Cornelius a Lapide
Table of Contents
Synopsis of the Chapter
Abimelech, son of Gideon, having slain 70 brothers, seizes and obtains the rule of Israel through the Shechemites, his kinsmen. Wherefore Jotham his brother, verse 8 and following, by the parable of the bramble threatens and foretells ruin for both him and the Shechemites, which the outcome of events then confirmed, as is narrated in verse 23 and following, through the spirit of dissension which God sent between them. Abimelech therefore was the sixth ruler of Israel — not so much a judge as a tyrant.
Vulgate Text: Judges 9:1-57
1. Now Abimelech the son of Jerubbaal went to Shechem to his mother's brothers, and spoke to them, and to all the kindred of his mother's and father's house, saying: 2. Speak to all the men of Shechem: Which is better for you, that seventy men, all the sons of Jerubbaal, should rule over you, or that one man should rule? And consider that I am your bone and your flesh. 3. And his mother's brothers spoke about him to all the men of Shechem all these words, and their hearts inclined after Abimelech, saying: He is our brother. 4. And they gave him seventy pieces of silver from the temple of Baal-berith. With this he hired worthless and reckless men, and they followed him. 5. And he went to his father's house at Ophrah, and slew his brothers the sons of Jerubbaal, seventy men, upon one stone; but Jotham the youngest son of Jerubbaal remained and hid himself. 6. And all the men of Shechem gathered together, and all the families of the city of Millo; and they went and made Abimelech king, beside the oak that stood in Shechem. 7. When this was reported to Jotham, he went and stood on the top of Mount Gerizim; and lifting up his voice he cried out and said: Hear me, men of Shechem, so may God hear you. 8. The trees went to anoint a king over themselves; and they said to the olive tree: Reign over us. 9. And it answered: Can I leave my fatness, which both gods and men use, and come to be promoted among the trees? 10. And the trees said to the fig tree: Come, and take the kingdom over us. 11. And it answered them: Can I leave my sweetness and my most delightful fruits, and go to be promoted among the other trees? 12. And the trees spoke to the vine: Come, and rule over us. 13. And it answered them: Can I leave my wine, which gladdens God and men, and be promoted among the other trees? 14. And all the trees said to the bramble: Come, and rule over us. 15. And it answered them: If you truly make me king over you, come and rest under my shade; but if you do not wish to, let fire come forth from the bramble and devour the cedars of Lebanon. 16. Now therefore, if you have acted rightly and without sin in making Abimelech king over you, and have dealt well with Jerubbaal and his house, and have repaid in kind his benefits — he who fought for you, 17. and gave his life to dangers to deliver you from the hand of Midian — 18. you who have now risen against my father's house and slain his sons, seventy men upon one stone, and have made Abimelech the son of his handmaid king over the inhabitants of Shechem because he is your brother: 19. if therefore you have acted rightly and without fault toward Jerubbaal and his house, today rejoice in Abimelech, and let him rejoice in you. 20. But if perversely: let fire come forth from him and consume the inhabitants of Shechem and the town of Millo; and let fire come forth from the men of Shechem and from the town of Millo, and devour Abimelech. 21. When he had said these things, he fled and went to Beer, and dwelt there for fear of Abimelech his brother. 22. So Abimelech reigned over Israel for three years. 23. And the Lord sent a very evil spirit between Abimelech and the inhabitants of Shechem, who began to detest him, 24. and to attribute the crime of the slaying of the seventy sons of Jerubbaal and the shedding of their blood to Abimelech their brother and to the other princes of the Shechemites who had helped him. 25. And they set ambushes against him on the mountain tops; and while they waited for his arrival, they practiced robbery, plundering passers-by; and this was reported to Abimelech. 26. Now Gaal the son of Ebed came with his brothers and crossed over into Shechem. At his arrival the inhabitants of Shechem were emboldened, 27. and went out into the fields, ravaging the vineyards and treading the grapes; and forming dancing choruses, they entered the temple of their god, and amid feasting and drinking they cursed Abimelech, 28. Gaal the son of Ebed crying out: Who is Abimelech, and what is Shechem, that we should serve him? Is he not the son of Jerubbaal, and has he not appointed Zebul his servant as ruler over the men of Hamor the father of Shechem? Why then should we serve him? 29. Would that someone would give this people into my hand, that I might remove Abimelech from their midst. And it was said to Abimelech: Gather the multitude of an army and come. 30. For Zebul the ruler of the city, hearing the words of Gaal the son of Ebed, was very angry, 31. and sent messengers secretly to Abimelech, saying: Behold, Gaal the son of Ebed has come to Shechem with his brothers, and is stirring up the city against you. 32. Rise therefore in the night with the people who are with you, and lie in ambush in the field; 33. and in the early morning at sunrise, rush upon the city; and when he comes out against you with his people, do to him what you can. 34. So Abimelech rose with all his army by night and set ambushes near Shechem in four places. 35. And Gaal the son of Ebed went out and stood at the entrance of the city gate. And Abimelech and all the army with him rose from the place of ambush. 36. And when Gaal saw the people, he said to Zebul: Behold, a multitude is coming down from the mountains. And he answered him: You see the shadows of the mountains as though they were heads of men, and you are deceived by this error. 37. And again Gaal said: Behold, a people is coming down from the navel of the land, and one company is coming by the way that looks toward the oak. 38. And Zebul said to him: Where now is your mouth with which you spoke? Who is Abimelech that we should serve him? Is not this the people you despised? Go out and fight against him. 39. So Gaal went out, in the sight of the people of Shechem, and fought against Abimelech, 40. who pursued him as he fled and drove him into the city; and very many fell on his side, up to the gate of the city. 41. And Abimelech stayed in Arumah; but Zebul expelled Gaal and his companions from the city, and did not allow them to remain in it. 42. The next day therefore the people went out into the field. When this was reported to Abimelech, 43. he took his army and divided it into three companies, setting ambushes in the fields. And seeing that the people were coming out of the city, he rose and rushed upon them 44. with his own company, attacking and besieging the city; while the two other companies, ranging through the field, pursued the enemy. 45. Moreover, Abimelech that whole day attacked the city, which he captured, killing its inhabitants and destroying the city itself, so that he scattered salt upon it. 46. When those who dwelt in the tower of Shechem heard this, they entered the temple of their god Berith, where they had made a covenant with him and from which the place had received its name, which was very strongly fortified. 47. And Abimelech also, hearing that the men of the tower of Shechem had likewise gathered together, 48. went up to Mount Zalmon with all his people; and seizing an axe, he cut off a branch of a tree, and carrying it on his shoulder, said to his companions: What you see me do, do quickly. 49. Therefore, vying with one another, they cut branches from the trees and followed their leader. Surrounding the stronghold, they set it on fire; and so it happened that by smoke and fire a thousand people were killed, men and women alike, inhabitants of the tower of Shechem. 50. And Abimelech, setting out from there, came to the town of Thebez, which he surrounded and besieged with his army. 51. But there was a tall tower in the middle of the city, to which men and women had fled together, and all the leaders of the city, having shut the gate very firmly, and standing on the roof of the tower behind the battlements. 52. And Abimelech, coming close to the tower, fought fiercely; and approaching the door, he tried to set fire to it. 53. And behold, one woman, casting down a piece of a millstone from above, struck it upon Abimelech's head and broke his skull. 54. And he quickly called his armor-bearer and said to him: Draw your sword and strike me, lest it be said that I was killed by a woman. And he, carrying out the command, killed him. 55. And when he was dead, all who were with him from Israel returned to their homes; 56. and God repaid the evil that Abimelech had done against his father, by killing his seventy brothers. 57. To the Shechemites also, what they had done was repaid, and the curse of Jotham the son of Jerubbaal came upon them.
