So the children of Israel served Eglon king of Moab eighteen years. Ten years longer than they served the king of Mesopotamia, Judges 3:8 , as a severer correction of them for their relapse into idolatry. read more
Judges 3:13-14. 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. Eighteen years ... read more
Othniel, Ehud and Shamgar (3:7-31)The first invader of Israel seems to have come from Aram, which was far to the north of Palestine. The Israelite leader who finally defeated him, Othniel, came from the tribe of Judah, which was in the south of Palestine (see Joshua 15:13-19). It appears, therefore, that the enemy had overrun most of the land. As in other cases recorded in Judges, Israel’s victory came through God’s special power given to the deliverer (7-11; cf. 6:34; 11:29; 13:25; 14:6,19;... read more
II. THE RECORD OF ISRAEL’S APOSTASY 3:7-16:31"The judges are twelve in number, reckoning either Deborah or Barak 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." [Note: John Gray, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, p. 189.] Israel’s JudgesJudgeScriptureIsrael’s OppressorsLength in YearsNation(s)King(s)OppressionJudgeshipPeaceOthnielJudges... read more
1. Oppression under the Moabites and deliverance through Ehud 3:12-30The 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," Judges 3:13). They had evidently rebuilt it since Joshua’s conquest.... read more
B. The second apostasy 3:12-31As time went by, Israel’s departure from God progressed. The writer reflected this by showing that Israel suffered under two oppressing powers at the same time next: the Moabites and the Philistines. read more
The Story of the Judges. Othniel. Ehud. Shamgar1-6. Israel’s actual relations with the Canaanites.1. Wars of Canaan] i.e. those waged by Joshua, after whose death (Judges 2:21) the career of victory was made to cease by Jehovah. 2. A third reason for the survival of the heathen in Canaan, in addition to those given in Judges 2:1; and in. Judges 2:22; Judges 3:1. 3. Philistines] see Intro. § 5. The Philistines occupied the lowland in the SW. Their five cities formed a confederacy: see Judges... read more
History of the Judges (Jdg 3:5 to Jdg 16:31)On this, the main section of the book, see Intro. § 2 and List of Oppressions and Judges. The larger part of the book is concerned with six of the Judges, one of whom is not properly a Judge at all (Abimelech), and in the case of another (Samson) isolated forays are recorded, but no actual deliverance.7-11. Chushan-rishathaim and Othniel.7. The groves] RV 'the asheroth.' The word (another plural) means the sacred poles set up near an altar, which were... read more
(14) Served Eglon.—One instance of that receiving of “a yoke of iron” which had been threatened as a punishment of apostasy (Deuteronomy 28:47-48). The narrative, however, shows that the Moabite dominion did not extend beyond the borders of Ephraim (Judges 3:13). read more
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Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Judges 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... read more