Judges 9:8

One day the trees decided to appoint a king to rule over all of them. So they said to the olive tree, ‘You be our king!’

Translation for Translators

In The King James Version

The trees went forth on a time to anoint a king over them; and they said unto the olive tree, Reign thou over us.

In Context

7When Jotham heard about that, he climbed up Gerizim Mountain. He stood at the top of the mountain and shouted to the people down below, “You leaders of Shechem, listen to me, in order that God will listen to you!

9“But the olive tree said, ‘No! I will not be your king Men and gods enjoy the oil from my fruit. I will not [RHQ] stop producing olives from which we make that oil, in order to rule over you other trees!’

Read all of Judges 9

Cross References

Judges 8:22Then a group of Israeli men came to Gideon and said to him, “You be our ruler! We want you and your son and your grandsons to be our rulers, because you rescued us from the Midian army.”

Ezekiel 17:3Say to them, ‘This is what Yahweh the Lord says: A huge eagle that had strong wings and long beautiful feathers of many colors flew to Lebanon. It grasped the top of a cedar tree

1 Corinthians 12:15If our foot could talk and say to us, “Because I am not your hand, I am not a part of your body,” it would still be a part of our body.

Matthew Henry on Judges 9:8-22

Jotham's Parable. ( b. c. 1209.) 7 And when they told it to Jotham, he went and stood in the top of mount Gerizim, and lifted up his voice, and cried, and said unto them, Hearken unto me, ye men of Shechem, that God may hearken unto you. 8 The trees went forth on a time to anoint a king over them; and they said unto the olive tree, Reign thou over us. 9 But the olive tree said unto them, Should I leave my fatness, wherewith by me they honour God and man, and go to be promoted over the trees? 10 And the trees said… Read the whole commentary →

This Verse In Other Editions

Study Judges 9:8