31 – Gideon’s Legacy

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Gideon is now dead. The scriptures don’t say that but as we do this study it will become evident that he has died and there is a wicked legacy that follows through his son Abimelech.

Judges 9:1 Abimelech the son of Jerubbaal [Gideon] went to Shechem to his mother’s brothers, and spoke with them, and with all the family of the house of his mother’s father, saying,

Abimelech was the son of Gideon’s concubine from chapter 8 verse 31. Note that Gideon had 71 sons. Seventy were from his wives and 1 was from his Ephraimite concubine.

Abimelech’s name means “my father is king”. This is very telling about how Gideon viewed his role in Israel. The name Abimelech would either have been chosen by Gideon or perhaps Gideon’s son took this name for himself. Either way, it indicates that Gideon thought of himself as a king of Israel enough to give Abimelech the name or instill in his son the idea that he really was the king of Israel even though he had refused to be crowned by the Israelites after the war with Midian. So he said one thing with his mouth and did another with his actions.

Abimelech is acting as Gideon’s successor but it is for an unauthorized and illegitimate throne. YHVH did not authorize Israel to have a king. For Israel’s part, their offer to crown Gideon king was the first time we come to understand that they would really rather have the worldly form of government, a monarchy, than YHVH’s righteous form of government, Judges. Israel did not want to be judged. They wanted to be ruled over so they could have someone to blame when things went wrong. Today, YHVH’s people don’t want to be judged.

Abimelech went to talk with the entire household of his grandfather on his mother’s side in Shechem, an Ephraimite city. That Abimelech’s mother was from this city suggests a political arrangement between Manasseh, Gideon’s tribe, and Ephraim. Remember, there had been conflict between Gideon from the tribe of Manasseh and the Ephraimites during the war against the Midianites. It is likely this woman becoming his concubine was intended to renew the kinship ties between the 2 tribes and end the conflict. But unresolved conflicts have a way of going underground only to unbury themselves and show up later. More is needed than a concubine to heal jealousy between brethren.

Here is what Abimelech said to his grandfather:

Judges 9:2 “Please speak in the ears of all the men of Shechem, ‘Is it better for you that all the sons of Jerubbaal, who are seventy persons, rule over you, or that one rule over you?’ Remember also that I am your bone and your flesh.”

This likely happened very quickly after Gideon’s death. When there is an expected succession of power, the recipients don’t waste any time acting to get into power. Abimelech preempted any consideration of his 70 brothers before any of them could be considered for a kingship. Abimelech intended to do what his father would not – be crowned king over Israel through the lead tribe, Ephraim.

There should not have been a succession of power because Israel’s Judges were voted on and elected in Israel. Their Judgeship was not handed to the next generation in line. A Judge, however, does not seem to even come to mind in this situation. No, this is going to be about succession as in IF Gideon had actually been a king.

Abimelech’s suggestion amounted to the fact that he was the only Ephraimite of the all the sons who were probably all from Manassehite mothers. This would have been the source of rivalry between Abimelech and the 70 which would have given the Ephraimites good reason to want him as king over them. Given the ongoing rivalry between the 2 tribes, Ephraim was not willing to accept a Manassehite Judge or king.

This is an impossible situation because, even though the 71 sons could rule as judges of a great court – a beit din, it is most likely that none of them were qualified to judge (including Abimelech) according to YHVH’s Law and so none of them would likely have been elected except one which we will meet later. These people were once again worshiping other gods or were mixing worship of other gods with worship of YHVH so any judging done by them would have been perverted because idolators don’t care about YHVH’s Law. Any Judge of Israel who was an idolator would necessarily lead Israel further away from the Law.

Judges 9:3 His mother’s brothers [Abimelech’s uncles, all of whom were probably there when the Ephraimites gave Gideon a hard time about his not calling them to the war against the Midianites] spoke of him in the ears of all the men of Shechem all these words. Their hearts inclined to follow Abimelech; for they said, “He is our brother.”

