< Κριταί 9 >

1 καὶ ἐπορεύθη Αβιμελεχ υἱὸς Ιεροβααλ εἰς Συχεμ πρὸς ἀδελφοὺς μητρὸς αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐλάλησεν πρὸς αὐτοὺς καὶ πρὸς πᾶσαν συγγένειαν οἴκου πατρὸς μητρὸς αὐτοῦ λέγων
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 λαλήσατε δὴ ἐν τοῖς ὠσὶν πάντων τῶν ἀνδρῶν Συχεμ τί τὸ ἀγαθὸν ὑμῖν κυριεῦσαι ὑμῶν ἑβδομήκοντα ἄνδρας πάντας υἱοὺς Ιεροβααλ ἢ κυριεύειν ὑμῶν ἄνδρα ἕνα καὶ μνήσθητε ὅτι ὀστοῦν ὑμῶν καὶ σὰρξ ὑμῶν εἰμι
“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 καὶ ἐλάλησαν περὶ αὐτοῦ οἱ ἀδελφοὶ τῆς μητρὸς αὐτοῦ ἐν τοῖς ὠσὶν πάντων τῶν ἀνδρῶν Συχεμ πάντας τοὺς λόγους τούτους καὶ ἔκλινεν ἡ καρδία αὐτῶν ὀπίσω Αβιμελεχ ὅτι εἶπαν ἀδελφὸς ἡμῶν ἐστιν
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 καὶ ἔδωκαν αὐτῷ ἑβδομήκοντα ἀργυρίου ἐξ οἴκου Βααλβεριθ καὶ ἐμισθώσατο ἑαυτῷ Αβιμελεχ ἄνδρας κενοὺς καὶ δειλούς καὶ ἐπορεύθησαν ὀπίσω αὐτοῦ
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 καὶ εἰσῆλθεν εἰς τὸν οἶκον τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτοῦ εἰς Εφραθα καὶ ἀπέκτεινεν τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς αὐτοῦ υἱοὺς Ιεροβααλ ἑβδομήκοντα ἄνδρας ἐπὶ λίθον ἕνα καὶ κατελείφθη Ιωαθαν υἱὸς Ιεροβααλ ὁ νεώτερος ὅτι ἐκρύβη
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 καὶ συνήχθησαν πάντες ἄνδρες Σικιμων καὶ πᾶς οἶκος Βηθμααλων καὶ ἐπορεύθησαν καὶ ἐβασίλευσαν τὸν Αβιμελεχ πρὸς τῇ βαλάνῳ τῇ εὑρετῇ τῆς στάσεως τῆς ἐν Σικιμοις
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 καὶ ἀνηγγέλη τῷ Ιωαθαν καὶ ἐπορεύθη καὶ ἔστη ἐπὶ κορυφὴν ὄρους Γαριζιν καὶ ἐπῆρεν τὴν φωνὴν αὐτοῦ καὶ ἔκλαυσεν καὶ εἶπεν αὐτοῖς ἀκούσατέ μου ἄνδρες Σικιμων καὶ ἀκούσεται ὑμῶν ὁ θεός
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 πορευόμενα ἐπορεύθη τὰ ξύλα τοῦ χρῖσαι ἐφ’ ἑαυτὰ βασιλέα καὶ εἶπον τῇ ἐλαίᾳ βασίλευσον ἐφ’ ἡμῶν
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 καὶ εἶπεν αὐτοῖς ἡ ἐλαία μὴ ἀπολείψασα τὴν πιότητά μου ἐν ᾗ δοξάσουσι τὸν θεὸν ἄνδρες πορεύσομαι κινεῖσθαι ἐπὶ τῶν ξύλων
“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 καὶ εἶπον τὰ ξύλα τῇ συκῇ δεῦρο βασίλευσον ἐφ’ ἡμῶν
“Then the trees said to the fig tree, ‘You come and be our king!’
11 καὶ εἶπεν αὐτοῖς ἡ συκῆ μὴ ἀπολείψασα ἐγὼ τὴν γλυκύτητά μου καὶ τὰ γενήματά μου τὰ ἀγαθὰ πορεύσομαι κινεῖσθαι ἐπὶ τῶν ξύλων
“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 καὶ εἶπαν τὰ ξύλα πρὸς τὴν ἄμπελον δεῦρο σὺ βασίλευσον ἐφ’ ἡμῶν
“Then the trees said to the grapevine, ‘Come and be our king!’