Verse 2: Seventy sons of Jerubbaal or one ruler?
2. WHAT IS BETTER FOR YOU, THAT SEVENTY MEN, ALL THE SONS OF JERUBBAAL, SHOULD RULE OVER YOU. — The tyrant pretends that all seventy of his brothers are seeking the kingship, and that there would be a continual contest among them for the kingdom, so that they might assign it to himself alone. For the sons of Judges did not succeed their fathers in the principate, but when one died, another from a different family and tribe was chosen by God or the people. And even if one of the sons had here succeeded Gideon, it would have been only one, namely the firstborn, not seventy. Hence it is clear that Abimelech was fabricating these things and lying, so that the kingdom might be given to himself alone.
Verse 4: Seventy pieces of silver from the temple of Baal-berith
4. AND THEY GAVE HIM SEVENTY PIECES OF SILVER FROM THE TEMPLE OF BAAL-BERITH — so that he might enlist soldiers with them, through whom he might invade and seize the kingdom of Israel. The Hebrew does not have the word pondo, but only '70 of silver,' namely shekels, say Vatablus, Arias, and others. But 70 shekels of silver are 70 Brabant florins, each of which contains four Roman julii or four Spanish reales, with which he could scarcely have enlisted even one or two soldiers. Therefore Arias, citing the Rabbis, asserts that by the name of silver pieces in the Pentateuch, shekels are understood; in the Prophets (such as this book of Judges is in the Hebrew canon), pounds; and in the Hagiographa, talents. Although this is not true everywhere, it can nevertheless suit this passage. For a pound of silver contains 24 shekels
or Brabant florins; therefore 70 pounds of silver make 1,680 shekels or Brabant florins, that is, 500 French crowns, with which in that age more soldiers could be enlisted, at least for beginning a war. Others understand minas; a mina contained 60 shekels, Ezekiel XLII, 12; therefore 70 minas contain 4,200 shekels. Others supply talents; the Hebrew talent contained three thousand shekels, that is, 1,500 ounces. The Attic, however, 1,500 shekels, that is, 750 ounces; therefore 70 talents make a vast amount of silver. Our translator renders it pondo, which word properly signifies a pound, though pondo sometimes means the same as weight, whether of shekels, ounces, or some other thing measured by weight.
FROM THE TEMPLE OF BAAL-BERITH — that is, Baal who presided over berith, that is, the covenant, such as the Shechemites had already entered into with Abimelech. For thus the Romans, as Dionysius of Halicarnassus testifies, book IV, worshipped the god Pistius and Fidius, as the guardian and avenger of faith and covenants, and Jupiter holding a thunderbolt in his hand, which he would hurl against those who violated faith and covenants; and Jupiter of the Stone; for those entering into a covenant would ratify it by slaying a pig, saying: 'If I break faith, may Jupiter strike
me, just as I strike and slay this pig with a stone.' So Livy, book I. See how the Shechemite tyrants begin their tyrannical rule with crime and sacrilege. For they plunder the treasury of their own god to give it to their tyrant. Then to sacrilege they add fratricide. Whence follows:
WHO HIRED FOR HIMSELF WORTHLESS AND RECKLESS MEN. — The Hebrew: empty and light; Arias: lost and wandering; Pagninus: empty-headed and unstable; Lyranus: stiff-necked; the Chaldean: empty and libertine; the Septuagint: empty and stupid.
Verse 5: He slew his brothers upon one stone
5. AND HE SLEW HIS BROTHERS, THE SONS OF JERUBBAAL (Gideon), SEVENTY MEN UPON ONE STONE. — There were precisely only 69; for Jotham the seventieth had escaped — indeed only 68, if you count Abimelech among the seventy sons of Gideon. But Scripture, according to its custom, assigns a round and perfect number, even if something is lacking or in excess; for it counts by tens, hundreds, and thousands. So say Serarius and others.
UPON ONE STONE. — Arias thinks this stone was an altar, dedicated by the tyrant Abimelech to his idol Baal-berith, and erected in the same place where his father Gideon had previously destroyed the altar of Baal, chapter VI; and therefore he was called Jerubbaal, as though he wished to avenge the injury done by his father to the god Baal, and therefore to make amends for this injury he slew and as it were sacrificed the seventy sons and brothers of Gideon in that same place. Hence the Shechemites, for their Baal being restored to them, seem to have paid him a piece of silver for each of the slain brothers' heads, namely 70 pieces for the seventy sons of Gideon slain by him.
