1 T hen Abimelech the son of Jerubbaal went to Shechem, to his mother’s brothers, and spoke with them and with all the family of the house of his mother’s father, saying,

Jerubbaal’s son Abimelech went to his mother’s family at Shechem. He said to them and to all those of the family of his mother’s father,

2 “ Please speak in the hearing of all the men of Shechem: ‘Which is better for you, that all seventy of the sons of Jerubbaal reign over you, or that one reign over you?’ Remember that I am your own flesh and bone.”

“Speak to all the leaders of Shechem. Say to them, ‘Which is better for you? Should all seventy of Jerubbaal’s sons rule over you? Or should one man rule over you? Remember that I am your own bone and flesh.’”

3 A nd his mother’s brothers spoke all these words concerning him in the hearing of all the men of Shechem; and their heart was inclined to follow Abimelech, for they said, “He is our brother.”

So his mother’s family spoke all these words for him in the ears of the leaders of Shechem. And they decided to follow Abimelech. For they said, “He is our brother.”

4 S o they gave him seventy shekels of silver from the temple of Baal-Berith, with which Abimelech hired worthless and reckless men; and they followed him.

They gave him seventy pieces of silver from the family of Baal-berith. Abimelech used the money to hire wild men of no worth who followed him.

5 T hen he went to his father’s house at Ophrah and killed his brothers, the seventy sons of Jerubbaal, on one stone. But Jotham the youngest son of Jerubbaal was left, because he hid himself.

Then he went to his father’s house at Ophrah. And he killed his brothers, the sons of Jerubbaal. He killed all seventy men upon one stone. But Jerubbaal’s youngest son Jotham was left alive, because he hid himself.

6 A nd all the men of Shechem gathered together, all of Beth Millo, and they went and made Abimelech king beside the terebinth tree at the pillar that was in Shechem. The Parable of the Trees

Then all the men of Shechem and of Beth-millo gathered together. They went and made Abimelech king, by the tree that had been set up in Shechem.

7 N ow when they told Jotham, he went and stood on top of Mount Gerizim, and lifted his voice and cried out. And he said to them: “Listen to me, you men of Shechem, That God may listen to you!

When it was told to Jotham, he went and stood on the top of Mount Gerizim. He called out to them in a loud voice, “Listen to me, O men of Shechem. So God may listen to you.

8 “ The trees once went forth to anoint a king over them. And they said to the olive tree, ‘Reign over us!’

One time the trees went out to choose a king to rule them. They said to the olive tree, ‘Rule over us!’

9 B ut the olive tree said to them, ‘Should I cease giving my oil, With which they honor God and men, And go to sway over trees?’

But the olive tree said to them, ‘Should I leave my riches of oil by which God and men are honored, and go to wave over the trees?’

10 “ Then the trees said to the fig tree, ‘You come and reign over us!’

Then the trees said to the fig tree, ‘You come and rule over us!’

11 B ut the fig tree said to them, ‘Should I cease my sweetness and my good fruit, And go to sway over trees?’

But the fig tree said to them, ‘Should I leave my good sweet fruit, and go to wave over the trees?’

12 “ Then the trees said to the vine, ‘You come and reign over us!’

So the trees said to the vine, ‘You come and rule over us!’

13 B ut the vine said to them, ‘Should I cease my new wine, Which cheers both God and men, And go to sway over trees?’

But the vine said to them, ‘Should I leave my new wine which makes God and men happy, and go to wave over the trees?’

14 “ Then all the trees said to the bramble, ‘You come and reign over us!’

Then all the trees said to the thorn bush, ‘You come and rule over us!’

15 A nd the bramble said to the trees, ‘If in truth you anoint me as king over you, Then come and take shelter in my shade; But if not, let fire come out of the bramble And devour the cedars of Lebanon!’

And the thorn bush said to the trees, ‘If in truth you are choosing me as king over you, come and be safe in my shadow. But if not, may fire come out of the thorn bush and burn up the tall trees of Lebanon.’

16 “ Now therefore, if you have acted in truth and sincerity in making Abimelech king, and if you have dealt well with Jerubbaal and his house, and have done to him as he deserves—

“Now it may be that you have acted in truth and honor in making Abimelech king. It may be that you have acted well toward Jerubbaal and his house, by paying him for what he did.

17 f or my father fought for you, risked his life, and delivered you out of the hand of Midian;

For my father fought for you. He put his life in danger to set you free from the power of Midian.

18 b ut you have risen up against my father’s house this day, and killed his seventy sons on one stone, and made Abimelech, the son of his female servant, king over the men of Shechem, because he is your brother—

But you have gone against my father’s house today. You have killed seventy of his sons on one stone. Abimelech is the son of my father’s woman servant. And you have made him king over the people of Shechem, because he is your brother.

