For Our Admonition Part 12
Killing the Moabites Within Us
Key Verses: Jdg 3:12 – 3:16
As covered in the last study (Enemies Left in the Promised Land), the book of Judges illustrates the beginnings of our true spiritual life and the sanctification and victory over sin. This victory only comes by a long process of many tribulations (Act 14:22) and many wars within us.
Mat 24:4 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.
Mat 24:5 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.
Mat 24:6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.
We see in Judges; the repeated cycle of Israel being enslaved to its enemies and then the Lord raising up a deliverer to destroy the enemy and bring freedom. The Lord is working good and evil within us to bring about His perfect will (Phi 2:13, Eph 1:11). Victories over our enemies do come, yet we are being caused to fall back into sin as we await the coming of the Lord within us (Th 2:3-4). In type, these experiences in Judges are the time we await the second coming of
Christ who will henceforth lead us into all righteousness and conquer
Jdg 18:1 In those days there was no king in Israel: and in those days the tribe of the Danites sought them an inheritance to dwell in; for unto that day all their inheritance had not fallen unto them among the tribes of Israel.
Jdg 21:25 In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes.
Doing the best we can with the limited resources the Lord has given us at this yet carnal stage, we do what is right in our own mind.
As we saw last study, the enemies of God are left in the land to further teach us and prepare us for the Lord’s fiery trials and chastening grace (Isa 26:9, Heb 12:6) yet to come. We are learning that the Word of God does indeed give us power over all our inward enemies, but we have to engage with both hands to act out our faith. We pick up from the last study and we now look at the appointment of the second Judge, Ehud, over Israel and the activities going on in the Promised Land. Othniel the first Judge has died and after a forty-year period of peace we read the following:
Jdg 3:12 And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the LORD: and the LORD strengthened Eglon the king of Moab against Israel, because they had done evil in the sight of the LORD.
Jdg 3:13 And he gathered unto him the children of Ammon and Amalek, and went and smote Israel, and possessed the city of palm trees.
Jdg 3:14 So the children of Israel served Eglon the king of Moab eighteen years.
It is our man of sin, the lover of fleshly things who exalts himself against Christ. This is the Moabite, the Ammonite and the Amalekite within us that are just outside the Promised Land. Moab is where the Lord renewed the covenant with Israel (Deu 29:1) and where Moses was shown the land and then died (Deu 34:5). Moabites represent that which is born of flesh (Joh 3:6) which cannot inherit the Kingdom. Moab and Ammon came about from the incestuous relationship of Lot with his daughters (Gen 19:31-38). In the history of Israel, Moab, Ammon and Amalek (Esau) represent our own flesh and specifically the carnal mind and thoughts within. That is where the war is being waged and where the man child in us strives to grow up in the faith.
Mat 10:36 And a man’s foes shall be they of his own household.
These inward enemies are often subdued but they keep on coming back to tangle and confound the Israel of God. These carnal thoughts are worldly thoughts and the way to overcome them is to obey the Lord who will then bless us (Exo 15:26) when we kill those lies in our heavens.
Rev 18:4 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.
These incestuous fleshly mindsets are forbidden to enter our land and be in the congregation of the Lord. We must take captive the Moabites and Ammonites that sneak into the land within.
Deu 23:3 An Ammonite or Moabite shall not enter into the congregation of the LORD; even to their tenth generation shall they not enter into the congregation of the LORD forever:
Judging righteous judgment is how the land is being possessed and dominion over flesh and our redemption given (Exo 6:6, Isa 1:27). We learn to take captive these carnal thoughts that otherwise take Israel (us) captive. These three nations and enemies are all to the east of Israel, signifying they are where we have come from (the world, being carnally minded), as we follow the Sun of Righteousness to the west and move onto maturity in the land of promise. We see from the Sum of Scriptures that Israel is always at war with our flesh and the heathen nations the Lord is created for the purpose of trying our faith. There is a Moabite around every corner to try us to see if we walk in faith or allow our flesh to lead us.
2Co 10:3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh:
2Co 10:4 (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;)
2Co 10:5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;
While the Moabites serve us in overcoming giants in the wilderness (Deu 2:9-10 – Anakims and Emims), they remain adversaries to Israel to give us many trials to bring us to perfection in our day of the Lord. Pearls of great price and precious stones like the natural ones are only made through much friction (war, battles, irritation) and lots of heat and water (Rom 1:20)!
