We see again in Judges 9 a speaking of a curse, a future destruction, that comes to pass. This time it isn’t carried out by the hands of the one who spoke it. Gideon’s son, Jotham, speaks the curse and God brings it to pass.

Their destruction wasn’t really caused by Jotham, though. They brought it on themselves by their sin. Sin is the curse. It’s not really the sickness, the death, the poverty, and all the other troubles related to the curse. It’s really sin that is the curse. The curse of humanity behind all the wars, disease, famine, all our troubles is sin.

Abimelech is the half-brother of Gideon’s seventy sons. He decides he should lead and rallies up those who probably think they might benefit by having their relative as the leader over Israel. Jotham, the youngest of Gideon’s seventy sons, slips away and hides. He’s the only one not killed. He’s the one that pronounces the curse, actually giving it up to the Lord to make the call.

He says that if Abimelech and his men have done right, let the people rejoice, but if they have done wrong, let them turn on each other. Abimelech was wrong when he killed off his brothers so that he could be in charge, and as his half-brother spoke, Abimelech and those who previously were on his side all turned on each other and were killed.

It wasn’t Jotham that caused the suffering. It was their sin.

Do you recognize how deadly sin is? If you are consciously choosing sin, you must not realize the seriousness of it. You are choosing death, choosing the curse.

Sin is bad. Sin is the enemy. Jesus defeated it, and you can overcome it through Christ.