Commentaries, Commentary on Judges · Chapter 9 · Verses 38-45
38 And Zebul ſayd vntounto him: Where is nowe thy mouth, that ſayd: Who is Abimelech that we ſhould ſerue hym? Is not thys the people that thou haſte deſpiſed? Go out nowe I praye thee, and fyght agaynſt them.
39 And Gaal went forth before the men of Sechem, and fought agaynſt Abimelech.
40 But Abimelech purſued hym, after he began to flye before hym, and many were ouerthrowen and wounded euen to the entryng of the gate.
41 And Abimelech dwelt at Arumah: and Zebul thruſt out Gaal and his brethren, that they ſhould not abide in Sechem.
42 And on the morowe the people went out into the fielde. And it was tolde Abimelech.
43 And he tooke the people and deuided them into three bandes, & laid wayt in the field, and looked, and behold the people were come out of the City, and he roſe vp agaynſt them and ſmote them.
44 And Abimelech, and the bandes that were with hym, ruſhed forwarde, and ſtoode in the entryng of the gate of the City: and the two other bandes ran vponupon al the people that were in the field, and ſlewe them.
45 And when Abimelech had fought agaynſt the City all the day, he tooke the City, & ſlew the people that was therin, and deſtroyed the City, and ſowed ſalt in it.
Zebul coulde not holde hymſelfe, but that he muſt nippe that Thraſo. Thou didſt contemne (ſayeth he) Abimelech: nowe come out agaynſt hym, and ſhewe howe valiaunt thou art.
VVhere is thy mouth? This worde Aphoh is ambiguous: for it ſignifieth where, and ſometymes it ſignifieth now. But bycauſe it is before ſayd where, it is mete to be taken here for Now, & ſo let vsus ſay: Where is now thy mouth: vnles we will hauehave it a repetition, to ſay: Where, where is thy mouth: & by the figure Metonumia a mouth ſignifieth wordes:The manner of feareful men. for we ſpeake with ye mouth. He vp braydeth him with the maner of feareful men: for cowardes are wont before the daunger ſtoutely to bragge: but when they come to the daunger, they are wonfully afrayd: but contraryly ſtoute men bragge not much, neither do they raſhely thruſt themſelues into daungers. But in daungers they are moſt conſtant.
He went forth before the princes of Sechem. Gaal fighteth, but peraduenture not prepared, for Abimelech came vponupon him vnlooked for. Yet Gaal goeth forth agaynſt him, leaſt peraduenture he ſhould ſeme to be a coward.
And he fled before him. Abimelech followed hym when he fled, euen to the gates of the City, where he ſlewe many. Gaal thought he ſhould hauehave ben receaued into the City, and for that cauſe he fleeth vntounto the gate. But Zebul thruſt hym out of the Citye. But thou wilt demaunde, by what meanes he coulde be excluded the City, whē as the Sechemites had made hym theyr ruler? Kimhi anſwereth, firſt that all the Sechemites ſtoode not againſt Abimelech: the people alſo (as they were of an inconſtant mynde) when they ſawe Gaal flye, turned theyr purpoſe, and fell to Abimelech. Hereby we gather howe fooliſhe it is to truſt vntounto men. Ieremy ſayeth very well and wiſely: Curſed be eueryevery one, that putteth hys confidence in man, and maketh fleſhe hys ſtrength. The Sechemites put theyr confidence in Gaal, and at that very inſtant vſed hys ayde. Gaal on the other ſide putteth hys confidence in the Sechemites, and was thruſt out of the City by them, in whom he did put his confidēce. This is the nature of the people, when fortune a lyttle fauoreth, ſtrayght way they forſake them whō before they followed. The common people altogether depende vponupon chaunce. Here may we ſee alſo an other fooliſhenes of the Sechemites, who thought that when they had caſt out Gaal, Abimelech had ſtraightway ben ſatiſfied. For they goo forth into the fieldes, to excerciſe theyr ruſticall workes, to gather in theyr grapes, I ſaye, or to tyllage. But it happened farre otherwiſe. For Abimelech placed two bandes to lye in wayte, and he hymſelfe with hys hoſte came vntounto the Citye, that neyther they whiche were in the fieldes, coulde get into the City, nor they which were in the City coulde come out, to helpe theyr men in the fieldes. This pollecy of warre vſed Abimelech. They thought he had nowe bene pacified, but the anger of kynges are not ſtraightwaye aſſwaged.
And he ſowed ſalte. Theſe moſte miſerable chaunces happened vntounto the people, they whiche went forth into the fieldes, were killed, the Citye it ſelfe was beſieged and conquered, the Citizens ſlayne, the Citye defaced and vtterly ouerthrowen. But Abimelech ſtomachyng the matter more then was meete, ſowed ſalte in the Citye: whiche was a token of a wildernes and deſerte.What the ſowyng of ſalt ſignifieth. For ſalte dryeth the grounde, and maketh it vnfruitefull. In Hebrewe Malach ſignifieth ſalte. Thereof commeth the verbe Malach whiche is, to ſalte: but in the coniugation Niphal, Nimlah, is a verbe, whiche ſignifyeth to deſtroye, to breake downe and to waſte. That woorde Ieremy vſed in hys 14. chap. and Dauid in hys 107. Pſalme, GOD turneth a fruitefull lande into a ſaltiſhe grounde, that is, maketh it waſte and deſerte. In the yeare .1165. Fredrike Oenobarbus the Emperor ouerthrew Millane, and ſowed ſalte there. For that City tooke parte with Alexander the thyrde being Pope, agaynſt Ceſar: whiche thyng Fredrike tooke in very yll part.