With similar barbarity and fratricide, Phraates, son of Orodes king of the Parthians by a concubine, in order to reign killed his aged father and thirty brothers, as Justin testifies, book XLII; who also in book X narrates that Ochus, king of the Persians, slew eighty brothers. So Murad, Selim, Bayezid, and other Turkish Emperors kill their brothers, lest they be deprived of power by them. Within our fathers' memory, Muley Hassan, king of Tunis, fled to Charles V, having been driven from his kingdom by his own son named Hamida, and blinded with a red-hot iron; and this by just judgment of God, because Muley Hassan himself had previously killed or blinded eighteen brothers. See where the blind and raging lust for power drives men.
Hence it is clear that Abimelech was not truly a Judge and Prince of Israel, inasmuch as he was chosen neither by God nor by the people, but only by a few Shechemites, his fellow citizens, and thrust in by force — he was rather a tyrant. Whence neither the tribe of Judah nor the other tribes are recorded as having accepted him. Hence he reigned almost only in Shechem, as is clear from verse 6 and following.
Verse 6: They made Abimelech king
6. THEY MADE (the Shechemites) ABIMELECH KING BESIDE THE OAK THAT STOOD IN SHECHEM. — Andreas Masius on Joshua, last chapter, verse 26, and Serarius here think and plausibly conjecture that this oak was the Elam Moreh, where Abraham coming from Chaldea into Canaan first erected an altar to God, Genesis XII, 6, and under which Jacob buried the idols of his household, Genesis XXXV, 4; and therefore it is called here ela mutsab, that is, 'the standing oak,' where the Patriarchs by established custom used to invoke God. This oak therefore was aged.
'Preserved by the religion of the fathers through many years,' namely five hundred years; for so many years had passed from Abraham to Abimelech. But, as I said on Joshua, last chapter, verse 26, this matter is uncertain, and exceeds the common lifespan of oaks (which commonly live to three hundred years).
Moreover, this oak is called mutsab, that is, 'of the station,' as the Septuagint translates, because the Shechemites used to assemble at it, and there hold their meetings and assemblies.
OF THE CITY OF MILLO. — This city of Millo is different from the ravine of Millo which was between Zion and Jerusalem. For this was a city situated near Shechem, and subject to it as its colony or municipality.
Verse 7: Jotham on Mount Gerizim
7. WHEN THIS WAS REPORTED TO JOTHAM (who was the youngest son of Gideon, and had escaped the massacre of his brothers), HE WENT AND STOOD ON THE TOP OF MOUNT GERIZIM (which overlooks the city of Shechem), AND LIFTING UP HIS VOICE HE CRIED OUT AND SAID: HEAR ME, MEN OF SHECHEM, SO MAY GOD HEAR YOU — as if to say: I adjure you, O Shechemites, by God, to hear me. Or, as if to say: Hear me speaking what is right and just, so that God may also hear you.
On the contrary, Cajetan says: These words, he says, are an imprecation of divine vengeance upon the impious Shechemites, as if to say: I wish and call down upon you that God, the just judge and avenger of crimes, may attend to your iniquity, and hear and see it, and punish and avenge it.
Verse 8: The fable of the trees choosing a king
8. THE TREES WENT TO ANOINT A KING OVER THEMSELVES, AND THEY SAID TO THE OLIVE TREE: REIGN OVER US, etc. — This is the first, most elegant, and most ancient of all fables. For Gideon and Jotham preceded by many centuries Phaedrus, Avienus, Aesop, and other writers of fables and apologues. About the origin, elegance, use, etc., of apologues, I have said much in my commentary on Ecclesiasticus.
Now to explain this entire fable briefly and set it before the eyes, it should be noted first that it is introduced here by Jotham to show the Shechemites how unjustly and impiously they acted in exalting the tyrant Abimelech as king, with seventy of his brothers slain, and that they are worthy to feel the fratricide themselves, since they established a kinsman as their leader who was a fratricide. Hence he not only curses them with imprecations, but also pronounces upon them God's customary vengeance against such people.
Note second, that in fables, parables, and comparisons, certain things are added for the beauty and elegance of the fable or parable, which it is not necessary to apply to the thing signified by it; indeed sometimes it is impossible. Therefore here it is not necessary to apply individually everything that is repeated about the olive, fig tree, and vine; most things, however, can be applied.
Note third, that the tree here is a human being, but inverted (for a tree has its roots below and its branches above; but a human being has the roots of his sense and reason in his head above, and his feet like branches below), and capable of counsel and reason.
The olive, fig, and vine that refuse the kingship offered them by the trees are Othniel, Deborah, and Gideon, says Lyranus — they who were the earlier Judges, and the best ones, because they undertook the leadership unwillingly and as compelled by God. Hear Lyranus: The Hebrews say that by the olive is signified Othniel, who was from the tribe of Judah, as was stated above, chapter I. Now the tribe of Judah is called an olive, Jeremiah XI, 16: 'The Lord called your name a fruitful olive tree, beautiful, full of fruit, fair.' By the fig tree, which has sweet fruit, is understood Deborah, whose name in Hebrew is written Debborah and means a bee which makes sweet honey; and just as the fig tree produces sweet fruit, so the quality of this tree corresponds to the meaning of the name. By the vine is understood Gideon, who was of the sons of Joseph, because Joseph was called 'a fruitful son,' Genesis XLIX; and the branch of a vine grows remarkably in a single summer. So far Lyranus.
Again more aptly the same Lyranus: By the olive, he says, from which oil is pressed; and the fig, which has sweet fruit; and the vine, which produces very abundant fruit; are understood the other sons of Gideon, who were fat in riches, sweet in gentleness, and multiplied in offspring. But by the bramble, which is a worthless tree, is understood Abimelech, who was of a lowly mother, and who reigned by killing the others.
More fully and universally: The olive, fig, and vine denote men who are by any account fit and suitable for ruling; and indeed Arias takes the olive as the wise, the fig as the rich, and the vine as the gentle and modest; but the bramble (which, although it does not so excel among trees as to be even a tree or timber, but is a bush with only thin, sharp, and prickly thorns, yet immediately seizes the rule offered among the trees) signifies those unfit for rule, and tyrants.