With this statement, we can see the jealousy of the tribe of Ephraim against the tribe of Manasseh continues.

Judges 9:4 They gave him seventy pieces of silver out of the house of Baal Berith, with which Abimelech hired vain and light fellows, who followed him.

The house [temple] of Baal Berith was the authority the Ephraimite men used to covenant with Abimelech to kill all 70 Manassehite brothers. Making Abimelech king over Israel, then, was tantamount to giving YHVH’s nation to Baal. Do you see how wicked this is?

This 70 pieces of silver came from the Baal temple sitting inside Shechem’s city walls. These were men who worshiped Baal. Another source of the conflict between Ephraim and Manasseh is that Gideon had torn down his father’s Baal altar, remember?

Seventy pieces of silver, the equivalent number of fully Manassehite sons of Gideon, is significant. Each piece of silver was for 1 head of his brothers. Consider that concubines’ sons do not stand at the front of the line for succession. The other 70 sons were from wives. Wives’ sons are looked at first for succession. Abimelech would have been #71, see? He needed 70 pieces of silver to pay a personal army to go with him from among the Ephraimites to kill the brothers. Abimelech’s army was comprised of worthless fellows, vain and spiritually shallow, men who had plans for their share of the money.

Abimelech and his 70 brothers might have ruled together as a great beit din, 70 judges with 1 Nasi, or prince. But Abimelech was not the kind of man to share authority.

Judges 9:5 He went to his father’s house at Ophrah, and killed his brothers the sons of Jerubbaal, being seventy persons, on one stone: but Jotham the youngest son of Jerubbaal was left; for he hid himself.

Abimelech got himself a little army together and went to attack his father’s city. You know, 70 men aren’t going to just line up to be beheaded just because someone says they should. No, you have to take a fighting force with you which is what wicked would-be kings do. Abimelech thought of himself as successor to his father’s unauthorized and Illegitimate throne.

The first time the number 70 appears in scripture is in connection with the nations that came out of the Tower of Babel in Genesis 10. Then there 70 elders of Israel who were not allowed by YHVH to approach Mount Sinai with Moses symbolizing the nation’s inability to approach Him (Exodus 24:1-2) without the righteousness of the Torah and the holiness of YHVH’s Spirit which was in Moses. Abimelech’s murder of his 70 brothers prophesied Satan’s plan to eventually murder all of mankind, to murder all of the nations. Thus, Abimelech became a type and shadow of the Antichrist who will seek to kill all the family of man in the end of days. We will see in a moment that one of Abimelech’s brothers escaped which represents the escaping remnant, the woman of Revelation 12.  

Ophrah was Gideon’s capital city and the location of the ephod which snared the Israelites into image worship and the continuation of their Baal idolatry. Nothing changed in the hearts of the Israelites after the war. They just went back to worshiping Baal as before.

“But Jotham the youngest son of Jerubbaal was left”. The killing of all the possible successors to the throne was the first act of a new king. This is true throughout history. New kings kill all those with a claim to the throne, don’t they? That’s just the way it is. But YHVH always has a remnant and one of Abimelech’s brothers was part of that remnant.

We often wonder how small is the remnant. One out of 71 is very small. .014%. Not much. And usually the remnant are people who walk alone. There are very few people who walk truly with YHVH even though they claim to be walking with him.

The other thing about the remnant is they are often hidden. Even Elijah did not know about the 7,000 who had not bowed to Baal. They must hide or they will be killed. So if you’re alone in this world walking with YHVH, be blessed because you are highly favored of YHVH!

Judges 9:6 All the men of Shechem assembled themselves together, and all the house of Millo, and went and made Abimelech king, by the oak of the pillar that was in Shechem.

Here is some information on the house of Millo. There are 2 house of Millo. The most well-known is the rampart built by the Jebusites prior to Jerusalem’s being conquered by the Israelites, according to Wikipedia. It was the boundary of David’s construction from which he extended the City of David after capturing it from the Jebusites (2 Samuel 5:9).

