1 And Abimelech son of Jerubbaal went to Shechem to his mother's brethren, and spoke to them, and to all the family of the house of his mother's father, saying,
2 Speak, I pray you, in the ears of all the citizens of Shechem, Which is better for you, that seventy persons, all sons of Jerubbaal, rule over you, or that one man rule over you? And remember that I am your bone and your flesh.
3 And his mother's brethren spoke of him in the ears of all the citizens of Shechem all these words. And their heart inclined after Abimelech; for they said, He is our brother.
4 And they gave him seventy pieces of silver out of the house of Baal-Berith, and Abimelech hired with them vain and wanton men, and they followed him.
5 And he came to his father's house, to Ophrah, and slew his brethren the sons of Jerubbaal, seventy persons upon one stone; but there remained Jotham the youngest son of Jerubbaal; for he had hid himself.
6 And all the citizens of Shechem gathered together, and all the house of Millo, and went and made Abimelech king, by the memorial-oak that is in Shechem.
7 And they told it to Jotham, and he went and stood on the top of mount Gerizim, and lifted up his voice, and cried, and said to them, Hearken to me, ye citizens of Shechem, that God may hearken to you.
8 The trees once went forth to anoint a king over them; and they said to the olive-tree, Reign over us.
9 And the olive-tree said to them, Should I leave my fatness, wherewith by me they honour God and man, and go to wave over the trees?
10 And the trees said to the fig-tree, Come thou, reign over us.
11 But the fig-tree said to them, Should I leave my sweetness, and my good fruit, and go to wave over the trees?
12 Then said the trees to the vine, Come thou, reign over us.
13 And the vine said to them, Should I leave my new wine, which cheers God and man, and go to wave over the trees?
14 Then said all the trees to the thorn-bush, Come thou, reign over us.
15 And the thorn-bush said to the trees, If in truth ye anoint me king over you, come, put confidence in my shadow; but if not, fire shall come out of the thorn-bush and devour the cedars of Lebanon.
16 Now therefore, if ye have dealt truly and sincerely in that ye have made Abimelech king, and if ye have dealt well with Jerubbaal and his house, and if ye have done to him according to the deserving of his hands;
17 -for my father fought for you, and endangered his life, and delivered you out of the hand of Midian;
18 but ye are risen up against my father's house this day, and have slain his sons, seventy men, upon one stone, and have made Abimelech, the son of his handmaid, king over the citizens of Shechem, because he is your brother;
19 -if ye then have dealt truly and sincerely with Jerubbaal and with his house this day, rejoice ye in Abimelech, and let him also rejoice in you;
20 but if not, let fire come out from Abimelech, and devour the citizens of Shechem and the house of Millo; and let fire come out from the citizens of Shechem and from the house of Millo, and devour Abimelech.
21 And Jotham ran away, and fled, and went to Beer, and dwelt there, because of Abimelech his brother.
22 And Abimelech ruled over Israel three years.
23 And God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the citizens of Shechem; and the citizens of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech,
24 that the violence {done} to the seventy sons of Jerubbaal might come, and their blood be laid upon Abimelech their brother, who slew them, and upon the citizens of Shechem, who had strengthened his hands to slay his brethren.
25 And the citizens of Shechem set liers in wait for him on the tops of the mountains, and they robbed all that came along that way by them. And it was told Abimelech.
26 And Gaal the son of Ebed came with his brethren, and went over to Shechem; and the citizens of Shechem put confidence in him.
27 And they went out into the fields, and gathered their vineyards, and trode {the grapes}, and made rejoicings, and went into the house of their god, and ate and drank, and cursed Abimelech.
28 And Gaal the son of Ebed said, Who is Abimelech, and who is Shechem, that we should serve him? is he not the son of Jerubbaal? and Zebul his overseer? Serve the men of Hamor the father of Shechem! and why should *we* serve him?
29 Oh! would that this people were under my hand! then would I remove Abimelech. And he said to Abimelech, Increase thine army, and come out.
