Abimelech's Kingship at Shechem

Abimelech, the son of Jerubbaal, traveled to Shechem to speak with his mother’s relatives, asking if it were better for seventy sons to reign or for one man to rule. The leaders of Shechem provided him seventy pieces of silver from the house of Baal-berith, which Abimelech used to hire vain and light persons. With these followers, he went to his father’s house at Ophrah and slew his seventy brothers upon one stone, though the youngest son, Jotham, hid himself and survived (Judges 9:1-5). Following this slaughter, all the men of Shechem and all the house of Millo gathered to make Abimelech king by the plain of the pillar.

Upon hearing this, Jotham stood on the top of Mount Gerizim and spoke a parable to the men of Shechem concerning trees seeking a king. He described how the olive tree, the fig tree, and the vine refused to leave their productivity to promote themselves, but the bramble accepted the invitation, threatening fire if the trees did not put their trust in its shadow. Jotham stated that if the people had dealt truly and sincerely with Jerubbaal, they should rejoice in Abimelech, but if not, fire should come out from Abimelech to devour Shechem and fire from Shechem to devour Abimelech (Judges 9:7-20). After delivering this speech, Jotham fled to Beer, as the text does not say how long he remained there.

Abimelech reigned for three years before God sent an evil spirit between him and the men of Shechem. Gaal the son of Ebed arrived with his brethren and gained the confidence of the Shechemites during a vintage festival. Gaal questioned why the city should serve Abimelech and challenged his authority, prompting Zebul, the ruler of the city, to send word to Abimelech. In the resulting conflict, Abimelech defeated Gaal and the Shechemites, leveled the city, and sowed it with salt (Judges 9:22-45). The conflict concluded at Thebez, where a woman dropped a piece of a millstone on Abimelech’s head. He ordered his armor-bearer to kill him with a sword so that men would not say a woman slew him.