What can we learn about God's timing from Ehud's escape in Judges 3:26? Setting the scene Israel groaned under eighteen years of Moabite oppression. The LORD raised up Ehud, who executed a daring mission: assassinating King Eglon, then slipping away to rally Israel’s armies. Text focus: Judges 3:26 “Ehud, however, escaped while the servants delayed. He passed by the idols and escaped to Seirah.” God’s sovereignty in the servants’ delay • The delay was no accident. • God orchestrated even pagan servants’ confusion to give His deliverer a safe window. • Scripture repeatedly shows the LORD using seemingly small pauses to fulfill His purpose (Genesis 24:21; 1 Kings 18:44–46). Lessons about divine timing • God is never late. His help arrives “in due time” (Romans 5:6). • Obedience walks hand-in-hand with timing. Ehud moved the moment the LORD opened the door. • Patience matters. Israel waited years; still, the decisive moment came precisely when God determined. • The route mattered. Ehud “passed by the idols,” leaving the symbols of Moabite power behind. God’s timing often moves us away from idolatry and toward freedom. • Deliverance may begin in secret. No trumpet sounded as Ehud slipped out, yet the LORD’s plan was already unstoppable. Echoes throughout Scripture • Psalm 31:15 – “My times are in Your hands.” • Ecclesiastes 3:1 – “For everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven.” • Habakkuk 2:3 – “Though it delays, wait for it; for it will surely come and will not delay.” • Galatians 4:4 – “When the fullness of time had come, God sent His Son.” Each passage underscores the pattern first glimpsed in Ehud’s escape: a perfectly chosen moment. Responding to the God of perfect timing • Trust His timetable when deliverance seems slow. • Stay ready; obedience must meet the opportunity He arranges. • Remember that even unnoticed delays can be divine pauses positioning us for victory. |
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