Judges 9:40
in Judges 9but Abimelech pursued him, and Gaal fled before him. And many Shechemites fell wounded all the way to the entrance of the gate.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And Abimelech chased him, and he fled before him, and there fell many wounded, even unto the entrance of the gate.
KJV
And Abimelech chased him, and he fled before him, and many were overthrown and wounded, even unto the entering of the gate.
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This verse in Judges 9
Commentary
4 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
And Abimelech chased him, and he fled
on Judges 9:40-41
The fighting ends where it began, at the gate, and the wounded fall in the entering of it. Abimelech does not go into the city; he pulls back to Arumah and leaves Zebul to expel Gaal and his brethren, which keeps the town standing for another day. What comes next shows that the restraint was timing.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
And Abimelech chased him, and he fled before him,....
In this action the Shechemites' loss was considerable: Many were overthrown and wounded, the common effect of popular tumults, in which the inconsiderate multitude are often drawn into fatal snare by those that promise them glorious success.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
The consequence was that he allowed himself to be drawn into an ambush, was defeated, the city of Shechem destroyed and strewn with salt. The people took refuge in the stronghold, which was set on fire, and all in it perished.
The words behind it
10 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיִּרְדְּפֵ֣הוּ | vaiyirdefehu | and he pursued him | H7291 → | 143 times |
| אֲבִימֶ֔לֶךְ | ʾavimelekh | Abimelech | H40 → | 66 times |
| וַיָּ֖נָס | vaiyanos | and he fled | H5127 → | 159 times |
| מִפָּנָ֑יו | mipanav | from before him | H6440 → | 2123 times |
| וַֽיִּפְּל֛וּ | vaiyipelu | and they fell | H5307 → | 435 times |
| חֲלָלִ֥ים | chalalim | [those] fatally wounded | H2491 → | 94 times |
| רַבִּ֖ים | rabim | many | H7227 → | 454 times |
| עַד־ | ʾad- | to | H5704 → | 1261 times |
| פֶּ֥תַח | petach | [the] entrance of | H6607 → | 164 times |
| הַשָּֽׁעַר׃ | hashaar | the gate | H8179 → | 374 times |
וַיִּרְדְּפֵ֣הוּand he pursued him
vaiyirdefehuH7291 →143 times
אֲבִימֶ֔לֶךְAbimelech
ʾavimelekhH40 →66 times
וַיָּ֖נָסand he fled
vaiyanosH5127 →159 times
מִפָּנָ֑יוfrom before him
mipanavH6440 →2123 times
וַֽיִּפְּל֛וּand they fell
vaiyipeluH5307 →435 times
חֲלָלִ֥ים[those] fatally wounded
chalalimH2491 →94 times
רַבִּ֖יםmany
rabimH7227 →454 times
עַד־to
ʾad-H5704 →1261 times
פֶּ֥תַח[the] entrance of
petachH6607 →164 times
הַשָּֽׁעַר׃the gate
hashaarH8179 →374 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
5 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
1 Kings 20:30The rest of them fled into the city of Aphek, where the wall fell on twenty-seven thousand of the remaining men. Ben-hadad also fled to the city and hid in an inner room.
it leads to
- 2 Chronicles 18:24
Micaiah replied, “You will soon see, on that day when you go and hide in an inner room.”
- 1 Kings 22:25
Micaiah replied, “You will soon see, on that day when you go and hide in an inner room.”
- 1 Kings 20:26
In the spring, Ben-hadad mobilized the Arameans and went up to Aphek to fight against Israel.
- Luke 13:4
Or those eighteen who were killed when the tower of Siloam collapsed on them: Do you think that they were more sinful than all the others living in Jerusalem?
- Psalms 18:25
To the faithful You show Yourself faithful, to the blameless You show Yourself blameless;
- 2 Chronicles 18:24
About Judges
This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.