Judges 9:18

Jdg 9:18 And ye are risen up against my father’s house this day, and have slain his sons, threescore and ten persons, upon one stone, and have made Abimelech, the son of his maidservant, king over the men of Shechem, because he [is] your brother;)

Ver. 18. And ye are risen up against my father’s house, &c.] This was

“ Mordaci radere vero, ”

plain dealing indeed. They who do what they should not, shall once hear what they would not; as Ahab did from Eliah; Herod from John Baptist; Eudoxia, the Empress, from Chrysostom; &c.

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.

Jdg 9:18. Ye have slain his sons, &c. — Abimelech’s crime is justly charged upon them, as being committed by their consent, approbation, and assistance. Maid-servant — His concubine, whom he so calls by way of reproach. Over Shechem — By which limitation of their power, and his kingdom, he reflects contempt upon him, and chargeth them with presumption, that, having only power over their own city, they durst impose a king upon all Israel.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

(18) Threescore and ten persons.—See Note on. Jdg_9:5.

The son of his maidservant.—The term is intentionally contemptuous. It seems clear from Jdg_8:31; Jdg_9:1, that she was not a slave, but even of high birth among the Canaanites.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

18. his maidservant] This goes beyond Jdg_9:1 and Jdg_8:31, which imply that Abimelech’s mother was not a slave but a freewoman.

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.

And ye are risen up against my father's house this day,.... Which was an instance of great ingratitude in them, after such services done for them, and favours received by them:

and have slain his sons, seventy persons on one stone; excepting one, himself, and he was intentionally slain, their design was to cut off everyone; and all being slain but one, the round number is given, and this being so large, is the rather observed; and though Abimelech committed the fact, the men of Shechem were accessory to it, they gave him money, with which he hired men to assist him in it, see Jdg 9:20 and it is very probable they were privy to his intention, and encouraged him to it; and certain it is they showed their approbation of it, by making Abimelech king after it, and therefore they are justly charged with it:

and have made Abimelech, the son of his handmaid, king over the men of Shechem; which was both to the disgrace of Gideon, and his family, and of themselves too, that a base son of his should be made their king; when it would have been more to the credit of Gideon, and his family, that he had lived in obscurity, and had not been known as a son of his; and this was to the reproach of the men of Shechem, and especially to the princes thereof; for, by the men of Shechem are meant the lords, and great men thereof, as Kimchi observes; and great contempt is cast on Abimelech himself, who is here represented as making a very poor figure, being by extraction the son of an handmaid, and king only over the men of Shechem; and who made him so for no other reason but this:

because he is your brother; not because he had any right to the kingdom, or had any qualification for it, but because his mother lived among them, and her family belonged to them, and so he was related to many of them, and they hoped on that account to have preferment and favours from him.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

You are. People are answerable for the injuries which they do not prevent, when they have it in their power. (Calmet) --- Many of the citizens of Sichem had assisted Abimelech, ver. 4. --- Brother. The ties of kindred could not hide their ingratitude and cruelty. (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).

Abimelech’s fact is justly charged upon them, as done by their consent, approbation, and assistance.

His maid-servant; his concubine, whom he so calls by way of reproach, because maid-servants were oft made concubines, Exo 21:7-10.

Over the men of Shechem; by which limitation of their power, and his kingdom, he reflects contempt upon him, and chargeth them with presumption, that having only power over their own city, they durst impose a king upon all Israel.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Ye have slain - Abimelech's fact is justly charged upon them, as done by their consent, approbation and assistance. Maidservant - His concubine, whom he so calls by way of reproach. Over Shechem - By which limitation of their power, and his kingdom, he reflects contempt upon him, and chargeth them with presumption, that having only power over their own city, they durst impose a king upon all Israel.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.