JUDGES CHAPTER 5, “The Song Of Deborah and Barak”

Jim Bomkamp

1. INTRODUCTION

1.1. In our last study, we looked at chapter 4 of the book of Judges and the story of Deborah and Barak.

1.1.1. So far in our study of the book of Judges we have looked at:

1.1.1.1. Othniel, the first judge and deliverer of Israel who was also Caleb’s son-in-law and nephew.

1.1.1.2. Ehud, the man who went to the Moabite king alone and assassinated the king to deliver God’s people.

1.1.1.3. Shamgar the man who slew 600 Philistines with an “oxgoad.” In the last two studies I misspoke and stated that Shamgar used an “oxgard” (whatever that is) instead of an “oxgoad” as my tongue must have gotten confused. But, it was an “oxgoad.”

1.1.1.4. Deborah, was a woman who is described as a being mother in Israel whom the Lord raised up to be a judge of God’s people. Barak was the general whom she recruited to raise up an army and go and route mighty king Jabin who had become the king of Canaan, and Jabin’s general Sisera.

1.2. In our study today, Mother’s Day 2003, we are going to study chapter 5 of Judges and the victory Song of Deborah and Barak after their incredible victory over king Jabin the king of Canaan which we studied previously in chapter 4. As we mentioned last week, Deborah was the only woman judge of Israel and the only woman in all of the scriptures raised up by the Lord to lead His people.

1.2.1. I believe that mothers have the greatest influence upon their children’s lives and thus for you who are Christian moms it is so important that you realize the influence that you have upon your children if you will let the Lord work through your lives as He is willing and able to do. The following quotes show the importance of mother’s in their children’s lives:

1.2.1.1. "The mother's heart is the child's schoolroom, "Henry Ward Beecher (1813-1887).

1.2.1.2. “What the mother sings the cradle goes all the way down to the coffin,” Henry Ward Beecher.

1.2.1.3. "All that I am or ever hope to be, I owe to my angel Mother, "Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865).

1.2.1.4. "A mother is the truest friend we have, when trials, heavy and sudden, fall upon us; when adversity takes the place of prosperity; when friends who rejoice with us in our sunshine, desert us when troubles thicken around us, still will she cling to us, and endeavour by her kind precepts and counsels to dissipate the clouds of darkness, and cause peace to return to our hearts," Washington Irving (1783-1859)

1.2.2. We will see here in this chapter that Deborah was a woman who had a great legacy to leave to her children, for she was a woman of faith, devotion, boldness, and commitment to the Lord.

1.2.2.1. Deborah viewed her life I believe much like the apostle Paul viewed his life when he spoke the words recorded in Acts 20:24, “^“24“But I do not consider my life of any account as dear to myself, so that I may finish my course and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify solemnly of the gospel of the grace of God.””” Deborah had the attitude that her life was the Lord’s and she would follow Him and do His will and if she died in the process, so be it, for she was the Lord’s bondservant.

1.2.2.2. What a great legacy it is to leave your children if you have that kind of faith and commitment to the Lord as had Deborah. Who cannot but be encouraged to trust the Lord and boldly and courageously follow Him when they read about the story of Deborah?

1.2.2.2.1. Deborah was not a skilled or trained warrior in any sort of way, she was just a woman with a willing heart who heeded the Lord’s call to her to be a judge in Israel, and then when told by the Lord to summon the great Israeli general Barak and tell him to go and raise up an army for the Lord would give him the victory over king Jabin, she stepped out in faith and did this. Yet then, when Barak was such a wimp that he wouldn’t go and fight Israel’s oppressors unless Deborah went by his side, she a woman who was just a mother in Israel and no trained warrior, went right into the heart of the battle so that the children of Israel might conquer their oppressors and come to serve and follow the Lord again.

1.2.3. We saw in our last study that we don’t know much about Deborah except for the fact that she was the wife of Lappidoth (again maybe it would be best to speak of him as being the husband of Deborah), she was a prophetess and a judge, and she was a mother in Israel.

