Bible Strands
Judges 3:31
After Ehud came Shamgar son of Anath. And he too saved Israel, striking down six hundred Philistines with an oxgoad.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The narrator records the transition of leadership in Israel immediately following Ehud’s victory and the subsequent eighty years of rest. This account introduces Shamgar as the next appointed deliverer without introducing a formal assembly or audience.
The words — The verb וַיַּךְ (va/yakh) translates literally as "and he struck down," denoting the physical act of combat. The proper name שַׁמְגַּר (shamgar) is explicitly linked to עֲנָת (Anath) via the construct בֶּן־ (ben-), establishing his lineage.
The thread — The narrative resurfaces in Judges 5:6, which notes the deserted highways during his tenure, and parallels the tactical reliance on non-standard weapons found in 1 Samuel 17:47 and 1 Samuel 17:50.
Why it lands — The text requires acknowledgment that historical deliverance proceeds through whatever means are immediately available. It demands the reader accept that divine intervention operates through concrete action rather than institutional procedure.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And after him was Shamgar the son of Anath, which slew of the Philistines six hundred men with an ox goad: and he also delivered Israel.
Cross-references
- Judges 5:6 In the days of Shamgar son of Anath, in the days of Jael, the highways were deserted and the travelers took the byways.
- 1 Samuel 17:47 And all those assembled here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the LORD saves; for the battle is the LORD’s, and He will give all of you into our hands.”
- 1 Samuel 17:50 Thus David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone; without a sword in his hand he struck down the Philistine and killed him.
- 1 Corinthians 1:17 For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with words of wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.
- Judges 2:16 Then the LORD raised up judges, who saved them from the hands of those who plundered them.
- Judges 5:8 When they chose new gods, then war came to their gates. Not a shield or spear was found among forty thousand in Israel.
- Judges 15:15 He found the fresh jawbone of a donkey, reached out his hand and took it, and struck down a thousand men.
- 1 Samuel 13:19 And no blacksmith could be found in all the land of Israel, because the Philistines had said, “The Hebrews must not be allowed to make swords or spears.”
- Judges 4:1 After Ehud died, the Israelites again did evil in the sight of the LORD.
- Judges 4:3 Then the Israelites cried out to the LORD, because Jabin had nine hundred chariots of iron, and he had harshly oppressed the Israelites for twenty years.