Adoni-Bezek and the Seventy Kings Beneath His Table

Yalkut Shimoni on Nach 37:4

Curated by Arthur·Told by Maggid·

"And Adoni-Bezek said: Seventy kings, etc." (Judges 1:7). Because the wealth of the Canaanites had not been spelled out, Scripture teaches by saying, "And Adoni-Bezek said: Seventy kings, their thumbs and big toes cut off, used to gather scraps under my table." Now is this not an argument from the lesser to the greater [a fortiori]? If Adoni-Bezek, who was not even worthy to be counted among the kings of Canaan, nonetheless had seventy kings with their thumbs and big toes cut off gathering scraps beneath his table, come and learn and see how great the wealth of the Canaanites must have been.

Themes

Divine JusticeKingsJudgment

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