What does Judges 9:30 mean?
The city of Shechem has been the site of a long day of partying. This ended with a feast and drinking inside the temple to Baal-berith (Judges 9:26–27). There, a man named Gaal declared he would defeat King Abimelech in battle if the people of the city were under his control. In fact, he said he would remove Abimelech from power (Judges 9:28–29).What might otherwise be wine-induced babble is part of a political scheme (Judges 9:22–25). Gaal was speaking in front of leaders of the town, who already hated Abimelech and were openly rebelling against him. Scripture is not explicit as to whether this was only clumsy, drunken talk to gain their favor, or if Gaal fully intended his words as a legitimate challenge to the authority of the appointed king of Shechem (Judges 9:1–6).
As it happens, Gaal's motives don't matter. His words are interpreted as open defiance by Zebul, Abimelech's officer and governor of the city. Zebul is furious, and he intends to help Abimelech answer the challenge with force.
