It’s always a blessed thing to remember and celebrate the victories given to us by the Lord. The lofty songs of the Hebrews far surpass the often lauded (and much later) odes of the Greeks. This wonderful eight-stanza lyrical poem begins with a subtle jab at Barak himself: “When leaders lead in Israel…bless the Lord!” […]
Some fleshly enemies, like Eglon, must be slain through their bellies; others, through their brains. “However,” continues the story from Judges 4:17, “Sisera had fled away on foot.” Heading northeast towards Hazor through the Galilean Hills, he came upon the tent of Heber the Kenite. It was, and still is, highly inappropriate to enter a […]
The ups and downs here might remind you of those in Ephesians 4:8-10. And for good reason! Word came to Sisera of the insurrection at Mount Tabor. It came by the mouth of one “Heber the Kenite” (Jdg 4:11). Although many of the Kenites had settled on Israel’s southern border near Arad, this man had […]
Would you volunteer to throw an ill-trained militia against a massed force of professional warriors? Deborah, Mrs Bee, lived in the center of the country, near Bethel. Barak, Mr Lightning, resided in the refuge city of Kadesh Naphtali, far to the north. He could look down on the vast fortress of Hazor in the valley […]
Moderns make Deborah out to be a feminist. Not so. She served privately by her own door. What do they say? The same song, but the second verse; a little louder and a little worse? Here they go again: “When Ehud was dead, the children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the […]
Read More… from June 28, 2023 — The Prophetess & The Problem
We continue our tour of God’s armory. A dagger, yes, but an ox goad? What can you do with that? Ehud, whose name means “unity,” now lives up to the meaning. Having delivered God’s pointed message to fat Eglon at Jericho, “he blew the trumpet in the mountains of Ephraim, and the children of Israel […]
Though his name means “united,” ironically, Ehud fought alone. But Israel certainly was united afterward! Each year, Israel had to send protection money, delicately called “tribute” (Jdg 3:15), to Eglon, king of Moab. After eighteen long years of subjugation, “Ehud the son of Gera, the Benjamite, a left-handed man,” is going with the tribute to […]
Read More… from June 26, 2023 — A Pointed Message For The King
“Joshua fit de battle of Jericho!” Why isn’t there a song about Ehud fighting there as well? With Othniel having driven out the Mesopotamians, and with his wise judging of Israel from his southern stronghold at Kirjath-Sepher, we read, “the land had rest for forty years” (Jdg 3:11). Eight years were certainly too long for […]