Judges 9
1 Gideon’s son Abimelech went to [talk with] his mother’s brothers in Shechem [city]. He said to them and to all his mother’s relatives,
Abimelech son of Jerub Baal went to his mother's relatives at Shechem and he said to them and to the whole clan of his mother's family,
2 “Ask all the leaders of your city: ‘Do you [think it would be] good for all 70 of Gideon’s sons to rule over you? Or would it be better to have only one of his sons, [me], to rule over you?’ And do not forget that I am your relative! [MTY]”
“Please say this, so that all the leaders in Shechem may hear, 'Which is better for you, that all seventy sons of Jerub Baal rule over you, or that just one rule over you?' Remember that I am your bone and your flesh.”
3 So Abimelech’s mother’s brothers spoke to all the leaders of Shechem about what Abimelech had said. They said to each other, “We should allow Abimelech to rule over us, because he is our relative.”
His mother's relatives spoke for him to the leaders of Shechem, and they agreed to follow Abimelech, for they said, “He is our brother.”
4 So the leaders of Shechem took from the temple of [their god] Baal-Berith (almost 2 pounds/0.8 kg.) of silver and gave it to Abimelech. With that silver he paid some worthless troublemakers to help him, and they went with Abimelech wherever he went.
They gave him seventy pieces of silver out of the house of Baal-Berith, and Abimelech used it to hire men of lawless and reckless character, who followed him.
5 They went to Ophrah, his father’s town, and murdered 69 of his 70 brothers, the sons of his father Gideon. They killed all those men on one huge rock. But Gideon’s youngest son Jotham hid [from Abimelech and his men], and he escaped.
Abimelech went to his father's house at Ophrah, and upon one stone he murdered his seventy brothers, the sons of Jerub Baal. Only Jotham was left, the youngest son of Jerub Baal, for he hid himself.
6 Then all the leaders of Shechem and Beth-Millo gathered under the big sacred tree in Shechem. There they appointed Abimelech to be their leader.
All the leaders of Shechem and Beth Millo came together and they went and made Abimelech king, beside the oak near the pillar which is in Shechem.
7 When Jotham heard about that, he climbed up Gerizim Mountain. He stood at the top of the mountain and shouted to the people [down below], “You leaders of Shechem, listen to me, in order that God will listen to you!
When Jotham was told about this, he went and stood on the top of Mount Gerizim. He shouted and said to them, “Listen to me, you leaders of Shechem, so that God may listen to you.
8 One day the trees decided to appoint a king to rule over all of them. So they said to the olive tree, ‘You be our king!’
The trees once went out to anoint a king over them. For they said to the olive tree, 'Reign over us.'
9 “But the olive tree said, ‘No! [I will not be your king] Men and gods enjoy the oil from my fruit. I will not [RHQ] stop producing [olives from which we make] that oil, in order to rule over you other trees!’
But the olive tree said to them, 'Should I give up my oil, which is used to honor gods and mankind, so I may go return, just to sway over the other trees?'
10 “Then the trees said to the fig tree, ‘You come and be our king!’
The trees said to the fig tree, 'Come and reign over us.'
11 “But the fig tree replied, ‘No! I do not want to [RHQ] stop producing my good sweet fruit, and rule over you other trees!’
But the fig tree said to them, 'Should I give up my sweetness and my good fruit, just so I could return and sway over the other trees?'
12 “Then the trees said to the grapevine, ‘Come and be our king!’
The trees said to the vine, 'Come and reign over us.'
13 “But the grapevine replied, ‘No! [I will not be your king] The new wine [that is made from my grapes] causes people and gods [who drink it] to become very happy. I do not want to stop producing grapes and rule over you other trees!’ [RHQ]
The vine said to them, 'Should I give up my new wine, which cheers gods and mankind, and return and sway over the other trees?'
14 “Then all the trees said to the thornbush, ‘Come and be our king!’
Then said all the trees to the thornbush, 'Come and reign over us.'
15 “The thornbush replied, ‘If you truly want to appoint me to be your king, come into the shade of my [tiny branches]. But if you do not want to do that, I hope/desire that fire will come out from me and burn up all the huge cedar trees in Lebanon [country]!’”
