It was bad enough when Gideon had only three hundred that God would employ. (3.) We can easily therefore comprehend how the holy wisdom of Scripture avoids details on a fact so contrary to the mind of God, as a man dealing thus with a human being, yea, with his own daughter. You've been saying who's Abimelech? Go out and take him on. I need not dwell on the deplorable details. Ceremony is easy and attractive to the flesh, and there may be the more, as there usually is, where there is least power or reality. And so the guy thrust him through anyhow and so they didn't say a woman killed him. When a suitable occasion arose and Abimelech was in another town, a group of Shechemites plotted to overthrow him. You shall rise early and rush upon the city: Zebul advised Abimelech to organize a surprise attack against the rebels of Shechem. This was an ungodly leader given to an ungodly people, who first rejected Gods leadership over the nation and then embraced a cruel and brutal man. This again makes the case of Israel still more clear, because it might have been supposed that surely the Amorite must be put out of the way, seeing that that most wicked race was devoted expressly to destruction. And the bramble said unto the trees, If in truth ye anoint me king over you, Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers, Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament. It was a shame that they needed to be put in mind of this. Pride, look what it would do, even when you're dying, you know. WebJudges 9:8-15 New International Version 8 One day the trees went out to anoint a king for themselves. For what can be more humiliating than that one's death should be more important than one's life? a. Now of course, he's calling, in an essence this Abimelech a bramble and you guys have, you know, you're settling for a bramble to rule over you.And having finished his rebuke and his speech, rebuking them for the evil that they have recompensed to Gideon. Should I cease my sweetness and my good fruit, They were filled with thoughts of destruction against Benjamin, and the remembrance that he was their brother had not even entered their minds before. The slaughter of the Shechemites, ver. It was not merely that the people were unworthily oppressed by the Ammonites, but Jephthah does not venture to go to war, nor does the Spirit of God clothe him with energy for the conflict, until he had the certainty in his soul that the cause was a righteous one, and this founded upon the dealings of God with the children of Israel and with Ammon respectively. Click to enable/disable Google Analytics tracking. Then, after many years of study people will be following you wanting what you have and you can share your secret with them. "Then all the children of Israel went out, and the congregation was gathered together as one man.". Samson made great destruction among the Philistines. Then went Samson down, and his father and his mother, to Timnath, and came to the vineyards of Timnath: and, behold, a young lion roared against him." What Every Christian Should Know about the Protestant Reformation. (Compare Psalms 78:60-61) Such are the prominent points of instruction in this appendix. Abimelech then killed all of his seventy brothers other than the youngest one of his brothers who escaped. And the oxen, as he would go around, would pull the stick and it would cause this millstone to go around the groove. And the men of Shechem set men in ambush against him on the tops of the mountains, and they robbed all who passed by them along that way; and it was told Abimelech. Web1. WebMatthew Henry's Commentary on Judges 9:8-15 Commentary on Judges 9:7-21 (Read Judges 9:7-21) There was no occasion for the trees to choose a king, they are all the It makes wise the simple; it enlightens the eyes. came with his brethren . He who could imbrue his hands in the blood of his brethren in order to get into power, was not likely to stop at any means to retain that power when possessed. Invariably, when you listen to the written word of God, range yourself on His side. for oil and wine were used both at God's altars and at men's tables. b. The men of Shechem (Judges 9:2-3) supported the plan because it was good for them, not because it was morally good or right. With a little exertion of voice, he could easily have been heard by the people of the city; for the hill so overhangs the valley, that a person from the side or summit would have no difficulty in speaking to listeners at the base. One test of the character of a man is to see how he treats those who disagree with him. 13). Scripture does not in any way vouch for the immaculateness of those even who wrought in faith. The men of Shechem put their confidence in him: The men of Shechem lost their confidence in Abimelech, so they chose a new leader named Gaal, the son of Ebed. And they possessed all the coasts of the Amorites, from Arnon even unto Jabbok.". We can all understand righteousness where the ground is clearly sanctioned of God; but is it not also strengthening to our hearts to find that, even where all was dark and faulty, God knows how to give effect to His principles? Go to your Bible and begin there to follow God's Word. etc. WebThe bramble said to the trees, If in truth you are anointing me as king over you, come and take refuge in my shade; but if not, may fire come out from the bramble and For a good useful man some would even dare to die. They only injured those who got too close to them. So whomsoever Jehovah our