Judges 8-9

8:1-3
The Ephraimites are upset with Gideon
* A soft answer turns away wrath (Proverbs 15:1)

8:4-17
Many Israelite towns did not have faith that Gideon would win.
They refused to give him aid until it was evident he would be victorious
This was because they feared the enemy
Gideon vows to punish these Israelites severely
Gideon comes through with his victory and vow

8:18-21
Could Gideon be attempting to further his family name here?
Is he being too brutal?
The chapter illustrates the questionable morality of Israel at this time

8:22-27
They equated the victory with Gideon instead of God
Gideon says some right things, but his actions bring about wrong results

8:28-35
Gideon has 70 sons and at least 1 son via concubine (Abimelech)
Gideon gets a mostly good grade for his life, but there are some questionable moments
Upon his death, Israel once again falls away

In chapter 9, Abimelech stirs up the Shechemites (from a Canaanite city) to make him their ruler rather than one of his half-brothers (now that the Israelites are in power in the region). The Shechemites agree and Abimelech hires assassins to kill the 70 brothers. One brother (Jotham), however, escapes the massacre. Jotham then tells a fable/prophecy, describing how foolish it is to have a man like Abimelech as king.

The Fable:
The trees want a king
a) Olive tree says no, it has better things to do
b) Fig tree says no, it has better things to do
c) Vine says no, it has better things to do
d) Thornbush says yes
-- Offers 'shade' (how much shade can a thornbush offer?)
-- Says rebellion will be punished by fire

In essence, Jotham was teaching three truths
1) Israel doesn't need a king, God should be their king
2) If they make Abimelech their king, he won't be able to offer anything worthwhile
3) Once they realize their mistake, they'll pay the consequences of having such a king

The aftermath of their selection of Abimelech proves the fable true. After a few years, God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the citizens of Shechem. Conflict intensified and a guy named Gaal attempted to defeat Abimelech, but was unsuccessful. Abimelech then turned on his own people. He burned a thousand of them at the stronghold of Shechem. He was about to kill more, but he was struck by a millstone that some women had thrown down on him from atop the tower of Thebaz. Not wanting to be killed by a woman, he had his armor-bearer run him through with a sword. So Abimelech died.