The name Moab comes from H1 “Father” and means “of his father” and as the product of incest means our carnally minded father, the devil (Joh 8:44). Our natural and carnally minded flesh is at enmity with the ways of the Lord and have the devil as their father. Moab is a representation of the ten headed beast of our father, the devil, as they share many goals and ambitions.
Jer 48:29 We have heard the pride of Moab, (he is exceeding proud) his loftiness, and his arrogancy, and his pride, and the haughtiness of his heart.
This is, was and will be the mindset of the Jews who believed on Christ (Joh 8:31), who come behind in no gift (1Co 1:7), having been given the truth, but we are yet carnal (1Co 3:3) and are fornicating with this world and mixing truth and lies. This mindset will seek to kill Christ and will keep us bound in unbelief being yet carnal for eighteen symbolic years.
Joh 8:40 But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard of God: this did not Abraham….
Joh 8:44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.
The second named nation working with Moab is Ammon which also links to our ungodly fornication (incest) with our own flesh (our father the devil) and not the Lord’s truth.
H5983, ‛ammôn, am-mone’
From H5971; tribal, that is, inbred; Ammon, a son of Lot; also his posterity and their country: – Ammon, Ammonites.
Amalek, the third heathen nation gathered by the Lord against Israel, is a descendant of Esau (Gen 36:12) and is yet another representation of our flesh that is rejected and cannot inherit the kingdom. Our flesh will lead us away from the Lord and the narrow way as we saw the falling down of King Saul, the rejected anointed of the Lord. King Saul’s failure is our failure to utterly destroy our carnal thoughts and fleshly lusts that wage war against us. Saul was given this command.
1Sa 15:3 Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass.
Yet his carnal mind rationalized it was fine to not to kill everything, so he picked and chose what to obey in the Lord’s commands and kept flesh alive.
1Sa 15:8 And he took Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword.
1Sa 15:9 But Saul and the people spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and of the fatlings, and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them: but everything that was vile and refuse, that they destroyed utterly.
Because of this, Saul was rejected as king. We learn thru King Saul’s failure to precisely obey the Lord in dealing with our fleshly enemies.
1Sa 15:23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, he hath also rejected thee from being king.
It is important to note and remember who it was that raised up this evil against Israel. It is, was and will be the Lord who did it.
Jdg 3:12 …. and the LORD strengthened Eglon the king of Moab against Israel.
He is the one who raises up the wicked one within and without for the day of evil (Pro 16:4) and is causing Israel to err from His ways (Isa 63:17). The Lord brings the enemies of Israel (flesh) together and gathers them against us and sends us our every thought (Amo 4:13). When the hand of the Lord is against us, there is no man who can stand. If the Lord wants to ensnare us in bondage to our enemies, there is nothing any man can do otherwise.
Dan 4:35 And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?
This three-nation alliance of nations comes and smites us (Israel) and ends up possessing the city of palm trees. Known for their height and straightness in rising above the earth (overcoming) it is those being made righteous that are palm trees.
Psa 92:12 The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
Psa 92:13 Those that be planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of our God.
To mature and grow in faith, God’s people first make many mistakes and are overcome by their inward enemies. Thus, the mystery of why the Lord causes us to err and then brings the judgment and chastening that is raising us back up in Jesus Christ.
Palm trees are very much associated with God’s elect symbolically. Given time there are many interesting symbolisms to pursue about palm trees including: they are ever green, large fruit yields (dates, coconuts, etc), ability to grow in dry places, can withstand high winds (trials), have very deep roots etc. For brevity sake, there is one interesting connection about the Cherubim (messengers of God) who are these same palm trees that we see in the Scriptures speaking about the tabernacle of God and the Lord’s Temple which is the Body of Christ. Ever notice how palm trees all look alike? Well that is because in spirit, God’s palm trees are of one mind and are bearing the same stature (straight and erect) and fruit. Here is Ezekiel’s description of the doors of the temple of God. Of course, those doors are Christ and specifically the Christ (elect, the Body) thru whom all must pass to enter in (Rev 3:12, Joh 10:2).
Eze 41:20 From the ground unto above the door were cherubims and palm trees made, and on the wall of the temple.
Eze 41:21 The posts of the temple were squared, and the face of the sanctuary; the appearance of the one as the appearance of the other.
The city of palm trees is also known as Jericho (Deu 34:3, 2Ch 28:15) and is in the land allocated to the tribe of Benjamin. The city and plains of Jericho lies just west of Moab, on the western side (mature side) of the Jordan river and was the first conquest of Israel in the Promised Land (Joshua 6). Before we get into the appointment and actions of Ehud, the Judge, let’s look deeper at the Moabite king who enslaves us (Israel).
