Judges 9:7-21 - Jotham's Parable

⁷ And when they told Jotham, he went and stood in the top of mount Gerizim. And he lifted up his voice and cried, and said to them, Listen to me, leaders of Shechem, so that God may listen to you. ⁸ The trees went forth to anoint a king over them. And they said to the olive tree, Reign over us. ⁹ But the olive tree said to them, Should I leave my fatness with which they honor God and man by me, and go to be promoted over the trees? ¹⁰ And the trees said to the fig tree, You come and reign over us. ¹¹ But the fig tree said to them, Should I forsake my sweetness and my good fruit, and go to be promoted over the trees? ¹² Then the trees said to the vine, You come and reign over us. ¹³ And the vine said to them, Should I leave my wine, which cheers God and man, and go to be promoted over the trees? ¹⁴ Then all the trees said to the bramble-bush, You come and reign over us. ¹⁵ And the bramble-bush said to the trees, If you truly anoint me king over you, come put your trust in my shadow. And if not, let fire come out of the bramble and burn up the cedars of Lebanon.

¹⁶ And now, if you have done truly and sincerely in that you have made Abimelech king, and if you have dealt well with Jerubbaal and his house, and have done to him according to what his hands did, ¹⁷ in which my father fought for you and much endangered his life, and delivered you out of the hand of Midian. ¹⁸ And you have risen up against my father's house today, and have killed his sons, seventy persons, upon one stone, and have made Abimelech, the son of his slave woman, king over the men of Shechem, because he is your brother; ¹⁹ if then you have dealt truly and sincerely with Jerubbaal and with his house today, rejoice in Abimelech, and let him also rejoice in you. ²⁰ But if not, let fire come out from Abimelech and burn up the men of Shechem and the house of Millo. And let fire come out from the men of Shechem, and from the house of Millo, and burn up Abimelech. ²¹ And Jotham ran away and fled, and went to Beer, and lived there for fear of Abimelech his brother.