God is Our Refuge and King

Judges 9 - Episode 135

A refuge is the person or place that we run to when we need protection, comfort, advice, or help. Though God is the only adequate refuge, because we cannot see Him or hear His voice audibly, we often go to the people and places we can see and talk to. Then, a king is the one that we cede all our power to, the one we trust with our lives, the one we submit to. God alone is worthy of such power or faith.

But the people of Shechem repeatedly took refuge in their houses of Baal, yet their god was not able to protect them. Their worship of foreign gods along with their desire to make a man betrayed their loyalty and reliance on the One True God and King. We may not worship other gods or turn to them for refuge, but do we look to the Lord and bow to only Him or do we rely on ourselves and others while placing other things above Him?

Abimelech Made King of Shechem – Judges 9:1-6

After Gideon died, Abimelech, the son of his concubine, went to his mother’s family in Shechem, proposing to be their king. Then, they went to the elders of the town and asked if they would rather be ruled by all 70 of Gideon’s sons or just by Abimelech, who was their relative. The people of Shechem favored him as their ruler and gave him 70 pieces of silver from the treasury of the sanctuary they had created for Baal. (Judges 8:33) This shows how far the people had drifted from the Lord. Shechem had been designated as a Levitical city of refuge by Joshua in the land of Ephraim. These were the cities where the servants of God lived. Yet they had created a house for the god of Baal instead of a sanctuary for the Lord.

Abimelech took their silver and used it to pay 70 worthless and reckless men to follow him. Then, he went to his father’s land in Ophrah and killed all but one of his brothers. Jotham, the youngest, ran and hid, escaping death. But even after Abimelech committed this horrible act of violence on his own family, the men of Shechem made him their ruler at Beth Millo which means, “house of the fortress.” By the oak at Shechem, where Jacob and Joshua buried their foreign gods and pledged loyalty to the Lord, by the pillar Joshua erected as a witness of their commitment, Abimelech became their lord and ruler. (Genesis 35:1-4; Joshua 24:14-27)

Jotham Curses Abimelech and Shechem – Judges 9:7-21

When Jotham heard that Abimelech had been named their ruler, he stood on Mount Gerizim and talked to the men of Shechem. He told them a fable and pronounced a curse from the same place that the Israelites pronounced blessings after they entered the Promised Land.

His fable was an analogy of their bad judgment in making anyone their king, much less Abimelech. In his analogy, all the trees asked the olive tree to reign over them. But the olive tree asked why it would stop producing oil for everyone just to rule over them. So, they asked the fig tree, but the fig tree said it did not want to stop focusing on its sweet fruit just to rule over the other trees. Then, the vine refused because it did not want to stop making wine for the people. So, all they had left was the bramble bush, who accepted their offer and invited them into its shade. Though the bramble bush was the worst option, all the big, tall trees had turned them down, from the greatest to the least.

Jotham told them this fable to remind them that everyone before Abimelech had turned down kingship. Though they had done great things for the nation, and would no doubt be good leaders, they did not accept their offer because they all knew God was supposed to be their only king. But Abimelech, who had not proven himself to have any leadership skills or ability to act in the best interest of others, was the one who ultimately became their leader. He was the worst choice, but the only one who wanted to rule.

Then, Jotham reminded them of everything his father had done for them, presumably to contrast him with Abimelech, who had done nothing for them. Gideon fought enemies for the nation and Abimelech murdered his family for his own benefit. Gideon risked his life to save the people, whereas Abimelech took the lives of those who threatened his position. Gideon gave them freedom and they honored him by submitting to a man who killed all his sons.

As the concubine’s son, Abimelech was the least of all Gideon’s children and the least qualified to rule of all those who were asked. Yet, he sought power and the men of Shechem had given it to him. But like the trees who took shade from the bramble bush, they would not be satisfied with their choice. Eventually, they would each be destroyed by the other. So, Jotham cursed them with fire, then ran to Beer for safety.