Judges 9:1-20

1Abimelech son of Jerubbaal went to Shechem and spoke to his uncles and to his mother’s whole clan, saying,

2“Please speak in the hearing of all the citizens of Shechem, ‘Is it better for you that seventy men, all the sons of Jerubbaal, rule over you or that one man rule over you? ’ Remember that I am your own flesh and blood.”

3His mother’s relatives spoke all these words about him in the hearing of all the citizens of Shechem, and they were favorable to Abimelech, for they said, “He is our brother.”

4So they gave him seventy pieces of silver from the temple of Baal-berith. Abimelech used it to hire worthless and reckless men, and they followed him.

5He went to his father’s house in Ophrah and killed his seventy brothers, the sons of Jerubbaal, on top of a large stone. But Jotham, the youngest son of Jerubbaal, survived, because he hid.

6Then all the citizens of Shechem and of Beth-millo gathered together and proceeded to make Abimelech king at the oak of the pillar in Shechem.

7When they told Jotham, he climbed to the top of Mount Gerizim, raised his voice, and called to them: Listen to me, citizens of Shechem, and may God listen to you:

8The trees decided to anoint a king over themselves. They said to the olive tree, “Reign over us.”

9But the olive tree said to them, “Should I stop giving my oil that people use to honor both God and men, and rule over the trees?”

10Then the trees said to the fig tree, “Come and reign over us.”

11But the fig tree said to them, “Should I stop giving my sweetness and my good fruit, and rule over trees?”

12Later, the trees said to the grapevine, “Come and reign over us.”

13But the grapevine said to them, “Should I stop giving my wine that cheers both God and man, and rule over trees?”

14Finally, all the trees said to the bramble, “Come and reign over us.”

15The bramble said to the trees, “If you really are anointing me as king over you, come and find refuge in my shade. But if not, may fire come out from the bramble and consume the cedars of Lebanon.”

16“Now if you have acted faithfully and honestly in making Abimelech king, if you have done well by Jerubbaal and his family, and if you have rewarded him appropriately for what he did —

17for my father fought for you, risked his life, and rescued you from Midian,

18and now you have attacked my father’s family today, killed his seventy sons on top of a large stone, and made Abimelech, the son of his slave woman, king over the citizens of Shechem ‘because he is your brother’ —

19so if you have acted faithfully and honestly with Jerubbaal and his house this day, rejoice in Abimelech and may he also rejoice in you.

20But if not, may fire come from Abimelech and consume the citizens of Shechem and Beth-millo, and may fire come from the citizens of Shechem and Beth-millo and consume Abimelech.”