The Song of Barak and Deborah
The Book of Judges • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Introduction
Introduction
D. Deborah and Barak praise God for his defeat of their enemies.
P. We also can praise God in song for the victory he gives over our enemies.
T. The movements of this story may be broken down a variety of ways, but I wanted to highlight the the mentions of the Lord God in their song. Thus we will look at their praise of God in this light.
The Story Outline:
God’s people revert back to their sin of idolatry. They have not separated themselves from the heathen in practice and thus have been infiltrated with their thinking and intermarried with their unbelieving neighbours. This displeases their Holy God who commands them to come out and be separate.
Because they refuse to repent of their idolatry, the Lord sells them into the hand of King Jabin, a Canaanite King who rules North of the of the Sea of Galilee 10 miles in a city called Hazor. He has Sisera his general of his army and 900 iron chariots mightily oppress Israel for twenty years from a city near the middle of the Israelites inheritance called Harosheth of the Gentiles. It was one of those cities that Israel didn’t bother to get rid of when they could have and now it is a grievous thorn in their eyes.
However, this mighty oppression finally causes the children of Israel to wake up to their wickedness against God. They cry to the Lord for help and he raises up a judge called Deborah. The male leadership is gone at this point in Egypt.
Deborah executes judgment as a mother in Israel as the people come to her in Mount Ephraim under the Palm of Deborah to hear what God’s Word says about how to live. It is during this time the Lord speaks to Deborah and tells her to call General Barak to action and gives her the battle plan for Barak.
General Barak is rather cowardly and tells Deborah he will not go where God commands unless she comes with him. The consequences for this lack of faith, Barak is told is that the Lord will allow Sisera to be defeated by a woman.
Upon gathering 10,000 troops, Barak ascends to Mount Tabor according to the commandment of the Lord. Hobab the Kenite warns the Canaanite General Sisera of Barak’s movements and Sisera brings his armies to engage in battle.
However, this end poorly for Sisera and his army as God delivers and discomfits Sisera’s army before Barak and his troops hands. They beat them so badly jumps out of his chariot and runs away on foot, as they slaughter Sisera’s soldiers.
Sisera is able to escape unscathed and runs to Jael the wife of Hobab, the family with whom there is peace and alerted him of Barak’s movements. Sisera thinks he is safe, but Jael works cunningly allowing him to hide in her tent, giving him milk to drink, and covering him with a blanket before sneaking quietly upon him and smiting him through the temples with a tent stake while he slept.
Sisera’s mother awaits his return to no avail. He is dead. The enemy of Israel has been defeated because of the mighty hand of the Lord.
Judges, Ruth (2) The Poetic Celebration (5:1–31)
As a song, it bears the marks of typical Hebrew poetry: the parallelistic balancing of lines based on conventional pairs of words, alliteration, paranomasia, chiasmus, and formulaic constructions.299
The song is founded in an overflow of praise to God, much like the Song of praise to God when he defeated the Egyptians in the Red Sea in Exodus 15. This is one of the earliest pieces of Hebrew poetry.
They praise God for Avenging them.
They praise God for Avenging them.
Judges 5:2 “Praise ye the Lord for the avenging of Israel, When the people willingly offered themselves.”
Explain
The idea of avenging contextually is one of leading to freedom. It is to grant freedom from one that was formerly enslaved.
This is a beautiful picture prefiguring Christ’s freeing us from the bondage of sin.
Isaiah 61:1 “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; Because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; He hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to them that are bound;”
Galatians 5:1 “Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.”
Galatians 5:13 “For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.”
Unfortunately the children of Israel abused their liberty which resulted in further degeneracy and bondage.
Freedom from oppression does not always equal righteousness.
How are you using the liberty to be freed from your sins? Do you use it to serve others or do what you want to do. My brothers and sisters God has freed us to serve Him.
Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist had it right. Luke 1:74–75 “That he would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies Might serve him without fear, In holiness and righteousness before him, All the days of our life.”
My friend you have been delivered from the bondage of sin and your enemy the Devil. Let us serve the Lord together for he is worthy of our lives and praise for his avenging in our behalf. Romans 5:8 “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”
Notice this avenging happened as the children of Israel offered themselves willingly. Likewise, until we are ready to renounce all but dung for the excellency of the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ we will not experience the freeing of bondage from our sins and the salvation offered freely in Jesus Christ.
God is more than willing to save, but the sinner must come willingly. He cannot be forced.
Praise God for his willingness to avenge us against the old accuser of the brethren.
The praise is unashamed. Judges 5:3 “Hear, O ye kings; give ear, O ye princes; I, even I, will sing unto the Lord; I will sing praise to the Lord God of Israel.”
