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Abimelech's Conspiracy
And Abimelech son of Jerubbaal went to Shechem to his mother's brethren, and spoke to them, and to all the family of the house of his mother's father, saying,
And Abimelech son of Jerubbaal went to Shechem to his mother's brethren, and spoke to them, and to all the family of the house of his mother's father, saying,
Speak, I pray you, in the ears of all the citizens of Shechem, Which is better for you, that seventy persons, all sons of Jerubbaal, rule over you, or that one man rule over you? And remember that I am your bone and your flesh.
“Ask the leading citizens of Shechem whether they want to be ruled by all seventy of Gideon’s sons or by one man. And remember that I am your own flesh and blood!”
And his mother's brethren spoke of him in the ears of all the citizens of Shechem all these words. And their heart inclined after Abimelech; for they said, He is our brother.
So Abimelech’s uncles gave his message to all the citizens of Shechem on his behalf. And after listening to this proposal, the people of Shechem decided in favor of Abimelech because he was their relative.
And they gave him seventy pieces of silver out of the house of Baal-Berith, and Abimelech hired with them vain and wanton men, and they followed him.
They gave him seventy silver coins from the temple of Baal-berith, which he used to hire some reckless troublemakers who agreed to follow him.
And he came to his father's house, to Ophrah, and slew his brethren the sons of Jerubbaal, seventy persons upon one stone; but there remained Jotham the youngest son of Jerubbaal; for he had hid himself.
And all the citizens of Shechem gathered together, and all the house of Millo, and went and made Abimelech king, by the memorial-oak that is in Shechem.
Jotham's Parable
And they told it to Jotham, and he went and stood on the top of mount Gerizim, and lifted up his voice, and cried, and said to them, Hearken to me, ye citizens of Shechem, that God may hearken to you.
And they told it to Jotham, and he went and stood on the top of mount Gerizim, and lifted up his voice, and cried, and said to them, Hearken to me, ye citizens of Shechem, that God may hearken to you.
Jotham’s Parable
When Jotham heard about this, he climbed to the top of Mount Gerizim and shouted,
“Listen to me, citizens of Shechem!
Listen to me if you want God to listen to you!
The trees once went forth to anoint a king over them; and they said to the olive-tree, Reign over us.
Once upon a time the trees decided to choose a king.
First they said to the olive tree,
‘Be our king!’
First they said to the olive tree,
‘Be our king!’
And the olive-tree said to them, Should I leave my fatness, wherewith by me they honour God and man, and go to wave over the trees?
But the olive tree refused, saying,
‘Should I quit producing the olive oil
that blesses both God and people,
just to wave back and forth over the trees?’
‘Should I quit producing the olive oil
that blesses both God and people,
just to wave back and forth over the trees?’
And the trees said to the fig-tree, Come thou, reign over us.
“Then they said to the fig tree,
‘You be our king!’
‘You be our king!’
But the fig-tree said to them, Should I leave my sweetness, and my good fruit, and go to wave over the trees?
But the fig tree also refused, saying,
‘Should I quit producing my sweet fruit
just to wave back and forth over the trees?’
‘Should I quit producing my sweet fruit
just to wave back and forth over the trees?’
Then said the trees to the vine, Come thou, reign over us.
“Then they said to the grapevine,
‘You be our king!’
‘You be our king!’
And the vine said to them, Should I leave my new wine, which cheers God and man, and go to wave over the trees?
But the grapevine also refused, saying,
‘Should I quit producing the wine
that cheers both God and people,
just to wave back and forth over the trees?’
‘Should I quit producing the wine
that cheers both God and people,
just to wave back and forth over the trees?’
Then said all the trees to the thorn-bush, Come thou, reign over us.
“Then all the trees finally turned to the thornbush and said,
‘Come, you be our king!’
‘Come, you be our king!’
And the thorn-bush said to the trees, If in truth ye anoint me king over you, come, put confidence in my shadow; but if not, fire shall come out of the thorn-bush and devour the cedars of Lebanon.
And the thornbush replied to the trees,
‘If you truly want to make me your king,
come and take shelter in my shade.
If not, let fire come out from me
and devour the cedars of Lebanon.’”
‘If you truly want to make me your king,
come and take shelter in my shade.
If not, let fire come out from me
and devour the cedars of Lebanon.’”
Now therefore, if ye have dealt truly and sincerely in that ye have made Abimelech king, and if ye have dealt well with Jerubbaal and his house, and if ye have done to him according to the deserving of his hands;
Jotham continued, “Now make sure you have acted honorably and in good faith by making Abimelech your king, and that you have done right by Gideon and all of his descendants. Have you treated him with the honor he deserves for all he accomplished?
