20 “But if not, alet 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!”
21 And Jotham ran away and fled; and he went to aBeer and dwelt there, for fear of Abimelech his brother.
Downfall of Abimelech
22 After Abimelech had reigned over Israel three years,
23aGod sent a bspirit of ill will between Abimelech and the men of Shechem; and the men of Shechem cdealt treacherously with Abimelech,
24athat the crime done to the seventy sons of Jerubbaal might be settled and their bblood be laid on Abimelech their brother, who killed them, and on the men of Shechem, who aided him in the killing of his brothers.
25 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.
26 Now Gaal the son of Ebed came with his brothers and went over to Shechem; and the men of Shechem put their confidence in him.
27 So they went out into the fields, and gathered grapes from their vineyards and trod them, and1 made merry. And they went into athe house of their god, and ate and drank, and cursed Abimelech.
28 Then Gaal the son of Ebed said, a“Who is Abimelech, and who is Shechem, that we should serve him? Ishe not the son of Jerubbaal, and isnot Zebul his officer? Serve the men of bHamor the father of Shechem; but why should we serve him?
29aIf only this people were under my1 authority! Then I would remove Abimelech.” So he said to Abimelech, “Increase your army and come out!”
In these verses, God balances the scales of justice a bit by using a demon to requite Abimelech for killing the seventy sons of Gideon, thus implying that even evil spirits are forced to submit to God, too.
The Berean gives you the starting point: one scripture and a focused commentary in your inbox each morning — read it in minutes, or go as deep as you like.
Free, daily, and spam-free. We never share your address. Unsubscribe anytime.