30 And Zebul the ruler of the city heard the words of Gaal the son of Ebed, and his anger was kindled;
31 and he sent messengers to Abimelech craftily, saying, Behold, Gaal the son of Ebed and his brethren are come to Shechem, and behold, they shut up the city against thee;
32 and now, rise up by night, thou and the people that are with thee, and lie in ambush in the fields.
33 And it shall be in the morning when the sun is up, thou shalt rise early, and fall upon the city; and behold, he and the people that is with him shall come out against thee, and thou shalt do with him as thou shalt find occasion.
34 And Abimelech rose up, and all the people that were with him, by night, and they lay in ambush against Shechem in four companies.
35 And Gaal the son of Ebed went out, and stood in the entrance of the gate of the city. Then Abimelech rose up, and the people that were with him, out of the ambush.
36 And Gaal saw the people, and said to Zebul, Behold, people are coming down from the tops of the mountains. And Zebul said to him, Thou seest the shadow of the mountains as men.
37 And Gaal spoke again, and said, Behold, people are coming down from the high part of the land, and one company is coming along by the way of the Magician's oak.
38 Then said Zebul to him, Where is now thy mouth, thou that saidst, Who is Abimelech, that we should serve him? is not this the people that thou hast despised? go out now, I pray, and fight against them.
39 And Gaal went out before the citizens of Shechem, and fought against Abimelech.
40 And Abimelech pursued him, and he fled before him, and there fell many wounded, as far as the entrance of the gate.
41 And Abimelech dwelt at Arumah. And Zebul drove out Gaal and his brethren, that they might not dwell in Shechem.
42 And it came to pass on the morrow, that the people went out into the field; and they told Abimelech.
43 And he took the people, and divided them into three companies, and lay in ambush in the field. And he looked, and behold, the people came forth out of the city; and he rose up against them and smote them.
44 And Abimelech, and the companies that were with him, rushed forward, and stood in the entrance of the gate of the city; and two of the companies ran upon all that were in the fields, and slew them.
45 And Abimelech fought against the city all that day; and he took the city, and slew the people that were in it, and broke down the city, and sowed it with salt.
46 And all the men of the tower of Shechem heard {that}, and they entered into the stronghold of the house of the *god Berith.
47 And it was told Abimelech that all the men of the tower of Shechem had gathered together.
48 Then Abimelech went up to mount Zalmon, he and all the people that were with him; and Abimelech took an axe in his hand, and cut down a bough from the trees, and took it up and laid it on his shoulder, and said to the people that was with him, What ye have seen me do, make haste, do as I have done.
49 And all the people likewise cut down every man his bough, and they followed Abimelech, and put {them} to the hold, and burned the hold with fire upon them. And all the men of the tower of Shechem died also, about a thousand men and women.
50 And Abimelech went to Thebez, and encamped against Thebez, and took it.
51 But there was a strong tower in the midst of the city, and thither fled all the men and women, all the citizens of the city; and they shut it behind them, and went up to the roof of the tower.
52 And Abimelech came to the tower, and fought against it, and he drew near to the entrance of the tower to burn it with fire;
53 and a woman cast the upper stone of a handmill on Abimelech's head, and crushed his skull.
54 Then he called hastily to the young man that carried his armour, and said to him, Draw thy sword, and slay me, that they say not of me, A woman killed him. And his young man thrust him through, and he died.
55 And when the men of Israel saw that Abimelech was dead, they went every man to his place.
56 And God rendered back the wickedness of Abimelech, which he did to his father in slaying his seventy brethren.
57 And all the evil of the men of Shechem did God render back upon their heads; and upon them came the curse of Jotham the son of Jerubbaal.
