Quotes About Leadership

So Abimelech and all his troops set out by night and lay in wait against Shechem in four companies.

Now Gaal son of Ebed went out and stood at the entrance of the city gate just as Abimelech and his men came out from their hiding places.

When Gaal saw the people, he said to Zebul, “Look, people are coming down from the mountains!” But Zebul replied, “The shadows of the mountains look like men to you.”

“Where is your gloating now?” Zebul replied. “You said, ëWho is Abimelech that we should serve him?í Are these not the people you ridiculed? Go out now and fight them!”

So Gaal went out before the leaders of Shechem and fought against Abimelech,

but Abimelech pursued him, and Gaal fled before him. And many Shechemites fell wounded all the way to the entrance of the gate.

Abimelech stayed in Arumah, and Zebul drove Gaal and his brothers out of Shechem.

So he took his men, divided them into three companies, and lay in wait in the fields. When he saw the people coming out of the city, he rose up against them and attacked them.

Then Abimelech and the companies with him rushed forward and took their stand at the entrance of the city gate. The other two companies rushed against all who were in the fields and struck them down.

he and all his men went up to Mount Zalmon. Abimelech took his axe in his hand and cut a branch from the trees, which he lifted to his shoulder, saying to his men, “Hurry and do what you have seen me do.”

So each man also cut his own branch and followed Abimelech. Then they piled the branches against the inner chamber and set it on fire above them, killing everyone in the tower of Shechem, about a thousand men and women.

Then Abimelech went to Thebez, encamped against it, and captured it.

But a woman dropped an upper millstone on Abimelechís head, crushing his skull.

And when the Israelites saw that Abimelech was dead, they all went home.

After the time of Abimelech, a man of Issachar, Tola son of Puah, the son of Dodo, rose up to save Israel. He lived in Shamir, in the hill country of Ephraim.

Tola judged Israel twenty-three years, and when he died, he was buried in Shamir.

Tola was followed by Jair the Gileadite, who judged Israel twenty-two years.

He had thirty sons who rode on thirty donkeys. And they had thirty towns in the land of Gilead, which to this day are called Havvoth-jair.

When Jair died, he was buried in Kamon.

And the rulers of Gilead said to one another, “Whoever will launch the attack against the Ammonites will be the head of all who live in Gilead.”

Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valor; he was the son of a prostitute, and Gilead was his father.

So Jephthah fled from his brothers and settled in the land of Tob, where worthless men gathered around him and traveled with him.

and made war with them, the elders of Gilead went to get Jephthah from the land of Tob.

“Come,” they said, “be our commander, so that we can fight against the Ammonites.”