Judges 9:15

Judges 9:15 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And the bramble said unto the trees, If in truth ye anoint me king over you, then come and put your trust in my shadow: and if not, let fire come out of the bramble, and devour the cedars of Lebanon.
• New International Version (NIV)“The thornbush said to the trees, ‘If you really want to anoint me king over you, come and take refuge in my shade; but if not, then let fire come out of the thornbush and consume the cedars of Lebanon!’
• English Standard Version (ESV)And the bramble said to the trees, 'If in good faith you are anointing me king over you, then come and take refuge in my shade, but if not, let fire come out of the bramble and devour the cedars of Lebanon.'
• New King James Version (NKJV)And the bramble said to the trees, ‘If in truth you anoint me as king over you, Then come and take shelter in my shade; But if not, let fire come out of the bramble And devour the cedars of Lebanon!’

Context of Judges 9:15

13But the grapevine responded, ‘Should I stop producing my wine, which makes gods and humans happy, in order to rule the trees?’ 14Then all the trees said to the thornbush, ‘You come and be our king!’ But the thornbush responded to the trees, ‘If you really want to anoint me to be your king, then come and take shelter in my shade. But if not, fire will come out of the thornbush and burn up the cedars of Lebanon.’ 16“If you acted with sincerity and integrity when you made Abimelech king, ⌞be happy.⌟ If you treated Jerubbaal and his family well, if you treated him as he deserved, be happy. 17My father fought for you. He risked his life and rescued you from Midian.

Judges 9:15 word by word

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר הָאָטָד֮ אֶל־הָעֵצִים֒ אִ֡ם בֶּאֱמֶ֣ת אַתֶּם֩ מֹשְׁחִ֨ים אֹתִ֤י לְמֶ֙לֶךְ֙ עֲלֵיכֶ֔ם בֹּ֖אוּ חֲס֣וּ בְצִלִּ֑י וְאִם־אַ֕יִן תֵּ֤צֵא אֵשׁ֙ מִן־הָ֣אָטָ֔ד וְתֹאכַ֖ל אֶת־אַרְזֵ֥י הַלְּבָנֽוֹן׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And the brambleאָטָד'âţâd · brambleH329
• saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• unto the treesעֵץ‛êts · treeH6086
• If in truthאֱמֶת'emeth · truth: faithfulH571
• ye anointמָשַׁחmâshach · to anointH4886
• me kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
• comeבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
• put your trustחָסָהchâsâh · to seek refugeH2620
• in my shadowצֵלtsêl · shadowH6738
• and if not, let fireאֵשׁ'êsh · fireH784
• come outיָצָאyâtsâ' · to come out: issueH3318
• and devourאָכַל'âkal · to eatH398
• the cedarsאֶ֫רֶז'erez · cedarH730
• of Lebanonלְבָנוֹןlebânôn · LebanonH3844

Cross-references for Judges 9:15

• Isaiah 30:2They go to Egypt without asking me. They look for shelter under Pharaoh’s protection and look for refuge in Egypt’s shadow.
• Daniel 4:12It had beautiful leaves and plenty of fruit, enough to feed everyone. Wild animals found shade under it. Birds came to live in its branches. It fed every living creature.
• Hosea 14:7They will live again in God’s shadow. They will grow like grain. They will blossom like grapevines. They will be as famous as the wines from Lebanon.
• Matthew 13:32It’s one of the smallest seeds. However, when it has grown, it is taller than the garden plants. It becomes a tree that is large enough for birds to nest in its branches.”
• Judges 9:20But if that’s not the case, let fire come out of Abimelech and burn up citizens of Shechem and Beth Millo. Also let fire come out of citizens of Shechem and Beth Millo and burn up Abimelech.”
• Numbers 21:28Fire came out of Heshbon, flames from Sihon’s city. They destroyed Ar of Moab, the rulers of Arnon’s worship sites.
• Isaiah 1:31Strong people will become tinder for a fire, and their work will be the spark. Both of them will burn together, and there will be no one to put out the fire.
• Ezekiel 19:14Fire has spread from the vine’s main branch. Fire has destroyed its fruit. It no longer has any strong branches that could be used as a king’s scepter. This is a funeral song. It is to be used as a funeral song.
• 2 Kings 14:9King Jehoash of Israel sent this message to King Amaziah of Judah: “A thistle in Lebanon sent a message to a cedar in Lebanon. It said, ‘Let your daughter marry my son,’ but a wild animal from Lebanon came along and trampled the thistle.
• Psalms 104:16The Lord’s trees, the cedars in Lebanon which he planted, drink their fill.
• Isaiah 2:13against all the towering and mighty cedars of Lebanon and all the oaks of Bashan,
• Isaiah 37:24Through your servants you defy the Lord and say, “With my many chariots I’ll ride up the high mountains, up the slopes of Lebanon. I’ll cut down its tallest cedars and its finest cypresses. I’ll come to its most distant heights and its most fertile forests.
• Ezekiel 31:3What about Assyria? It was a cedar in Lebanon with fine branches that shaded the forest. It was very tall. Its top was among the clouds.

Commentaries on Judges 9:15

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 15Come and put your trust in any shadow - The vain boast of the would-be sovereign; and of the man who is seeking to be put into power by the suffrages of the people. All promise, no performance. Let fire come out of the bramble - A strong catachresis. The bramble was too low to give shelter to any tree; and so far from being able to consume others, that the smallest fire will reduce it to ashes, and that in the shortest time. Hence the very transitory…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 8-20Verses 8-20 This fable and that noted in the marginal reference are the only two of the kind found in Scripture. Somewhat different are the parables of the Old Testament, 2 Samuel 12:1-4; 2 Samuel 14:5-11; 1 Kings 20:39-40. Judges 9:9 Honour God and man - Alluding to the constant use of oil in the meat-offerings Exodus 30:24-25. In like manner, the allusion in Judges 9:13 is to the drink-offerings of wine. See Leviticus 23:13; Numbers 15:10. Judges 9:14…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 7-21Verses 7-21 There was no occasion for the trees to choose a king, they are all the trees of the Lord which he has planted. Nor was there any occasion for Israel to set a king over them, for the Lord was their King. Those who bear fruit for the public good, are justly respected and honoured by all that are wise, more than those who merely make a figure. All these fruit-trees gave much the same reason for their refusal to be promoted over the trees; or, as…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 14-15The trees, preferring a bad king to having none (compare 1 Samuel 8:18–19), asked the thornbush to be king. Although neither useful nor attractive, the thornbush accepted. The person who agreed to be king had no better work to do. The thornbush could not provide shade from the hot Middle Eastern sun. Accepting this offer was both pointless and unwise.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 7-217. 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 [Jud 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…Read the comment

Topics related to Judges 9:15

• Allegory
• Anointing
• Bramble
• Jotham
• Judge
• Lebanon
• Parables
• Pride
• Sarcasm

In the dictionaries

• Lebanon
• Atad
• Deserving
• Fable
• Incline
• Merry
• Middle
• Mouth
• Parable
• Abdon (1)

Commentaries on Judges 9

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• Darby Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary