Jumping directly into Scripture this time. The line that jumped out to me that prompted today’s blog post is from Judges 9:23 as shown below:
22 After Abimelech had reigned over Israel three years, 23 God sent a spirit of ill will between Abimelech and the men of Shechem; and the men of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech, 24 that the crime done to the seventy sons of Jerubbaal might be settled and their blood be laid on Abimelech their brother, who killed them, and on the men of Shechem, who aided him in the killing of his brothers. Judges 9:22-24, NKJV
Earlier in Judges 9, after their father Gideon, had died, his son Abimelech killed all his brothers (really, half-brothers via the same father but different mothers). We know that throughout the Bible, both Old and New Testaments, it talks about God being a just God but the spots in the Bible that describe exactly how God enacts His justice don’t always jump off the page. So, granted that the above passage is pre-David Old Testament, it is still very interesting and fascinating to me to come across these instances. In Genesis 4:10, God speaks to Cain saying, “What have you done? The voice of your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground.” after Cain had killed his brother Abel. God is righteously angry at Cain, caring deeply about Abel’s cries. Similarly, although the text doesn’t seem to explicitly say the same thing about the shed blood of Abimelech’s 70 slain brothers, I have to believe that God absolutely heard their cries, too.
As for retribution against the men of Shechem, the first part of Judges 9 details how Abimelech went to them to convince them that not only was he the best option to be their king, but also that the only way to do so was to kill all the others who were in line for the throne. In other words, a good, old-fashioned dictatorship setup where the dictator (or dictator wannabe) out of paranoia kills all who he perceives to be a threat to his dictatorship (or potential dictatorship). As detailed below:
3 And [Abimelech’s] mother’s brothers spoke all these words concerning him in the hearing of all the men of Shechem; and their heart was inclined to follow Abimelech, for they said, “He is our brother.” 4 So they gave him seventy shekels of silver from the temple of Baal-Berith, with which Abimelech hired worthless and reckless men; and they followed him. 5 Then he went to his father’s house at Ophrah and killed his brothers, the seventy sons of Jerubbaal, on one stone. But Jotham the youngest son of Jerubbaal was left, because he hid himself. 6 And all the men of Shechem gathered together, all of Beth Millo, and they went and made Abimelech king beside the terebinth tree at the pillar that was in Shechem. Judges 9:3-6, NKJV
From the above passage, two references from the previous chapter stood out. First was the reference that this truly was a family affair, with Gideon (also named Jerubbaal) having had all those sons, including Abimelech. Furthermore, what also is noteworthy was that Abimelech’s mother was a concubine (modern reference: a mistress), and that she was from the city of Shechem.
29 Then Jerubbaal the son of Joash went and dwelt in his own house. 30 Gideon had seventy sons who were his own offspring, for he had many wives. 31 And his concubine who was in Shechem also bore him a son, whose name he called Abimelech. 32 Now Gideon the son of Joash died at a good old age, and was buried in the tomb of Joash his father, in Ophrah of the Abiezrites. Judges 8:29-32, NKJV
The second reference that stood out was the fact that after Gideon (aka Jerubbaal) had died, his sons (and really, all the subsequent generation of Israelites) had forgotten about God and started worshipping other gods. Based on the text and what stands out, it is off this initial decision to reject the God of Israel that led to Abimelech’s (and the Shechemites’) subsequent decision to “off” his half-brothers.
33 So it was, as soon as Gideon was dead, that the children of Israel again played the harlot with the Baals, and made Baal-Berith their god. 34 Thus the children of Israel did not remember the Lord their God, who had delivered them from the hands of all their enemies on every side; 35 nor did they show kindness to the house of Jerubbaal (Gideon) in accordance with the good he had done for Israel. Judges 8:33-35, NKJV
Of course, as we find out later in the text, Abimelech destroyed the city of Shechem, and he himself was ultimately killed in a subsequent battle not long after. But I find it interesting that this clash between the two occurred as a result of God prompting it (by sending a spirit of ill will), as a result of the blood of the 70 men whose lives were tragically and brutally cut short.
I’ve talked about a major storyline from the end of Judges before, but this entire period between the days of Joshua and the reign of King David is dark and, aside from Israel remaining as one kingdom, not a whole lot different from the later era of kings in Israel’s history when God’s people were the two kingdoms of (northern) Israel and (southern) Judah. It’s a danger of the fallen nature of humanity, revealed especially during times of peace, rest, and prosperity. The Bible makes it clear again and again: do not forget the Lord your God ... do not forget the Lord your God ... do not forget the Lord your God. Unfortunately, as it is an honest history book, it continues to reveal humanity’s repeated choice to do just that: to forget Him. It doesn’t matter the generation, and it doesn’t matter the era. Humanity cannot be by nature “good” because we continue to prove otherwise, over and over and over again.
It’s why we need Jesus. He is, after all, the only way for any of us to come to the same God and be with Him. Not only for salvation for the next life, but also for the now.
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. John 14:6, NKJV