Eglon (king)

Eglon was the king of Moab who suppressed Israel in the time of the Judges. 
He was the head of the confederacy of Moab, Ammon and Amalek in their assault. One day, Ehud came presenting a customary tribute and tricked Eglon and stabbed him with his sword, but when Ehud attempted to draw the sword back out, the obese king's excess fat prevented its retrieval. Traditionally, it is said that some form of feces or waste issued from Eglon's stomach wound in this incident. His servants, believing he was relieving himself, left him be. Rabbis in the Talmudic tradition claimed that Ruth was Eglon's daughter. According to this tradition, Eglon was rewarded for rising out of respect when Ehud mentioned the Israelite God by having King David as a descendant. This can also be seen as an attempt to provide a royal lineage to David. There is, however, no basis in the actual verses for such an assertion. The Talmud also describes Eglon as the grandson of Balak. (b. Sanhedrin 105a)
==His descendants==
Orpah is a woman mentioned in the Hebrew Bible. She was from Moab and was the daughter-in-law of Naomi and wife of Mahlon. After the death of her husband, Orpah and her sister-in-law Ruth wished to go to Judea with Naomi. However, Naomi persuaded Orpah to return to her people and to her gods (Ruth i. 4 et seq.).
In rabbinic literature, Orpah is identified with Harafa, the mother of the four Philistine giants; and these four sons were said to have been given her for the four tears which she shed at parting with her mother-in-law (Babylonian Talmud, Sotah 42b).
According to a legend in a midrash, Orpah was a sister of Ruth, and both were daughters of the Moabite king Eglon (Ruth R. ii. 9). Her name was changed to “Orpah” because she turned her back on her mother-in-law (ib.; comp. Talmud Sotah l.c.) One source in the Talmud states that she was killed by King David's general Abishai, the son of Zeruiah (Sanhedrin 95a).
==References==
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Category:Moab
Category:Monarchs of the Hebrew Bible
Category:Assassinated monarchs