The thornbush said to the trees, 'If you truly want to anoint me as king over you, then come and find safety under my shade. If not, then let fire come out of the thornbush and let it burn up the cedars of Lebanon.'
16 “[After] Jotham [finished telling them this parable, he] said, “So now [I ask you], were you being completely honest and sincere when you appointed Abimelech to be your king [RHQ]? And have you treated Gideon and his family [RHQ] fairly? Have you rewarded Gideon by honoring him as he deserved [because of all the good things he did for you]? No!
Now therefore, if you have acted in truth and honesty, when you made Abimelech king, and if you have done well concerning Jerub Baal and his house, and if you have punished him as he deserves—
17 “[Do not forget that] my father fought a battle for you, and he was willing to die for you [if that had been necessary], to save you from the Midian people-group.
—and to think that my father fought for you, risked his life, and rescued you out of the hand of Midian—
18 But now you have rebelled against my father’s family, and you have killed 69 of his sons on one huge rock. And you have appointed Abimelech—who is the son of my father’s slave girl, [not the son of his wife]—to be the king who will rule you people of Shechem. You have done that only because he is one of your relatives!
but today you have risen up against my father's house and have killed his sons, seventy persons, upon one stone. Then you have made Abimelech, the son of his female servant, king over the leaders of Shechem, because he is your relative.
19 So, if today you have truly acted fairly and sincerely toward Gideon and his family, I hope/desire that he will cause you to be happy and that you will cause him to be happy.
If you acted with honesty and integrity with Jerub Baal and his house, then you should rejoice in Abimelech, and let him also rejoice in you.
20 But if what you did was not right, I wish/desire that Abimelech will burn up all of you leaders of Shechem and Beth-Millo with fire! And I also hope/desire that the leaders of Shechem and Beth-Millo will cause fire to burn up Abimelech!”
But if not, let fire come out from Abimelech and burn up the men of Shechem and Beth Millo. Let fire come out from the men of Shechem and Beth Millo, to burn up Abimelech.”
21 [After] Jotham [finished saying that, he] escaped from them and ran away to Beer [town]. He stayed there because he was afraid that his brother Abimelech [would try to kill him].
Jotham fled and ran away, and he went to Beer. He lived there because it was far away from Abimelech, his brother.
22 Abimelech [became the leader of all the people of Israel. He] ruled them for three years.
Abimelech ruled over Israel for three years.
23 Then God sent an evil spirit [to cause trouble] between Abimelech and the leaders of Shechem, with the result that the leaders of Shechem rebelled against Abimelech.
God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the leaders of Shechem. The leaders of Shechem betrayed the trust they had with Abimelech.
24 The leaders of Shechem had previously helped Abimelech to kill 69 of Gideon’s sons, who were his brothers. So now God sent the evil spirit to punish all of them.
God did this so the violence done to the seventy sons of Jerub Baal might be avenged, and Abimelech their brother would be held responsible for murdering them, and the men of Shechem would be held responsible because they helped him murder his brothers.
25 The leaders of Shechem (set an ambush/sent men to hide) on the hilltops to ambush Abimelech. Those men robbed everyone who passed by. But someone told Abimelech about it, [so he did not go near them].
So the leaders of Shechem positioned men to lie in wait on the hilltops that they might ambush him, and they robbed all who passed by them along that road. This was reported to Abimelech.
26 There was a man named Gaal, the son of Ebed, who moved into Shechem [city], along with his brothers. Soon the leaders of Shechem started to trust him.
Gaal son of Ebed came with his relatives and they went over to Shechem. The leaders of Shechem had confidence in him.
27 They went out [of the city] to their vineyards and picked some grapes. They pressed the grapes [to make juice, and then they made wine]. Then they had a feast in the temple of their god, and they ate [a lot of food] and drank [a lot of wine]. Then they cursed Abimelech.
They went out into the field and gathered grapes from the vineyards, and they trampled on them. They held a festival in the house of their god, where they ate and drank, and they cursed Abimelech.
