The Meaning of Judges 9:15 Explained

Judges 9:15

KJV: And the bramble said unto the trees, If in truth ye anoint me king over you, then come and put your trust in my shadow: and if not, let fire come out of the bramble, and devour the cedars of Lebanon.

YLT: And the bramble saith unto the trees, If in truth ye are anointing me for king over you, come, take refuge in my shadow; and if not -- fire cometh out from the bramble, and devoureth the cedars of Lebanon.

Darby: And the bramble said to the trees, 'If in good faith you are anointing me king over you, then come and take refuge in my shade; but if not, let fire come out of the bramble and devour the cedars of Lebanon.'

ASV: And the bramble said unto the trees, If in truth ye anoint me king over you, then come and take refuge in my shade; and if not, let fire come out of the bramble, and devour the cedars of Lebanon.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And the bramble  said  unto the trees,  If in truth  ye anoint  me king  over you, [then] come  [and] put your trust  in my shadow:  and if not, let fire  come out  of the bramble,  and devour  the cedars  of Lebanon. 

What does Judges 9:15 Mean?

Study Notes

trust
Trust is the characteristic O.T. word for the N.T. "faith," "believe." It occurs 152 times in the O.T., and is the rendering of Heb. words signifying to take refuge (e.g. Ruth 2:12 "to lean on" (e.g.) Psalms 56:3 "to roll on" (e.g.) Psalms 22:8 "to stay upon" (e.g.) Job 35:14 .

Context Summary

Judges 9:7-21 - The Bramble King
Men must have leadership. The reason lies deep in human nature. The French Revolutionaries destroyed the royal family, but Robespierre, Danton and Marat were practically enthroned in the position from which Louis was hurled. In Oliver Cromwell's commonwealth, he exercised the royal prerogative. Some of us enthrone the fatness of the olive, some the sweetness of the fig, and some the good cheer of the vine. In other words, the guiding ideal of some souls is Prosperity, of others Love, of others Pleasure. And yet others choose the bramble-with its prickly thorns-which, when scorched by the summer-heat, is near unto burning, Hebrews 6:8. It stands, therefore, for the useless and perilous life, which is doomed to the scrap-heap. See 1 Corinthians 9:27.
In the meanwhile Jesus waits to become the crowned King of each soul. He adventured his life and delivered us from the hand of the enemy, to whom we had sold ourselves. Do we deal truly and uprightly with Him, in allowing other lords to rule over us while we crown Him with thorns? See Judges 9:17; Judges 19:1-30. [source]

Chapter Summary: Judges 9

1  Abimelech by conspiracy with the Shechemites, and murder of his brothers, is made king
7  Jotham by a parable rebukes them, and foretells their ruin
22  Gaal conspires with the Shechemites against him
30  Zebul reveals it
34  Abimelech overcomes them, and sows the city with salt
46  He burns the hold of the god Berith
50  At Thebez he is slain by a piece of a millstone
56  Jotham's curse is fulfilled

What do the individual words in Judges 9:15 mean?

And said the bramble to the trees if in truth you anoint me as king over you [Then] come [and] take shelter in my shade but if not let come out fire of the bramble and devour - cedars of the Lebanon
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר הָאָטָד֮ אֶל־ הָעֵצִים֒ אִ֡ם בֶּאֱמֶ֣ת אַתֶּם֩ מֹשְׁחִ֨ים אֹתִ֤י לְמֶ֙לֶךְ֙ עֲלֵיכֶ֔ם בֹּ֖אוּ חֲס֣וּ בְצִלִּ֑י וְאִם־ אַ֕יִן תֵּ֤צֵא אֵשׁ֙ מִן־ הָ֣אָטָ֔ד וְתֹאכַ֖ל אֶת־ אַרְזֵ֥י הַלְּבָנֽוֹן

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר  And  said 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
הָאָטָד֮  the  bramble 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: אָטָד 
Sense: bramble, thorn, buckthorn.
הָעֵצִים֒  the  trees 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine plural
Root: עֵץ  
Sense: tree, wood, timber, stock, plank, stalk, stick, gallows.
בֶּאֱמֶ֣ת  in  truth 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, feminine singular
Root: אֱמֶת  
Sense: firmness, faithfulness, truth.
מֹשְׁחִ֨ים  anoint 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine plural
Root: מָשַׁח  
Sense: to smear, anoint, spread a liquid.
אֹתִ֤י  me 
Parse: Direct object marker, first person common singular
Root: אֹות 
Sense: sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative.
לְמֶ֙לֶךְ֙  as  king 
Parse: Preposition-l, Noun, masculine singular
Root: מֶלֶךְ 
Sense: king.
עֲלֵיכֶ֔ם  over  you 
Parse: Preposition, second person masculine plural
Root: עַל 
Sense: upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against.
בֹּ֖אוּ  [Then]  come 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperative, masculine plural
Root: בֹּוא 
Sense: to go in, enter, come, go, come in.
חֲס֣וּ  [and]  take  shelter 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperative, masculine plural
Root: חָסָה  
Sense: (Qal) to seek refuge, flee for protection.
בְצִלִּ֑י  in  my  shade 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular construct, first person common singular
Root: צֵל  
Sense: shadow, shade.
וְאִם־  but  if 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Conjunction
Root: אִם  
Sense: if.
תֵּ֤צֵא  let  come  out 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: יׄוצֵאת 
Sense: to go out, come out, exit, go forth.
אֵשׁ֙  fire 
Parse: Noun, common singular
Root: אֵשׁ  
Sense: fire.
הָ֣אָטָ֔ד  the  bramble 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: אָטָד 
Sense: bramble, thorn, buckthorn.
וְתֹאכַ֖ל  and  devour 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: אָכַל  
Sense: to eat, devour, burn up, feed.
אֶת־  - 
Parse: Direct object marker
Root: אֹות 
Sense: sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative.
אַרְזֵ֥י  cedars 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: אֶרֶז  
Sense: cedar.
הַלְּבָנֽוֹן  of  the  Lebanon 
Parse: Article, Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: לְבָנׄון  
Sense: a wooded mountain range on the northern border of Israel.