What does Judges 3:15 mean?
The people of Israel have served under the oppressive rule of Eglon, king of Moab, for eighteen years. They were defeated by the combined armies of Moab, Ammon, and the Amalekites, all empowered by the punishing hand of God (Judges 3:12–14).At last, their misery reaches the point where the people cry out to God for help. The text does not suggest the Israelites repented of sin, or made promises to God. They simply ask for help, and God helps.
In this case, God raises up a new judge to deliver the people from their captivity to Moab. Ehud, son of Gera, is described vaguely as being of the tribe of Benjamin and left-handed. The writer may be pointing to some irony here. The name Benjamin means "son of the right hand," while Ehud is left-handed. Also noteworthy is that Ehud's infamous act against the Moabite king, described later, parallels Jacob's depiction of the tribe of Benjamin. Jacob referred to Benjamin as a "ravenous wolf" (Genesis 49:27).
In the ancient world, being fully left-handed—dominant with that side, rather than the right hand—was actively discouraged. Some cultures even saw it as a sign of evil: the Latin term sinister means both "unlucky" and "from the left side." For that reason, some scholars believe this reference implies Ehud was actually ambidextrous: able to use both of his hands with equal skill. Later in Judges, 700 men of Benjamin will be similarly described as left-handed, a point tied closely to extreme skill at slinging stones in combat (Judges 20:16). Another group of Benjaminites who served as David's mighty men were bowman described as being able to shoot arrows or sling stones with both hands equally well (1 Chronicles 12:1–2). It's possible that Ehud's "left-handedness" is being extolled as an addition to his "right-handedness."
The Bible does not explicitly indicate the Spirit of the Lord came on Ehud, as it does with other judges (Judges 3:10; 6:34; 11:29). Instead, he seems to have been a clever man who recognized an opportunity. He maneuvers to gain the advantage over Moab by attacking King Eglon directly. This opportunity came when the Israelites sent Ehud to deliver their required tribute to the king in Jericho (Judges 3:16–21).
