‘ And the chief men of Shechem set liers in wait against him on spurs of the mountains, and they robbed all that came along that way by them and it was told Abimelech.'
The form of rebellion that occurred was due to their greed for gold. We must remember that many of them were former Habiru. These ‘chief men of Shechem', the majority of the ruling class, arranged ambushes against passing travellers to seize their wealth. This was not thus an illicit band of thieves but a public policy encouraged by some of the authorities.
It is unlikely that it was a new venture. They had probably been doing it in secret through the years. But now they did it openly. It was ‘against him' because as prince of Israel it would interfere with his collection of tolls, and because it was his responsibility to ensure that his people could travel in safety. It would also interfere with trade. If the routes to Shechem between the mountains were unsafe traders would avoid Shechem. The information soon reached Abimelech, no doubt indignantly reported by the travellers. This was their first treacherous dealing.