King Eglon
Our enemies in the promised land last time was the king of Mesopotamia (Ethiopia, think the world) who also enslaves Israel. This time the enemy is King Eglon of Moab who is a different rendering of the same first man Adam (the old man) and our beastly nature (Ecc 3:18) that has us leaning on our own understanding and carnal wisdom. The name Eglon is from the same word that means a bullock or a male cow.
H5695, ‛êgel
From the same as H5696; a (male) calf (as frisking round), especially one nearly grown (that is, a steer): – bullock, calf.
Eglon traces back to a root H5696 that means to revolve or go in circles. It is satanic mindset, the accuser of the brethren, whose origins create the Moabites that has us enslaved awaiting a judge and deliverer.
Job 1:7 And the LORD said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered the LORD, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it.
Carnal wisdom attempts to encircle the camp of the saints (the mind of Christ) but our Moabite folly will proceed no further when the day of the Lord is at hand.
Rev 20:9 And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.
Rom 2:15 Which shew the work of the [carnal] law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another
We are always to be on the lookout for Satan and his messengers and be diligent inwardly to guard our hearts and take such carnal thoughts captive.
1Pe 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about (within), seeking whom he may devour:
We are bound to this Moabite King, who is our religious beast full of carnal lies and false doctrines for eighteen symbolic years (3 process x 6 number of man – flesh) until Christ comes.
Luk 13:11 And, behold, there was a woman which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed together, and could in no wise lift up herself.
The power over clay (us) is always used for good in the end because it is by that process of having the Moabites destroyed within us that we learn the riches of His glory (righteousness).
Rom 9:21 Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?
Rom 9:22 What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction:
Rom 9:23 And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory,
Israel’s oppression and bondage to these heathen nations of our own flesh (sin) reach a hiatus (i.e. our wits end) and then we cry out to the Lord. Our merciful Lord raises up a Judge to deliver us from our bondage. Thus, the process of possessing the land has begun.
Jdg 3:15 But when the children of Israel cried unto the LORD, the LORD raised them up a deliverer, Ehud the son of Gera, a Benjamite, a man lefthanded: and by him the children of Israel sent a present unto Eglon the king of Moab.
It is instructive to our walk to look at all these names and symbols that define this Judge and deliverer of Israel. There is great spiritual significance in Ehud’s lineage and description given us here in Jdg 3:15. H261, ‘êchûd
ay-khood’
From H258; united; Echud, the name of three Israelites: – Ehud.
Eze 21:16 Go thee one way or other [H258], either on the right hand, or on the left, whithersoever thy face is set.
The Word, the Judge that is in us, is a unifier. Ehud and all judgment, the commands of Christ, is what is exposing and eliminating our double mindedness and life of serving two masters. We won’t get too far cleansing the Promised Land if we waiver in faith which is double mindedness and where we live being immature and torn between the ways of God and the ways of the world
Jas 1:6 But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.
Jas 1:7 For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.
Jas 1:8 A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.
There is only ONE way to go and that is to follow the Lord which way is straight without any variableness.
Pro 4:27 Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: remove thy foot from evil.
Mat 7:14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
Eze 10:11 When they went, they went upon their four sides; they turned not as they went, but to the place whither the head looked they followed it; they turned not as they went.
It is the carnal mindset in us that creates divisions in the Body of Christ and those Moabite nations need to be captured and kicked out of the land and congregation of the Saints.
1Co 1:10 Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment.
The Judge Ehud is also said to be the son of Gera who was the son of Benjamin. We learn that Benjamin, Joseph’s younger brother, is some type for the elect who are given five times the portion of meal that signifies grace (the number 5) that is given to those to whom the Lord loves (Heb 12:6).
Gen 43:34 And he took and sent messes unto them from before him: but Benjamin’s mess was five times so much as any of theirs. And they drank, and were merry with him.
The name Gera as in “son of Gera” also supports this additional meal/mess principle as Gera [H1617] means “grain” and comes from a root [H1626] meaning “a kernel” like of corn or grain.