God shall drive out from before us, them will we possess. The chief administrator in Shechem pretended to be on their side, but secretly he sent news to Abimelech (26-33). Yet there is a more secure tower than the tower of Shechem. And so he's lying there and he says to his armourbearer, "Quick, thrust me through. You always can block or delete cookies by changing your browser settings and force blocking all cookies on this website. If you have the correct spirit (i.e. Due to security reasons we are not able to show or modify cookies from other domains. He was pretty tough on these false teachers and those that would destroy faith in the heart of a child. "It shall be that whatsoever cometh forth of the doors of my house to meet me." Let fire come out of the bramble A strong catachresis. "And the olive tree said, "Should I leave my fatness and so forth and rule over you? And I don't know what phenomena it is that creates it but sound would have to carry for Jesus to be able to address such large multitudes of people.Even down by the beach there is Caesarea right near the Mediterranean in an amphitheater that is there that was built by the Romans. . It does not matter what the line taken may be, no good end will ever be owned by God unless the way be according to His word and righteousness. (Judges 15:4-5). It was on this principle then that Jephthah pleads the righteousness of the cause that was now to be decided by the sword between Ammon and Israel. All are aware there are a great many who try to explain the difficulty away or soften it down. Contrariwise it was courted and continued down to the captivity. i. From the answer of the olive tree we learn that usefulness is better than honour. "Now gentle Jesus meek and mild, look upon this little child." He knew right well that the presence of the Amorites upon their skirts would be a continual snare and evil. And Samson said, Let me die with the Philistines. Ah! His secret was to keep his hair uncut, with all strength annexed to it. Here then we have certain facts, apart from the historic course, introduced in these words: "There was a man of mount Ephraim." There was the plainest proof of what God could be, even where there was but one man to work by; but this very fact showed to what a depth was Israel now sunk. Undoubtedly the children of Moab, Ammon, and Edom, for reasons of relationship at least, were exempted from the sentence to which God subjected the races of Canaan. Who's Abimelech? We have had the power of God acting in deliverance, but man alone is incapable even of a safe vow to Jehovah; and who could fail to foresee the bitter fruit of rashness here? I can stand on the stage and drop a pin and you can hear it sitting up there in the amphitheater with several hundred people. Bad as were the features we have seen, we have to see even worse still; yet he was heard and answered when he called. Is it they who say to Samson, "Knowest thou not that the Philistines are rulers over us?" We should each consider if God is warning us about something in the present time. The top of Gerizim is not so high in the rear of the town, as it is nearer to the plain. Click on the different category headings to find out more. Being thus proved to be in arms without right, the king of Ammon was only so much the more fierce, as is usual with people when convicted of a wrong to which their will is engaged. For You have been a shelter for me, a strong tower from the enemy. His abortive rule, however, ran roughshod over the divine requirements for that office. (Wolf), ii. 9 But the olive tree said unto them, Should I leave my fatness, wherewith by me they honour God and man, and go to be promoted over the trees? It was not true that the children of Israel had taken those lands as was pretended. (Judges 12:1-15) Jephthah might little desire such a conflict; nevertheless, where do we see meekness, where patience? And when Gaal saw the people, he said to Zebul, Look, people are coming down from the tops of the mountains! But Zebul said to him, You see the shadows of the mountains as if they were men. So Gaal spoke again and said, See, people are coming down from the center of the land, and another company is coming from the Diviners Terebinth Tree. Then Zebul said to him, Where indeed is your mouth now, with which you said, Who is Abimelech, that we should serve him? Are not these the people whom you despised? So Abimelech chased him, and many were overthrown and wounded, even to the entering of the gate. a. Abimelech came as far as the tower and fought against it: After his brutal victory at the tower of Shechem, Abimelech probably thought he was an expert at attacking towers. Preferment is apt to make men proud and slothful, and thus spoil their usefulness, with which in a lower sphere they honoured God and man, for which reason those that desire to do good are afraid of being too great. So it was pressed on Israel then. And be assured, brethren, that in an evil world patience is morally much beyond power. 15 And the bramble said unto the trees, If in truth ye anoint me king over you, then come and put your trust in my shadow: and if not, let fire come out of the bramble, and devour the cedars of Lebanon. Undoubtedly the iniquity was beyond measure on the part of the men of Benjamin, and an utter disgrace to God or even to Israel. But these millstones, probably, many of them weigh, that I have seen, weigh as much as four, five hundred pounds.Interesting that Jesus said concerning teachers that would destroy the faith in the heart of a child, it would be better for them if a millstone were hung around their neck and they were tossed in the Sea of Galilee that they to offend one of these little children. 