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Judges 9:3

in Judges 9

And when his mother’s brothers spoke all these words about him in the presence of all the leaders of Shechem, their hearts were inclined to follow Abimelech, for they said, “He is our brother.”

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

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.

KJV

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.

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This verse in Judges 9

Commentary

6 notes on this verse
The Ephraimite pride revolted from Abi-ezrite rulers, and inclined them to one who was a Shechemite by birth. (Compare the same spirit in the time of David and Rehoboam, 2Sa 20:1; 1Ki 12:16.)

This site's exposition

Now Abimelech son of Jerubbaal went

on Judges 9:1-3

Gideon said at 8:23 that neither he nor his son would rule, and here his son canvasses for the crown. Abimelech argues from kinship rather than right, "I am your own flesh and blood," the formula Laban used of Jacob at Genesis 29:14 and the tribes used of David at 2 Samuel 5:1. Shechem is his mother's town, so there Gideon's seventy sons are outsiders and he is not.

This site's exposition

He is our brother

Albert Barnes reads the vote as Ephraimite pride turning from rulers of Gideon's clan, Abiezer, toward a man born in Shechem. He finds the same spirit later at 2 Samuel 20:1 and 1 Kings 12:16. The same tribe quarrelled with Gideon at 8:1.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices

And his mother's brethren spake of him in the ears of the men of Shechem all these words,....

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

proposed

He basely suggested that Gideon having left seventy sons, who made a good figure and had a good interest, they were designing to keep the power which their father had in their hands, and by a joint-influence to reign over Israel. "Now," says he, "you had better have one king than more, than many, than so many. Affairs of state are best managed by a single person,"

The Nineteenth Century1 voice

A commentator

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible · Written before 1832.

proposed

He is our brother - We shall be raised to places of trust under him, and our city will be the capital of the kingdom.

The words behind it

20 Hebrew words

Every 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.

  • וַיְדַבְּר֨וּand they spoke

    vaydaberuH1696 →1141 times

  • אֲחֵֽי־[the] brothers of

    ʾachei-H251 →630 times

  • אִמּ֜וֹmother his

    ʾimoH517 →220 times

  • עָלָ֗יוon him

    ʾalavH5921 →5755 times

  • בְּאָזְנֵי֙in [the] ears of

    beazeneiH241 →187 times

  • כָּל־all

    kol-H3605 →5413 times

  • בַּעֲלֵ֣י[the] citizens of

    baaleiH1167 →84 times

  • שְׁכֶ֔םShechem

    shekhemH7927 →63 times

  • אֵ֥ת<obj.>

    ʾetH853 →10935 times

  • כָּל־all

    kol-H3605 →5413 times

  • הַדְּבָרִ֖יםthe words

    hadevarimH1697 →1440 times

  • הָאֵ֑לֶּה<the> these

    haelehH428 →746 times

  • וַיֵּ֤טand it turned aside

    vaiyetH5186 →214 times

  • לִבָּם֙heart their

    libamH3820 →595 times

  • אַחֲרֵ֣יafter

    ʾachareiH310 →715 times

  • אֲבִימֶ֔לֶךְAbimelech

    ʾavimelekhH40 →66 times

  • כִּ֥יfor

    kiH3588 →4482 times

  • אָמְר֖וּthey said

    ʾameruH559 →5305 times

  • אָחִ֥ינוּ[is] brother our

    ʾachinuH251 →630 times

  • הֽוּא׃he

    hu'H1931 →1879 times

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

Related verses

4 in all, six open

The walk

7 stops

Each 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

    Psalms 10:3

    For the wicked man boasts in the cravings of his heart; he blesses the greedy and reviles the LORD.

    it leads to

    • Psalms 94:4

      They pour out arrogant words; all workers of iniquity boast.

    • Luke 12:19

      Then I will say to myself, “You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take it easy. Eat, drink, and be merry!”’

    • Zechariah 11:5–8

      whose buyers slaughter them without remorse. Those who sell them say, ‘Blessed be the LORD, for I am rich!’ Even their own shepherds have no compassion on them.

    • Micah 6:10–12

      Can I forget any longer, O house of the wicked, the treasures of wickedness and the short ephah, which is accursed?

    • Isaiah 37:23

      Whom have you taunted and blasphemed? Against whom have you raised your voice and lifted your eyes in pride? Against the Holy One of Israel!

  • Through

    Genesis 29:15

    Laban said to him, “Just because you are my relative, should you work for nothing? Tell me what your wages should be.”

    it leads to

    • Genesis 30:28

      And he added, “Name your wages, and I will pay them.”

    • Genesis 31:7

      And although he has cheated me and changed my wages ten times, God has not allowed him to harm me.

About Judges

The Death of Gideon's Sons — Gustave Doré, Doré's English Bible (1866), public domain
The Death of Gideon's Sons — Gustave Doré, Doré's English Bible (1866), public domain
Judges: the study guide →Read Judges 9 →

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: Joshua, Judges, Ruth and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.

Read on in Judges 9 →