TODAY IN THE WORD
Alfred North Whitehead declared that the Old Testament didn’t contain anything funny: “The total absence of humour from the Bible is one of the most singular things in all of literature.” Given our story today, one doubts that Whitehead read much of the book of Judges!

Our passage opens with Israel again doing evil and the Lord delivering them into the hands of Eglon, the king of Moab. After eighteen years, God provided a deliverer, Ehud from the tribe of Benjamin (see 20:16). God wasn’t satisfied with just a boring, ho-hum mode of deliverance. Instead, He used Ehud for one of the funniest overthrows of an oppressor recorded in Scripture.

The plot to assassinate Eglon included Ehud leading a group to bring tribute to the king. Presumably the Moabite guards checked the Israelites for weapons, but since Ehud had strapped his sword to the right thigh instead of the customary left, it went undetected. After the presentation of tribute, Ehud offered a secret message to Eglon. The Hebrew word for “message” here, dvar, can refer either to a word or a thing. Ehud had a secret dvar from God for Eglon, all right—only it was message by sword (cf. Heb. 4:12).

The story contains details that demonstrate God’s mockery of Eglon and his power. His name means “young bull,” but instead, he became like a fatted calf slaughtered to deliver Israel. His immense girth became instrumental in his demise (v. 22).

As attendants waited, the stench of Eglon’s eviscerated intestines wafted out. Assuming that the king must be relieving himself, his servants stayed outside the door to give him privacy. Not only was it embarrassing that the king was engaged in his toilet . . . but it was taking a really long time (v. 25). Not content to simply remove King Eglon from the scene, God allowed him to suffer humiliation even in the eyes of his own attendants. While Eglon lay dead, Ehud escaped and rallied the Israelite troops. God had defeated Eglon, and now it was their turn to flush the Moabite troops from stronghold into subjection (vv. 28-30).

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TODAY ALONG THE WAY
God is not impressed by the power of petty dictators, the clout of criminals, or the strongholds of Satan. He will have the final victory and exercise judgment—sometimes with a hilarious dose of humiliation—over all of them. Do we cower when we should rally? Do we give evil more credit than it deserves? The story of Eglon should remind us that our Father is in control, and He laughs at evildoers. No matter what we are going through, God can provide deliverance.

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