Judges 9:23 Made Simple

KJV ORIGINAL

Then God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the men of Shechem; and the men of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech:

Close to the original. Clear modern English.

✦ MADE SIMPLE

Then God sent a spirit of discord between Abimelech and the men of Shechem, and the men of Shechem turned against Abimelech and betrayed him.

⚡ THE BOTTOM LINE

God allowed conflict and betrayal to arise between Abimelech and his supporters as judgment for their evil actions.

📚 Historical Context

In the book of Judges, which recounts the turbulent period of Israel's history after Joshua's death, Abimelech, the son of Gideon, had seized power by killing his 70 brothers and gaining the support of the leaders in Shechem. This alliance was rooted in violence and idolatry, as the people of Shechem had turned away from God's ways. God then intervened by sending an evil spirit to stir up conflict between Abimelech and the men of Shechem as a means of divine judgment for their treachery and bloodshed.

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Judges 9:56

This is how God paid back Abimelech for the evil he had done to his father by killing his seventy brothers.

Judges 9:4

And they gave him seventy pieces of silver from the temple of Baal-Berith, and with this money Abimelech hired worthless and reckless men who became his followers.

Judges 9:22

After Abimelech had ruled over Israel for three years,

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