Message 4
Chapters 2—16
(2)
Scripture Reading: Judg. 3:7-31; 4:1-24; 5:1-31
Before we come to 3:7—5:31, I have the burden to speak a word concerning the intrinsic significance of this portion of Judges.
Prior to the history recorded in these chapters, the people of Israel had never had a female leader. Then, suddenly, God raised up a female, Deborah, as a judge of Israel. Regarding this, we need to realize that in the Bible, whenever God does something which stands out as being extraordinary, it is very significant. It indicates, first, man’s failure, and then, God’s excellent act. At the time of Judges 4, all the men of Israel had failed, so God raised up a woman. That raising up of a female changed the entire condition of Israel.
In the Bible a proper female indicates one who is in submission to God, one who keeps God’s ordination. This is the position that Israel should have taken before God, but the situation in Israel had become fully abnormal. The men had left their position before Jehovah. Hence, Israel violated God’s ordination, leaving her position as God’s wife and forsaking Him for hundreds of idols. This brought Israel into a miserable situation and condition.
According to God’s creation, Deborah was a very capable person. By reading her song in chapter five, we can see that she was full of ability, capacity, insight, and foresight. But such an excellent person was very submissive. God made her the leader, yet she kept the proper order and took Barak as her covering (4:6-9). She realized that she needed a man to be her covering. Actually, Barak did nearly nothing, yet Deborah took him as her “head covering.” When she took this kind of standing, the whole nation became different. In their miserable situation no one would take the lead to fight for Jehovah’s interest, and no one would be willing to follow. But when this excellent, extraordinary woman took the lead to practice the female submission to the man, the entire country came into the proper order. Everyone returned to his or her proper position. Thus Deborah could say in her song, “Then a remnant of the nobles went down; / The people of Jehovah went down with me against the mighty” (5:13). All the leaders took the lead, and all the people followed; the army was formed. At first, only some of the people followed, but eventually they all followed. From this we see that the entire country came into an excellent order, assuming the proper position before Jehovah.
Judges 5:15-16 speaks of “great resolutions in heart” and “great searchings of heart.” In Israel’s miserable situation, no one was searching his heart. But the people needed a great searching of their hearts, and they needed to make great resolutions in their hearts to rise up and follow the others to fight for God’s kingdom.
We may apply this to our practice of the vital groups today. For the vital groups we need much prayer with repentance. In our prayer spontaneously the searching of the heart comes to us. This issues in a resolve to live for the Lord and to fight for the Lord according to the present need in His recovery. In particular, we need to make a resolution before the Lord concerning gaining persons for His increase. This is “great resolutions in heart.”
Judges 3:12-13 says that Jehovah strengthened Israel’s enemies, but 4:6-16 reveals that Jehovah was fighting for Israel. This shows that God is a God of incarnation. God wants man to match Him so that He can move. If Israel had not fought, God would not have fought for them. However, because Israel did fight under Deborah in a proper order, God fought for them. The principle is the same with us today. If we do not go out to gain sinners, God will not go, but if we go, God also will go. However, this kind of going out needs a searching of our heart and a resolution in our heart. God will not work until we become active in this searching of our heart and making resolutions in our heart. This is the way to fight the battle; this is the way to preach the gospel; and this is the way to gain sinners to become members of Christ.
Judges 5:31b says, “May those who love Him be like the sun / When it rises in its might.” For the sun to rise in its might means that it shines brightly, brilliantly, and gloriously. We need the searchings, the resolutions, and the rising up to shine like the sun. If all the churches would be like this, they surely would enjoy the victory. May all the dear saints in the Lord’s recovery have great searchings and make great resolutions, and may they all, by loving the Lord, rise up like the sun to shine brightly.
Let us now consider the first three cycles of the miserable history of Israel in 3:7—5:31.
The record of the first cycle is given in 3:7-11a.
The children of Israel did evil in forsaking Jehovah to serve the Baalim and the Asheroth (v. 7).
Because Israel did what was evil in the sight of Jehovah, His anger burned against them (v. 8a).
Jehovah sold Israel into the hand of Cushan-rishathaim, king of Mesopotamia, and Israel served him eight years (v. 8b).