1.2.4. We saw that Deborah was not an ambitious person and she did not promote herself into the position of a prophetess and a judge over Israel, rather she was a person who was reluctant to take on the position of leadership and even speaks of herself in Judges 5:7 with a tone of irony as, “a mother in Israel.” A mother called to deliver Israel, just imagine…

1.2.5. We saw that it was the Lord who raised up and called Deborah and just as the other judges of Israel she also was willing to step out and be courageous even at the risk of her very life, in order that her people might be delivered.

1.2.6. We considered why it might be that in this chapter that the Lord raised up a woman to be the leader of His people, and I mentioned that I have come to some conclusions in that regard:

1.2.6.1. FIRST: There were no men who were willing to be a deliverer of God’s people.

1.2.6.1.1. We saw that this enemy may have been the fiercest of the ones that they faced during the time of the judges.

1.2.6.1.1.1. Jabin the king who reigned in Hazor along with his extremely capable and battle-hardened general Sisera had amassed a formidable army. They had the latest in war technology in their arsenal of weapons, chariots, and they had 900 of them. Contrastingly, Israel didn’t even have any kind of stockpile of weapons made of iron, not even simple swords and spears. Charioteers normally comprised a small percentage of an army’s total number, therefore Jabin must have had a very large army of soldiers at his disposal.

1.2.6.1.2. The men in Israel, including their best combat general, Barak, were too afraid to rebel and attack the forces of Jabin.

1.2.6.1.3. Not trusting in the Lord nor knowing of the power of His might on behalf of His people, the men in Israel considered that in their own power they were no match for a huge army with 900 charioteers. They would be slaughtered in any battles on level ground in the open fields.

1.2.6.2. SECOND: As has happened all throughout history, if the men among His people are not willing to take their rightful position of leadership, then eventually He will use those who are willing to lead, even if they are women.

1.2.6.2.1. We saw then that studying the history of the church throughout the ages, you find over and over again that when men were not willing to assume positions of leadership that the Lord eventually would raise up a woman in that role.

1.2.6.2.2. Many men are appalled at the sight or thought of a woman in a position of leadership, however what they instead ought to be appalled at is not that a woman has taken a position of leadership abdicated by men, but that there are no men who are willing to be that leader. The shame was that Deborah had to judge Israel and that Jael had to kill general Sisera because there were no men willing to do this. We saw that this ought to be a rebuke that we men should take to heart.

1.2.6.2.3. Here we read in this chapter of Judges that with irony Deborah, a mother in Israel, has been raised up by the Lord to be a judge and deliverer of God’s people. Where were the men? Why did a woman who was just a mother have to be so bold as to step out boldly and courageously in order that God’s people might be delivered from their oppressors, and the people restored to the Lord?

1.2.6.3. THIRD: We discussed that God’s raising up of Deborah to be a judge and deliverer in Israel was done as a rebuke to the men of Israel.

1.2.6.3.1. Israel was a patriarchal nation and to have a woman for a leader was unheard of and something that must have caused much disdain and anguish among the men in Israel.

1.2.7. We will note in our study that Deborah and Barak in their song, after they have sung about the great things that the Lord did on their behalf on this day and in this victory, then begin finally to sing about the various tribes of Israel and their willingness, or lack thereof, to come and fight alongside the rest of the sons of Israel. The willingness of each tribe to come and join up and fight, or not do so, is the really the result of the quality of their service to and worship of the Lord.

The quality of the service to and worship of the Lord is evident also in the lives of Christians. Some people just love to serve the Lord. They love to spend time with Him, it is no burden to them. They love to pray. They love to study God’s word. They love to come to fellowship every time the doors are open because they love the Lord so much that they cannot get enough of coming before the Lord in worship and learning from the King of Kings. Others are content to open their Bibles every now and then, say a prayer when they need or want something, come to some of the fellowship services, occasionally come to fellowship at all, etc. When given a chance to serve, some people do so with all of their hearts. They pray fervently, work with diligence, and put every fiber of their being into their service. No small detail is left undone they are so thorough and conscientious in their serving. Others are content to serve half-heartedly and have the attitude that the Lord ought to accept any type of service and just be glad to have them on His side.

