Sunday School Lesson on Deborah the Judge

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Sunday School Lesson on Deborah the Judge

A. Women in the Old Testament

The Old Testament is treated by some as littlemore than a book of fantastic children's stories.To do this is to miss the rich treasury of insightsinto the lives of men and women who struggledin their relationships with God. Sometimes theyare heroically successful, and we learn how theyare pleasing to God. At other times they arecolossal failures, and we can observe the pa-tience and redemptive nature of God in dealingwith them.

The Old Testament is dominated by the livesand exploits of men. Because of this, it is com-mon to overlook the crucial and inspirationalroles played by women in the history of Israel.Rarely are women presented as recognized com-munity or national leaders. More often we findthem in supporting roles as mothers, sisters, andwives of important men.

Consider Moses, the great man, whose life wasinfluenced by women who functioned in allthree of these supporting roles. The name ofMoses' mother was Jochebed (Numbers 26:59).Exodus 2 relates the story of her daring actions tosave baby Moses from a death edict. She stoodagainst Egyptian tyranny, and God providentiallyrewarded her by allowing her to keep her babyand nurse him before turning him over to the Egyptian princess.

Also involved in this incident was Moses' sis-ter, Miriam. This brave little girl, maybe just fiveor six years old, hid near her baby brother in theNile and had the presence of mind to suggest tothe princess her mother as a nurse. Later,Miriam played a key leadership role in the exo-dus. After the destruction of Pharaoh's army inthe Red Sea, she led the women of Israel in acelebration of singing and dancing (Exodus15:20, 21). In this passage she is referred to as aprophetess, although we have no record of herprophetic activities. Centuries later, the prophetMicah remembered the leaders of the exodus asthree: Moses, Aaron, and Miriam (Micah 6:4).An often-overlooked woman in the life ofMoses is his wife, Zipporah. Exodus 4:24-26 tellsa sobering story of a time when God sought tokill Moses. Zipporah saved Moses' life. Shemoved to guard her family in a time of crisis.Had she failed to understand the perplexingthreat and act decisively, the history of Israelwould have been very different.

Many other women can be identified as exam-ples of faith in action in the Old Testament.Today's lesson is about one of the most famousof them all: the prophetess, judge, and warriornamed Deborah.

B. Lesson Background

Last week's lesson presented the destructivecycle of Israel that is found repeatedly in Judges:apostasy, crisis, repentance, and then deliveranceby a judge raised up by God. After the death ofthe judge, this cycle began again and grew worsewith each repetition (Judges 2:19). This week'slesson examines the story of the judge Deborah.Many enemies threaten Israel in the book ofJudges. The people who pose a threat to the Isael of Deborah's day are called simply the:anaanites. Genesis presents them as descen-Lants of Canaan, the grandson of Noah. ThisCanaan was cursed because of an unfortunate in-cident related in Genesis 9:20-27.
The primary city of this particular group ofCanaanites was Hazor, a large city located about10 miles north of the Sea of Galilee. The site ofHazor has been excavated extensively. It is thelargest biblical-era site in Israel, covering approx-imately 200 acres. Archaeologists estimate thatancient Hazor was a city with a population ofmore than 20,000—very substantial for the time.The story of Deborah is told twice in Judges.In chapter 4 it is presented in prose form, as iffrom the hand of a recording historian. In chap-ter 5 the story is told as a song or in poetic fash-ion. This is likely the earlier version, for ancientpeoples were great storytellers. Their storieswere composed in a poetic manner so that theycould be more easily learned and remembered.The triumphal ode of chapter 5 is ascribed toDeborah herself (Judges 5:1). Scholars recognizethe Song of Deborah as one of the oldest texts inthe Old Testament.

I. Deborah the Judge (Judges 4:4, 5)

A. Prophetess and Wife (v. 4)

4. And Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lap-idoth, she judged Israel at that time.
The author introduces Deborah as a wife,prophetess, and judge. With all of these jobs, shemust have been as "busy as a bee" and indeedher name means "bee" in Hebrew.

The Old Testament gives the title prophetess,in a godly sense, only to Miriam (Exodus 15:20),Huldah (2 Kings 22:14), Deborah, and the un-named wife of Isaiah (Isaiah 8:3). This title is thefeminine equivalent of prophet, with no real dif-ference aside from gender.

