Ep. 69. Judges 9 | Abimelech

EPISODE 69

ABIMELECH: JUDGES 9

We could recap this chapter, but let's be honest. You came to the blog today because you were hoping I would address "And God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the leaders of Shechem."

First of all, the word translated "evil" here occurs over 600 times in the Hebrew text. That helps our discussion. If it was only used here, we would be left to speculate and try to arrive at a conclusion that left us feeling a bit better about God rather than have to deal with this awkwardness. In all 600 instances, it means evil, harmful, wicked, or the like.

Now, if this was the only instance where God did something like this, we might be able to dismiss it as a translation issue or some other sort of fluke. However, in 1 Samuel 16, we find that an evil spirit from the Lord tormented King Saul. To really drive that point home, it is mentioned in three consecutive sentences in that chapter and then mentioned twice more as it relates to Saul.

Furthermore, in 1 Kings 22, we see that God sent a lying spirit to fill the mouths of the prophets of King Ahab so he would be led deceptively to war and would perish there.

Before you lose your mind, let me put you at ease. God is not evil. God is not wicked. Abimelech was an idolater and murderer. Saul had rejected God, and therefore, God had removed his Spirit and Love from Saul. Ahab was the most wicked king who had ever existed up to that point, engaging in all manners of idolatry under the prodding of his malevolent wife, Jezebel. Don't forget that Pharaoh hardened his heart against God, and God further hardened the heart of the rebellious king. God used the brother of Abimelech to rebuke him and warn him about where such a path would lead. Samuel warned Saul not to depart from the things of God. Ahab had more than one prophet of the Lord confront him with the truth. In each and every case, the rebels were given an out. In each and every case, God handed them over to their desires.

Are we offended that the false prophet of Baal stood up and correctly rebuked the "man of God" in 1 Kings 13 when predicting his death? Are we amazed that God could take the heart of a wicked king like Cyrus and use him to rebuild the temple and nation of God? Are we stunned in Job to find all the hosts of heaven, including Satan, in the presence of God? Are we shocked that the demons possessing the people of the New Testament knew Jesus, spoke truthfully of who he was, and understood fully what their end would be when they are finally and completely cast into the Abyss?

"But," you might ask, "why use an evil and harmful spirit to accomplish his purpose?" Consider, if you will, Luke 22, where Christ, standing before his would-be murderers, says, "This is your hour and the power of darkness." Consider Hebrews 12, which tells us that Christ "endured from sinners such hostility against himself." Or perhaps even more blatant, "This Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men." God used the wickedness of the Jews in Jesus' day to nail him to the cross. He handed Jesus over to their power. It needed to be that way so that Scripture could be fulfilled so that salvation could be birthed, so that sin's power could be abolished so that death would shrivel up in the light of the resurrected Savior so that righteousness would rain down on and reign in all who would believe. And we rejoice at that truth! We celebrate the cross of Christ. We weep with joy that our sins have been abolished and that we now stand before a holy God with holiness imparted to us. Are we not also thankful for the wicked men God used to bring it about? If we are not outraged by the cross, we can not be outraged that God used an evil spirit to destroy the wicked. God is just, after all. He will only do what is right.

I could speak longer on this topic and turn you to a couple of other texts, but by now, I've either sufficiently ticked you off, confused you, or answered your objections. I do invite further conversation on this matter. It is difficult to be thorough on this topic without writing a short book.

By the way, God never sent a harmful Spirit to someone he had not first warned. They all rejected him—every single one.

ADDITIONAL READING: 1 Samuel 16: 14-23; 1 Samuel 18:10; 1 Samuel 19:9; 1 Kings 22:21-23; Luke 22:53; Hebrews 12:1-4; Acts 2: 22-24; Job 1; Isaiah 44:28; Isaiah 45:1; Acts 19:13-15; Mark 1:24; Luke 8:31