This really describes the difference between the offering of Cain and Abel. Abel came before the Lord in humility, gratefulness, and obedience and gave sacrificially to the Lord. Cain just sort of threw something together out of his excess and thought that the Lord was lucky to have him. Of course, it was Abel whose sacrifice was acceptable to the Lord.

Some people get to fellowship early each week as they don't want to miss any of the fellowship, worship, and teaching, and besides maybe they can give a hand helping out with something. Others are content to miss half or all of the worship and come in just in time for the teaching portion of the service. I could go on and on but I'm sure you catch my drift... As I read the New Testament for stories similar to the differing responses of these various tribes of Israel, Luke chapter 7 comes to mind. This is the story of Jesus going to the house of a Pharisee named Simon for a meal and a woman who is called a "sinner" comes in and anoints Jesus' feet with a very costly alabaster vial of perfume. She wet Jesus' feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair as she was anointing them with the perfume, and incredibly she even began to kiss Jesus' feet. Simon the Pharisee was then thinking to himself about the fact that if Jesus knew the moral background of this woman He wouldn't want her to be near Him and anoint His feet in this way. Jesus, knowing Simon’s thoughts, asked him who would love a man more one whom he had forgiven a great debt or one whom he had forgiven a small debt. Simon answered saying it was the one forgiven a great debt. Then, Jesus went on to say that he who is forgiven much loves much and he who is forgiven little loves little. Now, I used to think that it was right for this woman to have done this because after all she was a major sinner, had committed many horrible sins, and she was probably worse than most people. After all, if you’re forgiven a ton you’re going to love a ton. But, I don't think that way anymore. I think that this woman was just more aware of her sin than others because her sin had been more exposed and it also had more of a stigma attached to it than others’ sin. I don’t even believe that her sins were any worse than mine? When any of us honestly considers the debt of sin that the Lord has forgiven us, it is too huge a debt to accurately even realize. We break God's laws by our actions, by our thoughts, by sins of omission, and by sins of commission. Our thought life is such that to lust after a woman is to commit adultery, to be angry is to have committed murder, etc. But, also if concerning for instance the commandment to not commit adultery, we are not loving our wife as we should then in a sense we are breaking the law concerning adultery by a sin of omission. James Kennedy has a good illustration that reveals our utter sinfulness as people. If a person were to try his best to keep every commandment of the Lord's in thought and deed, and he were a particularly good hearted individual, lets say that throughout his life that he only broke three of God's commandments per day. Well, if he lived 70 years he would have broken God's laws 76,650 times. What judge would not throw the book at anyone who had broken any laws that number of times. The reality of our lives is that we all have broken all of God's commandments and broken His commandments many more times than 3 per day. However, it is also the case that regardless of this that the Lord Jesus took all of our sins upon Himself on the cross of Calvary. In His mercy, love and grace He paid the debt for all of our sins and even “justified” us (Rom. 5:1), or made it "just as if I'd never sinned." No, today I don't think that this woman should have anointed Jesus' feet in this way because she was a particularly bad sinner, I think this story was meant to teach us that we should all have anointed Jesus' feet in this way by the quality of our service and worship to Him. I think that this particular woman just happened to have been made more aware of her sins and the huge debt that the Lord had forgiven her. The question now is whether or not I will remember the huge debt of sin that the Lord has forgiven me? The quality of my service and worship of the Lord will demonstrate whether or not I have...

2. VS 5:1-3 - ”¹Then Deborah and Barak the son of Abinoam sang on that day, saying, ²“That the leaders led in Israel, That the people volunteered, Bless the Lord!³“Hear, O kings; give ear, O rulers! I—to the Lord, I will sing, I will sing praise to the Lord, the God of Israel.”” - Deborah and Barak sing a song on the day that the Lord delivers king Jabin’s army along with his mighty general Sisera into their hands and they are victorious over them

2.1. As we read through the scriptures we get various glimpses of Jewish culture and at times we find that when the Lord has accomplished great works on behalf of His people that they break out in a song that magnifies the Lord and what He has done on their behalf. This is what Deborah and Barak do on this day. I wish that I could have been there in person and heard this spontaneous outburst of praise to the Lord which later under the Holy Spirit’s unction they wrote down to preserve for God’s people for all time.

