Abimelech

Judges 8:31,34-9:2 – And his concubine who was in Shechem also bore him a son, and he called his name Abimelech…And the people of Israel did not remember the Lord their God, who had delivered them from the hand of all their enemies on every side, and they did not show steadfast love to the family of Jerubbaal (that is, Gideon) in return for all the good that he had done to Israel. Now Abimelech the son of Jerubbaal went to Shechem to his mother's relatives and said to them and to the whole clan of his mother's family, “Say in the ears of all the leaders of Shechem, ‘Which is better for you, that all seventy of the sons of Jerubbaal rule over you, or that one rule over you?’ Remember also that I am your bone and your flesh.”

Joshua 24:14-15,19 - “Now therefore fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness. Put away the gods that your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”… But Joshua said to the people, “You are not able to serve the Lord, for he is a holy God. He is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions or your sins.

Application:

• ·         Gideon, in naming his son Abimelech, acknowledges that the Lord is King.
• ·         Joshua appealed to the Israelites to put away the gods their forefathers had worshiped in Mesopotamia and Egypt.
• ·         Joshua publicly made his commitment to the Lord, hoping to elicit the same from Israel.
• ·         Joshua emphasizes to the Israelites the danger of overconfidence.

All Scripture verses taken from ESV