Again, more aptly by the fig tree understand men who are mild, gentle, and sweet; by the vine, those who are fervent, keen, and effective in action; for these are fit for governing, since they imitate God's wisdom governing all things, which 'reaches from end to end mightily and orders all things sweetly,' Wisdom VIII, 1. Rule therefore sweetly, but firmly, and you will rule wisely. The olive denotes men who are merciful and fat with goodness, and as it were anointed with charity. For as charity is the queen of virtues, so it is of men. Those therefore who abound in charity govern best. Rebuke, punish, chastise; but show that you do it not from hatred but from love, and you will please those whom you rebuke and chastise. Hence Christ, about to set Peter over the Church: 'Simon son of John, He said, do you love me more than these?' And when he answered: 'Lord, You know that I love You,' He added: 'Feed my sheep,' John XXI, 15. Let him who governs therefore be a fig tree in sweetness, be a vine and wine in fortitude, be an olive and oil in compassion and charity.
Note fourth, that the olive, fig, and vine answer with one voice in agreement, that it is not fitting for them to abandon their fatness, sweetness, and wine, with which three things both men at feasts and gods in sacrifices are delighted, in order to be promoted as kings. This only signifies that private persons can devote themselves to their own perfection and interests; but those who hold public office and preside over others are so occupied with public affairs and cares that, if they wish to serve the public interest rather than to enjoy power (as is fitting), they can scarcely have time for themselves and their own; and whoever loves leisure should abstain from rule. Again, that kings and princes ought to pour out all their fatness, sweetness, and joy into their subjects, and impoverish themselves as it were to enrich them, if they truly wish to be good kings and benefactors. Arias gives another reason: 'No plant of any kind, he says, more aptly represents greed than the fig tree; for its roots seeking moisture everywhere are very numerous, and some are found so far distant that they reach wells, springs, and marshes at a great distance; they are even so clever that they have learned to seek out, enter, and occupy places inside houses where water jars, pitchers, and other water vessels are kept, and there they tend to linger.' In like manner, greedy kings burn with thirst for others' wealth, and to seize it they extend a thousand hands and arms, insinuate themselves into public and private dwellings, and try, handle, and attack coffers, purses, treasures, and whatever is hidden and stored away. But this reason is irrelevant in this passage.
But the fact that the bramble insolently replies: 'Rest under my shade,' is the same as if a tyrant were to say: Come under my protection, which is nonexistent, or is nothing but thorny, stinging, afflicting, and dangerous (because if it once catches fire, the fire will spread through everything and burn all that is nearby); surrender yourselves entirely to me to be ruled. For the bramble is thin, and therefore scarcely casts any shade that protects, and it pricks and stings those who shelter under it; 'but if not, let fire come from the bramble and burn the cedars of Lebanon.' The meaning is, as if to say: The tyrant will send destruction through his officers and soldiers even against his noblest subjects, if they oppose him in any matter and provoke a quarrel; but by this he himself will also be consumed and perish, as histories relate has happened to most tyrants. However things may fall out, therefore, from a tyrant no benefit but the greatest destruction is to be expected. It is therefore just and to be expected that the same may happen to you, O Shechemites, seeing that you chose not worthy men who shunned power, but Abimelech the tyrant who sought it — so that, I say, the same thing may happen in the same manner to you and to your king Abimelech, sacrilegious and a fratricide, and that discord, strife, and war may be stirred up between you, by which both sides may perish. So says Arias, more or less.
Bede gives the allegory in his Questions here: The trees of the forest, he says, are men; over them the olive, fig, and vine rightly refused to rule, because they did not at all deserve it. For the olive signifies the grace of the Holy Spirit and the anointing of peace; the fig bears the image of the sacred law, whence the householder plants a fig tree in the vineyard, that is, the law; the vine signifies Christ, as Christ says, John XV, 1; the bramble denotes the Antichrist, who with all harshness and ferocity will devastate the human race; but fire will come forth from the bramble, that is, iniquity from the Antichrist, and will devour alike all who trust in him.
Again St. Jerome on chapter II of Haggai, by the trees understands impious men; by the olive, fig, and vine, the three Persons of the Holy Trinity; and by the bramble, the devil.
Symbolically, St. Methodius in his treatise On Chastity, cited in Photius' Library, page 345, by the fig tree understands the law of the state of innocence in paradise — for there Adam ate the fig, which ruined us all; by the vine he understands the law of nature under Noah — for he discovered the vine and wine; by the olive, the law of Moses and the Prophets — for they were anointed with oil; by the bramble, the law of Christ — for this stings like the bramble, because it is the law of mortification, chastity, and the cross (whence Gretser, Belon, and other leading authorities in the treatise On the Cross believe that the thorns with which Christ was crowned were from the bramble), which alone was able to heal the wounds of our concupiscence, and which threatens eternal fire to those who refuse to be healed, because they refuse to approach the cross. Hence St. Methodius in the same place thinks that Elijah fleeing Jezebel rested 'under a bramble,' for which our version has 'under a juniper,' III Kings XIX, 4. So he explains this fable symbolically, as if to say: After the fig, that is, the law of nature in paradise, and the vine, that is, the law of nature given to Noah after the flood, and the olive, that is, the law of Moses, could not cure the festering wounds of human nature, 'God sent fourth the bramble (that is, the cross) and chastity, which would rule over them, and which, having overcome pleasures, also threatened them for all future time that unless all obeyed it and came to it sincerely, all would be consumed by the flames of hell.' These things are ingeniously said, but they do not aptly fit this passage in its literal sense. For the bramble here denotes the tyrant Abimelech, and therefore cannot aptly represent Christ and the cross and chastity of Christ, but rather the Antichrist. Our Gretser, however, book I On the Cross, chapter XII, thinks that the kingdom of Israel is said here to have been offered to the bramble, to signify that Christ the king of the Jews was to be crowned with bramble, under which the faithful rest peacefully and find quiet amid the thorns: 'This diadem of bramble, says Clement of Alexandria, is hostile to those who plot against it, and keeps them away; but to those who dwell together in the Church it is friendly, and encircles and protects. This crown is the flower of those who believed in Him who was glorified; but it makes bloody and chastises those who did not believe. For according to the bramble's vow, fire goes forth from the bramble, that is, from the crowned Christ, which consumes all the cedars of Lebanon, and will consume them most of all when they hear: Go into eternal fire.' About the thorns of the Lord's crown, Gregory of Tours reports this: 'They say that the very thorns of the crown appear as if green, which, although they may seem to have withered in their leaves, nevertheless daily revive by divine power.' So far Gretser.
