Deborah - A Woman of Faith and Courage

As today is Mother's Day, I thought it seemed appropriate to look at one of the women in the Bible. We're going to look at someone who plays an important role in his story of Israel in the Old Testament. Yet this person doesn't seem to often get a lot of prominence. If you're asked to name important women in the Bible, you might mention her, but she probably wouldn't be the first one that you'd think of. It's possible this is because she is tucked away in a couple of chapters in a book with lots of other prominent characters, and her story might not seem as exciting as some of the others.

This person is Deborah, and we read about her in Judges chapter four.

When you think of those mentioned in the Book of Judges, you tend to think of warriors like Gideon or Samson, some of the others, the ones that fought fierce battles and defeated their enemies. In fact, in Hebrews 11, that famous chapter on faith, in verse 32, it mentions some of these Judges. Deborah doesn't get a mention, but the commander who served under her, Bayrak, does. And even though, as we go through this story, we'll see that she displays far more faith and courage than he did. The Book of Judges talks about those who were appointed to lead Israel before they had a king.

The book shows the up and downs of Israel's relationship with God. In Judges 4:1, we see the common theme throughout the book, and the people of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. Again and again throughout this book, the people of Israel turn away from God even though he had rescued them and brought them into this land. They do what seems good to them instead of following Him. God then allows their enemies to overpower them like he said he would if they stopped following him.

If they stopped obeying Him. In despair, Israel would call out to God and He would rescue them by sending a Judge who would overcome their enemies and and bring peace in the land. For a time, the Israelites would turn back to God and follow Him. Then, as everything was going well, they would become complacent in their faith and they would turn away and follow other gods. It was an ongoing cycle, but God would always provide rescue when they turned to Him.

The Book of Judges is a clear example of the incredible grace of the God who keeps his promises. God did not abandon his people, no matter how many times the Israelites abandoned him. The Book of Judges shows God's desire for his people to live in freedom, peace and prosperity under his rule. It shows God's heart of forgiveness and Redemption when people come to him in repentance.

Deborah is unique in that she is the only woman judge. She was a prophet as well as a judge. So she heard God's word and brought it to the people. She was a woman of incredible faith and courage. At the time of Deborah, Israel was under the domination of Jabin, King of Canaan, whose commander Sisera had cruelly oppressed the Israelites for 20 years.

When Israel cries out to God for help, the person chosen was Deborah. This does seem unusual. There are some that hold that this was because there were no suitable men available, that Deborah was really God's second choice, that somehow God had picked out a man who, for whatever reason, just didn't fulfil his destiny. So God suddenly being caught out, had to look around for someone else. And he's like, oh yes, Deborah will do.

God's plans are set in place long before they come about. God doesn't suddenly get caught out. And he also isn't limited in who he chooses. He looks for people who are willing to obey his word and will do the things he has for them. And this was the case with Deborah.

Judges 4, 4, 5.

Now, Deborah, a prophet, the wife of Lappadoth, was leading Israel at that time. She held court under the palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim. And the Israelites went up to her to have their disputes decided. Here it says, Deborah was leading Israel. She was already established in her position when, as Judges 4, 3 says, the people cried out to God for help.

After having been oppressed for 20 years, God didn't have to desperately look around for someone suitable. Deborah was already there as a leader, the one recognized by the people, the one they came to, just like a regular modern judge. She settled disputes, but she had an advantage. She was a prophet, someone that God had chosen to speak his word to the people because she had this wisdom from God. She was the one that people sought out when they had a dispute.

They listened to her because she spoke to them from God. She fulfilled the same sort of role that Moses did when he led the people of Israel. He spoke God's word to them and he settled their disputes. He found this part so burdensome that his Father in law advised him to appoint others to rule in the simple cases, while he just dealt with the more complex ones. Deborah certainly needed godly wisdom and insight as well as patience to do this time consuming job.

As we know, things haven't changed. People always have disputes and wisdom is certainly needed to rule what is Right or wrong, Deborah had the respect and trust of the community because they recognised God's authority through what she said and did. She was clearly the leader.

We see this authority displayed in what happens next. Judges 4, 6 says that she sends for Barak, who was the commander of the Lord's army. She tells him, the Lord, the God of Israel, commands you. Then Deborah gives Bayrak the instructions God had given to her for him. He is to take 10,000 men from two of the tribes and lead them to Mount Tabor.

God will then cause Sisera to come there with his chariots and troops. When this happens, God will give the victory to the Israelites. They would then be freed from the oppression they had been under.