42 - 49. Again, it is not of course any attainment of mine that leads me to speak as I have done now. Abimelech was no doubt the son of a concubine; but here we descend lower still. They said to the olive tree, Be our king. 9 But the olive tree answered, And what did Israel? ., and the men of Shechem put their confidence in him--An insurrection of the original Canaanites, headed by this man, at last broke out in Shechem. he fell, as did Adam at the beginning, and all since save one Christ. "And in those days the tribe of the Danites." And he said to the men of Shechem, [Now look fellas] who is Abimelech, and who is Shechem, that we should serve them? The descent is great, when one bearing the name of the Lord slights His word and seeks a path of his own. By the Holy Spirit only can we enter in and enjoy. Their faith was owned; but it was of a sadly mingled and imperfect character. WebAnd his mother's brethren spake of him in the ears of all the men of Shechem all these words: and their hearts inclined to follow Abimelech; for they said, He is our brother. "And Israel sent messengers unto Sihon king of the Amorites, the king of Heshbon; and Israel said unto him Let us pass, we pray thee, through thy land into my place." It is generally recognized as the first parable in the Bible. (1.) JOTHAM BY A PARABLE REPROACHES THEM. Not only were they in slavery, but content to be slaves, yea, traitors. This, at least, was right. Let no man question that Samson was in prison or that he lost his eyes for nothing. The story of Abimelech connects directly with the story of Gideon. And he was sore athirst, and called on Jehovah, and said, Thou hast given this great deliverance into the hand of thy servant: and now shall I die for thirst, and fall into the hand of the uncircumcised? And he found a new jawbone of an ass and put forth his hand, and took it, and slew a thousand men therewith. i. There he is. 89-95.]. ". God does not permit Israel, because this one or that is an enemy, to take the place of enemies to them. There is no difficulty in principle either way. Even his father and mother knew nothing about their son's movements. (Judges 9:1-57), On Tola and Jair (Judges 10:1-18) we need not pause; but in Jephthah again we have solemn issues brought out But here again is found the same brand of what was worthless or untowardly in the instruments that God used in a day of declension "Jephthah the Gileadite," we are told in Judges 11:1-40, "was a mighty man of valour, and he was the son of an harlot." Abimelech the son of Jerubbaal went to Shechem--The idolatry which had been stealthily They will get you Baptized. Jotham (lit. On the other hand, is there not real beauty in the obscurity in which Scripture treats a matter so painful? Parable of the Trees - Judges 9:8-15. Eastern people are exceedingly fond of parables and use them for conveying reproofs, which they could not give in any other way. As ever you hope to obtain God's favour, and to be accepted of him, give me a patient and impartial hearing." Now the moral importance of this was immense, for if they were simply doing the will and word of God, who could stand in their way? More he knew not, nor wished to learn. . And its sound just really carries over there. "His wife was barren, and bare not. The ruin of Christianity was when two systems so distinct got confounded. It was not for their lives, but for the truth He confessed, that His own people would have Him die. ., p. 10 And the trees said to the fig tree, Come thou, and reign over us. What was it when there was only one, and such an one as Samson? But did he heed the lesson conveyed in the fact himself? A watchman of His Word, Interesting, how can me know the words of God to the fullest. Let fire come out of the bramble.Some suppose that there is a reference to the ancient notions of the spontaneous ignition of the boughs of the bramble when rubbed together by the wind. But no "Sihon trusted not Israel to pass through his coast: but Sihon gathered all his people together, and pitched in Jahaz, and fought against Israel. The reference to the men of Shechem (Judges 9:2) is literally the baals of Shechem, the word having here its original meaning of lord or owner. (Cundall). But what a God we have to do with, as Samson had! The case before us, in Judges 17:1-13; Judges 18:1-31, is one where God was openly, deliberately, and systematically dishonoured. Since these providers may collect personal data like your IP address we allow you to block them here. As the children are playing you hear them laughing, screaming and all a couple miles away. All the people of the tower of Shechem died, about a thousand men and women: With this, Abimelech massacred the last survivors of the city of Shechem, killing about a thousand men and women. We come to look at a parable, the parable of the trees. Gaal . Because these cookies are strictly necessary to deliver the website, refusing them will have impact how our site functions. And it came about on the next day that the people went out into the field, and they told Abimelech. And it sounds sort of farfetched or preposterous but there are many places in the land where the acoustics are just natural; acoustics are really fantastic.If you're standing up on the Herodium there could be children playing two miles away