Judges 4

Deborah and Barak

1Then 1the sons of Israel again did evil in the sight of the Lord, after Ehud died. 2So the Lord sold them into the hand of 2Jabin king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor; and the commander of his army was Sisera, who lived in 3Harosheth-hagoyim. 3The sons of Israel cried out to the Lord; for he had nine hundred 4iron chariots, and he oppressed the sons of Israel severely for twenty years.

4Now Deborah, a 5prophetess, the wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel at that time. 5She used to 6sit under the 7palm tree of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim; and the sons of Israel went up to her for judgment. 6Now she sent word and summoned 8Barak the son of Abinoam from Kedesh-naphtali, and said to him, “9The Lord, the God of Israel, has indeed commanded, ‘Go and march to Mount Tabor, and take with you ten thousand men from the sons of Naphtali and from the sons of Zebulun. 7I will draw out to you Sisera, the commander of Jabin’s army, with his chariots and his 10many troops to the river Kishon, and 11I will hand him over to you.’” 8Then Barak said to her, “If you will go with me, then I will go; but if you will not go with me, I will not go.” 9She said, “I will certainly go with you; however, the fame shall not be yours on the journey that you are about to take, 12for the Lord will sell Sisera into the hand of a woman.” Then Deborah got up and went with Barak to Kedesh. 10Barak summoned 13Zebulun and Naphtali to Kedesh, and ten thousand men went up 1415with him; Deborah also went up with him.

11Now Heber 16the Kenite had separated himself from the Kenites, from the sons of Hobab the 17father-in-law of Moses, and had pitched his tent as far away as the 18oak in 19Zaanannim, which is near Kedesh.

12Then they told Sisera that Barak the son of Abinoam had gone up to Mount Tabor. 13Sisera summoned all his chariots, 20nine hundred iron chariots, and all the people who were with him, from 21Harosheth-hagoyim to the river Kishon. 14Then Deborah said to Barak, “Arise! For this is the day on which the Lord has handed Sisera over to you; 22behold, 23the Lord has gone out before you.” So Barak went down from Mount Tabor with ten thousand men following him. 1524And the Lord 25routed Sisera and all his chariots and all his army with the edge of the sword before Barak; and Sisera got down from his chariot and fled on foot. 16But Barak pursued the chariots and the army as far as Harosheth-hagoyim, and all the army of Sisera fell by the edge of the sword; 26not even one was left.

17Now Sisera fled on foot to the tent of Jael the wife of Heber the Kenite, because there was peace between Jabin the king of Hazor and the house of Heber the Kenite. 18And Jael went out to meet Sisera, and said to him, “Turn aside, my master, turn aside to me! Do not be afraid.” So he turned aside to her into the tent, and she covered him with a 27rug. 1928And he said to her, “Please give me a little water to drink, for I am thirsty.” So she opened a leather bottle of milk and gave him a drink; then she covered him. 20And he said to her, “Stand in the doorway of the tent, and it shall be if anyone comes and inquires of you, and says, ‘Is there anyone here?’ that you shall say, ‘No.’” 21But Jael, Heber’s wife, 29took a tent peg and 30a hammer in her hand, and went secretly to him and drove the peg into his temple, and it went through into the ground; for he was sound asleep and exhausted. So he died. 22And behold, while Barak was pursuing Sisera, Jael came out to meet him and said to him, “Come, and I will show you the man whom you are seeking.” So he entered 31with her, and behold, Sisera was lying dead with the tent peg in his temple.

23So 32God subdued Jabin the king of Canaan on that day before the sons of Israel. 24And the hand of the sons of Israel pressed harder and harder upon Jabin the king of Canaan, until they had eliminated Jabin the king of Canaan.