THE BOOK OF
JUDGES
Judges 4 ©
God vexes Israel for their sins by king Jabin, whose captain general was Sisera, verses 1, 2, etc. Afterward God raises up the prophetess Deborah, who from the Lord commands Barak to march forth against Sisera, promising him the victory, and she herself marches forth with him, 4, etc. The host of Sisera is hereby severely beaten, 15. Jael hides Sisera in his flight, and kills him in her tent, 17. King Jabin is destroyed, 24.
AND the children of Israel again did evil in the sight of the LORD, when Ehud was dead.
And the LORD 1sold them into the hand of 2Jabin king of 3Canaan, that reigned in 4Hazor; the captain of whose host was Sisera,a5which dwelt in 6Harosheth of the Gentiles.
And the children of Israel cried unto the LORD: for he had nine hundred chariots of iron; and twenty years he mightily oppressed the children of Israel.
¶And Deborah, a 7prophetess, the wife of 8Lapidoth, she judged Israel at that time.
And she dwelt under the 9palm tree of Deborah between Ramah and Beth-el in mount Ephraim: and the children of Israel came up to her 10for judgment.
And she sent and called Barakb the son of Abinoam out of 11Kedesh-naphtali, and said unto him, 12Hath not the LORD God of Israel commanded, saying, Go and 13draw toward mount 14Tabor, and take with thee ten thousand men of the children of Naphtali and of the children of Zebulun?
And I will 15draw unto thee to the river Kishonc Sisera, the captain of Jabin's army, with his chariots and his multitude; and I will deliver him into thine hand.
And Barak said unto her, If thou wilt go with me, then I will go: but if thou wilt not go with me, then I will not go.
And she said, I 16will surely go with thee: notwithstanding the 17journey that thou takest shall not be for thine honour; for the LORD shall 18sell Sisera into the hand of a 19woman. And Deborah arose, and went with Barak to Kedesh.
¶And Barak called Zebulun and Naphtali to Kedesh; 20and he went up with ten thousand men at his feet: and Deborah went up with him.
Now 21Heber the 22Kenite, which was of the children ofd23Hobab the father in law of Moses, had severed himself from the 24Kenites, and pitched his tent unto the plain of Zaanaim, which is by Kedesh.
And they shewed Sisera that Barak the son of Abinoam was gone up to mount Tabor.
And Sisera 25gathered together all his chariots, even nine hundred chariots of iron, and all the people that were with him, from Harosheth of the Gentiles unto the river of Kishon.
And Deborah said unto Barak, Up; for this is the day in which the LORD hath delivered Sisera into thine hand: 26is not the LORD gone out 27before thee? So Barak went down from mount Tabor, and ten thousand men after him.
Ande the LORD 28discomfitedf Sisera, and all his chariots, and all his host, with the 29edge of the sword before Barak; so that Sisera lighted down off his chariot, and fled away on his feet.
But Barak pursued after the chariots, and after the host, unto Harosheth of the Gentiles: and all the host of Sisera fell upon the edge of the sword; and 30there was not a man left.
Howbeit Sisera fled away on his feet to the tent of Jael the wife of Heber the Kenite: for there was peace between Jabin the king of Hazor and the house of Heber the Kenite.
¶And Jael went out to meet Sisera, and said unto him, Turn in, my lord, turn in to me; fear not. And when he had turned in unto her into the tent, she covered him with a 31mantle.g
Andh he said unto her, Give me, I pray thee, a little water to drink; for I am thirsty. And she opened a bottle of milk, and gave him drink, and covered him.
Again he said unto her, Stand in the door of the tent, and it shall be, when any man doth come and enquire of thee, and say, Is there any man here? that thou shalt say, 32No.
33Then Jael Heber's wife took a nail 34of the tent, and took an hammer in her hand, and went softly unto him, and smote the nail into his temples, and 35fastened it into the ground: for he was fast asleep and weary. So he died.
And, behold, as Barak pursued Sisera, Jael came out to meet him, and said unto him, Come, and I will shew thee the man whom thou seekest. And when he came into her tent, behold, Sisera lay dead, and the nail was in his temples.
So God subdued on that day Jabin the king of Canaan before the children of Israel.
And the hand of the children of Israel 36prospered, and prevailed against Jabin the king of Canaan, until they had destroyed Jabin king of Canaan.