DEBORAH’S SONG OF PRAISE TO THE LORD According to the majority of scholars, Deborah’s song of praise; also called “the song of conquest”, was written by Deborah, herself, in a magnificent poetic form, and with eloquence that surpasses that of contemporary to her. It is the oldest part of the book of the Judges. According to the scholar Origen, it is the song of him who strives like a bee, and sings it during his spiritual strife, when he sees how God shakes the rough mountains before us, granting us the conquest to let us reign forever. This song includes 31 verses, divided into three parts, each of nine verses (3 – 11; 13 -21; 22 – 30)………The first two verses are an introduction of the whole song; verse 12, is an introduction of the second division; and verse 31 the end of the song. 1- An introduction to Deborah’s song of praise 1 - 2 2- God is the Leader of His people 3 - 11 3- An introduction to the second part of Deborah’s song of praise 12 4- The battle of Deborah and Barak 13 - 21 5- The defeat of Sisera 22- 30 6- The end of Deborah’s song of praise 31 1- AN INTRODUCTION TO DEBORAH’S SONG OF PRAISE: https://coptic-treasures.com/ “Then Deborah and Barak the son of Abinoam sang on that day, saying:; ‘When leaders lead in Israel, When the people willingly offer themselves; Bless the Lord’” (1, 2) In the time of affliction, man cries out seeking salvation; but in the time of joy, he rarely go back to God with thanksgiving for the sake of His works with him. Ten lepers lifted up their voices, and said, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us” (Luke 17: 13). And when He healed them , only one of them – a Samaritan -- returned, and with a loud voice glorified God. Jesus said: “Were there not ten cleansed, but where are the nine? Were there not any found to give glory to God, except this foreigner?” When God saved His people from Sisera and Jabin, on the hand of Deborah and Barak, Deborah, together with Barak, set forth singing praise to God. She might had written that song by a divine guidance, led the women to sing it; and gave it to Barak to do the same with men. The same thing was done after crossing over the Red Sea, when Moses Set forth to sing praise to God (Exodus 15: 1)………..Then followed by the Miriams who proclaimed the resurrection of the Lord to the disciples, and had the first portion in the enjoyment of the joy of the resurrection of the Lord from the dead. What did they say? “When leaders lead in Israel”; namely they sang praise to God who worked in those who were given the position of leadership in the war, risking their life for the sake of their brethren. Deborah and Barak, while singing praise to God, who granted the conquest, did nor disregard the strife and labor of anyone. “When the people willingly offer themselves”. For although the leaders were given their responsibilities, the people willingly strived with joy. ………. The spiritual conquest is a fruit of the work of God in the leaders, as well as in the https://coptic-treasures.com/ people. ……… I wish in the successful works, while we refer all the favor to God, we do not disregard the role played by the leaders and the people. By saying, “Bless the Lord”, Deborah sought from the leaders, who were faithful in their positions, and the people who willingly strived, not to let the conquest distract them from singing praise of thanksgiving to God for His rich grace; but to consider the words of the apostle Paul, who says: “Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves; but our sufficiency is from God” (2 Corinthians 3: 5) 2- GOD IS THE LEADER OF HIS PEOPLE: The song of praise starts by saying: “Hear, O kings! Give ear, O princes!; I, even I, will sing to the Lord; I will sing praise to the Lord God of Israel” (3) As there were no kings of Israel at that time, the call here is addressed to the kings of the pagan nations, who were allied with Jabin. king of Canaan, asking them to meditate in the works of the living God; to forsake their false gods, and fear the true God. Saying: “I, even I sing to the Lord”, It is as though Deborah says: [I, Deborah, the weak woman, opens my mouth to praise God my Savior. If you are kings and elites, I, a weak woman, call you to reconsider yourselves, and think about God’s works with men. Repeating the word “I” twice, probably refers to the church that sang praise to the Lord in the Old covenant through the law; and play music for Him in the new covenant through the grace. Although it is one church, yet she has members of the old, as well as of the new covenants. According to St. Augustine, the figure 2 refers to “love”; that makes the two one. The repetition of the word “I” refers to the feature of the true Daborah, namely of https://coptic-treasures.com/ the church, capable of singing and praising; The feature of “love”, without which, God would never receive her worship or her praise; according to the words of the apostle, saying: “Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal” (1 Corinthians 13: 1) “Lord, when You went out from Seir, when You marched from the field of Edom, the earth trembled and the heavens poured, the clouds also poured water” (4) “The mountains gushed before the Lord, This Sinai, before the Lord God of Israel” (5). Here Deborah goes back to remember the dealings of God with her fathers, when they were nomads, when no one but God supported them against Seir and Edom.