Chapter 4.
HOW OUR PEOPLE SERVED THE MOABITES EIGHTEEN YEARS, AND WERE
THEN DELIVERED FROM SLAVERY BY ONE EHUD WHO RETAINED THE DOMINION EIGHTY
YEARS.FJAJ 5.52
1. WHEN Othniel was dead, the affairs of the Israelites fell again into
disorder: and while they neither paid to God the honor due to him, nor
were obedient to the laws, their afflictions increased, till Eglon, king
of the Moabites, did so greatly despise them on account of the disorders
of their political government, that he made war upon them, and overcame
them in several battles, and made the most courageous to submit, and entirely
subdued their army, and ordered them to pay him tribute
And when he had
built him a royal palace at Jericho, (14)
It appears by the sacred history, Judges 1:16; 3:13, that Eglon's pavilion
or palace was at the City of Palm-Trees, as the place where Jericho had
stood is called after its destruction by Joshua, that is, at or near the
demolished city. Accordingly, Josephus says it was at Jericho, or rather
in that fine country of palm-trees, upon, or near to, the same spot of
ground on which Jericho had formerly stood, and on which it was rebuilt
by Hiel, 1 Kings 16:31. Our other copies that avoid its proper name Jericho,
and call it the City of Palm-Trees only, speak here more accurately than
Josephus.
he omitted no method whereby he might distress them; and indeed he reduced
them to poverty for eighteen years
But when God had once taken pity of
the Israelites, on account of their afflictions, and was moved to compassion
by their supplications put up to him, he freed them from the hard usage
they had met with under the Moabites
This liberty he procured for them
in the following manner; -FJAJ 5.53
2. There was a young man of the tribe of Benjamin, whose name was Ehud,
the son of Gera, a man of very great courage in bold undertakings, and
of a very strong body, fit for hard labor, but best skilled in using his
left hand, in which was his whole strength; and he also dwelt at Jericho.
Now this man became familiar with Eglon, and that by means of presents,
with which he obtained his favor, and insinuated himself into his good
opinion; whereby he was also beloved of those that were about the king.
Now, when on a time he was bringing presents to the king, and had two servants
with him, he put a dagger on his right thigh secretly, and went in to him:
it was then summer thee, and the middle of the day, when the guards were
not strictly on their watch, both because of the heat, and because they
were gone to dinner
So the young man, when he had offered his presents
to the king, who then resided in a small parlor that stood conveniently
to avoid the heat, fell into discourse with him, for they were now alone,
the king having bid his servants that attended him to go their ways, because
he had a mind to talk with Ehud
He was now sitting on his throne; and
fear seized upon Ehud lest he should miss his stroke, and not give
him a deadly wound; so he raised himself up, and said he had a dream to
impart to him by the command of God; upon which the king leaped out of
his throne for joy of the dream; so Ehud smote him to the heart, and leaving
his dagger in his body, he went out and shut the door after him
Now the
king's servants were very still, as supposing that the king had composed
himself to sleep.FJAJ 5.54
3. Hereupon Ehud informed the people of Jericho privately of
what he had done, and exhorted them to recover their liberty; who heard
him gladly, and went to their arms, and sent messengers over the country,
that should sound trumpets of rams' horns; for it was our custom to call
the people together by them
Now the attendants of Eglon were ignorant
of what misfortune had befallen him for a great while; but, towards the
evening, fearing some uncommon accident had happened, they entered into
his parlor, and when they found him dead, they were in great disorder,
and knew not what to do; and before the guards could be got together, the
multitude of the Israelites came upon them, so that some of them were slain
immediately, and some were put to flight, and ran away toward the country
of Moab, in order to save themselves
Their number was above ten thousand.
The Israelites seized upon the ford of Jordan, and pursued them, and slew
them, and many of them they killed at the ford, nor did one of them escape
out of their hands; and by this means it was that the Hebrews freed themselves
from slavery under the Moabites
Ehud also was on this account dignified
with the government over all the multitude, and died after he had held
the government eighty years (15)
These eighty years for the government of Ehud are necessary to Josephus's
usual large numbers between the exodus and the building of the temple,
of five hundred and ninety-two or six hundred and twelve years, but not
to the smallest number of four hundred and eighty years, 1 Kings 6:1; which
lesser number Josephus seems sometimes to have followed. And since in the
beginning of the next chapter it is said by Josephus, that there was hardly
a breathing time for the Israelites before Jabin came and enslaved them,
it is highly probable that some of the copies in his time had here only
eight years instead of eighty; as had that of Theophilus of Antioch, Ad
Autolye. 1. iii., and this most probably from his copy of Josephus.
He was a man worthy of commendation, even besides what he deserved for
the forementioned act of his
After him Shamgat, the son of Anath, was
elected for their governor, but died in the first year of his government.FJAJ 5.55