Dommernes 9
1 Abimelek, son åt Jerubba’al, for til Sikem, til morbrørne sine, og tala med deim og med alt morfolket sitt:
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 «Kjære dykk, » sagde han, «tala til alle Sikems-mennerne, og seg: «Kva er best for dykk: at sytti mann, alle sønerne åt Jerubba’al, styrer dykk, eller at ein mann styrer dykk?» Og kom so i hug at me er same folket!»
“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 Då tala morbrørne hans um honom for alle borgarane i Sikem, og sagde alt dette; og hugen drog deim til Abimelek. «Han er ein av våre!» sagde dei.
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 So gav dei honom sytti lodd sylv av tempelskatten åt Sambands-Ba’al. For deim leigde Abimelek nokre lause uvyrdne karar, og dei fylgde honom kvar han gjekk.
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 So for han til huset åt far sin i Ofra, og drap brørne sine, sønerne åt Jerubba’al, sytti mann på ein stein; berre Jotam, den yngste sonen åt Jerubba’al, vart att; han hadde fenge løynt seg.
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 Då samla dei seg, alle borgarane i Sikem og alt folket i Millo, og dei drog ut og valde Abimelek til konge under Minnesteinseiki ved Sikem.
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 Då Jotam fekk spurt det, steig han upp på toppen av Gerizimfjellet; der stod han, og ropa til deim og sagde: «Høyr på meg, Sikems-menner, so sant de vil at Gud skal høyra på dykk!
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 Det var ein gong trei vilde kåra seg ein konge. Dei sagde til oljetreet: «Du skal vera kongen vår!»
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 Men oljetreet svara: «Skulde eg missa oljen min, som gudar og menneskje ærar meg for, og gjeva meg til å svaga att og fram yver skogen?»
“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 Då sagde dei til fiketreet: «Kom du og ver kongen vår!»
“Then the trees said to the fig tree, ‘You come and be our king!’
11 Og Fiketreet svara: «Skulde eg missa søtleiken min og den gode frukti mi, og gjeva meg til å svaga at og fram yver skogen?»
“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 So sagde dei til vintreet: «Kom du og ver kongen vår!»
“Then the trees said to the grapevine, ‘Come and be our king!’
13 Vintreet svara: «Skulde eg missa safti mi, som gjer gudar og menneskje glade, og gjeva meg til å svaga att og fram yver skogen?»
“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 Då sagde alle trei til klungeren: «Kom so du og ver kongen vår!»
“Then all the trees said to the thornbush, ‘Come and be our king!’
15 «Er det ålvor at de vil kåra meg til konge, » sagde klungeren, «so kom og svala dykk i skuggen min! Men er det ikkje, so skal det fara eld ut frå klungeren og øyda cedrarne på Libanon.»
“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 Hev no de fare truge og ærleg fram med di de hev teke Abimelek til konge, og hev de gjort vel mot Jerubba’al og ætti hans, og hev de gjort lika for det han gjorde,
“[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 då han, far min, stridde for dykk, og våga livet, og berga dykk frå midjanitarne
“[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 - og endå hev de no reist dykk mot ætti åt far min, og drepe sønerne hans, sytti mann på ein stein, og gjort Abimelek, son åt terna hans, til konge yver Sikems-buarne, for di han er skyld dykk -
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 hev de no i dag fare truge og ærleg fram mot Jerubba’al og ætti hans, so gjev de må få gleda av Abimelek, og gjev han må få gleda av dykk!
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 Men hev de ikkje det, so gjev det må fara eld ut frå Abimelek og tyna Sikems-buarne og Millo-folket, og gjev det må fara eld ut frå Sikems-buarne og Millo-folket, og tyna Abimelek!»
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 So rømde Jotam, og kom seg undan; sidan for han til Be’er, og der slo han seg ned, so Abimelek, bror hans, ikkje kunde nå i honom.
[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 tri år rådde Abimelek i Israel.
Abimelech [became the leader of all the people of Israel. He] ruled them for three years.
23 Då sende Gud ei vond ånd som sette ilt millom Abimelek og Sikems-mennerne, og Sikems-mennerne sveik Abimelek;
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 Gud vilde at valdsverket mot dei sytti sønerne åt Jerubba’al skulde hemnast, og blodet deira koma yver Abimelek, bror deira, som hadde drepe deim, og yver Sikems-mennerne, som hadde gjeve honom magt til å drepa brørne sine.
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 Sikems-mennerne sette ut vaktmenner på fjelltindarne, som skulde halda auga med Abimelek, og røva alle som for framum der på vegen, og Abimelek fekk vita det.
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 Ved det leitet kom Ga’al Ebedsson med brørne sine og flutte inn i Sikem, og Sikems-mennerne sette lit til honom.
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 Dei gjekk ut på marki, og hausta vinhagarne sine og persa druvorne; so heldt dei takkehøgtid, og gjekk inn i templet åt guden sin, og åt og drakk og banna Abimelek.
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 Og Ga’al Ebedsson sagde: «Er Abimelek slik mann, og sikemitarne slike folk, at me skulde vera tenarane hans? Hev’kje son åt Jerubba’al og Zebul, futen hans, tent ætti åt Hemor, den gamle Sikems-kongen? Men kvi skulde me so tena honom mannen.
