“Thus God rendered the wickedness of Abimelech, which he did unto his father, in slaying his seventy brethren: And all the evil of the men of Shechem did God render upon their heads: and upon them came the curse of Jotham the son of Jerubbaal.”
- Judges 9v56-57
Abimelech was a very wicked man. The son of Gideon he killed seventy brothers to insure that he would rule next. He was manipulative and scheming when it came to his rule. He expected complete submission to his power. Israel did not need an outside oppressor for their own ruler oppressed them.
Things got desperate for Israel. Civil war breaks out and Gaal lead the Shechemites into battle against Abimelech. They were suffering the consequences of their forgetting God and His servant Gideon in the previous chapter.
Finally Abimelech thought he had the Gaal and the Shechamites cornered. They retreated to a massive tower and all Abimilech had to do was to wait them out. Just as he was about to set fire to the tower and woman on the tower dropped a millstone breaking his skull. Rather than be killed by a woman he had his own armour-bearer kill him.
God always deals with sin. Albimilech forgot all about God. He forgot the principle of “your sin will find you out,” and “whatsoever an man soweth that shall he also reap.” All around us people are going on like Abimilech, ignored God and the consequences of the action. We can take comfort from the fact that Jesus has already taken the penalty for our sin.
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