Judges 9:29

29 If only this people {were in my command}! Then I would remove Abimelech, and I would have said, 'Increase your army and come out!'"

Judges 9:29 Meaning and Commentary

Judges 9:29

And would to God this people were under my hand
Or government, that I were but the ruler of their city, and general of their forces:

then would I remove Abimelech;
from his kingly office, and rid Shechem of him, and all the country round about, and indeed remove him out of the world:

and he said to Abimelech;
as if he was present, in a hectoring and blustering manner; or he said what follows to his officer under him, that represented him; or he sent a messenger to him, saying,

increase thine army, and come out;
bidding him defiance, challenging him to come into the open field and fight him, and bring as many forces along with him as he could or would, not doubting but he should be a match for him; and the men of Shechem would see they had nothing to fear from him, having such a man as Gaal at the head of them; this he said to engage the Shechemites to make him their ruler.

Judges 9:29 In-Context

27 They went out [into] the field and harvested their vineyards and trod [them], and they {held a festival}. And they went [into] the temple of their god, and they ate and drank and cursed Abimelech.

28 Then Gaal son of Ebed said, "Who [is] Abimelech, and who [are we of] Shechem that we should serve him? Is he not the son of Jerub-Baal, and [is not] Zebul his chief officer? Serve the men of Hamor the father of Shechem. Why should we serve him?

29 If only this people {were in my command}! Then I would remove Abimelech, and I would have said, 'Increase your army and come out!'"

30 When Zebul the commander of the city heard the words of Gaal son of Ebed, {he became angry},

31 and he sent messengers to Abimelech in Tormah, saying, "Look, Gaal son of Ebed and his relatives [are] coming to Shechem, and they [are] stirring up the city against you.

Footnotes

• [a]. Literally "[were] in my hand"
• [b]. Hebrew "he said"; the translation "I would have said" follows the LXX