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.
Parallel translations
- WEB But when the children of Israel cried to Yahweh, Yahweh raised up a savior for them, Ehud the son of Gera, the Benjamite, a left-handed man. The children of Israel sent tribute by him to Eglon the king of Moab.
- 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.
- 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.
- NASB But when the sons of Israel cried out to the Lord, the Lord raised up a deliverer for them, Ehud the son of Gera, the Benjaminite, a left-handed man. And the sons of Israel sent tribute by him to Eglon the king of Moab.
- NLT But when the people of Israel cried out to the Lord for help, the Lord again raised up a rescuer to save them. His name was Ehud son of Gera, a left-handed man of the tribe of Benjamin. The Israelites sent Ehud to deliver their tribute money to King Eglon of Moab.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
When Israel cries out, God raises up Ehud, a left-handed Benjamite, as their deliverer.
Overview
Israel's cry of distress draws the Lord's saving response, displaying His mercy toward a repentant people. God chooses an unlikely savior, a left-handed man from the tribe whose name means 'son of the right hand,' subverting human expectation. As throughout Judges, deliverance comes by God's appointed rescuer, anticipating the ultimate Savior.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- Judg 3:9But when the Israelites cried out to the LORD, He raised up Othniel son of Caleb’s younger brother Kenaz as a deliverer to save them.
- Ps 78:34When He slew them, they would seek Him; they repented and searched for God.
- Isa 36:16Do not listen to Hezekiah, for this is what the king of Assyria says: Make peace with me and come out to me. Then every one of you will eat from his own vine and his own fig tree, and drink water from his own cistern,
- Judg 20:16Among all these soldiers there were 700 select left-handers, each of whom could sling a stone at a hair without missing.
- Jer 33:3Call to Me, and I will answer and show you great and unsearchable things you do not know.
- 1 Sam 10:27But some worthless men said, “How can this man save us?” So they despised him and brought him no gifts; but Saul remained silent about it.
- Prov 19:6Many seek the favor of the prince, and everyone is a friend of the gift giver.
- Ps 90:15Make us glad for as many days as You have afflicted us, for as many years as we have seen evil.
- Prov 18:16A man’s gift opens doors for him, and brings him before great men.
- Prov 21:14A gift in secret soothes anger, and a covert bribe pacifies great wrath.
- 1 Chr 12:2they were archers using both the right and left hands to sling stones and shoot arrows; and they were Saul’s kinsmen from Benjamin):
- Ps 50:15Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor Me.”
- Jer 29:12–13Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.
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Christ at the center
Israel's cycle of sin and rescue through flawed deliverers cries out for a Savior who never fails — the true and final Judge and Deliverer who saves his people not for a season but forever.
How Judges 3:15 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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