639 matching verse commentaries
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And when they told it to Jotham,.... Or when it was told him that Abimelech was made king in Shechem by some of his friends: he went and stood in the top of Mount Gerizim; a mount near Shechem; it hung over the city, as Josephus says (c), and so a very proper place to stand on and deliver a speech from it to the inhabitants of it; who, as the same...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
The trees went forth on a time to anoint a king over them,.... This is an apologue or fable, and a very fine and beautiful one; it is fitly expressed to answer the design, and the most ancient of the kind, being made seven hundred years before the times of Aesop, so famous for his fables, and exceeds anything written by him. By the trees are meant...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
But the olive tree said unto them,.... In reply to the request of the trees: should I leave my fatness, wherewith by me they honour God and man; by "fatness" oil is meant, pressed out of the fruit of the olive tree, and which was much made use of both in the burning of the lamps in the tabernacle, and in many sacrifices, as the meat offerings and...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And the trees said to the fig tree,.... Another useful and fruit bearing tree, and to which also good men are sometimes compared, see So 2:13, come thou, and reign over us: which Jarchi applies to Deborah, but may be better applied to one of Gideon's sons, who, though they had not a personal offer of kingly government themselves, yet it was made...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And the fig tree said unto them,.... Rejecting the offer made: should I forsake my sweetness and my good fruit; for such the fruit of the fig tree is, sweet and good: so Julian (d) the emperor shows from various authors, Aristophanes, Herodotus, and Homer, that nothing is sweeter than figs, excepting honey, and that no kind of fruit is better,...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Then said the trees unto the vine,.... Another emblem of good and useful men; and it may be observed, that Jotham takes no notice of any trees but fruitful ones till he comes to the bramble, and them only such as were well known, and of the greatest use, in the land of Judea, as olives, figs, and vines, see Deuteronomy 8:8 come thou, and reign...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And the vine said unto them,.... By way of denial and refusal, as the other two: shall I leave my wine, which cheereth God and man; which being used in the drink offerings was acceptable to God, and of a sweet savour to him, Numbers 15:7 and being drank by than, revives, refreshes, and makes glad, when before sorrowful, drooping, faint, and weary,...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Then said all the trees unto the bramble,.... Perceiving they could not prevail upon any of the useful and fruitful trees to take the government of them, they unite in a request to a bramble, scarce to be called a tree, and however a very barren and fruitless one, yea, hurtful and distressing: come thou, and reign over us; this respects Abimelech,...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And the bramble said unto the trees,.... Accepting of their offer at once: if ye in trust anoint me king over you; suspecting they were not hearty and cordial in their choice and call to the kingly authority over them: then come and put your trust in my shadow; promising protection to them as his subjects, requiring their confidence in him, and...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Now therefore, if ye have done truly and sincerely, in that ye have made Abimelech king,.... If they had done this conscientiously, and in the uprightness of their hearts, to take such a base man, and a murderer, and make him their king, which Jotham doubted, and put it in this manner to them, that they might consider of it themselves: if ye have...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
For my father fought for you,.... In the valley of Jezreel, and at Karkor, where with three hundred men he routed and destroyed an army of 135,000: and adventured his life far: which, according to our version, may seem to have respect to his going over Jordan, and following the Midianites, fleeing into their country, and fighting them at Karkor,...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And ye are risen up against my father's house this day,.... Which was an instance of great ingratitude in them, after such services done for them, and favours received by them: and have slain his sons, seventy persons on one stone; excepting one, himself, and he was intentionally slain, their design was to cut off everyone; and all being slain but...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
If ye then have dealt truly and sincerely with Jerubbaal and his house this day,.... If they could in their consciences think and believe they had done well, and acted the faithful and upright part by him and his family, which he left with them to consider of: then rejoice ye in Abimelech, and let him also rejoice in you; may you be happy in him...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
But if not,.... If it appeared that they had not acted uprightly and sincerely in this matter: let fire come out of Abimelech, and devour the men of Shechem, and the house of Millo; let wrath, rage, and fury, break out from Abimelech like fire, and issue in the destruction of those that made him king, both those of Shechem and of Millo: and let...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And Jotham ran away, and fled,.... Having delivered his fable, and the application of it, he made his escape, having the advantage of being on the top of a mountain, at some distance from the people, and perhaps they might not be inclined to do him any harm: and went to Beer; which some take to be the same with Baalathbeer in the tribe of Simeon,...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
When Abimelech had reigned three years over Israel. The people in general consenting to what the men of Shechem had done, at least not opposing it, all being desirous of a king, and therefore put up with a mean person, rather than have none; though it is amazing they should, and that they had not rose up as one man against Abimelech, and avenged...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
Then God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the men of Shechem,.... Permitted, yea, gave a commission to Satan, the evil spirit, to go among them, who stirred up suspicions, jealousies, hatred, and ill will to one another, and sowed the seeds of discord and contention among them; or God gave them up to their own hearts' lusts, to think ill...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
That the cruelty done to the seventy sons of Jerubbaal might come,.... That vengeance might come on the authors of it; so things were ordered in Providence that this might come to pass: and their blood be laid upon Abimelech their brother, which slew them; be charged to his account, and he suffer for shedding it: and upon the men of Shechem which...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And the men of Shechem set liers in wait for him in the top of the mountains,.... Of Ebal and Gerizim, which were near Shechem, by the way of which he passed when he came to that city, and these they set there, either to slay him, or to seize his person, and bring him to them: and they robbed all that came along that way by them; that belonged to...
John Gill - Exposition - John Gill
And Gaal the son or Ebed came with his brethren, and went over to Shechem,.... Who this Gaal was, and who his brethren, and from whence he came, and the place he went over, are all uncertain. Jarchi thinks he was a Gentile, and it looks, by some speeches of his afterwards, as if he was a descendant of Hamor, prince of Shechem, in the times of...