the house of Baal-berith - either the temple, or the place where this idol was worshipped; Baal-berith, “god of the covenant,” by invocation of whom the league of cities was formed.
Abimelech hired vain and light persons, which followed him - idle, worthless vagabonds, the scum of society, who had nothing to lose, but much to gain from the success of a revolutionary movement.