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Gideon made an ephod thereof, and put it in his city,
even
in Ophrah: and all Israel went thither a
whoring after it: which thing became a snare unto Gideon, and to his house.
28
Thus was Midian subdued before the children of Israel, so that they lifted up their heads no
more. And the country was in quietness forty years in the days of Gideon.
29
And Jerubbaal the son of Joash went and dwelt in his own house.
30
And Gideon had threescore
and ten sons of his body begotten: for he had many wives.
31
And his concubine that
was
in Shechem,
she also bare him a son, whose name he called Abimelech.
32
And Gideon the son of Joash died in a good old age, and was buried in the sepulchre of Joash
his father, in Ophrah of the Abi-ezrites.
33
And it came to pass, as soon as Gideon was dead, that
the children of Israel turned again, and went a whoring after Baalim, and made Baal-berith their
god.
34
And the children of Israel remembered not the L
ORD
their God, who had delivered them out
of the hands of all their enemies on every side:
35
Neither shewed they kindness to the house of
Jerubbaal,
namely,
Gideon, according to all the goodness which he had shewed unto Israel.
CHAPTER 9
And Abimelech the son of Jerubbaal went to Shechem unto his mother’s brethren, and communed
with them, and with all the family of the house of his mother’s father, saying,
2
Speak, I pray you,
in the ears of all the men of Shechem, Whether is better for you, either that all the sons of Jerubbaal,
which are
threescore and ten persons, reign over you, or that one reign over you? remember also
that I
am
your bone and your flesh.
3
And his mother’s brethren spake of him in the ears of all the
men of Shechem all these words: and their hearts inclined to follow Abimelech; for they said, He
is
our brother.
4
And they gave him threescore and ten
pieces
of silver out of the house of Baal-berith,
wherewith Abimelech hired vain and light persons, which followed him.
5
And he went unto his
father’s house at Ophrah, and slew his brethren the sons of Jerubbaal,
being
threescore and ten
persons, upon one stone: notwithstanding yet Jotham the youngest son of Jerubbaal was left; for
he hid himself.
6
And all the men of Shechem gathered together, and all the house of Millo, and
went, and made Abimelech king, by the plain of the pillar that
was
in Shechem.
7
And when they told
it
to Jotham, he went and stood in the top of mount Gerizim, and lifted up
his voice, and cried, and said unto them, Hearken unto me, ye men of Shechem, that God may
hearken unto you.
8
The trees went forth
on a time
to anoint a king over them; and they said unto
the olive tree, Reign thou over us.
9
But the olive tree said unto them, Should I leave my fatness,
wherewith by me they honour God and man, and go to be promoted over the trees?
10
And the trees
said to the fig tree, Come thou,
and
reign over us.
11
But the fig tree said unto them, Should I forsake
my sweetness, and my good fruit, and go to be promoted over the trees?
12
Then said the trees unto
the vine, Come thou,
and
reign over us.
13
And the vine said unto them, Should I leave my wine,
which cheereth God and man, and go to be promoted over the trees?
14
Then said all the trees unto
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KJV Bible