Deborah, the Woman-Judge of Israel

My name is Deborah. If it is of any interest to you, my name means “bee” in Hebrew, my own language. Hebrew is my tongue, for I am an Israelite, a daughter of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, a worshipper of the One True God, YHWH. My life, my story, occurs during the time that the judges ruled over the children of Israel. It was the divine appointment of the judges of Israel to shepherd the people, deliver them from the oppression of enemy countries, and guide them in the way of justice and truth.
It just so happens that I myself am a judge of Israel. I am the only woman to ever hold such a position over my people. I do not say this in pride, for I am only a tool in the hand of YHWH, as were Moses the son of Amram, Joshua the son of Nun, Othniel the son of Kenaz the younger brother of Caleb, Elud the son of Gera and Shamgar the son of Anath before me. Furthermore, I do not compare the feats of my time with feats such as Israel’s deliverance from Egypt or the conquering of the Promised Land. However, I do believe that my story is one worth telling.
I will begin by speaking a little about myself and the world in which I live. I am, first of all, a daughter of the tribe of Ephraim. The place where my family pitched their tent in my childhood was near the town on Ai, where Joshua and his warriors were once defeated because of the sin of Achan. When I became of age, I was married to Lapidoth, also a man of the tribe of Ephraim. I will forever be grateful for the mercy of God for giving me a husband such as Lapidoth. He does not seek to undermine the authority which YHWH has given to me. He is not filled with jealousy or wrath, as some men would be. He is truly a man who seeks after the heart of the YHWH.
My husband and I now dwell in the place between Ramah and Bethel in Mount Ephraim. Our tent lies beneath the very same tree where another Deborah, the nurse of Rebekah wife of Isaac is buried. It is here that I dwell, and it is here that the children of Israel first began coming to me to enquire after wisdom and judgment. For YHWH has blessed me with such gifts as those of Miriam of old: the ability to guide govern others, to share with them the wisdom of YHWH, and to communicate to them the divine will of the LORD.
At first it was only a handful of friends who came to me to find out the will of YHWH. Then, as word of my gifts spread, children of Israel came from far and wide to enquire after the wisdom of YHWH. Some came to seek wisdom about small problems, such as how to deal with an annoying neighbor, or how to settle a certain conflict, or how to deal with the loss of a loved one. Many of the people who came to me, however, came to ask about the Canaanites who were holding captive my people; for such was the state of Israel in my days. The Canaanites who inhabited the Northern realm of the Promised Land, led by their ruthless leader King Jabin of Hazor and his cruel and heartless captain, Sisera, were holding the children of Israel in subjection, forcing the people into their pagan Baal worship, destroying their cities, and selling their children into slavery. The days were indeed dark in the land of God’s chosen people, but at first, the people fought back against their oppressors. Many a strong young man would come to ask me how to wage a war against the Canaanites, and I would give them what help I could. However, none of the brave attempts of these young men were fruitful. The Canaanite armies were much too strong for the disorganized armies of Northern Israel. After a time, the people lost heart. Most stopped coming for advice on how to fight the Canaanites and began coming to me to pour out the sorrow they held in their hearts for their tired, ruined people and land.
The cries of my oppressed people tore at my very heart. What made my sorrow the greater was the fact that I knew that the sin of my people was the cause for so much terror in Israel. Each man did only what was right in his own eyes, whether it was committing adultery, murdering his neighbor, worshipping an idol, or marrying a foreign wife. Only a few who came to seek my counsel truly believed and worshipped YHWH. More often than not, when people came to unload their burden of grief or to ask how to deal with the Canaanites, I exhorted them to seek the face of YHWH and follow His commandments. I often rebuked the people for their sin and told them that YHWH would do nothing to stop the oppression of Jabin until the people learned once more to fear Him.
Slowly but surely, I saw a change in the heart of the people. The cruel domination of the Canaanites was driving the people back to the G-d of their fathers. As I watched from under the shade of my palm tree, the nation of Israel began putting away their idols and foreign wives, and began seeking the true counsel of YHWH. The people dusted off the Law and followed each jot and tittle once more, doing that which was right in the sigh of YHWH and not in their own eyes. As I prayed to YHWH, I sensed that the time to throw off the tyrant Canaanites was drawing nigh. I began to ask YHWH to send one who could lead the people in a war against Jabin and his ruthless army.
