God’s Word Translation
Judges 3:15
15Then the people of Israel cried out to the Lord for help. The Lord sent a savior to rescue them. It was Ehud, a left-handed man from the tribe of Benjamin. (Ehud was the son of Gera.) The people sent him with their tax payment to King Eglon of Moab.
Judges 3:15 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)But when the children of Israel cried unto the Lord, the Lord raised them up a deliverer, Ehud the son of Gera, a Benjamite, a man lefthanded: and by him the children of Israel sent a present unto Eglon the king of Moab.
- New International Version (NIV)Again the Israelites cried out to the Lord, and he gave them a deliverer—Ehud, a left-handed man, the son of Gera the Benjamite. The Israelites sent him with tribute to Eglon king of Moab.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Then the people of Israel cried out to the Lord, and the Lord raised up for them a deliverer, Ehud, the son of Gera, the Benjaminite, a left-handed man. The people of Israel sent tribute by him to Eglon the king of Moab.
- New King James Version (NKJV)But when the children of Israel cried out to the Lord, the Lord raised up a deliverer for them: Ehud the son of Gera, the Benjamite, a left-handed man. By him the children of Israel sent tribute to Eglon king of Moab.
Context of Judges 3:15
13Eglon got the Ammonites and the Amalekites to help him, and they defeated the Israelites and occupied the City of Palms. 14The Israelites served King Eglon of Moab for 18 years. Then the people of Israel cried out to the Lord for help. The Lord sent a savior to rescue them. It was Ehud, a left-handed man from the tribe of Benjamin. (Ehud was the son of Gera.) The people sent him with their tax payment to King Eglon of Moab. 16Ehud made a two-edged dagger for himself. He fastened it to his right side under his clothes. 17Then he brought the tax payment to King Eglon. (Eglon was a very fat man.)
Read all of Judges 3Judges 3:15 word by word
וַיִּזְעֲק֣וּ בְנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵל֮ אֶל־יְהוָה֒ וַיָּקֶם֩ יְהוָ֨ה לָהֶ֜ם מוֹשִׁ֗יעַ אֶת־אֵה֤וּד בֶּן־גֵּרָא֙ בֶּן־הַיְמִינִ֔י אִ֥ישׁ אִטֵּ֖ר יַד־יְמִינ֑וֹ וַיִּשְׁלְח֨וּ בְנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֤ל בְּיָדוֹ֙ מִנְחָ֔ה לְעֶגְל֖וֹן מֶ֥לֶךְ מוֹאָֽב׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- But when the childrenבֵּןbên · son: descendant/peopleH1121
- of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
- criedזָעַקzâ‛aq · to cry outH2199
- unto the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- raised them upקוּםqûm · to arise: raiseH6965
- a delivererיָשַׁעyâsha‛ · to saveH3467
- Ehudאֵהוּד'êhûd · EhudH164
- the sonבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
- of Geraגֵּרָאgêrâ' · GeraH1617
- a Benjamiteבֶּן־יְמִינִיben-yemîynîy ben-ha-yemînîy ben-'îysh yemîynîy · BenjaminiteH1145
- a manאִישׁ'îysh · manH376
- lefthandedיָמִיןyâmîyn · rightH3225
- lefthandedאִטֵּר'iţţêr · lefthandedH334
- and by himיָדyâd · handH3027
- sentשָׁלַחshâlach · to send: departH7971
- a presentמִנְחָהminchâh · offering: tributeH4503
- unto Eglonעֶגְלוֹן‛eglôn · EglonH5700
- the kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
- of Moabמוֹאָבmô'âb · MoabH4124
Cross-references for Judges 3:15
- Judges 3:9Then the people of Israel cried out to the Lord for help. The Lord sent a savior to rescue them. It was Othniel, son of Caleb’s younger brother Kenaz.
- Psalms 50:15Call on me in times of trouble. I will rescue you, and you will honor me.”
