Tim Maas Supporter Retired Quality Assurance Specialist with the U.S. Army

I would say that the life of Abimelech (which is recounted in Judges 9) is meant as a negative example of how power should not be sought or gained merely for its own sake, but as a trust from God to be used in service to others or for the welfare of society as a whole. It also illustrates that abuse of such power will not be tolerated by God. 

Abimelech was a son of Gideon (Judges 6-8), a leader of Israel during the period of the judges. Gideon (who was from the half-tribe of Joseph's son Manasseh) had been called by God to deliver Israel from the Midianites, whom God had allowed to conquer Israel as a punishment for the Israelites' idolatry. After Gideon defeated the Midianites, Israel had forty years of peace. However, following Gideon's death, the Israelites again turned to idolatry.

Gideon had had seventy sons from multiple wives. Although Gideon was also Abimelech's father, Abimelech's mother was not one of Gideon's wives, but a concubine from Shechem, which was one of the cities in the territory of Manasseh.

After Gideon died, Abimelech went to his mother's relatives in Shechem, and sought their aid in making him the sole successor to Gideon. With money that the people of Shechem gave him, Abimelech gathered an army of mercenaries and killed all of Gideon's other sons except for Gideon's youngest son Jotham, who managed to escape. The people of Shechem then proclaimed Abimelech as their king, with control over all Israel.

After Abimelech had been in power for three years, the men of Shechem turned on him. However, Abimelech then proceeded to kill all the people in Shechem, either in battle or by setting fire to the tower in the city into which they had fled seeking shelter.

Abimelech next tried to conquer the walled city of Thebez, which also contained a fortified tower into which the inhabitants of the city fled. As Abimelech prepared to set fire to the tower, a woman in the tower dropped a millstone on Abimelech's head, which crushed Abimilech's skull, but did not kill him outright. Knowing that he was going to die, Abimelech then asked his armor-bearer to kill him by running him through with a sword, in order to save himself from the shame of having been killed by a woman. (The Bible specifically notes (Judges 9:56-57) that this happened to Abimelech as a retribution from God for having killed Gideon's other sons, and in fulfillment of a curse that Gideon's sole surviving son (Jotham) had placed on both Abimelech and Shechem in Judges 9:20.) (This incident is also later referenced in connection with the account of the death of Uriah the Hittite, whom David had ordered to be killed in battle in an effort to cover up David's adultery with Uriah's wife Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11:14-21).)

February 03 2019 • 1 response • Vote Up • Share • Report

Jeffrey Johnson Supporter

What should we learn from the life of Abimelech, son of Gideon?

The life of Abimelech (Judges 9) serves as a cautionary tale against selfish ambition, power-seeking, and moral compromise. His violent rise and fall demonstrate that leadership built on treachery instead of character will crumble, affirming that God brings justice against evil, even when it takes time.

Some Lessons from Abimelech's Life:

Ambition Without Character Leads to Destruction: Abimelech sought power for selfish gain rather than service, resulting in a short, brutal, and ultimately failed reign.

The Inevitable Law of Sowing and Reaping: Abimelech sowed violence (killing his 70 brothers) and reaped a violent death (killed by a millstone), demonstrating that God is not mocked. 

The Danger of Corrupt Compromise: By hiring thugs and using money from the temple of Baal, Abimelech showed that aligning with evil to achieve goals guarantees future ruin. 

God's Justice Prevails: Although evil may seem to thrive, the story highlights that God works behind the scenes to ensure Justice is ultimately served, fulfilling curses against the wicked. 

Family Influences Matter: Despite being Gideon's son, Abimelech's, his upbringing (as the son of a concubine in a pagan city) and his obsession with a name meaning "My Father is King" likely drove his twisted sense of entitlement. 

Consequences of Unqualified Leadership: The Shechemites chose a leader based on convenience and tribal loyalty ("He is our brother") rather than character, resulting in their own destruction. 

Conclusion

After his father's death, Abimelech, with presumptuous impudence, sought to make himself king. Cunningly, he appealed to the landowners of Shechem through his mother's influential family. Upon obtaining their financial support, he hired some ruffians, went to his father's house at Ophrah, and there massacred his half-brothers upon a single stone. Of the 70 half-brothers, only the youngest, Jotham, escaped the slaughter.

Not counting Abimelech, Gideon had 70 sons. (Jg 8:30, 31) Therefore, since Jotham escaped the slaughter, apparently Abimelech killed only 69 sons at Ophrah. Jotham's later words concerning the incident merely appear to point to Abimelech's intention to kill all 70 sons. (Jg 9:18) However, as a Jewish commentary fittingly observes: "It is still correct to speak in round numbers of 'seventy' slain."​—Soncino Books of the Bible, edited by A. Cohen, London, 1950 (Joshua and Judges, p. 234).

The importance of humility is shown in Judges chapter 9. Gideon's son Jotham said, "Once upon a time, the trees went to anoint a king over them." The olive tree, the fig tree, and the vine were mentioned. They represented worthy individuals who did not seek to rule over their fellow Israelites. But the bramble​—useful only as fuel—​represented the kingship of proud Abimelech, a murderer eager to dominate others. Though he 'played the prince over Israel three years,' he met an untimely death. (Judg. 9:8-15, 22, 50-54) How much better it is to be "humble in mind"!

4 days ago • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report