13 καὶ εἶπεν αὐτοῖς ἡ ἄμπελος μὴ ἀπολείψασα τὸν οἶνόν μου τὸν εὐφραίνοντα θεὸν καὶ ἀνθρώπους πορεύσομαι κινεῖσθαι ἐπὶ τῶν ξύλων
“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 καὶ εἶπαν πάντα τὰ ξύλα τῇ ῥάμνῳ δεῦρο σὺ βασίλευσον ἐφ’ ἡμῶν
“Then all the trees said to the thornbush, ‘Come and be our king!’
15 καὶ εἶπεν ἡ ῥάμνος πρὸς τὰ ξύλα εἰ ἐν ἀληθείᾳ χρίετέ με ὑμεῖς τοῦ βασιλεύειν ἐφ’ ὑμᾶς δεῦτε ὑπόστητε ἐν τῇ σκιᾷ μου καὶ εἰ μή ἐξέλθῃ πῦρ ἀπ’ ἐμοῦ καὶ καταφάγῃ τὰς κέδρους τοῦ Λιβάνου
“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 καὶ νῦν εἰ ἐν ἀληθείᾳ καὶ τελειότητι ἐποιήσατε καὶ ἐβασιλεύσατε τὸν Αβιμελεχ καὶ εἰ ἀγαθωσύνην ἐποιήσατε μετὰ Ιεροβααλ καὶ μετὰ τοῦ οἴκου αὐτοῦ καὶ εἰ ὡς ἀνταπόδοσις χειρὸς αὐτοῦ ἐποιήσατε αὐτῷ
“[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 ὡς παρετάξατο ὁ πατήρ μου ὑπὲρ ὑμῶν καὶ ἐξέρριψεν τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ ἐξ ἐναντίας καὶ ἐρρύσατο ὑμᾶς ἐκ χειρὸς Μαδιαμ
“[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 καὶ ὑμεῖς ἐπανέστητε ἐπὶ τὸν οἶκον τοῦ πατρός μου σήμερον καὶ ἀπεκτείνατε τοὺς υἱοὺς αὐτοῦ ἑβδομήκοντα ἄνδρας ἐπὶ λίθον ἕνα καὶ ἐβασιλεύσατε τὸν Αβιμελεχ υἱὸν παιδίσκης αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τοὺς ἄνδρας Σικιμων ὅτι ἀδελφὸς ὑμῶν ἐστιν
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 καὶ εἰ ἐν ἀληθείᾳ καὶ τελειότητι ἐποιήσατε μετὰ Ιεροβααλ καὶ μετὰ τοῦ οἴκου αὐτοῦ ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ ταύτῃ εὐφρανθείητε ἐν Αβιμελεχ καὶ εὐφρανθείη καί γε αὐτὸς ἐφ’ ὑμῖν
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 εἰ δὲ οὐ ἐξέλθοι πῦρ ἀπὸ Αβιμελεχ καὶ φάγοι τοὺς ἄνδρας Σικιμων καὶ τὸν οἶκον Βηθμααλλων καὶ ἐξέλθοι πῦρ ἀπὸ ἀνδρῶν Σικιμων καὶ ἐκ τοῦ οἴκου Βηθμααλλων καὶ καταφάγοι τὸν Αβιμελεχ
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 καὶ ἔφυγεν Ιωαθαν καὶ ἀπέδρα καὶ ἐπορεύθη ἕως Βαιηρ καὶ ᾤκησεν ἐκεῖ ἀπὸ προσώπου Αβιμελεχ ἀδελφοῦ αὐτοῦ
[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 καὶ ἦρξεν Αβιμελεχ ἐπὶ Ισραηλ τρία ἔτη
Abimelech [became the leader of all the people of Israel. He] ruled them for three years.