Barak, as the commander of the army, is the one who's to lead Israel out against its enemies under God's guidance. Barak didn't hear directly from God. He had to rely on what God said coming to him through Deborah. But he's been given clear instructions.

It could have been thought that Barak should have been the one who was the judge. It would have fitted more in with the other judges in this book. He was a warrior, a commander, and he was the one chosen to defeat the enemy. God knew, though, that Barak lacked some of the characteristics that were needed. Barak knew that God spoke through Deborah.

He knew that God would help the people when they called out to him. And he should have known that God would use him as a leader in battle. Yet when he gets this message, instead of straightaway setting out on what he was to do or even just double checking the details, he's hesitant, as shown by him saying to Deborah, if you go with me, I will go, but if you don't go with me, I won't go. Barak is struggling to obey God's word. His faith is lacking.

Certainly, if you looked at the situation through human eyes, he. He was facing a huge task. He's told to take 10,000 men, not a big force, and oppose a much larger army that had been oppressing them for years. In all that time, Israel hadn't managed to free themselves.

God has given him clear instructions. He's to take a certain number of men from specific tribes to a particular place, and then God will bring the enemy and give Bayrak victory. His role is to trust God and to carry out what God has said. Deborah has made it clear that this message is from God. Yet Barak hesitates.

He refuses to go unless Deborah goes with him. An odd request. She's not a soldier, although she's a judge. She's a woman, not Someone you would expect to be at the place of battle and she's not expected to be the leader of the army. That's not what God has said to do.

Why does Barak want her to go with him? Deborah signified the presence of God with the people. When they saw and heard Deborah, they knew it was God speaking, that God was speaking through her, and that the instructions that she said were given from God. Barak appears to lack confidence in his own ability to. To rally the people.

It's understandable in a way. Over the years, there would have been many attempts by the people to free themselves and nothing had been successful. And their hope would have been worn down. They would have lost their hope because of their lack of success. Although Barak is a strong commander, he doubted that his word would be enough.

If Deborah was there, it was a different matter. The people wouldn't just be trusting Barak. They would know that clearly that was God's direction that he was acting on. Also, there may have been an element of superstition as well. Barak may have felt that there need to be some physical representation of God's presence, that to be successful, there need to be something that actually showed God was there, instead of just trusting that if God said something would happen, that it would.

Instead, if Deborah was there, it was like as if God was there in a sense. And maybe he thought, yes, we need that. We need something more than just a word. We need something that's more noticeable. Deborah, instead of telling Barak to man up and get on with it, instead of pointing out the differences between their positions and telling him it wasn't her job, she agrees to go.

She shows herself to be a stronger leader than Barak. And because she is willing to do what is necessary for the task to succeed. Sometimes we need to go beyond what we consider our job, our responsibilities. For a plan to succeed, we need to step out to help, even though we feel we shouldn't have to. Deborah here would have been justified in telling Barak to stand on his own two feet and just get on with it.

He's been given clear directions, so she could have told him all he needed to do was to show more faith, just trust God more. She had her own responsibilities, her own job to do. Instead, she agrees to help out. In Judges 4, 9, she says to him, yes, I'll go with you. But then she adds a catch.

She says to Barak, but because the course you are taking, the honour will not be yours, for the Lord will deliver Sisera into the hands of a woman. This was not Deborah trying to be nasty. This was from God. Because Barak hadn't responded with absolute obedience, he would still have the victory. The Israelites would still be freed from their enemies.

But he's going to lose the honor, the glory that would result from that victory. He won't be the one to kill the feared enemy leader. If we look back at the initial command to Barak in verse six, the version I'm using today translates it as, the Lord, the God of Israel, commands you. But in some other versions, it's translated in a different tense, such as, has not the Lord God of Israel commanded you? Suggesting that Barak may have already heard from God about the direction Deborah's giving him, that what she brings him is maybe a confirmation or maybe more expansion of what he is to do, that he'd already been told that he was to lead them out in battle.

In that case, it makes his slowness or unwillingness to act even more wrong. As the one entrusted by God to command the army, he should have been ready to act on God's instruction. Deborah goes with Barak, and he calls 10,000 men from the two tribes together, and they go to Mount Tabor. Meanwhile, Sisera has heard about this gathering, so he comes with all his men and 900 iron chariots. This would have been incredibly frightening to the Israelites, who had none of these chariots and a lot less men.