It is before the surrounding princes and kings.
They probably didn’t think much of Israel’s God because they were always trying to worship their false gods too.
We need to seek the Lord instead of all the “gods” we look to get us through our day. Seek the Lord and strength. Seek his face forevermore.
Don’t be ashamed of your Lord, but praise his amongst the highest authorities.
Notice the grandeur of the Lord described Judges 5:4–5 “Lord, When thou wentest out of Seir, When thou marchedst out of the field of Edom, The earth trembled, and the heavens dropped, The clouds also dropped water. The mountains melted from before the Lord, Even that Sinai from before the Lord God of Israel.”
The creation has a proper respect of their Creator. The question is, do you?
Joshua 4:24 “That all the people of the earth might know the hand of the Lord, that it is mighty: that ye might fear the Lord your God for ever.”
Illustrate: What do you praise?
Apply
Deborah and Barak praised God for avenging their enemies.
Praise God for your freedom from sin in Christ.
Are you in bondage to some sin. Run to Christ, crying out to him for deliverance. Isaiah 57:15 “For thus saith the high and lofty One That inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, With him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, To revive the spirit of the humble, And to revive the heart of the contrite ones.”
They Praise God with Adoration.
They Praise God with Adoration.
Judges 5:9 “My heart is toward the governors of Israel, That offered themselves willingly among the people. Bless ye the Lord.”
Explain
The heart was toward the governors of Israel who were willing.
Don’t you love it when you see leaders who want to serve God and the people they serve well.
I must say seeing our new presidential administration publically acknowledge God and seek to provide safe borders again to our nation causes my heart to be towards them in prayer and offer praise to our God.
The word blessed means praised and adored.
Deborah and Barak in their song of praise to God took time to verbalize their adoration for God.
However, it didn’t stop their. They challenged those around them to bless the Lord too.
Argue
Praise cannot be kept to one’s self. It must be shared with others. It is contagious.
Prayer is not so heavenly an exercise as praise; prayer is for time, but praise is for eternity.
“Where Are The Nine?”-Or, Praise Neglected, Volume 32, Sermon #1935 - Luke 17:15-19
Charles Spurgeon
Illustrate: Set God’s works to music like Asaph. Why? Psalm 78:7 “That they might set their hope in God, And not forget the works of God, But keep his commandments:”
As God works in your life, praise him for it. Take some time to put it in poetic form and bless him for what he has done in your life.
Apply
The practice of blessing God in adoration will help keep you from sin. Psalm 78:8 “And might not be as their fathers, A stubborn and rebellious generation; A generation that set not their heart aright, And whose spirit was not stedfast with God.”
Hebrews 6:18 “That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us:”
Our salvation is secured in heaven with God the Father.
Our hope is in Him who cannot lie. Titus 1:2 “In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;”
The rulers willing offered themselves.
Good often starts from top down.
May we reflect on God’s goodness dads and moms, grandpas and grandmas, as well as older siblings. Your willingness to follow the orders of your God will make a difference for those under you. Proverbs 29:2 “When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice: But when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn.”
Therefore with boldness we can praise God for his avenging on our behalf when we turn in faith to Him and adore him for his
They Praise God for his mighty Acts.
They Praise God for his mighty Acts.
Explain
Rehearse his righteous acts. Judges 5:10–11 “Speak, ye that ride on white asses, Ye that sit in judgment, And walk by the way. They that are delivered from the noise of archers in the places of drawing water, There shall they rehearse the righteous acts of the Lord, Even the righteous acts toward the inhabitants of his villages in Israel: Then shall the people of the Lord go down to the gates.”
The kings and princes who are the losers are called to sing with the victors.
judgment for our sins
deliverance when we repent.
a judge
a military leader
people who follow the leader
The watering hole was the place of community gathering, so here the people are challenged to talk of the works of the Lord.
Judges 5:13 “Then he made him that remaineth have dominion over the nobles among the people: The Lord made me have dominion over the mighty.”
The Lord has given victory.
2 Corinthians 2:14 “Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place.”
Refusing are cursed
Judges 5:23 “Curse ye Meroz, said the angel of the Lord, Curse ye bitterly the inhabitants thereof; Because they came not to the help of the Lord, To the help of the Lord against the mighty.”
Be a soldier not a spectator. Be involved in prayer and where you can be in ministering in the church.
Ruin of the enemy
Judges 5:31 “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. And the land had rest forty years.”
Sisera’s demise
Matthew 21:44 “And whosoever shall fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will grind him to powder.”
Rest of the Lord’s lovers
Judges 5:31 “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. And the land had rest forty years.”
Hebrews 4:9 “There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God.”
Christ our savior brings eternal rest
