Judges 3:13 - Printer Friendly

ESV: He gathered to himself the Ammonites and the Amalekites, and went and defeated Israel. And they took possession of the city of palms.

NIV: Getting the Ammonites and Amalekites to join him, Eglon came and attacked Israel, and they took possession of the City of Palms.

NASB: And he gathered to himself the sons of Ammon and Amalek; and he went and defeated Israel, and they took possession of the city of the palm trees.

CSB: After Eglon convinced the Ammonites and the Amalekites to join forces with him, he attacked and defeated Israel and took possession of the City of Palms.

NLT: Eglon enlisted the Ammonites and Amalekites as allies, and then he went out and defeated Israel, taking possession of Jericho, the city of palms.

KJV: And he gathered unto him the children of Ammon and Amalek, and went and smote Israel, and possessed the city of palm trees.

NKJV: Then he gathered to himself the people of Ammon and Amalek, went and defeated Israel, and took possession of the City of Palms.

Once again, Israel is participating in sin and evil. This time, the writer of Judges doesn't specify exactly what evil the Israelites are committing. It's safe to assume it follows the pattern of worshiping and serving the gods of the Canaanites (Judges 3:12).

Once again, the Lord acts to express His anger and hold Israel accountable for breaking their covenant with Him. This time, the Lord strengthens an ancient relative of Israel. The Moabites are descended from Abraham's nephew Lot (Genesis 19:36–37). God strengthens the political might and will of the king of Moab to defeat Israel. He does so by joining forces with the Ammonites and Amalekites to attack the Israelites.

The Ammonite people, located to the east of the Promised Land, are also descended from Lot (Genesis 19:36–38), giving them a natural connection to the Moabites. The Amalekites were longtime enemies of Israel (Deuteronomy 25:17–19) to the south and east. Working together, the three nations were able to overcome and defeat Israel's forces and make the people slaves once again.

This verse adds that Moab took possession of "the city of palms," a name used to describe the fallen walled city of Jericho (Deuteronomy 34:3; Judges 1:16). A new city had been built on or near that spot, despite Joshua's curse (Joshua 6:26). Apparently, the king of Moab liked to rule from there at times.

Judges 3:12–30 describes another phase of sin, judgment, and deliverance in Israel. The people again provoke God's anger, so He strengthens Eglon, the king of Moab, to defeat and enslave them. After eighteen years, He raises up Ehud as the deliverer. In an infamously graphic assassination, Ehud kills Eglon in his palace in Jericho, then leads an army of Ephraim fighters to take the fords of the Jordan River. Having cut off the Moabites' escape route, the Israelites wipe out the Moabite army, leading to eighty years of peace.

God leaves several Canaanite nations in and around the Promised Land to test Israel's reliance on Him. Some live among the people, others are part of unconquered territories. The Israelites immediately ignore God's commands and begin serving other gods. First, the Lord subjects them to Mesopotamia. After eight years, the first judge, Othniel, leads them to victory and peace. Israel again rebels and is conquered by Moab for 18 years. Ehud's brutal assassination of the Moabite king sparks another period of freedom and peace. In a single brief statement, the obscure Shamgar is celebrated for his victory.

After Israel's failure to complete their mission, as described in chapters 1 and 2, chapter 3 begins by describing the idolatrous nations God left intact to test Israel. In the first of many such cycles, the people sin, are conquered, then are rescued by a "judge." This chapter describes the victories of Othniel, Ehud, and Shamgar. Chapter 4 mentions the first of the truly famous names among the judges, describing the careers of Deborah and Barak. This is followed in chapter 6, which introduces Gideon.

The Book of Judges describes Israel's history from the death of Joshua to shortly before Israel's first king, Saul. Israel fails to complete God's command to purge the wicked Canaanites from the land (Deuteronomy 7:1–5; 9:4). This results in a centuries-long cycle where Israel falls into sin and is oppressed by local enemies. After each oppression, God sends a civil-military leader, labeled using a Hebrew word loosely translated into English as "judge." These appointed rescuers would free Israel from enemy control and govern for a certain time. After each judge's death, the cycle of sin and oppression begins again. This continues until the people of Israel choose a king, during the ministry of the prophet-and-judge Samuel (1 Samuel 1—7).