Judges 4:14 Then Deborah said to Barak, go. This is the day the Lord has given Sisera into your hands. Has not the Lord gone ahead of you? So Barak went down Mount Tabor with 10,000 men following him.

Deborah is right there where the battle is to happen, which is just as well as it appears. Like Barak is again a bit hesitant about acting. She tells him to go and again assures him that God has promised victory. She takes the lead. Even in the situation where Barak is the military commander, once he gets that push from Deborah, he's then willing to go into battle.

Deborah is not afraid to go where the battle is. She trusts that what God has said will happen. Something I heard said once was, it is one thing to say to a person, God will deliver you, but it's another thing to say, I have so much confidence in God's promise that I will stand next to you as he does it. I will go through this battle right beside you, helping and supporting.

Deborah is that sort of leader whose faith and trust is not in her own self, but in God's promise. The Israelites are successful in battle, just as God said, despite the superior strength of Sisera's army.

In this story of Deborah, we see that God chooses who is right for their situation. He knew at that time and place. Deborah, a woman who heard from him, who had wisdom, courage and faith, and who would show leadership and authority, was the best person. God didn't care that she wasn't able to fight or lead the army. He knew that she would be ready to do what he said.

God's acts in different ways at different times, and Deborah was what was needed for that time, that situation.

Bayrak was a good military commander, but he lacked the faith necessary to respond when God spoke. He was able to lead the troops in battle, but he needed prompting. He needed someone alongside him to remind him, to encourage him in what he was to do. Barak still had to fulfil the task, but because he had been reluctant, he wouldn't get the honour a victorious leader would expect.

Deborah listened to God and was faithful in bringing His Word into each situation. She was willing to go the extra mile. This was something else that God knew about Deborah's character. She goes with Barak even though it isn't her responsibility to do that. She provides the reassurance and the push to see that God's word is fulfilled here.

God used both Deborah and Barak. Deborah didn't take over from him. She didn't dress up in armor and rush into battle. She didn't ask God to appoint a different commander, saying, this one's useless. Find someone who's willing to actually go out there and fight.

He was still the one who led the Israelites into battle, but Deborah came alongside him to encourage and to help.

God is true to His Word. When we receive an instruction from God, when it is clear what he wants us to do, we need to act. We need to take God at His word and do what he says. We may have to step out into different things and in different ways to help fulfil God's plan. God is not the one lacking, but sometimes human response is flawed.

We may see someone struggling with their faith and we need to see if there's something extra we can do to help them, to help them move forward, to push them forward. We're not to take over or discount them or reject them because they lack faith, but we're to give them that encouragement, that extra bit of help that will see God's plan fulfilled. Israel had the victory and were freed from their oppressors because of Deborah being willing to be used by God and to work with Barak to supply what he lacked. We can see God's plans fulfilled in our lives and through the lives of those around us. When we are willing to help, we should stand strong in faith and courage, like Deborah did, listening to God and being willing to be used to see God's plans come about, no matter the opposition.

And above all, in this story of Deborah, we see the grace of God. We see how God is ready to rescue his people when they call out to him, how he already had in place the people and the situation to free them from what oppressed them.

And just as God rescued them from this human oppression, we know that through Jesus, God has, in his grace, provided freedom to everyone from the oppression that sin brings. Jesus sacrifice, fought and won a battle that we couldn't fight. And he brought peace and reconciliation with God. Today, remember, God's mercy and grace is available to you no matter what you face. If you come to him.

If you just really come to him and ask for his help. His grace and his mercy is there because of what Jesus has done for us. And we see in this example in Judges 4 of God's grace and mercy. And we see it throughout the whole Bible, and we can see it in our lives as we come to him and seek him. And as we listen to His Word and as we do what he says.

Let's pray. Our Heavenly Father, we thank youk for your grace and. And your mercy. We thank you that you are a loving and good God. A God who cares for his people, who wants them to live in peace and prosperity and safety, Lord, and who knows that this is done.

As we hear Your word and as we obey you, help each of us to come to you. Help each of us to recognize what Jesus has done for us, that through laying down his life, he has given us true life, eternal life. And help each of us to be willing to just submit ourselves to your lordship and to do what you desire. Help us to reach out to others too, Lord, to encourage and to support. Just as we see in this example the help and support of Deborah as she showed that faith and courage to do your will.

Thank you, Lord. Be with each of us. Each one of us is day. And as we go about whatever we face, be with us, Lord. Amen.