Jueces 9
1 Y fuése Abi-melec, hijo de Jerubaal, a Siquem a los hermanos de su madre, y habló con ellos, y con toda la familia de la casa del padre de su madre, diciendo:
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 Yo os ruego que habléis a oídos de todos los señores de Siquem: ¿Qué tenéis por mejor, que os señoreen setenta hombres, todos los hijos de Jerubaal, o que os señoree un varón? Acordáos que yo soy hueso vuestro, y carne vuestra.
“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 Y hablaron por él los hermanos de su madre a oídos de todos los señores de Siquem todas estas palabras: y el corazón de ellos se inclinó tras Abi-melec, porque decían: Nuestro hermano es.
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 Y diéronle setenta siclos de plata del templo de Baal-berit, con los cuales Abi-melec alquiló varones ociosos y vagabundos que le siguieron.
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 Y viniendo a la casa de su padre a Efra, mató a sus hermanos los hijos de Jerubaal, setenta varones, sobre una piedra: mas quedó Joatam el más pequeño hijo de Jerubaal, que se escondió.
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 Y juntados todos los señores de Siquem, con toda la casa de Mello, fueron y eligieron a Abi-melec por rey cerca de la llanura de la estatua que estaba en Siquem.
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 Lo cual como fue dicho a Joatam, fue, y púsose en la cumbre del monte de Garizim, y alzando su voz clamó, y díjoles: Oídme varones de Siquem, que Dios os oiga:
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 Fueron los árboles a elegir rey sobre sí; y dijeron a la oliva: Reina sobre nosotros.
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 Mas la oliva les respondió: ¿Tengo de dejar mi grosura con la cual por mi causa Dios y los hombres son honrados, por ir, y ser grande sobre los árboles?
“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 Y dijeron los árboles a la higuera: Anda tú, reina sobre nosotros.
“Then the trees said to the fig tree, ‘You come and be our king!’
11 Y respondióles la higuera: ¿Tengo de dejar mi dulzura y mi buen fruto, por ir, y ser grande sobre los árboles?
“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 Dijeron pues los árboles a la vid: Anda pues tú, reina sobre nosotros.
“Then the trees said to the grapevine, ‘Come and be our king!’
13 Y la vid les respondió: ¿Tengo de dejar mi mosto, que alegra a Dios y a los hombres, por ir y ser grande sobre los árboles?
“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 Dijeron pues todos los árboles al escaramujo: Anda tú, reina sobre nosotros.
“Then all the trees said to the thornbush, ‘Come and be our king!’
15 Y el escaramujo respondió a los árboles: Si con verdad me elegís por rey sobre vosotros, veníd, y aseguráos debajo de mi sombra, y si no, fuego salga del escaramujo que trague los cedros del Líbano.
“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 Ahora pues, si con verdad y con integridad habéis procedido en hacer rey a Abi-melec; y si lo habéis hecho bien con Jerubaal y con su casa, y si le habéis pagado conforme a la obra de sus manos:
“[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 (Pues que mi padre peleó por vosotros, y echó su alma lejos por libraros de mano de Madián,
“[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 Y vosotros os levantasteis hoy contra la casa de mi padre, y matasteis a sus hijos, setenta varones, sobre una piedra: y habéis puesto sobre los señores de Siquem por rey a Abi-melec hijo de su criada, por cuanto es vuestro hermano: )
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 Si con verdad y con integridad habéis hecho hoy con Jerubaal y con su casa, que gocéis de Abi-melec: y él goce de vosotros:
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 Y si no, fuego salga de Abi-melec que consuma a los señores de Siquem, y la casa de Mello: y fuego salga de los señores de Siquem y de la casa de Mello que consuma a Abi-melec.
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 Y huyó Joatán, huyó, y fuése a Beer, y allí se estuvo por causa de Abi-melec su hermano.
[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 Y después que Abi-melec hubo dominado sobre Israel tres años,
Abimelech [became the leader of all the people of Israel. He] ruled them for three years.
23 Envió Dios un espíritu malo entre Abi-melec, y entre los señores de Siquem, que los de Siquem se levantaron contra Abi-melec,
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 Para que el agravio de los setenta hijos de Jerubaal viniese: y para que las sangres de ellos fuesen puestas sobre Abi-melec su hermano, que los mató: y sobre los señores de Siquem, que corroboraron las manos de él para matar sus hermanos.
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 Y los señores de Siquem le pusieron asechadores en las cumbres de los montes, que salteaban a todos los que pasaban cerca de ellos por el camino: de lo cual fue dado aviso a Abi-melec.
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 Y vino Gaal hijo de Obed con sus hermanos, y pasáronse a Siquem: y los señores de Siquem se aseguraron con él:
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 Y saliendo al campo vendimiaron sus viñas, y lagarearon, e hicieron alegrías: y entrando en el templo de sus dioses comieron y bebieron, y maldijeron a Abi-melec.
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 Y Gaal hijo de Obed dijo: ¿Quién es Abi-melec, y quién es Siquem para que nosotros sirvamos a él? ¿No es hijo de Jerubaal? ¿Y Zebul no es su asistente? Servíd a los varones de Jemor padre de Siquem. ¿Por qué le habíamos de servir a él?
