To enhance further NOx reduction and fuel consumption rate improvement through the application of operation of injection rate control with a shelf in an operation range suitable for the injection rate control with a shelf, and improve reliability of the fuel injection rate control with a shelf by executing avoidance control through the detection of abnormalities when a cylinder not surely performing the fuel injection rate control with a shelf exists.

A fuel injection device 2 which contains a fuel injection valve 4 for injecting fuel and a first and second solenoid valves 18, 20 in a first and second return pipes 14, 16 for returning fuel to a fuel tank 8, is equipped with a control device 38 for executing fuel injection with a shelf forming a shelf part for stagnating injection pressure for a given period with respect to fuel injection pressure injected from a fuel injection valve 4 by closing the second solenoid valve 20 and then the first solenoid valve 18 after certain timing, and switches between injection with a shelf and normal injection based on an engine rotation speed and engine load. When abnormalities are detected in an area of injection with a shelf, the operating condition is switched to the normal injection.