Abymelech kylleth his .lxx. brethren

A   Abimelech the sonne of Ierobaal w&ebar;t to Sichem, vnto his mothers Brethren, and comuned with them and with all his mothers fathers k&ibar;red, saying saye I praye you, in the eares of all the enhabytoures of Sychem: whether is better for you, that all the sonnes of Ierobaal (which are .lxx. pers&obar;nes) raygne ouer you, ether that one raygne ouer you? Remember, that I am of youre bone, and of youre fleshe. And his mothers brethren spake of hym in the audience of the men of Sichem all these wordes, and their hartes were moued to folowe Abimelech. For they sayde: he is oure brother. And they gaue him .lxx. peces of syluer out of the t&ebar;ple of Baal Berith, where wyth Abimelech hyred vayne and lyght personnes which w&ebar;t with him. And he went vnto hys fathers house at Ephrah ^note and slewe all his brethren, the sonnes of Ierobaal, eu&ebar; .lxx. personnes &club; with one stone. Not withstandynge, yet Ioatham the youngest sonne of Ierobaal eskaped, for he hyd hym selfe. And all the men of Sichem gathered together, and all the house of Mello, ∧ came and made Abimelech kyng in the playne, where þe; great stone was by Sichem.

And when they tolde it to Ioatham, he went and stode in the toppe of mount Garizim, and lyfte vp hys voyce, and cried, and sayde vnto them: B   Herk&ebar; vnto me you men of Sichem, þt; God maye herk&ebar; vnto you. ^note The trees w&ebar;t forth to anoynt a king ouer them, and sayde vnto þe; olyue tree: raygne thou ouer vs. But the olyue tree sayd vnto them: shulde I leaue my fattenesse, whych both goddes and men prayse in me, and go to be promoted ouer þe; trees? And the trees sayde to the fygge tree: come thou, and be king ouer vs. The figge tree answered th&ebar;: shuld I forsake my swetnes, and my good frute, &abar;d go to be promoted ouer the trees? Then sayde the trees vnto the vyne: come thou and be kyng ouer vs. The vyne sayde vnto them: shuld I leaue my wyne wherby I cheare bothe goddes and men, and go to be promoted ouer the trees? Th&ebar; sayde all the trees vnto the fyrre bushe: come thou, ∧ raygne ouer vs. And the fyrre bushe sayde vnto þe; trees: yf it be true þt; ye will anoynt me kynge ouer you, then come, ∧ put youre trust vnder my shadowe. Yf no, the fyre come out of the firre busshe, and waste the Cedre trees of Libanon.

C   Now therfore, yf ye do trulye and vncorruptlye, to make Abimelech kyng: and yf ye haue dealte well with Ierobaal and his house, ∧ haue done vnto hym accordyng to the deseruyng of his handes, iudge ye. For euen he (my father) fought for you, and aduentured his lyfe, and rydde you out of the Abymelech kylleth his .lxx. brethren hande of Madian. And ye are rysen vp agaynst my fathers house this daye, and haue slayue hys chyldren, euen .lxx. personnes with one stone, and haue made Abimelech the sonne of his mayde serua&ubar;t, kyng ouer the men of Sichem, because he is youre brother: yf ye th&ebar; haue dealte trulye and purelye with Ierobaal and with his house thys daye, then reioyse ye wyth Abimelech, and let him reioyse with you. But yf you haue not dealt trulye, then I praye God a fyre maye come out of Abimelech, and consume the m&ebar; of Sichem and the house of Mello. And that there maye come a fyre fr&obar; am&obar;g the men of Sichem, and out of the house of Mello, and consume Abimelech. And Ioatham ranne awaye, and fledde, and went to Beer and dwelt there, for feare of Abimelech his brother. Wh&ebar; Abimelech had raygned thre yere, God sent a sprete of hate betwene Abimelech, ∧ þe; men of Sich&ebar;. And þe; citezens of Sich&ebar; rayled vpon Abimelech, ∧ wisshed þt; the wickednes done to þe; .lxx. s&obar;nes of Ierobaal myght come on him, and þt; god wolde laye the bloude of them vnto Amelech their brother which slewe th&ebar;, and vp&obar; the other men of Sichem which ayded him in the kylling of his brethr&ebar;. And þe; cytezens of Sich&ebar; set men to laye awayte for hym in the toppe of the mo&ubar;taynes, which m&ebar; (whyle they taried for his commyng) robbed all that came a longe the waye by them. And it was tolde Abimelech.

