JDG 5Judges 5

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NLT

English Standard Version (ESV)

New Living Translation (NLT)

The Song of Deborah

5 On that day Deborah and Barak son of Abinoam sang this song: 2 “Israel’s leaders took charge, Praise the LORD! 3 “Listen, you kings! I will make music to the LORD, the God of Israel. 4 “LORD, when you set out from Seir and the cloudy skies poured down rain. 5 The mountains quaked in the presence of the LORD, the God of Israel. 6 “In the days of Shamgar son of Anath, and travelers stayed on winding pathways. 7 There were few people left in the villages of Israel— until Deborah arose as a mother for Israel. 8 When Israel chose new gods, among forty thousand warriors in Israel! 9 My heart is with the commanders of Israel, Praise the LORD! 10 “Consider this, you who ride on fine donkeys, and you who walk along the road. 11 Listen to the village musicians marched down to the city gates. 12 “Wake up, Deborah, wake up! Lead your captives away, son of Abinoam! 13 “Down from Tabor marched the few against the nobles. The people of the LORD marched down against mighty warriors. 14 They came down from Ephraim— from Zebulun came those who carry a commander’s staff. 15 The princes of Issachar were with Deborah and Barak. there was great indecision. 16 Why did you sit at home among the sheepfolds— there was great indecision. 17 Gilead remained east of the Jordan. remaining in his harbors. 18 But Zebulun risked his life, as did Naphtali, on the heights of the battlefield. 19 “The kings of Canaan came and fought, but they carried off no silver treasures. 20 The stars fought from heaven. The stars in their orbits fought against Sisera. 21 The Kishon River swept them away— March on with courage, my soul! 22 Then the horses’ hooves hammered the ground, the galloping, galloping of Sisera’s mighty steeds. 23 ‘Let the people of Meroz be cursed,’ said the angel of the LORD. to help the LORD against the mighty warriors.’ 24 “Most blessed among women is Jael, May she be blessed above all women who live in tents. 25 Sisera asked for water, she brought him yogurt. 26 Then with her left hand she reached for a tent peg, With a shattering blow, she pierced his temples. 27 He sank, he fell, there he died. 28 “From the window Sisera’s mother looked out. Why don’t we hear the sound of chariot wheels?’ 29 “Her wise women answer, and she repeats these words to herself: 30 ‘They must be dividing the captured plunder— colorful robes embroidered on both sides.’ 31 “LORD, may all your enemies die like Sisera! Then there was peace in the land for forty years.

Introduction to Judges

Background of Judges

What Is the Book of Judges About?

Time: 3 Minutes

“In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Judges 17:6, 21:25 ESV). If we were to summarize the book of Judges, this would be a good way to do it.

Judges recounts Israel’s history between the death of its second leader, Joshua, and the birth of Israel’s first prophet, Samuel (where the book of 1 Samuel begins). In other words, the nation of Israel has no leader. We don’t know who wrote Judges or exactly when it was written, but the purpose of the book is clear: Judges warns Israel that they will never be faithful to God without the leadership of a righteous king.

The book of Judges tells of twelve “heroes” (or “judges”) in Israel. Each story follows a similar pattern. God’s people begin to imitate their Canaanite neighbors by worshiping false gods. Eventually, they abandon the true God who rescued them from Egypt and gave them a homeland. As a result, God disciplines his people by allowing them to be defeated by their enemies. Then the people cry out to God for help. He hears them and sends a judge to save them from their enemies (Judges 2:11-23). These events become a cycle.

The twelve judges were far from perfect! Barak and Gideon were slow to trust God (Judges 4; 6), Jephthah made a foolish vow (Judges 11:31), and Samson had a weak spot for dangerous women (Judges 14; 16). As the book of Judges progresses, the judges themselves become less and less exemplary, and the sins of the people become more and more startling.

Judges ends with two stories that reveal how far the people have fallen. The first story tells of a priest—the person who is supposed to lead the people to worship God—who hires himself out to tend a rich man’s idol (Judges 17). The tribe of Dan then raids the rich man’s home, bribes the priest, and steals the idol (Judges 18). The corruption spreads from one family to the entire tribe.

Judges warns Israel that they will never be faithful to God without the leadership of a righteous king.

The second story is a gruesome account of gang violence, rape, and murder (Judges 19). These crimes ultimately lead to civil war and the near annihilation of the tribe of Benjamin (Judges 20-21). As Israel descends into lawlessness, the book of Judges reminds us, “In those days there was no king in Israel” (Judges 19:1; 21:25).

Apart from the hope of a righteous king, Judges is a grim book. The people betray God in spite of the rescuers he sends. Israel needs a ruler who will lead them back to God and back to faithful obedience.

