The men of Shechem set an ambush for him on the tops of the mountains, and they robbed all who came along that way by them; and Abimelech was told about it.
Parallel Translations
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The men of Shechem set an ambush for him on the tops of the mountains, and they robbed all who came along that way by them; and Abimelech was told about it.
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And the men of Shechem set liers in wait for him in the top of the mountains, and they robbed all that came along that way by them: and it was told Abimelech.
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And the men of Shechem set liers-in-wait for him on the tops of the mountains, and they robbed all that came along that way by them; and it was told Abimelech.
Cross-references (3)
Passages linked to Judges 9:25 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Proverbs 1:11-12 If they say, “Come with us. Let’s lay in wait for blood. Let’s lurk secretly for the innocent without cause. Let’s swallow them up alive like Sheol, and whole, like those who go down into the pit.
- Joshua 8:12-13 He took about five thousand men, and set them in ambush between Bethel and Ai, on the west side of the city. So they set the people, even all the army who was on the north of the city, and their ambush on the west of the city; and Joshua went that night into the middle of the valley.
- Joshua 8:4 He commanded them, saying, “Behold, you shall lie in ambush against the city, behind the city. Don’t go very far from the city, but all of you be ready.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (12 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
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John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Jdg 9:25 And the men of Shechem set liers…
Jdg 9:25 And the men of Shechem set liers in wait for him in the top of the mountains, and they robbed all that came along that way by them: and it was told Abimelech.
Ver. 25. Set liers in wait for him.] Attempting thereby secretly to have slain him, or at least to have seized his person.
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And it was told Abimelech.] These robbers going beyond their commission discovered the plot, and so Abimelech escaped. But this preservation was but a reservation.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain Liers in wait for him, to seize his person.
Liers in wait for him, to seize his person.
All that came along that way by them, to wit, such as favoured or served Abimelech; for to such only their commission reached, though it may be they went beyond their bounds, and by military license robbed all passengers promiscuously.
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It was told Abimelech; who, as it is here implied, exercised hostility towards the men of Shechem.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain And Gaal the son or Ebed came with his…
And Gaal the son or Ebed came with his brethren, and went over to Shechem,.... Who this Gaal was, and who his brethren, and from whence he came, and the place he went over, are all uncertain. Jarchi thinks he was a Gentile, and it looks, by some speeches of his afterwards, as if he was a descendant of Hamor, prince of Shechem, in the times of Jacob, who, since the expulsion of the Canaanites, his family had retired to some distant parts; but hearing of a difference between Abimelech and the Shechemites, Gaal, with some of the family, came over, perhaps over Jordan, to make what advantage he could of it:
and the men of Shechem put their confidence in him; freely told him their mind, the ill opinion they had of Abimelech, and what was their design against him; and he assuring them he would take their part, and defend them to the uttermost, they depended on him, and therefore very securely went about their business in the fields, as follows.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain For him - To seize his person. Robbed all…
For him - To seize his person. Robbed all - Such as favoured or served Abimelech; for to such only their commission reached, though it may be, they went beyond their bounds, and robbed all passengers promiscuously.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 25. The men of Shechem set liers in…
Verse 25. The men of Shechem set liers in wait] It pleased God to punish this bad man by the very persons who had contributed to his iniquitous elevation. So God often makes the instruments of men's sins the means of their punishment. It is likely that although Abimelech had his chief residence at Shechem, yet he frequently went to Ophrah, the city of his father; his claim to which there was none to oppose, as he had slain all his brethren. It was probably in his passage between those two places that the Shechemites had posted cut-throats, in order to assassinate him; as such men had no moral principle, they robbed and plundered all who came that way.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain Jdg 9:25. Set liers in wait for him —…
Jdg 9:25. Set liers in wait for him — To seize his person. Robbed all — Such as favoured or served Abimelech; for to such only their commission reached, though it may be they went beyond their bounds, and robbed all passengers promiscuously.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Coming. Abimelech resided at Ephra, having appointed Zebul governor…
Coming. Abimelech resided at Ephra, having appointed Zebul governor of Sichem, from whom he received information of what was doing. The malcontents began to plunder his adherents; (Calmet) and as it was the time of vintage, they gave way to all the sallies which fury, heated by wine, can suggest; particularly after Gaal, a powerful man of the neighbourhood, came to put himself at their head, ver. 28. (Haydock)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 25. Liers in wait for him — Ambushed warriors,…
25. Liers in wait for him — Ambushed warriors, who watched particularly for an opportunity of assassinating the king when he should chance to pass out of the city, but meantime robbed all that came along… by them, innocent travellers, and thus brought the government itself into disrepute; for the people would feel that a worthless king was the occasion of the troubles.
It was told Abimelech — And it seems he at once took measures to put down the banditti, but before he had moved far the matter assumed the proportions of a fierce rebellion.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 25. liers in wait for him] They hoped to…
25. liers in wait for him] They hoped to catch A., who apparently was non-resident, and failing him, they plundered his friends. From the heights round Shechem the roads are easily watched. Probably in their original context Jdg_9:22-25 were followed by Jdg_9:42-45; on being told of the treason, A. at once (Jdg_9:43) took measures.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (25) Set liers in wait for him.—The “for him”…
(25) Set liers in wait for him.—The “for him” does not necessarily mean “to seize him,” but to his disadvantage. The disaffection began to show itself, as has so often been the case in Palestine from the days of Saul to those of Herod, by the rise of brigandage, rendering all government precarious, and providing a refuge tor all dangerous and discontented spirits. Josephus says that Abimelech was expelled from Shechem, and even from the tribe of Ephraim (Antt. v. 1, § 3).
In the top of the mountains.—Especially Ebal and Gerizim.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain The men of Shechem, etc. The narrative now gives…
The men of Shechem, etc. The narrative now gives the details of that "treacherous dealing" on the part of the Shechemites which was spoken of in the gross in ver. 23. Their disaffection first showed itself in acts of brigandage "against the peace of their lord the king," to use the language of our own mediaeval lawyers. The road to Shechem was no longer safe; lawless freebooters, in defiance of Abimelech"s authority, stopped and robbed all travellers that passed that way, probably including Abimelech"s own officers and servants. For him. It may have been their intention even to lay violent hands upon Abimelech himself should he come to Shechem.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 positioned men to lie in wait on the hilltops…
positioned men to lie in wait on the hilltops that they might ambush him
"sent men to hide on the hilltops and wait to attack Abimelech"
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This was reported to Abimelech
This can be stated in active form. AT: "Someone told Abimelech about the men waiting to attack him" (See: Active or Passive)
translationWords
Shechem
Abimelech
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.