and you can hear their conversations to each other. Is it possible to conceive a conjuncture of its kind more humiliating? It seems to me then that the reserve of the Holy Spirit is as strikingly according to God as the rashness of Jephthah is a solemn warning to man. In other words, let there come strife between the men of Shechem and Abimelech. Finally, the position was offered to the bramble, which not only produced nothing of value and was quite worthless as timber, but was a positive menace to the farmer who had to wage continual war against its encroachments. (Cundall), iii. This was for two reasons: God had not established a hereditary monarchy in Israel, and there were sixty-nine other sons of Gideon (Judges 8:30) who might also want to succeed their father. We know that men make it a question for ingenious minds to speculate on. We see that God was faithful; but the fidelity even of those whom He used in deliverance is another matter. Outwardly indeed he was separate. Therefore does the second part of the appendix (Judges 19:1-30; Judges 21:1-25) find a place directly afterwards. A very reprehensible action on the part of Jerubbaal, unconscionable. Chapter 9Now here's what happened. You'd never come up for sure.Well now there was this woman in the tower and she had a piece of a millstone. Nor should we wonder at it. The condensed moral of the whole fable is this: Weak, worthless, and wicked men, will ever be foremost to thrust themselves into power; and, in the end, to bring ruin upon themselves, and on the unhappy people over whom they preside. Really he said, "Put a millstone on her neck, throw him in the sea." 7 And when they told it to Jotham, he went and stood in the top of mount Gerizim, and lifted up his voice, and cried, and said unto them, Hearken unto me, ye men of Shechem, that God may hearken unto you. And he sent messengers unto Abimelech privately, saying, Behold, Gaal the son of Ebed and his brothers are come to Shechem; and they are fortifying the city against you. He would've been a good Mafia exterminator. The bramble was too low to give shelter to any tree; and so far from being able to consume others, that the smallest fire will reduce it to ashes, and that in the shortest time. We are not in a position to deal with another until God has dealt with that which is contrary to His name in our own soul; and so it was that the men of Benjamin were utterly smitten and well-nigh exterminated. I am far from doubting that God wrought in him whom He had made the champion of His people. if a man attempts: to put himself under it for shelter, he will find it will be of no use to him, but harmful, since, the nearer and closer he comes to it, the more he will be scratched and torn by it: and if not, let fire come out of the bramble, and devour the cedars of Lebanon; signifying, that if they did not heartily submit to his government, and put confidence in him, and prove faithful to him, they should smart for it, and feel his wrath and vengeance, even the greatest men among them, comparable to the cedars of Lebanon; for thorns and brambles catching fire, as they easily do, or fire being put to them, as weak as they are, and placed under the tallest and strongest cedars, will soon fetch them down to the ground; and the words of the bramble, or Abimelech, proved true to the Shechemites, he is made to speak in this parable. 1. But verse 30 seems adverse to this view. And it was told Abimelech that all the men of the tower of Shechem were gathered together. He went to Thebez and attacked the city and the tower there. Click to enable/disable _gid - Google Analytics Cookie. Then three thousand men of Judah went to the top of the rock Etam, and said to Samson, Knowest thou not that the Philistines are rulers over us?" The people, apparently confident that the matter was concluded, went out into the fields as usual to engage in their daily occupations. (Cundall). Why Does God Compare Our Relationship with Him to That of a Bride and This is an important principle. Indeed, Shechem was not rebuilt until the reign of Jeroboam I, almost two centuries later (1 Kings 12:25). (Wolf). Indeed, for Him to obey in such a world must have been suffering It could not be otherwise. O what a mercy it is to have God to take care of our walk! When they had it in their thoughts to choose a king they did not offer the government to the stately cedar, or the lofty pine, which are only for show and shade, and not otherwise useful till they are cut down, but to the fruit-trees, the vine and the olive. The consequence was that he allowed himself to be drawn into an ambush, was defeated, the city of Shechem destroyed and strewn with salt. So Abimelech came as far as the tower and fought against it; and he drew near the door of the tower to burn it with fire. And the ladies would come and just pour their wheat in the little groove and as the millstone would go by and it'd grind the wheat into flour. Then Abimelech and the company that was with him rushed forward and stood at the entrance of the gate of the city; and the other two companies rushed upon all who were in the fields and killed them. Killed his brothers, the seventy sons of Jerubbaal: Therefore, Abimelech killed his brothers with the support of his relatives on his mothers side. And he gave him a real rebuke and then he took off running as fast as he could go. Gideon had about seventy sons. But God was about to magnify Himself and His own ways. It was a long time, we might have justly thought, in the