The other Millo is Beth-Millo. It was an ancient fortification in or near Shechem. In Judg.9.6, Judg.9.20 “Beth Millo” is mentioned three times probably because the inhabitants of this mound or  tower or fortification was somehow a part of Shechem’s own fortifications.

The point is that we now have for the first time in Israel’s history a king in the city of Shechem which made Shechem into Israel’s capital city. Now Shechem was not supposed become Israel’s capital city because Shiloh was the capital of Israel, according to YHVH the true King of Israel, but now Shechem rivals Shiloh, see? Can you see how the Ephraimites keep leading Israel away from the Tabernacle and away from God, YHVH? This is the reason Judah was able to prevail and get the birthright, according to 1 Chronicles 5:2. The birthright was always supposed to be Joseph’s but the wicked descendants lost that for him.

The “oak of the pillar” in verse 6 is where Joshua had put a copy of the law (Joshua 24:26) and now  Abimelech has been anointed by unauthorized men as king over Israel. This is the usurpation of YHVH’s rule over Israel!

The anointing at the oak of the pillar was done to try and remove YHVH from His King’s office and to lend legitimacy to the change from a Judgeship form of government to a monarchy. But you see, men’s plans always come to naught when YHVH doesn’t want it to be that way. Next week, we will learn what happened to Abimelech.

The money to buy Abimelech as king came from Baal Berith and the crowning of him as king was done where the law scroll was buried. Notice they did not go to Shiloh to remove YHVH as King over Israel. You know what’s supposed to happen when a new king comes along, right? He’s supposed to go the capital and take the throne! But that won’t happen until the Antichrist comes along and sits in the temple showing himself to be god.

No, these cowards did this rebellion elsewhere. The idea was to relieve YHVH of His kingship while keeping the priesthood intact for religious purposes, as if it would not matter to YHVH that He had been removed as long as they were still doing their bloody sacrifices ‘cuz, you know, Israel can worship YHVH and all the other gods it wants to, right? Wrong! This is a situation that YHVH absolutely abhors! This same kind of usurpation will come up in about another 500 years or so when Jeroboam had Shechem as his capital, but would wholly turn Israel away from YHVH with 2 golden calves, one in Dan and one in Bethel. The wicked Ephraimites!

Judges 9:7 When they told it to Jotham, he went and stood on the top of Mount Gerizim, and lifted up his voice, cried out, and said to them, “Listen to me, you men of Shechem, that God may listen to you.

The son of Gideon that escaped that ancient type and shadow of the Antichrist now comes to the fore – Yotham. His name means “YHVH is perfect”. Here’s a quandary. Gideon named one son saying he, Gideon, was king of Israel (my father is king in English), and another son ‘YHVH is perfect’. This is mixed worship of YHVH. Gideon was doubleminded and a doubleminded man is unstable in all his ways (James 1:8).

Yotham must have been hiding in the vicinity of Gerizim, the Mount of Blessing. It was from there that he addressed the situation of Abimelech getting himself set up as a king in Israel.

Because of Yotham, we will now have the first parables of olive and fig trees and grape vines which Yeshua would later use in His parables. These references are testimony to Yotham’s righteous relationship with YHVH for he understood the things of YHVH and spoke in parables, and ones that could be understood even by idolatrous, mixed-worshiping Israelites like these. These references would have been plainly understood. Let’s see what they are.

Judges 9:8 The trees set out to anoint a king over themselves. They said to the olive tree, ‘Reign over us.’

This is the first time humans are symbolized as trees as scripture. Israelite people are symbolized as many different trees but these are the important ones – olive, fig and vine. The trees asking the olive, fig and vine to rule over them, we will find out, are cedars of Lebanon which symbolized nobility in those days.

Judges 9:9 “But the olive tree said to them, ‘Should I stop producing my oil, with which they honor

God and man by me, and go to wave back and forth over the trees?’

