Tree of Life Version
Judges 9:15
15And the bramble said to the trees, ‘If you truly are going to anoint me king over you, then come and take refuge in my shadow; but if not, let fire come out of the bramble and devour the cedars of Lebanon.’
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 vine said to them, ‘Should I stop yielding my new wine, which cheers God and man, and go wave over the trees?’ 14Then all the trees said to the bramble, ‘You come and reign over us.’ And the bramble said to the trees, ‘If you truly are going to anoint me king over you, then come and take refuge in my shadow; but if not, let fire come out of the bramble and devour the cedars of Lebanon.’ 16“So now, if you have acted in truth and integrity by making Abimelech king, and if you have dealt kindly with Jerubbaal and his household, and have done for him as he deserved— 17for my father fought for you, and risked his life and delivered you from the hand of Midian,
Read all of Judges 9Judges 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 30:2who go down to Egypt, but did not consult Me, to take refuge in Pharaoh’s stronghold, to seek shelter in Egypt’s shadow.
- Daniel 4:12Yet leave a stump with its roots in the earth, in fetters of iron and bronze, in the tender grass of the field. Let him be damp with the dew of heaven, and let his portion be with the animals in the grass of the earth.
- Hosea 14:7His tender shoots will spread out. His beauty will be like an olive tree and his fragrance will be like Lebanon.
- Matthew 13:32It’s the smallest of all seeds; yet when it’s full grown, it’s greater than the other herbs. It becomes like a tree, so that the birds of the air come and nest in its branches.”
- Judges 9:20But if not, let fire come out from Abimelech and devour the lords of Shechem and Beth-millo, and let fire come out from the lords of Shechem and from Beth-millo and devour Abimelech!”
- Numbers 21:28For fire went out from Heshbon, a blaze from the city of Sihon! It consumed Ar of Moab, the masters of Arnon’s heights!
- Isaiah 1:31So the strong will become tinder and his work like a spark— both will burn together, and no one will quench them.
- Ezekiel 19:14Fire has spread from its main branch and devoured its fruit. No strong branch is left on it to become a ruler’s scepter.” This is a lamentation, and it is to be used as a lamentation.
- 2 Kings 14:9But King Jehoash of Israel sent word to King Amaziah of Judah, saying, “The briar in Lebanon sent word to the cedar in Lebanon saying: ‘Give your daughter to my son in marriage.’ But a wild beast in Lebanon passed by and trampled down the briar.
- Psalms 104:16The trees of Adonai are satisfied, the cedars of Lebanon that He planted,
- Isaiah 2:13against all the cedars of Lebanon that are lofty and lifted up, against all the oaks of Bashan,
- Isaiah 37:24Through your servants, you have blasphemed my Lord and said: ‘With my many chariots I have climbed to the heights of the mountains, to the remotest parts of Lebanon! I cut down its tall cedars and choice cypress trees. I have gone to its farthest peak, its thickest forest.
- Ezekiel 31:3Behold, Assyria was a cedar in Lebanon, with beautiful branches shadowing the forest, of lofty height. Its top was in leafy branches.
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
In the dictionaries
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
Tree of Life Version — © 2015 The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society
Commentaries