Judges 4, Complete Jewish Bible
Deborah,
prophetess and ruler of Israel, uses general Barak’s 10,000 soldiers and
turncoat Jael to protect Israeli girls from being taken as booty by the Canaanites.
Actual reality is not always what we always thought.
Guide: CJB emphasis in bold (CJB online), text
in green; NIV in magenta ; Nomads* discussion in yellow; and my comments in gray.
*Participative
Sunday-school-class at UBC led by Ken Tipton. My continually improved statement
about Genesis 1:26-28 is at the end of this.)
Major
concerns
1. It seems,
at the time of this story, Israel was a matriarchy.
2. Barak is
Deborah’s servant and warrior protecting Israeli girls from abuse by the enemy.
The men don’t have a clue as to who is in charge.
3. Deborah
seems to control Jael, a Canaanite wife.
4. We have
the opportunity to be humble to The God but are not benefiting from reported
history. Do Bible readers
a. Doubt
history?
b. Doubt the
literal Bible?
c. Project personal
belief onto the Bible, e.g., impose patriarchy onto matriarchy?
d. Is
personal opinion more important than humility to The God’s opinion?
The scripture, CJB
4:1 But after Ehud had died,
the people of Isra’el again
did what was evil from Adonai’s
perspective. [It
is interesting that the writer is not satisfied with “evil” so adds “from Adonai’s perspective”. Does the
writer have some regard for the Baals and the Asherahs? Asherah was female or
goddess. See Judges 3.] 2 So Adonai handed them over to
Yavin king of Kena‘an. He ruled from Hatzor; and the commander of his army was
Sisra, who lived in Haroshet-HaGoyim. 3 The people
of Isra’el cried out to Adonai,
because he had 900 iron chariots, and for twenty years he cruelly oppressed the
people of Isra’el.
4 Now D’vorah, a woman and a prophet, the wife of
Lapidot, was judging Isra’el
at that time. 5 She used to sit under
D’vorah’s Palm between Ramah and Beit-El, in the hills of Efrayim [Delphi, Greece is in hill
country and its Oracle was female.]; and the people of Isra’el would
come to her for judgment. 6 She sent for Barak the son of Avino‘am,
from Kedesh in Naftali, and said to him: “Adonai has
given you this order: ‘Go, march to Mount Tavor, and take with you 10,000 men
from the people of Naftali and Z’vulun. 7 I will
cause Sisra, the commander of Yavin’s army, to encounter you at the Kishon
River with his chariots and troops; and I will hand him over to you.’”
8 Barak answered her: “If you go with me, I’ll go;
but if you won’t go with me, I won’t go.” 9 She
replied, “Yes, I will gladly go with you; but the way you are doing it will bring you no glory;
because Adonai will
hand Sisra over to a woman.” Then D’vorah set out and went with Barak to
Kedesh. 10 Barak summoned Z’vulun and Naftali to
come to Kedesh. Ten thousand men followed him, and D’vorah went up with him. [In other words, Barak could
have chosen to go alone and get the glory. However, the glory goes to a
surprise woman who appears in V 21. ]
11 Now Hever the Keini had cut himself off from the
rest of Kayin, the descendants of Hovav Moshe’s father-in-law; he had pitched
his tent near the oak at Tza‘ananim, which is close to Kedesh. 12 Sisra
was informed that Barak the son of Avino‘am had gone up to Mount Tavor. 13 So
Sisra rallied his chariots, all 900 iron chariots, and all the troops he had
with him, from Haroshet-HaGoyim to the Kishon River.
14 D’vorah said to Barak: “Get going! This is the
day when Adonai will
hand Sisra over to you! Adonai has gone out ahead of you!” So Barak went
down from Mount Tavor with 10,000 men following him; 15 and Adonai threw Sisra, all his
chariots and his entire army into a panic before Barak’s sword; so that Sisra
got down from his chariot and fled on foot. 16 But
Barak pursued the chariots and the army all the way to Haroshet-HaGoyim.
Sisra’s entire army was put to the sword; not one man was left. [We’ll read, in Judges 5, that Israeli girls, 1 or 2 per
dead soldier, benefit from Barak’s (Deborah’s) victory.]
17 However, Sisra ran on foot to the tent of Ya‘el
the wife of Hever the
Keini, because there was peace
between Yavin [V 2]
the king of Hatzor and the family of Hever the Keini. 18 Ya‘el
went out to meet Sisra and said to him, “Come in, my lord; stay here with me;
and don’t be afraid.” So he went into her tent, and she covered him with a blanket
[sex. See https://www.thetorah.com/article/yael-the-kenite-kills-sisera]. 19 He
said to her, “Please give me a little water to drink — I’m thirsty.” She opened
a goatskin of milk, gave him some to drink, and covered him up again. 20 He
said to her, “Stand at the entrance to the tent; and if anyone asks you if
somebody is here, say, ‘No.’” 21 But when he was
deeply asleep, Ya‘el the wife of Hever took a tent peg and a hammer in her hand, crept
in to him quietly and drove
the tent peg into his temple, right through to the ground; so that he died
without waking up. 22 So here is Barak
pursuing Sisra, and Ya‘el steps out to meet him and says, “Come, I will show
you the man you are looking for.” He goes into her tent; and there is Sisra,
lying dead with the tent peg through his temple.
23 Thus God on that day defeated Yavin the king of
Kena‘an in the presence of the people of Isra’el. 24 The
hand of the people of Isra’el came down more and more heavily against Yavin the
king of Kena‘an, until they had completely destroyed Yavin the king of Kena‘an.
5:1 On that
day D’vorah and Barak the son of Avino‘am sang this song:
2 “When
leaders in Isra’el dedicate themselves,
and the
people volunteer,
you should all bless Adonai.
3 Hear,
kings; listen, princes;
I will sing to Adonai!
I will sing praise to Adonai
the God of Isra’el.
4 “Adonai, when you went out from
Se‘ir,
when you marched out from the field of Edom;
the earth quaked, and the sky shook;
yes, the clouds poured down torrents. [Physics is not mysterious.]
5 The
mountains melted at the presence of Adonai,
at Sinai, before Adonai the
God of Isra’el.
6 “In the days
of Shamgar the son of ‘Anat,
in the days of Ya‘el, the main roads were deserted;
travelers walked the byways.
7 The
rulers ceased in Isra’el, they ceased,
until you arose, D’vorah,
arose a
mother in Isra’el.
8 “They
chose new gods when war was at the gates.
Was there a shield or spear to be seen
among Isra’el’s forty thousand men?
9 My
heart goes out to Isra’el’s leaders
and to those
among the people who volunteer.
All of you, bless Adonai.
10 “You who
ride white donkeys,
sitting on soft saddle-blankets,
and you walking on the road,
talk about it! [New Testament writers project Jesus onto this image.]
11 Louder
than the sound of archers at the watering-holes
will they sound as they retell
the righteous acts of Adonai,
the righteous acts of his rulers in Isra’el.
“Then Adonai’s people marched down to
the gates.
12 “Awake, awake, D’vorah!
Awake, awake, break into song!
Arise, Barak!
Lead away your captives,
son of Avino‘am!
13 “Then a
remnant of the nobles marched down;
the people of Adonai marched
down to me like warriors.
14 From
Efrayim came those rooted in ‘Amalek.
Behind you, Binyamin is with your peoples.
From Makhir the commanders marched down,
and from Z’vulun those holding the musterer’s staff.
15 The
princes of Yissakhar were with D’vorah,
Yissakhar, along with Barak;
into the valley they rushed forth behind him.
Among the divisions of Re’uven
they made great resolutions in their hearts.
16 But
why did you stay at the pens
for the sheep,
and listen to the shepherd’s flute playing for the flocks?
Concerning the divisions of Re’uven
there were great searchings of heart. [doubt]
17 Gil‘ad lives beyond the Yarden.
Dan — why does he stay by the ships?
