And Ehud came unto him; and he was sitting in a summer parlour, which he had for himself alone. And Ehud said, I have a message from God unto thee. And he arose out of his seat.

JUDGES 3:20KJV
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Judges 3:20 (KJV)

What does Judges 3:20 mean?

Judges 3:20 describes the moment when Ehud gains the attention of Eglon, the king of Moab, by claiming to have a message from God. Eglon rises from his seat, bringing the private encounter to a turning point just before Ehud attacks him.

The “summer parlour” was an upper room intended to be cool in hot weather. Eglon is alone there when Ehud speaks, which matters for what follows: the attack takes place away from the king’s attendants.

The Hebrew behind Judges 3:20

  • “message” — דָּבָר (davar): This word can mean a word, a message, or a matter. It leaves room for more than a spoken announcement, which is striking given Ehud’s action in the next verse.
  • “parlour” — עֲלִיָּה (ʿaliyyah): The word refers to an upper room. The KJV’s “parlour” might suggest a sitting room, but the Hebrew also gives a clue to its position in the building.

Why Judges 3:20 matters

  • Eglon has reason to expect a private communication. In verse 19, Ehud says he has a secret message for the king, and the attendants leave.
  • Eglon’s rising marks a change in the encounter. After Ehud says the message is “from God,” the king gets up, and Ehud reaches for his concealed sword in verse 21.
  • The private room helps explain the delay afterward. In verses 24–25, the servants wait outside the locked doors before entering and finding Eglon dead.

Where else these words appear

“summer” Hebrew H4747 · used in 2 verses

  • Judges 3:24 When he was gone out, his servants came; and when they saw that, behold, the doors of the parlour were locked, they said, Surely he covereth his feet in his summer chamber.

“Ehud” Hebrew H164 · used in 8 verses

  • Judges 3:15 But when the children of Israel cried unto the LORD, the LORD raised them up a deliverer, Ehud the son of Gera, a Benjamite, a man lefthanded: and by him the children of Israel sent a present unto Eglon the king of Moab.
  • Judges 3:21 And Ehud put forth his left hand, and took the dagger from his right thigh, and thrust it into his belly:
  • Judges 3:26 And Ehud escaped while they tarried, and passed beyond the quarries, and escaped unto Seirath.

“parlour” Hebrew H5944 · used in 20 verses

  • Judges 3:23 Then Ehud went forth through the porch, and shut the doors of the parlour upon him, and locked them.
  • 2 Kings 1:2 And Ahaziah fell down through a lattice in his upper chamber that was in Samaria, and was sick: and he sent messengers, and said unto them, Go, enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron whether I shall recover of this disease.
  • 2 Chronicles 9:4 And the meat of his table, and the sitting of his servants, and the attendance of his ministers, and their apparel; his cupbearers also, and their apparel; and his ascent by which he went up into the house of the LORD; there was no more spirit in her.

“seat” Hebrew H3678 · used in 124 verses

  • Genesis 41:40 Thou shalt be over my house, and according unto thy word shall all my people be ruled: only in the throne will I be greater than thou.
  • 2 Kings 4:10 Let us make a little chamber, I pray thee, on the wall; and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a stool, and a candlestick: and it shall be, when he cometh to us, that he shall turn in thither.
  • Psalms 122:5 For there are set thrones of judgment, the thrones of the house of David.