Ehud Israel's 2nd Judge Represents 1800 Years
Per Judges 3:1-6, the Lord used Israel's enemies to test Israel’s faithfulness and teach them war. Israel repeatedly failed this test, so the Lord gave them over to their enemies. After enduring oppression for a time, Israel would cry out to the Lord, who would raise up a deliverer.
PROPHETIC STORY PICTURES
James Schucker
The Account of Ehud Israel’s 2nd Judge
Representing 1800 years from 70 to 1870
According to Judges 3:1-6, the Lord used the nations Israel had not driven out to test Israel’s faithfulness and teach them war. Israel repeatedly failed this test, so the Lord gave them over to their enemies. After enduring oppression for a time, Israel would cry out to the Lord, who would raise up a deliverer to fight against their oppressors. Some of these accounts foreshadow the far greater experiences Israel would face after rejecting Jesus. The account of Israel’s second judge is one such example: its surprising detail appears intentionally written to point us toward the larger message the Lord meant to reveal to the whole world at the end of the age.
Judges 3:12-30 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.”
In this account think of Eglon as Roman Empire which the Lord would use in fulfillment of his parable of the marriage for the king’s son: Matthew 22:7, “But when the king heard thereof, he was wroth: and he sent forth his armies, and destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city Jerusalem in 70 AD.)
Continuing Judges 3:13 “And he gathered unto him the children of Ammon and Amalek, and went and smote Israel, and possessed the city of palm trees. 14So the children of Israel served Eglon the king of Moab eighteen years.”
In prophetic imagery, time is often compressed. Here, 18 years represents 1,800 years—from AD 70, when Rome destroyed Israel, to 1870, when Rome itself was taken by Victor Emmanuel II. At that time, the Lord began once more to speak comfortably to the Jewish people. Just three years later, in 1878, they were again allowed to buy land in Palestine, and the Jewish people began to be delivered. Seventy prophetic years later, in 1948, they became a nation once again.
15But when the children of Israel cried unto the Lord, the Lord raised them up a deliverer, Ehud [Jesus] 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.”
In this prophetic picture, Ehud is the judge the Lord used to deliver Israel for us. He therefore represents our Lord at His return, when the Lord would begin delivering the Jewish people from Gentile power, as stated in Luke 21:24: “And they shall fall by the edge of the sword and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.” This is also reflected in Ezekiel 20:33: “With a strong hand, an outstretched arm, and outpoured wrath I will bring you out from the peoples and gather you from the lands to which you have been scattered.”
The Two-Edged Dagger
16Now Ehud [Jesus] made himself a dagger which had two edges [the bible] of a cubit length; and he did gird it under his raiment upon his right thigh.”
The dagger with two edges represents the old and new testaments and reminds us of Revelation 2:12, “These things says he which has the sharp sword with two edges.” And the location of the dagger on his right thigh reminds us of Revelation 19:16, “And he has on his thigh a name written, King of Kings, and Lord of Lords.
17And he brought the present unto Eglon king of Moab: and Eglon was a very fat man. 18And when he had made an end to offer the present, he sent away the people that bore the present.
The present represents the latter rain—the truth given through the 7th messenger of the Lord. After delivering this truth, its messengers are told to come out, as in Revelation 18:4 & 6: “Come out of her, my people… Reward her even as she rewarded you.” We do this by offering the truth, a present of immeasurable value. This work is also pictured in Revelation 14:6, where the everlasting gospel is preached to all peoples.
19But 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. [for about the space of a half-hour Rev 8:1] And all that stood by him went out from him.
The quarries and silence recall the temple’s construction in 1 Kings 6:7, where no iron tool was heard in the house. Since temple stones were cut in the quarries, they also point to Acts 15:14, where God takes from the Gentiles a people for His name. Thus, the quarries symbolize the Gentiles and show that the time for quarrying from the Gentiles was ending.
20And Ehud came unto him; and he was sitting in a summer parlor, which he had for himself alone. And Ehud said, ‘I have a message from God unto thee. And he (Eglon) arose out of his seat.”
“Ehud came,” represents our Lord’s Return, and reminds us of the parable in which his return is connected with summer: Matthew 24:32, “Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is nigh.
21And Ehud put forth his left hand, and took the dagger [came from his mouth] from his right thigh [where it is written King of Kings and Lord of Lords] and thrust it into his belly: 22And the shaft 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.”
This reminds us of all the scriptures that refer to the destruction of the Gentile powers over Israel—the smiting the image in Daniel 2; blood coming out of the winepress of Revelation 14:20; the Beast and False Prophet of Revelation 19:17-20.
23Then Ehud [Jesus] went forth through the porch, and shut the doors of the parlor upon him, and locked them.”
This recalls the accounts of our Lord’s return in which He shuts the door. Matthew 25 says the ready virgins entered the marriage, and “the door was shut.” says He opens and shuts what no one can change; by Revelation 3:20, He stands at the door and knocks, showing that at His return the door to the general call is shut.
24When he was gone out, his servants came; and when they saw that, behold, the doors of the parlor were locked, they said, ‘Surely, he covers his feet [where the stone smites the image] in his summer chamber. 25And they tarried till they were ashamed: and behold, he opened not the doors of the parlor; therefore, they took a key, and opened them: and behold, their lord was fallen down dead on the earth.”
There is shame in not recognizing what is going on at the time of the Lord’s return. Revelation 16:15, “Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watches and keeps his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.
26And Ehud [Jesus] escaped while they tarried and passed beyond the quarries [where the Church was quarried] and escaped unto Seirath. 27And it came to pass, when he came, that he blew a trumpet in the mountain of Ephraim [representing the Great Company], and the children of Israel went down with him from the mount, and he before them.
Blowing the trumpet reminds us of Matthew 24:31, “And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.” Also, the Jericho account with the sounding of the trumpets going around the walls, and the trumpets of Revelation…
28And he said unto them, ‘Follow after me: for the Lord has delivered your enemies the Moabites [the Gentile powers over Israel] 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. 29And they slew of Moab at that time about ten thousand men, all lusty, and all men of valor; and there escaped not a man. 30So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of Israel. And the land had fourscore years rest.
Representing the peaceable time of the kingdom for which we pray.
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