28 Gaal said, “(Why should [we allow] Abimelech to rule over us?/We should not allow Abimelech to rule over us!) [RHQ] He is only one of Gideon’s sons [so he really does not belong to us] [RHQ]! And he appointed Zebul, the governor of our city, to be his deputy! We should (serve/be loyal to) [one of the descendants of] Hamor, [the founder of our city], and let him be our leader, not Abimelech [RHQ]!
Gaal son of Ebed, said, “Who is Abimelech, and who is Shechem, that we should serve him? Is he not the son of Jerub Baal? Is Zebul not his officer? Serve the men of Hamor, Shechem's father! Why should we serve Abimelech?
29 If you would appoint me to be your leader, I would get rid of Abimelech. I would say to him, ‘Get your army ready, [and then come to fight us]!’”
I wish that this people were under my command! Then would I remove Abimelech. I would say to Abimelech, 'Call out all your army.'”
30 When someone told Zebul what Gaal said, he was very angry.
When Zebul, the official of the city, heard the words of Gaal son of Ebed his anger was kindled.
31 He secretly sent some messengers to Abimelech. They told him, “Gaal and his brothers have come here to Shechem, and they are causing [the people of] the city to rebel against you.
He sent messengers to Abimelech in order to deceive, saying, “See, Gaal son of Ebed and his relatives are coming to Shechem, and they are stirring up the city against you.
32 You and your men should get up during the night and go and hide in the fields outside the city.
Now, get up during the night, you and the soldiers with you, and prepare an ambush in the fields.
33 As soon as the sun rises in the morning, get up and attack the city. When Gaal and his men come out to fight against you, you can do to them whatever you want to.”
Then in the morning, as soon as the sun is up, rise early and make a raid on the city. When he and the people with him come out against you, do whatever you can to them.”
34 So Abimelech and all the men who were with him got up during the night. They [divided into] four groups, [and] hid [in the fields] near Shechem.
So Abimelech got up during the night, he and all the men who were with him, and they set an ambush against Shechem—dividing into four units.
35 [The next morning], Gaal went out and stood at the entrance to the city gate. While he was standing there, Abimelech and his soldiers came out of their hiding places [and started walking toward the city].
Gaal son of Ebed went out and stood in the entrance of the city gate. Abimelech and the men who were with him came out of their hiding place.
36 When Gaal saw the soldiers, he said to Zebul, “Look! There are people coming down from the hills!” But Zebul said, “You are seeing only the shadows [of trees] on the hills. They [are not people; they] only resemble people.”
When Gaal saw the men, he said to Zebul, “See, men are coming down from the hilltops!” Zebul said to him, “You are seeing the shadows on the hills like they are men.”
37 But Gaal [looked] again [and] said, “Look! There are people coming down from the top of the sacred mountain! There is a group of them coming down from where the tree is where people talk with the spirits of dead people!”
Gaal spoke again and said, “Look, men are coming down in the middle of the land, and one unit is coming by way of the oak of the diviners.”
38 Zebul said to Gaal, “Now (what good is your bragging?/your bragging is worthless!) [MTY, RHQ] You said, ‘(Why should we serve Abimelech/We should not allow Abimelech to rule over us)?’ You made fun of these men. So now go out and fight them!”
Then Zebul said to him, “Where are your proud words now, you who said, 'Who is Abimelech that we should serve him?' Are these not the men you despised? Go out now and fight against them.”
39 So Gaal led the men of Shechem outside [the city] to fight Abimelech [and his men].
Gaal went out and he was leading the men of Shechem, and he fought Abimelech.
40 Abimelech and his men pursued them, and they killed many of Gaal’s men before they could return [safely] inside the city gate.
Abimelech chased him, and Gaal fled before him. Many fell with deadly wounds before the entrance to the city gate.
41 Abimelech then stayed at Arumah, [about five miles away from Shechem], and Zebul’s men forced Gaal and his brothers to leave Shechem.
Abimelech stayed in Arumah. Zebul forced Gaal and his relatives out of Shechem.
