God’s Unexpected Way (Judges 3:12-30)                                                                                     2008.12.14    Pastor Richard Yu

From the Book of Judges we learned that Israel failed to drive the Canaanites (along with their idols) out of the land, which created a tension between God’s holy commands, and His loving, faithful promise. God demanded complete obedience from His people, yet He has also promised to rescue them from hardship that resulted from their disobedience. We see that the Israelites got into a cyclical pattern of decline and revival. God continually chastises them for their sin, but surprisingly He then delivers them from their evil. He never casts them off, but continues to graciously and severely work, often through unexpected characters or events, for their growth and maturity. Beginning in 3:7, we see specific “case histories” which reveal these cycles. The story of Ehud – an unexpected leader in the eyes of the Israelites – is one such case that shows how God continually work to rescue His people (and believers today) from their wrongs and troubles – often unexpectedly.

To the first readers of the Book of Judges, the biggest surprise in this story would have been that Ehud, the man God uses to rescue Israel, was “left-handed” (v. 15). Not only he was left-handed, he was also a Benjamite. And the name of the tribe, Benjamin, means “the sons of right hand.” Even more surprising is that according to later records in the Judges that it is very likely that at this time of Israel’s history, the tribe of Benjamin was perhaps at its weakest point. So you see God raised up a left-handed Judge from a feeble tribe whose sons are called the sons of right hand. Surprise?!

In the Bible almost all references to “right hand” have positive qualities. God swears by His right hand (Is. 62:8-9); He has pleasures by His right hand (Psalm 16:11); His chosen One sits at His right hand (Psalm 110:1); His right hand is majestic in power and shatters Israel’s enemy (Ex. 15:6); and He upholds His people with His righteous right hand (Is. 41:10). Right hand was a symbol of power and status and ability. But most intriguing is the term “left-handed” in 3:15 literally reads “restricted as to his right hand,” or “unable to use his right hand.” Therefore, it is possible that Ehud’s right hand was paralyzed or disabled in some way.

All this means that Ehud’s opponents would not expect him to be dangerous.

No one is expecting agility in the left hand. If Ehud cannot wield a weapon in his right hand, all assume that he cannot wield one at all. That is perhaps the reason why he is acceptable as an envoy to the court of Moab, and why he is admitted a private audience with king Eglon. But as it turned out, Ehud’s capability to use his left hand to wield a knife was crucial in his ability to surprise the king.

What does the unexpected nature of Ehud’s story tell us about why God chooses the people He does? This is actually one of the main points of the Book of Judges. After the first judge, Othniel, not a single one of the judges is someone we would expect to be a leader. With each of these unexpected leaders God delivers His people in a way totally unexpected, in a counter-intuitive way. Each time with a person who is considered by the world an “unlikely” hero. The most obvious example is Deborah – the most accomplished Judge, yet a woman.

This shows that God is a God of grace, not works. He takes and uses people who are at the margins of society in order to show that salvation is from Him, not from our own human ability (cf. 1 Cor. 1:26-29). This also shatters the very heart of the “idolatry mindset.” We saw last week that idol worship is all about getting power for the worshipers by bargaining with idol-gods. They give the idol-gods what they want so that the worshippers get what they want. It is not loving submission, but self-centered manipulation. Don’t we Christians sometimes play this “bargaining game” with God, too? “God, if you bless me this way or that way, then I’ll do this or that for you.”

What does the unexpected nature of Ehud’s story tell us about how God chooses to do for the salvation of the world? All the unexpected judges point the way to the most unexpected, and in a sense, most “left-handed,” savior of all. Who would have predicted that when the ultimate Judge came Himself in the flesh, He would come as a baby born in a manger and who was despised and rejected by the very people He came to save? (cf. Is. 53:2-3) God be praised for His infinite wisdom and power!

From the story of Ehud, can you think of an inherent shortfall in you that God just might develop into assets in His service? How could a trouble in your life right now be an opportunity for spiritual revival? And have you been putting God “in a box” in some way – demanding that He act in a certain way, “according to the rules”?