23 καὶ ἐξαπέστειλεν ὁ θεὸς πνεῦμα πονηρὸν ἀνὰ μέσον Αβιμελεχ καὶ ἀνὰ μέσον τῶν ἀνδρῶν Σικιμων καὶ ἠθέτησαν ἄνδρες Σικιμων ἐν τῷ οἴκῳ Αβιμελεχ
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 τοῦ ἐπαγαγεῖν τὴν ἀδικίαν τῶν ἑβδομήκοντα υἱῶν Ιεροβααλ καὶ τὰ αἵματα αὐτῶν τοῦ θεῖναι ἐπὶ Αβιμελεχ τὸν ἀδελφὸν αὐτῶν ὃς ἀπέκτεινεν αὐτούς καὶ ἐπὶ ἄνδρας Σικιμων ὅτι ἐνίσχυσαν τὰς χεῖρας αὐτοῦ ἀποκτεῖναι τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς αὐτοῦ
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 καὶ ἔθηκαν αὐτῷ οἱ ἄνδρες Σικιμων ἐνεδρεύοντας ἐπὶ τὰς κεφαλὰς τῶν ὀρέων καὶ διήρπαζον πάντα ὃς παρεπορεύετο ἐπ’ αὐτοὺς ἐν τῇ ὁδῷ καὶ ἀπηγγέλη τῷ βασιλεῖ Αβιμελεχ
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 καὶ ἦλθεν Γααλ υἱὸς Ιωβηλ καὶ οἱ ἀδελφοὶ αὐτοῦ καὶ παρῆλθον ἐν Σικιμοις καὶ ἦλπισαν ἐν αὐτῷ οἱ ἄνδρες Σικιμων
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 καὶ ἐξῆλθον εἰς ἀγρὸν καὶ ἐτρύγησαν τοὺς ἀμπελῶνας αὐτῶν καὶ ἐπάτησαν καὶ ἐποίησαν ελλουλιμ καὶ εἰσήνεγκαν εἰς οἶκον θεοῦ αὐτῶν καὶ ἔφαγον καὶ ἔπιον καὶ κατηράσαντο τὸν Αβιμελεχ
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 καὶ εἶπεν Γααλ υἱὸς Ιωβηλ τίς ἐστιν Αβιμελεχ καὶ τίς ἐστιν υἱὸς Συχεμ ὅτι δουλεύσομεν αὐτῷ οὐχ υἱὸς Ιεροβααλ καὶ Ζεβουλ ἐπίσκοπος αὐτοῦ δοῦλος αὐτοῦ σὺν τοῖς ἀνδράσιν Εμμωρ πατρὸς Συχεμ καὶ τί ὅτι δουλεύσομεν αὐτῷ ἡμεῖς
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 καὶ τίς δῴη τὸν λαὸν τοῦτον ἐν χειρί μου καὶ μεταστήσω τὸν Αβιμελεχ καὶ ἐρῶ πρὸς αὐτόν πλήθυνον τὴν δύναμίν σου καὶ ἔξελθε
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 καὶ ἤκουσεν Ζεβουλ ἄρχων τῆς πόλεως τοὺς λόγους Γααλ υἱοῦ Ιωβηλ καὶ ὠργίσθη θυμῷ αὐτός
When someone told Zebul what Gaal said, he was very angry.
31 καὶ ἀπέστειλεν ἀγγέλους πρὸς Αβιμελεχ ἐν κρυφῇ λέγων ἰδοὺ Γααλ υἱὸς Ιωβηλ καὶ οἱ ἀδελφοὶ αὐτοῦ ἔρχονται εἰς Συχεμ καὶ ἰδοὺ αὐτοὶ περικάθηνται τὴν πόλιν ἐπὶ σέ
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 καὶ νῦν ἀναστὰς νυκτὸς σὺ καὶ ὁ λαὸς ὁ μετὰ σοῦ καὶ ἐνέδρευσον ἐν τῷ ἀγρῷ
You and your men should get up during the night and go and hide in the fields outside the city.
