Example #6 – Abimelech and the Men of Shechem

Another story revealing just how much free will man has is the story of Abimelech, the son of Gideon. Gideon himself, as with all men, was the work of the Potter’s sovereign hand. Gideon did not choose to conquer the Midianites. God chose Gideon and as always, dragged him to do His will. His will was for Gideon to throw off Israel’s oppressor, the Midianites. God was so insistent that we understand how very little flesh has to do with His work that He sent 31,700 men back to their homes and kept only 300 men to conquer vast numbers of Midianites.

Why keep only 300 out of 32,000? “And the Lord said unto Gideon, the people that are with you are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel vaunt themselves against me, saying, Mine own hand [ my freedom of choice] hath saved me… by the three hundred men… will I save you and deliver the Midianites into thine hand…” (Jdg 7:2, 7). God literally drug Gideon to do His will, then God saved Gideon and Israel. He worked it all after the counsel of His own will.

But the story of Gideon’s son Abimelech is even more blatant in making the point that God is responsible for all things: “And Gideon had threescore and ten sons of his body begotten: for he had many wives. And his concubine that was in Shechem, she also bare him a son, whose name he called Abimelech. And Gideon, the son of Joash, died in a good old age and was buried in the sepulcher of Joash his father, in Ophrah, of the Abiezrites” (Jdg 8:30, 31).

After Gideon’s death Israel immediately forgot God and returned to idol worship. His son Abimelech, the son of “his concubine that was in Shechem”, conspired with his relatives in Shechem to massacre his seventy brothers in Ophrah: “And he went unto his father’s house at Ophrah, and slew his brethren… being threescore and ten person, upon one stone: notwithstanding yet Jotham the youngest son… was left for he hid himself” (Jdg 9:5).

Soon after this bloody event, Abimelech was “made… king, by the plain of the pillar that was in Shechem” (vs 6). At this point, scripture reveals to us much of the mind and workings of the Potter. The question posed by the apostle Paul in Rom 9:20 “Why hast thou made me thus?” is answered here. Equally revealing is the biblical use of words such as ‘fire’, ‘trees’, ‘vines’ and ‘brambles’. How these words were understood and used by Christ, His apostles and all the prophets is revealed here in a prophetic challenge issued by Jotham to his brother Abimelech and the men of Shechem: “And when they told it [ Abimelech’s coronation] to Jotham, he went and stood on Mt. 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” (Jdg 9:7).

Jotham then puts forth a prophetic parable: “The trees went forth on a time to anoint a king over them: and they said unto the olive tree, Reign thou over us. But the olive tree said unto them, Should I leave my fatness, wherewith by me they honor God and man, and go to be promoted over the trees? And the trees said to the fig tree, come thou and reign over us. But the fig tree said unto them, Should I forsake my sweetness and my good fruit, and go to be promoted over the trees? Then said the trees unto the vine, Come thou and reign over us. And the vine said unto them, Should I leave my wine, which cheereth God and man, and go to be promoted over the trees? Then said all the trees unto the bramble [ thistle] Come thou and reign over us. And the bramble said unto the trees, If in truth ye anoint me king over you, then come and put your trust in my shadow: and if not let fire come out of the bramble and devour the cedars of Lebanon. Now, therefore if ye have done truly and sincerely, in that ye have made Abimelech king and if ye have dealt well with [ Gideon] and his house, and have done unto him according to the deserving of his hands; … then rejoice in Abimelech, and let him also rejoice in you: BUT if not, let fire come out from Abimelech and devour the men of Shechem and the house of Millo; and let fire come out from the men of Shechem and the house of Millo, and devour Abimelech. And Jotham ran away, and fled, and went to Beer and dwelt there, for fear of Abimelech his brother” (Jdg 9:8-21).

What are the trees but the unfruitful, idol worshiping people of God?

What is the olive tree, the fruit of which furnishes the fuel to light the seven lamps in the house of God, but those who having God’s Spirit in them “are the light of the world” (Mat 5:14)?

What is the fig tree but those who have “learn[ ed] to maintain good works for necessary uses, that they be no unfruitful” (Tit 3:15)?

What is the vine but those branches on the true vine who “bring forth much fruit” (Joh 15:1-5)?

But there exists on this earth mammoth trees which bear no fruit. Such trees when cut down can be used to build the temple of God, but while standing are proud and fruitless. These are the world renowned cedars of Labanon whose “lofty looks… shall be humbled” (Psa 29:5; Isa 2:10-13).

What is the bramble under whose shadow the cedars of Lebanon so willingly place themselves? Is it not those who “bear thorns and briars [ and are] rejected, and [ are] nigh unto cursing’ whose end is to be burned” (Heb 6:8)?

We now come to the most revealing verse. This verse, like so many which convey the same truth, has been in God’s word all along. But God has given us “eyes that cannot see” through false doctrines like the almost universally accepted doctrine of man’s free moral agency. Man is an ‘agent’ true enough. But he is anything but free. Man is a slave. He is either a servant [ Greek- slave] of sin or a slave of righteousness (Rom 6:16-20). Either way man is never a ‘free’ moral agent.