19 i f then you have acted in truth and sincerity with Jerubbaal and with his house this day, then rejoice in Abimelech, and let him also rejoice in you.

If you have acted in truth and honor toward Jerubbaal and his house today, then be happy with Abimelech. And let him be happy with you.

20 “ But if not, let fire come from Abimelech and devour the men of Shechem and Beth Millo; and let fire come from the men of Shechem and from Beth Millo and devour Abimelech!”

But if not, let fire come out from Abimelech and burn up the people of Shechem and Beth-millo. Then let it burn up Abimelech.”

21 A nd Jotham ran away and fled; and he went to Beer and dwelt there, for fear of Abimelech his brother. Downfall of Abimelech

Jotham ran away from them and went to Beer. He stayed there, because he was afraid of his brother Abimelech.

22 A fter Abimelech had reigned over Israel three years,

Abimelech ruled over Israel for three years.

23 G od sent a spirit of ill will between Abimelech and the men of Shechem; and the men of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech,

Then God sent a bad spirit between Abimelech and the men of Shechem. The men of Shechem were not faithful to Abimelech.

24 t hat the crime done to the seventy sons of Jerubbaal might be settled and their blood be laid on Abimelech their brother, who killed them, and on the men of Shechem, who aided him in the killing of his brothers.

God did this to punish Abimelech and the men of Shechem, because the seventy sons of Jerubbaal were killed by their brother Abimelech. And the men of Shechem gave him the strength to do it.

25 A nd 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.

The men of Shechem went against Abimelech by hiding men on the mountain tops. They robbed all who passed by them on the road. Abimelech was told about it.

26 N ow Gaal the son of Ebed came with his brothers and went over to Shechem; and the men of Shechem put their confidence in him.

Now Gaal the son of Ebed moved with his family into Shechem. And the men of Shechem put their trust in him.

27 S o they went out into the fields, and gathered grapes from their vineyards and trod them, and made merry. And they went into the house of their god, and ate and drank, and cursed Abimelech.

They went out into the field and gathered the grapes of their vines and crushed them. Then they had a special supper in the house of their god. They ate and drank and wished bad to come to Abimelech.

28 T hen Gaal the son of Ebed said, “Who is Abimelech, and who is Shechem, that we should serve him? Is he not the son of Jerubbaal, and is not Zebul his officer? Serve the men of Hamor the father of Shechem; but why should we serve him?

Gaal the son of Ebed said, “Who is Abimelech? And who are we of Shechem, that we should serve him? Is he not the son of Jerubbaal? Is not Zebul his leader? Serve the men of Hamor the father of Shechem, but why should we serve Abimelech?

29 I f only this people were under my authority! Then I would remove Abimelech.” So he said to Abimelech, “Increase your army and come out!”

If only these people were under my rule! Then I would send Abimelech away. I would say to Abimelech, ‘Make your army strong, and come out.’”

30 W hen Zebul, the ruler of the city, heard the words of Gaal the son of Ebed, his anger was aroused.

When Zebul the ruler of the city heard the words of Gaal the son of Ebed, he was very angry.

31 A nd he sent messengers to Abimelech secretly, saying, “Take note! Gaal the son of Ebed and his brothers have come to Shechem; and here they are, fortifying the city against you.

He sent men to bring news to Abimelech in secret. They said, “See, Gaal the son of Ebed has come to Shechem with his family. They are turning the city against you.

32 N ow therefore, get up by night, you and the people who are with you, and lie in wait in the field.

So you and the people who are with you get up during the night and hide in the field.

33 A nd it shall be, as soon as the sun is up in the morning, that you shall rise early and rush upon the city; and when he and the people who are with him come out against you, you may then do to them as you find opportunity.”

Then get up early in the morning, as soon as the sun is up, and rush against the city. When Gaal and the people who are with him come out against you, do whatever you can to them.”

34 S o Abimelech and all the people who were with him rose by night, and lay in wait against Shechem in four companies.

So Abimelech and all who were with him got up during the night. They hid and waited in four groups to fight against Shechem.

35 W hen Gaal the son of Ebed went out and stood in the entrance to the city gate, Abimelech and the people who were with him rose from lying in wait.

Gaal the son of Ebed came out and stood in the city gate. And Abimelech and the people who were with him came out of their hiding places.

36 A nd 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.”

When Gaal saw the men, he said to Zebul, “See, men are coming down from the mountain tops!” But Zebul said to him, “It is the shadow of the mountains that looks like men to you.”