Tropologically, the Gloss says: By the olive, fig, and vine are signified three kinds of men who flee the dignity of governance. The first are the devout, seeking to be occupied in prayer and divine service, from which the care of governance, which causes distraction of mind, pulls them back; and these are signified by the olive. Psalm LI, verse 10: 'But I am like a fruitful olive tree in the house of God.' The second are men studious in Sacred Scripture, about which it is said in Ecclesiasticus chapter XXIV, verse 27: 'My spirit is sweeter than honey, and my inheritance above honey and the honeycomb.' And therefore those studious in it flee being separated from its sweetness by the care of governance, and these are signified by the fig tree, which answered: 'Can I leave my sweetness,' etc. The third are truly humble men, who do not consider themselves worthy of promotion to the governance of others, and therefore flee it as much as they can; and these are signified by the vine, which although it cannot support itself but is supported by another, nevertheless produces the finest fruit from it. So the truly humble person seeks to be governed and sustained by another, and produces the finest fruit, saying: 'Can I leave my wine, which gladdens God and men, and among the other trees,' etc. For the fruit of humility is very pleasing to God and to men; on account of which the Blessed Virgin Mary, because of Her humility, was chosen to conceive the Son of God, as She Herself says, Luke I, 48: 'He has regarded the humility of His handmaid,' etc. So far the Gloss.
Again, St. Clement, book VIII of the Apostolic Constitutions, chapter XIV, applies the parable of the bramble to Bishops who turn their minds from spiritual things to the care of secular affairs. Hear him: 'The trees went to anoint a king over themselves, etc. So far the parable, which plainly fits Bishops; for these are they who, having left the sweet, life-giving, and illuminating word of God, allow themselves to be transferred to the thorn-bushes of lawsuits or secular affairs, in order to reign in their judgments — from trees of fig, olive, and vine becoming trees of bramble, that is, fruitless and thorny. Or rather, it should be said that they are grafting the bramble into the tree of fig, olive, and vine — not understanding that when they wish to do both, they plainly abandon the one that is more important, just as the holy Apostles taught when they say in the Acts of the Apostles: It is not right for us to leave the word of God and serve tables.'
Verse 9: The olive tree refuses
9. AND IT (the olive) ANSWERED: CAN I LEAVE MY FATNESS, WHICH BOTH GODS AND MEN USE? — For oil is food, medicine, and light for men; and for God it was lit daily in the seven lamps of the candelabrum, Exodus XXV. Moreover, oil was a libation in the minchah sacrifice, that is, of flour and grain, Leviticus II. With oil also were anointed priests, High Priests, and the vessels of the tabernacle.
Verse 10: The fig tree refuses
10. THE FIG TREE. — The fig tree does not flower, nor does it display itself with any showy luxury of ornaments, but it produces the sweetest fruit. Hence it represents those who say little but do much and great things, according to the saying of Pythagoras: 'Do not promise great things, but do them.'
Verse 13: The vine refuses
13. CAN I LEAVE MY WINE WHICH GLADDENS GOD AND MEN? — Which is the finest thing, says Valesius on St. Philotheus, chapter XXVII. For God, in Genesis chapter I, creating all things saw them as good, but some as very good, such as wine, which gladdens both Him and men; for the better each thing is in itself, the more God is delighted by the sight of it. Wine therefore, being the best, wonderfully gladdens both God and men. This is more truly the case with the consecrated wine of the Eucharist, of which Jotham was unaware; he perhaps even thought God was corporeal and truly delighted in wine, as the Gentiles thought the gods fed on nectar and ambrosia. For wine gladdens God because wine was the libation that was poured out with the sacrifice, that is, poured out to God at the horn of the altar. For the sacrifice was like a banquet at which God feasted with men. Hence in it there was flour in place of bread, meat in place of dishes, salt for seasoning, wine for drink, oil for anointing. Moreover, wine gladdens, says Valesius, because it very quickly passes into the vital spirits and fairly quickly into warm blood; for things that nourish quickly provide cheerfulness through that easy refreshment of the spirits, and recall one from exhaustion and fainting, and thus cheer; but they do not so well provide strength for sustaining labors, because they are easily dissipated. Therefore wine makes a person forget pains and troubles, so as to lay aside all cares. See what I said on Ecclesiasticus XXXI, on the words: 'Wine was created for cheerfulness, and not for drunkenness.' For this cheerfulness is produced, as I said, by the quick refreshment of the vital spirits, from whose lack melancholic persons suffer, and are therefore sad. Again, wine heats, relaxes, and opens the heart, and therefore cheers it; for joy is a relaxation and expansion of the heart, which heat produces; but sadness is its contraction and torpor, which cold causes. Therefore wine has an indescribable sympathy with the heart.
Now in this fable of the kingdom of the trees, the palm, cedar, laurel, oak, cypress, etc., could have been proposed. But Jotham preferred to propose the olive, fig, and vine, because these are more commonly used by men, and among many nations such as the Syrians, Indians, and Italians they are common, and they bear fruits that are available to all, accessible, and most useful.
Verse 14: The bramble accepts
14. TO THE BRAMBLE. — 'The bramble, says St. Jerome on Haggai chapter II, is a thorny bush, a shrub woven with thorns and hooks, which holds fast whatever it touches and wounds what it holds, and delights in the blood of the wounded.' Isidore, book XVII; Origen, chapter VII: 'The bramble, he says, is a kind of thorn-bush, which the common people call bear's briar, exceedingly rough and thorny.'
LET FIRE COME FORTH FROM THE BRAMBLE. — For the bramble easily catches fire, says Abulensis. Not from the shaking, collision, and friction of branches, as happens when a flint strikes iron; but from straw or similar material placed beneath it, which catching fire easily from the burning sun or from someone lighting it, ignites the bramble itself.
