Judges 9
1 and Abimelech son of Jerubbaal goeth to Shechem, unto his mother's brethren, and speaketh unto them, and unto all the family of the house of his mother's father, saying,
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,
2 'Speak, I pray you, in the ears of all the masters of Shechem, Which [is] good for you — the ruling over you of seventy men (all the sons of Jerubbaal), or the ruling over you of one man? — and ye have remembered that I [am] your bone and your flesh.'
“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]”
3 And his mother's brethren speak concerning him, in the ears of all the masters of Shechem, all these words, and their heart inclineth after Abimelech, for they said, 'He [is] our brother;'
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.”
4 and they give to him seventy silverings out of the house of Baal-Berith, and Abimelech hireth with them men, vain and unstable, and they go after him;
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.
5 and he goeth into the house of his father at Ophrah, and slayeth his brethren, sons of Jerubbaal, seventy men, on one stone; and Jotham, youngest son of Jerubbaal, is left, for he was hidden.
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.
6 And all the masters of Shechem are gathered together, and all the house of Millo, and come and cause Abimelech to reign for king at the oak of the camp which [is] in Shechem;
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.
7 and they declare [it] to Jotham, and he goeth and standeth on the top of mount Gerizim, and lifteth up his voice, and calleth, and saith to them, 'Hearken unto me, O masters of Shechem, and God doth hearken unto you:
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!
8 'The trees have diligently gone to anoint over them a king, and they say to the olive, Reign thou over us.
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!’
9 And the olive saith to them, Have I ceased from my fatness, by which they honour gods and men, that I have gone to stagger over the trees?
“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!’
10 And the trees say to the fig, Come thou, reign over us.
“Then the trees said to the fig tree, ‘You come and be our king!’
11 And the fig saith to them, Have I ceased from my sweetness, and my good increase, that I have gone to stagger over the trees?
“But the fig tree replied, ‘No! I do not want to [RHQ] stop producing my good sweet fruit, and rule over you other trees!’
12 'And the trees say to the vine, Come thou, reign over us.
“Then the trees said to the grapevine, ‘Come and be our king!’
13 And the vine saith to them, Have I ceased from my new wine, which is rejoicing gods and men, that I have gone to stagger over the trees?
“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]
14 And all the trees say unto the bramble, Come thou, reign over us.
“Then all the trees said to the thornbush, ‘Come and be our king!’
15 And the bramble saith unto the trees, If in truth ye are anointing me for king over you, come, take refuge in my shadow; and if not — fire cometh out from the bramble, and devoureth the cedars of Lebanon.
“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]!’”
16 'And, now, if in truth and in sincerity ye have acted, when ye make Abimelech king; and if ye have done good with Jerubbaal, and with his house; and if according to the deed of his hands ye have done to him —
“[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!
17 because my father hath fought for you, and doth cast away his life from [him], and deliver you from the hand of Midian;
“[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.
18 and ye have risen against the house of my father to-day, and slay his sons, seventy men, on one stone, and cause Abimelech son of his handmaid to reign over the masters of Shechem, because he [is] your brother —
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!
19 yea, if in truth and in sincerity ye have acted with Jerubbaal and with his house this day, rejoice ye in Abimelech, and he doth rejoice — even he — in you;
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.
20 and if not — fire cometh out from Abimelech and devoureth the masters of Shechem and the house of Millo, and fire cometh out from the masters of Shechem and from the house of Millo, and devoureth Abimelech.'
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!”
21 And Jotham hasteth, and fleeth, and goeth to Beer, and dwelleth there, from the face of Abimelech his brother.
[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].
22 And Abimelech is prince over Israel three years,
Abimelech [became the leader of all the people of Israel. He] ruled them for three years.
23 and God sendeth an evil spirit between Abimelech and the masters of Shechem, and the masters of Shechem deal treacherously with Abimelech,
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.
24 for the coming in of the violence [to] the seventy sons of Jerubbaal, and of their blood to place [it] on Abimelech their brother, who slew them, and on the masters of Shechem, who strengthened his hands to slay his brethren.
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.
25 And the masters of Shechem set for him ambushes on the top of the hills, and rob every one who passeth over by them in the way, and it is declared to Abimelech.
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].
26 And Gaal son of Ebed cometh — also his brethren — and they pass over into Shechem, and the masters of Shechem trust in him,
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.
27 and go out into the field, and gather their vineyards, and tread, and make praises, and go into the house of their god, and eat and drink, and revile Abimelech.
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.
28 And Gaal son of Ebed saith, 'Who [is] Abimelech, and who [is] Shechem, that we serve him? is [he] not son of Jerubbaal? and Zebul his commander? Serve ye the men of Hamor father of Shechem, and wherefore do we serve him — we?
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]!
29 and oh that this people were in my hand — then I turn Abimelech aside;' and he saith to Abimelech, 'Increase thy host, and come out.'
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]!’”
