Barak & Deborah – Judges 4 & 5 Again, Israel lapsed into apostasy and was handed over for judgment for twenty years. We see a downward spiral – spiritual, moral, and social. 1 This Mme the oppressor 2as Jabin, King of Aanaan. He had a series of alliances 2ith the rulers of the other major ciMes in Aanaan, but he rule. b1 an enforcer, Sisera, 2ho comman.e. an arm1 of D00 chariots of iron. This alliance unite. the enemies of Israel to the south an. to the north. The Israelites are Fcruell1 oppresse.G b1 the enem1 for 20 1ears so Fthe1 crie. out to the Ior. for helpG. Go. raise. up a .eliverer - Barak. Deborah 2as a prophetess 6u.ging/leading Israel. Go. spoMe through her to summon an. commission Narak. Judges 4:6 – 7 6 She sent for Narak son of Abinoam from Ke.esh in Naphtali an. sai. to him, FThe IORS, the Go. of Israel, comman.s 1ouT UGo, take 2ith 1ou ten thousan. men of Naphtali an. Vebulun an. lead them up to Mount Tabor. 7 I 2ill lead Sisera, the comman.er of JabinYs arm1, 2ith his chariots an. his troops to the Kishon River an. give him into 1our han.s.YG :hat .o 1ou see in this prophec1Z ____________, __________, __________ & ____________. Plan Narak an. his men 2ere to assemble on Mount Tabor an. the baOle 2oul. assume.l1 take place in the Jezreel plain. Sisera 2oul. approach from Harosheth Hagoyim in the 2est. :hat are the advantages to Mount TaborZ :hat are the .isadvantagesZ Divine Support If Narak .re2 his men to Mount Tabor, Go. 2oul. .ra2 Sisera an. his forces to the baOle at the river Kishon. Then he 2oul. give Sisera into NarakYs han.s. Judges 4:8 8 Narak sai. to her, FIf 1ou go 2ith me, I 2ill go_ but if 1ou .onYt go 2ith me, I 2onYt go.G Why .o 1ou thinM that Narak respon.e. that 2a1Z Ho2 .o 1ou feel about it? Seborah agrees but tells Narak that the honour 2ill go to a 2oman. The Outcome FGo! This is the .a1 that the Ior. .elivers Sisera into 1our han.sG. Narak an. his men .escen. the mountain, engage the enem1 an. 2in. The enem1 breaks ranM an. aees, being cut .o2n as the1 retreat. Sisera aban.ons his chariot an. escapes on foot. Jael, wiFe of Heber the Kenite Sisera escapes the Israelites, onl1 to be Mille. b1 Jael. Sisera is shame. b1 his retreat an. b1 his .eath, an. Narak is shame. b1 losing out on the honour of ebecuMng the enem1 2ho had cruell1 oppresse. his 1 Much of this material is .ra2n from chapters c – 11 in Narr1 :ebbYs Judges & Ruth: God in Chaos, pp. Dd – 1d2. people. That 2as the beginning of the en. of the Aanaanite Ming, Jabin. The Israelites gre2 stronger an. stronger unMl the1 .estro1e. him. QuesDon7 Narak is aa2e. so 2h1 he is on the list of heroes of the faith in the booM of Hebre2sZ He 2as calle. an. commissione. b1 Go.. That is a great honour! He 2on a major victor1 that 2oul. bring e0 1ears of peace. He 2as a aa2e. servant of Go. but 2ho isnYt? At the beginning, his 2as a FcauMous fualige. faithG. Aan 1ou i.enMf1 2ith that? Nut then 2hen Seborah sai. FGo!G the secon. Mme, he 2ent. The Israelites 2oul. have had to cross 12 miles of open terrain to meet the arm1 of chariots. :hat 2oul. that takeZ Is it possible that NarakYs faith mature. un.er tesMngZ The Women in Chapters 4 & 5 Deborah Ju.geT She 2as obviousl1 .ealing 2ith the most contenMous issues for Israel hJu.ges eTei. She 2as a 2oman of character an. authority an. she operate. be1on. tribal allegiances. Prophet: In the OT, there are a fe2 leaders 2ho 2ere also prophets hMosesi. In the NT, prophec1 is one of the gve-fol. ministr1 giks hapostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, teachersi. It is to comfort, e.if1 an. ebhort the church. h1 Aorinthians 1eT1- e, 2e – 2l, 1 Tim 1T1ci Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite Seborah pre.icte. that a 2oman 2oul. have the honor of .ispatching Sisera. Jael is a Miller, but she is i.enMge. in the song as Fthe most blesse. of 2omenG hv. 2ei. Historicall1 the Kenites 2ere allie. 2ith the tribe of Ju.ah but Heber, JaelYs husban. 2as not living 2ith the rest of his people. He passe. on intelligence about the Israelites to Sisera. T2o theories about 2h1 Jael Mille. Sisera: 1. Iate Nronze age realpoli9ck - She sa2 the evolving poliMcal situaMon an. s2itche. allegiances. 