The fire here denotes discord; for this, blazing up between the tyrant and his subjects, consumes both sides as by a conflagration of war. So the Arian Emperor Valens was burned by the Goths whom he had made Arians: 'By the just judgment of God, indeed, says Peter Damian, book II, epistle 3, he was consumed by the flame of vengeance by the very same people whom he had struck with the fire of treachery. For thus, according to the sentence of Scripture: Fire came forth from the bramble and devoured the cedar of Lebanon.'
Then adding the allegory, Damian asserts that Gideon is a type of Christ the Savior: 'By his many wives diverse nations are to be understood, which clung to Him through faith; by the seventy sons, the peoples of as many languages; by the concubine, the Synagogue; by Abimelech, the Antichrist who will be the son of the Synagogue. Whence also in the Apocalypse it is said to those who will believe: Those who say they are Jews and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan. And just as he killed seventy brothers, so the Antichrist will persecute all nations that do not agree with him.'
Then adding the tropology, the same author says: 'By Jotham, who is interpreted as "completed" or "perfect," what should we understand but some holy and learned preacher? He ascended Mount Gerizim and cried out with a loud voice. He first ascended, and then cried out. He first rises to the mountain, and then raises his voice, because unless the teacher first ascends to the summit of virtues, he cries out in vain.' Damian continues unraveling the rest, whose extensive words I shall compress into a few:
'By Gerizim is designated the holy Church, which is the school of all virtues, and fertile with the abundance of heavenly harvests. By the olive are signified those who, anointed with the fatness of the Holy Spirit, reconcile men to their Creator by preaching peace. By the fig, those who are sufficiently instructed in the learning of the sacred law. By the vine, those who do not cease to preach the triumph of the Lord's Passion, and thus by the grape clusters of their teaching inebriate our parched hearts with the wine of the blessed Blood. When therefore the olive, fig, and vine — that is, spiritual men — by no means agree to preside over the trees of the forest, that is, over earthly and carnal men, the bramble offers itself, and to be consumed by them, and about to consume those same people either by the example of wicked conduct or by the fire of erroneous teaching. For the bramble bristles with thickening thorns, by which any perverse person is signified, who is so thick with the roughness of sins as with briers.' From all of which he finally concludes: 'Therefore when the trees seek a king, that is, when wicked men carnally choose a leader, the bramble comes forward, that is, any reprobate, who both increases the fire of damnation in himself from their wickedness, and consumes them by the reciprocal burning of living or teaching perversely.'
Verse 20: Let fire come forth from him
20. LET FIRE COME FORTH FROM HIM AND CONSUME THE INHABITANTS OF SHECHEM. — 'Fire,' namely of anger, vengeance, and fury, let it come forth from Abimelech and consume the Shechemites. This is properly an execration and imprecation, by which Jotham calls down curses upon the impious Shechemites, namely God's just vengeance and destruction; and it was effective, for they were in fact destroyed. So also effective was the curse of Joshua, chapter VI, verse 26, by which he called down curses upon whoever would rebuild Jericho; and of Elisha, who cursed the boys mocking him by shouting: 'Bald head, bald head!' — for they were soon torn apart by bears, IV Kings II, 24. For God avenges the injuries of the impious against the pious, and hears their groans, prayers, and imprecations.
LET FIRE COME FORTH FROM THE MEN OF SHECHEM, etc., AND DEVOUR ABIMELECH. — And so it happened, as is clear from verse 57; for although the woman who killed Abimelech with a millstone was not from Shechem but from Thebez, nevertheless Thebez was within the borders of Shechem, says St. Jerome in his Book of Hebrew Places. Add that the Shechemites were the occasion of Abimelech being killed by a woman. Finally, Thebez seems to have been a colony of the Shechemites, just as Millo was.
Verse 21: He fled to Beer
21. AND HE WENT TO BEER. — Hear St. Jerome in his Book of Hebrew Places: The village of Beer is distant eight miles to the north of Eleutheropolis. Eleutheropolis was then a famous city in the tribe of Judah, situated not far from Jerusalem.
Verse 23: The Lord sent an evil spirit
23. AND THE LORD SENT A VERY EVIL SPIRIT BETWEEN ABIMELECH AND THE INHABITANTS (in Hebrew baale, that is, the men or lords and princes) OF SHECHEM. — 'Spirit,' namely of hatred and discord, by which they destroyed one another by mutual ruin. God did this not only permissively but also positively, by presenting them with an occasion of discord, namely by casting into the Shechemites a scruple about the murders committed by Abimelech, of which they themselves had been the cause, and that they had made so impious a man and fratricide their king; for from this they began to detest him; and when Abimelech perceived this, he in turn detested them; and this was the source of the mutual war by which both sides destroyed themselves. So says Abulensis. For although God cannot positively be the cause of sin, e.g., of hatred and discord, but can only relate to it permissively; nevertheless He can positively do something indifferent for a good purpose from which He foresees many sins will follow. Therefore God was positively the cause of the scruple just mentioned; but the sin and hatred that followed from it He permitted only. Second, St. Augustine, Question XLIV, Cajetan, and Arias by this evil spirit understand the devil; for God not only permitted him, who wished to disturb their peace and stir up war, to do so, but also positively sent him in as a torturer, to harass and chastise these impious people, so that they might remember their crime and fratricide, for which they were being chastised, and repent. Therefore to disturb the peace of the impious who are oppressing others by united force, for the purpose already stated, is a virtue, not a vice; but in the devil it is a vice, because he does it with an evil purpose, namely to stir up hatreds, killings, and other sins. So God sent a spirit of destruction into the impious Ahab to kill him in battle, III Kings, last chapter. Hence the poets say that Jupiter does this through Alecto and the other Furies; of whom Virgil sings thus, Aeneid book VII:
'He rouses grief-bringing Alecto from the seat of the dread sisters And from the darkness of hell — she to whom sad wars, Anger, treachery, and harmful crimes are dear.'
And soon after: 'Shatter the settled peace, sow the crimes of war; Let the youth desire, demand, and seize arms at once.'
Finally, God justly directed all these things to chastise the fratricide of Abimelech and the idolatry of the Shechemites.
