Judges 9:49 - Printer Friendly

ESV: So every one of the people cut down his bundle and following Abimelech put it against the stronghold, and they set the stronghold on fire over them, so that all the people of the Tower of Shechem also died, about 1,000 men and women.

NIV: So all the men cut branches and followed Abimelek. They piled them against the stronghold and set it on fire with the people still inside. So all the people in the tower of Shechem, about a thousand men and women, also died.

NASB: So all the people also cut down, each one, his branch and followed Abimelech, and put them on top of the inner chamber and set the inner chamber on fire over those inside, so that all the people of the tower of Shechem also died, about a thousand men and women.

CSB: Each of the troops also cut his own branch and followed Abimelech. They put the branches against the inner chamber and set it on fire; about a thousand men and women died, including all the men of the Tower of Shechem.

NLT: So each of them cut down some branches, following Abimelech’s example. They piled the branches against the walls of the temple and set them on fire. So all the people who had lived in the tower of Shechem died — about 1,000 men and women.

KJV: And all the people likewise cut down every man his bough, and followed Abimelech, and put them to the hold, and set the hold on fire upon them; so that all the men of the tower of Shechem died also, about a thousand men and women.

NKJV: So each of the people likewise cut down his own bough and followed Abimelech, put them against the stronghold, and set the stronghold on fire above them, so that all the people of the tower of Shechem died, about a thousand men and women.

This is a terrible scene to imagine: a thousand people trapped fire deliberately set by a vengeful ruler. As horrific as this is, Abimelech's actions should not come as a surprise. He killed all but one of his seventy brothers to claim Gideon's authority and gain control of Shechem (Judges 9:16). Then he attacked civilians in the fields near Shechem when their leaders rebelled against him (Judges 9:22–25; 42–45). As he slaughters the remaining leaders of the city (Judges 9:46–47), he once again demonstrates willingness to kill as many people as necessary to hold power.

Those allied with Abimelech gathered brushwood from Mount Zalmon (Judges 9:48) and return to the temple. This was dedicated to the god El-berith. This might have been another name for Baal-berith (Judges 8:33; 9:4), or a version of the God of Israel, also worshiped by the people of the region. The temple and tower fortress seem to be part of a single structure.

Scholars and archaeologists indicate this temple's walls were incredibly thick. The leaders hiding from Abimelech, however, appear to be in an inner series of rooms. The Hebrew word translated as "stronghold" in this passage is unusual (Judges 9:46; 1 Samuel 13:6). It apparently means an underground cave or room; the word can be translated as a "cellar" or "pit." It can also refer to a "tomb," which is gruesomely appropriate in this case.

An underground bunker in the ancient world might be difficult to breach, but it was not impervious to heat, smoke, and flames. Abimelech orders the wood stacked over the stronghold in the temple and set on fire.

This fate is even more horrific since it's a fulfillment of prophecy. Earlier, Gideon's other surviving son, Jotham, delivered a fable from atop a nearby mountain (Judges 9:7). This was shouted out during Abimelech's coronation. In the fable, Abimelech is compared to a thorn bush made king over the other trees. The bramble accepts the job with a warning: if the others are not acting in good faith, he will issue fire and consume them all (Judges 9:15). That prophetic curse has now been fulfilled. The "bramble" that is Abimelech brought flaming death to disloyal Shechem.

Judges 9:22–57 describes the brutal fulfillment of Jotham's curse against his brother, Abimelech, and the leaders of the city of Shechem. God allows the two sides to be split by an evil spirit. First, Shechem's leaders attempt to kill Abimelech. Then they plot with a man named Gaal to overthrow him. Helped by his officer in the city, Abimelech and his men ambush Gaal and Shechem. They kill all the people and destroy the city. They then move on to the town of Thebez to do the same, but Abimelech is killed. Jotham's prediction of divine vengeance (Judges 9:19–20) comes true.

Shechem's leaders conspire with a concubine's son to kill Gideon's other seventy sons. They make this man, Abimelech, their ruler. Gideon's youngest son survives, however, and delivers a curse. Using a fable, he says Abimelech and Shechem's leaders will destroy each other. God causes a division between Shechem's leaders and Abimelech. The noblemen attempt to kill Abimelech and unite behind a new leader. Abimelech discovers the plot and kills everyone in Shechem, destroying the city. When attacking a tower in a nearby town, however, Abimelech's skull is crushed by a thrown millstone. The curse is fulfilled.

Gideon successfully defeated Midianite raiders but declined to become Israel's official king. His sons, however, were held in high esteem during his remaining years (Judges 8). After Gideon's death, ambitious men conspire to kill almost all those heirs. This results in a series of bloody events. Eventually, judgment comes on those responsible. Israel fails to learn from the tragedies. Chapter 10 explains further idolatry and sin, before introducing the next major judge, Jephthah, in chapter 11.

The Book of Judges describes Israel's history from the death of Joshua to shortly before Israel's first king, Saul. Israel fails to complete God's command to purge the wicked Canaanites from the land (Deuteronomy 7:1–5; 9:4). This results in a centuries-long cycle where Israel falls into sin and is oppressed by local enemies. After each oppression, God sends a civil-military leader, labeled using a Hebrew word loosely translated into English as "judge." These appointed rescuers would free Israel from enemy control and govern for a certain time. After each judge's death, the cycle of sin and oppression begins again. This continues until the people of Israel choose a king, during the ministry of the prophet-and-judge Samuel (1 Samuel 1—7).