The Rise and Fall of Abimelech
Notes
Transcript
Introduction: As we all know by now there are elections in our nation and state right around the corner. I believe as believers we have a stewardship to vote. Even if we think the outcome is already decided, we have the privilege in our nation to let our voice be heard and vote according to biblical principles and our conscience.
Scripture Introduction: In the passage before us today we are introduced to a man who chooses to rise to power through both DECEIT and VIOLENCE, but his PRIDE and SELFISH AMBITION become his downfall.
His name is Abimelech.
Abimelech was a son of one of Gideon’s concubines. There is no doubt that Abimelech did not get the spiritual teaching and attention he needed because of Gideon’s eventual backsliding.
Abimelech wanted to fill the vacuum of leadership at any cost. Even if it meant having 70 of his brothers viciously murdered.
Abimelechuxesd was driven by greed, self-centeredness, and a unquenchable thirst for power.
But as we will see today, true power and influence are not a result of pride and ambition, but HUMILITY and SERVICE.
As we look at this passage we are tempted to pick apart Republicans and Democrats, and point fingers at DECEITFUL, PRIDEFUL, and SELFISH politicians…but if that’s what we leave here doing today, I HAVE FAILED TO DELIVER THE MESSAGE I HOPE TO DELIVER.
Instead of pointing the fingers at politicians, I pray the Holy Spirit will open our hearts and we will invite Him to examine our lives!
I HOPE WE WILL BE CHALLENGED TO EXAMINE OUR OWN MOTIVES AND ASK OURSELVES IF WE ARE LOOKING TO SERVE OR TO BE SERVED?
God will deal with our political leaders, but this morning HE WANTS TO DEAL WITH US!
As we begin this morning notice with me Judges 9:1-6
Then Abimelech the son of Jerubbaal went to Shechem, to his mother’s brothers, and spoke with them and with all the family of the house of his mother’s father, saying, “Please speak in the hearing of all the men of Shechem: ‘Which is better for you, that all seventy of the sons of Jerubbaal reign over you, or that one reign over you?’ Remember that I am your own flesh and bone.”
And his mother’s brothers spoke all these words concerning him in the hearing of all the men of Shechem; and their heart was 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 worthless and reckless men; and they followed him. Then he went to his father’s house at Ophrah and killed his brothers, the seventy sons of Jerubbaal, on one stone. But Jotham the youngest son of Jerubbaal was left, because he hid himself. And all the men of Shechem gathered together, all of Beth Millo, and they went and made Abimelech king beside the terebinth tree at the pillar that was in Shechem.
The first mistake he made was to...
Build His Kingdom Upon Deceit & Violence (Judges 9:1-6)
Build His Kingdom Upon Deceit & Violence (Judges 9:1-6)
Let me give you the abbreviated version of what’s happening. Gideon’s son, Abimelech, seeks to rule. He uses deceit and manipulation to gain support of the residents of a city called Shechem. The people of Shechem were related to Abimelech on his mother’s side. As a result of their support he and his army of “misfits” kill his brothers...
Treasures from Judges VII. The Destruction of a Family (9:5)
Sixty-nine sons are slaughtered on the butcher block of greedy ambition
The foundation of his kingdom is deceit, violence, and manipulation. That foundation will eventually CRUMBLE!
Jesus reminded us of this from His Sermon on the Mount...
“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”
It’s important what we build our lives on. Jesus teaches believers that it is important to build our lives on HIS WORD.
Abimelech chose not to build his life and kingdom upon God’s Word, but rather upon selfish ambition and pride. Abimelech was all about the PERSONAL ADVANCEMENT OF HIS KINGDOM rather than the ADVANCEMENT of God’s Kingdom.
Abimelech wanted others to SERVE HIM, whereas Christ came and taught us to be a servant.
It’s as if Abimelech began to “build his kingdom” on the shifting sands of pragmatism, pride, and self-centered priorities.
One of the problem Abimelech had was...
The Storms of God’s Judgment Began to Blow (Judges 9:22-25)
The Storms of God’s Judgment Began to Blow (Judges 9:22-25)
In Judges 9:7-15 we have what some call the Parable of Jotham. In this parable, Jotham (Gideon’s other surviving son), hears what has happened and goes to the people of Shechem to try to change their mind. He tells a parable about trees to make his point.
Jotham reminds the people that Gideon had been good to them and their thanks to Gideon was to have 69 of his sons murdered and hand things over to Abimelech.
