Judges 9:22-29
22 Now Abimelech ruled over Israel for three years.
23 Then God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the leaders of Shechem; and the leaders of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech,
24 so that the violence done to the seventy sons of Jerubbaal would come, and the responsibility for their blood would be placed on their brother Abimelech, who killed them, and on the leaders of Shechem, who encouraged him to kill his brothers.
25 The leaders of Shechem set up men in ambush against him on the tops of the mountains, and they robbed everyone who would pass by them on the road; and it was reported to Abimelech.
26 Now Gaal the son of Ebed came with his relatives, and crossed over into Shechem; and the leaders of Shechem trusted him.
27 So they went out to the field and gathered the grapes of their vineyards and trampled them, and held a festival; and they went into the house of their god, and ate and drank and cursed Abimelech.
28 Then 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 Zebul not his governor? Serve the men of Hamor the father of Shechem; but why should we serve him?
29 If only this people were under my authority! Then I would do away with Abimelech.” And he said to Abimelech, “Enlarge your army and come out!”
Fire from the Thornbush
The reign of Abimelech the thornbush
Whether it is a building, an organization, or one’s life, it will not last unless it is built on a solid foundation. In today’s passage, the people of Shechem are disappointed with Abimelech and seek to remove him from his ruling position. Finally, a situation arises where fire comes out from the thornbush and burns the trees. (1) It is stated that Abimelech ruled over Israel for three years, but the verb “ruled” is not the verb used for a king’s rule. In other words, the Bible writer does not recognize Abimelech as a king. His rule comes to an end after three years, and he only ruled over Shechem and its surrounding towns. (2) The people of Shechem despised Abimelech’s rule and betrayed him. Behind this, there was the working of an evil spirit that God had sent. (3) The people of Shechem set up ambushers on the mountaintops to assassinate Abimelech, which resulted in deteriorating the security of the roads. Abimelech found himself unable to even maintain the security in the region he ruled over.
Gaal the son of Ebed
Next, Gaal the son of Ebed came to Shechem. The people of Shechem quickly believed in Gaal. (1) Gaal emphasized that Abimelech’s father was Jerubbaal and that he was not a Shechemite and that he was an enemy of Baal. (2) On the other hand, Gaal emphasized that himself is a Shechemite by using the word “we” and appealed to the nationalist sentiments of the Shechemites. (3) Gaal appealed by saying, “Serve the men of Hamor the father of Shechem.” Hamor is a person mentioned in Genesis 34, who was killed by the Israelites. Gaal brings up this old story to gather anti-Abimelech forces and seek to become a ruler himself. All tragic events have a small beginning that caused them. In this case, the initial problem was crowning Abimelech as king. If the root cause is not corrected, the situation will continue to deteriorate without limits. What is the root cause the problems you have? Have you reconciled with the Creator?
Today's prayer
Heavenly Father, may I be able to establish my life on the firm foundation of God’s word. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, I pray. Amen.