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And when the men of Israel saw that Abimelech was dead, they departed every man unto his place.
Judges 9:55 · King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB When the men of Israel saw that Abimelech was dead, they each departed to his place.
  • BSB And when the Israelites saw that Abimelech was dead, they all went home.
  • NKJV And when the men of Israel saw that Abimelech was dead, they departed, every man to his place.
  • NASB Now when the men of Israel saw that Abimelech was dead, each left for his home.
  • NLT When Abimelech’s men saw that he was dead, they disbanded and returned to their homes.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

Seeing Abimelech dead, the men of Israel disperse to their homes. His reign ends the moment he falls.

Overview

Abimelech's power, built on murder and force, evaporates with his death, and his followers simply scatter. There is no dynasty, no legacy, only an abrupt end. The collapse shows the emptiness of a rule established apart from God and the futility of self-made kingship.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 4

  • 2 Sam 18:16And Joab blew the trumpet, and the people returned from pursuing after Israel: for Joab held back the people.
  • Prov 22:10Cast out the scorner, and contention shall go out; yea, strife and reproach shall cease.
  • 1 Kgs 22:35–36And the battle increased that day: and the king was stayed up in his chariot against the Syrians, and died at even: and the blood ran out of the wound into the midst of the chariot.
  • 2 Sam 20:21–22The matter is not so: but a man of mount Ephraim, Sheba the son of Bichri by name, hath lifted up his hand against the king, even against David: deliver him only, and I will depart from the city. And the woman said unto Joab, Behold, his head shall be thrown to thee over the wall.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (2)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Judges videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Judges 9:55YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on JudgesMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

Israel's cycle of sin and rescue through flawed deliverers cries out for a Savior who never fails — the true and final Judge and Deliverer who saves his people not for a season but forever.

How Judges 9:55 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.