Shìshījì 9:8

8 Yǒu yī shí shùmù yào gāo yī shù wèi wáng , guǎnlǐ tāmen , jiù qù duì gǎnlǎn shù shuō , qǐng nǐ zuò wǒmen de wáng.

Shìshījì 9:8 Meaning and Commentary

Judges 9:8

The trees went forth on a time to anoint a king over them
This is an apologue or fable, and a very fine and beautiful one; it is fitly expressed to answer the design, and the most ancient of the kind, being made seven hundred years before the times of Aesop, so famous for his fables, and exceeds anything written by him. By the trees are meant the people of Israel in general, and the Shechemites in particular, who had been for some time very desirous of a king, but could not persuade any of their great and good men to accept of that office:

and they said unto the olive tree, reign thou over us;
a fit emblem of a good man, endowed with excellent virtues and qualifications for good, as David king of Israel, who is compared to such a tree, ( Psalms 52:8 ) , Jarchi applies this to Othniel the first judge; but it may be better applied to Gideon, an excellent good man, full of fruits of righteousness, and eminently useful, and to whom kingly government was offered, and was refused by him; and the men of Shechem could scarcely fail of thinking of him, and applying it to him, as Jotham was delivering his fable.

Shìshījì 9:8 In-Context

6 Shìjiàn rén hé mǐ luó rén dōu yītóng jùjí , wǎng Shìjiàn xiàngshù páng de zhùzi nàli , lì Yàbǐmǐlè wèi wáng .

7 Yǒu rén jiāng zhè shì gàosu Yuētǎn , tā jiù qù zhàn zaì jī lì xīn shāndǐng shàng , xiàng zhòngrén dàshēng hǎnjiào shuō , Shìjiàn rén nǎ , nǐmen yào tīng wǒde huà , shén yĕ jiù tīng nǐmen de huà .

8 Yǒu yī shí shùmù yào gāo yī shù wèi wáng , guǎnlǐ tāmen , jiù qù duì gǎnlǎn shù shuō , qǐng nǐ zuò wǒmen de wáng.

9 Gǎnlǎn shù huídá shuō , wǒ qǐ kĕn zhǐ zhù gōng fèng shén hé zūnzhòng rén de yóu , piāo yáo zaì zhòng shù zhī shàng ne .

10 Shùmù duì wúhuāguǒ shù shuō , qǐng nǐ lái zuò wǒmen de wáng .