The olive represents the connection between the branches and the trunk or root, the tribes and YHVH. The olive oil is YHVH’s Holy Spirit by which He rules over Israel.

Judges 9:10 “The trees [cedars of Lebanon trees] said to the fig tree, ‘Come and reign over us.’
Judges 9:11 “But the fig tree said to them, ‘Should I leave my sweetness, and my good fruit, and go to wave back and forth over the trees?’

The fig represents what the nations can see of Israel’s relationship with YHVH, its fruit and the sweetness of its fruit. The nations can’t understand nor experience Israel’s olive tree relationship with YHVH because the very nature of the olive tree is that YHVH is the root and the branches are the tribes whose individuals have personal relationships with YHVH and are indwelt by His Spirit, symbolized by the oil. The oil comes forth to help light shine into the world but the world cannot know the light. Only Israel can know the light. But the world can see the benefits of being a citizen of Israel. Israel’s fruit is good and sweet. It is GOOD to be a true Israelite. The caveat is that it isn’t so good to be a wicked Israelite.

Judges 9:12 “The trees [cedars of Lebanon trees] said to the vine, ‘Come and reign over us.’
Judges 9:13 “The vine said to them, ‘Should I leave my new wine, which cheers God and man, and go to wave back and forth over the trees?’

The wine represents the shed blood of God and King for His people. Was Abimelech going to shed his blood for Israel? Not likely. Wine was present as the oblation for the sacrifices. It was what was poured out as part of the sacrifice which represents Yeshua’s blood pouring out for His people. And it was this oblation which “cheered God and man” once God accepted the offering. This is not talking about people drinking the wine and getting giddy or drunk. No! This was how happy you were when YHVH accepted your offering once the wine oblation, the blood of God, was poured out!

We keep reading this phrase, “and go to wave back and forth over the trees”. This is a reference to the wave offerings performed at Shiloh by the authorized and legitimate priesthood of YHVH for all Israel. We often underestimate the importance of wave offerings but Yotham knew the importance of waving the offerings before YHVH. Was Abimelech going to do wave offerings for Israel? Not likely.

Judges 9:14 “Then all the trees [cedars of Lebanon trees] said to the bramble, ‘Come and reign over us.’
Judges 9:15 “The bramble [that’s Abimelech] said to the trees [cedars of Lebanon trees], ‘If in truth you anoint me king over you, then come and take refuge in my shade; and if not, let fire come out of the bramble, and devour the cedars of Lebanon.’

In other words, Yotham was saying that the idea of Abimelech ruling over Shechem might not have been so easily accepted and that Abimelech must have to resort to threats to destroy Shechem. This city had once had all of its men killed by 2 Israelites, Simeon and Levi, in one day. So there was already this scar in the history of Shechem.

With none of the honorable trees [olive, fig and vine] willing to remove YHVH from being King of Israel, the trees [cedars of Lebanon trees] nobility had taken the bramble bush, the lowliest of all trees. Bramble bushes represents the wicked one, Satan, and his demonic hordes. Bramble bushes may look inviting as a better choice to being destroyed but they are dangerous because their thorns, while not poisonous, will pierce the skin.

Hmmm… Pierce the skin. Well, whaddaya know! Can anyone say “vaccines of the New World Order beast system”?

And if you won’t get under the protection of, or submit to, the bramble bush [Abimelech], then fire will come out and devour the cedars of Lebanon, the noble people. Hmmm… Can anyone say “New World Order nuclear war”?