The children of Israel cried out to Jehovah (v. 9a).
Jehovah raised up a savior, Othniel the son of Caleb’s younger brother. The Spirit of Jehovah came upon him, and he saved Israel from Cushan-rishathaim (vv. 9b-10).
The end of the first cycle was that the land had rest forty years (v. 11a).
In 3:11b-31 we have the second cycle of Israel’s miserable history.
In verse 11b we are told that Othniel, the judge, died.
After the death of Othniel, the children of Israel again did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah (v. 12a).
Because Israel did that which was evil in His sight, Jehovah strengthened Eglon king of Moab against Israel. Eglon gathered the children of Ammon and Amalek to himself and went and struck Israel, taking possession of the city of palms (vv. 12b-13).
Israel served Eglon king of Moab eighteen years (v. 14).
Israel cried to Jehovah, and Jehovah raised up a savior for them, Ehud the son of Gera, the Benjaminite (v. 15a).
Ehud killed Eglon king of Moab by a scheme, and then he defeated the Moabites with the children of Israel from the hill country of Ephraim, killing about ten thousand Moabites (vv. 15b-29).
Moab was subdued that day by Israel, and the land had rest eighty years (v. 30).
After Ehud there was Shamgar the son of Anath, who struck six hundred Philistines with an ox goad. He also saved Israel (v. 31).
Chapters four and five are a record of the third cycle.
The children of Israel again did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah after Ehud died (4:1).
Jehovah sold Israel into the hand of Jabin king of Canaan, the captain of whose army was Sisera. He had nine hundred iron chariots, and he oppressed Israel severely for twenty years (vv. 2, 3b).
The children of Israel cried out to Jehovah (v. 3a).
Deborah, a prophetess, was raised up as a judge of Israel. She would sit under the palm of Deborah, and the children of Israel went up to her for judgment (vv. 4-5).
Deborah, with Barak and the children of Naphtali and Zebulun, defeated Jabin the king of Canaan and the captain of his army, Sisera, through Jehovah’s fighting for them (vv. 6-16). Verse 15a says, “Jehovah threw Sisera and all his chariots and all his camp into confusion with the edge of the sword before Barak.”
In verse 9 Deborah prophesied that Jehovah would sell Sisera into the hand of a woman. In verses 17 through 22 Sisera, the captain of King Jabin’s army, was killed by Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite, as Deborah had predicted.
God subdued Jabin king of Canaan before the children of Israel. They prevailed more and more against Jabin until they destroyed him (vv. 23-24).
Judges 5:1-31a is the song of Deborah and Barak.
Verses 4 and 5 say, “O Jehovah, when You went forth from Seir, / When You marched from the field of Edom; / The earth trembled, the heavens also dripped, / Indeed the clouds dripped water. / The mountains quaked at the presence of Jehovah, / Sinai there, at the presence of Jehovah, the God of Israel.” Here Deborah and Barak celebrated triumphantly their victory over Jabin king of Canaan, given to them by God.
Deborah and Barak appreciated the leaders of Israel who took the lead and the people of Israel who willingly offered themselves, some of whom had great resolutions in their heart and great searchings of their heart (vv. 2, 9, 13-18).
The song of Deborah and Barak also praises the stars that fought with Sisera from heaven, from their courses, and the ancient river Kishon that swept away the kings of Canaan (vv. 20-21).
“Curse Meroz, says the Angel of Jehovah; / Bitterly curse its inhabitants. / For they did not come to the aid of Jehovah, / To the aid of Jehovah against the mighty” (v. 23). Here the song praises the Angel of Jehovah, Christ, who took care of their battle.
In verses 24 through 27 the song of Deborah and Barak blesses Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite, who killed Sisera, the captain of the army of Jabin, king of Canaan. Verse 24 says, “Blessed among women shall Jael be, / The wife of Heber the Kenite; / Blessed among the women in the tent shall she be.”
Verses 28 through 30 continue by mocking ironically the imagination of the mother of Sisera concerning her son’s good fortune.
Verse 31a is a blessing upon Israel: “May all your enemies so perish, O Jehovah. / But may those who love Him be like the sun / When it rises in its might.”
Chapter five concludes by saying that the land had rest forty years (v. 31b).
