Judges 9:1-25

     The Central Idea of the Text is that Abimelech rose to power in Israel by evil means; but the true King of Israel caused trouble for Abimelech.

     Abimelech was not eligible to be king in Israel since he was the son of a Canaanite concubine.  However, his ambition to be king led him to murder his half-brothers in order to remove any rivalry.  Abimelech’s evil plan was funded by the Shechemites who used pagan temple resources.  After killing his brothers (with the exception of Jotham), the Shechemites then rewarded Abimelech as their king.

     Jotham was a believer who introduced divine viewpoint and pronounced judgment upon both Abimelech and the men of Shechem.  The trees in Jotham’s parable (perhaps Gideon’s legitimate sons) preferred a place of productivity over a lesser place of leadership.  By doing God’s will, Gideon had brought blessing upon Israel, but Abimelech and the men of Shechem returned his goodness with evil by murdering his sons.  God, in turn, brought justice for the sons of Gideon by sending an evil spirit between Abimelech and the men of Shechem, so that they would destroy each other.  The mountain robbers probably deprived Abimelech of resources he needed to rule.  

     Evil cannot exist by itself, as though it were something to be captured and put in a container. Evil exists only in connection with the willful creatures who manufacture it—which includes both fallen angels and people.  Evil sometimes refers to the mental attitude of a person that leads to sinful actions (Matt. 15:19), but when used by God, it refers to the calamity or destruction He brings upon men for His own purposes (Job 2:10; Isa. 45:5-7; Lam. 3:38; Amos 3:6).  God uses evil men to accomplish His plans (Jer. 25:8-11; 27:6-7; Acts 2:22-23; 4:27-28), and evil spirits to chastise the wicked (Judg. 9:23; 1 Sam. 16:14; 1 Kings 22:19-23), and to reveal the good character of godly men (Job 1:12; 2:6; 2 Cor. 12:7).  God will eventually banish all the wicked (Rev. 20:11-15).