Sudije 9
1 I Avimeleh sin Jerovalov otide u Sihem k braæi matere svoje i reèe njima i svemu rodu otaèkoga doma matere svoje govoreæi:
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 Kažite svijem Sihemljanima: šta vam je bolje, da su vam gospodari sedamdeset ljudi, svi sinovi Jerovalovi, ili da vam je gospodar jedan èovjek? I opominjite se da sam ja kost vaša i tijelo vaše.
“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 Tada rekoše braæa matere njegove za nj svijem Sihemljanima sve te rijeèi, i srce njihovo privi se k Avimelehu, jer rekoše: naš je brat.
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 I dadoše mu sedamdeset sikala srebra iz doma Val-Veritova, za koje najmi Avimeleh ljudi praznova i skitnica, te iðahu za njim.
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 I doðe u kuæu oca svojega u Ofru, i pobi braæu svoju, sinove Jerovalove, sedamdeset ljudi, na jednom kamenu; ali osta Jotam najmlaði sin Jerovalov, jer se sakri.
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 Tada se skupiše svi Sihemljani i sav dom Milov, i otidoše i postaviše Avimeleha carem kod hrasta koji stoji u Sihemu.
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 A kad to javiše Jotamu, otide i stade navrh gore Garizina, i podigavši glas svoj povika i reèe im: èujte me, Sihemljani, tako vas Bog èuo!
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 Išla drveta da pomažu sebi cara, pa rekoše maslini: budi nam car.
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 A maslina im reèe: zar ja da ostavim pretilinu svoju, kojom se èast èini Bogu i ljudima, pa da idem da tumaram za druga drveta?
“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 Potom rekoše drveta smokvi: hodi ti, budi nam car.
“Then the trees said to the fig tree, ‘You come and be our king!’
11 A smokva im reèe: zar ja da ostavim slast svoju i krasni rod svoj, pa da idem da tumaram za druga drveta?
“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 Tada rekoše drveta vinovoj lozi: hodi ti, budi nam car.
“Then the trees said to the grapevine, ‘Come and be our king!’
13 A loza im reèe: zar ja da ostavim vino svoje, koje veseli Boga i ljude, pa da idem da tumaram za druga drveta?
“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 Tada sva drveta rekoše trnu: hodi ti, budi nam car.
“Then all the trees said to the thornbush, ‘Come and be our king!’
15 A trn odgovori drvetima: ako doista hoæete mene da pomažete sebi za cara, hodite sklonite se u hlad moj; ako li neæete, neka izide oganj iz trna i spali kedre Livanske.
“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 Tako sada, jeste li pravo i pošteno radili postavivši Avimeleha carem? i jeste li dobro uèinili Jerovalu i domu njegovu? i jeste li mu uèinili kako vas je zadužio?
“[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 Jer je otac moj vojevao za vas i nije mario za život svoj, i izbavio vas je iz ruku Madijanskih.
“[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 A vi danas ustaste na dom oca mojega, i pobiste sinove njegove, sedamdeset ljudi, na jednom kamenu, i postaviste carem Avimeleha, sina sluškinje njegove, nad Sihemljanima zato što je brat vaš.
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 Ako ste pravo i pošteno radili danas prema Jerovalu i njegovu domu, veselite se s Avimeleha i on neka se veseli s vas.
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 Ako li nijeste, neka izide oganj od Avimeleha i spali Sihemljane i dom Milov, i neka izide oganj od Sihemljana i od doma Milova i spali Avimeleha.
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 Tada pobježe Jotam, i pobjegav doðe u Vir, i ondje osta bojeæi se Avimeleha brata svojega.
[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 I vlada Avimeleh Izrailjem tri godine.
Abimelech [became the leader of all the people of Israel. He] ruled them for three years.
23 Ali Bog pusti zlu volju meðu Avimeleha i meðu Sihemljane; i Sihemljani iznevjeriše Avimeleha,
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 Da bi se osvetila nepravda uèinjena na sedamdeset sinova Jerovalovijeh, i krv njihova da bi došla na Avimeleha brata njihova, koji ih ubi, i na Sihemljane, koji ukrijepiše ruku njegovu da ubije braæu svoju.
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 I Sihemljani pometaše mu zasjede po vrhovima gorskim, pa plijenjahu sve koji prolažahu mimo njih onijem putem. I bi javljeno Avimelehu.
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 Potom doðe Gal sin Evedov sa svojom braæom, i uljezoše u Sihem, i Sihemljani se pouzdaše u nj.
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 I izašavši u polje braše vinograde svoje i gaziše grožðe, i veseliše se; i uðoše u kuæu boga svojega, i jedoše i piše, i psovaše Avimeleha.
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 I Gal sin Evedov reèe: ko je Avimeleh i šta je Sihem, da mu služimo? Nije li sin Jerovalov? a Zevul nije li njegov pristav? Služite sinovima Emora oca Sihemova. A što bismo služili tomu?