1 耶路.巴力的儿子亚比米勒, 到示剑去见他的众母舅, 对他们和他母亲的全体族人说:
2 "请你们给示剑的众人说: ‘是耶路.巴力的众子七十人都统治你们好呢?还是一个人统治你们好呢?’你们也要记得我是你们的骨肉。"
3 他的众母舅就把这一切话为他说给示剑的众人听; 他们的心都倾向亚比米勒, 因为他们说: "他本是我们的亲族。"
4 他们就从巴力.比利土的庙里, 取了八百克银子给亚比米勒, 亚比米勒用这些银子雇了一些无赖流氓, 那些人就跟随了他。
5 他回到俄弗拉他父亲的家, 把自己的兄弟, 耶路.巴力的众子七十人, 都杀在一块石头上; 只剩下耶路.巴力的小儿子约坦, 因为他藏了起来。
6 示剑的众人和伯特米罗人都聚集起来, 到示剑橡树旁的望楼那里, 立亚比米勒为王。
7 有人把这事告诉了约坦, 约坦就去, 站在基利心山顶上, 高声向他们呼喊, 说: "示剑人哪, 你们要听我的话, 神也就听你们的话。
8 有一次, 众树要去膏立一个王统治它们, 就对橄榄树说: ‘请你作王统治我们吧。’
9 橄榄树对它们说: ‘我怎可以放弃生产人用来荣耀 神和尊崇人的油, 飘摇在众树之上呢?’
10 众树对无花果树说: ‘请你来作王统治我们吧。’
11 无花果树对它们说: ‘我怎可以放弃结出我的甜美果子, 飘摇在众树之上呢?’
12 众树对葡萄树说: ‘请你来作王统治我们吧。’
13 葡萄树对它们说: ‘我怎可以放弃生产那使 神和世人都喜乐的新酒, 飘摇在众树之上呢?’
14 于是众树都对荆棘说: ‘请你来作王统治我们吧。’
15 荆棘对众树说: ‘如果你们真诚地膏立我作王统治你们, 就要来, 投靠在我的荫下; 否则, 火必从荆棘里出来, 吞灭黎巴嫩的香柏树。’
16 "现在你们立亚比米勒为王, 你们若是诚实和正直, 如果你们善待耶路.巴力和他的家, 照着他手所作的待他;
17 我父亲从前冒死为你们争战, 把你们从米甸人手中救了出来;
18 今日你们竟起来攻击我的父家, 在一块石头上杀了他七十个儿子, 又立了他的婢女所生的儿子亚比米勒作示剑人的王, 因为他原是你们的亲族。
19 今日你们若是按着诚实和正直待耶路.巴力和他的家, 你们就可以因亚比米勒得喜乐, 亚比米勒也可以因你们得喜乐。
20 若不是这样, 愿火从亚比米勒出来, 吞灭示剑人和伯特米罗人; 又愿火从示剑人和伯特米罗人出来, 吞灭亚比米勒。"
21 接着约坦就逃跑了; 他逃到比珥去, 住在那里, 躲避他的兄弟亚比米勒。
22 亚比米勒治理以色列人三年。
23 神差派邪恶的灵来到亚比米勒与示剑人中间, 示剑人就背弃了亚比米勒。
24 这是要报复对耶路.巴力七十个儿子的暴行, 把流他们血的罪归到他们的兄弟亚比米勒身上, 就是那杀害他们的; 也归到示剑人身上, 就是那些帮助亚比米勒去杀他自己的兄弟的。
25 示剑人在山顶上设下埋伏, 路过他们那里的, 他们都劫掠; 有人把这事告诉亚比米勒。
26 那时, 以别的儿子迦勒与他的兄弟都来了, 到示剑去, 示剑人竟信任他。
27 他们出到田间去, 收取葡萄, 榨酒, 举行庆祝会, 进入他们的神庙吃喝, 并且咒诅亚比米勒。
28 以别的儿子迦勒说: "亚比米勒是谁?示剑是谁?竟要我们服事他呢?他不是耶路.巴力的儿子吗?他的副官不是西布勒吗?你们要服事示剑的始祖哈抹的后人啊; 我们为什么要服事亚比米勒呢?
