Judges 8:31
in Judges 8His concubine, who dwelt in Shechem, also bore him a son, and he named him Abimelech.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And his concubine that was in Shechem, she also bare him a son, and he called his name Abimelech.
KJV
And his concubine that was in Shechem, she also bare him a son, whose name he called Abimelech.
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This verse in Judges 8
Commentary
7 notes on this verseAnd his concubine that was in Shechem,.... Which was not an harlot, but a secondary or half wife; such were generally taken from handmaids, and of the meaner sort, and were not in such esteem as proper wives, had not the management of household affairs, only a share in the bed, and their children did not inherit.
This site's exposition
Gideon had seventy sons of his own
on Judges 8:30-31
Seventy sons and many wives is the household of a ruling man, kept by the one who said he would not rule. The son borne by the concubine at Shechem is named Abimelech, which carries the word for king inside it. Shechem is where Joshua 24 set the covenant renewal.
This site's exposition
he named him Abimelech
Albert Barnes takes the mother to be one of the Canaanite people of Shechem, and notes that her son is counted apart from the seventy. John Wesley renders the name my father the king and thinks it was given to please the concubine. Chapter 9 turns on both points.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Shechem - She dwelt there, and he often came thither, either to execute judgment, or upon other occasions. Abimelech - That is, my father the king; so he called him, probably, to gratify his concubine, who desired it either out of pride, or design.
And he was buried in the sepulchre of his fathers. After his death the people corrupted themselves, and went all to naught. As soon as ever Gideon was dead, who had kept them close to the worship of the God of Israel, they found themselves under no restraint, and then they went a whoring after Baalim,
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
Abimelech’s mother was not reckoned among the wives, being, probably, one of the Canaanite population in Shechem Jdg 9:28: neither was Abimelech himself reckoned with the 70 other sons of Jerubbaal (Jdg 9:24. Compare Jdg 11:1-2).
His concubine - A lawful but secondary wife, whose children could not inherit. Whose name he called Abimelech - That is, my father is king, or my father hath reigned. This name was doubtless given by the mother, and so it should be understood here; she wished to raise her son to the supreme government, and therefore gave him a name which might serve to stimulate him to seek that which she hoped he should enjoy in his father’s right. See the following chapter, Judges 9 (note).
The words behind it
12 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וּפִֽילַגְשׁוֹ֙ | ufilagsho | and concubine his | H6370 → | 37 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֣ר | ʾasher | who | H834 → | 5497 times |
| בִּשְׁכֶ֔ם | bishkhem | [was] in Shechem | H7927 → | 63 times |
| יָֽלְדָה־ | yaldah- | she bore | H3205 → | 496 times |
| לּ֥וֹ | lo | to <the> him | ||
| גַם־ | gam- | also | H1571 → | 769 times |
| הִ֖יא | hi' | she | H1931 → | 1879 times |
| בֵּ֑ן | ben | a son | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| וַיָּ֥שֶׂם | vaiyasem | and he made | H7760 → | 584 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| שְׁמ֖וֹ | shemo | name his | H8034 → | 864 times |
| אֲבִימֶֽלֶךְ׃ | ʾavimelekh | Abimelech | H40 → | 66 times |
וּפִֽילַגְשׁוֹ֙and concubine his
ufilagshoH6370 →37 times
אֲשֶׁ֣רwho
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
בִּשְׁכֶ֔ם[was] in Shechem
bishkhemH7927 →63 times
יָֽלְדָה־she bore
yaldah-H3205 →496 times
לּ֥וֹto <the> him
lo
גַם־also
gam-H1571 →769 times
הִ֖יאshe
hi'H1931 →1879 times
בֵּ֑ןa son
benH1121 →4930 times
וַיָּ֥שֶׂםand he made
vaiyasemH7760 →584 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
שְׁמ֖וֹname his
shemoH8034 →864 times
אֲבִימֶֽלֶךְ׃Abimelech
ʾavimelekhH40 →66 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Genesis 20:2Abraham said of his wife Sarah, “She is my sister.” So Abimelech king of Gerar had Sarah brought to him.
it leads to
- Genesis 12:15
When Pharaoh’s officials saw Sarai, they commended her to him, and she was taken into the palace of Pharaoh.
- Genesis 26:7
But when the men of that place asked about his wife, he said, “She is my sister.” For he was afraid to say, “She is my wife,” since he thought to himself, “The men…
- Genesis 12:11–13
As he was about to enter Egypt, he said to his wife Sarai, “Look, I know that you are a beautiful woman,
- Genesis 12:15
Through
Judges 9:18but you have risen up against my father’s house this day and killed his seventy sons on a single stone, and you have made Abimelech, the son of his maidservant, king over the leaders…
it leads to
- Judges 9:5–6
He went to his father’s house in Ophrah, and on one stone murdered his seventy brothers, the sons of Jerubbaal. But Jotham, the youngest son of Jerubbaal, survived, because he hid himself.
- Psalms 109:4
In return for my love they accuse me, but I am a man of prayer.
- Judges 9:5–6
Through
Genesis 16:15And Hagar bore Abram a son, and Abram gave the name Ishmael to the son she had borne.
it leads to
- Genesis 25:12
This is the account of Abraham’s son Ishmael, whom Hagar the Egyptian, Sarah’s maidservant, bore to Abraham.
- Genesis 17:18
And Abraham said to God, “O that Ishmael might live under Your blessing!”
- Genesis 37:27
Come, let us sell him to the Ishmaelites and not lay a hand on him; for he is our brother, our own flesh.” And they agreed.
- Genesis 25:12
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About Judges
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.