Please speak in the ears of all the men of Shechem, Whether is better for you, that all the sons of Jerubbaal, who are seventy persons, rule over you, or that one rule over you? Remember also that I am your bone and your flesh.
The men of Shechem must have known about Abimelech’s slaughter of his brothers before they made him king (Judges 9:6). Perhaps Abimelech’s violent behavior enhanced his value in their eyes. "Beth-millo" was the citadel in Shechem, the most heavily fortified part of the town. The writer also called it the tower of Shechem (Judges 9:46; Judges 9:49). It may have been the fortress-temple of Baal-berith (cf. Judges 9:51; Judges 8:33). [Note: G. Ernest Wright, Shechem, the Biography of a Biblical City, pp. 123-28.] 