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,
Forsothe Abymelech, the sone of Gerobaal, yede in to Sichem to the britheren of his modir; and he spak to hem, and to al the kynrede of `the hows of his modir, and seide,
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]”
Speke ye to alle the men of Sichem, What is betere to you, that seuenti men, alle the sones of Gerobaal, be lordis of you, whether that o man be lord to you? and also biholde, for Y am youre boon, and youre fleisch.
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.”
And the britheren of his modir spaken of hym alle these wordis to alle the men of Sichem; and bowiden her hertis aftir Abymelech, and seiden, He is oure 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.
And thei yauen to hym seuenti weiytis of siluer of the temple of Baal Berith; and he hiride to hym therof men pore and hauynge no certeyn dwellynge, and thei sueden hym.
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.
And he cam in to `the hows of his fadir in Ephra, and killide hise britheren the sones of Gerobaal, `seuenti men, on o stoon. And Joathan, the leste sone of Gerobaal, lefte, and was hid.
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.
Forsothe alle the men of Sichem, and alle the meynees of the citee of Mello, weren gadirid to gydere, and thei yeden, and maden Abymelech kyng, bysidis the ook that stood in Sichem.
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!
And whanne this thing was teld to Joathan, he yede, and stood in the cop of the hil Garisym, and cried with `vois reisid, and seide, Ye men of Sichem, here me, so that God here 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!’
Trees yeden to anoynte a kyng on hem; and tho seiden to the olyue tre, Comaunde thou to vs.
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!’
Whiche answeride, Whether Y may forsake my fatnesse, which bothe Goddis and men vsen, and come, that Y be auaunsid among trees?
10 “Then the trees said to the fig tree, ‘You come and be our king!’
And the trees seiden to the fige tree, Come thou, and take the rewme on vs.
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!’
Which answeride to hem, Whether Y may forsake my swetnesse and swetteste fruytis, and go that Y be auaunsid among othere trees?
12 “Then the trees said to the grapevine, ‘Come and be our king!’
Also `the trees spaken to the vyne, Come thou, and comaunde to vs.
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]
Which answeride, Whether Y may forsake my wyn, that gladith God and men, and be auaunsid among othere trees?
14 “Then all the trees said to the thornbush, ‘Come and be our king!’
And alle trees seiden to the ramne, ether theue thorn, Come thou, and be lord on vs.
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]!’”
Whiche answeride to hem, If ye maken me verili kyng to you, come ye, and reste vndur my schadewe; sotheli, if ye nylen, fier go out of the ramne, and deuoure the cedris of the Liban.
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 therfor if riytfuli and without synne `ye han maad Abymelech kyng on you, and ye han do wel with Jerobaal, and with his hows, and ye han yolde while to the benefices of hym,
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.
that fauyt for you, and yaf his lijf to perelis, that he schulde delyuere you fro the hond of Madian;
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!
and ye han rise now ayens the hows of my fadir, and han slayn hyse sones, seuenti men, on o stoon, and `han maad Abymelech, sone of his handmayde, kyng on the dwelleris of Sichem, for he is youre brother;
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.
therfor if ye han do riytfuli, and with out synne with Gerobaal and his hows, to dai be ye glad in Abymelech, and be he glad in you; but if ye han do weiwardli,
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!”
fier go out `of hym, and waste the dwelleris of Sichem, and the citee of Mello; and fier go out of the men of Sichem, and of the citee of Mello, and deuoure Abymelech.
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].
And whanne he hadde seide these thingis, he fledde, and yede in to Berara, and dwellide there, for drede of Abymelech, his brother.
22 Abimelech [became the leader of all the people of Israel. He] ruled them for three years.
And Abymelech regnede on Israel thre yeer.
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.
And the Lord sente the worste spirit bitwixe Abymelech and the dwelleris of Sichem, whiche bigynnen to holde hym abomynable,
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.
and to arette the felony of sleyng of seuenti sones of Gerobaal, and the schedyng out of her blood, in to Abymelech her brother, and to othere princes of Sichem, that hadden helpid hym.
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].
And thei settiden buyschementis ayens hym in the hiynesse of hillis; and the while thei abideden `the comyng of hym, thei hauntiden theftis, and token preies of men passynge forth; and it was teld to Abymelech.
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.
Forsothe Gaal, `the sone of Obed, cam with his britheren, and passide in to Siccima; at whos entryng the dwelleris of Sichem weren reisid, and yeden out `in to feeldis,
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.
and wastiden vyneris, and `to-traden grapis; and with cumpeneys of syngeris maad thei entriden in to `the temple of her God, and among metis and drynkis thei cursiden Abymalech, while Gaal,
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]!
the sone of Obed, criede, Who is this Abymelech? And what is Sichem, that we serue hym? Whether he is not the sone of Jerobaal, and made Zebul his seruaunt prince on the men of Emor, fadir of Sichem? Whi therfor schulen we serue hym?
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]!’”
`Y wolde, that sum man yaf this puple vndur myn hond, that Y schulde take awei Abimelech fro the myddis. And it was seid to Abymelech, Gadere thou the multitude of oost, and come thou.
