12 Israelilaiset rikkoivat jälleen Herraa vastaan, ja sen tähden Herra antoi Eglonin, Moabin kuninkaan, nousta Israelia mahtavammaksi.
13 Eglon liittoutui ammonilaisten ja amalekilaisten kanssa, voitti Israelin ja otti haltuunsa Palmukaupungin.
14 Israelilaiset olivat Moabin kuninkaan Eglonin vallan alla kahdeksantoista vuotta.
15 Israelilaiset huusivat Herraa avukseen, ja Herra lähetti heille vapauttajaksi Benjaminin heimoon kuuluvan Ehudin, Geran pojan, joka oli vasenkätinen. Kun israelilaiset lähettivät Ehudin viemään pakkoveroa Eglonille, Moabin kuninkaalle,
16 hän takoi itselleen lyhyen, kaksiteräisen miekan ja ripusti sen piiloon viittansa alle oikealle sivulleen.
17 Ehud vei veron Moabin kuninkaalle Eglonille, joka oli hyvin lihava mies.
18 Vietyään veron perille hän saattoi kantajina olleita miehiä
21 ja silloin Ehud tarttui vasemmalla kädellään miekkaan, joka riippui hänen oikealla sivullaan, ja työnsi sen Eglonin vatsaan.
22 Terä painui sisään koko pituudeltaan, ja kahvakin upposi rasvaan, niin ettei Ehud saanut vedetyksi miekkaansa pois. Sitten Ehud meni kattohuoneen ovelle,
23 veti ovet kiinni, lukitsi ne sisäpuolelta ja poistui ikkunan kautta.
25 Kun kukaan ei tullut ulos, he viimein väsyivät odottamaan, hakivat avaimen, avasivat oven ja näkivät herransa makaavan kuolleena lattialla.
26 Palvelijoiden viivytellessä Ehud oli päässyt pakoon. Hän oli jo ehtinyt kivipatsaiden ohi ja pakeni Seiraan Efraimin vuorille.
27 Saavuttuaan sinne hän puhalsi torveen ja kokosi israelilaiset. He laskeutuivat vuorilta hänen johtaminaan.
29 He löivät Moabin joukot, noin kymmenentuhatta miestä, kaikki voimakkaita ja urheita sotureita, eikä yksikään päässyt pakoon.
30 Sinä päivänä Moab taipui Israelin vallan alle, ja Israel sai elää rauhassa kahdeksankymmentä vuotta.
12 And the children of Israel again did evil in the sight of Jehovah; and Jehovah strengthened Eglon the king of Moab against Israel, because they did evil in the sight of Jehovah.
13 And he gathered to him the children of Ammon and Amalek and went and smote Israel, and they took possession of the city of palm-trees.
14 And the children of Israel served Eglon the king of Moab eighteen years.
15 And the children of Israel cried to Jehovah, and Jehovah raised them up a saviour, Ehud the son of Gera, the Benjaminite, a man left-handed. And by him the children of Israel sent a gift to Eglon king of Moab.
16 And Ehud made him a sword having two edges, it was of a cubit length; and he girded it under his raiment upon his right hip.
17 And he brought the gift to Eglon king of Moab; now Eglon was a very fat man.
18 And it came to pass when he had ended offering the gift, he sent away the people that had borne the gift.
19 But he turned from the graven images that were by Gilgal, and said, I have a secret word unto thee, O king. And he said, Be silent! And all that stood by him went out from him.
20 And Ehud came to him; now he was sitting in the cool upper-chamber, which was for him alone. And Ehud said, I have a word from God unto thee. And he arose from the seat.
21 Then Ehud put forth his left hand, and took the sword from his right hip, and thrust it into his belly;
22 and the haft also went in after the blade, and the fat closed upon the blade; for he did not draw the sword out of his belly, and it came out between the legs.
23 And Ehud went out into the portico, and shut the doors of the upper-chamber upon him, and bolted them.
24 And when he was gone out, the servants of the {king} came and saw, and behold, the doors of the upper-chamber were bolted. And they said, Surely he is covering his feet in the summer chamber.
25 And they waited till they were ashamed; and behold, he opened not the doors of the upper-chamber, and they took the key, and opened {them}, and behold, their lord lay dead on the earth.
26 And Ehud had escaped while they lingered, and passed beyond the graven images, and escaped to Seirah.
27 And it came to pass when he was 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 And he said to them, Follow after me, for Jehovah has delivered your enemies the Moabites into your hand. And they went down after him, and took the fords of the Jordan toward Moab, and suffered no one to pass over.
29 And they slew the Moabites at that time, about ten thousand men, all fat, and all men of valour, and not a man escaped.
30 And Moab was subdued that day under the hand of Israel. And the land had rest eighty years.