Written by: Liam Garvie - Associate Pastor, St Andrews Baptist Church, Dundee
Judges 5 v 1-3
On that day Deborah and Barak son of Abinoam sang this song:
“The leaders led Israel.
The people volunteered to go to battle.
Praise the LORD!
Listen, kings.
Pay attention, rulers!
I myself will sing to the LORD.
I will make music to the LORD, the God of Israel.”
Notes
Songs are great, aren’t they? The other day I was listening to the radio
and there was an hour-long session called “The Wonder Years”. For
a whole hour, songs were played that were huge when I was younger, at school
and University. Kathryn (my wife) and I were having a blast singing at the
top of our voices in the car, but I also became aware of pictures in my mind
that were associated with different songs, faces I’d known, places I’d
been, joys and sorrows experienced.
The songs that were playing brought back so many memories that must have been packed away in some box in my cerebral attic! I thought, “Maybe if I hadn’t heard those songs, those memories might have faded away completely, never to be recalled again.”
Now to be honest, there were some memories I’d quite like to throw out. But there were others I wanted to cling to, to dwell on, to appreciate, to love. And this is what is behind Deborah’s song – she had experienced something to remember.
In these times, it was rare for people to take time to write, so one of the ways the people remembered stories and celebrations was to compose a song. So Deborah might be the Ancient Near East’s version of Chris Tomlin or Tim Hughes. She wrote this song to teach the people of Israel, so that they would remember the great things God had done.
What had God done for Deborah? He had given her and the people victory over the darkness that loomed over them. When God helps us to win battles of our own, against sin and temptation, what can we do but praise him? Isn’t he our Father who also “will sing and be joyful about you”? (Zephaniah 3 v 17)
Reflection
Take one of your favourite worship songs today, read it in God’s presence,
and use it to guide your prayers of praise to the One who is singing over you.
Judges 5 v 4-5
“LORD, when you came from Edom, when you marched from the land of Edom,
the earth shook, the skies rained, and the clouds dropped water.
The mountains shook before the LORD, the God of Mount Sinai, before the LORD,
the God of Israel!”
Notes
Our lead vocalist in this section of the song is Deborah, whose name in
Hebrew means “honeybee”. She was a prophetess whom God had raised
up as a leader, and being a prophetess meant that the Spirit of God had blessed
her with real insight. In knowing God, she could sing words like those we have
in our reading today. But what are these words all about?
Well, Deborah is singing about the awesome presence of God and recalling in her song the fact that God is always present in the lives of his people. When the “Honeybee” sings of the Lord marching out from the land of Edom, she’s reminding the people of Israel of what they have learned from other songs, like the song of Moses in Deuteronomy 32. These songs gave praise to God for the fact that God was always there for Israel, leading and guiding over all the years from when they first escaped from Egypt, all the way up to when God gave them the Law and the 10 Commandments at Sinai.
The fact is, year after year, moment-by-moment, God was with them. He led them with a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. Deborah is praising God that she and the people of Israel, all these years later, have also known God’s presence in the battle they have just won.
How about you? Do you know what it’s like to know God’s presence? Do you know that God is with you even when you don’t feel his presence? He is, you know… God is closer than you think!
Prayer
Father, thank you that you are always with me, even when I don’t
notice. Thank you that because Jesus died and rose again, the Holy Spirit was
given as a gift to me. Help me to remember that, through the same Spirit, you
are always present in my heart and in my life. Amen
Judges 5 v 6-9
“In the days of Shamgar son of Anath, in the days of Jael, the main roads
were empty.
Travellers went on the back roads.
There were no warriors in Israel until I, Deborah, arose, until I arose to
be a mother to Israel.
At that time they chose to follow new gods.
Because of this, enemies fought us at our city gates.
No one could find a shield or a spear among the forty thousand people of Israel.
My heart is with the commanders of Israel.
They volunteered freely from among the people.
Praise the LORD!”
Notes
Have you ever lived in, or been through a rough area? I was brought up in one.
It was the kind of place that had a sign at the start of the town that said, “Please
Drive Slowly” with some spray painted addition saying, “This
makes it easier for us to steal your hub-caps!”
