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The Antiquities of the Jews - Table of Contents
The Antiquities of the Jews
Written by Flavius Josephus
Translated by William Whiston
Book Five
Chapter 4
How Our People Served The Moabites Eighteen
Years, And Were Then Delivered From Slavery By One Ehud Who
Retained The Dominion Eighty Years
1. When Othniel was dead, the affairs of the Israelites fell
again into disorder: and while they neither paid to God the
honor due to him, nor were obedient to the laws, their
afflictions increased, till Eglon, king of the Moabites, did so
greatly despise them on account of the disorders of their
political government, that he made war upon them, and overcame
them in several battles, and made the most courageous to submit,
and entirely subdued their army, and ordered them to pay him
tribute. And when he had built him a royal palace at Jericho,
(14) he omitted no method whereby he might distress them; and
indeed he reduced them to poverty for eighteen years. But when
God had once taken pity of the Israelites, on account of their
afflictions, and was moved to compassion by their supplications
put up to him, he freed them from the hard usage they had met
with under the Moabites. This liberty he procured for them in
the following manner;
2. There was a young man of the tribe of Benjamin, whose name
was Ehud, the son of Gera, a man of very great courage in bold
undertakings, and of a very strong body, fit for hard labor, but
best skilled in using his left hand, in which was his whole
strength; and he also dwelt at Jericho. Now this man became
familiar with Eglon, and that by means of presents, with which
he obtained his favor, and insinuated himself into his good
opinion; whereby he was also beloved of those that were about
the king. Now, when on a time he was bringing presents to the
king, and had two servants with him, he put a dagger on his
right thigh secretly, and went in to him: it was then summer
thee, and the middle of the day, when the guards were not
strictly on their watch, both because of the heat, and because
they were gone to dinner. So the young man, when he had offered
his presents to the king, who then resided in a small parlor
that stood conveniently to avoid the heat, fell into discourse
with him, for they were now alone, the king having bid his
servants that attended him to go their ways, because he had a
mind to talk with Ehud. He was now sitting on his throne; and
fear seized upon Ehud lest he should miss his stroke, and not
give him a deadly wound; so he raised himself up, and said he
had a dream to impart to him by the command of God; upon which
the king leaped out of his throne for joy of the dream; so Ehud
smote him to the heart, and leaving his dagger in his body, he
went out and shut the door after him. Now the king's servants
were very still, as supposing that the king had composed himself
to sleep.
3. Hereupon Ehud informed the people of Jericho privately of
what he had done, and exhorted them to recover their liberty;
who heard him gladly, and went to their arms, and sent
messengers over the country, that should sound trumpets of rams'
horns; for it was our custom to call the people together by
them. Now the attendants of Eglon were ignorant of what
misfortune had befallen him for a great while; but, towards the
evening, fearing some uncommon accident had happened, they
entered into his parlor, and when they found him dead, they were
in great disorder, and knew not what to do; and before the
guards could be got together, the multitude of the Israelites
came upon them, so that some of them were slain immediately, and
some were put to flight, and ran away toward the country of
Moab, in order to save themselves. Their number was above ten
thousand. The Israelites seized upon the ford of Jordan, and
pursued them, and slew them, and many of them they killed at the
ford, nor did one of them escape out of their hands; and by this
means it was that the Hebrews freed themselves from slavery
under the Moabites. Ehud also was on this account dignified with
the government over all the multitude, and died after he had
held the government eighty years (15) He was a man worthy of
commendation, even besides what he deserved for the
forementioned act of his. After him Shamgat, the son of Anath,
was elected for their governor, but died in the first year of
his government.
Continue on to
Book
Five,
Chapter 5,
The Antiquities of the Jews
by
Flavius Josephus
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The Antiquities of the Jews - Table of Contents
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