We usually think of a prophet as one who hasdivine insight into future events, but this is onlypart of a prophet's function. Old Testamentprophets are God's mouthpieces. As such, theyare inspired by God to keep Israel cm track in re-ligious and moral matters. Deborah, then, is pre-sented as more than a wise judge. She is aninspired judge, used by God to guide the devel-opment of the young nation.

Deborah is also presented as a wife. Her hus-band's name, Lapidoth. means "torches" or"wicks." One tradition outside the Bible holdsthat Lapidoth was responsible for providing thewicks for the sacred lamps of the sanctuary inShiloh. There is no record that Deborah andLapidoth had any children.

B. Judge of Israel (v. 5)

5. And she dwelt under the palm tree ofDeborah, between Ramah and Bethel in mountEphraim: and the children of Israel came up toher for judgment.

Deborah and Lapidoth live in a rural area lessthan a dozen miles north of Jerusalem. This is inthe tribal territory of Ephraim. It is a semi-mountainous region. Deborah muses an outdoorcourtroom under a famous palm tree also called Deborah.

The fact that people come to her for judgmentindicates that Deborah's judging is akin to whatwe would call binding arbitration. It is doubtfulthat she is dealing with criminal cases. Thosewould have been quickly resolved in the variouscommunities of Israel, usually at the city gate(see Deuteronomy 17:5; 21:19).

More likely, Deborah is an agreed-upon judgefor difficult private disputes (more like our civillitigation). The two disputing parties wouldagree to abide by her decision before it wasgiven, perhaps having been sent by the elders ofa village or city. Deborah likely receives a fee foreach judgment.

Such a system would have no strict legalbasis, because there is no king or government toappoint and validate Deborah's authority. Thismakes her judgeship all the more remarkable.

Deborah most have a widespread reputation forfairness and wisdom. She would be fulfilling thequalities stated to Moses by his father-in-law,Jethro, for a judge: capable, God-fearing, truthful,and not open to bribery (Exodus 18:21).

She judges the thorniest matters, a role filledby Moses during an earlier period (see Exodus18:14, 15, 25, 26). The people appreciate this justand impartial judge, because government offi-cials in the ancient world are known for corrup-tion (see Isaiah 1:23).

HONEST AND DISHONEST JUDGES

A little-known lawyer was sworn in as a U.S.Supreme Court Justice on December 19, 1975.How he got there is an intriguing story.

In 1958 a man by the name of Sherman Skol-nick sued a Chicago brokerage firm for allegedlymishandling his life savings. Skolnick lost hiscase. He also lost his appeal to the IllinoisSupreme Court. The experience embittered himagainst the justice system and he began a judicialwatchdog organization. In 1969 Skolnick ac-cused two state supreme court justices of accept-ing thousands of dollars' worth of bank stock inreturn for deciding a case in favor of a powerfulChicago lawyer.

Media pressure forced the state supreme courtto appoint a special commission to investigate.John Paul Stevens became the chief counsel. Themeticulous care with which he built his case,combined with his courtroom strategy, broughtdown two previously respected but now-taintedjustices. (Ironically, both had ruled against Skol-nick in his case years earlier.) Stevens was ex-actly the kind of person President Gerald Fordwas looking for to restore respect for the federalgovernment after the Watergate scandal of 1974.Deborah was such a judge: careful and honestin her judgments. The common people of everynation are blessed when people of impeccablereputation, practical wisdom, and honest judg-ment control the judicial system.

A. Recruiting General Barak (v. 6a)

6a. And she sent and called Barak the son ofAbinoam out of Kedesh-naphtali.
As a leader of the people, Deborah's role ex-tends beyond maintaining an outdoor courtroom.She recognizes a crisis among her people andsummons a man who can do what she cannot:lead an army into battle. This man is Barak, fromthe city of Kedesh (meaning "sanctuary").

Kedesh is located about 5 miles north of Hazoror about 15 miles north of the Sea of Galilee. Al-though in the tribal territory of Naphtali, Kedeshis one of the six cities of refuge controlled by theLevites (Numbers 35; see Joshua 20:7).

The crisis is a state of Canaanite banditry.That had caused trade caravans to disappear andfarming villages to be abandoned (Judges 5:6, 7).

B. Planning a Strategy (vv. 6b, 7)6b, 7.

And said unto him, Hath not the LORDGod of Israel commanded, saying, Go and drawtoward mount Tabor, and take with thee tenthousand men of the children of Naphtali and ofthe children of Zebulun? And I will draw untothee, to the river Kishon, Sisera the captain ofJabin's army, with his chariots and his multi-tude; and I will deliver him into thine hand.Barak is instructed to gather an army of 10,000men to mount Tabor, a solitary dome that risesabout 1,500 feet above the surrounding country-side. It is located in the northeast end of Israel'scentral Plain of Esdraelon. The army is primarilydrawn from the northern tribes of Naphtali andZebulun; Judges 5:14, 15 tells us that there arealso present men from Benjamin, Issachar, andMachin (or Makir, a subtribe of Manasseh).The enemy army has gathered under the lead-ership of Sisera, the military expert of KingJabin. Jabin rules from Hazor in the northernGalilean area. Hazor is reckoned as the great cityof the Canaanites (compare Joshua 11:10). Al-though Joshua had defeated and burned the city,it was not conquered. By the time of Deborah,the Canaanites had rebuilt it. Deborah deter-mines the strategy of the coming battle, choosingto engage Sisera on the banks of the river Kishon,to the east of Mount Tabor.

C. Traveling with the Troops (vv. 8-10)8-10.

And Barak said unto her, If thou wilt gowith me, then I will go: but if thou wilt not gowith me, then I will not go. And she said, I willsurely go with thee: notwithstanding the jour-ney that thou takest shall not be for thine honor;for the LORD shall sell Sisera into the hand of awoman. And Deborah arose, and went withBarak to Kedesh. And Barak called Zebulunand Naphtali to Kedesh; and he went up withten thousand men at his feet: and Deborah wentup with him.
Barak may be the most able military leader inIsrael, but he recognizes the value of having Deb-orah accompany him. It-we question #3, pay,It,.I Deborah warns him that this will divert theglory of victory from himself to her.

The moult will be thatof Sisern suffers defeat aThe biggest disgracewoman is the fact that wein the armies of the antwill lose to a nonmilitarydiminish the recognition

THOUGHTS

Matthew Nagle is a ctory in June 2004 whenicon wafer into his bnBrainGate, is one-sixth100 electrodes that e,inch into Deborah most have a widespread reputation forfairness and wisdom. She would be fulfilling thequalities stated to Moses by his father-in-law,Jethro, for a judge: capable, God-fearing, truthful,and not open to bribery (Exodus 18:21).

HONEST AND DISHONEST JUDGES

A little-known lawyer was sworn in as a U.S.Supreme Court Justice on December 19, 1975.How he got there is an intriguing story.

III. Deborah the Warrior(judges 4:12-16)

A. Powerful Enemy (vv. 12, 13)

12, 13. And they showed Sisera that Barak theson of Abloom was gone up to mount Tahoe.And Sisera gathered together all his chariots,even nine hundred chariots of iron, and all thepeople that were with him, from Harosheth ofthe Gentiles unto the river of Kishon.

We now begin to understand the dauntingchallenge, for Sisera's army is known to havenine hundred armored chariots. These are themost fearsome battle machines of the ancientworld (see Judges 4:3). The author paints an im-posing picture: the Canaanite forces are spreadfor several miles across the broad Plain of Es-draelon. Sierra's army is vulnerable, however, be-cause of its dependence upon this chariot force.

B. Confidence in God's Presence (v. 14)14. And Deborah said unto Barak, Up: for thisis the day in which the Lotto hath deliveredSisera into thine hand: is not the LoRD gone outbefore thee? So Barak went down from mountTahoe, and ten thousand men after him.

The faith and determination of Deborah shinebrightly here. She announces that this is the day—the day of victory! Deborah understands that Godis willing to fight on the side of Israel, and, there-fore, "safety is of the Lord" (Proverbs 21:31). Withthis great blessing of assurance, Barak and hismen rush down Jioni mount Tabor to meet theCanaanites in battle.

THOUGHTS INTO ACTION

Matthew Nagle is a quadriplegic. He made his-tory in June 2004 when surgeons implanted a sil-icon wafer into his brain. The wafer, known asBrainGate, is one-sixth of an inch square and has100 electrodes that extend one-sixteenth of aninch into Nagle's brain. When he thinks aboutmoving his arm, the brain signals are sent to an-other device on the outside of his head. Fromthere an electronic message is sent to a computerthat translates it into code that enables a ma-chine to do things such as change the TV chan-nel or perform simple tasks on Nagle's computer.

