Judges 9:52
in Judges 9When Abimelech came to attack the tower, he approached its entrance to set it on fire.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And Abimelech came unto the tower, and fought against it, and drew near unto the door of the tower to burn it with fire.
KJV
And Abimelech came unto the tower, and fought against it, and went hard unto the door of the tower to burn it with fire.
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This verse in Judges 9
Commentary
6 notes on this verseA commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
Went hard unto the door ... - i. e. went close to the door. An act of manifest danger, seeing the roof was covered with persons who would be likely to throw down missiles of all sorts on the heads of their assailants. But the hatred of Abimelech, and his thirst for revenge, made him despise danger.
This site's exposition
Then went Abimelech to Thebez
on Judges 9:50-52
Thebez is named twice in the whole Bible, here and in Joab's message at 2 Samuel 11:21, and it sits a few hours north of Shechem. The people do what Shechem did, crowd into the strong tower and shut the door behind them, and Abimelech does what worked before and goes hard to the door to burn it. Going too near a wall is exactly what Joab's messenger is later told the king will ask about, and this siege is the example he is given to quote.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
Those who have escaped and succeeded well in one desperate attempt are apt to think the like attempt another time not desperate. This instance was long after quoted to show how dangerous it is to come near the call of a besieged city, 2 Sam. xi.
And Abimelech came unto the tower,....
Of this meteor, this ignis fatuus of a prince, that was not a protector but a plague to his country, we may say, as once was said of a great tyrant, that he came in like a fox, ruled like a lion, and died like a dog. "For the transgression of a land, such are the princes thereof." The Usurpation of Abimelech.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
The besieged city--the strong tower within--the men and women crowding its battlements--the fire applied to the doors, and even the huge fragments of stone dropping from the hands of one of the garrison on the heads of the assailants, are all well represented to the life--just as they are here described in the narrative of inspired truth [GOSS].
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַיָּבֹ֤א | vaiyavo' | and he came | H935 → | 2568 times |
| אֲבִימֶ֙לֶךְ֙ | ʾavimelekh | Abimelech | H40 → | 66 times |
| עַד־ | ʾad- | to | H5704 → | 1261 times |
| הַמִּגְדָּ֔ל | hamigdal | the tower | H4026 → | 48 times |
| וַיִּלָּ֖חֶם | vaiyilachem | and he fought | H3898 → | 177 times |
| בּ֑וֹ | bo | against <the> it | ||
| וַיִּגַּ֛שׁ | vaiyigash | and he drew near | H5066 → | 125 times |
| עַד־ | ʾad- | to | H5704 → | 1261 times |
| פֶּ֥תַח | petach | [the] entrance of | H6607 → | 164 times |
| הַמִּגְדָּ֖ל | hamigdal | the tower | H4026 → | 48 times |
| לְשָׂרְפ֥וֹ | lesarefo | to burn it | H8313 → | 117 times |
| בָאֵֽשׁ׃ | vaesh | with <the> fire | H784 → | 378 times |
וַיָּבֹ֤אand he came
vaiyavo'H935 →2568 times
אֲבִימֶ֙לֶךְ֙Abimelech
ʾavimelekhH40 →66 times
עַד־to
ʾad-H5704 →1261 times
הַמִּגְדָּ֔לthe tower
hamigdalH4026 →48 times
וַיִּלָּ֖חֶםand he fought
vaiyilachemH3898 →177 times
בּ֑וֹagainst <the> it
bo
וַיִּגַּ֛שׁand he drew near
vaiyigashH5066 →125 times
עַד־to
ʾad-H5704 →1261 times
פֶּ֥תַח[the] entrance of
petachH6607 →164 times
הַמִּגְדָּ֖לthe tower
hamigdalH4026 →48 times
לְשָׂרְפ֥וֹto burn it
lesarefoH8313 →117 times
בָאֵֽשׁ׃with <the> fire
vaeshH784 →378 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
2 Kings 15:16At that time Menahem, starting from Tirzah, attacked Tiphsah and everyone in its vicinity, because they would not open their gates. So he attacked Tiphsah and ripped open all the pregnant women.
it leads to
- 2 Kings 8:12
“Why is my lord weeping?” asked Hazael. “Because I know the evil you will do to the Israelites,” Elisha replied. “You will set fire to their fortresses, kill their young men with the sword,…
- 1 Kings 4:24
For Solomon had dominion over everything west of the Euphrates—over all the kingdoms from Tiphsah to Gaza—and he had peace on all sides.
- Hosea 13:16
Samaria will bear her guilt because she has rebelled against her God. They will fall by the sword; their little ones will be dashed to pieces, and their pregnant women ripped open.
- 2 Kings 8:12
Through
2 Kings 14:10You have indeed defeated Edom, and your heart has become proud. Glory in that and stay at home. Why should you stir up trouble so that you fall—you and Judah with you?”
it leads to
- Deuteronomy 8:14
then your heart will become proud, and you will forget the LORD your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.
- 2 Chronicles 26:16
But when Uzziah grew powerful, his arrogance led to his own destruction. He was unfaithful to the LORD his God, for he entered the temple of the LORD to burn incense on the altar…
- 2 Chronicles 32:25
But because his heart was proud, Hezekiah did not repay the favor shown to him. Therefore wrath came upon him and upon Judah and Jerusalem.
- Proverbs 16:18
Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.
- Proverbs 3:30
Do not accuse a man without cause, when he has done you no harm.
- Deuteronomy 8:14
About Judges
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 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.