Jotham son of Gideon survived his half-brother Abimelech’s slaughter of the other sons of Gideon. But when he heard that the people of Shechem had made Abimelech their king he climbed to the top of Mount Gerizim to accuse the people. This is the mountain where half of the people of Israel stood to proclaim the message of blessings for obeying God’s Law. I doubt that it was coincidental that Jotham spoke from this vantage point. His allegory ended with a blessing or a curse, depending on the righteousness of the people’s actions. Jotham’s message should ring in our ears as well. As we choose any leader we need to honestly assess if they are the leader God has chosen or are they the leader that our cravings seek. In the end both Abimelech and the people of Shechem fulfilled Jotham’s curse upon each other. The spiritual conquences of rejecting God’s standards.
It took me about 18 minutes to read this passage.
Stuart
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