Then said Zebul unto him, Where is now thy mouth, wherewith thou saidst, Who is Abimelech, that we should serve him? is not this the people that thou hast despised? go out, I pray now, and fight with them.
Study Helps
Interpretation
Abimelech intended to punish the Schechemites for slighting him now, but God punished them for their serving him formerly in the murder of Gideon's sons. When God uses men as instruments in his hand to do his work, he means one thing, and they another.
Read with
This thought runs through Judges 9:34-38.
Glossary
- Abimelech Person
- My father a king, or father of a king, a common name of the Philistine kings, as “Pharaoh” was of the Egyptian kings. (1. ) The Philistine king of Gerar in the time of Abraham ( Gen. 20:1-18 ).
- Zebul People
- Habitation, the governor of Shechem under Abimelech ( Judg. 9:28 , 30, 36). He informed his master of the intention of the people of Shechem to transfer their allegiance to the Hivite tribe of Hamor.