30 And Zebul, prince of the city, heareth the words of Gaal son of Ebed, and his anger burneth,
When someone told Zebul what Gaal said, he was very angry.
31 and he sendeth messengers unto Abimelech deceitfully, saying, 'Lo, Gaal son of Ebed and his brethren are coming into Shechem, and lo, they are fortifying the city against thee;
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.
32 and, now, rise by night, thou and the people who [are] with thee, and lay wait in the field,
You and your men should get up during the night and go and hide in the fields outside the city.
33 and it hath been, in the morning, about the rising of the sun, thou dost rise early, and hast pushed against the city; and lo, he and the people who [are] with him are going out unto thee — and thou hast done to him as thy hand doth find.'
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.”
34 And Abimelech riseth, and all the people who [are] with him, by night, and they lay wait against Shechem — four detachments;
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.
35 and Gaal son of Ebed goeth out, and standeth at the opening of the gate of the city, and Abimelech riseth — also the people who [are] with him — from the ambush,
[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].
36 and Gaal seeth the people, and saith unto Zebul, 'Lo, people are coming down from the top of the hills;' and Zebul saith unto him, 'The shadow of the hills thou art seeing like men.'
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.”
37 And Gaal addeth yet to speak, and saith, 'Lo, people are coming down from the high part of the land, and another detachment is coming by the way of the oak of Meonenim.'
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!”
38 And Zebul saith unto him, 'Where [is] now thy mouth, in that thou sayest, Who [is] Abimelech that we serve him? is not this the people against which thou hast kicked? go out, I pray thee now, and fight against it.'
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!”
39 And Gaal goeth out before the masters of Shechem, and fighteth against Abimelech,
So Gaal led the men of Shechem outside [the city] to fight Abimelech [and his men].
40 and Abimelech pursueth him, and he fleeth from his presence, and many fall wounded — unto the opening of the gate.
Abimelech and his men pursued them, and they killed many of Gaal’s men before they could return [safely] inside the city gate.
41 And Abimelech abideth in Arumah, and Zebul casteth out Gaal and his brethren from dwelling in Shechem.
Abimelech then stayed at Arumah, [about five miles away from Shechem], and Zebul’s men forced Gaal and his brothers to leave Shechem.
42 And it cometh to pass, on the morrow, that the people go out to the field, and they declare [it] to Abimelech,
The next day, the people of Shechem [got ready to leave the city and work] in their fields. When someone told Abimelech about that,
43 and he taketh the people, and divideth them into three detachments, and layeth wait in a field, and looketh, and lo, the people are coming out from the city, and he riseth against them, and smiteth them.
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.
44 And Abimelech and the detachments who [are] with him have pushed on, and stand at the opening of the gate of the city, and the two detachments have pushed against all who are in the field, and smite them,
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.
45 and Abimelech hath fought against the city all that day, and captureth the city, and the people who [are] in it he hath slain, and he breaketh down the city, and soweth it [with] salt.
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].
46 And all the masters of the tower of Shechem hear, and go in unto the high place of the house of the god Berith,
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.
47 and it is declared to Abimelech that all the masters of the tower of Shechem have gathered themselves together,
But someone told Abimelech that all the leaders had gathered there.
48 and Abimelech goeth up to mount Zalmon, he and all the people who [are] with him, and Abimelech taketh the great axe in his hand, and cutteth off a bough of the trees, and lifteth it up, and setteth [it] on his shoulder, and saith unto the people who [are] with him, 'What ye have seen I have done — haste, do ye like it.'
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!”
49 And all the people also cut down each one his bough, and go after Abimelech, and set [them] at the high place, and burn by these the high place with fire, and also all the men of the tower of Shechem die, about a thousand men and women.
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.
50 And Abimelech goeth unto Thebez, and encampeth against Thebez, and captureth it,
Then Abimelech and his men went to Thebes [city]. They surrounded it and captured it.
51 and a strong tower hath been in the midst of the city, and thither flee do all the men and the women, and all the masters of the city, and they shut [it] behind them, and go up on the roof of the tower.
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.
52 And Abimelech cometh unto the tower, and fighteth against it, and draweth nigh unto the opening of the tower to burn it with fire,
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.
53 and a certain woman doth cast a piece of a rider on the head of Abimelech, and breaketh his skull,
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.
54 and he calleth hastily unto the young man bearing his weapons, and saith to him, 'Draw thy sword, and thou hast put me to death, lest they say of me — A woman slew him;' and his young man pierced him through, and he dieth.
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.
55 And the men of Israel see that Abimelech [is] dead, and go each one to his place;
When the Israeli soldiers saw that Abimelech was dead, they all returned to their homes.
56 and God turneth back the evil of Abimelech which he did to his father to slay his seventy brethren;
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.
57 and all the evil of the men of Shechem hath God turned back on their head, and come unto them doth the cursing of Jotham son of Jerubbaal.
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].