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 O kad bi taj narod bio pod mojom rukom, da smetnem Avimeleha! I reèe Avimelehu: prikupi vojsku svoju, i izidi.
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 A kad èu Zevul, upravitelj gradski, rijeèi Gala sina Evedova, razgnjevi se vrlo.
When someone told Zebul what Gaal said, he was very angry.
31 I posla tajno poslanike k Avimelehu i poruèi mu: evo Gal sin Evedov i braæa mu doðoše u Sihem, i evo pobuniše grad na te.
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 Nego ustani noæu ti i narod što je s tobom, i zasjedi u polju.
You and your men should get up during the night and go and hide in the fields outside the city.
33 A ujutru kad sunce ograne, digni se i udari na grad; i evo on i narod koji je s njim izaæi æe preda te, pa uèini s njim što ti može ruka.
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 I Avimeleh usta noæu i sav narod što bješe s njim; i zasjedoše Sihemu u èetiri èete.
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 A Gal sin Evedov izide i stade pred vratima gradskim; a Avimeleh i narod što bješe s njim izide iz zasjede.
[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 A Gal vidjev narod reèe Zevulu: eno narod slazi svrh gore. A Zevul mu odgovori: od sjena gorskoga èine ti se ljudi.
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 Opet progovori Gal i reèe: eno narod slazi s visa, i èeta jedna ide putem k šumi Meonenimskoj.
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 A Zevul mu reèe: gdje su ti sada usta, kojima si govorio: ko je Avimeleh da mu služimo? Nije li to onaj narod koji si prezirao? Izidi sada, i bij se s njim.
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 I izide Gal pred Sihemljanima, i pobi se s Avimelehom.
So Gaal led the men of Shechem outside [the city] to fight Abimelech [and his men].
40 Ali Avimeleh ga potjera, i on pobježe od njega; i padoše mnogi pobijeni do samijeh vrata gradskih.
Abimelech and his men pursued them, and they killed many of Gaal’s men before they could return [safely] inside the city gate.
41 I Avimeleh osta u Arumi; a Zevul istjera Gala i braæu njegovu, te ne mogahu sjedeti u Sihemu.
Abimelech then stayed at Arumah, [about five miles away from Shechem], and Zebul’s men forced Gaal and his brothers to leave Shechem.
42 A sjutradan izide narod u polje, i bi javljeno Avimelehu.
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 A on uze narod svoj i razdijeli ga u tri èete, i namjesti ih u zasjedu u polju; i kad vidje gdje narod izlazi iz grada, skoèi na njih i pobi ih.
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 Jer Avimeleh i èeta koja bijaše s njim udariše i stadoše kod vrata gradskih; a druge dvije èete udariše na sve one koji bijahu u polju, i pobiše ih.
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 I Avimeleh bijaše grad vas onaj dan, i uze ga, i pobi narod koji bješe u njemu, i raskopa grad, i posija so po njemu.
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 A kad to èuše koji bijahu u kuli Sihemskoj, uðoše u kulu kuæe boga Verita.
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 I bi javljeno Avimelehu da su se ondje skupili svi koji bijahu u kuli Sihemskoj.
But someone told Abimelech that all the leaders had gathered there.
48 Tada Avimeleh izide na goru Salmon, on i sav narod što bješe s njim; i uzev Avimeleh sjekiru u ruku otsijeèe granu od drveta i podiže je i metnu je na rame, i reèe narodu koji bijaše s njim: što vidjeste da sam ja uèinio, brzo èinite kao ja.
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 I svaki iz naroda otsijeèe sebi granu, i poðoše za Avimelehom i pometaše grane oko kule, i zapališe njima grad; i izgiboše svi koji bijahu u kuli Sihemskoj, oko tisuæu ljudi i žena.
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 Potom otide Avimeleh na Teves, i stade u oko kod Tevesa, i uze ga.
Then Abimelech and his men went to Thebes [city]. They surrounded it and captured it.
51 A bijaše tvrda kula usred grada, i u nju pobjegoše svi ljudi i žene i svi graðani, i zatvorivši se popeše se na krov od kule.
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 A Avimeleh doðe do kule i udari na nju, i doðe do vrata od kule da je zapali ognjem.
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 Ali jedna žena baci komad žrvnja na glavu Avimelehu i razbi mu glavu.
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 A on brže viknu momka koji mu nošaše oružje, i reèe mu: izvadi maè svoj i ubij me, da ne reku za me: žena ga je ubila. I probode ga sluga njegov, te umrije.
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 A kad vidješe Izrailjci gdje pogibe Avimeleh, otidoše svaki u svoje mjesto.
When the Israeli soldiers saw that Abimelech was dead, they all returned to their homes.
56 Tako plati Bog Avimelehu za zlo koje je uèinio ocu svojemu ubivši sedamdeset braæe svoje.
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 I sve zlo ljudi Sihemljana povrati Bog na njihove glave, i steèe im se kletva Jotama sina Jerovalova.
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].
