A Left-Handed Judge Kills the Enemy King to Free the People
It takes some time for God’s people to take possession of the land he promised them. Once they do, a distressing cycle recurs.
They turn from God and do evil, he allows a foreign power to conquer them, and they cry out to the Lord for help. In response he sends them a judge—a military leader—to free them.
Such is the case with Ehud (1).
Because of the Israelites’ disobedience to God, he allows the king of Moab to subject them to his control for eighteen years. When they cry out for help, he sends Ehud.
This story has two interesting elements. First, Ehud is left-handed. Second, the king of Moab is extremely overweight. Here’s what happens.
Ehud leads the delegation to pay their annual tribute to Moab. After they complete their mission and leave, Ehud heads back. He tells the king he has a secret message to share.
The guards likely assumed Ehud is right-handed and looked for a weapon on his left as would be the norm, but not the other side. Therefore, Ehud’s sword escapes detection.
The king sends everyone away. We can envision Ehud extending his right hand in a friendly gesture as he approaches the king to deliver the message.
With the king distracted and feeling safe, Ehud stealthily draws his sword with his left hand and thrusts it into the King’s belly. The 18-inch sword (close to half a meter) plunges into the king’s belly and his fat covers the hilt.
Ehud locks the doors and flees through the terrace. He escapes before anyone realizes the king is dead.
Ehud summons the army, and they attack Moab, killing ten thousand of their troops.
With this victory over their enemy, Moab is now subject to Israel.
And the people live in peace for eighty years.
What bold action may God be calling us to make?
Seeing how one person can make a difference, what can we do today?
[Read about Ehud in Judges 3:12–30. Discover a similar story in 2 Samuel 3:22–30.]
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More Old Testament Sinners and Saints is part of the Bible Character Sketches series.
Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront a status quo faith and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.
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