⚔️ Summary of Judges 9: ๐๐๐ Jotham on Mount Gerizim and God’s Judgment on Abimelech and the Men of Shechem!
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In the previous chapter, after Gideon killed the Midianite kings Zebah and Zalmunna...
The Israelites said to Gideon: “Rule over us—you, your son, and your grandson—for you have saved us from the hand of Midian.” (verse 22)
But Gideon answered them: “I will not rule over you, nor will my son rule over you; the Lord will rule over you.” (verse 23)
⚔️ Summary of Judges 9
Although Gideon had said that neither he nor his son would rule over Israel, Abimelech, Gideon’s son by his concubine, makes a plan to become king himself.
Abimelech’s Rise to Power and His Brutal Massacre
Abimelech persuades the people of Shechem, who were related to his mother.
He receives 70 pieces of silver from the temple of Baal-Berith.
With this money, he hires reckless and violent men and kills his 70 brothers, the sons of Gideon, on one stone.
Only the youngest son, Jotham, manages to escape.
Jotham’s Parable of the Thornbush
Jotham goes to the top of Mount Gerizim and tells the people of Shechem a parable:
The olive tree, the fig tree, and the vine all refuse to become king over the trees. Finally, only the thornbush, which produces no useful fruit, agrees to become their king.
Then Jotham declares:
“If you have acted in good faith and integrity toward Jerub-Baal and his family, let Abimelech be your joy, and let you be his joy.” (verse 19)
“But if you have not, let fire come out of Abimelech and consume the people of Shechem and the house of Millo; and let fire come out of the people of Shechem and the house of Millo and consume Abimelech.” (verse 20)
๐ We can understand why Jotham chose Mount Gerizim as the place from which to speak.
According to God’s command, when the blessings and curses of the Law were to be proclaimed, the tribe of Manasseh, one of the tribes descended from Joseph, was positioned on Mount Gerizim. (Deuteronomy 27) ๐
Jotham’s words: verse 19 of Judges 9 resembles a blessing, while verse 20 resembles a curse. ๐
✔️ We can see that Jotham wisely chose the place from which to speak, and that he also spoke with wisdom.
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God’s Judgment: The Destruction of Abimelech and the Men of Shechem
After Abimelech had ruled over Israel for three years, God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the people of Shechem, and the people of Shechem rebelled against Abimelech. (verses 22–23)
This happened so that the blood of the 70 sons of Jerub-Baal, whom Abimelech had killed, would be avenged upon Abimelech and the men of Shechem. (verse 24)
Abimelech attacks the city of Shechem.
“Abimelech fought against the city all that day; he captured the city and killed the people who were in it. Then he demolished the city and scattered salt over it.” (verse 45)
He then sets fire to the tower of Shechem, killing about 1,000 men and women.
Later, at the tower of Thebez, a woman drops an upper millstone on Abimelech’s head, crushing his skull.
To avoid the shame of being known as a man killed by a woman, Abimelech orders his young armor-bearer to kill him with a sword. Thus, he dies.
Conclusion
→ Abimelech went against the wishes of his own father.
→ Furthermore, Abimelech and the men of Shechem killed his own 70 brothers!
✔️ Jotham then proclaimed words of blessing and curse against them from Mount Gerizim. ๐
✔️ Mount Gerizim was the place associated with the blessings of God’s Law, while the Law also proclaimed the curses that would follow disobedience. Judges 9 records how God repaid Abimelech and the people of Shechem according to their own deeds. ๐
๐ I did not expect to find much in this chapter, but I discovered that it contained “very interesting hidden treasures.”
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