Here’s a spoiler alert: In the books of 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, and 1 and 2 Chronicles, Israel’s kings don’t fare much better than the judges did. Instead of guiding Israel back to God, they lead the people into rebellion, which results in God punishing the nation by sending them into exile.

Thankfully, we read Judges from the other side of the cross of Jesus Christ, the promised Anointed One and righteous King of Israel. We know that God sent his own Son, the long awaited Son of David, to be our righteous King. Because he died for the sins of the world, Jesus has the power to rescue us, not just from enemies, but from ourselves. He is the only king who can make his people righteous and lead us back to our merciful God. Open Judges, and you will long for Jesus—for his leadership in Israel, and for his leadership in your life.

What Is the Background of Judges?

Time: 20 Minutes

The Background of Judges

1

Author and Date

Nowhere in Scripture is an author of this book named. The events in Judges took place in the period between Joshua’s death and the rise of Samuel and Saul. Most of the book was likely written by David’s time (1010–970 BC).

2

Theme

The theme of Judges is the downward spiral of Israel’s national and spiritual life into chaos and rebellion against God, showing the need for a godly king (Judges 17:6; 21:25).

3

Purpose and Pattern

The book of Judges was written to show the consequences of religious unfaithfulness and to point the way to a king who, if righteous, would lead the people to God. In the book of Joshua, the people of Israel seemed to want to follow the Lord and obey his commands. The book of Judges reveals, however, that the people had been rebelling even in Joshua’s time. This disobedience continued and grew more serious throughout the period of the judges. As summarized in Judges 2:16–23, time and again Israel turned its back on God and embraced the gods and ways of the Canaanites. Israel’s history unfolds in a repetitive way, with each cycle taking Israel further away from God. By the end of the book, Israel had violated its covenant with God in almost every way imaginable.

4

Key Themes

1. Israel’s existence in the land, which had been promised by God, was threatened by its continuing rebellion. Israel had not conquered the land completely (ch. 1), because of its unfaithfulness (Judges 2:1–3, 20–22). Therefore, the day would come when the nation would be taken captive, away from the land (Judges 18:30).

2. The oppressions, chaos, and generally negative picture in the book are due to Israel’s repeated sin. Time and again the Israelites broke the covenant, turning to the Canaanite gods and “doing evil” (Judges 2:3, 11–13, 17, 19; 3:6, 7, 12; 4:1; 6:1, 10; 8:24–27, 33; 10:6; 13:1; 17:6; 21:25), and they repeatedly suffered the consequences.

3. Despite Israel’s repeated falling away, God in his faithfulness continually delivered them. This was not due to Israel’s merits or its repentance. Instead it was because of God’s compassion and pity (Judges 2:16, 18) and his faithfulness to his promises to Abraham (Deuteronomy 6:10–11; compare Genesis 12:7; 15:7, 18–21; 26:2–3; 35:12).

4. The judges were not able to stop the peoples’ unfaithfulness. If anything, they made it worse. Major judges such as Gideon (Judges 8:24–27), Jephthah (Judges 11:30–31, 34–40), and Samson (ch. 14–16) were guilty of significant sin. The shining exception was Deborah (ch. 4–5).

5. Israel needed a godly king to lead it in doing right in the Lord’s eyes rather than a leader who “did what was right in his own eyes” (compare Judges 17:6; 21:25). God had promised from the beginning that there would be kings (Genesis 17:6, 16; 35:11; 49:10), and had explained what a godly king would look like (Deuteronomy 17:14–20). The book of Judges shows the depths to which the people of Israel descended in the absence of a godly king.

5

Outline

I. The Roots of Israel’s Unfaithfulness (1:1–3:6)
II. The Downward Spiral of Israel’s Unfaithfulness (3:7–16:31)
III. The Depths of Israel’s Unfaithfulness (17:1–21:25)

6

The Setting of Judges

Background of Judges

The Global Message of Judges

1

Who Will Lead Israel?

The book of Judges continues the redemptive history narrated in the book of Joshua. Judges begins with, “After the death of Joshua . . . ,” just as the book of Joshua began with, “After the death of Moses . . .” (Joshua 1:1). The reader therefore might expect that God will appoint a Moses-like leader for Israel upon Joshua’s death, just as he had appointed Joshua as a second Moses (see Joshua 1:1–5, 16–18; 3:7; 4:14). While the tribe of Judah is confirmed in its role of leading the twelve tribes in battle, nevertheless no “Moses figure” emerges for Israel after Joshua (Judges 1:1–2; 2:8–10). Still, the mention of Judah is perhaps significant, for the ancient prophecy had foretold that from Judah a messianic world-king would arise. Perhaps God was now setting the tribe in its leadership role to keep this promise in view before all Israel (Genesis 49:9–10; see Numbers 2:9; Judges 1:1–2; 20:18).