Judges 9:16 “Now therefore, if you have dealt truly and righteously, in that you have made Abimelech king, and if you have dealt well with Jerubbaal and his house, and have done to him according to the deserving of his hands
Judges 9:17 (for my father fought for you, and risked his life, and delivered you out of the hand of Midian;
Judges 9:18 and you have risen up against my father’s house today, and have slain his sons, seventy persons, on one stone, and have made Abimelech, the son of his female servant, king over the men of Shechem, because he is your brother);
Judges 9:19 if you then have dealt truly and righteously with Jerubbaal and with his house today, then rejoice in Abimelech, and let him also rejoice in you;
Judges 9:20 but if not, let fire come out from Abimelech, and devour the men of Shechem, and the house of Millo; and let fire come out from the men of Shechem, and from the house of Millo, and devour Abimelech.”

Yotham keeps calling Gideon by his Baal-destroying name indicating that the root of the problem between Ephraim and Manasseh is their Baal worship. You see, Gideon did not return Israel to Baal worship. He simply gave them a different image, an ephod which was perhaps a figure of the High Priest of Israel (who knows?). By disobeying YHVH’s commandment not to make images, and him doing that to appease the Israelites who wanted images to worship, he actually escalated the worship of Baal in the land.

For Gideon obeying YHVH to deliver Israel from the Midianites, his legacy should have been one more honorable. But the wickedness of his son, Abimelech, the son of a servant, a concubine, not a wife, has now reflected back on Gideon and has left him a poor legacy.

Judges 9:21 Jotham ran away, and fled, and went to Beer, and lived there, for fear of Abimelech his brother.

Don’t think Yotham is a coward. Just like Elijah who ran after calling down YHVH’s fire and then killing 450 priests of Baal, Yotham needed to protect himself. It was wise for him to leave Gerizim and not only to leave, but to do so running.

The Downfall of Abimelech

Judges 9:22  Abimelech was prince over Israel three years. 

That’s interesting Tribulation number.

Judges 9:23  Then God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the men of Shechem; and the men of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech, 
Judges 9:24  that the violence done to the seventy sons of Jerubbaal might come, and that their blood might be laid on Abimelech their brother, who killed them, and on the men of Shechem, who strengthened his hands to kill his brothers. 

YHVH will bring punishment to the man of sin.

