In a time where women were seen as little more than property, or as a servant, God uses two women to free His people. The first is Deborah. Her name means a bee. We don’t read much about her, but what we do know signifies she lived up to her name; industrious, wise, and of great use to her people. Her sweetness was shown to her friends, and her defensive nature to her enemies. Deborah was God’s chosen leader for Israel.
Judges 4:4 “And Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, she judged Israel at that time.”
God often uses unlikely men and women to rescue His people from their enemies. Deborah is a perfect example of this. A woman leading Israel to freedom was unheard of, but God is God, and He will do what is best. Deborah lived during the period of the Judges. Israel was no longer under one leader but judges. God had chosen Deborah as the leader to rally Israel together to fight the enemy.
Deborah was judging Israel during the time when Jabin was king of Canaan. Under his leadership, Israel had been oppressed for twenty years. He was a formidable foe with a mighty army of 900 chariots of iron.
Judges 4:1-3 “And the children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the LORD, when Ehud was dead. And the LORD sold them into the hand of Jabin king of Canaan, that reigned in Hazor; the captain of whose host was Sisera, which dwelt in Harosheth of the Gentiles. And the children of Israel cried unto the LORD: for he had nine hundred chariots of iron; and twenty years he mightily oppressed the children of Israel.”
Jabin’s army was so strong that Israel was virtually trapped. The people could not travel on routes that carried goods in and out of Palestine because Jabin’s army was so mighty. It was paralyzing Israel, until Deborah took charge.
Judges 5:6-7 “In the days of Shamgar the son of Anath, in the days of Jael, the highways were unoccupied, and the travelers walked through byways. The inhabitants of the villages ceased, they ceased in Israel, until that I Deborah arose, that I arose a mother in Israel.”
The leader of the Israelite army was Barak, and he was unwilling to go to battle against Jabin without Deborah going with him. So, Deborah heads to battle with Barak, not as a fighter, but a mighty follower of God and leader of the people. This woman must have been very impressive in her walk with God. The leader of the army trusted her more than his own army’s ability.
Then along comes another woman on the scene, Jael. After the mighty battle and defeat of Jabin’s army, the leader, Sisera, was the only one left, and he ran for his life! As he is fleeing, Jael comes out of her tent to meet him and offers him refuge in her tent. Little did he know that God would use another woman to complete the victory! As he lays down to rest, he asks for water, but she gives him milk. This woman was very smart. She knew the milk would offer sustenance that water would not and allow him to fall into a deeper sleep. He was totally lured into a trap of defeat! She completed the victory by hammering a nail through his temple!
Judge 4:17-22 “Howbeit Sisera fled away on his feet to the tent of Jael the wife of Heber the Kenite: for there was peace between Jabin the king of Hazor and the house of Heber the Kenite. And Jael went out to meet Sisera, and said unto him, Turn in, my lord, turn in to me; fear not. And when he had turned in unto her into the tent, she covered him with a mantle. And he said unto her, Give me, I pray thee, a little water to drink; for I am thirsty. And she opened a bottle of milk and gave him drink, and covered him. Again he said unto her, Stand in the door of the tent, and it shall be when any man doth come and enquire of thee, and say, Is there any man here? that thou shalt say, No. Then Jael Heber’s wife took a nail of the tent, and took a hammer in her hand, and went softly unto him, and smote the nail into his temples, and fastened it into the ground: for he was fast asleep and weary. So he died. And, behold, as Barak pursued Sisera, Jael came out to meet him, and said unto him, Come, and I will shew thee the man whom thou seekest. And when he came into her tent, behold, Sisera lay dead, and the nail was in his temples.”
Without both women’s steadfast trust in God, Israel’s history would have been different. They followed God’s leadership and His timing. God was exalted, and two women were known throughout history for saving their people. Deborah is given credit in the scriptures as being the victor, but without Jael’s help, the enemy would still have been alive. Without complete annihilation of the enemy, there is always an opportunity for it to return.
What are the enemies you fight in your quest to follow God? If you expect victory you must annihilate the enemy with God. Don’t leave any opportunities for it to spring up in your life again.
God will use the ordinary to do the extraordinary if we will be willing and obedient. Think about how extraordinary it would be to lead someone to Christ. With His help, you can offer new life and freedom to others through Christ.
