Abimelech

Biblical Account

Abimelech, King of Gerar

Abimelech is the king of Gerar, a region in southern Canaan, who appears in Genesis. In Genesis 20, Abraham presents his wife Sarah as his sister. When Abimelech takes Sarah, God appears to him in a dream and warns him. Abimelech protests that he acted "in the integrity of my heart and innocency of my hands" (Genesis 20:5). He returns Sarah and gives Abraham sheep, oxen, servants, and a thousand pieces of silver. Abraham then prays, and the women of Abimelech's household are again able to bear children. In this chapter God calls Abraham "a prophet" (Genesis 20:7).

In Genesis 21:22–34, Abimelech comes with Phichol, the chief captain of his army, and swears an oath with Abraham. Abraham raises the matter of a well that had been seized and gives seven ewe lambs as a witness. The place is named Beersheba.

In Genesis 26, Isaac says that his wife Rebekah is his sister. Abimelech learns the truth when he sees the two of them together through a window. Later, as Isaac grows wealthy, disputes arise with the men of Gerar over wells. Eventually Abimelech, together with Phichol and others, comes to Isaac and makes a covenant with him (Genesis 26:26–33).

Abimelech, Son of Gideon

This Abimelech appears in Judges 9. He was the son of Gideon by a concubine in Shechem (Judges 8:31). After gaining the support of the men of Shechem, he killed his seventy brothers upon one stone and became king. Only Jotham, the youngest, survived, and from Mount Gerizim he rebuked the deed with the parable of the bramble. Abimelech reigned for three years. However, his relationship with the men of Shechem broke down, and he destroyed the city; then, while attacking Thebez, he was struck on the head by a millstone thrown by a woman. So that it would not be said that a woman had killed him, he had his young armor-bearer run him through (Judges 9:54). The text records this as God repaying his wickedness (Judges 9:56).

Other Figures Named Abimelech

• The superscription of Psalm 34 refers to David feigning madness "before Abimelech." In 1 Samuel 21 this king is identified as Achish, king of Gath.
• 1 Chronicles 18:16 mentions Abimelech, son of the priest Abiathar. The parallel passage, 2 Samuel 8:17, reads "Ahimelech."

Significance Within Scripture

The account of the king of Gerar belongs to a broader narrative in which God protects the household of the patriarch who has received the promise, even when the patriarch creates a crisis through deception. At the same time, it shows a foreign king responding to God's word and making peace with the patriarch. The account of Gideon's son shows how a kingship that God did not establish comes to ruin. For this reason it is often discussed in connection with the disorder of the period of the judges and the question of monarchy in Israel. In 2 Samuel 11:21, Joab refers to the incident at Thebez. The New Testament does not directly mention any Abimelech.

Interpretation and Debated Questions

• Same person or not: Views differ on whether the Abimelech of Genesis 20–21 and the Abimelech of Genesis 26 are the same person. Some hold that they are father and son; others hold that, like "Pharaoh," the name was a title used by successive kings of Gerar. The superscription of Psalm 34 is also cited in support of the title view.
• "King of the Philistines": Interpretations of this expression in Genesis 26:1 diverge. Some critical scholars regard it as reflecting a later designation. Conservative scholars explain that it refers to a group that lived in the region at an earlier period.
• The wife-as-sister narratives: Similar accounts appear three times, in Genesis 12, 20, and 26. Some interpreters read them as separate events, while others regard them as a single tradition transmitted in several forms.

In the Korean Church

The scene in Genesis 26 in which Isaac gives up the wells and obtains "Rehoboth," after which Abimelech comes to seek peace, is frequently used as a sermon text on meekness and yielding to others. Jotham's parable in Judges 9 is often cited in sermons on the qualifications of leaders and as a warning against the lust for power.