Judges 9:25  The men of Shechem set an ambush for him on the tops of the mountains, and they robbed all who came along that way by them, and Abimelech was told about it. 
Judges 9:26  Gaal the son of Ebed came with his brothers, and went over to Shechem; and the men of Shechem put their trust in him. 
Judges 9:27  They went out into the field, harvested their vineyards, trod the grapes, celebrated, and went into the house of their god, and ate and drank, and cursed Abimelech. 
Judges 9:28  Gaal the son of Ebed said, “Who is Abimelech, and who is Shechem, that we should serve him? Isn’t he the son of Jerubbaal? Isn’t Zebul his officer? Serve the men of Hamor the father of Shechem, but why should we serve him? 
Judges 9:29  I wish that this people were under my hand! Then I would remove Abimelech.” He said to Abimelech, “Increase your army, and come out!” 
Judges 9:30  When Zebul the ruler of the city heard the words of Gaal the son of Ebed, his anger burned. 
Judges 9:31  He sent messengers to Abimelech craftily, saying, “Behold, Gaal the son of Ebed and his brothers have come to Shechem; and behold, they incite the city against you. 
Judges 9:32  Now therefore, go up by night, you and the people who are with you, and lie in wait in the field. 
Judges 9:33  It shall be that in the morning, as soon as the sun is up, you shall rise early, and rush on the city. Behold, when he and the people who are with him come out against you, then may you do to them as you shall find occasion.” 
Judges 9:34  Abimelech rose up, and all the people who were with him, by night, and they laid wait against Shechem in four companies. 
Judges 9:35  Gaal the son of Ebed went out, and stood in the entrance of the gate of the city. Abimelech rose up, and the people who were with him, from the ambush. 
Judges 9:36  When Gaal saw the people, he said to Zebul, “Behold, people are coming down from the tops of the mountains.” Zebul said to him, “You see the shadow of the mountains as if they were men.” 
Judges 9:37  Gaal spoke again and said, “Behold, people are coming down by the middle of the land, and one company comes by the way of the oak of Meonenim.” 
Judges 9:38  Then Zebul said to him, “Now where is your mouth, that you said, ‘Who is Abimelech, that we should serve him?’ Isn’t this the people that you have despised? Please go out now and fight with them.” 
Judges 9:39  Gaal went out before the men of Shechem, and fought with Abimelech. 
Judges 9:40  Abimelech chased him, and he fled before him, and many fell wounded, even to the entrance of the gate. 
Judges 9:41  Abimelech lived at Arumah; and Zebul drove out Gaal and his brothers, that they should not dwell in Shechem. 
Judges 9:42  On the next day, the people went out into the field; and they told Abimelech. 
Judges 9:43  He took the people, and divided them into three companies, and laid wait in the field; and he looked, and behold, the people came out of the city. So, he rose up against them, and struck them. 
Judges 9:44  Abimelech and the companies that were with him rushed forward, and stood in the entrance of the gate of the city; and the two companies rushed on all who were in the field, and struck them. 
Judges 9:45  Abimelech fought against the city all that day; and he took the city, and killed the people in it. He beat down the city, and sowed it with salt. 
Judges 9:46  When all the men of the tower of Shechem heard of it, they entered into the stronghold of the house of Elberith. 
Judges 9:47  Abimelech was told that all the men of the tower of Shechem were gathered together. 
Judges 9:48  Abimelech went up to Mount Zalmon, he and all the people who were with him; and Abimelech took an ax in his hand, and cut down a bough from the trees, and took it up, and laid it on his shoulder. Then he said to the people who were with him, “What you have seen me do, make haste, and do as I have done!” 
Judges 9:49  All the people likewise each cut down his bough, and followed Abimelech, and put them at the base of the stronghold, and set the stronghold on fire on them; so that all the people of the tower of Shechem died also, about a thousand men and women. 
Judges 9:50  Then Abimelech went to Thebez, and encamped against Thebez, and took it. 
Judges 9:51  But there was a strong tower within the city, and all the men and women of the city fled there, and shut themselves in, and went up to the roof of the tower. 
Judges 9:52  Abimelech came to the tower, and fought against it, and came near to the door of the tower to burn it with fire. 
Judges 9:53  A certain woman cast an upper millstone on Abimelech’s head, and broke his skull. 
Judges 9:54  Then he called hastily to the young man his armor bearer, and said to him, “Draw your sword, and kill me, that men not say of me, ‘A woman killed him.’ His young man thrust him through, and he died.” 
Judges 9:55  When the men of Israel saw that Abimelech was dead, they each departed to his place. 
Judges 9:56  Thus God repaid the wickedness of Abimelech, which he did to his father, in killing his seventy brothers; 
Judges 9:57  and God repaid all the wickedness of the men of Shechem on their heads; and the curse of Jotham the son of Jerubbaal came on them. 

The man of sin will kill his brothers without remorse but he will come to his own bitter end.

Here is the shame of Gideon. No father is ultimately responsible for his son’s sins. Isaac had 2 sons. One was wicked, the other righteous. This was so from within Rivkah’s womb. Yet, we know fathers influence their sons by what they teach them. It is as Proverbs says to teach them what they should know when they are young and so that they will do the right things when they are old (Proverbs 22:6).

Abimelech was a product of his life as Gideon’s son. Gideon, whose beginning was good in that he obeyed YHVH in how to deliver Israel from the Midianites. But then we witness his downslide even during the battle when we see him trying to share YHVH’s glory in the battle shout. Afterward, he made an infernal ephod, an image intended to highlight his authority as a Judge but he also secretly acted as a king.

The Book of Revelation says:

Rev 22:11  He who acts unjustly, let him act unjustly still. He who is filthy, let him be filthy still. He who is righteous, let him do righteousness still. He who is set apart, let him be set apart still.” 

Both Gideon and his son acted unjustly toward YHVH which cost 70 men their lives.