New Revised Standard NRS
The Message Bible MSG
1 Now these are the nations that the Lord left to test all those in Israel who had no experience of any war in Canaan
1
These are the nations that God left there, using them to test the Israelites who had no experience in the Canaanite wars.
2 (it was only that successive generations of Israelites might know war, to teach those who had no experience of it before):
2
He did it to train the descendants of Israel, the ones who had no battle experience, in the art of war.
3 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 as far as Lebo-hamath.
3
He left the five Philistine tyrants, all the Canaanites, the Sidonians, and the Hivites living on Mount Lebanon from Mount Baal Hermon to Hamath's Pass.
4 They were for the testing of Israel, to know whether Israel would obey the commandments of the Lord, which he commanded their ancestors by Moses.
4
They were there to test Israel and see whether they would obey God's commands that were given to their parents through Moses.
5 So the Israelites lived among the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites;
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But the People of Israel made themselves at home among the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites.
6 and they took their daughters as wives for themselves, and their own daughters they gave to their sons; and they worshiped their gods.
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They married their daughters and gave their own daughters to their sons in marriage. And they worshiped their gods.
7 The Israelites did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, forgetting the Lord their God, and worshiping the Baals and the Asherahs.
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The People of Israel did evil in God's sight. They forgot their God and worshiped the Baal gods and Asherah goddesses.
8 Therefore the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he sold them into the hand of King Cushan-rishathaim of Aram-naharaim; and the Israelites served Cushan-rishathaim eight years.
8
God's hot anger blazed against Israel. He sold them off to Cushan-Rishathaim king of Aram Naharaim. The People of Israel were in servitude to Cushan-Rishathaim for eight years.
9 But when the Israelites cried out to the Lord, the Lord raised up a deliverer for the Israelites, who delivered them, Othniel son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother.
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The People of Israel cried out to God and God raised up a savior who rescued them: Caleb's nephew Othniel, son of his younger brother Kenaz.The Spirit of God came on him and he rallied Israel. He went out to war and God gave him Cushan-Rishathaim king of Aram Naharaim. Othniel made short work of him.
10 The spirit of the Lord came upon him, and he judged Israel; he went out to war, and the Lord gave King Cushan-rishathaim of Aram into his hand; and his hand prevailed over Cushan-rishathaim.
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11 So the land had rest forty years. Then Othniel son of Kenaz died.
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The land was quiet for forty years. Then Othniel son of Kenaz died.
12 The Israelites again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord; and the Lord strengthened King Eglon of Moab against Israel, because they had done what was evil in the sight of the Lord.
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But the People of Israel went back to doing evil in God's sight. So God made Eglon king of Moab a power against Israel because they did evil in God's sight.
13 In alliance with the Ammonites and the Amalekites, he went and defeated Israel; and they took possession of the city of palms.
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He recruited the Ammonites and Amalekites and went out and struck Israel. They took the City of Palms.
14 So the Israelites served King Eglon of Moab eighteen years.
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The People of Israel were in servitude to Eglon fourteen years.
15 But when the Israelites cried out to the Lord, the Lord raised up for them a deliverer, Ehud son of Gera, the Benjaminite, a left-handed man. The Israelites sent tribute by him to King Eglon of Moab.
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The People of Israel cried out to God and God raised up for them a savior, Ehud son of Gera, a Benjaminite. He was left-handed. The People of Israel sent tribute by him to Eglon king of Moab.
16 Ehud made for himself a sword with two edges, a cubit in length; and he fastened it on his right thigh under his clothes.
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Ehud made himself a short two-edged sword and strapped it on his right thigh under his clothes.
17 Then he presented the tribute to King Eglon of Moab. Now Eglon was a very fat man.
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He presented the tribute to Eglon king of Moab. Eglon was grossly fat.
18 When Ehud had finished presenting the tribute, he sent the people who carried the tribute on their way.
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After Ehud finished presenting the tribute, he went a little way with the men who had carried it.
19 But he himself turned back at the sculptured stones near Gilgal, and said, "I have a secret message for you, O king." So the king said, "Silence!" and all his attendants went out from his presence.
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But when he got as far as the stone images near Gilgal, he went back and said, "I have a private message for you, O king." The king told his servants, "Leave." They all left.
20 Ehud came to him, while he was sitting alone in his cool roof chamber, and said, "I have a message from God for you." So he rose from his seat.
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Ehud approached him - the king was now quite alone in his cool rooftop room - and said, "I have a word of God for you." Eglon stood up from his throne.
21 Then Ehud reached with his left hand, took the sword from his right thigh, and thrust it into Eglon's belly;
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Ehud reached with his left hand and took his sword from his right thigh and plunged it into the king's big belly.
22 the hilt also went in after the blade, and the fat closed over the blade, for he did not draw the sword out of his belly; and the dirt came out.
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Not only the blade but the hilt went in. The fat closed in over it so he couldn't pull it out.
23 Then Ehud went out into the vestibule, and closed the doors of the roof chamber on him, and locked them.
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Ehud slipped out by way of the porch and shut and locked the doors of the rooftop room behind him.
24 After he had gone, the servants came. When they saw that the doors of the roof chamber were locked, they thought, "He must be relieving himself in the cool chamber."
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Then he was gone. When the servants came, they saw with surprise that the doors to the rooftop room were locked. They said, "He's probably relieving himself in the restroom."
25 So they waited until they were embarrassed. When he still did not open the doors of the roof chamber, they took the key and opened them. There was their lord lying dead on the floor.
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They waited. And then they worried - no one was coming out of those locked doors. Finally, they got a key and unlocked them. There was their master, fallen on the floor, dead!
26 Ehud escaped while they delayed, and passed beyond the sculptured stones, and escaped to Seirah.
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While they were standing around wondering what to do, Ehud was long gone. He got past the stone images and escaped to Seirah.
27 When he arrived, he sounded the trumpet in the hill country of Ephraim; and the Israelites went down with him from the hill country, having him at their head.
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When he got there, he sounded the trumpet on Mount Ephraim. The People of Israel came down from the hills and joined him. He took his place at their head.
28 He said to them, "Follow after me; for the Lord has given your enemies the Moabites into your hand." So they went down after him, and seized the fords of the Jordan against the Moabites, and allowed no one to cross over.
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He said, "Follow me, for God has given your enemies - yes, Moab! - to you." They went down after him and secured the fords of the Jordan against the Moabites. They let no one cross over.
29 At that time they killed about ten thousand of the Moabites, all strong, able-bodied men; no one escaped.
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At that time, they struck down about ten companies of Moabites, all of them well-fed and robust. Not one escaped.
30 So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of Israel. And the land had rest eighty years.
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That day Moab was subdued under the hand of Israel. The land was quiet for eighty years.
31 After him came Shamgar son of Anath, who killed six hundred of the Philistines with an oxgoad. He too delivered Israel.
31
Shamgar son of Anath came after Ehud. Using a cattle prod, he killed six hundred Philistines single-handed. He too saved Israel.
New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.