Judges 9:5 NIV

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Judges 9:1-6

We are here told by what arts Abimelech got into authority, and made himself great. His mother perhaps had instilled into his mind some towering ambitious thoughts, and the name his father gave him, carrying royalty in it, might help to blow up these sparks; and now that he has buried his father nothing will serve his proud spirit but he will succeed him in the government of Israel, directly contrary to his father's will, for he had declared no son of his should rule over them. He had no call... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Judges 9:5

And he went to his father's house at Ophrah ,.... Which, according to Bunting F1 Travels of the Patriarchs, &c.; p. 111. , was ten miles from Shechem: and slew his brethren the sons of Jerubbaal, being seventy persons, upon one stone : in which he was assisted by the ruffians he had hired with seventy pieces of silver; these were laid one after another upon one and the same stone, as being convenient for the execution of them; or as serving as an altar on which they were... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Judges 9:5

Slew his brethren - His brothers by the father's side, Judges 8:30 . This was a usual way of securing an ill-gotten throne; the person who had no right destroying all those that had right, that he might have no competitors. Yet Jotham - was left - That is, all the seventy were killed except Jotham, if there were not seventy besides Jotham. All the histories of all the nations of the earth are full of cruelties similar to those of Abimelech: cousins, uncles, brothers,... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Judges 9:5

Such wholesale slaughters have always been common in Eastern monarchies, and are among the fruits of polygamy. read more

Joseph Benson

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Judges 9:5

Judges 9:5. He went and slew his brethren The persons who were most likely to hinder him in establishing his tyranny. Threescore and ten Wanting one, as is here expressed. Here we see the power of ambition; what savage beasts it will render men to each other; how it will break through all the ties of natural affection, and natural conscience, and sacrifice that which is most sacred, dear, and valuable to its designs. We see also the peril attending high birth and honour. It was their... read more

Donald C. Fleming

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Judges 9:1-57

The story of Abimelech (9:1-57)Gideon had about seventy sons. One of these, Abimelech, was not a full-blooded Israelite, for his mother was a Shechemite. (The Shechemites were a group of Canaanites who lived peaceably among the Israelites; see Genesis 12:6; Genesis 34:1-31; Joshua 24:32.) With the help of some worthless Shechemites, Abimelech killed all his brothers (except one who escaped) and established himself ‘king’ in Shechem. His ‘kingdom’ probably consisted only of Shechem and a few... read more

Thomas Coke

Thomas Coke Commentary on the Holy Bible - Judges 9:5

Judges 9:5. Upon one stone— It has been conjectured from this by some, that Abimelech intended to make his brethren a great victim to Baal; for a stone was sometimes used for an altar, 1 Samuel 6:14-15.; and so they take this to be done in revenge of the sacrifice of the bullock prepared for Baal, chap. Judges 6:25-26. Which crime of Gideon, as these idolaters account it, they designed to expiate by the sacrifice of all his sons. read more

Robert Jamieson; A. R. Fausset; David Brown

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Judges 9:5

5. went unto . . . Ophrah, and slew his brethren i. e., upon one stone—This is the first mention of a barbarous atrocity which has, with appalling frequency, been perpetrated in the despotic countries of the East—that of one son of the deceased monarch usurping the throne and hastening to confirm himself in the possession by the massacre of all the natural or legitimate competitors. Abimelech slew his brethren on one stone, either by dashing them from one rock, or sacrificing them on one stone... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Judges 9:1-6

Abimelech’s murders and election as king 9:1-6Though Gideon had rejected kingship officially (Judges 8:23), though not practically, Abimelech desired it for himself. He also hated his half-brothers, presumably because he was the son of a concubine rather than the son of one of Gideon’s wives (Judges 8:31). Shechem was one of the older city-states in Canaan. Canaanites were its primary inhabitants, as is evident from this story. They seem to have been even more open to having a king over them... read more

Thomas Constable

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Judges 9:1-57

3. The story of Abimelech ch. 9The story of Abimelech connects directly with the story of Gideon. It is the sequel to and indeed the climax of the Gideon story, and it portrays the disastrous results of Gideon’s legacy. Though Abimelech sought a place of leadership in Israel, God did not raise him up as a judge. His history is of interest primarily because of the light it throws on this period of Israel’s national life and the continuing decline in Israel. Furthermore we can see what had become... read more

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Judges 9:1-6

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Judges 9:5

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Judges 9:5

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Judges 9:5

Joseph Benson's Commentary of the Old and New Testaments - Judges 9:5

Bridgeway Bible Commentary - Judges 9:1-57

Thomas Coke Commentary on the Holy Bible - Judges 9:5

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Judges 9:5

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Judges 9:1-6

Expository Notes of Dr. Thomas Constable - Judges 9:1-57

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