CHAPTER 9. ABIMELECH. Abimelech Becomes Sole Prince of The Gideon Tribes - His Rise and Fall. This chapter contains an account of the craft and cruelty of Abimelech, by which he had himself made a prince of Israel and king of the Shechemites; of the parable of Jotham, the youngest son of Gideon,... [ Continue Reading ]
CHAPTER 9. ABIMELECH. Abimelech Becomes Sole Prince of The Gideon Tribes - His Rise and Fall. This chapter contains an account of the craft and cruelty of Abimelech, by which he had himself made a prince of Israel and king of the Shechemites; of the parable of Jotham, the youngest son of Gideon,... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ Saying, “Speak, I pray you, in the ears of all the chief men (‘lords') of Shechem, and consider which is best for you, that all the sons of Jerubbaal, seventy persons, reign over you, or that one reign over you? Remember also that I am your bone and flesh.” ' He suggested to his grandfather, toge... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And his mother's brothers spoke of him in the ears of the chief men of Shechem all these words, and their hearts inclined to follow Abimelech, for they said, he is our brother.' His uncles pressed his claims on the leading men of Shechem and they were persuaded that the idea that Abimelech receiv... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And they gave him seventy pieces of silver out of the house of Baalberith, with which Abimelech hired vain and light persons who followed him.' The house of Baal-berith may well be the Temple fortress of which the remains have been discovered. This would have a treasure house of gifts given to th... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And he went to his father's house at Ophrah, and slew his brothers the sons of Jerubbaal, being seventy persons, on one stone. But Jotham, the youngest son of Jerubbaal, was left. For he hid himself ' Abimelech and his band presumably came on the brothers by surprise and took them captive, then t... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And all the men of Shechem assembled themselves together, and all the house of Millo, and went and made Abimelech king, by the oak of the pillar that was in Shechem.' The rivals now being satisfactorily removed, the instigators of the activity, the chief men of Shechem, assembled for a coronation... [ Continue Reading ]
THE CURSE OF JOTHAM (JUDGES 9:7). Judges 9:7 ‘ And when they told it to Jotham, he went and stood in the top of Mount Gerizim, and he lifted up his voice, and cried and said to them, “Listen to me, you men of Shechem, that God may listen to you.” ' Once Jotham heard of the coronation he went to S... [ Continue Reading ]
“The trees went forth at one time to anoint a king over them, and they said to the olive tree, ‘You reign over us.' But the olive tree said to them, ‘Should I leave my fatness, with which by me they honour God and man, and go to wave to and fro over the trees?' ” These words were a direct mockery of... [ Continue Reading ]
“And the trees said to the fig tree, ‘You come and reign over us.' And the fig tree said to them, ‘Should I forsake my sweetness and my good fruit and go to wave to and fro over the trees?' ” The fig tree's reply was the same. It fed men and gave them pleasure. Figs were one indication of the pleas... [ Continue Reading ]
“Then the trees said to the vine, ‘You come and reign over us.' And the vine said to them, ‘Should I leave my wine, which cheers God and man, and go to wave to and fro over the trees?' ” Wine was offered as a drink offering to Yahweh (Leviticus 23:13; Numbers 15:5) and gave men great joy and pleasu... [ Continue Reading ]
“ Then all the trees said to the boxthorn, ‘You come and reign over us.' ” Now the trees were getting desperate. They are pictured as foolishly longing for a king over them, come what may. They went to the lowest tree of all, the boxthorn which could not be used for timber, bore no edible fruit and... [ Continue Reading ]
“ And the boxthorn said to the trees, ‘If in truth you anoint me king over you, then come and put your trust in my shadow, and if not let fire come out of the boxthorn and devour the cedars of Lebanon.' ” The picture was deliberately ridiculous. Large trees coming and putting themselves under the s... [ Continue Reading ]
“Now therefore, if you have dealt truly and uprightly, in that you have made Abimelech king, if you have dealt well with Jerubbaal, and his house, and have done to him according to the deserving of his hands, for my father fought for you and ventured his life (‘cast his life before him') and deliver... [ Continue Reading ]
“If you then have dealt truly and sincerely with Jerubbaal and with his house this day, then rejoice all of you in Abimelech, and let him also rejoice in you. But if not let fire come out from Abimelech and devour the chief men of Shechem and the house of Millo, and let fire come out from the chief... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And Jotham ran away, and fled, and went to Beer, and dwelt there for fear of Abimelech his brother.' Having delivered his curse Jotham fled for his life. He journeyed to Beer, which means ‘a well' and there he lived for fear of Abimelech ‘his brother'. The last words are sardonic. A brother indee... [ Continue Reading ]