We won’t have time to look at Jotham’s parable today so let Rod Matoon condense it for us:
The olive tree, fig, and vine tree represented Gideon and his seventy sons. The olive was valuable for oil and food. The fig was the staple crop of fruit...They were all valuable, productive, and too busy to rule the other trees. These trees already had a king … the God of Heaven.
Abimelech is compared to a [thorny] bramble bush...The huge cedars of Lebanon could find no shade or security in the [thorns]. Instead, they would only find the destruction of fire. The same would hold true for Abimelech who could not offer any security to the Shechemites. Their security in Abimelech was insecure. Abimelech, like the [thorny bush] would be the source of their destruction.
Handbook on the Historical Books F. Abimelech (9:1–57)
A thorn promising protection will become a thorn in the side, but the convincing rhetoric of the candidate blinds them to reality.
That kind of reminds me of the bloodthirsty wolf asking for the sheep’s vote. He promises to become a vegetarian after the election and the sheep swallow the lie hook, line, and sinker.
Notice what happens now in Judges 9:22-25
After Abimelech had reigned over Israel three years, God sent a spirit of ill will between Abimelech and the men of Shechem; and the men of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech, that the crime done to the seventy sons of Jerubbaal might be settled and their blood be laid on Abimelech their brother, who killed them, and on the men of Shechem, who aided him in the killing of his brothers. And the men of Shechem set men in ambush against him on the tops of the mountains, and they robbed all who passed by them along that way; and it was told Abimelech.
God replaces the harmony that had existed between the people of Shechem and Abimelech. One Study Bible says that there was a “spirit of distrust and disagreement” that grew between them.
Quickly thereafter, Abimelech develops another problem. A rival appears on the scene.
Notice Judges 9:26-29
And Gaal the son of Ebed moved into Shechem with his relatives, and the leaders of Shechem put confidence in him. And they went out into the field and gathered the grapes from their vineyards and trod them and held a festival; and they went into the house of their god and ate and drank and reviled Abimelech. And Gaal the son of Ebed said, “Who is Abimelech, and who are we of Shechem, that we should serve him? Is he not the son of Jerubbaal, and is not Zebul his officer? Serve the men of Hamor the father of Shechem; but why should we serve him? Would that this people were under my hand! Then I would remove Abimelech. I would say to Abimelech, ‘Increase your army, and come out.’ ”
The problem is human loyalty is FICKLE.
If Abimelech could talk the Shechemites into turning against 69 of Gideon’s sons, then why can’t another “smooth talker” get the Shechemites to turn against him? THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED!
Let me just say a word of warning:
If you can seduce someone, don’t be surprised when someone else comes along and seduces them too.
If you trick someone into doing something FOR you, don’t be surprised when someone else comes along and tricks them AGAINST you.
If you can convince someone to be unfaithful with you, don’t be surprised when someone else comes along and convinces them to be unfaithful with someone else.
AS I SAID A MINUTE AGO, HUMAN LOYALTY IS FICKLE.
BUT I’M THANKFUL WE HAVE A LOYAL HIGH PRIEST WHO IS THE SAME YESTERDAY, TODAY, AND FOREVER!
Sadly, notice what happens next...
Abimelech Refuses to Find Refuge in His Only Hope (Judges 9:30-34)
Abimelech Refuses to Find Refuge in His Only Hope (Judges 9:30-34)
When Zebul the ruler of the city heard the words of Gaal the son of Ebed, his anger was kindled. And he sent messengers to Abimelech secretly, saying, “Behold, Gaal the son of Ebed and his relatives have come to Shechem, and they are stirring up the city against you. Now therefore, go by night, you and the people who are with you, and set an ambush in the field. Then in the morning, as soon as the sun is up, rise early and rush upon the city. And when he and the people who are with him come out against you, you may do to them as your hand finds to do.”
So Abimelech and all the men who were with him rose up by night and set an ambush against Shechem in four companies.
Never once do you find Abimelech repenting of his actions, asking God for help, or seeking God for wisdom.
Like always, he takes things into his hands and tries to solve things his way…NEVER ONCE SEEKING THE GOD OF HIS FATHER.
Sadly as a result...
Abimelech Reaps What He Has Sown (Judges 9:50-57)
Abimelech Reaps What He Has Sown (Judges 9:50-57)
Keep in mind all of his brothers except one were savagely murdered on a butcher block of sorts. They were killed on a stone, most likely beheaded. Notice what happens next...