Asher stayed by the shore of the sea,
remaining near its bays.
18 The
people of Z’vulun risked their lives,
Naftali too, on the open heights.
19 “Kings
came; they fought.
Yes, the kings of Kena‘an fought
at Ta‘anakh, by the waters of Megiddo;
but they took
no spoil of silver.
20 They
fought from heaven, the stars in their courses;
yes, they fought against Sisra.
21 The
Kishon River swept them away,
that ancient river, the Kishon River. [43 miles long from Gilboa Mountains NW to the Mediterranean
Sea at Haifa, Israel.]
O my soul, march on with strength!
22 Then
the horses’ hoofs pounded the ground,
their mighty steeds galloping at full speed.
23 “‘Curse
Meroz!’ said the angel of Adonai,
‘Curse the people
living there with a bitter punishment
for not coming to help Adonai,
to help Adonai against the mighty warriors.’
24 “Ya‘el will be blessed more than all
women.
The wife of Hever the Keini
will be blessed more than any woman in the tent [How many women in the tent?].
25 He
asked for water, and she gave him milk;
In an elegant bowl she brought him curds.
26 Then
she took a tent peg in her left hand
and a workman’s hammer in her right;
with the hammer she struck Sisra, pierced his skull,
yes, she shattered and crushed his temple.
27 He sank down at her feet, he fell
and lay there;
he sank at her feet, he fell —
where he sank down, there he fell dead [I thought he was covered with a blanket.].
28 “Sisra’s mother looks out the
window;
peering out through the lattice she wonders,
‘Why is his chariot so long in coming?
Why are his horses so slow to return?’
29 The wisest of her ladies [reminds me of the Greek chorus
or moral reflection] answer her,
and she repeats it to herself,
30 ‘Of
course! They’re collecting and
dividing the spoil —
a girl, two girls for every warrior, [These would
have been Israeli women!]
for Sisra booty of dyed clothing,
a plunder of colorfully embroidered garments,
two embroidered scarves for every soldier’s neck.’
31 “May all
your enemies perish like this, Adonai;
but may those who love him be like the sun
going forth in its glory!” [This is the writer, expressing to Adonai the hopes of the writer.]
Then the land had rest for forty years.
[The subjugation of women is not in a
person’s self-interest, whether male or female. Considering girls as spoils of
war – 2 for every soldier -- does not benefit female leaders. In this story, Barak
seems a pawn in a matriarch’s scheme to protect Israeli women.]
[My view is that Genesis 1:26-28 informs humankind to flourish in goodness
rather than accommodate badness and allow evil:
Then God said, “Let us make
mankind in our image, in our
likeness, so that
they may rule over
the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all
the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”
So God
created mankind in his own image, in the image of
God he created them; male and female he created them.
God blessed them and said to them, “Be
fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in
the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on
the ground.
This,
the conclusion of the first chapter of the Holy Bible informs Today that
humankind may and can rule on earth. Acceptance of this power, authority, and
responsibility is human being (verb) – is pursuit of necessary-goodness or
actual-reality. The rest of the Bible discloses the chaos that ensues if most
individuals choose wanton behavior, chiefly, neglecting the laws of physics and
progeny, which reaches psychology.
The
civic collective cannot rule if most fellow citizens practice/nourish badness
and allow evil. It’s a matter of personal choice: either pursue human being
(verb) or accommodate sacrifice to evil.
Political
and religious philosopher Yeshua affirmed Genesis 1:26-28, e.g. in Matt 5:48
(be as perfect as goodness), 18:18 (don’t expect error-correction), and 19:4-6
(don’t divide goodness).
Today there are more than
8,000 religions and 45,000 Christian sects on earth. Today is time for individuals to accept the
power, the authority, and the responsibility to practice civic integrity.
“Ourselves” may either continue to
leave reliable responsibility to “our Posterity”, referring to the preamble to
the US Constitution, or practice
necessary goodness.]