Judges 5

The cast of characters in this drama is as follows:

Jabin: King of Hazor in Canaan; a tyrant Deborah: a Jewish judge; a woman of faith and courage

Barak: a reluctant Jewish general Sisera: captain of Jabin’s army Heber: a Kenite neighbor, at peace with Jabin

Jael: wife of Heber; handy with a hammer Jehovah God: in charge of wars and weather

Now let the drama unfold.

When they wanted to celebrate special occasions, the Jewish people often expressed themselves in song, so the writer shifts from narrative prose to jubilant poetry. Future generations might forget what the history book said, but they were not likely to forget a festive song. (For other examples, see Ex. 15, Deut. 32, 2 Sam. 1:17–27, and Ps. 18.) The personal pronouns in Judges 5:7, 9, and 13 indicate that this was Deborah’s victory song, but just as Barak joined her in the battle, so he joined her in the victory celebration.

A poem or song isn’t something you can easily outline because it’s a spontaneous emotional expression that often defies analysis. Unlike classical English poetry, Hebrew poetry contains recurring themes, expressed in different ways and frequent outbursts of praise and prayer. The following outline is only a suggested approach to this magnificent song of victory.

Praise the Lord all you people (vv. 1–12)! In verses 1–9, Deborah and Barak praise the Lord for all that He did for His people. He gave unity to the leaders so that Barak could assemble an army (v. 2; and see v. 9). The same God who gave Israel victory in the past would give them victory again (vv. 4–5). Israel had entered into a covenant with the Lord at Mount Sinai, and He would fulfill His promises to His special people. Since conditions were so terrible in the land that something had to be done, God raised up Deborah to be a mother in Israel (vv. 6–9). The enemy took over because the people had turned from Jehovah to worship false gods. Deborah was concerned about the spiritual life of the people as well as their physical and political welfare. Note that this first section (vv. 2–9) begins and ends with “Praise to the Lord” and “Bless ye the Lord.”

According to verses 10 and 11, Deborah and Barak summoned the wealthy nobles (“those who ride on white asses”) and the common travelers to join the singers at the wells and praise the Lord for what He did to Jabin’s army. Now it was safe to walk the roads, gather at the wells, and leisurely talk together. The people could leave the walled cities where they had run for protection and could return to their villages in peace. It was time for all Israel to praise God for His mercies to them.

This praise stanza closes with a call to action (v. 12). God commanded Deborah to wake up and sing and Barak to wake up and attack the enemy. Because of her faith, Deborah could sing before the battle started as well as after the battle ended.

Praise the Lord for the volunteers (vv. 13–18). Deborah was grateful that the people offered themselves willingly in the service of the Lord (vv. 2, 9) and that the nobles did their share in recruiting soldiers from the tribes (v. 13). Six tribes united in sending volunteers. Except for the people in the town of Meroz (v. 23), the men of Naphtali responded, as did the men of Zebulun, Issachar, Benjamin, Ephraim, and Manasseh west (Machir). The phrase in verse 14, “They that handle the pen of the writer” (literally, “the staff of a scribe”), may refer to the recruiting officers who wrote down the names of the soldiers. They were not “summer soldiers” but brave men who were serious about fighting the Lord’s battles.

However, there were four tribes that didn’t volunteer and do their share of fighting. The tribe of Reuben pondered the call to arms but finally stayed at home. They were probably considering Deuteronomy 20:1–9, Israel’s law of warfare, and examining their hearts to see whether they were qualified to go to war. Since Manasseh east (Gilead) was safe on the other side of the Jordan, they also stayed home (Judg. 5:17). Dan and Asher on the coast also elected not to heed the call to battle. In contrast to these shirkers, the tribes of Zebulun and Naphtali are especially praised for risking their lives in the service of the Lord and their country (v. 18).

Keep in mind that during this period in history “every man did that which was right in his own eyes” (21:25). When Joshua was the commander of Israel’s armies, all the tribes participated, but when Barak summoned the forces, only half of them went to war against Jabin. The people of God today are not unlike the people of Israel when it comes to God’s call for service: some immediately volunteer and follow the Lord; some risk their lives; some give the call serious consideration but say no; and others keep to themselves as though the call had never been given.

Praise the Lord for His victory (vv. 19–23). It’s one thing to show up for duty and quite something else to go into battle. Sisera had organized an alliance of the Canaanite kings, and their united forces (with 900 chariots) met the Jewish army at Megiddo on the plain of Jezreel. Since it was the dry season of the year, the charioteers expected to annihilate the army of Israel. But God had other plans. He sent a tremendous rainstorm that turned the Kishon River into a raging torrent and the battlefield into a swamp. A raindrop is a very fragile thing, but if you put enough of them together, you can defeat an army! The army of Israel trusted the Lord to give them victory because this is what He had promised (4:6–9).

Deborah and Barak didn’t curse the people of Meroz; it was the angel of the Lord who did it. It must have embarrassed Barak to know that a town in his own tribe of Naphtali had refused to send volunteers to assist in this important battle. “Meroz stands for the shirker,” said Philips Brooks in a famous sermon; “for him who is willing to see other people fight the battles of life, while he simply comes in and takes the spoils.” Note that their sin wasn’t simply failing to assist Israel; they failed to help the Lord!

Praise the Lord for a courageous woman (vv. 24–31). Deborah’s blessing on Jael reminds us of Gabriel’s words to Mary (Luke 1:42). Because of Barak’s hesitation, Deborah announced that a woman would get the credit for killing the captain of the enemy army (Judg. 4:8–9). The phrase “smote off his head” in verse 26 doesn’t mean that she decapitated him with a hammer and a tent peg. The word means “crushed” or “smashed.” With one stroke, she sent the tent peg through his temple, shattered his head, and killed him.

The description of Sisera’s death in verse 27 gives the impression that he was standing in the tent when Jael struck him and then fell dead at her feet. But he was lying down asleep when he was slain (v. 18). We may have here some Hebrew poetic license, but it’s also possible that in the agony of his death Sisera raised himself up from the tent floor and then sank at her feet and expired.

The singer moves from describing Sisera’s death to portraying Sisera’s mother watching for her son’s return (vv. 28–30). What a pathetic picture of hope where there is no hope! How many people today are looking out the window of false assumptions and expecting something to happen that will never happen. Sisera was dead; he would never come home to his mother’s love again. His mother and her attendants kept telling themselves and each other that everything was fine, but it wasn’t.

The closing prayer (v. 31) contrasts the enemies of the Lord—who like Sisera go out in darkness—with the people who love God, who are like the noonday sun. The battle at Megiddo was more than just a conflict between opposing armies. It was a conflict between the forces of darkness and the forces of light. We either love Christ and walk in the light, or we are His enemy and perish in the darkness.

The curtain comes down on our drama, but I predict that the cast will be making curtain calls as long as people read and study the Bible. “For whatever things were written before were written for our learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope” (Rom. 15: nkjv).