(Numbers 20: 22; 21: 4). God who, in the old saved their fathers, is the same God who accompanies them in their strife against Sisera and Jabin king of the Canaanites. By saying: “when you went out; ……..when you marched”, Deborah proclaims that the secret of the conquest is that God does not stand isolated from man, but, in His love for us, continually moves for our sake. By His love He goes out from ‘Seir’ (meaning hair, the name of Esau who was hairy); and marched from the field of Edom (meaning blood or earth, which were also Esau’s names). It is as though, by love, He comes down to us, dwells among us, to take us out of ‘Seir’, namely of the carnal thoughts; and brings us up above Edom, namely above the blood and the earth. By Jesus Christ we come out and go up; and do not live any more on the bloody, earthly carnal level; but partake of His new life to live in the heavenly places. As according to St. John Chrysostom: [It is as though man has been taken up to heaven itself, to stand close to the throne of glory]. https://coptic-treasures.com/ In her song, Deborah confirms that it is God who works in us. Carrying Him in us, we, symbolically come out of ‘Seir’, and come up from Edom. The fruits of which are: (1) “The earth trembled”, (4). Here he refers to the fear that dwelt upon the nations, when they heard about the works of God with Israel. As according to the prophet Moses: “The people will hear and be afraid . Sorrow will take hold of the inhabitants of Philistia. Then the chiefs of Edom will be dismayed: The mighty men of Moab, trembling will take hold of them. all the inhabitants of Canaan will melt away” (Exodus 15: 14, 15; and see Joshua 2: 9-11). “The earth”, as well, refers to the body. When God works in us, the body trembles, namely, fearing God, it will no more walks in its evil desires, but submits to the Spirit of the Lord; according to the prophet Habakkuk:. saying: “You divided the earth with rivers” (Habakkuk 3: 9). If our earth, namely our bodies are barren, the Lord opens up in them, by His cross, fountains of His Holy Spirit, rivers of living water.. (2) “The heaven poured, the clouds also poured water” (4). If the pagan nations, like the earth, trembled before God; His children, like heavens will drip dew, and like clouds will pour rain that turn the wilderness into a paradise. By the Holy God, our inner life – like heavens – bear the dew of the Holy Spirit, and His heavenly rain. What we say about the pagan nations and the children of God, we also say concerning the body and the Spirit. If the body, like earth, trembles before God, and no more seeks its evil desires; the Spirit, like heaven, by the Lord, pours the joyful rain. https://coptic-treasures.com/ (3) “The mountains gushed before the Lord” (5); The prophet Isaiah say: “When You did awesome things for which we did not look; You came down, the mountains shook at Your presence” (Isaiah 64: 3). In our study of the book of Ezekiel, we saw God sets out of the souls of His saints, holy mountains where He dwells, soaring higher than the earthly affairs. So does the devil, he sets out of the souls of his followers , defiled mountains, featured by pride, and disobedience of the divine commandment. Such mountains will gush before the face of the Lord, their haughtiness will fall down, and be crushed before Him. After parading the works of God with the early fathers in the wilderness, she came back, to describe the conditions in her days, and the need for the work of God: saying: “In the days of Shamgar, son of Anath, In the days of Jael, the highways were deserted, and the travelers walked along the byways” (6) “ Village life ceased, it ceased in Israel, until I, Deborah, arose, arose a mother in Israel” (7). It so seems that the affliction dwelt upon Israel in the end days of the last judge Shamgar (3: 31), whom we do not know if he and Deborah were contemporaries. As to ‘Jael’ here, she was, according to some, the wife of Heber the Kenite who killed Sisera; who was well known for her great jealousy on the salvation of Israel, though working in secret in fear of Sisera, before she killed him; While according to others, she was another Jael who had her role in the days of Shamgar. Anyway, Deborah here, presents to us a bitter portrait of the afflictions caused by the Canaanites, who closed shut the main highways, that the Jews, in https://coptic-treasures.com/ their travel, had to walk along dangerously twisted byways. The fields were deserted with no farmers, who fled to the cities to take refuge; and the fertile land turned barren without fruition. It is a portrait of the work of the devil who: closes the divine ways before humanity, through cutting hope, brings her forth to evil twisted ways away from her goal; and turns her inner field into barrenness, and her paradise into wilderness. ………. Humanity remained like this until the spiritual church (Deborah) came and proclaimed her motherhood in the Lord “I arose a mother in Israel” (7). It was therefore, not possible to get rid of the bitterness of the Canaanites, except by receiving Deborah as a mother; namely by receiving the motherhood of the spiritual church. ……… According to St. John Chrysostem: [You should not separate yourself from the church; for, being faith and life, nothing is stronger than her. The church is your hope, salvation, and refuge; higher than heavens, and wider than the world; She will never get old, but will always be in perfect vitality]. “They chose new gods; then there was war in the gates; not a shield or spear was seen among forty thousand in Israel” (8). The destruction from the Canaanites was not only on the outside; but was, as well, corruption of the inside; for the Jews chose new gods; as according to the prophet Moses: “They sacrificed to demons, not to