Book of Judges
The Book of Judges is the seventh book of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament. In the narrative of the Hebrew Bible, it covers the time between the conquest described in the Book of Joshua and the establishment of a kingdom in the ...
, Eglon ( ''Eglon'') was a king of
Moab
Moab () was an ancient Levant, Levantine kingdom whose territory is today located in southern Jordan. The land is mountainous and lies alongside much of the eastern shore of the Dead Sea. The existence of the Kingdom of Moab is attested to by ...
who oppressed Israel.
Biblical narrative
He was the head of the confederacy of Moab,
Ammon
Ammon (; Ammonite language, Ammonite: 𐤏𐤌𐤍 ''ʻAmān''; '; ) was an ancient Semitic languages, Semitic-speaking kingdom occupying the east of the Jordan River, between the torrent valleys of Wadi Mujib, Arnon and Jabbok, in present-d ...
and Amalek in their assault on Israel. Eglon reigned over the Israelites for 18 years. One day,
Ehud
Ehud ben‑Gera (; , Tiberian ''ʾĒhūḏ ben‑Gērāʾ'') is described in the biblical Book of Judges chapter 3 as a judge who was sent by God to deliver the Israelites from Moabite domination. He is described as being left-handed and a me ...
, who was left handed, came presenting a customary tribute and tricked Eglon and stabbed him with his sword, but when Ehud attempted to draw the sword back out, the obese king's excess fat prevented its retrieval. His servants, believing he was relieving himself, left him be. In the aftermath of his death, the Moabites were routed and the Israelites enjoyed eighty years of peace.
Rabbis in the
Talmud
The Talmud (; ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of Haskalah#Effects, modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cen ...
ic tradition claimed that Ruth was Eglon's daughter. According to this tradition, Eglon was rewarded for rising out of respect when Ehud mentioned the Israelite God by having
King David
David (; , "beloved one") was a king of ancient Israel and Judah and the third king of the United Monarchy, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament.
The Tel Dan stele, an Aramaic-inscribed stone erected by a king of Aram-Damas ...
as a descendant. This can also be seen as an attempt to provide a royal lineage to David. The Talmud also describes Eglon as the grandson of Balak.Sanhedrin p. 105 Babylonian Talmud /ref>
His descendants
According to a legend in a
midrash
''Midrash'' (;"midrash" . ''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. ; or ''midrashot' ...
, the two Moabite women from the
Book of Ruth
The Book of Ruth (, ''Megillath Ruth'', "the Scroll of Ruth", one of the Five Megillot) is included in the third division, or the Writings ( Ketuvim), of the Hebrew Bible. In most Christian canons it is treated as one of the historical books ...
,
Orpah
Orpah ( ''ʿOrpā'', meaning "neck" or "fawn") is a woman mentioned in the Book of Ruth in the Hebrew Bible
The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;Ruth, were sisters, and both were daughters of the Moabite king Eglon (Ruth R. ii. 9). According to this same midrash Eglon was a son of Balak, the king of Moab introduced in the
Book of Numbers
The Book of Numbers (from Biblical Greek, Greek Ἀριθμοί, ''Arithmoi'', , ''Bəmīḏbar'', ; ) is the fourth book of the Hebrew Bible and the fourth of five books of the Jewish Torah. The book has a long and complex history; its final f ...
.
Talmudic folklore states that, because Eglon stood up when Ehud said he had a message for him from God (Judges 3:20), his reward was that his descendant would be King David.Midrash Rabbah, Ruth 2:9.