YHWH answered my petition with the coming of Barak, the son of Abinoam, who dwelt in the city of Kedesh. The first time I saw Barak was the day he walked into the crowd that had gathered around my tent. He was dirty from travelling, as were most of the people who had gathered in the crowd; that was not what caught my attention. What drew my eye towards Barak was the call of YHWH. I knew in my heart that this was the leader that YHWH had prepared to lead the Israelites to victory over the Canaanites. But I held my peace and waited to see what the young man had come for. I did not want to rush the LORD’s timing; so I listened in patience as person after person gave me news about the new terrors of the Canaanites. I instructed the people in the same way I always did, and urged them anew to seek the face of YHWH. Always I kept my eye on the young man, who was listening intently, a grim look set upon his dark features. After a time, I called Lapidoth to my side and pointed out the young man to him. Lapidoth looked Barak over with wise, discerning eyes and nodded. He too felt that this young man would be the one to lead Israel to overthrow their foreign oppressors. My heart rejoiced within me, but still I held my silence, waiting for the young man to approach me. He never did. He left without a word around mid-day. My heart faltered, but I called over an older man to whom the young man had spoken to and enquired after the young man’s name. “He is Barak, son of Abinoam from the city of Kedesh-Naphtali. He has travelled far to hear your wisdom, and he pitched his tent now on the perimeter of your land,” the old man replied. I hid the name in my heart, and the next day, before I took my place beneath the palm of Deborah, I sent one of my servants to fetch this Barak son of Abinoam.
When I had Barak seated in front of me, I knew in my heart what to do. YHWH gave me the words: “Has not the LORD God of Israel commanded, saying, Go and draw towards mount Tabor, and take with you ten thousand men of the children of Naphtali and of the children of Zebulun? And I will draw unto you to the river Kishon Sisera, the captain of Jabin’s army, with his chariots and his multitude, and I will deliver him into your hand.”
Barak, when he heard my words, turned white. “Do you mean that YHWH has called me to lead his armies?” he asked. I saw the fear behind his eyes.
“You are afraid.”
He sighed, a long, heavy sigh. “Yes.” Then, after a pause, he said, “I am no great man. I have done nothing with my life for the cause of YHWH. I have wasted my life with idols and women, and have only just now turned back to the LORD G-d. I am not worthy to do anything for YHWH, and I only fear that you have requested this thing of the wrong man.” He hung his head and began to weep.
I walked to his couch and laid my hand on his shoulder. I prayed, and YHWH spoke through me. “My son, YHWH does not make mistakes. He calls no man in vain. YHWH knows all you have done, and he knows all you now do for Him. You have given up your sins, and that is why YHWH calls you to this. He sees the courage that is in your heart, though you may not see it yourself.”
After a time, Barak’s weeping subsided. He was silent for a long interval, and then spoke. “If you will go with me, then I will go: but if you will not go with me, then I will not go.”
I lifted my eyes heaven-ward. His response was not at all what I had expected. Then I answered “I will surely go with you: notwithstanding the journey that thou takest shall not be for thine honour; for the LORD shall sell Sisera into the hand of a woman.”
Barak delighted in this news and seemed to find some courage in his heart, for his eyes glittered and he said, “I rejoice that YHWH has given me this task, even if I receive no glory from this; for too long my people have suffered under the cruel scourge of Jabin and Sisera. Too long have our women been raped, our homes burned, our lives ruined by these cruel pagans. Too long have I been without the bravery to act. I rejoice now that YHWH has granted me the courage I need through your counsel, O most wise Deborah, prophetess of God, prudent judge of Israel.”
So without delay, I traveled northward with Barak and Lapidoth my husband to Kedesh, into the heart of the land of the Canaanites. We spread word throughout the tribes of Naphtali and Zebulun that we were in need of men to fight against the armies of Jabin. When all was ready, and we had all of our supplies, our numbers were over ten thousand. We moved our troops to Mount Tabor, where after a short time King Jabin confronted us with his might army, which consisted of over nine hundred iron chariots and a host of Gentile warriors. When the army came in sight, Barak came to me, trembling in fear. I could sense the fear of the warriors of Zebulun and Naphtali as well. Before Barak could say, anything, I said “Up; for this is the day in which the LORD hath delivered Sisera into your hand: has not the LORD gone out before you?” Without a word, Barak left the tent and began to assemble the troops with a charisma that was not recognizable at first glance. As I overlooked the battle from the mountaintop, my heart rejoiced greatly to see the discomfiting of the army of the Canaanites. Later I would hear of the fate of Sisera, captain of the host of the Canaanite; how he had fled the battle field and come to the tent of Heber the Kenite, and how Jael the wife of Heber had killed the cruel captain with the spike of a tent, ending the battle for good. It wasn’t long before the cry of victory was heard from the lips of the children of Israel. When I heard the shout I danced upon the mountaintop for joy. YHWH had kept His promise to the people. Twenty years of oppression under the hand of the king of the Canaanites was finally at its end. No more would my people suffer under the yoke of cruelty. YHWH was truly amazing and faithful, even to a thousand generations. Barak and I later sang and danced before the people, saying “So let all thine enemies perish, O LORD: but let them that love him be as the sun when he goeth forth in his might.”
So the land of Israel had peace for forty years more, and I judged under the tree of Deborah until I was too weak and feeble to guide the children of Israel. I slowly watched my people fall back into ruin and sin, and felt the grip of the Midianties grow ever tighter around the throat of Israel. Yet I kept always in my heart the picture of the love and grace of YHWH that I witnessed upon the mount of Tabor, knowing in my heart that one day YHWH would send someone to deliver my people out of bondage. And for the rest of my days I served YHWH, the God of my Fathers.