Judges 9:1-8

Abimelech Murders His Brothers

9:1 Now Abimelech son of Jerub-Baal went to Shechem to see his mother’s relatives. ¹  He said to them and to his mother’s entire extended family, ²  9:2 “Tell ³  all the leaders of Shechem this: ‘Why would you want ⁴  to have seventy men, all Jerub-Baal’s sons, ruling over you, when you can have just one ruler? Recall that I am your own flesh and blood.’” ⁵  9:3 His mother’s relatives ⁶  spoke on his behalf to ⁷  all the leaders of Shechem and reported his proposal. ⁸  The leaders were drawn to Abimelech; ⁹  they said, “He is our close relative.” ¹⁰  9:4 They paid him seventy silver shekels out of the temple of Baal-Berith. Abimelech then used the silver to hire some lawless, dangerous ¹¹  men as his followers. ¹²  9:5 He went to his father’s home in Ophrah and murdered his half-brothers, ¹³  the seventy legitimate ¹⁴  sons of Jerub-Baal, on one stone. Only Jotham, Jerub-Baal’s youngest son, escaped, ¹⁵  because he hid. 9:6 All the leaders of Shechem and Beth Millo assembled and then went and made Abimelech king by the oak near the pillar ¹⁶  in Shechem.

Jotham’s Parable

9:7 When Jotham heard the news, ¹⁷  he went and stood on the top of Mount Gerizim. He spoke loudly to the people below, ¹⁸  “Listen to me, leaders of Shechem, so that God may listen to you!

9:8 “The trees were determined to go out ¹⁹  and choose a king for themselves. ²⁰  They said to the olive tree, ‘Be our king!’ ²¹ 

[9:1]  ¹ tn Heb “brothers.”

[9:1]  ² tn Heb “to all the extended family of the house of the father of his mother.”

[9:2]  ³ tn Heb “Speak into the ears of.”

[9:2]  ⁴ tn Heb “What good is it to you?”

[9:2]  ⁵ tn Heb “your bone and your flesh.”

[9:3]  ⁶ tn Heb “brothers.”

[9:3]  ⁷ tn Heb “into the ears of.”

[9:3]  ⁸ tn Heb “and all these words.”

[9:3]  ⁹ tn Heb “Their heart was inclined after Abimelech.”

[9:3]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “our brother.”

[9:4]  ¹¹ tn Heb “empty and reckless.”

[9:4]  ¹² tn Heb “and they followed him.”

[9:5]  ¹³ tn Heb “his brothers.”

[9:5]  ¹⁴ tn The word “legitimate” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarification.

[9:5]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “remained.”

[9:6]  ¹⁶ tc The translation assumes that the form in the Hebrew text (מֻצָּב, mutsav) is a corruption of an original מַצֵּבָה (matsevah, “pillar”). The reference is probably to a pagan object of worship (cf. LXX).

[9:7]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “And they reported to Jotham.” The subject of the plural verb is indefinite.

[9:7]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “He lifted his voice and called and said to them.”

[9:8]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “Going they went, the trees.” The precise emphatic force of the infinitive absolute (“Going”) is not entirely clear. Perhaps here it indicates determination, as in Gen 31:30, where one might translate, “You have insisted on going away.”

[9:8]  ²⁰ tn Heb “to anoint [with oil] over them a king.”

[9:8]  ²¹ tn Or “Rule over us!”