Well, Deborah today continues her song and she’s using it to remind people of what it was like in their land at that time. It was a rough area, Israel, and people were frightened to use main roads because there were so many bandits, stealing money, expensive goods, and even children to sell as slaves. Because of these thieves, people took back roads to their destinations. All-in-all, there was a fear looming over Israel and what’s worse, there was no one to stand up and stand against this lawlessness. Who was going to help?
God called Deborah, because she was someone who was a faithful believer in him. As well as that, she was troubled in her heart at the injustices and pain experienced in her land. She didn’t need experience, social standing, or anything else the world considers “essential”. All that was needed was to have a heart that cared about the things God cared about.
So God used Deborah…powerfully!!! God raised her up and the people followed. The bandits were dealt with and order was restored. No longer did people need to live in fear. They could live in peace. That’s why she’s singing her song.
Today, let’s not be silent in the shadow of fear or injustice or pain. Let’s instead care about the things God cares about, like the lonely, the lost, the unloved, the homeless, the sick, the hungry. Maybe like Deborah you too can stand up and be counted!
Prayer
Help me Lord to care about what you care about, and stand with Jesus for the
needy people of this world. Drive out fear, drive out hunger, drive out evil.
Amen
Judges 5 v 10-12
“You who ride on white donkeys and sit on saddle blankets, and you who
walk along the road, listen!
Listen to the sound of the singers at the watering holes.
There they tell about the victories of the LORD, the victories of the LORD’s
warriors in Israel.
Then the LORD’s people went down to the city gates.”
“Wake up, wake up, Deborah!
Wake up, wake up, sing a song!
Get up, Barak!
Go capture your enemies, son of Abinoam!”
Notes
Previously Deborah’s song mentioned how Israel had become a rough area,
where travellers weren’t safe to use the roads. Today is something that
will lift your hearts!
As songs help paint pictures, imagine this… those travellers who were once forced to find alternative routes, (unfortunately without the help of Google earth!) are now pictured as “walking along the road” and sitting by the wells or “watering holes” on the way to their destination. Because God had restored order through Deborah and Barak, people were able to enjoy meeting together and find joy in the good times of victory and peace.
People were able to “go down to the city gates”, the Israelite equivalent of Starbucks! People of these times met by the gates to talk together, a tradition that carried on into Jesus’ day. It was something the people couldn’t do before because of raiding armies targeting gates as points of weakness in city walls.
Because the enemies of Israel had been defeated, the people enjoyed fellowship again and morale was lifted. This meeting together is so important you know… and the best place to have this fellowship and companionship is in the church where we too can enjoy meeting together to find joy in the good times of the victory and peace won for us by Jesus Christ – “But we thank God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Corinthians 15 v 57).
This is what real fellowship is… it’s a togetherness that’s much deeper than simple friendship. Fellowship is about being a people who hold each other, in our minds, hearts and prayers. This is the kind of fellowship that produces fruit, joy and that glorifies God. This is the kind of fellowship I want to be a part of. Do you?
Prayer
Thank you Jesus that church for me can be a place of safety and support and
companionship. Amen
Judges 5 v 13-15
“Then those who were left came down to the important leaders.
The LORD’s people came down to me with strong men.
They came from Ephraim in the mountains of Amalek.
Benjamin was among the people who followed you.
From the family group of Makir, the commanders came down.
And from Zebulun came those who lead.
The princes of Issachar were with Deborah.
The people of Issachar were loyal to Barak and followed him into the valley.
The Reubenites thought hard about what they would do.”
Notes
Today’s passage is all about coming together and I suppose what we’re
looking at is not so different from an international sports team. Take the
England football team in preparation for the coming World Cup as an example
(I use England, even though I’m Scottish – we’re not in the
World Cup). The England team will be made up of players from different teams,
like Real Madrid, Manchester United and so on. Although these players are all
apart in everyday life, they get together to unite for a common purpose.
That’s exactly what today’s passage is all about. You see, all these names mentioned today are the names of tribes of Israel, the equivalent of club teams, and each of these tribes joined together are the equivalent of the international team. They came together, not to win a trophy as such, but to win their freedom, and they could only do it together.
Someone once said, “No one person has got it together, but together we’ve got it!” This was what Deborah realised as leader of Israel… she needed everyone to get together and stand as one.
