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Judges 5:1-12
English Standard Version
Judges 5:1-12
English Standard Version
The Song of Deborah and Barak
5 (A)Then sang Deborah and Barak the son of Abinoam on that day:
2 “That the leaders took the lead in Israel,
that (B)the people offered themselves willingly,
bless the Lord!
3 “Hear, O kings; give ear, O princes;
to the Lord I will sing;
I will make melody to the Lord, the God of Israel.
4 “Lord, (C)when you went out from Seir,
when you marched from the region of Edom,
(D)the earth trembled
and the heavens dropped,
yes, the clouds dropped water.
5 The mountains (E)quaked before the Lord,
(F)even Sinai before the Lord,[a] the God of Israel.
6 “In the days of (G)Shamgar, son of Anath,
in the days of (H)Jael, (I)the highways were abandoned,
and travelers kept to the byways.
7 The villagers ceased in Israel;
they ceased to be until I arose;
I, Deborah, arose as a mother in Israel.
8 (J)When new gods were chosen,
then war was in the gates.
(K)Was shield or spear to be seen
among forty thousand in Israel?
9 My heart goes out to the commanders of Israel
who (L)offered themselves willingly among the people.
Bless the Lord.
10 “Tell of it, (M)you who ride on white donkeys,
you who sit on rich carpets[b]
and you who walk by the way.
11 To the sound of musicians[c] at the watering places,
there they repeat the righteous triumphs of the Lord,
the righteous triumphs of his villagers in Israel.
“Then down to the gates marched the people of the Lord.
12 (N)“Awake, awake, Deborah!
Awake, awake, break out in a song!
Arise, Barak, (O)lead away your captives,
O son of Abinoam.
Footnotes
- Judges 5:5 Or before the Lord, the One of Sinai, before the Lord
- Judges 5:10 The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain; it may connote saddle blankets
- Judges 5:11 Or archers; the meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain
Judges 5:1-12
New International Version
Judges 5:1-12
New International Version
The Song of Deborah
5 On that day Deborah(A) and Barak son of Abinoam(B) sang this song:(C)
2 “When the princes in Israel take the lead,
when the people willingly offer(D) themselves—
praise the Lord!(E)
3 “Hear this, you kings! Listen, you rulers!
I, even I, will sing to[a] the Lord;(F)
I will praise the Lord, the God of Israel, in song.(G)
4 “When you, Lord, went out(H) from Seir,(I)
when you marched from the land of Edom,
the earth shook,(J) the heavens poured,
the clouds poured down water.(K)
5 The mountains quaked(L) before the Lord, the One of Sinai,
before the Lord, the God of Israel.
6 “In the days of Shamgar son of Anath,(M)
in the days of Jael,(N) the highways(O) were abandoned;
travelers took to winding paths.(P)
7 Villagers in Israel would not fight;
they held back until I, Deborah,(Q) arose,
until I arose, a mother in Israel.
8 God chose new leaders(R)
when war came to the city gates,(S)
but not a shield or spear(T) was seen
among forty thousand in Israel.
9 My heart is with Israel’s princes,
with the willing volunteers(U) among the people.
Praise the Lord!
Footnotes
- Judges 5:3 Or of
- Judges 5:11 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
English Standard Version (ESV) 
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.