33 καὶ ἔσται τὸ πρωὶ ἅμα τῷ ἀνατεῖλαι τὸν ἥλιον ὀρθριεῖς καὶ ἐκτενεῖς ἐπὶ τὴν πόλιν καὶ ἰδοὺ αὐτὸς καὶ ὁ λαὸς ὁ μετ’ αὐτοῦ ἐκπορεύονται πρὸς σέ καὶ ποιήσεις αὐτῷ ὅσα ἂν εὕρῃ ἡ χείρ σου
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 καὶ ἀνέστη Αβιμελεχ καὶ πᾶς ὁ λαὸς μετ’ αὐτοῦ νυκτὸς καὶ ἐνήδρευσαν ἐπὶ Συχεμ τέτρασιν ἀρχαῖς
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 καὶ ἐξῆλθεν Γααλ υἱὸς Ιωβηλ καὶ ἔστη πρὸς τῇ θύρᾳ τῆς πύλης τῆς πόλεως καὶ ἀνέστη Αβιμελεχ καὶ ὁ λαὸς ὁ μετ’ αὐτοῦ ἀπὸ τοῦ ἐνέδρου
[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 καὶ εἶδεν Γααλ υἱὸς Ιωβηλ τὸν λαὸν καὶ εἶπεν πρὸς Ζεβουλ ἰδοὺ λαὸς καταβαίνει ἀπὸ κεφαλῶν τῶν ὀρέων καὶ εἶπεν πρὸς αὐτὸν Ζεβουλ τὴν σκιὰν τῶν ὀρέων σὺ βλέπεις ὡς ἄνδρας
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 καὶ προσέθετο ἔτι Γααλ τοῦ λαλῆσαι καὶ εἶπεν ἰδοὺ λαὸς καταβαίνων κατὰ θάλασσαν ἀπὸ τοῦ ἐχόμενα ὀμφαλοῦ τῆς γῆς καὶ ἀρχὴ ἑτέρα ἔρχεται διὰ ὁδοῦ Ηλωνμαωνενιμ
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 καὶ εἶπεν πρὸς αὐτὸν Ζεβουλ καὶ ποῦ ἐστιν τὸ στόμα σου ὡς ἐλάλησας τίς ἐστιν Αβιμελεχ ὅτι δουλεύσομεν αὐτῷ μὴ οὐχὶ οὗτος ὁ λαός ὃν ἐξουδένωσας ἔξελθε δὴ νῦν καὶ παράταξαι αὐτῷ
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 καὶ ἐξῆλθεν Γααλ ἐνώπιον ἀνδρῶν Συχεμ καὶ παρετάξατο πρὸς Αβιμελεχ
So Gaal led the men of Shechem outside [the city] to fight Abimelech [and his men].
40 καὶ ἐδίωξεν αὐτὸν Αβιμελεχ καὶ ἔφυγεν ἀπὸ προσώπου αὐτοῦ καὶ ἔπεσαν τραυματίαι πολλοὶ ἕως τῆς θύρας τῆς πύλης
Abimelech and his men pursued them, and they killed many of Gaal’s men before they could return [safely] inside the city gate.
41 καὶ εἰσῆλθεν Αβιμελεχ ἐν Αρημα καὶ ἐξέβαλεν Ζεβουλ τὸν Γααλ καὶ τοὺς ἀδελφοὺς αὐτοῦ μὴ οἰκεῖν ἐν Συχεμ
Abimelech then stayed at Arumah, [about five miles away from Shechem], and Zebul’s men forced Gaal and his brothers to leave Shechem.
42 καὶ ἐγένετο τῇ ἐπαύριον καὶ ἐξῆλθεν ὁ λαὸς εἰς τὸν ἀγρόν καὶ ἀνήγγειλεν τῷ Αβιμελεχ
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 καὶ ἔλαβεν τὸν λαὸν καὶ διεῖλεν αὐτοὺς εἰς τρεῖς ἀρχὰς καὶ ἐνήδρευσεν ἐν ἀγρῷ καὶ εἶδεν καὶ ἰδοὺ ὁ λαὸς ἐξῆλθεν ἐκ τῆς πόλεως καὶ ἀνέστη ἐπ’ αὐτοὺς καὶ ἐπάταξεν αὐτούς
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 καὶ Αβιμελεχ καὶ οἱ ἀρχηγοὶ οἱ μετ’ αὐτοῦ ἐξέτειναν καὶ ἔστησαν παρὰ τὴν θύραν τῆς πύλης τῆς πόλεως καὶ αἱ δύο ἀρχαὶ ἐξέτειναν ἐπὶ πάντας τοὺς ἐν τῷ ἀγρῷ καὶ ἐπάταξαν αὐτούς
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 καὶ Αβιμελεχ παρετάσσετο ἐν τῇ πόλει ὅλην τὴν ἡμέραν ἐκείνην καὶ κατελάβετο τὴν πόλιν καὶ τὸν λαὸν τὸν ἐν αὐτῇ ἀπέκτεινεν καὶ καθεῖλεν τὴν πόλιν καὶ ἔσπειρεν εἰς ἅλας
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 καὶ ἤκουσαν πάντες οἱ ἄνδρες πύργων Συχεμ καὶ ἦλθον εἰς συνέλευσιν Βαιθηλβεριθ
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 καὶ ἀνηγγέλη τῷ Αβιμελεχ ὅτι συνήχθησαν πάντες οἱ ἄνδρες πύργων Συχεμ
But someone told Abimelech that all the leaders had gathered there.