Deborah's role in Israel's victory started withher being in touch with the will of God, hearingthe message God gave her for Israel's good, andusing her wisdom and strength of character toturn God's thoughts into human action. Not all ofus have Deborah's gifts, and, like Nagle's ma-chine, we don't respond perfectly to "divineinput." But when we are "properly tuned," weeach have the ability to use what God has givenus to turn His thoughts into action.

C. Victory with God's Power (vv. 15, 16)15, 16.

And the LORD discomfited Sisera, andall his chariots, and all his host, with the edgeof the sword before Barak; so that Sisera lighteddown off his chariot, and fled away on his feet.But Barak pursued after the chariots, and afterthe host, unto Harosheth of the Gentiles: and allthe host of Sisera fell upon the edge of thesword; and there was not a man left.

Despite Sisera's superior technology. Barak'sarmy is able to rout the enemy. There is both anearthly and a heavenly reason. First, the mightychariots become bogged down in the sandy soilin and around the river Kishon, rendering themineffective (Judges 5:21). Judges 5:20 may indi-cate that this was made worse by a providentialdownpour of rain.

Second, the superior forces of Sisera were dis-comfited. This is a panic sent from God himself.The deep fear that follows causes Sisera's troopsto flee chaotically. God is fighting on Israel's be-half. This is the opposite of the periods in Judgeswhere God withdrew His blessing and foughtagainst Israel (Judges 2:15).

The victory is complete, for there is not a manleft. Sisera himself is reduced to fleeing on foot.He dies at the hand of another woman, WI, thewife of Heber (Judges 4:21).

Conclusion

A. Faithful Women Today

Are there lessons for the church in this OldTestament story? Is Deborah a model for womentoday? These are good questions, and there arethorny problems of interpretation regarding thethe role of women in church leadership (see1 Timothy 2:12). Perhaps, however, this storycan give us at least partial insight into how Godviews these issues.

First, we see that God is not opposed to usingwomen to help His people. Deborah enjoyedGod's blessings in her work as a righteous judge,in her voice as a prophetess, and in her planningas a military strategist. The judges of Israel areoverwhelmingly male but not exclusively.Second, we see that capable women can earnthe respect of the people of God. It would be fas-cinating to learn exactly. how Deborah developedher reputation as a judge, but we meet her afterthis had been accomplished. Undoubtedly, thisdid not happen overnight. It probably look manyyears of consistent excellence as a judge for Deb-orah to achieve her position of authority.

Third, we should understand that it is unnec-essary for men to deny women credit for effec-tive service. Barak seas warned that his need forDeborah's presence would result in her receivingthe people's acclaim for the great victory over theCanaanites. Barak didn't seem to have a problemwith this. The wisest players are those whosometimes step aside to let someone else carrythe ball and hear the roar of the crowd.

B. Overcoming Leadership Conflicts

Why are some churches in constant turmoil?Why is growth sporadic or absent altogether?These are complex issues, and there is no singleanswer that fits every situation. However, manychurches fail to grow and thrive because of con-flicts among the leaders. Here are three lessonsfrom the story of Deborah that can help us.First, egos need to be checked at the churchdoor. Judges 4 and 5 paint a beautiful picture oftwo cooperating leaders, each recognizing theabilities of the other.

Churches that are con-trolled by isolated, inflexible leaders will haveproblems. Congregations led by win-at-all-costspersonalities will suffer. Some qualities thatmake a person successful in the business worldmay become destructive in church leadership.Second, good leadership decisions have thewelfare of the people sharply in focus. NeitherDeborah nor Barak are presented as bloodthirstywarriors itching for glory. They pursue the terribleoption of war because the people must be freedfrom oppression.

When making leadership deci-sions, we should ask ourselves, "Why am I doingthis? Am I choosing this course because it is mostcomfortable for me? Am I making a choice that isbest for the long-term health of the church?"Third, leadership success ultimately is deter-mined by God. Deborah knew that the battlewould be won because God was fighting for Israel.All church leaders should be accountable to Godand open to His leading. The church is not a pri-vate little empire for any leader. Whatever leader-ship roles we are given, we should approach ourministries with the desire to serve people and toserve God.

C. Prayer

Holy God, we are in Your hands. We pray thatYou will provide our church with leaders whoare brave and strong, yet humble and obedient.Give those called to leadership the wisdom totrust You fully. We pray in Jesus' name, amen.

D. Thought to Remember

Tough times require strong leaders.

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