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Judges 9:7
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5 Then he went to his father’s house aat Ophrah and bkilled his brothers, the seventy sons of Jerubbaal, on one stone. But Jotham the youngest son of Jerubbaal was left, because he hid himself.  
6 And 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

7 Now when they told Jotham, he went and stood on top of aMount 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! 
8 “Thea trees once went forth to anoint a king over them.
And they said to the olive tree,
b‘Reign over us!’ 
9 But the olive tree said to them,
‘Should I cease giving my oil,
aWith which they honor God and men,
And go to sway over trees?’ 
10 “Then the trees said to the fig tree,
‘You come and reign over us!’
11 But the fig tree said to them,
‘Should I cease my sweetness and my good fruit,
And go to sway over trees?’
12 “Then the trees said to the vine,
‘You come and reign over us!’
13 But the vine said to them,
‘Should I cease my new wine,
aWhich cheers both God and men,
And go to sway over trees?’ 
14 “Then all the trees said to the bramble,
‘You come and reign over us!’
15 And the bramble said to the trees,
‘If in truth you anoint me as king over you,
Then come and take shelter in my ashade;
But if not, blet fire come out of the bramble
And devour the ccedars 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 aas he deserves—  
17 for my afather fought for you, risked his life, and bdelivered you out of the hand of Midian;  
Commentaries:
Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown
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Judges 9:7

JOTHAM BY A PARABLE REPROACHES THEM. (Judges 9:7-21)

he . . . stood in the top of mount Gerizim and lifted up his voice—The spot he chose was, like the housetops, the public place of Shechem; and the parable [Judges 9:8-15] drawn from the rivalry of the various trees was appropriate to the diversified foliage of the valley below. Eastern people are exceedingly fond of parables and use them for conveying reproofs, which they could not give in any other way. The top of Gerizim is not so high in the rear of the town, as it is nearer to the plain. 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. Modern history records a case, in which soldiers on the hill shouted to the people in the city and endeavored to instigate them to an insurrection. There is something about the elastic atmosphere of an Eastern clime which causes it to transmit sound with wonderful celerity and distinctness [HACKETT].




Other Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown entries containing Judges 9:7:

Deuteronomy 27:11-13
Judges 9:7
1 Samuel 24:8-15
1 Samuel 26:13-20
Isaiah 40:9

 

<< Judges 9:6   Judges 9:8 >>

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