שופטים, פרק ג׳, פסוק כ״א

At the decisive moment of the assassination plot, the element of surprise and the physical condition of the Moabite king play a critical role. Ehud carefully times his strike for the exact moment the king struggles to rise from his chair. Prompting the king to stand is a highly calculated move designed to expose him and make the execution easier [ביאור שטיינזלץ]. Distracted by the physical effort of standing, and caught entirely off guard by the weapon being drawn with the left hand, the king fails to sense the imminent danger [מצודת דוד, רלב״ג].

The strike itself is a forceful and deep thrust [מצודת ציון]. Ehud drives the blade in with such intense power that it sinks as deep as possible, pulling even the hilt into the king's body [רלב״ג, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. Targeting the belly instead of the heart is a practical choice. The king may have been wearing chest armor, or his heavy layers of body fat would have prevented a clean strike to the heart. Therefore, the stomach provides a much softer and more accessible target to ensure the plan succeeds [ביאור שטיינזלץ].