This expectation of an ultimate king from Judah, and the presentation of evidence of Israel’s acute need for such a king, quietly shapes the rest of the book of Judges.

2

The Need for Righteous Leadership

In Judges, the second generation passes away and a leaderless third generation, “who did not know the Lord or the work that he had done for Israel,” takes over (Judges 2:10). This generation quickly abandons the Lord and serves other gods (Judges2:11–15). Under the leadership of Joshua, Israel had remained faithful to the Lord (see Joshua 24:31). Likewise in Judges, after a judge delivers Israel, the people return to the Lord and remain faithful all the days of that judge’s rule. It becomes clear that Israel must have divinely chosen and righteous leadership in place in order to flourish, for such leadership restrains her inclination to idolatry and keeps her faithful to her covenant Lord.

3

Crisis

“In those days there was no king in Israel. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Judges 17:6; 21:25; compare Judges 18:1; 19:1). This ominous statement frames the final section of the book—noteworthy for its lack of any divinely-appointed leader—and provides the reason for Israel’s meltdown in the final chapters. There was no king in Israel. God raises the judges up in response to Israel’s cries for help, after Israel has already fallen into distress. The judges therefore are thrown into a crisis already in progress. A king would offer leadership of a more permanent nature and could prevent such crisis situations.

The original purpose of the book of Judges was therefore to demonstrate that Israel needed a divinely chosen and righteous king. The king must implement the Lord’s rule over Israel and restrain her inclination toward idolatry lest she forfeit her life in the Promised Land. Israel’s wayward heart also jeopardizes the global mission of God, for if Israel does not faithfully trust God in the Promised Land, she will not be able to fulfill her calling to be a light to the nations of the world (Genesis 12:1–3; note also Isaiah 49:6).

Judges shows that death poses a serious dilemma for leadership continuity. For in the gap left by the death of a leader, Israel is left without a restraint against her inclination toward idolatry. Whether it was Joshua or one of the judges who died, Israel always strayed (Judges 2:6–19; compare Deuteronomy 31:27). Israel’s deepest need is for a divinely chosen and righteous king from Judah who would live forever to rule over the people of God. Sensing this, a later psalmist asked the Lord for just this kind of king (Psalm 72). In Christ, this need is finally met.

4

Universal Themes in Judges

The True Global Judge and King

Global Christians learn from the book of Judges that the Lord— and none other— is Judge and King of all the world. God’s purpose in his mission of redemption is to fulfill his original intentions for creation. The Creator-King’s goal is the restoration of righteous human rule over the world, under God as ultimate King. The book of Judges supports this goal by reaffirming two realities. First, the people of God need a divinely chosen and righteous human king if they are to flourish. This human king would not rule apart from God but would implement the rule of God over the people of God. Second and more fundamentally, however, God is the true Judge and King (Judges 8:22–23; 11:27). While God rules through human leaders, he will always remain his people’s ultimate King. He alone is worthy of their exclusive allegiance, devotion, and worship (Psalm 96:9). The foundation of his throne is justice and righteousness, and his kingdom is everlasting (Psalm 89:14; 145:13).

Longing for the Righteous Ruler of All Creation

When we turn to the New Testament, the global mission takes a climactic step forward in Jesus of Nazareth. The Creator-King’s mission to restore human rule over the world finds its fulfillment in Jesus Christ. Jesus is the ultimate human judge, for whom Samson and the other judges provided a prophetic pattern. Barak, for example, delivered Israel from Jabin, king of Canaan, but Christ delivers the people of God from Satan (Colossians 1:13–14). Gideon secured rest in the land for forty years; Christ secures the ultimate rest of a new and everlasting creation (Hebrews 4:8–16). The longing for an ultimate, divinely chosen, and righteous king from Judah is fulfilled in Christ (Revelation 5:5). He embodies perfect human ruling as the crucified, resurrected, and enthroned Lord of the world, and he brings many sons and daughters to glory in order that they might share in his rule (Hebrews 1:1–13; 2:5–11).

Jesus is Lord. All Christians around the world, whatever their cultural or ethnic background, bow to God, the Lord of heaven and earth, and to his Son, Jesus Christ. And one day, every tongue and every people will confess that Jesus is Lord (Philippians 2:10–11).

5

The Global Message of Judges for Today

Urgent Need for Godly Leadership

A primary lesson from Judges for Christians around the world concerns the need for consistent, godly leadership. The story of the church in the twentieth century was its unprecedented growth in the non-Western world. The church is no longer merely a faith of the West but has emerged as a global reality, with some 2.2 billion people affiliated and with adherents in virtually every nation. Although this global growth is cause for celebration, it has also created new issues. One urgent concern is that the explosive growth has outstripped the global church’s ability to provide trained leadership for its churches. In Ethiopia, for example, one single pastor may be called upon to provide oversight to five or six rural churches.

