Judges 3

Now these are the nations which the LORD left, to prove Israel by them, even as many of Israel as had not known all the wars of Canaan;

God intentionally left some nations untouched, to test the faith and strength of those in Israel who hadn't experienced the battles of Canaan.

Only that the generations of the children of Israel might know, to teach them war, at the least such as before knew nothing thereof;

So that the generations of Israel's children may learn, they were taught about war, especially those who previously knew nothing about it.

Namely, five lords of the Philistines, and all the Canaanites, and the Sidonians, and the Hivites that dwelt in mount Lebanon, from mount Baalhermon unto the entering in of Hamath.

Five Philistine rulers, all Canaanites, Sidonians, and Hivites living in Mount Lebanon, stretching from Mount Baalhermon to the gates of Hamath.

And they were to prove Israel by them, to know whether they would hearken unto the commandments of the LORD, which he commanded their fathers by the hand of Moses.

They were there to test Israel, to see if they would truly listen and follow God's commands given to their ancestors through Moses.

And the children of Israel dwelt among the Canaanites, Hittites, and Amorites, and Perizzites, and Hivites, and Jebusites:

The children of Israel lived side by side with the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites.

And they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their daughters to their sons, and served their gods.

They took the daughters of these peoples as wives and gave their own daughters to their sons, all while worshipping their gods.

And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD, and forgat the LORD their God, and served Baalim and the groves.

The Israelites deeply saddened the Lord by their wicked actions, forgetting Him and instead, worshipping false idols.

Therefore the anger of the LORD was hot against Israel, and he sold them into the hand of Chushanrishathaim king of Mesopotamia: and the children of Israel served Chushanrishathaim eight years.

God's anger burned against Israel, so He sold them into the hands of King Chushanrishathaim of Mesopotamia. The Israelites served him for eight long years.

And when the children of Israel cried unto the LORD, the LORD raised up a deliverer to the children of Israel, who delivered them, even Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb’s younger brother.

When the people of Israel wept in despair, God heard their cries. In response, He sent them a savior, a man named Othniel, the younger brother of Caleb, who rescued them from their plight.

And the Spirit of the LORD came upon him, and he judged Israel, and went out to war: and the LORD delivered Chushanrishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand; and his hand prevailed against Chushanrishathaim.

The Lord's Spirit filled him, guiding him to lead Israel and fight their battles. God granted him victory over King Chushanrishathaim of Mesopotamia, allowing him to triumph.

And the land had rest forty years. And Othniel the son of Kenaz died.

The land finally found peace for four decades. Then, Othniel, Kenaz's son, sadly passed away.

And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the LORD: and the LORD strengthened Eglon the king of Moab against Israel, because they had done evil in the sight of the LORD.

Once again, the Israelites wronged God with their actions. In response, God empowered King Eglon of Moab to rise against them, as a consequence of their misdeeds.

And he gathered unto him the children of Ammon and Amalek, and went and smote Israel, and possessed the city of palm trees.

He rallied the Ammonites and the Amalekites, attacked Israel, and seized the city of palm trees.

So the children of Israel served Eglon the king of Moab eighteen years.

For eighteen long years, the children of Israel, with heavy hearts, were under the rule of Eglon, the king of Moab.

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.

When the people of Israel pleaded with God in their despair, God responded by sending them a savior, Ehud, a left-handed man from the tribe of Benjamin. Through Ehud, they offered a gift to King Eglon of Moab.

But Ehud made him a dagger which had two edges, of a cubit length; and he did gird it under his raiment upon his right thigh.

Ehud crafted a double-edged dagger, about the length of his forearm. He concealed it beneath his clothing, strapped to his right thigh.

And he brought the present unto Eglon king of Moab: and Eglon was a very fat man.

He presented the gift to Eglon, the king of Moab, who was notably overweight.

And when he had made an end to offer the present, he sent away the people that bare the present.

After he finished presenting the gift, he kindly dismissed the people who brought it.

But he himself turned again from the quarries that were by Gilgal, and said, I have a secret errand unto thee, O king: who said, Keep silence. And all that stood by him went out from him.

He turned back from the stone pits near Gilgal and said to the king in a hushed voice, "I have a secret message for you, my king." The king commanded silence, and everyone around him quietly left.

And Ehud came unto him; and he was sitting in a summer parlour, which he had for himself alone. And Ehud said, I have a message from God unto thee. And he arose out of his seat.

Ehud approached him, finding him alone in his private summer room. "God has a message for you," Ehud declared. At this, he rose from his seat.

And Ehud put forth his left hand, and took the dagger from his right thigh, and thrust it into his belly:

With a surge of determination, Ehud reached down with his left hand, grasped the dagger hidden on his right thigh, and plunged it deep into the king's stomach.

And the haft also went in after the blade; and the fat closed upon the blade, so that he could not draw the dagger out of his belly; and the dirt came out.

The blade sank deep, swallowed whole by his flesh. He couldn't pull the dagger free, his body enveloping it. And from the wound, filth emerged.

Then Ehud went forth through the porch, and shut the doors of the parlour upon him, and locked them.

Ehud, filled with determination, stepped out onto the porch. He then closed the parlour doors behind him, securing them with a lock, his heart pounding in his chest.

When he was gone out, his servants came; and when they saw that, behold, the doors of the parlour were locked, they said, Surely he covereth his feet in his summer chamber.

After he left, his servants arrived. Seeing the locked doors, they thought, he must be relieving himself in his private room.

And they tarried till they were ashamed: and, behold, he opened not the doors of the parlour; therefore they took a key, and opened them: and, behold, their lord was fallen down dead on the earth.

They waited, their shame growing with each passing moment. The door remained closed, their lord silent. Overwhelmed, they found a key and unlocked the door. To their horror, they found their lord lifeless on the ground.

And Ehud escaped while they tarried, and passed beyond the quarries, and escaped unto Seirath.

Ehud managed to slip away unnoticed while they were distracted, swiftly passing the stone quarries, until he finally found safety in Seirath.

And it came to pass, when he was come, that he blew a trumpet in the mountain of Ephraim, and the children of Israel went down with him from the mount, and he before them.

When he arrived, he sounded a trumpet on Ephraim's mountain. Stirred by the call, the people of Israel followed him down the mountain, with him leading the way.

And he said unto them, Follow after me: for the LORD hath delivered your enemies the Moabites into your hand. And they went down after him, and took the fords of Jordan toward Moab, and suffered not a man to pass over.

He told them passionately, "Follow me, for God has given us victory over our enemies, the Moabites." Filled with courage, they followed him, securing the crossings of the Jordan towards Moab, allowing no one to cross.

And they slew of Moab at that time about ten thousand men, all lusty, and all men of valour; and there escaped not a man.

At that time, they killed around ten thousand robust and brave men from Moab. Not a single man managed to escape.

So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of Israel. And the land had rest fourscore years.

That day, Israel triumphed over Moab, bringing them under control. The land then enjoyed peace for eighty long years.

And after him was Shamgar the son of Anath, which slew of the Philistines six hundred men with an ox goad: and he also delivered Israel.

Following him was Shamgar, Anath's son, who bravely killed six hundred Philistines using just an ox goad. He too became a savior of Israel.