1 ARST After Ehud died, the Israelites again started doing things Yahweh said were very evil. BSB BSB: After Ehud died, the Israelites again did evil in the sight of the LORD.
3 ARST Sisera’ s army had nine hundred chariots made out of iron. For twenty years he cruelly oppressed the Israelites. Then they pleaded to Yahweh to help them. BSB BSB: Then the Israelites cried out to the LORD, because Jabin had nine hundred chariots of iron, and he had harshly oppressed the Israelites for twenty years.
4 ARST Now Deborah, a woman who proclaimed the word of Yahweh(who was the wife of Lappidoth), was a leading judge in Israel at that time. BSB BSB: Now Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel at that time.
5 ARST She would sit under her palm tree(they called it the“palm of Deborah”) at a place between Ramah and Bethel, in the hill country where the descendants of Ephraim lived, and people would come to her and ask her to settle their legal disputes. She would determine what was right and fair. BSB BSB: And she would sit under the Palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim, where the Israelites would go up to her for judgment.
6 ARST One day she sent for Barak son of Abinoam and called him to come to her. He was from Kedesh(in the area where the descendants of Naphtali lived). She said to him,“This is what Yahweh, the God we worship, is commanding you to do:‘Take ten thousand men with you, some from Naphtali and some from Zebulun, and gather all your men together at Mount Tabor. BSB BSB: She summoned Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali and said to him, “Surely the LORD, the God of Israel, is commanding you: ‘Go and march to Mount Tabor, taking with you ten thousand men of Naphtali and Zebulun.
7 ARST Yahweh will make me able to persuade Sisera, the commander of King Jabin’ s army, to come with his chariots and his army, to the river Kishon, a few miles away. I will enable your men to defeat them there.’” BSB BSB: And I will draw out Sisera the commander of Jabin’s army, his chariots, and his troops to the River Kishon, and I will deliver him into your hand.’”
8 ARST Barak replied,“I will go only if you go with me. If you will not go with me, I will not go.” BSB BSB: Barak said to her, “If you will go with me, I will go; but if you will not go with me, I will not go.”
9 ARST She replied,“Indeed I will go with you. But because that is what you have decided to do, Yahweh will enable a woman to defeat Sisera, and the result will be that no one will honor you for doing that.” So Deborah went with Barak to Kedesh. BSB BSB: “I will certainly go with you,” Deborah replied, “but the road you are taking will bring you no honor, because the LORD will be selling Sisera into the hand of a woman.” So Deborah got up and went with Barak to Kedesh,
10 ARST There he summoned men from Zebulun and Naphtali. Ten thousand men came to him there, and then they went together with Deborah to Mount Tabor. BSB BSB: where he summoned Zebulun and Naphtali. Ten thousand men followed him, and Deborah also went with him.
11 ARST At that time Heber(the Kenite) had moved away from the Kenites with his wife Jael, and set up his tent near the big oak tree at Zaanannim, near Kedesh.(Heber was a descendant of Moses’ father- in- law Hobab.) BSB BSB: Now Heber the Kenite had moved away from the Kenites, the descendants of Hobab the father-in-law of Moses, and had pitched his tent by the great tree of Zaanannim, which was near Kedesh.
12 ARST Someone told Sisera that Barak son of Abinoam had gone up on Mount Tabor with an army. BSB BSB: When Sisera was told that Barak son of Abinoam had gone up Mount Tabor,
13 ARST Sisera gathered his troops with their nine hundred chariots, and they marched from Harosheth(where the non- Israelites lived) to the river Kishon. BSB BSB: he summoned all nine hundred of his iron chariots and all the men with him, from Harosheth-hagoyim to the River Kishon.
14 ARST Then Deborah said to Barak,“Get going! This is the day that Yahweh will enable your army to defeat the army of Sisera. Yahweh is going ahead of you!” So Barak led his men as they descended from Mount Tabor. BSB BSB: Then Deborah said to Barak, “Arise, for this is the day that the LORD has delivered Sisera into your hand. Has not the LORD gone before you?” So Barak came down from Mount Tabor with ten thousand men following him.
15 ARST As they advanced, Yahweh caused Sisera and all his chariots and his army to have great difficulty maneuvering around. So Sisera jumped down from his chariot and ran away. BSB BSB: And in front of him the LORD routed with the sword Sisera, all his charioteers, and all his army. Sisera abandoned his chariot and fled on foot.
16 ARST But Barak and his men pursued the other chariots and the enemy soldiers as far as Harosheth(where the non- Israelites lived). They killed all of the men in Sisera’ s army. Not one man survived. BSB BSB: Then Barak pursued the chariots and army as far as Harosheth-hagoyim, and the whole army of Sisera fell by the sword; not a single man was left.
17 ARST But Sisera ran to Jael’ s tent. He did that because Sisera’ s master, Jabin of the city of Hazor, was a good friend of her husband Heber. BSB BSB: Meanwhile, Sisera had fled on foot to the tent of Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite, because there was peace between Jabin king of Hazor and the house of Heber the Kenite.
18 ARST Jael went out to greet Sisera. She said to him,“Sir, come into my tent! Do not be afraid!” So he went into the tent and lay down, and she covered him with a blanket. BSB BSB: Jael went out to greet Sisera and said to him, “Come in, my lord. Come in with me. Do not be afraid.” So he entered her tent, and she covered him with a blanket.
19 ARST He said to her,“I am thirsty; can you give me some water?” So she opened a leather container of milk, and gave him a drink. Then she covered him with a blanket again. BSB BSB: Sisera said to her, “Please give me a little water to drink, for I am thirsty.” So she opened a container of milk, gave him a drink, and covered him again.
20 ARST He said to her,“Stand in the entrance of the tent. If someone comes and asks,‘Is anyone else here?’, say‘No’.” BSB BSB: “Stand at the entrance to the tent,” he said, “and if anyone comes and asks you, ‘Is there a man here?’ say, ‘No.’”
21 ARST Sisera was very exhausted, so he soon was asleep. While he was sleeping, Jael crept quietly to him, holding a hammer and a tent peg. She pounded the peg through his skull, and she hammered the peg all the way through his head and it stuck into the ground, and he died. BSB BSB: But as he lay sleeping from exhaustion, Heber’s wife Jael took a tent peg, grabbed a hammer, and went silently to Sisera. She drove the peg through his temple and into the ground, and he died.
22 ARST When Barak came to Jael’ s tent to look for Sisera, she went out to greet him. She said,“Come in, and I will show you the man you are searching for!” So he followed her into the tent, and he saw Sisera lying there, dead, with the tent peg still piercing through his head. BSB BSB: When Barak arrived in pursuit of Sisera, Jael went out to greet him and said to him, “Come, and I will show you the man you are seeking.” So he went in with her, and there lay Sisera dead, with a tent peg through his temple.
23 ARST On that day God enabled the Israelites to defeat the army of Jabin, one of the kings of the Canaanites. BSB BSB: On that day God subdued Jabin king of Canaan before the Israelites.
24 ARST The Israelites became stronger and stronger, and they destroyed Jabin and his army. BSB BSB: And the hand of the Israelites grew stronger and stronger against Jabin king of Canaan until they destroyed him.
Select verses for actions: Enter goes to them and Escape comes back.