Judg 3:31

“Samgar. His reign seems to have been short, and only perhaps extended over the tribes of Juda, Simeon, and Dan, while Debbora governed in another part. Some exclude him from the list of judges. But Josephus, Origen, &c., allow his title, with most of the moderns. (Calmet) — The Alex.[Alexandrian?] Chronicle gives his reign of 24 years, which Salien would understand, as if he had acted under the orders of Aod, when the latter was grown too old, if the author had not said that “after the death of Aod, Samgar, his son, judged Israel 24 years,” which he subtracts from the 80 years allotted to Aod. He makes Bocci succeed Abisue in the pontificate, at the same time, which Salien admits, in the year of the world 2696. — Hundred. Septuagint, “as far as 600,” which might be at different times, when the Philistines were dispersed through the country in order to plunder. — Plough-share. Septuagint aratropodi. (Haydock) — Some translate the Hebrew, “an ox-goad.” Maundrell describes those, which are used in Palestine, as eight feet long; and, at the thick end, 10 inches round, with a kind of spade, to clean the plough, while the other end is very sharp. Samgar might probably use such an instrument. From its being mentioned, we may gather that he did not engage the enemy in a pitched battle, (Calmet) but as he could find an opportunity. Thus Samson slew 1000 of the same nation with the jaw-bone of an ass, chap xv. (Haydock) — Defended. Hebrew and Septuagint, “saved,” which shews that he was a proper judge. (Menochius) — It is true, he did not rescue the Israelites entirely, but he stood up in their defence. (Calmet) — The duration of his government is not specified, nor is it said that the land rested, because he ruled for a short time only: Josephus says not quite a year; and the roads were continually infested with the incursions of the Philistines on the south, and of the Chanaanites on the North, chap. v. 6. Samgar seems to have been a ploughman, and he seized the first weapon that came to hand. The Hungarians and Spaniards formerly defended themselves against the attacks of the Turks and Moors with their plough-shares, in memory of which the Spaniards long after went armed to plough. The most valiant Roman generals, Camillus, Curius, Cincinnatus, and Fabricius, were called from the plough to the Dictatorship; and Pliny ([Natural History?] xviii.) observes, that “countrymen make the best soldiers.” Bible Text & Cross-references: The people falling into idolatry, are oppressed by their enemies; but repenting, are delivered by Othoniel, Aod, and Samgar. 1 These are the nations which the Lord left, that by them he might instruct Israel, and all that had not known the wars of the Chanaanites: 2 That afterwards their children might learn to fight with their enemies, and to be trained up to war: 3 The five princes of the Philistines, and all the Chanaanites, and the Sidonians, and the Hevites that dwelt in Mount Libanus, from Mount Baal Hermon to the entering into Emath. 4 And he left them, that he might try Israel by them, whether they would hear the commandments of the Lord, which he had commanded their fathers, by the hand of Moses, or not. 5 So the children of Israel dwelt in the midst of the Chanaanite, and the Hethite, and the Amorrhite, and the Pherezite, and the Hevite, and the Jebusite: 6 And they took their daughters to wives, and they gave their own daughters to their sons, and they served their gods. 7 And they did evil in the sight of the Lord, and they forgot their God, and served Baalim and Astaroth. 8 And the Lord being angry with Israel, delivered them into the hands of Chusan Rasathaim, king of Mesopotamia, and they served him eight years. 9 And they cried to the Lord, who raised them up a saviour, and delivered them; to wit, Othoniel, the son of Cenez, the younger brother of Caleb: 10 And the spirit of the Lord was in him, and he judged Israel. And he went out to fight, and the Lord delivered Chusan Rasathaim, king of Syria, and he overthrew him: 11 And the land rested forty years, and Othoniel, the son of Cenez, died. 12 And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the Lord: who strengthened against them Eglon, king of Moab: because they did evil in his sight. 13 And he joined to him the children of Ammon, and Amalec: and he went and overthrew Israel, and possessed the city of palm-trees. 14 And the children of Israel served Eglon, king of Moab, eighteen years. 15 And afterwards they cried to the Lord, who raised them up a saviour, called Aod, the son of Gera, the son of Jemini, who used the left hand as well as the right. And the children of Israel sent presents to Eglon, king of Moab, by him. 16 And he made himself a two-edged sword, with a haft in the midst, of the length of the palm of the hand, and was girded therewith, under his garment, on the right thigh. 17 And he presented the gifts to Eglon, king of Moab. Now Eglon was exceeding fat. 18 And when he had presented the gifts unto him, he followed his companions that came along with him. 19 Then returning from Galgal, where the idols were, he said to the king: I have a secret message to thee, O king. And he commanded silence: and all being gone out that were about him, 20 Aod went in to him: now he was sitting in a summer parlour alone, and he said: I have a word from God to thee. And he forthwith rose up from his throne. 21 And Aod put forth his left hand, and took the dagger from his right thigh, and thrust it into his belly, 22 With such force that the haft went in after the blade into the wound, and was closed up with the abundance of fat. So that he did not draw out the dagger, but left it in the body as he had struck it in: and forthwith, by the secret parts of nature, the excrements of the belly came out. 23 But Aod carefully shutting the doors of the parlour, and locking them, 24 Went out by a postern door. And the king’s servants going in, saw the doors of the parlour shut, and they said: Perhaps he is easing nature in his summer parlour. 25 And waiting a long time, till they were ashamed, and seeing that no man opened the door, they took a key: and opening, they found their lord lying dead on the ground. 26 But Aod, while they were in confusion, escaped, and passed by the place of the idols, from whence he had returned. And he came to Seirath: 27 And forthwith he sounded the trumpet in Mount Ephraim: and the children of Israel went down with him, he himself going in the front. 28 And he said to them: Follow me: for the Lord hath delivered our enemies, the Moabites, into our hands. And they went down after him, and seized upon the fords of the Jordan, which are in the way to Moab: and they suffered no man to pass over: 29 But they slew of the Moabites at that time, about ten thousand, all strong and valiant men: none of them could escape. 30 And Moab was humbled that day under the hand of Israel: and the land rested eighty years. 31 After him was Samgar, the son of Anath, who slew of the Philistines six hundred men with a ploughshare: and he also defended Israel. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21”

