Judges 9:1 – 6 “Now Abimelech son of Jerubbaal went to his mother’s brothers at Shechem and said to them and to all the clan of his mother, “Please ask all the leaders of Shechem, ‘Is it better for you that seventy men, all the sons of Jerubbaal, rule over you, or just one man?’ Remember that I am your own flesh and blood.”
And when his mother’s brothers spoke all these words about him in the presence of all the leaders of Shechem, their hearts were inclined to follow Abimelech, for they said, “He is our brother.” So they gave him seventy shekels of silver from the temple of Baal-berith, with which Abimelech hired some worthless and reckless men to follow him. He went to his father’s house in Ophrah, and on one stone murdered his seventy brothers, the sons of Jerubbaal. But Jotham, the youngest son of Jerubbaal, survived, because he hid himself. Then all the leaders of Shechem and Beth-millo gathered beside the oak at the pillar in Shechem and proceeded to make Abimelech their king.”
Remember Abimelech, the son of the concubine? This guy is a snake in the grass! Although Abimelech is a semi – legitimate son as opposed to his seventy half – brothers, his lust for power knows no bounds. Look at theses arguments:
1. Being ruled by seventy versus one. Huh? There is no indication that Gideon was trying to found a ruling dynasty in the first place. When asked by the Jews to become their ruler, Gideon refused. Judges 8:23 “But Gideon replied, “I will not rule over you, nor will my son. The LORD shall rule over you.”
2. There is no indication that any of Gideon’s sons wanted to rule over anybody either.
3. Abimelech’s big problem was that he hadn’t inherited as much from his father as had his half – brothers.
4. Abimelech was trying to act on the meaning of his name. “Abimelech” means “My father is king.”
5. Abimehech’s uncles were more than happy to try to seize power over Israel, provided that their nephew would take the lead. After all, if their nephew succeeded, then they would become rich and powerful. If their nephew failed, they could always claim that they really didn’t believe in him…. of course, those seventy shekels of silver from the temple of Baal – Berith might be difficult to explain. So Abimelech’s uncles allied themselves with “worthless men,” eventually sealing their own doom.
One question is this: how did one man manage to murder seventy other men? The only reasonable answer is that those “worthless men” who were hired with the money from the temple must have helped. A second question follows: why did the men of Shechem and Beth – millo think they would get away with mass murder of the sons of the man who had delivered Israel?
The problem again was one of parents refusing to teach their children. Forty years – two generations – elapsed between the time of Gideon’s victory and his death. The Israelites continued to refuse to teach their children about the One True Living God and all the wonders that He had done on their behalf. Two generations was long enough for people to forget about God and Gideon and to chase after Baal – berith.
APPLICATION: When we are choosing someone to follow, how carefully do we examine their credentials and their character? These days, social media and mainstream news media have so muddied the waters that it is difficult to ascertain the truth about potential leaders. Carefully orchestrated publicity campaigns may hide or downplay major character failings of one individual while exaggerating those of a second individual.
In the story of Abimelech, it would appear that his uncles really didn’t think things through very much. They probably figured that they were in a reasonably remote area and that nobody would oppose their power play. But these men forgot that God selected Gideon and that God empowered Gideon to be successful in battle. They really didn’t think Baal – berith had power, but they forgot that Elohim did.
During our decades as missionaries, we have observed an important fact: any organization, be it a mission, a church, or a para – church organization, only functions along Christian principals if the leaders are truly committed Christians willing to do what it takes to see that their organization runs along Christian lines. If the topmost leadership is not thoroughly committed, the organization will operated just like any secular business. Leadership is critically important.
In a previous day and age, sports figures and others were admired for their character. We all want heroes. But be careful! Sometimes those who are most heroic are the most obscure while those who are highly publicized turn out to be weak individuals who will falter and fail under pressure. Remember: you are likely to copy those individuals whom you most admire. Choose wisely!
PRAYER: Father God, help us to search out men and women of integrity and to let their examples inspire us. But most of all, Lord, help us to copy Jesus, the ultimate example. Help us to follow hard after You all the days of our lives. In the mighty Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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