Here now is another verse which teaches us blatantly “man’s goings are of the Lord, how can a man then understand his own way?” (Pro 20:24). This verse shows us why “it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps” (Jer 10:23). Is there “evil in the city and the Lord hath not done it?” (Amo 3:6). Here is the way God does it: “Then GOD SENT AN EVIL SPIRIT between Abimelech and the men of Shechem; and the men of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech” (Jdg 9:23).

This is the ‘fire’ that “came out of the bramble and devoured the cedars of Lebanon”. This is the ‘fire’ that “came out from the men of Shechem and the house of Millo, and devour[ ed] Abimelech.”

Is this not the same fire with which Christ says EVERY sacrifice will be salted? (Mar 9:48 & 49). Is this not also the ‘fire’ of verse 47: “And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out: it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire”? Of course, it is. Does anyone seriously believe that we will enter into the kingdom of God with one eye? Of course not! This is figurative language. Christ is not teaching us self- mutilation, but rather a whole- hearted life of service to our heavenly Father. The subject does not change from verse 47 to verse 48. Christ, Paul and Peter all understood the meaning of the word ‘fire’ in scriptural terms. It is a figurative word typical of burning out the wood, hay and stubble in our works. So Paul also says: “Every man’s work [ not his physical body] shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by FIRE; and the FIRE shall try every man’s work of what sort it is” (1Co 3:13).

So what happens to us if our works are “wood, hay and stubble” like the men of Shechem and of the household of Millo? “If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: BUT HE HIMSELF SHALL BE SAVED; YET SO AS BY FIRE [ the lake of fire]” (1Co 3:15). This is the “destruction” of 1Co 3:17 – “If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are”. When the evil works are all burned up, the old man is “destroyed” yet “he himself [ the new man in Christ] is saved though as by fire”.

What kind of fire is this? It is the kind of ‘fire’ that came out between the men of Shechem and Abimelech: “That the cruelty done to the threescore and ten sons of [ Gideon] might come, and their blood be laid upon Abimelech their brother, which slew them; and upon the men of Shechem which aided him in the killing of his brethren” (Jdg 9:24).

If “God sent an evil spirit [ to let fire come out] between Abimelech and the men of Shechem”, then He no doubt sent an evil spirit to cause “fire to come out between Abimelech and his brethren.” “Shall there be evil in a city [ of Ophrah] and the Lord hath not done it?” (Amo 3:6). Understanding God’s sovereignty is the secret spoken of in Amo 3:7 – “Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but He revealeth His secret unto His servants the prophets.”

Once again it is apparent that God “worketh ALL THINGS after the counsel of HIS OWN WILL” (Eph 1:11). This is the first time the scripture blatantly informs us of the origins of evil spirits: “Then God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the men of Shechem; and the men of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech” (Jdg 9:23).

Did God Himself tempt the men of Shechem? No, they were drawn away of their own lust and enticed. But how was this accomplished? Was it by stripping the men of Shechem of their ability to make choices? No. It was accomplished by giving them the ability to choose. They may well have felt they were exercising ‘freedom’ of choice. But what was the actual truth when viewed through the opened spiritual eyes the Word of God affords us? “God had sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the men of Shechem.” And what was God’s purpose in doing this? “… and the men of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech” (Jdg 9:23).

Adam, Job, Pharaoh, Abimelech, King Saul, Judas, Pilate, Saul of Tarsus and you and I must all choose. But don’t boast in your ‘freedom of choice’. It is nothing more than another nourishing meal for the serpent. It is what Ezekiel 14 calls an “idol of the heart”. God’s people today think they are too sophisticated to bow down to a physical idol. But they will kill you and think they do God a service over an ‘idol of the heart’. The adversary couldn’t care less which idol we serve. Any idol makes just another good meal for him. Notice also how Ezekiel puts it: “And if the prophet be deceived when he hath spoken a thing, I the Lord have deceived that prophet, and I will stretch out my hand upon him, and will destroy him from the midst of my people Israel” (Eze 14:9).

So who claims to be responsible for all the “many shall come in my name saying, I am Christ, and shall deceive many” (Mat 24:5), “and many false [ deceived] prophets shall arise, and shall deceive many” (Mat 24:11). Read Ezekiel 14:9 for the true, ultimate answer.

Who did Job see as responsible for the incredible trials he endured? “The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away, blessed be the name of the Lord” (Job 1:21). “… and they [ Job’s friends and family]… comforted him over all the evil that THE LORD HAD BROUGHT UPON HIM…” (Job 42:11).

The first chapter of Job, like Jdg 9, informs us that the Lord Himself does not try men. He uses Satan for that purpose.

1Pe 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:
Gen 1:31 And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, [ it was] very good. (And this includes Satan who was made for God’s purposes) And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.
Rev 12:9 And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

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