Wisely says St. Augustine, book XXII of The City of God, chapter I: 'Many things indeed, he says, are done by evil men against God's will; but He is of such wisdom and such power that all things which seem contrary to His will tend toward those outcomes or ends which He Himself foreknew to be good and just.' And Enchiridion, chapter C: 'The Good One would not allow evil to be done, unless the Almighty could also bring good from evil.'
Note this passage regarding the punishment of the worm of conscience, by which He here chastised the Shechemites, and chastises the wicked eternally in hell — which is indeed a great torment for them. For this thought tortures them most bitterly: You by your own fault and folly cast yourself into these punishments; you could most easily have avoided this guilt and these torments. Why were you so insane as to cast yourself into these eternal fires for a brief pleasure? O stupidity! O malice! O desire, where have you led me! O my irrevocable error:
'It remains, and will remain forever: The punishment of crime and the injury of the scorned law.'
WHO BEGAN TO DETEST HIM. — So also the Septuagint. The Hebrew, however, has iibgedu, that is, they acted treacherously, they rebelled; the Chaldean: they dealt falsely.
Verse 24: The crime attributed to Abimelech
24. AND TO ATTRIBUTE THE CRIME OF THE SLAYING OF THE SEVENTY SONS OF JERUBBAAL, etc., TO ABIMELECH. — The Hebrew, Septuagint, and Chaldean recount these things as pertaining to God; for they read thus: 'And He sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the inhabitants of Shechem, who rebelled against him, so that the injury to the seventy sons of Jerubbaal might be avenged, and their blood, so as to place it upon Abimelech their brother, who had killed them, and upon the lords of Shechem, who had strengthened his hands to kill his brothers. Our translator, however, attributes these things to the Shechemites, not to God, because he keenly and profoundly saw that God sent this spirit of discord into the Shechemites through the conscience and remorse of the fratricide that He cast into them, of which they made Abimelech himself the author, and therefore they shunned him as a fratricide and destroyer of the fatherland, and prepared war against him. For no other probable cause of hatred can be alleged here.
Verse 26: Gaal the son of Ebed
26. NOW GAAL CAME. — This Gaal was an enemy and rival of Abimelech, who, having cast him down as worthless and unworthy, aspired to become prince of the Shechemites, as is gathered from verse 28.
Verse 27: Ravaging the vineyards
27. RAVAGING THE VINEYARDS — by gathering the grapes and pressing them in the winepress. These vineyards belonged to the princes of Shechem, who had raised Abimelech to be king; perhaps they were even the vineyards of Abimelech himself. So Abulensis.
THEY ENTERED THE TEMPLE OF THEIR GOD — namely Baal-berith, verse 4.
Verse 28: Who is Abimelech?
28. GAAL THE SON OF EBED CRYING OUT: WHO IS ABIMELECH, AND WHAT IS SHECHEM, THAT WE SHOULD SERVE HIM? IS HE NOT THE SON OF JERUBBAAL, AND HAS HE NOT APPOINTED ZEBUL HIS SERVANT AS RULER OVER THE MEN OF HAMOR THE FATHER OF SHECHEM? WHY THEN SHOULD WE SERVE HIM?
With four arguments Gaal stirs up the Shechemites to rebel against their chosen king Abimelech. The first is: 'Who is Abimelech?' As if to say: Abimelech is the vilest of the Shechemites, being the son of a concubine, a fratricide, a tyrant. Therefore it is unworthy to suffer him to rule over the Shechemites and Israel. Second: 'What is Shechem?' As if to say: Shechem is a noble, ancient, powerful, and wealthy city, in which there are many wise and distinguished men worthy of rule. Who then can bear the infamous Abimelech ruling over them? Third: 'Is he not the son of Jerubbaal?' that is, of Gideon, who profaned your god Baal and overturned his altar? As if to say: Gideon destroyed your god Baal, and Abimelech is the son of Gideon. What then is to be expected from this son but similar examples of his father's audacity, to overthrow Baal and your deities? Fourth: 'And he appointed Zebul his servant as ruler over the men of Hamor the father of Shechem.' As if to say: Abimelech set up as his prince and deputy over the Shechemites Zebul, a base and despised servant; it is therefore unworthy that we obey him. For who would suffer a worthless servant to rule over free and noble persons?
He calls the Shechemites 'men of Hamor the father of Shechem,' because they were citizens of the city of Shechem, in which 500 years before that famous prince in Genesis, Hamor, father of Shechem, who gave his name to the city, had reigned, Genesis XXXIII and XXXIV. Whence the antiquity and dignity of Shechem can be appreciated, so that it should not be tolerated for Zebul, a worthless slave, to rule and govern it. With these arguments Gaal persuaded the Shechemites to continue rebelling against King Abimelech and to expel him from the kingdom, and he himself offered himself to them as their leader for this purpose; whence he adds:
WOULD THAT SOMEONE WOULD GIVE THIS PEOPLE INTO MY HAND, THAT I MIGHT REMOVE ABIMELECH FROM THEIR MIDST — so that I myself might reign in his place.
Now the Septuagint calls Zebul 'Bishop,' that is, overseer and governor of Shechem. So too Cicero calls himself 'Bishop,' that is, Governor of Campania.
Finally, the Hebrew text, with the different vowel points which the Masoretes substituted, now reads differently; namely thus: 'Is he not the son of Jerubbaal, and Zebul his officer? Serve the men of Hamor the father of Shechem; and why should we serve him?' These words are obscure and scarcely have a clear meaning. Therefore the punctuation and translation of St. Jerome, as the plainer, is also the truer, especially since the Septuagint agrees with it.
Verse 31: He is attacking the city against you
31. AND HE IS ATTACKING THE CITY AGAINST YOU. — 'Attacking,' that is, besieging, seizing, oppressing the citizens and the city. For Gaal was in the very city of Shechem, inciting the citizens to rebel against Abimelech, and in it arming and fortifying himself against him. In Hebrew it is tsarim, that is, as the Chaldean has it, 'he presses'; the Septuagint, 'he besieges'; Vatablus, 'he seizes.'
