy of imitation. It contains, according to Piscator, Dr. Lightfoot, and others, an history of two hundred ninety and nine years.

Gill: Judges 3 (Pendahuluan Pasal)

INTRODUCTION TO JUDGES 3

This chapter gives an account of the nations left in Canaan to prove Israel, and who became a snare unto them, Jdg 3:1; and of the servitude of Israel under the king of Mesopotamia for their sins, from which they were delivered by Othniel, Jdg 3:8; and of their subjection to the Moabites, from which they were freed by Ehud, who privately assassinated the king of Moab, and then made his escape, Jdg 3:12; and of the destruction of a large number of Philistines by Shamgar, with an ox goad, Jdg 3:31.