48 καὶ ἀνέβη Αβιμελεχ εἰς ὄρος Ερμων καὶ πᾶς ὁ λαὸς ὁ μετ’ αὐτοῦ καὶ ἔλαβεν Αβιμελεχ τὰς ἀξίνας ἐν τῇ χειρὶ αὐτοῦ καὶ ἔκοψεν κλάδον ξύλου καὶ ἦρεν καὶ ἔθηκεν ἐπ’ ὤμων αὐτοῦ καὶ εἶπεν τῷ λαῷ τῷ μετ’ αὐτοῦ ὃ εἴδετέ με ποιοῦντα ταχέως ποιήσατε ὡς ἐγώ
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 καὶ ἔκοψαν καί γε ἀνὴρ κλάδον πᾶς ἀνὴρ καὶ ἐπορεύθησαν ὀπίσω Αβιμελεχ καὶ ἐπέθηκαν ἐπὶ τὴν συνέλευσιν καὶ ἐνεπύρισαν ἐπ’ αὐτοὺς τὴν συνέλευσιν ἐν πυρί καὶ ἀπέθανον καί γε πάντες οἱ ἄνδρες πύργου Σικιμων ὡς χίλιοι ἄνδρες καὶ γυναῖκες
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 καὶ ἐπορεύθη Αβιμελεχ ἐκ Βαιθηλβεριθ καὶ παρενέβαλεν ἐν Θηβης καὶ κατέλαβεν αὐτήν
Then Abimelech and his men went to Thebes [city]. They surrounded it and captured it.
51 καὶ πύργος ἰσχυρὸς ἦν ἐν μέσῳ τῆς πόλεως καὶ ἔφυγον ἐκεῖ πάντες οἱ ἄνδρες καὶ αἱ γυναῖκες τῆς πόλεως καὶ ἔκλεισαν ἔξωθεν αὐτῶν καὶ ἀνέβησαν ἐπὶ τὸ δῶμα τοῦ πύργου
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 καὶ ἦλθεν Αβιμελεχ ἕως τοῦ πύργου καὶ παρετάξαντο αὐτῷ καὶ ἤγγισεν Αβιμελεχ ἕως τῆς θύρας τοῦ πύργου τοῦ ἐμπρῆσαι αὐτὸν ἐν πυρί
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 καὶ ἔρριψεν γυνὴ μία κλάσμα ἐπιμυλίου ἐπὶ κεφαλὴν Αβιμελεχ καὶ ἔκλασεν τὸ κρανίον αὐτοῦ
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 καὶ ἐβόησεν ταχὺ πρὸς τὸ παιδάριον τὸ αἶρον τὰ σκεύη αὐτοῦ καὶ εἶπεν αὐτῷ σπάσον τὴν ῥομφαίαν μου καὶ θανάτωσόν με μήποτε εἴπωσιν γυνὴ ἀπέκτεινεν αὐτόν καὶ ἐξεκέντησεν αὐτὸν τὸ παιδάριον αὐτοῦ καὶ ἀπέθανεν
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 καὶ εἶδεν ἀνὴρ Ισραηλ ὅτι ἀπέθανεν Αβιμελεχ καὶ ἐπορεύθησαν ἀνὴρ εἰς τὸν τόπον αὐτοῦ
When the Israeli soldiers saw that Abimelech was dead, they all returned to their homes.
56 καὶ ἐπέστρεψεν ὁ θεὸς τὴν πονηρίαν Αβιμελεχ ἣν ἐποίησεν τῷ πατρὶ αὐτοῦ ἀποκτεῖναι τοὺς ἑβδομήκοντα ἀδελφοὺς αὐτοῦ
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 καὶ τὴν πᾶσαν πονηρίαν ἀνδρῶν Συχεμ ἐπέστρεψεν ὁ θεὸς εἰς κεφαλὴν αὐτῶν καὶ ἐπῆλθεν ἐπ’ αὐτοὺς ἡ κατάρα Ιωαθαν υἱοῦ Ιεροβααλ
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].

< Κριταί 9 >