Good News Translation GNT
World English Bible WEB
1 So then, the Lord left some nations in the land to test the Israelites who had not been through the wars in Canaan.
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Now these are the nations which Yahweh left, to prove Israel by them, even as many [of Israel] as had not known all the wars of Canaan;
2 He did this only in order to teach each generation of Israelites about war, especially those who had never been in battle before.
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only that the generations of the children of Israel might know, to teach them war, at the least such as before knew nothing of it:
3 Those left in the land were the five Philistine cities, all the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and the Hivites who lived in the Lebanon Mountains from Mount Baal Hermon as far as Hamath Pass.
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[namely], the five lords of the Philistines, and all the Canaanites, and the Sidonians, and the Hivites who lived on Mount Lebanon, from Mount Baal-hermon to the entrance of Hamath.
4 They were to be a test for Israel, to find out whether or not the Israelites would obey the commands that the Lord had given their ancestors through Moses.
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They were [left], to prove Israel by them, to know whether they would listen to the commandments of Yahweh, which he commanded their fathers by Moses.
5 And so the people of Israel settled down among the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites.
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The children of Israel lived among the Canaanites, the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites:
6 They intermarried with them and worshiped their gods.
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and they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their own daughters to their sons and served their gods.
7 The people of Israel forgot the Lord their God; they sinned against him and worshiped the idols of Baal and Asherah.
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The children of Israel did that which was evil in the sight of Yahweh, and forgot Yahweh their God, and served the Baals and the Asheroth.
8 So the Lord became angry with Israel and let King Cushan Rishathaim of Mesopotamia conquer them. They were subject to him for eight years.
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Therefore the anger of Yahweh was kindled against Israel, and he sold them into the hand of Cushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia: and the children of Israel served Cushan-rishathaim eight years.
9 Then the Israelites cried out to the Lord, and he sent someone to free them. This was Othniel, the son of Caleb's younger brother Kenaz.
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When the children of Israel cried to Yahweh, Yahweh raised up a savior to the children of Israel, who saved them, even Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother.
10 The spirit of the Lord came upon him, and he became Israel's leader. Othniel went to war, and the Lord gave him the victory over the king of Mesopotamia.
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The Spirit of Yahweh came on him, and he judged Israel; and he went out to war, and Yahweh delivered Cushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand: and his hand prevailed against Cushan- rishathaim.
11 There was peace in the land for forty years, and then Othniel died.
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The land had rest forty years. Othniel the son of Kenaz died.
12 The people of Israel sinned against the Lord again. Because of this the Lord made King Eglon of Moab stronger than Israel.
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The children of Israel again did that which was evil in the sight of Yahweh: and Yahweh strengthened Eglon the king of Moab against Israel, because they had done that which was evil in the sight of Yahweh.
13 Eglon joined the Ammonites and the Amalekites; they defeated Israel and captured Jericho, the city of palm trees.
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He gathered to him the children of Ammon and Amalek; and he went and struck Israel, and they possessed the city of palm trees.
14 The Israelites were subject to Eglon for eighteen years.
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The children of Israel served Eglon the king of Moab eighteen years.
15 Then the Israelites cried out to the Lord, and he sent someone to free them. This was Ehud, a left-handed man, who was the son of Gera, from the tribe of Benjamin. The people of Israel sent Ehud to King Eglon of Moab with gifts for him.
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But when the children of Israel cried to Yahweh, Yahweh raised them up a savior, Ehud the son of Gera, the Benjamite, a man left-handed. The children of Israel sent tribute by him to Eglon the king of Moab.
16 Ehud had made himself a double-edged sword about a foot and a half long. He had it fastened on his right side under his clothes.
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Ehud made him a sword which had two edges, a cubit in length; and he girded it under his clothing on his right thigh.
17 Then he took the gifts to Eglon, who was a very fat man.
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He offered the tribute to Eglon king of Moab: now Eglon was a very fat man.
18 When Ehud had given him the gifts, he told the men who had carried them to go back home.
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When he had made an end of offering the tribute, he sent away the people who bore the tribute.
19 But Ehud himself turned back at the carved stones near Gilgal, went back to Eglon, and said, "Your Majesty, I have a secret message for you." So the king ordered his servants, "Leave us alone!" And they all went out.
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But he himself turned back from the quarries that were by Gilgal, and said, I have a secret errand to you, king. He said, Keep silence. All who stood by him went out from him.
20 Then, as the king was sitting there alone in his cool room on the roof, Ehud went over to him and said, "I have a message from God for you." The king stood up.
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Ehud came to him; and he was sitting by himself alone in the cool upper room. Ehud said, I have a message from God to you. He arose out of his seat.
21 With his left hand Ehud took the sword from his right side and plunged it into the king's belly.
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Ehud put forth his left hand, and took the sword from his right thigh, and thrust it into his body:
22 The whole sword went in, handle and all, and the fat covered it up. Ehud did not pull it out of the king's belly, and it stuck out behind, between his legs.
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and the haft also went in after the blade; and the fat closed on the blade, for he didn't draw the sword out of his body; and it came out behind.
23 Then Ehud went outside, closed the doors behind him, locked them,
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Then Ehud went forth into the porch, and shut the doors of the upper room on him, and locked them.
24 and left. The servants came and saw that the doors were locked, but they only thought that the king was inside, relieving himself.
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Now when he was gone out, his servants came; and they saw, and, behold, the doors of the upper room were locked; and they said, Surely he is covering his feet in the upper chamber.
25 They waited as long as they thought they should, but when he still did not open the door, they took the key and opened it. And there was their master, lying dead on the floor.
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They waited until they were ashamed; and, behold, he didn't open the doors of the upper room: therefore they took the key, and opened [them], and, behold, their lord was fallen down dead on the earth.
26 Ehud got away while they were waiting. He went past the carved stones and escaped to Seirah.
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Ehud escaped while they waited, and passed beyond the quarries, and escaped to Seirah.
27 When he arrived there in the hill country of Ephraim, he blew a trumpet to call the people of Israel to battle; then he led them down from the hills.
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It happened, when he had come, that he blew a trumpet in the hill-country of Ephraim; and the children of Israel went down with him from the hill-country, and he before them.
28 He told them, "Follow me! The Lord has given you victory over your enemies, the Moabites." So they followed Ehud down and captured the place where the Moabites were to cross the Jordan; they did not allow anyone to cross.
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He said to them, Follow after me; for Yahweh has delivered your enemies the Moabites into your hand. They went down after him, and took the fords of the Jordan against the Moabites, and didn't allow a man to pass over.
29 That day they killed about ten thousand of the best Moabite soldiers; none of them escaped.
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They struck of Moab at that time about ten thousand men, every lusty man, and every man of valor; and there escaped not a man.
30 That day the Israelites defeated Moab, and there was peace in the land for eighty years.
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So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of Israel. The land had rest eighty years.
31 The next leader was Shamgar son of Anath. He too rescued Israel, and did so by killing six hundred Philistines with an oxgoad.
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After him was Shamgar the son of Anath, who struck of the Philistines six hundred men with an ox-goad: and he also saved Israel.
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.
The World English Bible is in the public domain.