-- for my father fought for you, and endangered his life, and delivered you out of the hand of Midian;
For he fought for you and risked his life when he rescued you from the Midianites.
but ye are risen up against my father's house this day, and have slain his sons, seventy men, upon one stone, and have made Abimelech, the son of his handmaid, king over the citizens of Shechem, because he is your brother;
But today you have revolted against my father and his descendants, killing his seventy sons on one stone. And you have chosen his slave woman’s son, Abimelech, to be your king just because he is your relative.
-- if ye then have dealt truly and sincerely with Jerubbaal and with his house this day, rejoice ye in Abimelech, and let him also rejoice in you;
“If you have acted honorably and in good faith toward Gideon and his descendants today, then may you find joy in Abimelech, and may he find joy in you.
but if not, let fire come out from Abimelech, and devour the citizens of Shechem and the house of Millo; and let fire come out from the citizens of Shechem and from the house of Millo, and devour Abimelech.
But if you have not acted in good faith, then may fire come out from Abimelech and devour the leading citizens of Shechem and Beth-millo; and may fire come out from the citizens of Shechem and Beth-millo and devour Abimelech!”
And Jotham ran away, and fled, and went to Beer, and dwelt there, because of Abimelech his brother.
Then Jotham escaped and lived in Beer because he was afraid of his brother Abimelech.
Gaal Conspires with the Shechemites
And Abimelech ruled over Israel three years.
And Abimelech ruled over Israel three years.
Shechem Rebels against Abimelech
After Abimelech had ruled over Israel for three years,
And God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the citizens of Shechem; and the citizens of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech,
God sent a spirit that stirred up trouble between Abimelech and the leading citizens of Shechem, and they revolted.
that the violence [done] to the seventy sons of Jerubbaal might come, and their blood be laid upon Abimelech their brother, who slew them, and upon the citizens of Shechem, who had strengthened his hands to slay his brethren.
God was punishing Abimelech for murdering Gideon’s seventy sons, and the citizens of Shechem for supporting him in this treachery of murdering his brothers.
And the citizens of Shechem set liers in wait for him on the tops of the mountains, and they robbed all that came along that way by them. And it was told Abimelech.
The citizens of Shechem set an ambush for Abimelech on the hilltops and robbed everyone who passed that way. But someone warned Abimelech about their plot.
And Gaal the son of Ebed came with his brethren, and went over to Shechem; and the citizens of Shechem put confidence in him.
One day Gaal son of Ebed moved to Shechem with his brothers and gained the confidence of the leading citizens of Shechem.
And they went out into the fields, and gathered their vineyards, and trode [the grapes], and made rejoicings, and went into the house of their god, and ate and drank, and cursed Abimelech.
During the annual harvest festival at Shechem, held in the temple of the local god, the wine flowed freely, and everyone began cursing Abimelech.
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 Zebul his overseer? Serve the men of Hamor the father of Shechem! and why should *we* serve him?
Oh! would that this people were under my hand! then would I remove Abimelech. And he said to Abimelech, Increase thine army, and come out.
And Zebul the ruler of the city heard the words of Gaal the son of Ebed, and his anger was kindled;
But when Zebul, the leader of the city, heard what Gaal was saying, he was furious.
and he sent messengers to Abimelech craftily, saying, Behold, Gaal the son of Ebed and his brethren are come to Shechem, and behold, they shut up the city against thee;
and now, rise up by night, thou and the people that are with thee, and lie in ambush in the fields.
Come by night with an army and hide out in the fields.
And it shall be in the morning when the sun is up, thou shalt rise early, and fall upon the city; and behold, he and the people that is with him shall come out against thee, and thou shalt do with him as thou shalt find occasion.
In the morning, as soon as it is daylight, attack the city. When Gaal and those who are with him come out against you, you can do with them as you wish.”
Abimelech Sows the City with Salt
And Abimelech rose up, and all the people that were with him, by night, and they lay in ambush against Shechem in four companies.
And Abimelech rose up, and all the people that were with him, by night, and they lay in ambush against Shechem in four companies.
So Abimelech and all his men went by night and split into four groups, stationing themselves around Shechem.
And Gaal the son of Ebed went out, and stood in the entrance of the gate of the city. Then Abimelech rose up, and the people that were with him, out of the ambush.
Gaal was standing at the city gates when Abimelech and his army came out of hiding.
And Gaal saw the people, and said to Zebul, Behold, people are coming down from the tops of the mountains. And Zebul said to him, Thou seest the shadow of the mountains as men.
When Gaal saw them, he said to Zebul, “Look, there are people coming down from the hilltops!”
Zebul replied, “It’s just the shadows on the hills that look like men.”
Zebul replied, “It’s just the shadows on the hills that look like men.”
