Judges 9:7-21

Modern English Version

⁷ When Jotham heard this, he went and stood on the top of Mount Gerizim. He raised his voice and called out, saying to them, “Listen to me, leaders of Shechem, so that God may listen to you! ⁸ The trees once went out to anoint a king over them. They said to the olive tree, ‘Rule over us!’

⁹ “Yet the olive tree said to them, ‘Should I stop making oil, by which God and men are honored, to go and sway over the trees?’

¹⁰ “So the trees said to the fig tree, ‘You come and rule over us.’

¹¹ “Yet the fig tree said to them, ‘Should I stop making my sweet aroma and my fruit, to go and sway over the trees?’

¹² “So the trees said to the grapevine, ‘You come and rule over us.’

¹³ “Yet the grapevine said to them, ‘Should I stop making my fresh wine, which cheers God and men, to go and sway over the trees?’

¹⁴ “So the trees said to the thorn bush, ‘You come and rule over us.’

¹⁵ “The thorn bush said to the trees, ‘If you really want to anoint me king over you, then come and take refuge in my shade. If not, let fire come out from the thorn bush and consume the cedars of Lebanon!’

¹⁶ “Now then, did you show good faith and integrity when you made Abimelek king? Did you deal well with Jerub-Baal and his family? Did you do to him as his actions deserved, ¹⁷ considering that my father waged war for you, risked his life for you, and delivered you from the hands of Midian? ¹⁸ Yet you have taken a stand against my father’s family today. You killed his seventy sons, each on a single stone. You made Abimelek, son of his slave woman, king over the leaders of Shechem because he is your brother. ¹⁹ So if you did show good faith and integrity in what you did with Jerub-Baal and his family today, then rejoice in Abimelek, and may he also rejoice in you. ²⁰ If not, let fire come out from Abimelek and consume the leaders of Shechem and Beth Millo, and let fire come out from the leaders of Shechem and from Beth Millo and consume Abimelek!”

²¹ Then Jotham ran away and fled. He went to Beer and lived there because of Abimelek his brother.