Quarries

The quarries of Scripture appear as a fixed landmark in the Ehud narrative — a place "by Gilgal" that frames both his approach to Eglon king of Moab and his escape afterward.

A Landmark by Gilgal

Ehud's first turn back to deliver his "secret message" is staged at this site: "But he himself turned back from the quarries that were by Gilgal, and said, I have a secret message to you, O king. And he said, Keep silent. And all who stood by him went out from him" (Jud 3:19). The quarries function here as the threshold from which Ehud re-enters Eglon's presence alone.

The Line of Escape

The same landmark marks his exit. While the king's attendants tarry outside the locked upper chamber, Ehud is already on the move: "And Ehud escaped while they tarried, and passed beyond the quarries, and escaped to Seirah" (Jud 3:26). The quarries thus bracket the central act — Ehud's pivot toward Eglon and his flight beyond them to Seirah.