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ABIMELECH ( See also: king of Gerar in
See also: South See also: Palestine with whom Isaac, in the See also: Bible, had relations
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The patriarch, during his sojourn there, alleged that his wife Rebekah was his See also: sister, but the king doubting this remonstrated with him and pointed out how easily See also: adultery might have been unintentionally committed (Gen. See also: xxvi.)
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Abimelech is called " king of the See also: Philistines," but the title is clearly an anachronism
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A very similar See also: story is told of Abraham and Sarah (ch. xx.), but here Abimelech takes Sarah to wife, although he is warned by a divine vision before the See also: crime is actually committed
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The incident is See also: fuller and shows a See also: great advance in ideas of morality
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Of a more See also: primitive character, however, is another parallel story of Abraham at the See also: court of See also: Pharaoh, king of See also: Egypt (xii
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10-20), where Sarah his wife is taken into the royal See also: household, and the plagues sent by Yahweh See also: lead to the See also: discovery of the truth
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Further incidents in Isaac's See also: life at Gerar are narrated in "Gen. xxvi
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(cp. xxi
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22-34, See also: time of Abraham), notably a See also: covenant with Abimelech at See also: Beer-sheba (whence the name is explained " well of the See also: oath "); (see ABRAHAM)
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By a pure error, or perhaps through a confusion in the traditions, Achish the See also: Philistine (of See also: Gath, 1 Sam. xxi., See also: xxvii.), to whom See also: David fled, is called Abimelech in the superscription to Psalm xxxiv
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(2) A son of Jerubbaal or Gideon (q.v.), by his Shechemite concubine (See also: Judges viii
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31, ix.)
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On the See also: death of Gideon, Abimelech set himself to assert the authority which his See also: father had earned, and through the influence of his See also: mother's clan won over the citizens of See also: Shechem
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Furnished with See also: money from the See also: treasury of the See also: temple of See also: Baal-berith, he hired a See also: band of followers and slew seventy (cp
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2 See also: Kings x
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7) of his brethren at Ophrah, his father's home
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This is one of the earliest recorded instances of a practice See also: common enough on the accession of See also: Oriental despots
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Abimelech thus became king, and extended his authority over central Palestine
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But his success was See also: short-lived, and the subsequent discord between Abimelech and the Shechemites was regarded as a just See also: reward for his atrocious See also: massacre
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Jotham, the only one who is said to have escaped, boldly appeared on See also: Mount See also: Gerizim and denounced the ingratitude of the townsmen towards the legitimate sons of the See also: man who had saved them from MVIidian
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" Jotham's See also: fable " of the trees who desired a king may be See also: foreign to the context; it is a piece of popular See also: lore, and cannot be pressed too far: the nobler trees have no wish to See also: rule over others, only the bramble is self-confident
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The " fable " appears to be antagonistic to ideas of See also: monarchy
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The origin of the conflicts which subsequently arose is not clear . Gaal, a new-comer, took the opportun'ty at the time of the vintage, when there was a festival in the temple, to See also: head a revolt and seized Shechem
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Abimelech, warned by his deputy Zebul, See also: left his residence at Arumah and approached the city
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In a See also: fine bit of See also: realism we are told how Gaal observed the approaching foe and was told by Zebul, " You see the See also: shadow of the hills as men," and as they See also: drew nearer Zebul's ironical remark became a taunt, " Where is now thy mouth ? is not this the See also: people thou didst despise ? go now and fight them!" This revolt, which Abimelech successfully quelled, appears to be only an isolated See also: episode
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Another account tells of marauding bands of Shechemites which disturbed the See also: district
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The king disposed his men (the whole chapter is specially interesting for the. full details it gives of the nature of See also: ancient military operations), and after totallydestroying Shechem, proceeded against Thebez, whith had also revolted
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Here, while storming the citadel, he was struck on the head by a fragment of a millstone thrown from the See also: wall by a woman
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To avoid the disgrace of perishing by a woman's See also: hand, he begged his See also: armour-See also: bearer to run him through the See also: body, but his memory was not saved from the ignominy he dreaded (2 Sam. xi
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21)
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It is usual to regard Abimelech's reign as the first attempt to establish a monarchy in Israel, but the story is mainly that of the rivalries of a See also: half-See also: developed See also: petty See also: state, and of the ingratitude of a community towards the descendants of its deliverer
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(See, further, JEws, JUDGES.) (S
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A
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