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 brothers at Shechem and told them and all his mother's relatives,
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 ask all the leaders of Shechem, ‘What's best for you? That seventy men, all of them Jerub-baal's sons, rule over you—or just one man?’ Remember I'm your own flesh and blood!”
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 brothers shared his proposal with all the leaders of Shechem, and they decided to follow Abimelech, because they said, “He is our relative.”
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 shekels of silver from the temple of Baal-berith. Abimelech used the money to hire some arrogant troublemakers as his gang.
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.
He went to his father's house in Ophrah, and on one stone killed his seventy half-brothers, the sons of Jerub-baal. But Jotham, Jerub-baal's youngest son, escaped by going into hiding.
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.
Then the leaders of Shechem and Beth-millo all assembled by the oak at the pillar in Shechem and made Abimelech their king.
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 got to hear this, he went up to the top of Mount Gerizim, and shouted in a loud voice: “Listen to me, leaders of Shechem, and God may to 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!’
Once upon a time the trees were determined to anoint a king to rule over them. They said to the olive tree, ‘You shall be our king.’
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 replied, ‘Should I stop giving my rich oil that benefits both gods and men just to go and sway to and fro over the trees?’
10 “Then the trees said to the fig tree, ‘You come and be our king!’
Then the trees asked the fig tree, ‘You come and be our king.’
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 replied, ‘Should I stop giving my good sweet fruit just to go and sway to and fro over the trees?’
12 “Then the trees said to the grapevine, ‘Come and be our king!’
Then the trees asked the grape vine, ‘You come and be our king.’
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]
But the grape vine replied, ‘Should I stop giving my wine that makes both gods and men happy just to go and sway to and fro over the trees?’
14 “Then all the trees said to the thornbush, ‘Come and be our king!’
Then all the trees asked the thorn bush, ‘You come and be our king.’
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 thorn bush replied to the trees, ‘If you're really sincere about anointing me as your king, come and find shelter in my shade. But if not, may fire flame out of the thorn bush and 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!
Have you acted sincerely and honestly by making Abimelech your king? Have you been acted honorably to Jerub-baal and his family? Have you respected him for all that he accomplished?
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.
Don't forget how my father fought for you and risked his own life to save you from the Midianites!
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 you have rebelled against my father's family today. You have killed his seventy sons on one stone and have made Abimelech, the son of his slave woman, king over the leaders of Shechem simply because he's related to you.
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.
Have you acted sincerely and honestly toward Jerub-baal and his family today? If so, may you be happy with Abimelech, and may he be happy with too!
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 you haven't, then may fire flame out from Abimelech, and may it burn up the leaders of Shechem and Beth-millo, and may fire flame out from the leaders of Shechem and Beth-millo and 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].
Then Jotham escaped and ran away. He went to Beer and stayed there because of the threat of 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.
Then God sent an evil spirit to cause trouble between Abimelech and the leaders of Shechem. The leaders of Shechem betrayed 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.
This happened because of the murder of the seventy sons of Jerub-baal and that responsibility for their blood be placed on Abimelech their brother, who killed them, and on the leaders of Shechem, who provided the means to kill 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].
The leaders of Shechem sent men to the hill passes to lie in wait and attack Abimelech, and, in the meantime, they robbed everyone who passed by on the road. Abimelech found out what was happening.
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, had moved to Shechem with his relatives, and he gained the loyalty of the leaders of Shechem.
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.
At harvest time they went out into the countryside and gathered the grapes from their vineyards and trod them. They celebrated by having a festival in the temple of their god, where they ate and drank, and 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]!
“Who is this Abimelech?” asked Gaal, son of Ebed. “And who is Shechem, that we should have to serve him? Isn't he the son of Jerub-baal, while Zebul is actually the one in charge? You should serve the family of Hamor, the father of Shechem. Why should we have to 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]!’”
If I was the one in charge of you people, I would dispose of Abimelech! I would tell him, ‘Get your army together, and come and fight!’”
30 When someone told Zebul what Gaal said, he was very angry.
When Zebul, the governor of the city, got to hear what Gaal was saying, he became very angry.
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 secretly sent messengers to Abimelech to tell him, “Look, Gaal, son of Ebed, and his relatives have arrived in Shechem, and they are stirring up the town to rebel against you.
32 You and your men should get up during the night and go and hide in the fields outside the city.
So come at night with your army and hide in the countryside.
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.”
In the morning as soon as the sun comes up, go and attack the town. When Gaal and his men come out to fight you, you can do whatever you want 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.
Abimelech left at night along with his army, and they separated into four companies that lay in wait near Shechem.
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].
When Gaal, son of Ebed, went out and stood at the town's entrance gate, Abimelech and his army came out from where they had been hiding.
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.”
Gaal saw the army approaching and said to Zebul, “Look! Some people are coming down from the hilltops!” “That's just shadows made by the hills that look like men,” Zebul replied.
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!”
“No really, people are coming down from the high ground,” Gaal repeated. “Plus, there's another company coming down the road that passes the diviners' oak tree.”
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!”
“Where's your big mouth now? You're the one who said, ‘Who is this Abimelech, that we should have to serve him?’” Zebul told him. “Aren't these the people you detested? Go on then—go and fight with them!”
39 So Gaal led the men of Shechem outside [the city] to fight Abimelech [and his men].
So Gaal led the leaders of Shechem out of the town and fought with 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 attacked, and chased him and his men as they ran away, killing many of them as they tried to get back to the town 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 went back to Arumah while Zebul expelled Gaal and his relatives from 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,
The following day the people of Shechem went out to the fields, and Abimelech was informed about it.
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 divided his army into three companies and had them lay in ambush in the fields. When he saw the people coming out of the city, 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 his company raced to occupy the town's entrance gate, while the two companies raced to attack everyone in the fields and kill 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].
The battle for the town lasted all day but eventually Abimelech captured it. He killed the people, demolished the town, and scattered salt over the ground.
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 realized what had happened, they took refuge in the strongroom of the temple of El-berith.
47 But someone told Abimelech that all the leaders had gathered there.
When Abimelech found out that all the leaders in the tower of Shechem had gathered there,
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!”
he and all the men with him went up Mount Zalmon. Abimelech grabbed hold of an ax and cut a branch from the trees. He lifted it onto his shoulder, and told his men, “Quick! You saw what I did. Do the same!”
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.
Each of them cut down a branch and followed Abimelech. They placed the branches against the strongroom and set it on fire. So all the people who lived in the tower of Shechem died, around one thousand men and women.
50 Then Abimelech and his men went to Thebes [city]. They surrounded it and captured it.
Then Abimelech went to attack 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 inside the city. All the men and women and the town leaders ran there and barricaded themselves in, and then 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 went up to the tower to attack it. But as he came close to the tower's entrance to set it on fire,
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.
a woman dropped millstone down on Abimelech's head and cracked his skull open.
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.
He quickly called the young man who carried his weapons, and ordered him, “Draw your sword and kill me, so they won't say about me that a woman killed him.” So the young man drove his sword through him, and he died.
55 When the Israeli soldiers saw that Abimelech was dead, they all returned to their homes.
When the Israelites saw that Abimelech was dead, they all left and 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.
This is how God paid back Abimelech's crime against his father of 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].
He also repaid the people of Shechem for their evil, and the curse of Jotham, son of Jerub-baal, came down upon them.
