The Ehud and Eglon Cycle

The Historical Background of the passage

Explanation: Our passage presents the second of the cycles of sin and deliverance in the Book of Judges. Following the period of rest that God gave the nation by the deliverance of Othniel, the cycle continues.

The people sin (3:12a)

God gives them over to bondage (3:12b-14)

The people cry out to God for help (3:15a)

God raises up a delivers (3:15b)

The people are delivered (3:28-29)

The people experience peace (3:30)

Following the Othniel cycle, this is the next clearest prresentation of the pattern in the Book and it rapidly deteriorates from this point forward.

NOTE: The Bible does portray accurate historical events. The Bible, however, is not just a history book. The Ehud - Eglon cycle was not recorded so future generations would be able to pass their Ancient Near Eastern history class. The question for us is this: What is the significance of this account? Why is so much detail given to this cycle when compared to the Othniel cycle?

The Nature of Scripture

Explanation: The Bible is a unique book that stands alone. It is presented as God’s special revelation to man. While God employed human authors, He Himself is the primary author of Scripture. The words of the Bible are God - breathed and thereby have authority in and of themselves.

King James Version Chapter 3

16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

When Paul penned those words, much of the NT was not even written. While his words were so written as to include his writings (those that God inspired) and others, they definitely applied to what we refer to as the Old Testament. When Jesus was walking the earth and teaching, the Scriptures He referred to were the Old Testament scriptures. (cf John 10:35) This sidebar is to underscore that reality that the Ehud - Eglon cycle in the the OT book of Judges is just as inspired as the content of the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5 - 7. This means that we are to strive to understand and apply the truths that God presents to us in His word

Difficulties in correctly interpreting the Ehud - Eglon cycle

Explanation: As previously mentioned, the details of the account are clear - there is no question as to what happened. The interpretation of the passage presents the difficulty. Immediately after the narrator states that “Yahweh raised them up a deliverer” the story takes on lots of details. God intended for these details to be included, so we must do the work of trying to correctly interpret the passage. One important hermeneutical principle is that a passage has a meaning established by the author; it is not correct to ask: “what does this passage mean to you?”

The details given present us with a picture of a shrewd man who employs secular strategy to solve a difficult problem. Let’s look at some of the highlights:

Ehud name and description. He was of the tribe of Benjamin, a name that means “son of the right hand” yet he is described as a left-handed man. The narrator makes a play on words to present Ehud as a crafty individual. Block views Ehud as part of “a specially trained group for whom dexterity with the left hand was inculcated by binding up the right hand . . . an exceptionally clever and resourceful man, a master of deceit.” (NAC Judges, Ruth, Vol. 6, page 161)

The details of Ehud’s strategy. The text tells us that

Ehud was chosen by his fellow Israelites to deliver the tribute money. (3:15b)

Ehud crafted a specially designed concealed weapon (3:16)

Ehud had a plan to be alone with the King (3:18-20)

Ehud assassinated the King of Moab quickly and efficiently (3:21-23)

Ehud had a pre-planned escape route (3:24-26)

Ehud had previously arranged for the Israelite warriors in the region of Ephraim to be ready to attack at his signal (3:27)

God gave the Israelites the victory over the Moabites (3:28-29)

The meaning of the passage

The meaning is obviously not presented as a playbook for God’s approved method to assassinate evil rulers!

Nor is presented to show the shortcomings and stupidity of foreign nations. (content from a commentary, but I can’t remember the exact source)

It is important to note a few other details in order to get closer to the intended meaning of the passage. One such detail is the mention of the idols at Gilgal. They are mentioned twice in the passage (3:19, 26). The exact meaning of the term is not entirely clear, but they served as either boundary markers of the Moabite incursion or they were false idols that the Israelites had come to accept as part of their everyday life. (Block and Bob Deffinbaugh [from preceptaustin both bring this out]

An oft repeated refrain in the Book of Judges is because there was no king in Israel, everyone did what was right in his own sight (17:6; 18:1; 19:1; 21:25. This is possibly an example of this principle. While Ehud is clearly portrayed as one raised up by God, he seems to be acting according to his own plans and resources. As Block states it, “Although the author is clear that Ehud is God’s gracious gift to the nation, the silence of Yahweh and the focus on the tactics of the deliverer raise doubts concerning Ehud’s own sense of place in the divine scheme.” (NAC Judges and Ruth, Vol 6, p. 160)

Once again, the reader is led to the conclusion that God is the real hero of the story and that He can bring good for His purposes even when His means are not aware. As my OT professor used to say, “God can hit a straight lick with a crooked stick.”

Deffinbaugh’s conclusion is somewhat similar in that he sees this passage as an example of Romans 8:28. God is sovereign and He can and will accomplish His purposes and work them out for the good of His people and for His own Glory. (Lesson #4 from Judges, “Ehud’s ‘Gut Reaction)