“after him was Shamgar--No notice is given of the tribe or family of this judge; and from the Philistines being the enemy that roused him into public service, the suffering seems to have been local--confined to some of the western tribes. slew . . . six hundred men with an oxgoad--This instrument is eight feet long and about six inches in circumference. It is armed at the lesser end with a sharp prong for driving the cattle, and on the other with a small iron paddle for removing the clay which encumbers the plough in working. Such an instrument, wielded by a strong arm, would do no mean execution. We may suppose, however, for the notice is very fragmentary, that Shamgar was only the leader of a band of peasants, who by means of such implements of labor as they could lay hold of at the moment, achieved the heroic exploit recorded. Next: Judges Chapter 4”

“After him (Ehud) was, i.e., there rose up, Shamgar the son of Anath. He smote the Philistines, who had probably invaded the land of the Israelites, six hundred men, with an ox-goad, so that he also (like Othniel and Ehud, Jdg 3:9 and Jdg 3:15) delivered Israel. הבּקר מלמד, ἁπ. λεγ., signifies, according to the Rabbins and the ancient versions, an instrument with which they trained and drove oxen; and with this the etymology agrees, as למד is used in Hos 10:11 and Jer 31:18 to denote the training of the young ox. According to Rashi, בּקר מלמד is the same as דּרבן, βούκεντρον, in Sa1 13:21. According to Maundrell in Paulus' Samml. der merkw. Reisen nach d. Or. i. p. 139, the country people in Palestine and Syria use when ploughing goads about eight feet long and six inches in circumference at the thick end. At the thin end they have a sharp point to drive the oxen, and at the other end a small hoe, to scrape off any dirt that may stick to the plough. Shamgar may have smitten the Philistines with some such instrument as this, just as the Edonian prince Lycurgus is described by Homer (Il. vi. 135) as putting Dionysius and the Bacchantines to flight with a βουπλήξ. Nothing is recorded about the descent of Shamgar, either here or in the Song of Deborah, in Jdg 5:6. The heroic deed recorded of him must be regarded, as O. v. Gerlach affirms, as "merely the result of a holy inspiration that suddenly burst forth within him, in which he seized upon the first weapon that came to his hand, and put to flight the enemy when scared by a terror for God, just as Samson did on a later occasion." For he does not seem to have secured for the Israelites any permanent victory over the Philistines. Moreover, he is not called judge, nor is the period of his labours taken into account, but in Jdg 4:1 the renewed apostasy of Israel from the Lord is dated from the death of Ehud.”