False Security Always Falls | Judges 9:42-49

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Our text today is Judges 9:42-49.

On the following day the people went out into the field, and Abimelech was told. He took his people and divided them into three companies and set an ambush in the fields. And he looked and saw the people coming out of the city, so he rose against them and killed them. Abimelech and the company that was with him rushed forward and stood at the entrance of the gate of the city, while the two companies rushed upon all who were in the fields and killed them. And Abimelech fought against the city all that day. He captured the city and killed the people who were in it, and he razed the city and sowed it with salt. When all the leaders of the tower of Shechem heard of it, they entered the stronghold of the house of El-berith. Abimelech was told that all the leaders of the tower of Shechem were gathered together. And Abimelech went up to Mount Zalmon, he and all the people who were with him. And Abimelech took an axe in his hand and cut down a bundle of brushwood and lifted it and laid it on his shoulder. And he said to the men who were with him, “What you have seen me do, hurry and do as I have done.” So every one of the people cut down his bundle and following Abimelech put it against the stronghold, and they set the stronghold on fire over them, so that all the people of the tower of Shechem also died, about 1,000 men and women. — Judges 9:42-49

After Gaal’s defeat, Abimelech turns his fury on Shechem. He ambushes their people, tears down their city, salts the ground so nothing will grow, and finally targets the leaders hiding in the tower of El-berith—the temple of their false god Baal-berith.

From there, the story takes a chilling turn. Abimelech cuts down brushwood, lights it, and torches the stronghold with a thousand men and women inside. The very tower they trusted for safety becomes their tomb.

It’s the brutal fulfillment of Jotham’s warning: the fire has come, and Shechem burns, and by Abimelech's hand.

The tower of Shechem is a haunting picture of false security. When we put our hope in anything other than God—whether money, status, relationships, or our own strength—it will eventually collapse. What feels like a fortress today may be the very place of ruin tomorrow.

The people of Shechem thought their temple-tower and false god would protect them. But only the Lord is a strong tower, a refuge that never falls:

The name of the Lord is a strong tower;
The righteous man runs into it and is safe. — Proverbs 18:10.

Every other “tower” is brushwood waiting to burn.

Where do you run when life gets hard? Do you run and hide in a tower that can’t save you, like money, achievement, reputation, or to the God who always can? If you need safety today, run to God. Nothing else and nothing less.

ASK THIS:
What “towers” am I tempted to run to for safety when I’m afraid?
How do I know if my trust is in God or in false security?
Where have I seen the collapse of something I once relied on?
What would it look like for me to run to God as my true refuge today?
DO THIS:
Identify one “tower” you’ve been leaning on—money, achievement, reputation. Confess it to God, and declare Him as your refuge in prayer today.

PRAY THIS:
Lord, forgive me for hiding in false towers. You alone are my refuge and my strength—help me to run to You, not to what will burn. Amen.

PLAY THIS:
"Strong Tower."