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 Gjev eg hadde hand yver dette folket, so skulde eg snart få Abimelek or vegen. Auka heren din, Abimelek, og kom!» kytte han.
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 Då Zebul, byhovdingen, fekk høyra kva Ga’al Ebedsson hadde sagt, vart han harm;
When someone told Zebul what Gaal said, he was very angry.
31 han sende i løynd bod til Abimelek og sagde: «Ga’al Ebedsson og brørne hans er komne til Sikem, og øser upp byen mot deg.
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 Tak no i vegen nattars tid med det folket du hev hjå deg, og legg deg på lur på marki;
You and your men should get up during the night and go and hide in the fields outside the city.
33 og når det dagast, og soli sprett, so brjot upp og renn fram imot byen; då fer Ga’al og folket hans ut imot deg, og du kann gjera med honom som du fær høve til.»
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 So tok Abimelek ut um natti med alle dei folki han hadde hjå seg, og dei lagde seg på lur mot Sikem i fire flokkar.
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 No bar det so til at Ga’al Ebedsson kom ut og stod i byporten i same bilet som Abimelek og folki hans braut fram frå løynlega.
[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 Ga’al såg deim, og sagde til Zebul: «Sjå! Det kjem folk ned frå fjelltindarne!» «Det er skuggen av fjelli som du tek for folk, » svara Zebul.
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 Men Ga’al heldt på og tala: «Sjå der kjem det folk ned frå Midhø’i, » sagde han, «og ein flokk kjem etter den vegen som ber til Trollmanneiki.»
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 Då sagde Zebul: «Kvar er no dei store ordi dine, du som sagde: «Er Abimelek slik mann at me skulde vera tenarane hans?» Sjå her er dei folki som du vyrde so lite! Drag no ut, og strid imot deim!»
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 Då drog Ga’al ut med Sikems-mennerne i fylgje, og stridde mot Abimelek.
So Gaal led the men of Shechem outside [the city] to fight Abimelech [and his men].
40 Men Abimelek vann yver honom, og jaga han fyre seg, og det vart eit stort mannefall heilt burtåt byporten.
Abimelech and his men pursued them, and they killed many of Gaal’s men before they could return [safely] inside the city gate.
41 Sidan gav Abimelek seg til i Aruma, og Zebul dreiv Ga’al og brørne hans burt; dei måtte ikkje vera i Sikem.
Abimelech then stayed at Arumah, [about five miles away from Shechem], and Zebul’s men forced Gaal and his brothers to leave Shechem.
42 Dagen etter skulde Sikems-folket ut på marki. Det fekk Abimelek vita;
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 då tok han og bytte mannskapet sitt i tri flokkar, og lagde seg på lur på marki, og då han såg at folket kom ut or byen, sette han på deim og hogg deim ned.
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 Sjølv sprang han fram, og tok støde ved byporten med den flokken som fylgde honom, og dei hine tvo flokkarne rende på alle deim som var ute på marki, og slo deim i hel.
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 Abimelek kringsette byen heile den dagen, og tok honom, og drap folket som var der; byen reiv han ned, og strådde tufti med 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 Då folket i Sikemsborgi høyrde det, gjekk dei alle inn i tempelbygningen åt Sambands-Ba’al.
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 So snøgt som Abimelek fekk vita at alt folket i Sikemsborgi hadde flokka seg i hop på ein stad,
But someone told Abimelech that all the leaders had gathered there.
48 gjekk han med alle mennerne sine upp på Salmonfjellet. Han tok øksi si i hand, og hogg greiner av trei, tok deim upp, lagde deim på herdi, og sagde til mennerne sine: «Skunda dykk og gjer like eins som de såg eg gjorde!»
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 Då hogg alle mennerne og kvar si byrd med kvist og fylgde etter honom. So lagde dei veden uppetter tempelbygningen, og sette med den eld på bygningen. Soleis umkomst alt folket i Sikemsborgi, um lag tusund menner og kvinnor.
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 Sidan gjekk Abimelek mot Tebes; den byen kringsette han og tok.
Then Abimelech and his men went to Thebes [city]. They surrounded it and captured it.
51 Inni byen var det eit fast tårn; dit rømde alle menner og kvinnor, alt folket i byen, og dei stengde etter seg og gjekk upp på taket.
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 Då Abimelek kom til tårnet, kringsette han det; so gjekk han fram til porten og vilde setja eld på.
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 Då var det ei kvinna som kasta ein kvernstein ned på hovudet hans, so hausen brotna.
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 Abimelek ropa svint på sveinen som bar våpni hans, og sagde: «Drag sverdet ditt, og drep meg, so det ikkje skal segjast at ei kvinna slo meg i hel!» Då stakk sveinen sverdet gjenom honom, og han døydde.
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 Og då Israels-mennerne såg at han var slokna, gjekk kvar heim til sitt.
When the Israeli soldiers saw that Abimelech was dead, they all returned to their homes.
56 Soleis hemnde Gud den ugjerningi Abimelek gjorde mot far sin då han drap dei sytti brørne sine.
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 Og alt det vonde Sikems-mennerne hadde gjort, let Gud koma attyver deim; den våbøni Jotam Jerubba’alsson hadde lyst, fekk dei sanna.
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].