37 S o 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.”

Gaal spoke again, saying, “See, men are coming down from the highest part of the land. One group is coming on the way from the oak tree of those who tell the future.”

38 T hen 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? Go out, if you will, and fight with them now.”

Then Zebul said to him, “Where is your proud talk now, you who said, ‘Who is Abimelech that we should serve him?’ Are these not the men whom you hated? Go out now and fight with them!”

39 S o Gaal went out, leading the men of Shechem, and fought with Abimelech.

So Gaal went out in front of the leaders of Shechem and fought with Abimelech.

40 A nd Abimelech chased him, and he fled from him; and many fell wounded, to the very entrance of the gate.

Abimelech went after Gaal. And Gaal ran away from him. Many were hurt and fell all the way to the gate.

41 T hen Abimelech dwelt at Arumah, and Zebul drove out Gaal and his brothers, so that they would not dwell in Shechem.

Abimelech stayed at Arumah. But Zebul drove out Gaal and his family so they could not stay in Shechem.

42 A nd it came about on the next day that the people went out into the field, and they told Abimelech.

The men went out to the field the next day and told Abimelech.

43 S o he took his people, divided them into three companies, and lay in wait in the field. And he looked, and there were the people, coming out of the city; and he rose against them and attacked them.

So he took his men and divided them into three groups, and they waited in the field. When he saw Gaal’s people coming out of the city, Abimelech went against them and killed them.

44 T hen 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.

Abimelech and the group with him rushed and stood in the city gate. The other two groups then rushed against all who were in the field and killed them.

45 S o Abimelech fought against the city all that day; he took the city and killed the people who were in it; and he demolished the city and sowed it with salt.

Abimelech fought against the city all that day. He took the city and killed the people who were in it. Then he destroyed the city and covered it with salt.

46 N ow when all the men of the tower of Shechem had heard that, they entered the stronghold of the temple of the god Berith.

All the leaders of the tower of Shechem heard about it. And they went into the inside room of the house of the god of El-berith.

47 A nd it was told Abimelech that all the men of the tower of Shechem were gathered together.

Abimelech was told that all the leaders of the tower of Shechem were gathered together.

48 T hen Abimelech went up to Mount Zalmon, he and all the people who were with him. And Abimelech took an ax in his hand and cut down a bough from the trees, and took it and laid it on his shoulder; then he said to the people who were with him, “What you have seen me do, make haste and do as I have done. ”

So Abimelech and all who were with him went up to Mount Zalmon. Abimelech took an ax in his hand and cut down a branch from the trees. Then he lifted it onto his shoulder. He said to the men who were with him, “Hurry and do what you have seen me do.”

49 S o each of the people likewise cut down his own bough and followed Abimelech, put them against the stronghold, and set the stronghold on fire above them, so that all the people of the tower of Shechem died, about a thousand men and women.

So each of the men cut down his branch also, and followed Abimelech. They put the branches around the inside room and set it on fire. So all the men of the tower of Shechem died. There were about 1, 000 men and women in all.

50 T hen Abimelech went to Thebez, and he encamped against Thebez and took it.

Then Abimelech went to Thebez. He fought against it and took it.

51 B ut there was a strong tower in the city, and all the men and women—all the people of the city—fled there and shut themselves in; then they went up to the top of the tower.

But there was a strong tower in the center of the city. All the men and women and leaders of the city ran to it and shut themselves in. And they went up on the roof of the tower.

52 S o 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.

Abimelech came to the tower and fought against it. He went near the door of the building to burn it with fire.

53 B ut a certain woman dropped an upper millstone on Abimelech’s head and crushed his skull.

But a certain woman threw a grain-crushing stone on Abimelech’s head and crushed his skull.

54 T hen he called quickly to the young man, his armorbearer, and said to him, “Draw your sword and kill me, lest men say of me, ‘A woman killed him.’” So his young man thrust him through, and he died.

Abimelech was quick to call the young man who carried his heavy battle-clothes, saying, “Take your sword and kill me. Or else it will be said that a woman killed me.” So the young man killed him with a sword.

55 A nd when the men of Israel saw that Abimelech was dead, they departed, every man to his place.

When the men of Israel saw that Abimelech was dead, each man went home.

56 T hus God repaid the wickedness of Abimelech, which he had done to his father by killing his seventy brothers.

So God punished Abimelech for the sin he had done against his father by killing his seventy brothers.

57 A nd all the evil of the men of Shechem God returned on their own heads, and on them came the curse of Jotham the son of Jerubbaal.

God punished the men of Shechem for all their sin. The words that Jotham the son of Jerubbaal spoke against them came true.