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¹ These are the nations whiche the Lorde left, that he might proue Israel by them: (euen as many of Israel as had not knowen al the warres of Chanaan:

² Onely for the learning of the generations of the childre of Israel that he also might teach them warre, onely such as before knewe nothing therof.)

³ Of those whom he left, there were fiue lordes of the Philistines, and all the Chanaanites, and the Sidonites, & the Heuites that dwelt in mount Libanon, euen from mount Baal Hermon, vnto one come to Hamath.

⁴ Those remayned to proue Israel by, and to wyt whether they would hearken vnto the commaundementes of the Lorde, which he commaunded their fathers by the hande of Moyses.

⁵ And the children of Israel dwelt among the Chanaanites, Hethites, Amorites, Pherezites, Heuites, and Iebusites,

⁶ And toke the daughters of them to be their wiues, & gaue their own daughters to their sonnes, and serued their goddes.

⁷ And the children of Israel did wickedly in the sight of the Lorde, and forgat the Lorde their God, and serued Baalim and Astheroth.

⁸ Therfore the Lorde was angry with Israel, and he solde them into the handes of Chusan Risathaim king of Mesopotamia: and the children of Israel serued Chusan Risathaim eyght yeres.

⁹ And when the children of Israel cryed vnto the Lorde, the Lorde stirred vp a sauer to the children of Israel, & saued them, euen Othoniel the sonne of Kenes, Calebs younger brother.

¹⁰ And the spirite of the Lorde came vpon him, and he iudged Israel, & went out to warre: And the Lorde deliuered Chusan Risathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hande, and his hande preuayled against Chusan Risathaim.

¹¹ And the land had rest fourtie yeres: and Othoniel the sonne of Kenes died.

¹² And the children of Israel agayne committed wickednes in the sight of the Lorde: And the Lorde strengthed Eglon the king of the Moabites, against the children of Israel, because they had committed wickednes before the Lorde.

¹³ And this [Eglon] gathered vnto him the children of Ammon, and the Amalekites, and went and smote Israel, and possessed the citie of Panlme trees.

¹⁴ And so the children of Israel serued Eglon the king of Moab .xviii. yeres.

¹⁵ But when they cryed vnto the Lord, the Lord stirred them vp a sauer, Ahud the sonne of Gera the sonne of Gemini, a man lame of his right hande: and by him the children of Israel sent a present vnto Eglon the king of Moab.

¹⁶ But Ahud made him a dagger with two edges, of a cubite length, and he did gyrde it vnto his raymet vpon his right thygh,

¹⁷ And caried the present vnto Eglon the king of Moab: (And Eglon was a very fatte man.)

¹⁸ And when he had presented the present, he sent the people that bare it away:

¹⁹ But he him selfe turned agayne (from the place of grauen images, that was by Gilgal) and sayde: I haue a secret errande vnto thee, O king. Which sayde: Kepe scilence. And all that stoode before hym, went out from him.

²⁰ And Ahud came vnto him, and in a sommer parler whiche he had, sate he him selfe alone: and Ahud sayd, I haue a message vnto thee from God. And he arose out of his seate.

²¹ And Ahud put foorth his left hande, & toke the dagger from his right thygh, and thrust it into his belly.

²² And the hafte went in after the blade: and the fatte closed the haft, so that he might not drawe the dagger out of his belly, but the dyrt came out.

²³ Then Ahud gat him out into the porche, and shut the doores of the parler vpon him, and locked them.

²⁴ When he was gone out, his seruauntes came: And when they sawe that the doores of the parler were locked, they sayde, Suerly he couereth his feete in his sommer chamber.

²⁵ And they taried till they were ashamed, and seyng he opened not the doores of the parler, they toke a key and opened them: And beholde, their Lorde was fallen downe dead on the earth.

²⁶ And Ahud escaped whyle they taried and was gone beyonde, to the place of the grauen images, and escaped into Seirath.

²⁷ And when he was come, he blewe a trumpet in mount Ephraim: And the childre of Israel went downe with him from the hill, and he went before them.

²⁸ And he sayde vnto them, folowe me: for the Lorde hath deliuered your enemies the Moabites into your hande. And they descended after him, and toke the passages of Iordane toward Moab, and suffered not a man to passe ouer.

²⁹ And they slue of the Moabites the same time vpon a ten thousande men, which were all fatte, & men of warre, and there scaped not a man.

³⁰ So Moab was subdued that day vnder the hande of Israel: And the lande had rest fourescore yeres.

³¹ After him was Samgar the sonne of Anath, whiche slue of the Philistines sixe hundred men with an oxe goade, and deliuered Israel also.