2.2. As I look at this chapter, it is hard for me to see how this song could be sung and why these words were any kind of an artistic expression. The expression of art varies radically from culture to culture. For instance, sometimes when I saw paintings in Japan I wondered what about the painting was an expression of artistry to the Japanese people. Likewise, when a friend of mine and I were getting ready to do a two week musical outreach tour of Japan and some Japanese women read the lyrics of the songs we were going to sing when translated into Japanese, they replied that a literal translation of any of our songs was completely out of the question. Here in America the songs that we write and sing are very simple, have various schemes for rhyming, and these Japanese women looked at the words as being very shallow and un-artistic according to Japanese standards for art. These women basically rewrote all of the lyrics, removed any rhyming of the words, and made the words tell stories which the Japanese considered to have much more depth and to be much more artistic.

2.3. In these verses, Deborah and Barak are praising the Lord that the men of Israel volunteered to go and to fight against Sisera and his army. The Lord was faithful to put it into the hearts of the people to come and fight His and their enemies.

2.4. In these verses, Deborah and Barak are telling the kings and rulers to take notice of this tremendous victory that the Lord has performed in behalf of Israel. They need to realize that to defy the God of heaven is always foolishness and results in disaster.

3. VS 5:4-5 - ”⁴“Lord, when You went out from Seir, When You marched from the field of Edom, The earth quaked, the heavens also dripped, Even the clouds dripped water. ⁵“The mountains quaked at the presence of the Lord, This Sinai, at the presence of the Lord, the God of Israel.” - Deborah and Barak sing of how the Lord unleashed His mighty power over the earth and the forces of nature in this battle

3.1. We see here in these verses that when the Lord fought for His people that all of the physical elements of His creation cooperated and joined in. The earth quaked and rain fell which caused the 900 chariots of Sisera’s army to get bogged down, and then what had been an asset to Sisera now became a liability to them. The men of his army were sitting ducks for the sons of Israel to conquer and destroy.

4. VS 5:6-7 - ”⁶“In the days of Shamgar the son of Anath, In the days of Jael, the highways were deserted, And travelers went by roundabout ways. ⁷“The peasantry ceased, they ceased in Israel, Until I, Deborah, arose, Until I arose, a mother in Israel.” - Because of the oppressors of God’s people, life in Israel was disrupted to such a degree that people even ceased traveling about the country on their roads

4.1. The effect of being under an oppressor who might capture and kill travelers had caused quite a disruption of the normal life of the people of Israel. The people of Israel were mostly just shut up within the walls of their cities and afraid to venture out.

4.2. Even the lowest classes of the people refused to travel the highways and byways of Israel for fear of being captured, tortured, or killed.

4.3. In verse 7, we see that Deborah declares that she was raised up by the Lord, but the irony of her being raised up as a judge and deliverer of God’s people was first of all that she was a woman, but secondly she wasn’t a warrior or trained in fighting and combat, she was just a mother in Israel with a willing heart to trust the Lord, be obedient, and step out in faith in order that the enemies of the Lord and of Israel might be overthrown.

4.3.1. We are provided a very interesting picture imagining Deborah, a woman who was just a mother, not a warrior or combat trained person, going directly into combat by the side of mighty general Barak in order that the Lord’s promises might be fulfilled and the army of Sisera destroyed.

4.3.1.1. Women and mothers, on this Mother’s Day I want to challenge you to the fact that even though you even be just a housewife or a mother (those are prestigious callings in the sight of the Lord by the way), that the Lord can use you mightily if you will also be willing to be obedient and step out by faith to make a difference for Christ in your sphere of influence.

