Judges Chapter 9 Verses 1 – 2

● Gideon’s son by his concubine who was in Shechem was a real piece of work. Gideon is now gone. All of the people of the land have been freed from the Midianite oppression by Gideon and they went to make him king. He refused in word but accepted in action if you recall our study from a few weeks back. And Shechem was part of the land. Located near the modern day west bank in Israel. So now, Gideon is gone, seventy sons remain, who will pick up where Gideon left off?
● Simple, right? His first born, Jether…but Shechem will not have it and so he does something very sly and low down. He goes to his mother’s brothers. Why not his father’s brothers? Because he is illegitimate…so he goes and sells a lie. Look what he says, “Which is better for you, that all seventy of the sons of Jerubbaal reign over you, or that one reign over you?” That is a lie.
● First, it would have been Jether. He is presenting a case that is not true in order to bring about his desired response. That’s low. What’s more is that he is not honoring his father or honoring God because this question wouldn’t even have been relevant if he had remembered Gideon’s words, “The Lord shall rule over you.” Yes dad messed up but the righteous move would have been for Jether, Abimelech and the rest of the brothers to come together and say, “It ends with us!”

● I know I have considered this at length in my own life. My parents and grand-parents were wonderful people. They are all gone now. Every one of them. All that remains for me is step-parents and step-grandparents. They had amazing, excellent, strong, virtuous qualities. But there were also elements of my childhood that I still today suffer from. That I will never recover from and that is ok. The comfort of God and His grace is so very sufficient to the point that I’m thankful to need His comfort and consolation. Without the intense hardship and abuse, I would not know the depth of the comfort of God that I do…
● But I will tell you this. It ends with me. My children will not know the extreme pit of confusion and fear that comes from wondering why they don’t want me. Their ears will never know the terror of mom and dad tearing each other apart. They will know truth. They will understand service and love and selflessness because I will show them. I will pass to them all of the wonderful aspects of their lineage from my parents and I will protect them from the mistakes and horror of their lineage. It stops with me.
● Have you considered that? Have you sat down and surveyed your life and discovered ways and habits that remind you of what hurt you so much…and have you resolved to snap the line? It ends with me…and it could have ended with Abimelech but he chose poorly…

Judges Chapter 9 Verse 3

● Makes sense to them. Seventy sons…by many different women…why not side with the one who understands us? He is one of us…

Judges Chapter 9 Verse 4

● Look at this tail spin spiral…which is always the case with sin. I see such a pattern here and maybe it’s just because I am a pattern guy, but I see this first terrible decision to lie in order to get his way…sin number 1, and look at where it takes him…he is now commissioned, pensioned, funded, gifted by a false god. Baal-Berith literally means the “Covenant of Baal.” That is who funds his mission…
● That tells us that Shechem was intensely idolatrous which we already know from history but this shows it in techni-color. Shechem was a mess and yet Abimelech’s heart was for himself. That is the coin in the candy machine of sin…he is concerned not for them but for him and so he tricks them, uses them and now is being funded by demons. Sin 2.
● Now sin 3. Watch this tail spin! He takes this money and hires criminals! He surrounds himself with folks that will gladly share in his sin. The implication is that they have nothing to lose and therefore much to gain by a revolt. And this is the pattern that I see all the time. Folks decide to serve self…demonic influence confirms and supports them…and then they steam forward into the world and the world’s trappings! They themselves become worthless and reckless unless they repent!

Judges Chapter 9 Verses 5 – 6

● Very dark image here. The implication is that he executed them all on an altar of sorts. And there is a lot of symbolism going on here in terms of the terebinth tree, Beth Millo and making Abimelech king. Certainly not king of Israel but king over the worthless and reckless.
● Abimelech has chosen to dishonor his father, his brothers, and his God in favor of exalting himself. And we shake our heads at him but here’s the fact, we do the same. Kids, you sacrifice your parents at the altar of self when you choose to dishonor and disobey them. Parents you partner with the people of Beth Millo, which literally means the “house of earthwork” and your kids forget who you are Monday through Friday.
● Anyone who I haven’t covered, check this out. This terebinth tree in Shechem reminds me of the one where the angel met with Gideon in Chapter 6 only that one was in Ophrah. There the angel called Gideon a “mighty man of valor” and proclaimed that God was with him. And yet at this terebinth tree in Shechem…no angel but rather the Gideon now is what has become of his legacy and he is surrounded by worthlessness and weighted with the sin of selfishness…which terebinth does your life favor?
● Truthfully, if you’re honest, you’ve probably been to both. Here’s the question. Which one will you cut down because there is nothing but anguish and frustration in the life of one who continually travels between these two terebinths. Crazy connection here…may be nothing…but it certainly fits…in Genesis 35 God calls upon Jacob to go to bethel and in an act of worship, Jacob purifies his house.
● He goes through his house, each of his servants and relatives that dwelt with them and he meticulously gathers all of the foreign gods and trinkets and earrings and idols and buries them before he leaves for Bethel, and interestingly enough, he buries them under the terebinth tree there in Shechem. I just find that interesting…here Abimelech is, being made king standing upon buried idols, surrounded by worthless men, with blood stained hands. I hate this tree in my life. Do you?
● The terebinth in Ophrah is where it’s at man. That is the place to abide, Christian. Where the angel of the Lord is…where mighty men of valor are proclaimed. I’ve gone through severe ups and severe downs in my walk with God and those times of severe downs are typically when one of my own family has offered me up on the altar of self. And when I say family, I mean earthly family and the family of God…because church is just like family to me…
● And you know what, I have found a hiding place at the terebinth in Ophrah in my life. I am not respected God. I am taken for granted God. My time and my attention and my ministry and my love and my affection and my pouring into them has been counted cheap and common. My leadership and my primal scream for truth and order and righteousness is worthless in their eyes. And I am worth less than the earthly things to her, to him, to them…I am so starved and hungry and heart-cratered…and that is where I have found that God is altogether other, and altogether enough.
● I don’t know how many times I have said these words to God, “You will be my ______ (fill in the blank).” You will be my encourager because they find me repulsive. You will by my affection because she has none for me. You will be my comforter because he has harmed me greatly. You will be all that I need so that all that I need, I will most certainly have…I’m telling you man, the terebinth in Ophrah is where it’s at…and I advise you to cut down the terebinth in Shechem. Such powerful symbology here…