30 When someone told Zebul what Gaal said, he was very angry.
For whanne the wordis of Gaal, sone of Obed, weren herd, Zebul, the prynce of the citee, was ful wrooth;
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.
and he sente priueli messangeris to Abymelech, and seide, Lo! Gaal, sone of Obed, cam in to Siccymam, with hise britheren, and he excitith the citee to fiyte ayens thee;
32 You and your men should get up during the night and go and hide in the fields outside the city.
therfor rise thou bi niyt with the puple, which is with thee, and be thou hid in the feeld;
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.”
and first in the morewtid, whanne the sunne rysith, falle on the citee; forsothe whanne he goth out with his puple ayens thee, do thou to hym that that thou maist.
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.
Therfor Abymelech roos with al his oost bi nyyt, and settide buyschementis bisidis Siccimam, in foure placis.
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].
And Gaal, the sone of Obed, yede out, and stood in the entryng of `the yate of the citee. Forsothe Abymelech and al the oost with hym roos fro the place of buyschementis.
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.”
And whanne Gaal hadde seyn the puple, he seide to Zebul, Lo! a multitude cometh doun fro the hillis. To whom he answeride, Thou seest the schadewis of hillis as the `heedis of men, and thou art disseyued bi this errour.
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!”
And eft Gaal seide, Lo! a puple cometh doun fro the myddis of erthe, `that is, fro the hiynesse of hillis, and o cumpeny cometh bi the weie that biholdith the ook.
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!”
To whom Zebul seide, Where is now thi mouth, bi which thou spekist, Who is Abymelech, that we serue hym? Whether this is not the puple, whom thou dispisidist? Go thou out, and fiyte ayens hym.
39 So Gaal led the men of Shechem outside [the city] to fight Abimelech [and his men].
Therfor Gaal yede, while the puple of Sichen abood; and he fauyt ayens Abymelech.
40 Abimelech and his men pursued them, and they killed many of Gaal’s men before they could return [safely] inside the city gate.
Which pursuede Gaal fleynge, and constreynede to go in to the citee; and ful many of his part felde doun `til to the yate of the citee.
41 Abimelech then stayed at Arumah, [about five miles away from Shechem], and Zebul’s men forced Gaal and his brothers to leave Shechem.
And Abymelech sat in Ranna; sotheli Zebul puttide Gaal and hise felowis out of the citee, and suffride not to dwelle ther ynne.
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,
Therfor in the dai suynge the puple yede out in to the feeld; and whanne this thing was teld to Abymelech,
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 oost, and departide `in to thre cumpenyes, and settide buyschementis in the feeldis; and he siy that the puple yede out of the citee, and he roos,
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.
and felde on hem with his cumpeny, and enpugnyde and bisegide the citee. Sothely twei cumpenyes yeden aboute opynli bi the feeld, and pursueden aduersaries.
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].
Certis Abymelech fauyt ayens the citee in al that dai, which he took, whanne the dwelleris weren slayn, and that citee was destried, so that he spreynte abrood salt ther ynne.
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.
And whanne thei, that dwelliden in the tour of Sichem, hadde herd this, thei entriden in to the temple of her god Berith, where thei hadden maad boond of pees with hym; and of that the place took name, which place was ful strong.
47 But someone told Abimelech that all the leaders had gathered there.
And Abymelech herde the men of the tour of Sichem gaderid to gidere,
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!”
and he stiede in to the hil Selmon with al his puple; and with an axe takun he kittide doun a boow of a tre, and he bar it, put on the schuldur, and seide to felowis, Do ye this thing, which ye seen me do.
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.
Therfor with strijf thei kittiden doun bowis of the trees, and sueden the duyk; whiche cumpassiden and brenten `the tour; and so it was doon, that with smooke and fier a thousynde of men weren slayn, men togidere and wymmen, of the dwelleris of the tour of Sichem.
50 Then Abimelech and his men went to Thebes [city]. They surrounded it and captured it.
Forsothe Abymelech wente forth fro thennus, and cam to the citee of Thebes, which he cumpasside, and bisegide with an oost.
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.
Forsothe the tour was hiy in the myddis of the citee, to which men togidere and wymmen fledden, and alle the princes of the citee, while the yate was closid stronglieste; and thei stoden on the roof of the tour bi toretis.
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.
And Abymelech cam bisidis the tour, and fauyt strongli, and he neiyede to the dore, and enforside to putte fier vndur; and lo!
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.
o womman castide fro aboue a gobet of a mylnestoon, and hurtlide to `the heed of Abymelech, and brak his brayn.
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.
And he clepide soone his squyer, and seide to hym, Drawe out thi swerd, and sle me, lest perauenture it be seid, that Y am slan of a womman. Which performede `the comaundementis, and `killide Abymelech;
55 When the Israeli soldiers saw that Abimelech was dead, they all returned to their homes.
and whanne he was deed, alle men of Israel that weren with hym turneden ayen to her seetis.
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.
And God yeldide to Abymelech the yuel that he dide ayens his fadir, for he killide hise seuenti britheren.
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].
Also that thing was yoldun to men of Sichem, which thei wrouyten, and the curs of Joathan, sone of Jerobaal, cam on hem.