2. She 2as honoring the ancestral allegiance between her tribe an. the 10 tribes of Israel originall1 ple.ge. b1 Moses an. Jethro, his father in la2 hthe forefather of the Kenitesi. Chapter 3 – The Son0 of Deborah Ahapter l is a song - a h1mn of .eliverance - a natural response in graMtu.e. :e gn. out so much more about the contebt of IsraelYs victor1 on the banMs of the Kishon. This is oral histor1. It .ates to about the 1200 N.A an. is an important part of the historical recor. of the Mi..le mast. Social Condions It 2as so .angerous that people aban.one. the high2a1s to furMvel1 make their 2a1 aroun. an. Fnillage life cease.G hv.oi. Not onl1 2ere the Israelites oppresse. but the1 lacMe. 2eaponr1 to .efen. themselves hv.ci 2hile their enem1 had superior militar1 technolog1. More importantl1, there is .isunity an. broMen communiMes. The sin is both public an. private/poliMcal an. personal. The Israelites coul. not .efen. themselves from ebternal threats 2hile the1 2ere internall1 .ivi.e.. We are Comm.nity The song celebrates the cooperaMon between the leadership an. the people 2ho volunteer to gght. Aan 1ou relate to thisZ The 2orl. is hosMle. The enem1 seems over2helmingl1 po2erful. The baOle is ahead an. unavoi.able. The1 2ere outnumbere. an. o..s 2ere not in their favour, but the1 tooM up the man.ate given to them. It al2a1s 2ill be thus for the church unMl the return of Ahrist. :e sho2 up, 2e get our or.ers, 2e stan. 2ith our leaders, an. 2e ebecute 2ith ebcellence. :e leave the outcome 2ith Go.. “The Oord is a Warrior” (ES 1373) “Lord, when you went out from Seir BC Ho2 .o 1ou feel about Go. as a 2arriorZ The baOle is spiritual 2arfare. This 2orl. an. the forces behin. it are hosMle to the gospel an. far be1on. our ability to .efeat. Onl1 Go. can overcome the .arMness. Nut the NaOle is alread1 2on. The One 2ho 2on it, is 2ith us to face an1thing else unMl the en. of the age. hAol 2T1d, 1e_ MaO 2cT1p-20i God is the Lord of Nat.re So ho2 .i. the Ior. vanfuish the forces of Sisera? The reference to the heavens an. stars gghMng against the Aanaanites 2oul. have in.icate. storms. The Kishon is .escribe. as a torrent in the mSn. The 2adis an. streams 2oul. have aoo.e. an. turne. the groun. to mu.. :hat happene. to the chariotsZ In the Mme of the Ju.ges, the Aanaanites calle. Naal the lord of rain and dew an. associate. him 2ith the po2ers of 2eather. Nut the1 are .efeate. b1 2eaker forces le. b1 a man name. Narak or FIighteningG an. their Go.. This is a po2erful .emonstraMon of Go.Ys sovereignty that he 2oul. move the heavens to save the Israelites. Aan 1ou thinM of other Mmes in the OT an. the NT 2hen Go. use. the elements to prove his presence an. po2erZ The God of Israel The Lord [Yahwehr of Israel hverse dE, the One of Sinai hverse li. :h1 .o 1ou thinM Seborah an. Narak refer to Go. this 2a1Z The language is that of the Aovenant an. a callbacM both to the mbo.us an. the making of the covenant between Go. an. Israel on Mount Sinai, an. the song of praise sung b1 Moses an. Miriam. Go. remains commiOe. to the Aovenant an. to His people. The people nee. that callbacM because b1 breaking the covenant, the1 had en.e. up in this a2ful pre.icament. On the Sidelines In chapter e, 2e learne. that men from the tribes of Naphtali an. Vebulun fought an. in Ahapter l, men from mphraim, Nen6amin, Machir ha clan of Manassehi an. Issachar also volunteere.. :hat 2or.s are use. to .escribe the .efen.ing forces in Ahapter lZ hnerses 2, 1d & 1li. nerses 1d – 1o an. 2d calls out those tribes 2ho .i. not come to IsraelYs ai.. The clans of Reuben consi.ere. it but sta1e. home. Gilead, San an. Asher .i. not aOen. either. Meroz 2as probabl1 a to2n that coul. have osere. support but .i. not. The Angel of the Ior. singles the people of Meroz an. curses them biOerl1 hverse 2di. Accor.ing to the tebt, 2ho .i. those tribes an. communiMes reall1 betra1Z :hat is the takea2a1 for usZ Song as Response tuesMonT So 1ou remember other Mmes in IsraelYs histor1 2hen their leaders sangZ Aolossians dT1p ebhorts us to sing psalms, h1mns, an. spiritual songs 2ith graMtu.e in our hearts to Go. regar.less of circumstance. 1. It is the natural outcome of graMtu.e for salvaMon. 2. The central purpose points to Go.. Go. is the primar1 au.ience of 2orship. F:hen the people 2illingl1 oser themselves – praise the Ior.!G hverse 2i 3.