- Psalms 78:34When he killed ⌞some of⌟ them, ⌞the rest⌟ searched for him. They turned from their sins and eagerly looked for God.
- Psalms 90:15Make us rejoice for as many days as you have made us suffer, for as many years as we have experienced evil.
- Jeremiah 29:12Then you will call to me. You will come and pray to me, and I will hear you.
- Jeremiah 33:3Call to me, and I will answer you. I will tell you great and mysterious things that you do not know.
- Judges 20:16Out of all these troops, the best 700 were left-handed. Each could sling a stone at a hair and not miss.
- 1 Chronicles 12:2They were armed with bows and could sling stones or shoot arrows with either their right or their left hands. They were Saul’s relatives, ⌞from the tribe of⌟ Benjamin.
- 1 Samuel 10:27However, some good-for-nothing people asked, “How can this man save us?” They despised him and wouldn’t bring him presents, but he didn’t respond.
- Proverbs 18:16A gift opens doors for the one who gives it and brings him into the presence of great people.
- Proverbs 19:6Many try to win the kindness of a generous person, and everyone is a friend to a person who gives gifts.
- Proverbs 21:14A gift ⌞given⌟ in secret calms anger, and a secret bribe calms great fury.
- Isaiah 36:16Don’t listen to Hezekiah, because this is what the king of Assyria says: Make peace with me! Come out, and give yourselves up to me! Everyone will eat from his own grapevine and fig tree and drink from his own cistern.
Commentaries on Judges 3:15
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 15Ehud the son of Gera - a man left handed - ימינו יד אטר איש ish itter yad yemino, a man lame in his right hand, and therefore obliged to use his left. The Septuagint render it , an ambidexter, a man who could use both hands alike. The Vulgate, qui utraque manu pro dextera utebatur, a man who could use either hand as a right hand, or to whom right and left were equally ready. This is not the sense of the original, but it is the sense in which most…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 15But when the children of Israel cried unto the Lord, the Lord raised them up a deliverer - The very same words as are used at Judges 3:9. See, too, Judges 2:16, Judges 2:18, and Nehemiah 9:27. Ehud “the Benjamite” was of the family or house of Gera 2 Samuel 16:5, the son of Bela, Benjamin‘s first-born, born before Jacob‘s descent into Egypt Genesis 46:21, and then included among “the sons of Benjamin.” The genealogy in 1 Chronicles 8:6 intimates that Ehud…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 12-30Verses 12-30 When Israel sins again, God raises up a new oppressor. The Israelites did ill, and the Moabites did worse; yet because God punishes the sins of his own people in this world, Israel is weakened, and Moab strengthened against them. If lesser troubles do not do the work, God will send greater. When Israel prays again, God raises up Ehud. As a judge, or minister of Divine justice, Ehud put to death Eglon, the king of Moab, and thus executed the…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 15left-handed (literally restricted in the right hand): This trait allowed Ehud to hide his weapon on his right hip. The Greek Old Testament translates this phrase as “ambidextrous.” The term is linked to the tribe of Benjamin (“son of my right hand,” Genesis 35:18; see Judges 20:16) and is associated with heroic military skills (compare 1 Chronicles 12:1–2). The tribute money was either pieces of metal or, more likely, agricultural goods that needed a team…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1515. Ehud the son of Gera--descended from Gera, one of Benjamin's sons (Ge 46:21). left-handed--This peculiarity distinguished many in the Benjamite tribe (Jud 20:16). But the original word is rendered in some versions "both-handed," a view countenanced by 1Ch 12:2. by him the children of Israel sent a present unto Eglon the king of Moab--the yearly tribute, which, according to Eastern fashion, would be borne with ostentatious ceremony and offered (Jud…Read the comment
Topics related to Judges 3:15
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Judges 3
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- Darby Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
God’s Word Translation — © 1995 God’s Word to the Nations Bible Society
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