4.3.1.2. Women and mothers, history is filled with women who were courageous and used mightily by the Lord in His work in the church and in reaching the lost with the gospel. Your legacy to your family as well as your church can be that you were a mighty woman of faith and used mightily by the Lord, that you were an instrument finely tuned and powerfully anointed for ministry.

5. VS 5:8-9 - ”⁸“New gods were chosen; Then war was in the gates. Not a shield or a spear was seen Among forty thousand in Israel. ⁹“My heart goes out to the commanders of Israel, The volunteers among the people; Bless the Lord!” - Deborah and Barak sing about how as soon as the children of Israel chose for themselves new gods that war immediately was in the gates

5.1. We see throughout the book of Judges that whenever the children of Israel fell away from the Lord and worshipped and served the gods of the other nations that the Lord was faithful to raise up an oppressor who would enslave them and eventually bring them to their knees to where they would cry out to the Lord for deliverance and repent of their sins.

5.2. Deborah and Barak sing here about how that throughout Israel that the people did not have a single spear or shield among them. Israel was completely unprepared for any kind of battle plans. The Lord was their only hope, and He came through for them in a big way.

5.2.1. Not having swords or spears, I guess the children of Israel just used sticks, rocks, rope, and their hands to defeat this mighty army of Sisera’s.

5.3. Deborah and Barak sing of how their hearts went out with gratitude to all of those who volunteered to fight against king Sisera and his mighty army. They were also blessing the Lord because of the faithfulness of the sons of Israel to heed the Lord and come together and risk their lives to fight off Israel’s oppressors.

6. VS 5:10-11 - ”¹⁰“You who ride on white donkeys, You who sit on rich carpets, And you who travel on the road—sing! ¹¹“At the sound of those who divide flocks among the watering places, There they shall recount the righteous deeds of the Lord, The righteous deeds for His peasantry in Israel. Then the people of the Lord went down to the gates.” - Deborah and Barak sing about how the rich upper class among the people would tell of God’s deliverance for the children of Israel on this day

6.1. The rich upper class here would ride on white donkeys and sit on rich carpets.

6.2. The rich it says here will recount the righteous deeds that the Lord performed on behalf of the common people, the poor peasantry in Israel.

7. VS 5:12-15a - ^“12“Awake, awake, Deborah; Awake, awake, sing a song! Arise, Barak, and take away your captives, O son of Abinoam. ¹³“Then survivors came down to the nobles; The people of the Lord came down to me as warriors. ¹⁴“From Ephraim those whose root is in Amalek came down, Following you, Benjamin, with your peoples; From Machir commanders came down, And from Zebulun those who wield the staff of office. ¹⁵“And the princes of Issachar were with Deborah; As was Issachar, so was Barak; Into the valley they rushed at his heels;” - As if all had been a dream, Deborah and Barak are told to awake and to sing about the great things that the Lord has done

7.1. When the Lord works in our lives in answering some prayer or giving us victory in some area of our life or ministry, and in doing so does what is just completely impossible for men to do, then all we can do is just praise the Lord. It also seems perhaps at times that we must be dreaming for the Lord to do such a great work in and for us. For instance:

7.1.1. Someone we have been praying someone will come to Christ, and we thought that person would be the last one to ever come around, yet they do.

7.1.2. Some of the blessings that we have seen the Lord give us here in the church have been that way. Our family moved here to Green Bay to start this church plant, and unknowingly the CSN ministry was planning simultaneously to put a CSN station right here in DePere. I remember that call from CSN that I received after we had been here about 10 months asking me where they should ship the equipment for our translator radio station? I hadn’t even heard they had planned to put one in. This station has been such a blessing to us since we began this ministry.

7.2. Deborah now begins to tell us about both those tribes who heeded the call to come on behalf of Israel and her God to rise up and attack their oppressor, as well as those who refused to heed that call.

7.3. Deborah tells us in these verses that the tribes of Benjamin, Zebulun, and Issachar came and helped out in this battle, having heeded the call to come and assemble together and fight against the enemies of the Lord, those who had oppressed and enslaved God’s people, Israel.

