Abimelech’s Punishment

Abimelech captures Thebez and moves against its tower as he did at Shechem. But before he can burn it, a woman drops a millstone on his head, and he has his armor-bearer kill him so that his death will not be remembered that way.

T⁵⁰hen Abimelech went to Thebez, encamped against it, and captured it. ⁵¹But there was a strong tower inside the city, and all the men, women, and leaders of the city fled there. They locked themselves in and went up to the roof of the tower. ⁵²When Abimelech came to attack the tower, he approached its entrance to set it on fire. ⁵³But a woman dropped an upper millstone on Abimelech’s head, crushing his skull. ⁵⁴He quickly called his armor-bearer, saying, “Draw your sword and kill me, lest they say of me, ‘A woman killed him.’” ⁵⁵So Abimelech’s armor-bearer ran his sword through him, and he died. And when the Israelites saw that Abimelech was dead, they all went home.

The narrator explains that God repays Abimelech for murdering his brothers and also brings Shechem’s wickedness back on its own head. Jotham’s curse has now come fully true.

⁵⁶In this way God repaid the wickedness that Abimelech had done to his father in murdering his seventy brothers. ⁵⁷And God also brought all the wickedness of the men of Shechem back upon their own heads. So the curse of Jotham son of Jerubbaal came upon them.