Then Abimelech went to Thebez and encamped against Thebez and captured it. But there was a strong tower within the city, and all the men and women and all the leaders of the city fled to it and shut themselves in, and they went up to the roof of the tower. And Abimelech came to the tower and fought against it and drew near to the door of the tower to burn it with fire. And a certain woman threw an upper millstone on Abimelech’s head and crushed his skull. Then he called quickly to the young man his armor-bearer and said to him, “Draw your sword and kill me, lest they say of me, ‘A woman killed him.’ ” And his young man thrust him through, and he died. And when the men of Israel saw that Abimelech was dead, everyone departed to his home. Thus God returned the evil of Abimelech, which he committed against his father in killing his seventy brothers. And God also made all the evil of the men of Shechem return on their heads, and upon them came the curse of Jotham the son of Jerubbaal.
A stone had been his choice of execution for his brothers, and now a stone is thrown from a tower and strikes him in the head and brings to him a fatal wound.
Several women were left to mourn the death of their sons as Abimelech had his half brothers killed, and now a woman is the one who delivers the death blow to Abimelech’s wicked skull. An upper millstone would have been about 12 inches in length and 2-3 inches thick. Sounds as if she had pretty good aim. It didn’t kill him immediately, but made him wish he was dead.
Abimelech, for years had been sowing CORRUPTIBLE SEED, and now he is reaping a DEVASTATING harvest.
Gordon Keddie proclaimed:
Even in Darkness: Judges and Ruth Simply Explained Wickedness Has a Price
wickedness has a price-tag and that the Lord will see to it that his righteousness is fully vindicated
When I think about Abimelech’s brutal death I am reminded of Asaph’s words in Psalm 73. You may remember this Psalm. Asaph was discouraged when he looked at the wicked and it seemed they were prospering and never having any problems or issues.
However, God reminded him that even though they may have seemed to be prospering materially, physically, and temporarily, they prosperity would be short lived. They would eventually reap what they had sown…Asaph goes on to say...
Truly you set them in slippery places;
you make them fall to ruin.
How they are destroyed in a moment,
swept away utterly by terrors!
As Abimelech is literally dying, does he cry out to God in repentance and forgiveness? Absolutely not. The only thing he is concerned about is his “reputation.” He doesn’t want it to be said of him that a woman killed him, so he asks his armor bearer to kill him.
Yet we read in 2 Samuel 11:21
Who killed Abimelech the son of Jerubbesheth? Did not a woman cast an upper millstone on him from the wall, so that he died at Thebez? Why did you go so near the wall?’ then you shall say, ‘Your servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.’ ”
Here we are, thousands of years later, still talking about a woman killing him with a millstone.
Rod Mattoon goes on to say...
God caused the wickedness of Abimelech and Shechem to return upon them. They sowed the wind and reaped the whirlwind. You reap what you sow. As Jotham prophesied, the bramble king would burn Shechem and this prophesy was fulfilled.
What Can we Learn from the Rise and Fall of Abimelech
What Can we Learn from the Rise and Fall of Abimelech
Anything Built on the Wrong Foundation is Destined for Trouble
Anything Built on the Wrong Foundation is Destined for Trouble
Abimelech built his kingdom on pride, violence, and deceit. Eventually it crumbled and he was killed.
It matters what you build your life on, your marriage on, your home on, your future on…it’s either going to be the SOLID ROCK of the Word of God or it’s going to be the unstable, shifting sands, of cultural norms, pride, selfishness and all the rest.
Abimelech committed these atrocities without considering the long term consequences. The enemy LOVES it when we focus on the short term pleasures, rather than the long term consequences, because he knows we are free to chose our actions, but we are not free to choose the consequence of our choice!
The Storms are Going to Come to all of Us
The Storms are Going to Come to all of Us
It’s going to rain on the just and the unjust. Life is going to happen. Sickness and difficulties are going to be a part of our human experience.
The question is not “IF” the storms will come, the question is will we still be standing when the storms are over?
Remember, the HOUSE ON THE ROCK STOOD FIRM!
The concept of reaping what you sow is throughout Scripture, the principle taught in both the Old and New Testaments.
On the cross Jesus reaped what we sowed, so that we could reap what He sowed!
On the cross Jesus reaped what we sowed, so that we could reap what He sowed!
For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
Jesus stepped in and on the cross REAPED the wrath of God that all of us have sown. He became our substitute and we no longer have to REAP the eternal consequences of sin. He has reaped them for us. When we place our faith in Him as Lord and Savior, His righteousness is credited to our account!
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