And Gaal spoke again, and said, Behold, people are coming down from the high part of the land, and one company is coming along by the way of the Magician's oak.
Then said Zebul to him, Where is now thy mouth, thou that saidst, Who is Abimelech, that we should serve him? is not this the people that thou hast despised? go out now, I pray, and fight against them.
Then Zebul turned on him and asked, “Now where is that big mouth of yours? Wasn’t it you that said, ‘Who is Abimelech, and why should we be his servants?’ The men you mocked are right outside the city! Go out and fight them!”
And Gaal went out before the citizens of Shechem, and fought against Abimelech.
So Gaal led the leading citizens of Shechem into battle against Abimelech.
And Abimelech pursued him, and he fled before him, and there fell many wounded, as far as the entrance of the gate.
But Abimelech chased him, and many of Shechem’s men were wounded and fell along the road as they retreated to the city gate.
And Abimelech dwelt at Arumah. And Zebul drove out Gaal and his brethren, that they might not dwell in Shechem.
Abimelech returned to Arumah, and Zebul drove Gaal and his brothers out of Shechem.
And it came to pass on the morrow, that the people went out into the field; and they told Abimelech.
The next day the people of Shechem went out into the fields to battle. When Abimelech heard about it,
And he took the people, and divided them into three companies, and lay in ambush in the field. And he looked, and behold, the people came forth out of the city; and he rose up against them and smote them.
he divided his men into three groups and set an ambush in the fields. When Abimelech saw the people coming out of the city, he and his men jumped up from their hiding places and attacked them.
And Abimelech, and the companies that were with him, rushed forward, and stood in the entrance of the gate of the city; and two of the companies ran upon all that were in the fields, and slew them.
Abimelech and his group stormed the city gate to keep the men of Shechem from getting back in, while Abimelech’s other two groups cut them down in the fields.
And Abimelech fought against the city all that day; and he took the city, and slew the people that were in it, and broke down the city, and sowed it with salt.
The battle went on all day before Abimelech finally captured the city. He killed the people, leveled the city, and scattered salt all over the ground.
And all the men of the tower of Shechem heard [that], and they entered into the stronghold of the house of the god Berith.
And it was told Abimelech that all the men of the tower of Shechem had gathered together.
Someone reported to Abimelech that the citizens had gathered in the temple,
Then Abimelech went up to mount Zalmon, he and all the people that were with him; and Abimelech took an axe in his hand, and cut down a bough from the trees, and took it up and laid it on his shoulder, and said to the people that was with him, What ye have seen me do, make haste, do as I have done.
so he led his forces to Mount Zalmon. He took an ax and chopped some branches from a tree, then put them on his shoulder. “Quick, do as I have done!” he told his men.
And all the people likewise cut down every man his bough, and they followed Abimelech, and put [them] to the hold, and burned the hold with fire upon them. And all the men of the tower of Shechem died also, about a thousand men and women.
So each of them cut down some branches, following Abimelech’s example. They piled the branches against the walls of the temple and set them on fire. So all the people who had lived in the tower of Shechem died — about 1,000 men and women.
A Millstone Dropped on Abimelech
And Abimelech went to Thebez, and encamped against Thebez, and took it.
And Abimelech went to Thebez, and encamped against Thebez, and took it.
Then Abimelech attacked the town of Thebez and captured it.
But there was a strong tower in the midst of the city, and thither fled all the men and women, all the citizens of the city; and they shut it behind them, and went up to the roof of the tower.
But there was a strong tower inside the town, and all the men and women — the entire population — fled to it. They barricaded themselves in and climbed up to the roof of the tower.
And Abimelech came to the tower, and fought against it, and he drew near to the entrance of the tower to burn it with fire;
Abimelech followed them to attack the tower. But as he prepared to set fire to the entrance,
and a woman cast the upper stone of a handmill on Abimelech's head, and crushed his skull.
a woman on the roof dropped a millstone that landed on Abimelech’s head and crushed his skull.
Then he called hastily to the young man that carried his armour, and said to him, Draw thy sword, and slay me, that they say not of me, A woman killed him. And his young man thrust him through, and he died.
He quickly said to his young armor bearer, “Draw your sword and kill me! Don’t let it be said that a woman killed Abimelech!” So the young man ran him through with his sword, and he died.
And when the men of Israel saw that Abimelech was dead, they went every man to his place.
When Abimelech’s men saw that he was dead, they disbanded and returned to their homes.
Jotham's Curse Fulfilled
And God rendered back the wickedness of Abimelech, which he did to his father in slaying his seventy brethren.
And God rendered back the wickedness of Abimelech, which he did to his father in slaying his seventy brethren.
In this way, God punished Abimelech for the evil he had done against his father by murdering his seventy brothers.