days of Gideon, to have known seven years' subjection; but we hear of a far longer period in the case of the Philistines, the hottest and most pertinacious of the hostile neighbours of Israel, and so much the more galling as being within their border. Gaal probably was not prepared for a siege; so he had little choice but to leave the city walls behind and confront Abimelech out in the open. (Wolf). They went and made Abimelech king: It is almost hard to tell who was worse; Abimelech who did the murdering, or the men of Shechem who approved of it. The result is that "the people rose as one man, saying, We will not any of us go to his tent, neither will we any of us turn into his house. Click to enable/disable _gat_* - Google Analytics Cookie. ABIMELECH IS MADE KING BY THE SHECHEMITES. They had been at length brought down to their right place before God; they had taken the shame to themselves; the Lord had chastised them, and they had needed and deserved it righteously. Abimelech came quickly and put down the rebellion (34-41).But Abimelech did not stop at that. Since I understand Jotham to be a prophet, he is presumably relaying a message from God. It was a great way about, and extremely inconvenient. WebJudges 9:8-15. He got an opportunity of speaking to them from the top of Mount Gerizim, the mount of blessings, at the foot of which probably the Shechemites were, upon some occasion or other, gathered together (Josephus says, solemnizing a festival), and it seems they were willing to hear what he had to say. And he looked, and there were the people, coming out of the city; and he rose against them and attacked them. They had no faith in the promise on God's part to Abraham or to his seed. If God permits him for a season to do his own will, what shame and pain he must reap ere long! There being no king is in contrast with other lands which had kings, as Israel themselves subsequently. To Samson, as we see, it was far different. Abimelech son of Jerub-Baal went to Shechem to his uncles and all his mothers relatives and said to them, Ask all the leading men of Shechem, What do you think is best, that seventy men rule youal And Abimelech the son of Jerubbaal went to Shechem to his mothers relatives, and spoke to them and to the whole clan of the Explanation - The following list includes not only commentaries but other Christian works by well known evangelical writers. "And Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, stood before it in those days, saying, Shall I yet again go out to battle against the children of Benjamin my brother, or shall I cease? How often it is ourselves who make the difficulties of which the enemy greedily avails himself against our own souls and His glory! i. 13. wine, which cheereth God and man--not certainly in the same manner. 1. Thus we may find the most striking manifestations of power in men as disorderly as the Corinthian Christians; but the same persons are a plain proof that it is a far harder thing to do the will of the Lord, and harder still to suffer according to God, than to work any miracles whatever. Is it not evident that Samson feebly knew what God was teaching him by the lion which he slew, and by the lion's carcase which he found with the honey in it? says Jephthah, "Jehovah God of Israel hath dispossessed the Amorites from before his people Israel, and shouldest thou possess it?" A work begun under the name and influence of the devil is not likely to end to the glory of God, or to the welfare of man. (Clarke). He could, if he had reflected, hardly expect an ox or a sheep to walk out of the house. 50 - 57. yet did he propose a most instructive riddle, which set forth justly the then condition of the people of God. Even if God interfere and produce the direct opposite of the fleshly enjoyment which self-will had sought, it is in no way to the man's praise if God effects his purposes by his acts, spite of wrong and folly. And the children of Israel enquired of Jehovah, for the ark of the covenant of God was there in those days.". . The olives are among the most beautiful trees that grow in the Holy Land. And so in one of those instances where positions, "Okay, now where's your mouth man? Now you know, they used to say of the sailors "a girl in every port." In due time the child was born, "and the Spirit of Jehovah began to move him at times in the camp of Dan between Zorah and Eshtaol." For the people of Shechem, even a secure tower could not protect them. One could understand three thousand men of the Philistines; but to what a deplorable pass in Israel were things come, when three thousand men of the worthiest tribe were thus obedient to the Philistines, and joined against the strong deliverer to hand him over, bound a prisoner, to the tender mercies of those that hated him and despised them! Whether is better for you, either that all the sons of Jerubbaal, . Alas! The bramble is a worthless plant, not to be numbered among the trees, useless and fruitless, nay, hurtful and vexatious, scratching and tearing, and doing mischief; it began with the curse, and its end is to be burned. When Zebul, the ruler of the city, heard the words of Gaal the son of Ebed, his anger was aroused: Zebul, the city manager on behalf of Abimelech, told Abimelech all about Gaal and this rebellion. a. Abimelech took an ax in his hand and cut down a boughWhat you have seen me do, make haste and do as I have done: Though Abimelech was an ungodly and violent man, he did understand some basic principles of leadership.