Judge living before Israel's Monarchy
Ehud, a left-handed Benjamite, was a judge who delivered Israel from Moabite oppression by assassinating King Eglon and leading a victory over Moab.
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Ehud was a left-handed Benjamite who served as a judge and deliverer of Israel during the period of the judges. His story is primarily recorded in Jdg.3.12-30, with brief mentions in Jdg.4.1 and 1Ch.8.6.
After the Israelites did evil in the sight of the Lord, God allowed Eglon, the king of Moab, to conquer and oppress them for eighteen years. When the Israelites cried out to the Lord for deliverance, God raised up Ehud as their deliverer (Jdg.3.12-15).
Ehud is described as a left-handed man, which is significant because it allowed him to conceal a double-edged sword on his right thigh without arousing suspicion. He was sent to deliver tribute to King Eglon, who is portrayed as a very fat man (Jdg.3.16-17).
After presenting the tribute, Ehud returned to Eglon, claiming to have a secret message for him. When Eglon dismissed his attendants, Ehud approached him and declared, "I have a message from God for you" (Jdg.3.18-20). He then drew his concealed sword with his left hand and thrust it into Eglon's belly, killing him (Jdg.3.21-22).
Ehud escaped, locking the doors of the upper room behind him. He then rallied the Israelites, who seized the fords of the Jordan leading to Moab and struck down about 10,000 Moabites. This victory brought peace to the land for eighty years (Jdg.3.23-30).
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8 verses in 2 books · English text: BSB (change it from the menu at the top) · Strong’s H0164
And again they cried out to the LORD, and He raised up Ehud son of Gera, a left-handed Benjamite, as their deliverer. So they sent him with tribute to Eglon king of Moab.
Now Ehud had made for himself a double-edged sword a cubit long. He strapped it to his right thigh under his cloak
Then Ehud approached him while he was sitting alone in the coolness of his upper room. “I have a word from God for you,” Ehud said, and the king rose from his seat.
And Ehud reached with his left hand, pulled the sword from his right thigh, and plunged it into Eglonʼs belly.
Then Ehud went out through the porch, closing and locking the doors of the upper room behind him.
Ehud, however, had escaped while the servants waited. He passed by the idols and escaped to Seirah.
After Ehud died, the Israelites again did evil in the sight of the LORD.
These were the descendants of Ehud who were the heads of the families living in Geba and were exiled to Manahath:
Names, family links and references: STEPBible TIPNR (Tyndale House Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). Short descriptions were drafted with AI assistance by STEPBible. Family links follow STEPBible’s scholarly decisions where genealogies are ambiguous.