42 The next day, the people of Shechem [got ready to leave the city and work] in their fields. When someone told Abimelech about that,
On the next day the people of Shechem went out into the field, and this was reported to Abimelech.
43 he divided his men into three groups, and told them to hide in the fields. So they did that. And when they saw the people coming out of the city, they jumped up and attacked them.
He took his people, divided them into three units, and they set an ambush in the fields. He looked and saw the people coming out from the city and he attacked and killed them.
44 Abimelech and the men who were with him ran to the city gate. The other two groups ran out to the people in the fields and attacked them.
Abimelech and the units that were with him attacked and blocked the entrance to the city gate. The other two units attacked all who were in the field and killed them.
45 Abimelech and his men fought all day. They captured the city and killed all the people. They tore down all the buildings, and then they threw salt over the ruins [in order that nothing would grow there again].
Abimelech fought against the city all that day. He captured the city, and killed the people who were in it. He tore down the city walls and spread salt over it.
46 When the leaders who lived in the tower/fortress outside of Shechem heard what had happened, they ran and hid inside the [fortress, which was also a] temple of [their god] El-Berith.
When all the leaders of the tower of Shechem heard of it, they entered the stronghold of the house of El-Berith.
47 But someone told Abimelech that all the leaders had gathered there.
Abimelech was told that all the leaders had gathered together at the tower of Shechem.
48 So he and all the men who were with him went up Zalmon Mountain [which is near Shechem]. Abimelech cut some branches of trees with an axe, and put them on his shoulders. Then he said to all the men who were with him, “Quickly, do what I have just done!”
Abimelech went up to Mount Zalmon, he and all the men who were with him. Abimelech took an ax and cut off branches. He put it on his shoulder and ordered the men with him, “What you have seen me do, hurry and do as I have done.”
49 So his men all cut branches [then carried them down the mountain], following Abimelech. They went to the fortress and piled the branches against its walls. Then they kindled a fire, and the fire burned down the fortress and killed all the people who were inside. So all the people who were inside the fortress—about 1,000 men and women—died.
So every one cut off branches and followed Abimelech. They piled them against the wall of the tower, and they set it on fire, so that all the people of the tower of Shechem also died, about a thousand men and women.
50 Then Abimelech and his men went to Thebes [city]. They surrounded it and captured it.
Then Abimelech went to Thebez, and he encamped against Thebez and captured it.
51 But there was a strong tower inside the city. So all the men, women, and leaders of the city ran to the tower. When they were all inside, they locked the door. Then they climbed up to the roof of the tower.
But there was a strong tower in the city, and all the men and women and all the leaders of the city fled to it and shut themselves in. Then they went up to the roof of the tower.
52 Abimelech and his men came to the tower and tried to get in the door, [but they could not]. Then Abimelech prepared to light a fire to burn down the door.
Abimelech came to the tower and fought against it, and he came up near to the door of the tower to burn it.
53 But when Abimelech came near the doorway, a woman [who was on the roof] dropped a big grinding stone on his head, and crushed his skull.
But a woman dropped an upper millstone on Abimelech's head and it cracked his skull.
54 Abimelech quickly called to the young man who carried Abimelech’s weapons, and said, “Pull out your sword and kill me with it! I do not want people to say ‘It was a woman who killed Abimelech.’” So the young man thrust his sword into Abimelech, and Abimelech died.
Then he called urgently to the young man who was his armor-bearer, and said to him, “Draw your sword and kill me, so no one will say about me, 'A woman killed him.'” So his young man pierced him through, and he died.
55 When the Israeli soldiers saw that Abimelech was dead, they all returned to their homes.
When the men of Israel saw that Abimelech was dead, they went home.
56 In that way God punished Abimelech for the evil things that he had done to his father and especially for killing all 69 of his brothers.
So God avenged the evil of Abimelech that he did to his father by murdering his seventy brothers.
57 God also punished the men of Shechem for the evil things that they had done. And when those things happened, it fulfilled what Gideon’s son Jotham said when he cursed [Abimelech and the leaders of Shechem].
God made all the evil of the men of Shechem turn back on their own heads and on them came the curse of Jotham son of Jerub Baal.
