“The Gift that Speaks the Truth”

Judges 9: 7: “Now when they told Jotham, he went and stood on the top of Mount Gerizim, and lifted his voice and called out. Thus he said to them, ‘Listen to me, O men of Shechem, that God may listen to you.’” Mount Gerizim was the place God commanded the Israelites to stand when they spoke the blessings of the Law (Deuteronomy 11: 29). This parable of Jothan, seemingly a condemnation of Abimelech and the men of Shechem because of their manipulations and craftiness in seizing Israel’s leadership role, was actually a blessing. Why? Because it was the truth. And the truth is always a blessing.