8. VS 5:15b-17 - “Among the divisions of Reuben There were great resolves of heart. ¹⁶“Why did you sit among the sheepfolds, To hear the piping for the flocks? Among the divisions of Reuben There were great searchings of heart. ¹⁷“Gilead remained across the Jordan; And why did Dan stay in ships? Asher sat at the seashore, And remained by its landings.” - Deborah sings in these verses of tribes that did not heed the call to come, assemble, and fight against the Lord’s enemies, Israel’s oppressors

8.1. In the tribe of Reuben, the call from the Lord to come, assemble, and attack their oppressors caused great inner turmoil (what is described here as ‘great searchings of heart’), however there were also ‘great resolves of heart’ to not go up and help out the sons of Israel to overthrow their oppressors. In other words, the tribe of Reuben had great conviction of the Holy Spirit that they were to come up and fight alongside the other tribes of Israel in the Lord’s Name, however they resisted the Lord’s pricking of their hearts and instead stayed home.

8.1.1. Sadly, there are always many people who are convicted by the gospel message, yet who instead of listening to that burning conviction upon their hearts from the Holy Spirit, fight off the conviction and harden their hearts against the Lord.

8.1.2. Backslidden Christians who know better than to do the things that they are doing in their lives as they are rebelling against the Lord and the clear teaching of His word place themselves under the burning conviction of the Holy Spirit concerning their sin, as they foolishly dare the Lord to chastise them in discipline as a child dares his parent to give him a spanking as he is disobeying and refusing to listen to his parent.

8.1.3. Some people who claim to have come to know Christ and be born again have never been baptized, belonged to a church, or even begun reading and studying the Bible, God’s word. They are gambling their eternal souls on their getting into heaven because once upon a time they prayed some prayer to receive Christ, joined some church, or perhaps were baptized. However, Jesus taught in John chapter 15 that the branch that does not abide in the vine is going to be cut off and thrown into the fire (symbolizing an eternity in hell for these types of supposed Christians).

8.2. Gilead refers to the city Ramoth-Gilead which existed in the territory allotted to the tribe of Gad on the wilderness side of the Jordan. Deborah tells us that Gilead remained in its own territory and didn’t come to help out in this attack on the oppressors of Israel. Gilead evidently either really didn’t identify anymore with the rest of the tribes of Israel due to Gilead’s intermarriage with the pagan nations surrounding her and the resultant apostasy, or they were just preoccupied with their own concerns and didn’t come out. They didn’t have time for the work of the Lord or the things of the Lord because their priorities were all upside down.

8.2.1. I am saddened when those who call themselves Christians do not have time for the Lord in their life. The Lord tells us in Heb. 10:25 to not forsake the assembling of ourselves together as the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and even more as you see the day drawing near, however many times Christians find all kinds of things that hold their interest instead of being in fellowship. There is a problem with a Christian’s relationship with the Lord if he does not place the Lord in the proper priority that He is to be in our lives, as number 1.

8.3. We see that the tribe of Dan just stayed in their ships, they wouldn’t venture out and join themselves up with the sons of Israel to fight against their oppressors.

8.4. The tribe of Asher just sat by the seashore, remaining where their landings were. They also did not heed the Lord’s call to assemble and fight against the oppressors of Israel.

8.5. The quality of service to and worship of the Lord is evident in the response of each of these tribes of Israel.

9. VS 5:18-19 - “¹⁸“Zebulun was a people who despised their lives even to death, And Naphtali also, on the high places of the field. ¹⁹“The kings came and fought; Then fought the kings of Canaan At Taanach near the waters of Megiddo; They took no plunder in silver.” - Deborah sings in these verses about how that Zebulun and Napthili were courageous and heeded the call to come and to assemble to fight against Israel’s oppressors

9.1. In contrast to the tribes just mentioned, Zebulun was so committed to the Lord that Deborah sings here about the fact that Zebulun didn’t look at their life as something to hold onto, but rather they even in a sense ‘despised their lives even to death’ in their willingness to come in obedience to the Lord and to fight against Israel’s oppressors.

