Judges 9:7-21

⁷Now when they told Jotham, he went and stood on the top of Mount Gerizim, and raised his voice and called out. And he said to them, “Listen to me, you leaders of Shechem, that God may listen to you. ⁸Once the trees went to anoint a king over them, and they said to the olive tree, ‘Reign over us!’ ⁹But the olive tree said to them, ‘Shall I give up my fatness with which God and mankind are honored, and go to wave over the trees?’ ¹⁰Then the trees said to the fig tree, ‘You, come, reign over us!’ ¹¹But the fig tree said to them, ‘Shall I give up my sweetness and my good fruit, and go to wave over the trees?’ ¹²Then the trees said to the vine, ‘You, come, reign over us!’ ¹³But the vine said to them, ‘Shall I give up my new wine, which cheers God and mankind, and go to wave over the trees?’ ¹⁴Then all the trees said to the bramble, ‘You, come, reign over us!’ ¹⁵And the bramble said to the trees, ‘If you really are anointing me as king over you, come and take refuge in my shade; but if not, may fire come out of the bramble and consume the cedars of Lebanon.’

¹⁶“Now then, if you have acted with honesty and integrity in making Abimelech king, and if you have dealt well with Jerubbaal and his house, and have dealt with him as he deserved— ¹⁷for my father fought for you, and risked his life and saved you from the hand of Midian; ¹⁸but in fact you have risen against my father’s house today and have killed his sons, seventy men, on one stone, and have made Abimelech, the son of his female slave, king over the leaders of Shechem, because he is your relative— ¹⁹so if you have acted with honesty and integrity toward Jerubbaal and his house this day, be joyful about Abimelech, and may he also be joyful about you. ²⁰But if not, may fire come out of Abimelech and consume the leaders of Shechem and Beth-millo; and may fire come out of the leaders of Shechem and from Beth-millo, and consume Abimelech.” ²¹Then Jotham escaped and fled, and went to Beer; and he stayed there because of his brother Abimelech.