THE FULFILMENT OF THE CURSE ON ABIMELECH AND SHECHEM (JUDGES 9:22). Judges 9:22 ‘ And Abimelech was prince over Israel for three years.' Three is the number of completeness. His full reign was short. ‘Three years' could mean one and a half years upwards. By ancient reckoning a part of a year was... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the men of Shechem, and the men of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech.' Satan and his minions are ever at work, active in the sons of disobedience (Ephesians 2:2), but the former prophets had no difficulty in asserting that they were under... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ That the violence done to the seventy sons of Jerubbaal might come, and that their blood might be laid, on Abimelech their brother, who slew them, and on the men of Shechem who strengthened his hands to kill his brothers.' The reason the evil spirit's activity was allowed and even encouraged was... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And the chief men of Shechem set liers in wait against him on spurs of the mountains, and they robbed all that came along that way by them and it was told Abimelech.' The form of rebellion that occurred was due to their greed for gold. We must remember that many of them were former Habiru. These... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And Gaal, the son of Ebed, came with his brothers, and went over to Shechem, and the men of Shechem put their confidence in him.' Many of the chief men of Shechem were now aware that Abimelech was planning to interfere with their secret activities, and information concerning this seems to have bee... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And they went out into the field, and gathered their vineyards, and trod the grapes, and held a festival, and went into the house of their god, and ate and drank and cursed Abimelech.' Gaal stayed until the time for gathering the grape harvest came, and when the harvest was gathered they all held... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And Gaal the son of Ebed said, “Who is Abimelech? And who is Shechem, that we should serve him? Is he not the son of Jerubbaal? And is not Zebul his officer? Serve the men of Hamor, the father of Shechem. But why should we serve him?” ' Gaal challenged them about their loyalty to Abimelech. He cl... [ Continue Reading ]
Judges 9:29 a “And would to God this people were under my hand. Then would I remove Abimelech.” Now Gaal made his appeal to the chief men of Shechem, whether as a Habiru leader or as a descendant of Hamor. If only he was appointed chief he would soon get rid of Abimelech. Judges 9:29 b ‘And he s... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And when Zebul, the prince of the city, heard the words of Gaal the son of Ebed, his anger was kindled.' Zebul, Abimelech's deputy, learned of what Gaal had said and grew angry. If he was in the city representing Abimelech we would expect him to be. What it means is that he heard what was being s... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And he sent messengers to Abimelech secretly, saying, “Gaal the son of Ebal, and his brothers have come to Shechem, and behold they are constraining the city against you.” ' Gaal and his brothers were probably well known as troublemakers, possibly as Habiru, always seeking to stir up trouble and... [ Continue Reading ]
“ Now therefore up by night, you and the people who are with you, and lie in wait in the field.” Abimelech was to come that night after sunset, bringing the men who were with him, and they were to lie hidden in the open country and in the hills outside the city. No one would be expecting them, and... [ Continue Reading ]
“ And it shall be, that, in the morning, as soon as the sun is up, you will rise early, and set upon the city, and, behold, when he and the people who are with him come out against you, then you may do to them as your hand will find.” Then when morning came they were to attack the city, and when Ga... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And Abimelech rose up, and all the people who were with him, by night, and they laid wait against Shechem in four companies.' As Zebul had advised, Abimelech came up at night with four companies of men and took up their hidden positions outside the city.... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And Gaal, the son of Ebed, went out, and stood in the entering of the gate of the city, and Abimelech rose up, and the people who were with him from the ambush.' When the gates of the city were opened next morning Gaal went out to survey the position, not expecting that his enemy was already near... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And when Gaal saw the people, he said to Zebul, “Look, there are people coming down from the mountain heights.” And Zebul said to him, “You are seeing the shadow of the mountains, as if they were men.” ' ' Gaal was accompanied by Zebul, probably not suspecting that he knew of the proposed insurre... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And Gaal spoke again, and said, “Look, people are coming down along the middle of the land, and one company comes by way of the Diviner's oak.” ' Gaal looked again and now he knew he was right. He saw two more companies, one coming through the middle between the two mountains and one coming by wa... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ Then Zebul said to him, “Where is now your mouth, that you said, ‘Who is Abimelech, that we should serve him?' Is not this the people that you have despised? Go out now I pray you, and fight with them.” ' The approaching forces were now so visible, and their purpose so obvious, that Zebul knew th... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And Gaal went out before the men of Shechem, and fought with Abimelech.' Possibly stirred by the taunts of Zebul, instead of shutting the gates of the city, which could anyway only be a holding device for a time, Gaal called the Shechemites who were supporting him and went out to meet Abimelech i... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And Abimelech chased him, and he fled before him, and there fell many wounded, even to the entering of the gate.' Defeated, Gaal and his troops retreated towards the gates, but in their retreat many fell wounded, until at last they reached the gates where men held them partly open until they were... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And Abimelech waited at Arumah, and Zebul thrust out Gaal and his brothers, that they should not dwell in Shechem.' Having gained his first victory Abimelech now withdrew to Arumah to await events until he had heard from Zebul. And meanwhile Zebul was rallying those who were loyal to Abimelech (p... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And so it happened on the next day, that the people went out into the field, and they told Abimelech.' The next day some of the people who were with Abimelech went from Arumah into the countryside, probably to survey the situation, and returned to tell him of the expulsion of Gaal and his brother... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And he took the people, and divided them into three companies, and laid wait in the field, and he looked, and, behold, the people were come forth out of the city, and he rose up against them, and smote them.' Gathering that now that Gaal and his brothers had been expelled, the population of Shech... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And Abimelech, and the companies that were with him, rushed forward, and stood in the entering of the gate of the city, and the two other companies ran on all the people that were in the field and smote them.' This now explains the attack in more detail, as commonly happens in ancient writings. Be... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And Abimelech fought against the city all that day, and he took the city and slew the people that were in it, and he beat down the city, and sowed it with salt.' Having dealt with the people outside, and no doubt having joined up with Zebul and his supporters, Abimelech now took the attack to the... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And when all the men of the tower of Shechem heard about it, they entered into the hold of the house of El-berith.' Meanwhile the priests of Baal-berith and their attendants saw and learned what was happening and themselves took shelter in the fortified Temple, the house of the covenant with El a... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And it was told Abimelech, that all the men of the tower of Shechem were gathered together.' The news reached Abimelech that all the priests of Baal-berith were there in the fortified tower, together with their attendants and priestesses, the cult prostitutes. These were men who had participated... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And Abimelech took himself up to Mount Zalmon, he and all the people who were with him, and Abimelech took an axe in his hand, and cut down a bough from the trees, and took it, and laid it on his shoulder, and said to the people who were with him, “What you have seen me do, be quick, and do as I h... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And all the people likewise cut down every man his bough, and followed Abimelech, and put them to the hold, and set the hold on fire on them, so that all the men of the tower of Shechem died also, about a thousand men and women.' The people obeyed his command and returned to the tower with their... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ Then Abimelech went to Thebez, and encamped against Thebez, and took it.' The insurrection in Shechem had spread. Abimelech had not been reigning as a prince of Israel long and already there was general dissatisfaction. It was not only his kingship at Shechem, with their syncretistic beliefs, tha... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ But there was a strong tower within the city, and to it fled all the men and women, and all they of the city, and shut themselves in, and made their way to the roof of the tower.' As with many larger cities there was a fortified citadel within, and the people of the city, together with their serv... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And Abimelech came to the tower, and fought against it, and went hard to the door of the tower to burn it with fire.' Whatever Abimelech was he was not a coward and he took a full part in the attack. The door of the tower, as always, appears to have been its weak point and was made of wood, and i... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And a certain woman cast an upper-millstone on Abimelech's head and broke his skull.' An unknown woman on the tower, seeing Abimelech not far below her, (the tower would not be very high), took her missile, which was a substantial upper-millstone, one used in her mill to grind the corn, roughly a... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ Then he called hastily to the young man his armourbearer, and said to him, “Draw your sword and kill me, so that men may not say of me, a woman slew him.” And his young man thrust him through and he died.' Recognising that his end was near he ordered his own armourbearer, a young man, to draw his... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And when the men of Israel saw that Abimelech was dead, they departed every man to his place.' Once Abimelech was dead there was little point in fighting on. The point at issue was decided. It would be up to Abimelech's heirs whether they wished to press claims to princehood in Israel and the kin... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ Thus God requited the wickedness of Abimelech which he did to his father, in killing his seventy brothers.' God had avenged the hurt done to His servant Gideon by the killing of his sons, for He takes note of what is done to those who serve Him faithfully, and what Abimelech had done had removed... [ Continue Reading ]
‘ And all the wickedness of the chief men of Shechem, did God requite upon their heads, and on them came the curse of Jotham the son of Jerubbaal.' “ON THEM”, that is on both Abimelech and the men of Shechem. Thus was the curse of Jotham, Gideon's representative, fulfilled. Those who had plotted an... [ Continue Reading ]