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 ¡Quién diese a este pueblo debajo de mi mano, que luego echaría a Abi-melec! Y decía a Abi-melec: Aumenta tus escuadrones, y sal.
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 Y Zebul asistente de la ciudad, oyendo las palabras de Gaal hijo de Obed, encendióse su ira.
When someone told Zebul what Gaal said, he was very angry.
31 Y envió astutamente mensajeros a Abi-melec, diciendo: He aquí que Gaal hijo de Obed, y sus hermanos, han venido a Siquem, y he aquí que han cercado la ciudad contra ti.
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 Levántate pues ahora de noche tú y el pueblo que está contigo, y pon emboscada en el campo.
You and your men should get up during the night and go and hide in the fields outside the city.
33 Y por la mañana al salir del sol levantarte has, y acometerás la ciudad; y él y el pueblo que está con él saldrán contra ti: y tú harás con él según que se te ofrecerá.
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 Levantándose pues de noche Abi-melec, y todo el pueblo que con él estaba, pusieron emboscada contra Siquem con cuatro compañías.
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 Y Gaal hijo de Obed salió, y púsose a la entrada de la puerta de la ciudad: y Abi-melec y todo el pueblo que con él estaba, se levantaron de la emboscada.
[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 Y viendo Gaal el pueblo, dijo a Zebul: He allí pueblo que desciende de las cumbres de los montes. Y Zebul le respondió: La sombra de los montes, te parece hombres.
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 Mas Gaal tornó a hablar, y dijo: He allí pueblo que desciende por medio de la tierra: y un escuadrón viene por el camino de la campaña de 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 Y Zebul le respondió: ¿Dónde está ahora tu dicho que decías: Quién es Abi-melec, para que sirvamos a él? ¿Este no es el pueblo que tenías en poco? Sal pues ahora, y pelea con él.
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 Y Gaal salió delante de los señores de Siquem y peleó contra Abi-melec.
So Gaal led the men of Shechem outside [the city] to fight Abimelech [and his men].
40 Y Abi-melec le siguió, y él huyó delante de él, y cayeron heridos muchos hasta la entrada de la puerta.
Abimelech and his men pursued them, and they killed many of Gaal’s men before they could return [safely] inside the city gate.
41 Y Abi-melec se quedó en Aruma, y Zebul echó a Gaal y a sus hermanos, que no morasen en Siquem.
Abimelech then stayed at Arumah, [about five miles away from Shechem], and Zebul’s men forced Gaal and his brothers to leave Shechem.
42 Y aconteció el día siguiente que el pueblo salió al campo: y fue dado aviso a Abi-melec.
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 El cual tomando gente repartióla en tres compañías, y puso emboscadas en el campo: y como miró, he aquí el pueblo que salía de la ciudad: y levantándose contra ellos hiriólos.
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 Y Abi-melec y el escuadrón que estaba con él, acometieron con ímpetu, y pararon a la entrada de la puerta de la ciudad: y las otras dos compañías acometieron a todos los que estaban en el campo, e hiriéronlos.
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 Abi-melec combatió la ciudad todo aquel día y tomóla, y mató al pueblo que en ella estaba, y asoló la ciudad, y sembróla de sal.
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 Lo cual como oyeron todos los que estaban en la torre de Siquem, entráronse en la fortaleza del templo del dios Berit.
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 Y fue dicho a Abi-melec como todos los de la torre de Siquem estaban juntados.
But someone told Abimelech that all the leaders had gathered there.
48 Abi-melec subió al monte de Salmón, él y toda la gente que estaba con él, y tomó Abi-melec hachas en su mano, y cortó rama de los árboles, y levantándola púsosela sobre sus hombros, diciendo al pueblo que estaba con él: Lo que me veis a mí que hago, hacéd vosotros prestamente como yo.
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 Y así todo el pueblo cortó también cada uno su rama, y siguieron a Abi-melec, y pusiéronla junto a la fortaleza, y pusieron fuego con ella a la fortaleza, de tal manera que todos los de la torre de Siquem murieron, como mil hombres y mujeres.
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 Después Abi-melec se fue a Tebes: y puso cerco a Tebes, y tomóla.
Then Abimelech and his men went to Thebes [city]. They surrounded it and captured it.
51 En medio de aquella ciudad estaba una torre fuerte a la cual se retiraron todos los hombres y mujeres, y todos los señores de la ciudad: y cerrando tras sí las puertas subiéronse a la techumbre de la torre.
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 Y vino Abi-melec a la torre, y combatiéndola llegóse a la puerta de la torre para pegarle fuego.
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 Y una mujer dejó caer un pedazo de una rueda de molino sobre la cabeza de Abi-melec, y quebróle los cascos.
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 Y luego él llamó a su escudero, y díjole: Saca tu espada y mátame: porque no se diga de mí, una mujer le mató. Y su escudero le atravesó, y murió.
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 Y como los Israelitas vieron muerto a Abi-melec, fuéronse cada uno a su casa.
When the Israeli soldiers saw that Abimelech was dead, they all returned to their homes.
56 Así pues pagó Dios a Abi-melec el mal que hizo contra su padre, matando a sus setenta hermanos.
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 Y aun todo el mal de los señores de Siquem tornó Dios sobre sus cabezas: y la maldición de Joatam hijo de Jerubaal vino sobre ellos.
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].
