Read Judges 4:1-3
First I want to begin by pointing out that terrible verse we see over and over in Judges, “the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord.”
Here in the first verse we see a reference to the death of Ehud as the catalyst for Israel’s sin…in other words, without him around to remind them of their obligations, they quickly forgot God. As for why it is Ehud that is mentioned rather than Shamgar (who was judge after Ehud), there are two opinions on this matter. The first is that during the judgeship of Shamgar Ehud was still alive and that it was not until his death that the people turned away from God once again. The other opinion is that Ehud was already dead during the judgeship of Shamgar but that after Shamgar Israel was delivered but did not turn away from their sin and that this is why in chapter 4 the verse begins by identifying at what point their sin began. Both of these views are good, and the Bible does not tell us any details so what is important is that at one point following the death of Ehud, Israel forgot her God.
Ask: How does slackness lead to sin? (discuss)
Look now at verse 2: We first came across Hamor in Joshua 11, where we witnessed its destruction, so at some point it has apparently been rebuilt and a new king sits at its throne. And so we hear in verse 3 the familiar cry from the lips of Israel! Again and again they have sinned…but again and again they have cried out to God for deliverance. And once again, God says NO, right? NO!! He delivers them! Remember that the pivotal teaching throughout this book is that God is the covenant keeper! He is the only One that we can trust completely!
Ask) How can we take this thought and use it as an encouragement for our own times and in our own lives?
Before we move on, notice why the people are so afraid (in verse 3). Those iron chariots!! Think about it…God has shown Israel over and over again, throughout the generations, that He is El Shaddai, God Almighty! And still they fear these man-made instruments of war! Let me suggest to you that the reason they fear these things is because they forgot to fear God more!
Read Matthew 10:28
Israel feared men because they did not fear God! Likewise, I would confess to you that the times when I have feared situations, or people, it has been because I have forgotten how awesome and fearful God is! That He is so awesome He can get me through these problems…that He is so fearful that Satan is on His leash and is NOT God’s equal not His true rival! Little brothers and sisters, what Jesus tells us in Matthew and what Israel did not keep in mind is that the God we serve is the CREATOR of EVERYTHING! Therefore, when we trust in Him we need NOT fear that which He can control! When we fail to trust in God we are suggesting first that He is unable to keep His word to us, and secondly we dare to equate any created thing with the power of the One from whom everything flows! The self existing, Omniscient, Omnipotent God of the Bible! The knowledge that this is the God whom we serve should make us bold and secure!
Are there any questions or comments?
Read Judges 4:4-9
Who was Deborah?
The Word tells us that she was intimately acquainted with God, for she was a prophetess. As such, she was one to whom the Lord gave visions, which we see very clearly in verses 6-7. She was a judge during a difficult time, for she was an acknowledged judge during the time that Israel was occupied. She was one who loved the Lord and was devoted to Israel, for her concern is that Barak go about the business for which God had appointed him.
Note therefore, that she passes onto Barak the instructions which the Lord had given to her. Note also Barak’s response…
Ask) What do you think of Barak’s response? (Discuss)
There are two schools of thought regarding his reply:
1. One holds that this shows Barak’s lack of faith…that he was unwilling to proceed without the prophetess of God to accompany him. In other words, that he was weak.
2. The other holds that this shows the immense respect with which Barak and all of Israel held Deborah. The thinking goes that Barak wanted Deborah to accompany him so that Israel would see that he was indeed carrying out the commands of God and that they would more readily follow him against the huge army awaiting them! This is supported to some extent by Hebrews 11:30-34, which offers no condemnation of Barak…on the contrary, his faith is commended!
Note verse 9. While Barak would head the army…God would receive the glory for He would hand over the true victory to a woman!
Ask) What can we learn from this?
First and foremost, that the Lord uses whom He wishes to use! (discuss Genesis and the chosen line)
Application: Men should be willing and eager to be about the business of the Lord…for the Lord will not be held back by our inaction!
Read Judges 4:10-16
The call to Israel is made, or at least to two of the tribes…and the people respond. Through verse 11 we see that Israel is being observed…what is happening is that Barak is preparing his army to free Israel from the oppression of King Jabin…and of course general Sisera notices and responds by calling out the occupying army…likely he plans to quickly put down this rebellion…but little does he know that he faces not an army of men but the power and judgment of God!
Note Deborah’s cry in verse 14. She does not encourage Barak by telling him that he has raised up a powerful army and surely they will defeat Sisera…on the contrary…upon what basis is she confident of the victory? Her confidence rests upon the One whom she serves! The confidence that God’s words to her would come true for no other reason than that it is He who has spoken them! Likewise, our trust in His word rests solely on the character of He who gave it to us, is it not?
Now note verse 15...who routes Sisera? God Himself! Iron chariots, no matter how numerous, cannot stand against the Lord! Pity the man who arms himself against God! Think of those fools who even today make war on God, denying His very existence! Will they win? No! The day that God can be defeated will NEVER come!
Note just how total is the defeat! The army of Sisera is destroyed completely! Verse 16 tells us that not one man survives! These men either died by the sword or drowned (remember from verse 13 that the battle takes place near a river…and Judges 5:21 testifies to the fact that many were swept away by the river) Their iron chariots did them no good! Likewise, let us remember that the enemies of God today can do us no harm other than that which the Lord permits…therefore let us be confident in our walk with God. So yes, it is possible, even likely, that God’s people may be killed and His houses of worship destroyed…but His people CANNOT be defeated because they are not fighting the battle…He is!!
Points to consider:
· Israel feared the terrible iron chariots of the enemy because their reverent fear of God was missing! As Matthew 10:28 tells us, we need fear ONLY the One that can destroy the soul as well as the body…and that Someone is God and nobody else!
· We see from verses 10-16 that it was God and nobody else…not Barak…not the armies of Israel…it was God alone that defeated Sisera!
Read Judges 4:17-24
In this passage we see how God brings down Sisera the mighty warrior. As He had spoken through Deborah, the mighty general dies at the hand of a woman…dies not gloriously in battle but as he slept and hid from those whom he now feared.
Verses 23 and 24 tell us again, in case we choose to forget, that God brought about this victory…that He strengthens the arms of Israel to the point that after this battle Israel goes on to destroy a mighty kingdom that had oppressed them…a kingdom that they were powerless against until God delivered them!
Application: As we face our daily challenges and ponder the many hardships we may face…we must always remember that God is the Master…and we His servants should eagerly seek to please Him rather than complain about what our circumstances are!
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