29 但愿这些人民都归在我手下, 我好把亚比米勒除掉。"迦勒又对亚比米勒说: "增添你的军队出来吧! "
30 那城的首长西布勒听了以别的儿子迦勒的话, 他的怒气就发作,
31 秘密差派使者去见亚比米勒, 说: "以别的儿子迦勒和他的兄弟已经到了示剑, 他们正在煽动那城的人反叛你。
32 现在, 你和与你在一起的人, 要在夜间起来, 在野地埋伏。
33 到了早晨, 太阳出来的时候, 你就要起来攻城; 你要注意, 迦勒和与他在一起的人出来对抗你的时候, 你就把握机会对付他们。"
34 于是亚比米勒和与他在一起的人, 都在夜间起来, 分作四队, 埋伏着等候示剑人。
35 以别的儿子迦勒出去, 站在城门口; 亚比米勒和与他在一起的人, 从埋伏的地方起来。
36 迦勒看见了那些人, 就对西布勒说: "你看, 有人从山顶上下来。"西布勒说: "你看见山的影子以为是人。"
37 迦勒又说: "看哪, 有人从高地下来, 又有一队从米恶尼尼橡树的路径而来。"
38 西布勒对他说: "你曾经说过: ‘亚比米勒是谁, 竟要我们服事他呢?’现在你说这话的嘴在哪里呢?这不是你轻视的人吗?现在请你出去与他们交战吧。"
39 于是迦勒在示剑人面前出去, 与亚比米勒争战。
40 亚比米勒追赶迦勒, 迦勒在他面前逃跑, 直到城门口, 有很多受伤的人仆倒。
41 亚比米勒住在亚鲁玛; 西布勒把迦勒和他的兄弟赶走, 不许他们住在示剑。
42 次日, 城中众人出到田间去, 有人把这事告诉亚比米勒。
43 亚比米勒就把他的人分作三队, 埋伏在田间; 他在那里观看, 见有人从城里出来, 就起来攻击他们, 把他们击杀了。
44 亚比米勒和与他在一起的一队人忽然冲过去, 站在城门口; 其他两队人也冲出来攻打所有在田间的人, 把他们击杀了。
45 那一天, 亚比米勒整天攻打那城, 把城攻下了, 杀了城中的众人; 把城拆毁, 又撒上盐。
46 示剑楼的众人听见了这事, 就逃入伊勒.比利土庙的地穴里。
47 有人告诉亚比米勒, 说: "示剑楼所有的人都聚集在一起。"
48 亚比米勒和与他在一起的人都上了撒们山; 亚比米勒手里拿着斧子, 砍下一根树枝, 拿起来放在自己的肩头上, 然后对与他在一起的人说: "你们看我作什么, 你们也要赶快照样作。"
49 于是众人也各自砍下一根树枝, 跟随着亚比米勒, 把树枝放在地穴上, 放火烧了地穴, 以致示剑楼的人都死了, 男女约有一千人。
50 后来亚比米勒到提备斯去, 安营攻打提备斯, 攻取了那城。
51 城中有一座坚固的城楼; 那城所有的人, 无论男女, 都逃到那里去, 关上门, 上了楼顶。
52 亚比米勒到了城楼前, 攻打城楼; 他走近城楼门口, 要用火焚烧。
53 有一个妇人把一块上磨石拋在亚比米勒的头上, 打破了他的头盖骨。
54 他急忙呼喊替他拿兵器的少年人, 对他说: "拔出你的刀来, 把我杀死吧。免得人讲论我说: ‘他被一个妇人所杀。’"于是那少年人把他刺透, 他就死了。
55 以色列人看见亚比米勒死了, 就各回自己的地方去了。
56 这样, 神报应了亚比米勒向他父亲所行的恶事, 就是他杀了自己的兄弟七十个人。
57 神也把示剑人的一切恶事, 都报应在他们的头上; 耶路.巴力的儿子约坦的咒诅, 也归到他们身上。