Seder 18: Judges 8-9---Abimelech and the Short Duration of Gideon's Dynasty

 After God delivered Israel from the Midianites through Gideon's army, Gideon was asked to become a king (Judges 8:22).  Gideon declined, but his subsequent actions belied his words.  He had his men give him gold earrings from their booty as a pledge of loyalty, then used the gold to make an ephod that he draped over an idol.  Like a king, he was sponsoring worship.  (Gideon's behavior here also reminds us of the golden calf incident in Exodus 32.)    

Gideon also had a harem and fathered 70 sons (v 30), again acting like a king.  Perhaps he intended to found a dynasty, despite his denial in Judges 8:23.  The name of one of his sons, Abimelech ("the king was/is my father") suggests that Gideon was thought of as a king.

Abimelech had a Shechemite mother, and he took advantage of that fact to gain support for his leadership in Shechem.  After having all but one of his half-brothers killed, he was declared king in Shechem (9:1-6).  The place where this slaughter took place could have been something like this ancient altar for Baal Berith, the local god at Shechem.  

Gideon's other surviving son, Jotham, condemned Abimelech from the top of Mount Gerizim.  He told a clever fable that pictured the trees looking for a king from among their ranks.  The olive tree, fig tree, and grapevine declined.  They were too busy making productive contributions.  The trees then asked the worthless bramble (v 14), who wasn't sure that their request was sincere and hoped they would be destroyed if it wasn't.  After telling this fable, Jotham expressed the hope that Abimelech and the Shechemites would destroy each other as a punishment for their treachery (vv 16-20). 

Within a few years, Jotham's curse came to pass.  A man name Gaal arose as a rival for Abimelech, apparently claiming to be a descendant of the ancient rulers of Shechem.  (This seems to be another example where the Israelites did not complete the expulsion of the Canaanites and suffered the consequences.)  Abimelech defeated Gaal and went on to kill many in Shechem.  But he was himself killed in battle.  After executing his brothers on one stone, he was killed by a stone thrown from a tower.  

The book of Judges shows God's faithfulness to Israel despite their frequent apostasy.  Commentator Daniel Block says that the book describes the "Canaanization of Israel."  In Gideon and Abimelech, they had leaders who were much like Canaanite rulers.