6-2. Eglon of Moab (Jud. 3:12-30)
This king "gathered unto him the children of Ammon and Amalek, and went and smote Israel." This should be seen against the background of many Scriptural indications that the latter-day Arab invasion will comprise a confederacy of Arab nations, united by the single desire of attacking Israel. Psalm 83 is a notable example of this. At the time of writing (1991) the potential for Arab unity is growing apace. It would seem that to fulfil the prophetic requirement of the Arab 'gathering together', this must develop much more.
The pro-Western Arab states are controlled by elite groups of nominal Moslems who could easily be deposed by a socialist flavoured, fundamentalist-Islam majority who would see no need to pander to the West's pro-Israel demands. Their unity could allow them to properly use their oil stranglehold to force the West to drop their support of Israel, and also enable them to launch a systematic, co-ordinated attack on Israel which she could never resist - especially if her people have had pro-Arab leanings. The fondness Israel developed for Egypt, as Lot for Sodom, has echoes of this.
" The Lord strengthened Eglon the king of Moab against Israel" (Jud. 3:12), hints, perhaps, at a sudden Arab revival, allowed by God in order to punish His people. It could be argued that this has indeed occurred since the discovery of oil in the Arab states; alternatively it could refer to a sudden revival after a dramatic defeat by Israel and/or her Western allies. Jer. 48:47 NIV clearly speaks of a revival of Moab's fortunes in the last days.
The repeated mention of Edom, Moab and Ammon in the prophets is hard to interpret specifically, seeing that these nations covered relatively small geographical areas which are now in Jordan and Syria. It may be that it is from these nations that the Arab onslaught is launched. We can, perhaps, therefore look to those countries becoming increasingly willing parts of the Arab military machine.
There is a strange emphasis on Eglon's physical form. " Eglon was a very fat man" is supported by the detailed and gory record of his death by stabbing: " Ehud...thrust it (the dagger) into his belly: and the haft also went in after the blade; and the fat closed upon the blade, so that he could not draw the dagger out of his belly" (Jud. 3:17,21,22).
The men of Moab are likewise described as " lusty" (Jud. 3:29), the Hebrew word meaning literally 'oily, greasy', and implying fatness. All this emphasis - and it is that - must be for a reason. Surely it suggests that the Moabites had indulged themselves in the good life, eating and drinking to excess - doubtless at the expense of the Israelites whom they were then dominating. This would indicate that the latter day Arab enemies of Israel will be enjoying great material prosperity, yet most standard-of-living indicators show that the Arab peoples generally are far from having this. A massive redistribution of wealth brought about by socialist revolutions, coupled with holding the West to ransom with oil prices and pillaging the wealth of Israel, would easily bring about this situation.
