38. Then Zebul replied to him, "Where’s all your talk now, you who said, ‘Who is Abimelech that we ought to serve him?’ Aren’t these the men you despised? Now march out and fight them!"
39. So Gaal marched out at the head of the leaders of Shechem and fought with Abimelech.
40. Abimelech routed him, and he ran away. Many fell wounded, all the way up to the entrance of the gate.
41. Afterward, Abimelech stayed in Arumah, and Zebul drove away Gaal and his relatives so they couldn’t stay in Shechem.
42. The next day, the men of Shechem went out into the fields. When it was reported to Abimelech,
43. he took his men, divided them into three companies, and set an ambush in the fields. As soon as he saw the men coming from the city, he sprang upon them and attacked them.
44. Abimelech and his company charged forward and took a position at the entrance of the city’s gate, while the other two companies charged at all those in the fields and attacked them.
45. Abimelech fought against the city that entire day. He captured the city and killed its people. Then he leveled the city and scattered salt over it.
46. When all the leaders in the Tower of Shechem heard about this, they entered the side rooms in the El-berith temple.
47. It was reported to Abimelech that all the leaders from the Tower of Shechem had gathered in one place.
48. So Abimelech and all the men who were with him went up on Mount Zalmon. He grabbed an ax, cut off a bundle of branches, and hoisted them onto his shoulder. Then he ordered the men who were with him, "Hurry up and do what you’ve seen me do!"
49. Each one of the men cut off a bundle as well and followed Abimelech. They piled them up against the side rooms and set fire to the side rooms above them. So all the people in the Tower of Shechem died too, about one thousand men and women.
50. Then Abimelech moved on to Thebez, set up camp against it, and captured it.
51. But there was a strong tower inside the city. All the men and women and all the city’s leaders had fled there, shut themselves inside, and climbed to the tower’s roof.