Not a Leadership Manual

However, in its urgent quest to develop healthy leaders, the global church must not turn to the book of Judges as if it were a leadership manual. It wasn’t written merely to offer practical advice. Instead, the book of Judges— together with all the other narrative books of the Old Testament— functions primarily to tell its part of redemptive history and to document the unstoppable progress of God’s global program of new creation. In and through and despite sinful people, God’s mission advances to heal the wounds caused by rebellious humanity and their destructive “leadership” decisions. The Bible does, however, provide much wisdom and guidance concerning what church leaders should be and what they should do. The reader is encouraged to turn to the letters of the apostle Paul—especially his letters to Timothy and Titus—for help in this regard.

5:1-5:31 This song, a victory hymn usually credited to Deborah, presents a second, more poetic account of the entire battle with various details that supplement the prose account. It is one of the most ancient Hebrew poems. It blesses the Lord, those tribes who responded to the muster, and Jael. It curses those who remained at home, Sisera, and his mother’s entourage. It contrasts conditions before Barak’s victory, when the Lord’s curse was on the land, with the life of blessing in the wake of the warriors’ righteous acts. It ends with a prayer that the Lord’s enemies will perish like Sisera (5:31).

5:3 The victory song is primarily a hymn to the Lord, the God of Israel. It is also a wisdom song that gives instruction to kings and rulers, as other wisdom psalms do (see “Wisdom Psalms” Theme Note).

5:4-5:5 In the poem, the Lord is on the march from his home in the mountains of Edom (cp. Hab 3:3), or Mount Sinai (one tradition places Sinai east of the Jordan Valley, in the region of Edom; cp. Gal 4:25). The fire and earthquake that had so terrified Israel at the giving of the law (Exod 19:18) here symbolize God’s power and fury on the battlefield against his enemies. • Torrential rain would have created a quagmire, making Sisera’s chariots a liability rather than an asset (Judg 4:15-16).

5:6 During this period of chaos and uncertainty, there was little security for those living outside the main walled cities. Even Shamgar (see 3:31) did little to alleviate the misery of the common people, who suffered under the hand of the Canaanites and their cruel commander, Sisera.

5:7 Deborah was God’s agent in bringing relief during this general social breakdown. Deborah did not muster or command the troops, but she was Israel’s spiritual and emotional pillar; she is described as a mother in Israel.

5:8 Israel was in social chaos and also lacked defensive weapons. • Forty thousand warriors: The Hebrew word translated thousand could also be translated clans (see study note on Exod 12:37).

5:10 Both the rich (those who ride) and the poor (those who walk) were to listen and spread the song, which would have both a spiritual and a social impact as it was disseminated.

5:11 Listen to the village musicians: The picture is of divine exploits being recited where people gathered. Much Old Testament narrative and psalmody probably took shape in this way. “Remembering” in song and poetry is foundational to both Jewish and Christian worship.

5:13 The few were Barak’s army, marching down against the mighty warriors of Sisera’s army.

5:14-5:18 These verses honor those who volunteered and shame those who did not. • Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh (represented by Makir) came from the south. Issachar, the territory where the battle actually took place, was joined by Zebulun and Naphtali, the two tribes closest to Barak’s home base. • The tribes that were too irresolute and fainthearted to join the fight included Reuben, Gad (represented by Gilead), Dan, and Asher.

5:19 Taanach was southeast of the great administrative center of Megiddo, so the battle took place in the lower part of the Jezreel Valley. The references to Taanach and Megiddo are probably poetic allusions to well-known places in the Jezreel Valley, rather than exact locations of any fighting, which appears to have taken place between Mount Tabor and the lowlands around the Kishon River.

5:19-5:23 The battle is described. The brave warriors who followed Deborah and Barak faded into the background as the Lord mustered the stars of heaven and the Kishon River to obliterate Sisera’s host.

5:23 The location of Meroz is unknown, but it should not be confused with Merom (Josh 11:5), which was approximately twenty miles to the north in the hills of Galilee.

5:24-5:27 Sisera’s end is described in a brief celebration of Jael.

5:28 The natural confidence of Sisera’s mother was beginning to crumble.

5:29-5:30 The wise women betrayed Sisera’s evil intentions as they tried to encourage his mother. • The poet didn’t need to tell how the story concluded.

5:31 Sisera typifies the Lord’s enemies; Jael represents those who love the Lord. • there was peace in the land: Rest followed the Lord’s rescue.

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