Judges 9:6

6. House of Millo It seems best to understand Millo here, as in 2 Samuel 5:9, as the name of the principal fortress of the city, and identical with the tower of Shechem, mentioned Judges 9:46-47; Judges 9:49. It was, perhaps, situated on Mount Gerizim, where it would command the city of Shechem. On the summit of Gerizim, Robinson found the remains of an ancient fortress. The word Millo ( מלוא ) comes from מלא , to fill, and naturally designates a rampart filled in with earth or stones. The company or family of armed men who held possession of this citadel were a most important part of the population, and it would not be wise to inaugurate a new king without their presence and co-operation.

Plain of the pillar Rather, oak of the pillar, probably the famous oak under which Joshua set up the great stone for a witness in Israel. Joshua 24:26. The word מצב , translated pillar, literally means, any thing placed or set up, and might designate either a monument or a military station. We may as well adhere to the English version, pillar. This oak was distinguished by a monumental pillar under it or near to it, and might itself have been a monumental tree that had, as we have suggested above, been standing there since the days of Joshua. It would have been a most natural spot to convene such an assembly as that which gathered to make Abimelech king.