Tribe of Manasseh as Judges. (see the Book of Judges) With the growth of the threat from Philistine incursions, the Israelite tribes decided to form a strong centralised monarchy to meet the challenge, and the Tribe of Manasseh joined the new kingdom with Saul as the first king. After the death of Saul, all the tribes other than Judah remained loyal to the House of Saul, but after the death of Ish-bosheth, Saul's son and successor to the throne of Israel, the Tribe of Manasseh joined the other northern Israelite tribes in making David, who was then the king of Judah, king of
Abimelech (Judges) Abimelech (Judges) Abimelech (; אֲבִימֶלֶךְ "’Ǎḇîmeleḵ") was a son of judge Gideon. His name can best be interpreted "my father is king", claiming the inherited right to rule. He is introduced in as the son of Gideon and his Shechemite concubine, and the biblical account of his reign is described in chapter nine of the Book of Judges. According to the Bible, he was an unprincipled, ambitious ruler, often engaged in war with his own subjects. According to the Book of Judges, Abimelech went to Shechem to meet with his mother's brethren and his mother's father, and claimed that he