Verse 37: A people descending from the navel of the land
37. AND GAAL AGAIN SAID: BEHOLD, A PEOPLE IS DESCENDING FROM THE NAVEL OF THE LAND. — 'From the navel,' that is, from the summit of the mountains, as he said in the preceding verse. For just as the navel protrudes in a person, so mountains stand out in the land. So Abulensis, Arias, Vatablus. Again, just as the navel is like the center or middle of a person, so that if you fix one foot of a compass in the navel as in the center, and then with the other foot trace a circle through the person's outstretched hands and feet, you would describe a perfect circle around the person: so likewise mountains are as if in the middle of the surrounding and visible land, so that a person standing on a mountain as at the center can look around and survey in a circle the land lying below. So Jerusalem, Ezekiel XXXVIII, 12, is called the navel of the earth, because it was the middle and as it were the center of the then inhabited and known world. So Pliny, book III, chapter XII, calls the lake of Rieti the navel of Italy; Livy calls the region of the Aetolians the navel of Greece; Cicero, speech 6 against Verres, calls the forest of Enna the navel of Sicily.
AND ONE COMPANY COMES BY THE WAY THAT LOOKS TOWARD THE OAK. — The Hebrew adds meonenim, that is, 'of the soothsayers'; the Septuagint, 'of the seers'; Vatablus, 'of the augurs.' The Chaldean and Pagninus retain the Hebrew name Meonenim as a proper noun. A specific oak is therefore designated here by the word Meonenim, then known but now unknown.
Verse 42: The people went out into the field
42. THE NEXT DAY THEREFORE THE PEOPLE WENT OUT INTO THE FIELD — not to complete the rest of the vintage, as Josephus and Procopius would have it, but to fight against Abimelech. Whence follows:
WHEN THIS WAS REPORTED TO ABIMELECH, HE TOOK
HIS ARMY AND DIVIDED IT INTO THREE COMPANIES — namely, he took one company for himself, and with it attacked and captured the city of Shechem, which was empty since the citizens had gone out into the field; and he ordered the other two to pursue the Shechemites who had left the city and to kill them all; and in this way he destroyed all the citizens together with the city. So say Abulensis and Arias.
Verse 45: He scattered salt upon the city
45. AND HAVING DESTROYED THE CITY HE SCATTERED SALT UPON IT — not so much to dry out and render the city sterile; for salt, being fiery, erodes, scorches, and dries out all growth, Psalm CVI, verses 33 and 34; Deuteronomy XXIX, 22 and 23; Jeremiah XVII, 6; Zephaniah II, 9. So Mount Vesuvius near Naples recently, belching out ashes, dried all the surrounding fields, but only for a time; for ashes are salty. But this is usually done in fields by enemies, not in a city, inasmuch as a city is not cultivated or sown, but inhabited and dwelt in. Abimelech therefore did this to signify his extreme anger and indignation against Shechem. Abulensis thinks this was an ancient custom of punishing cities by scattering salt upon them, for the crime of treason.
Abulensis adds that Abimelech justly punished the Shechemites in this way, because they had willingly accepted him as king and shortly afterwards inflicted the gravest injuries upon him. For thus a king justly punishes subjects who rebel against him. But Abimelech was not a legitimate king, but a tyrant and usurper of the kingdom; for neither God nor the other tribes had made him king, but only a few Shechemites, who did not have the power and right of creating a king over all Israel.
Verse 46: The tower of Shechem
46. IN THE TOWER OF SHECHEM. — Serarius and others plausibly think this tower is the town of Millo, which had rebelled with the Shechemites against King Abimelech. It is called a tower because in it was a lofty and fortified citadel like a tower. It is called 'of the Shechemites' because it was their colony. For the Millonites, hearing of the disaster of the Shechemites and with a guilty conscience fearing the same for themselves, fled to this tower to protect themselves against Abimelech.
OF THEIR GOD BERITH. — In abbreviated form, for the full name was Baal-berith, as is clear from verse 4.
Verse 48: Mount Zalmon
48. HE WENT UP TO MOUNT ZALMON — near Shechem and Millo, about which see Psalm LXVII, 15.
Verse 50: Thebez
50. THEBEZ. — This was a city in Judea, 'on the borders of Neapolis going toward Scythopolis, about at its thirteenth milestone, which Abimelech was attacking when he was struck by a piece of a millstone and died,' says St. Jerome in his Book of Hebrew Places, Eusebius, Adrichomius, and others. Therefore this is a different city from Thebes in Egypt, from which came the soldiers and martyrs of the Theban legion, whose commander was St. Maurice; also different from Thebes in Greece, from which the Thebans, whose leader was Epaminondas, were named. Moreover, this Thebez of Judea is different from Tishbe, from which Elijah the prophet was named the Tishbite, as against Lyranus teach St. Jerome, Eusebius, Adrichomius, Borchard, and others. Now Thebez in Hebrew means 'oval' or 'gray-haired,' says Pagninus, and this is fitting here; for there Abimelech fell when his head, which is of an oval shape, was broken, and he collapsed to the dirt and ground and died.
Verse 53: A piece of a millstone
53. A PIECE OF A MILLSTONE — a fragment of a milling stone.
Verse 54: Lest it be said I was killed by a woman
54. LEST IT BE SAID THAT I WAS KILLED BY A WOMAN. — So Abimelech, who all his life had sought the glory of kingship, was justly punished with an inglorious death, killed by a woman. He justly perished struck by a stone, he who had killed seventy brothers upon a stone. Similarly, Pyrrhus king of the Epirots died wretchedly at Argos by a tile thrown by a woman, as Plutarch testifies. And Attila, king of the Huns, the terror of the world, the scourge of God, was struck with a knife by a woman, says Marcellinus. And Hermann, king of the Saxons, attacking a fortress in disguise, was killed by a stone hurled by a woman, as Aventinus testifies, book V. Wherefore that pagan in Virgil, Aeneid X, thus consoles one falling:
'Yet, unhappy one, you shall console yourself for your wretched death with this: You fall by the right hand of great Aeneas.'
Morally, Theodoret, Question XVI: 'From these things, he says, which befell Abimelech and the Shechemites, we learn that wicked agreement brings destruction to those who use it, and finally ends in dissension; seeing that those who had killed the sons of Gideon perished by mutual blows.'
Finally, in Abimelech that saying proved true: 'He entered like a fox, reigned like a lion, and died like a dog' — struck not with a staff but with a stone by a woman.