Judges 9 Gideon failed to stay faithful to the Lord, making a golden ephod that became an idol to the people of Israel.  Gideon married many women and had 70 sons! Even that was not enough for he took a concubine also from Shechem and had another son named Abimelech. As soon as Gideon died trouble began. Israel went back to idol worship.. and Abimelech went to Shechem, his mother's hometown.  He convinced his relatives there in Shechem to support him instead of any of Gideon's legitimate sons.. and they did. 

Abimelech killed all but one of his brothers. Jotham hid himself during the massacre but lifted his voice from the top of Mount Gerizim pronouncing a curse upon both Abimelech and the men of Shechem. Jothem used a parable to illustrate the folly of Shechem:

 "Once the trees went forth to anoint a king over them, and they said to the olive tree, 'Reign over us!' But the olive tree said to them, 'Shall I leave my fatness with which God and men are honored and go to wave over the trees?"  Jotham's story also mentions the fig tree, that would not leave its sweetness.. and the vine that would not leave its place in God's plan.  All that was left then was "bramble".  Jotham suggested that their choice of Abimelech was the choice of the "bramble"... worthless for anything but burning. " .. if you have dealt in truth and integrity with Jerubbaal and his house this day, rejoice in Abimelech and let him rejoice in you. But if not, let fire come out from Abimelech and consume the men of Shechem and Beth-millo; and let fire come from the men of Shechem and Beth-millo, and consume Abimelech." 

It took three years for Jotham's curse to be fulfilled. Abimelech ended up starting a fire around the base of a tower where a thousand men and women form Shechem were sheltering, killing them all. Then he went to another town, Thebez and tried to do the same thing there. "But a certain woman threw an upper millstone on Abimelech's head crushing his skull." Abimelech had too much pride to allow himself to die by the hand of a woman, so he begged his armor bearer to draw his sword and kill him. And he did. 

"Thus God repaid the wickedness of Abimelech, which he had done to his father, in killing his seventy brothers." 

Father in heaven, what a patient God You are. We are thankful that You give us chance after chance to come back to You. We are so sorry that we.. all of us..  as a people.. fail over and over again to remember You and to serve You only. Deliver us, Lord God, from those who seek only power and position, who live in pride and selfish ambition. Deliver us from those things in our lives that come from those same self-centered desires. May we fully surrender our whole selves to You, walking in Your Light, and obeying Your commands.  Be glorified in our lives and in the lives of our children and grandchildren.  May we stay faithful Lord.. Keep us from becoming stumbling blocks to others.. keep us walking in truth and integrity we pray, in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen