Judges 4
Deborah and Barak
1 The Israelites again did what was evil in the sight of the LORD,
after Ehud died. 2So the LORD sold
them into the hand of King Jabin of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor; the
commander of his army was Sisera, who lived in Harosheth-ha-goiim. 3Then
the Israelites cried out to the LORD for help; for he had
nine hundred chariots of iron, and had oppressed the Israelites cruelly
twenty years.
4 At that time Deborah, a prophetess,
wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel. 5She used
to sit under the palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill
country of Ephraim; and the Israelites came up to her for judgment. 6She
sent and summoned Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali, and said to
him, "The LORD, the God of Israel, commands you, 'Go, take
position at Mount Tabor, bringing ten thousand from the tribe of Naphtali
and the tribe of Zebulun. 7I will draw out Sisera,
the general of Jabin's army, to meet you by the Wadi Kishon with his
chariots and his troops; and I will give him into your hand.' " 8Barak
said to her, "If you will go with me, I will go; but if you will not go with
me, I will not go." 9And she said, "I will surely
go with you; nevertheless, the road on which you are going will not lead to
your glory, for the LORD will sell Sisera into the hand of a
woman." Then Deborah got up and went with Barak to Kedesh. 10Barak
summoned Zebulun and Naphtali to Kedesh; and ten thousand warriors went up
behind him; and Deborah went up with him.
11 Now Heber
the Kenite had separated from the other Kenites,a that is,
the descendants of Hobab the father-in-law of Moses, and had encamped as far
away as Elon-bezaanannim, which is near Kedesh.
12
When Sisera was told that Barak son of Abinoam had gone up to Mount Tabor, 13Sisera
called out all his chariots, nine hundred chariots of iron, and all the
troops who were with him, from Harosheth-ha-goiim to the Wadi Kishon. 14Then
Deborah said to Barak, "Up! For this is the day on which the LORD
has given Sisera into your hand. The LORD is indeed going out
before you." So Barak went down from Mount Tabor with ten thousand warriors
following him. 15And the LORD
threw Sisera and all his chariots and all his army into a panicb
before Barak; Sisera got down from his chariot and fled away on foot, 16while
Barak pursued the chariots and the army to Harosheth-ha-goiim. All the army
of Sisera fell by the sword; no one was left.
17 Now
Sisera had fled away on foot to the tent of Jael wife of Heber the Kenite;
for there was peace between King Jabin of Hazor and the clan of Heber the
Kenite. 18Jael came out to meet Sisera, and said
to him, "Turn aside, my lord, turn aside to me; have no fear." So he turned
aside to her into the tent, and she covered him with a rug. 19Then
he said to her, "Please give me a little water to drink; for I am thirsty."
So she opened a skin of milk and gave him a drink and covered him. 20He
said to her, "Stand at the entrance of the tent, and if anybody comes and
asks you, 'Is anyone here?' say, 'No.' " 21But
Jael wife of Heber took a tent peg, and took a hammer in her hand, and went
softly to him and drove the peg into his temple, until it went down into the
ground--he was lying fast asleep from weariness--and he died. 22Then,
as Barak came in pursuit of Sisera, Jael went out to meet him, and said to
him, "Come, and I will show you the man whom you are seeking." So he went
into her tent; and there was Sisera lying dead, with the tent peg in his
temple.
23 So on that day God subdued King Jabin of
Canaan before the Israelites. 24Then the hand of
the Israelites bore harder and harder on King Jabin of Canaan, until they
destroyed King Jabin of Canaan.