Another noteworthy trait is that Ehud like many Benjamites is said to be left handed (Jdg 20:16) and is extremely fierce in battle. Benjamites in particular are known for their fierceness and aggression in battle as the conquests of Saul, Jonathan, the Apostle Paul and others depict in overcoming the enemies of Israel. We even see the “civil war” story in Judges 20 where the other eleven tribes have great difficulty in subduing a small Benjamite army. The blessing of Jacob to Benjamin has great spiritual significance for each of the tribes of Israel every part of which we, as God’s Israel, are living out now in this age (Mat 4:4).
Gen 49:27 Benjamin shall ravin as a wolf: in the morning he shall devour the prey, and at night he shall divide the spoil.
Interesting to note that some translations like Brenton show the left-hand trait as being ambidextrous our using of both hands instead of saying left handed. Regardless, the ability to use our left hand or both hands is essential to bring deliverance to Israel and destroy the heathen nations within the Promised Land.
1Ch 12:2 They were armed with bows, and could use both the right hand and the left in hurling stones and shooting arrows out of a bow, even of Saul’s brethren of Benjamin.
As a Benjamite, Ehud, exhibits this positive “wolf like” traits. Unlike King Saul’s mistake with the Amalekite king, Ehud is very aggressive and merciless in disposing of the Moabite king.
Jdg 3:16 But Ehud made him a dagger which had two edges, of a cubit length; and he did gird it under his raiment upon his right thigh
Jdg 3:21 And Ehud put forth his left hand, and took the dagger from his right thigh, and thrust it into his (Eglon’s) belly
Satan is the left hand of the Lord (Job 1:11-12) and the elect the right hand (Mat 25:33).
Through both hands, the Lord is creating and using evil for good purposes (Isa 45:7, Gen 50:20, Act 4:28). Within us, we too, are required to do evil in putting to death the enemies of God. Outwardly, we surely must love our enemies as the Lord commanded and changed the law. But inwardly, we are never to allow lies and false doctrines and carnal thoughts to linger and exalt themselves against Christ.
There is great significance in this language and the use of the left hand in killing the Moabite king. It links back to an age-old truth that it “takes two to tango” with our enemies.
Rom 2:13 For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified.
Jas 1:22 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.
Ehud, the Benjamite, is both a hearer and a doer of the word in type. To become a doer of the WORD we must first become hearers. All Benjamites are born of the right hand of God as the meaning of the name depicts.
H1144, From H1121 and H3225; son of (the) right hand; Binjamin, youngest son of Jacob; also the tribe descended from him, and its territory: – Benjamin.
Judging righteous judgment is how we overcome and are becoming doers. But to do this, the Moabites must not be in our heavens or earth. Notice Ehud makes a two-edged dagger (same word as sword) and places it on his right thigh which is a symbol of a man’s strength. To battle our enemies, we must be ready (girded) and have the sword on our right thigh that is guiding us in our walk. This story of Ehud is a second witness to battle preparations Paul teaches us about the whole armour of God.
Eph 6:14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;
Eph 6:17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:
Notice the dagger (sword) is hidden under his raiment which is our covering in Christ. Christ and His Christ are bold as a lion but are also gentle as doves.
Mat 10:16 Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.
Lions strike quickly out of nowhere it seems when capturing their prey. The element of surprise works every time on a blind and unsuspecting enemy.
Pro 28:1 The wicked flee when no man pursueth: but the righteous are bold as a lion.
1Th 5:3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.
Our strength and sufficiency are of the Lord as is our ability to act in faith and kill our enemies within. The carnal mind corrupts our walk and a time comes when a judgment comes upon our house via a judge the Lord is, was and will be raising up within us. Real faith that moves mountains and destroys our enemies has works (actions) attached to it. We must use both our hands to pray without ceasing and act out in faith to purify our heavens and earth.
1Ti 2:8 I will therefore that men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting.
Isa 30:21 And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left.
The Body of Christ is where wisdom is found. Being wise as a serpent requires us to hold the Word in our right hand and the true riches, the doing of the Word, in our left hand. This brings honor and glory to our heavenly Father.
Pro 3:15 She is more precious than rubies: and all the things thou canst desire are not to be compared unto her.
Pro 3:16 Length of days is in her right hand; and in her left hand riches and honour.
Wisdom in the ways of God requires two arms. We need doctrine and we need actions in faith. The power of God will extend to both our hands and we will clap them in unison as we get victory after victory over our inward enemies.
2Co 6:7 By the word of truth, by the power of God, by the armour of righteousness on the right hand and on the left,
Isa 55:12 For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
There is much more instruction and detail to the story details of Judge Ehud killing the Moabite King. We will look at those details next week in how King Eglon and the Moabites were vanquished from the land.