Deborah, Barak and Yael

4 But Bnei-Yisrael again did what was evil in Adonai’s eyes after Ehud had died. ² So Adonai sold them over into the hand of Jabin king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor. His army commander was Sisera, who lived in Harosheth-ha-goyim^[a]. ³ So Bnei-Yisrael cried out to Adonai, for he had 900 iron chariots, and had harshly oppressed Bnei-Yisrael for 20 years.

⁴ Now Deborah, a woman who was a prophetess, the wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel at that time. ⁵ She used to sit under the palm tree of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim, and Bnei-Yisrael came up to her for judgment. ⁶ Now she sent and summoned Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali, and said to him, “Hasn’t Adonai, God of Israel, commanded, ‘Go, march to Mount Tabor, and take with you 10,000 men of the sons of Naphtali and of the sons of Zebulun? ⁷ Then at the Kishon torrent, I will draw out to you Sisera, commander of Jabin’s army with his chariots and his multitude, and I will give him into your hand.’”

⁸ But Barak said to her, “If you are going with me, then I will go. But if you aren’t going with me, I won’t go.”

⁹ “Surely I will go with you,” she said. “However, no honor will be yours on the way that you are about to go—for Adonai will sell Sisera into the hand of a woman.” So Deborah arose and went with Barak to Kedesh. ¹⁰ Then Barak summoned Zebulun and Naphtali together to Kedesh, and 10,000 men marched up after him, and Deborah went up with him.

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

¹² They told Sisera that Barak son of Abinoam had gone up to Mount Tabor. ¹³ So Sisera ordered all his chariots—900 iron chariots—and all the troops that were with him, from Harosheth-ha-goyim to the Kishon.

¹⁴ Then Deborah said to Barak, “Arise! For this is the day in which Adonai will deliver Sisera into your hand. Has Adonai not gone out before you?” So Barak came down from Mount Tabor with 10,000 men following him. ¹⁵ Adonai threw Sisera and all his chariots and all his army into confusion before Barak with the edge of the sword. Then Sisera got down from his chariot and fled away on foot. ¹⁶ But Barak pursued the chariots and the army as far as Harosheth-ha-goyim. The whole army of Sisera fell by the sword; not one was left.

¹⁷ Meanwhile Sisera fled on foot to the tent of Yael the wife of Heber the Kenite, for there was peace between King Jabin of Hazor and the house of Heber the Kenite. ¹⁸ So Yael went out to meet Sisera and said to him, “Turn aside, my lord, turn aside to me! Don’t be afraid!” So he turned aside to her into the tent, and she covered him with a blanket.

¹⁹ He said to her, “Please give me a little water to drink, for I am thirsty.” So she opened a skin of milk and made him drink some, and covered him. ²⁰ Then he said to her, “Stand at the entrance of the tent, and if anyone comes and asks you saying, ‘Is there a man here?’ then you will say, ‘There’s no one.’”

²¹ Then Yael, Heber’s wife, took a tent pin and got a hammer in her hand, approached him stealthily and drove the pin into his temple until it pierced through into the ground—for he was exhausted and in a deep sleep. So he died. ²² Now behold, as Barak was pursuing Sisera, Yael came out to meet him and said to him, “Come, I will show you the man whom you are seeking.” So he entered with her, and behold, Sisera was lying dead, with a tent-pin in his temple!

²³ So on that day God subdued King Jabin of Canaan before Bnei-Yisrael. ²⁴ The hand of Bnei-Yisrael pressed hard on King Jabin of Canaan until they had cut off King Jabin of Canaan.

Deborah’s Song

5 Then Deborah and Barak son of Abinoam sang on that day saying:

Then the land had peace for 40 years.

³⁵ And He said to them, “When I sent you out without a money pouch and travel bag and sandals, you didn’t lack anything, did you?”

They said, “No, nothing.”

³⁶ Then He said to them, “But now, whoever has a money pouch must carry it as well as a travel bag. And whoever does not own a sword must sell his cloak and buy one. ³⁷ For I tell you that this which is written must be fulfilled in Me: ‘And he was counted with the lawless.’^[a] For what is written about Me is being fulfilled.”

³⁸ But they said, “Master, look here! Two swords!”

And He said to them, “It is enough.”

Yeshua Prays at the Mount of Olives

³⁹ And Yeshua came out and went as usual to the Mount of Olives, and the disciples followed Him. ⁴⁰ When he reached the place, He said to them, “Pray that you will not enter into temptation.” ⁴¹ And He pulled back about a stone’s throw from them, got on His knees, and began to pray, ⁴² saying, “Father, if You are willing, take this cup from Me; yet not My will, but Yours be done.”

⁴³ Now an angel from heaven appeared to Him and strengthened Him. ⁴⁴ And in His anguish, He was praying fervently; and His sweat was like drops of blood falling down on the ground. ⁴⁵ When He rose up from prayer, He came to the disciples and found them asleep, exhausted from grief. ⁴⁶ And He said to them, “Why are you sleeping? Get up and pray, so that you won’t enter into temptation.”

Betrayed!

⁴⁷ While Yeshua was speaking, suddenly a crowd came, and the one called Judah, one of the Twelve, approached Yeshua to kiss Him. ⁴⁸ But Yeshua said to him, “Judah, with a kiss you betray the Son of Man?”^[b]

⁴⁹ When those around Him saw what was going to happen, they said to Him, “Master, shall we strike with the sword?” ⁵⁰ And one of them struck the servant of the kohen gadol and cut off his right ear.

⁵¹ But Yeshua answered and said, “Stop this now!” And He touched the man’s ear and healed him.

⁵² Then Yeshua said to the ruling kohanim, officers of the Temple guard, and the elders who had come against Him, “Have you come out with swords and clubs as you would against a revolutionary? ⁵³ Every day I was with you in the Temple, yet you did not lay a finger on Me. But this is yours—the hour and the power of darkness.”

He Will Not Abandon His People

Psalm 94