When God’s people unite and stand as one, we are a formidable force… a force that helps people in need, a force that wins souls for Jesus, a force that tramples the devil underfoot. A force for Christ. Will you join with other Christians and stand as one for Jesus?
Prayer
Father God, help me to stand together with my brothers and sisters in Christ
to be a formidable force for you in years to come… a formidable force
of love and peace and joy. Amen
Judges 5 v 16-18
Why did you stay by the sheepfold?
Was it to hear the music played for your sheep?
The Reubenites thought hard about what they would do.
The people of Gilead stayed east of the Jordan River.
People of Dan, why did you stay by the ships?
The people of Asher stayed at the seashore, at their safe harbours.
But the people of Zebulun risked their lives as did the people of Naphtali
on the battlefield.
Notes
We’re looking today at another part of Deborah’s song of thanksgiving.
Part of her song has been recalling the courage and dedication and bravery
of many of the tribes of Israel who have risked their lives in battle in order
to win peace for a nation.
However, Deborah also has some questions… questions for a few of the tribes of Israel who didn’t come to Deborah’s aid as others did. Deborah knew that for these tribes of Reuben, Dan and others, there were external factors that were influencing their decisions. Yet what it came down to was cowardice and delay. These tribes were distracted from the real need of the kingdom by being selfish in a way, looking to their own interests and not to the wider interests of everyone in the nation.
There is a lesson in this for us today. I wonder how inward-looking we are? Are we perhaps frightened of making a choice or a decision in relation to something that may involve some risk? For those who joined Deborah, who took steps of faith, their faith was rewarded and they experienced something they’d never forget. But for those who didn’t join Deborah, they missed out on participating in the will of God.
How about you? Are you facing a decision this week? Is there risk involved? Prayer is certainly an essential cover of every decision, but is your decision requiring a step of faith? Remember, as John Ortberg said, “If you want to walk on water, you’ve got to get out of the boat.”
Prayer
Heavenly Father, I pray today for wisdom and guidance for the days ahead and
for strength in times when faith is required. As the father of an epileptic
prayed, “I believe in you Lord; help me overcome my unbelief.” (Mark
9 v 24) Amen
Judges 5 v 19-23
“The kings came, and they fought.
At that time the kings of Canaan fought at Taanach, by the waters of Megiddo.
But they took away no silver or possessions of Israel.
The stars fought from heaven; from their paths, they fought Sisera.
The Kishon River swept Sisera’s men away, that old river, the Kishon
River.
March on, my soul, with strength!
Then the horses’ hoofs beat the ground.
Galloping, galloping go Sisera’s mighty horses.
‘May the town of Meroz be cursed,’ said the angel of the LORD.
‘Bitterly curse its people, because they did not come to help the LORD.
They did not fight the strong enemy.’ ”
Notes
Today’s reading is part of Deborah’s song through which she
recalls and retells the way God gave Israel victory over its enemies. I hope
when you read today’s text you sensed the excitement and the victory
it holds.
I want us to dwell on the parts where it says, “The stars fought from heaven… march on, my soul, with strength!”
Here for us is a lesson of that will help us as we face our own battles… not necessarily of invading armies storming our countries, but certainly the invading enemy the devil storming our hearts with lies and temptation.
When faced with such things, how do we respond? Do we try to gather up enough strength to fight it by ourselves? Do we wrestle with our temptations, sometimes to overcome, but more often to lose out? Are you fed up with temptation and failure in such battles?
Take heart… the battle is not yours, it’s the Lord’s! Just as “the stars fought from heaven,” so God fights for you. God intervenes in our battles and he fights for us. And we must remember, he has won the greatest battle of them all… that victory over death, won by our Lord Jesus who, although he was crucified and killed, rose up on the third day, leaving death wincing from where its sting was torn off.
As Deborah declared to the people of Israel, so I declare to you… God is for you, who can be against you? “March on, my soul, with strength!”
Prayer
Lord Jesus, what a relief it is that I’m not alone in my battles. Thank
you that you command your angels to protect me. Thank you that you fight for
me. Help me to march on with strength, trusting in you. Amen
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word-on-the-web uses the Scripture text taken from the Youth Bible, New Century Version (Anglicised Edition) copyright 1993 by Word Publishing Milton Keynes