9.2. Naphtali was willing to fight the most difficult of battles, those on the ‘high places.’

10. VS 5:20-22 - “²⁰“The stars fought from heaven, From their courses they fought against Sisera. ²¹“The torrent of Kishon swept them away, The ancient torrent, the torrent Kishon. O my soul, march on with strength. ²²“Then the horses’ hoofs beat From the dashing, the dashing of his valiant steeds.” - Deborah sings here about the fact that the elements of heaven and earth themselves came and fought for Israel in this battle

10.1. We don’t know in what sense the stars in the sky fought for Israel in this battle, yet Deborah tells us that they even became a tool of the Lord in defeating Israel’s oppressors.

10.2. We have already seen that the Lord caused it to rain during this battle and that Sisera’s 900 mighty chariots became a liability when they became bogged down in the mud. Here in these verses we see that the river Kishon overflowed also which caused Sisera’s army to be swept away.

10.2.1. Harper’s Bible Dictionary has the following entry concerning this river ‘Kishon’ mentioned in these verses, “Kishon ( keeshahn ), a stream bed in which much of the year water flows westward through the Esdraelon (Megiddo) Plain. One major source rises in the springs west of Mt. Tabor and the Galilean hills south of Nazareth and flows to the south. The other major source rises in several springs in the vicinity of Megiddo and flows to the north from near Mt. Gilboa. They join in the Esdraelon Plain, and from there the river winds its way northwestward through the narrow pass between Mt. Carmel and the Galilean hills and enters the Plain of Acco. It empties into the Mediterranean by the excavated site of modern Tell Abu Hawam… Most of the year the Kishon is a sluggish brook. During the rainy season it can be swampy through the Megiddo Plain, as when in Deborah’s defeat of the Canaanites the ‘torrent Kishon swept them away’ (Judg. 5:21 ). Although the exact location of that battle cannot be determined, Sisera’s chariots and troops were drawn out to meet Barak at the river Kishon (Judg. 4:7 ) and the Song of Deborah suggests a place near Taanach (Judg. 5:19 ). The recent excavations at Taanach indicate it was destroyed about 1125 b.c., and the destruction may be associated with these events. This victory at the river Kishon is recalled in Ps. 83:9… It was near the brook Kishon that Elijah killed the prophets of Baal when they could not call down fire on their offering on Mt. Carmel (1 Kings 18:40 ).”

10.3. We Christians need to realize from these verses that the Lord will if necessary even move heaven and earth in order to keep the promises from His word that He has made to us His children! Not only did the Lord do these things on this day on behalf of Israel, He can and will do them in our lives also if necessary.

11. VS 5:23 - “²³‘Curse Meroz,’ said the angel of the Lord, ‘Utterly curse its inhabitants; Because they did not come to the help of the Lord, To the help of the Lord against the warriors.’” - Deborah sings about how that those of the city of Meroz were to be cursed because they didn’t come to the help of the Lord against Israel’s oppressors

11.1. The New Bible Dictionary has the following entry concerning where Meroz was located, “MEROZ ( Heb. mērôz ), in Jdg. 5:23 a community (doubtfully identified with Khirbet Maru, 12 km S of Barak’s home at Kedesh-naphtali) on which Deborah pronounces a curse for its failure to take part in the campaign against Sisera.”

