The personality of Ehud Ben Gera

The only fact given about Ehud ben Gera is that he was Iter's right hand. Ehud ben Gera was a central figure in both Israel and Moab, and this allowed him to eliminate Agalon

The book of Judges devotes only nineteen verses to the work of Ehud ben Gera (Judges 30:12-25) and the most prominent events from the days of his reign are the killing of Agalon, king of Moab, and the call to the Israelites to strike Moab. Ten verses are dedicated to the killing of the king (verses 16-XNUMX). That is to say, a little more than half of the verbal volume that the scriptures dedicate to Ehud ben Gera describes in a very detailed way the killing of a king and, in fact, his murder.

The only fact given about Ehud ben Gera is that he was Iter's right hand. On the face of it, the scripture does not reveal anything about the character of the man and the ways of his rule from the time he began to judge. However, if we analyze the scripture carefully, it will be possible to learn important details about it. In verse 15 it is said: "And the children of Israel cried out to the Lord, and the Lord raised up for them a savior, Ehud son of Gera, the son of the right hand, a man of Ether on his right hand, and the children of Israel sent an offering in his hand to Eglon, king of Moab." Why was he sent and not other personalities? It seems that he was publicly known both among the Israelites and among the Moabites and that they knew the king personally. It is almost certain that the king placed a lot of trust in him and the evidence for this is given in verse 19 where it is said: "And he returned from among the statues that were on the wheel and said a secret thing to me and the king said, 'Hush,' and all those standing before him came out from above him." The king's trust in Ehud ben Gera was so great that he was willing to stay with him alone without any security from the guards. Moreover, he even approached him to the point of closeness face to face, when Ehud ben Gera said to him "God's word to you." It seems that he also knew the king personally, including knowing his way of thinking and habits. From this it is required that the acquaintance between them was prolonged and perhaps many years.

 
The murder is described in such detail as to make you feel sick. Ehud Ben Gera carried out this murder quietly and very skillfully without arousing the suspicion of the guards. A man who is stabbed makes sounds of pain and nothing is said about it, and therefore one gets the impression that Ehud ben Gera put a barricade in the king's mouth, so that he would not scream, Ehud ben Gera is revealed here as a cold-hearted, cruel and calculated person. Finishing his work, he left the palace without being discovered. It seems that he knew the palace in detail - he knew all its entrances, the halls in it, the number of guards and the guard system. The planning of the murder also included escape routes.

 
In verses 29-27 it is said: "And when he came, he blew a trumpet on Mount Ephraim, and the children of Israel came down with him from the mountain, and he was before them, and he said to them, Pursue me, for Jehovah has given your enemies Moab into your hands, and they went down after him, and captured the crossings of the Jordan to Moab, and did not let anyone pass. And they struck Moab at the same time. It was ten thousand men, all fat and all brave, and no one escaped." Killing a king is not enough. Continued military activity is needed to prevent the army from recovering and enthroning a new king and arresting everyone who was involved in the killing. It seems therefore that Ehud ben Gera prepared a plan of action that would come after the killing of Eglon. He prepared ahead of time a military force that was waiting for him at the agreed place and time from the time he left Eglon's palace. The force he prepared was most likely very large, since a large force allows the killing of ten thousand Moabites. This move had a distinct military character and the evidence for this is the ambush he prepared at the Jordan crossings. Whether the Moab forces went to battle against him or fled (it is hard to tell), Ehud ben Gera correctly estimated their course of movement. The women and children were not executed. These were most likely captured and used as slaves.
In verse 30 it is said "And Moab surrendered that day under the hand of Israel and the land was silent for eighty years". On the face of it, it appears that Hud ben Gra ruled for a long time and that he was over a hundred years old at his death, unlike other judges who ruled for a few years or a small number of decades and that their descendants did not continue their rule. It is therefore reasonable to assume that Ehud ben Gera did have a son. The obvious meaning of what has been said is that he knew how to build a strong governing system, but his successor was not a strong enough personality to be able to hold firmly to the governing traditions and with his death the political framework fell apart.
Ehud Ben Gera was a man who radiated a lot of power and authority, had an impressive appearance, planning ability, calmness and when necessary could be particularly cruel.