D   And Gaal the sonne of Abed came wyth his brethren, and they gat th&ebar; to Sichem. And the men of Sich&ebar; put their confidence in him. And they went out into the feldes, ∧ geathered &ibar; their grapes, and troade them, and made mery: and went into the house of their goddes, and dyd eate and drynke, and curssed Abimelech. And Gaal the sonne of Abed sayde: what is Abimelech? and what is Sich&ebar;? that we shulde serue him? Is he not the sonne of Ieroboal? and Zebul is his officer? Serue soche as come of ^note Hemor þe; father of Sich&ebar;, for what reason is it that we shulde serue him? wold God this people were vnder my h&abar;de, th&ebar; wolde I take Abimelech out of þe; waye. And he spake against Abimelech: make thyne hoste greater, ∧ go out. And when Zebull the ruler of the cytie hearde the wordes of Gaal þe; s&obar;ne of Abed, he was wroth, and sent messengers vnto Abimelech priuely, saying: Behold, Gaal the sonne of Abed and his brethr&ebar; be come to Sichem: ∧ beholde, they sett the cytie aga&ibar;st þe;. Nowe therfore vp by nyght, thou and all the people þt; is wyth the, and lye in wayte in þe; felde. And ryse erlye in the mornynge as sone as the sonne is vp, and fall vp&obar; the citie. And yf he and the people that is with hym, come out agaynst þe;, do to him

Abimelech what thine h&abar;des shalbe able. E   And Abimelech roase vp, ∧ all the people þt; were &wt; him by night. and they layd awayte aga&ibar;st Sich&ebar; in foure c&obar;panyes. And Gaal þe; s&obar;ne of Abed w&ebar;t out, ∧ stode in þe; entring of þe; gate of the cytie. And Abimelech rose vp, ∧ þe; folcke þt; were &wt; him, fr&obar; lay&ibar;g awayt. And when Gaal saw þe; people, he sayd to Zebul: beholde, there come people downe fr&obar; þe; top of þe; mo&ubar;taynes. And Zebul sayd vnto him: þe; shadow of þe; hylles seme m&ebar; vnto þe; (∧ by that erroure art thou disceaued.) ∧ Gaall answered agayne, ∧ sayd: se, there come folcke downe by þe; myddell of þe; l&abar;d, ∧ another c&obar;pany come a l&obar;g by þe; playne of þe; charmars. Then sayd Zebul vnto h&ibar;: where is now thi mouth þt; sayd: what felow is Abimelech, that we shuld serue h&ibar;? Is not this þe; people þt; þu; hast despysed? Goo out now ∧ fyght with th&ebar;. And Gaall went out before the cytiz&ebar;s of Sich&ebar;, ∧ fought &wt; Abimelech. And Abimelech chased him, þt; he fledd before h&ibar; (and he droue him in to the cyte) ∧ many were ouerthrowen ∧ wo&ubar;ded, eu&ebar; vnto þe; entering of þe; gate, And Abimelech dwelt at Arumah. And Zebul thrust out Gaal ∧ his brethren, þt; thei shulde not dwell in Sich&ebar; (∧ suffred them not to tarye therin.) F   And on þe; morow, it happened þt; the people w&ebar;t out into þe; felde. And they tolde Abimelech. And he toke the people, ∧ deuided them into thre c&obar;panies, and layd awayte in the feldes, and loked, ∧ beholde, the people were come out of the cytie, and he ranne vpon them, and smote them.

And Abimelech, ∧ the c&obar;panies þt; were &wt; him, reached forther, ∧ stode in the entr&ibar;ge of the gate of þe; cytie. And the two other c&obar;panies ranne vp&obar; all the people þt; were in the feldes, ∧ slue th&ebar;. And when Abimelech had fought aga&ibar;st þe; cytie all that daye, he toke it, ∧ slew þe; people þt; was therin, ∧ destroyed þe; cytie ∧ sowed salt thorow it. And wh&ebar; all þe; m&ebar; of þe; towre of Sich&ebar; heard þt;, they entered into a strong holde of the house of their God Baall Berith (where they made a bonde with him: ∧ therof dyd the place take the name which place was exceading strong) And it was tolde Abimelech, that all the m&ebar; of the tower of Sichem were geathered together, ∧ Abimelech gat him to mount Zelmon, bothe he ∧ all the people þt; were &wt; him, ∧ toke axes &wt; him and cut downe bowes of trees, ∧ toke them ∧ bare them on his shulder, ∧ sayde vnto the folcke þt; were with hym ^note what ye haue sene me do, spede youre selues, and do lykewyse as I haue done. G   And all þe; men þt; were am&obar;g the people, cut downe bowes, and folowed Abimelech, and put th&ebar; into the holde, and sett the holde a fier by them: so that (with smoke and fyre) all the men of the tower of Sich&ebar; were slayne, vpon a thousande men and wemen.

Then w&ebar;t Abimelech to Thebez, and beseged it, and toke it. But there was a str&obar;g towre with in the cytie, and thither ranne all the men and wemen, and all the chefe þt; were in the cytie, and shut it to them, and got them vp (by the bolworkes) to the toppe of the towre. And Abimelech came vnto þe; towre, and fought agaynst it, and w&ebar;t harde vnto the dore of the towre, to set it on fier. And a certayne woman ^note cast a pece of a mylstone vpon hys head, and all to brake hys brayne panne.

Then Abimelech called hastelye vnto the young man that bare hys harnesse, ∧ sayd vnto him: ^note draw thy swerde and slee me, þt; m&ebar; saye not of me: a wom&abar; slew him. And hys ladd thrust him thorow, and he dyed.

And when the men of Israel sawe þt; Abimelech was deed, they departed, euery man vnto his awne house. And thus ^note the wyckednesse of Abimelech whych he dyd vnto his father, in sleynge his seuentye brethr&ebar; and therto all the wyckednesse of the m&ebar; of Sichem, dyd God bring vpon their heedes And vpon them came the cursse of Ioath&abar; the sonne of Ierobaal.

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