12. VS 5:24-27 - “²⁴“Most blessed of women is Jael, The wife of Heber the Kenite; Most blessed is she of women in the tent. ²⁵“He asked for water and she gave him milk; In a magnificent bowl she brought him curds. ²⁶“She reached out her hand for the tent peg, And her right hand for the workmen’s hammer. Then she struck Sisera, she smashed his head; And she shattered and pierced his temple. ²⁷“Between her feet he bowed, he fell, he lay; Between her feet he bowed, he fell; Where he bowed, there he fell dead.” - Deborah sings about how that Jael was blessed for having killed general Sisera, head over king Jabin’s army

12.1. Remember from our last study that Jael was not a proselyte into Judaism but was rather a pagan worshipper.

12.2. Remember also that in our last study that we mentioned that we are not totally sure of the motives of this woman Jael in killing general Sisera. Her husband Heber originally told Sisera where he could find Barak and his army, and we also do not really know his motives for doing this. It may also be the case that Jael may have realized that general Sisera and his army had been defeated by Barak, and that now she and her family were going to have to give an account of why they told Sisera where to find Barak and his army. Thus, Jael’s motivation for killing general Sisera may have been just that she wanted herself and her family to come out on the victor’s side in the battle between the children of Israel and king Jabin and his people.

12.3. Evidently, after Jael pounded the tent stake through Sisera’s temple he stood up before he died, for it says in these verses that he fell between her feet.

13. VS 5:28-31 - “²⁸“Out of the window she looked and lamented, The mother of Sisera through the lattice, ‘Why does his chariot delay in coming? Why do the hoofbeats of his chariots tarry?’ ²⁹“Her wise princesses would answer her, Indeed she repeats her words to herself, ³⁰‘Are they not finding, are they not dividing the spoil? A maiden, two maidens for every warrior; To Sisera a spoil of dyed work, A spoil of dyed work embroidered, Dyed work of double embroidery on the neck of the spoiler?’ ³¹“Thus let all Your enemies perish, O Lord; But let those who love Him be like the rising of the sun in its might.” And the land was undisturbed for forty years.” - Deborah sings and laments the grief that the mother of general Sisera would experience as a result of losing her son in this battle

13.1. This verse reveals to us more than anything how that Deborah, was truly a mother, and that she had a mother’s heart. Although Sisera was a wicked pagan general who deserved to have the Lord destroy him because of his sin and rebellion against the Lord, Deborah still felt for the pain and anguish of heart that Sisera’s mother had experienced on this day.

13.2. Deborah was truly a dedicated mother in Israel for she empathized with what Sisera’s mother must have experienced on this day as she tried to keep up her hopes that her son had survived this battle and that he and his army must have been delayed because they were simply dividing the spoil of their victory.

13.3. The Lord’s judgments are always right and fair, and therefore here we see that Deborah implores the Lord that all of His enemies might perish in the same way as this general Sisera and his army.

13.4. Finally, we note here that the land had peace for 40 years, which was evidently the time span of the rest of Deborah’s life. The people would always serve the Lord during the duration of one of their judges, however whenever that judge passed away the people would fall away from the Lord.

14. CONCLUSION:

14.1.1. Deborah is a tremendous example to us of a woman of faith, devotion, courage, and boldness. You who are mothers here today, I pray that you will consider your own life and the legacy that you would like to pass along to your children. How blessed are the children of a woman whose life is directed solely by the Lord and who has a willing heart to be used by the Lord, even in a ministry that is filled with risk. May you also be bold and courageous and step out to be used by the Lord.

14.1.2. Mother’s I also encourage you today to put into practice Deut. 6:6-9, "These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. (7) "You shall teach them diligently to your sons and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up. (8) "You shall bind them as a sign on your hand and they shall be as frontals on your forehead. (9) "You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.” Agree today to pass on to your children the great stories and truths that the Lord has taught us in His word.

14.1.2.1. This word "diligently" means "to sharpen on a whetting stone."

14.1.2.1.1. We are supposed to make our children "sharp as a tack" in the things of the Lord.

14.1.2.1.1.1. Jesus and His Word are to be the frequent topic of conversation in our homes.

14.1.2.1.1.2. Take every opportunity to remind your children of the Lord's promises to them and His solutions to their problems.

14.1.2.1.1.3. Jesus and His Word are to be the frequent topic of conversation even during your casual walking.

14.1.2.1.1.4. Jesus and His Word are to be the frequent topic of conversation when you put the children to bed.

14.1.2.1.1.5. Jesus and His Word are to be the frequent topic of conversation in the morning before the family all scatters.

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