Lives of Scripture

Gaal son of Ebed moved into Shechem during a period when the city's leading citizens had grown disillusioned with Abimelech, the ruthless son of Gideon who had murdered his seventy brothers to seize power there (Judges 9:1-6, 22-25). Gaal exploited this discontent, publicly mocking Abimelech's legitimacy at a festival and boasting, "Who is Abimelech... that we should serve him? ... If only this people were under my authority, then I would remove Abimelech" (9:28-29). Zebul, the city's governor and a loyalist to Abimelech, secretly sent word of the uprising to Abimelech, who moved his forces against the city (9:30-33). When Gaal saw troops approaching from the hills, his confidence faltered even before battle began -- he first tried to explain away what he saw, then was forced to lead his men out to fight (9:36-39). The confrontation went badly for Gaal; many of his men fell as they fled back toward the city gate, and Zebul, having exposed him, then drove Gaal and his relatives out of Shechem entirely (9:40-41). Gaal disappears from the narrative at that point, his rebellion having only worsened, not solved, the corruption already destroying Shechem -- the city itself fell to Abimelech's brutal reprisal soon afterward (9:42-49).