God; to gods they did not know, to new gods, new arrivals” (Deuteronomy 32: 17). God, therefore, forsook them until war came in the gates; and the place where the judges and rulers used to sit for judgment, turned into a pool of blood. Before such a situation, what could Israel do, even if they have an army of forty thousand men, who carried no shield of the spirit nor the spear of faith? For the Canaanites denied them the material weapons; and they denied themselves the spiritual weapons by their perversion to idol-worship. https://coptic-treasures.com/ Being in such miserable condition: affliction from outside, and corruption inside; the Lord did not forsake them, but sent to them judges who offered themselves willingly to save the whole people. ………. Seeking from the people to bless the Lord for sending them, Deborah says: “My heart is with the rulers of Israel who offered themselves willingly with the people. Bless the Lord!” (9). She also seeks from the elites of the people to praise the Lord who sent judges, she says: “Speak, you who ride on white donkeys, who sit in judges’ attire, and who walk along the road” (10) If the poor people who walk on foot, praise God; it is befitting, as well, of the Elites who ride on select rare breed of donkeys; and the judge who sit in their attire on precious carpets; to praise Him. Then Deborah ends her praise by saying: “Far from the noise of the archers, among the watering places, there they shall recount the righteous acts of the Lord, the righteous acts for His villagers in Israel; then the people of the Lord shall go down to the gates” (11) The Hebrew origin of this verse came vague, with much controversy to interpret it. According to some, the archers are the arrow throwers, while according to majority they are those who divide the spoil, who, after taking their portion, they go to the watering places to quench their thirst, while singing praise to God, who granted them, beside the conquest, such abundance of spoil to bring back home. https://coptic-treasures.com/ 3- AN INTRODUCTION TO THE SECONG PART OF DEBORAH’S SONG OF PRAISE: Having praised God, and having sought from all the ranks of people to praise Him, for saving them from the enemy, taking away their corruption, and giving them conquest, instead of the humiliation, and an abundance of spoil instead of poverty; Deborah opens the second division of her praise, by saying: “ “Awake, awake, Deborah! awake, awake, sing a song! Arise, Barak, and lead your captives away, O son of Abinoam!” (12) If the second part of Deborah’s song of praise, proclaims the salvation work of God, through Deborah and Barak, being a symbol, and a preparation for the salvation to be presented by the Lord Christ, through the church of the new covenant; that is why it starts its introduction by calling the church, four times, to wake up. If humanity in the world was going through the sleep of death because of sin; the Lord Christ came to proclaim the resurrection of the church, He gathers together from four corners of the world: from the north, the south, the east, and the west; to wake up the pagan peoples and nations from their sleep; by Him who is risen from the dead, capable to wake them up. If Barak led the battle, led his captives away, and brought forth an abundance of spoil from the enemy, to offer to the people, to fill their life with joy, instead of the years of humiliation they have lived; The Lord, having conquered on the cross, He liberated humanity, captivated in the bondage of the devil; and brought them forth into His liberty on the heavenly level; according to the words of the psalmist: “You have ascended on high; You have led captivity captive” (Psalm 68: 18); on which, St. Jerome comments, saying: [Ascending high up to heaven, You saved us, we, who are captivated by the devil]. And, commenting on “You have led https://coptic-treasures.com/ captivity captive”, St. Augustine says: [He so did, for He overcame death that captivated those on whom it reigned; . …Or he calls them, ‘captives’ of the devil, those who, being saved from sin which they served, they became children and ministers of righteousness]. ……. In other words, we, who were before in captivity, under the yoke of sin, are now free, and, in Jesus Christ, we came to be children of the Father, captivated by His joyful land, and the spoils of His exalted love; and brought forth with joy into the service of righteousness; after having tasted the bitterness of the captivity of evil. 4- THE BATTLE OF DEBORAH AND BARAK: The second part of this song of praise describes to us the battle of Deborah and Barak, and their conquest in the Lord. . “Then the survivors came down, the people against the nobles; The Lord came down for me against the mighty” (13) The ‘survivors means the weak remnants who remained after the oppression of the Canaanites. The weak remnants, after so many years of affliction, prevailed upon the nobles of the Canaanites. God used Debora against the mighty; whom, together with Barak, the tribes of Israel came to follow. In this praise, she paraded the following tribes: . . “From Ephraim were those whose roots were in Amalek. After you, Benjamin, with your peoples, From (Manasseh) Machir rulers came down, And from Zebulun those who bear the recruiter’s staff” (14) https://coptic-treasures.com/ “Those who bear the recruiter’s staff”. “Concerning the tithes of the herd or the flock, or whatever passes under the (recruiter’s) staff, the tenth one shall be holy to the Lord” Leviticus 27: 32). . That is why, according to some, that recruiter used to come from the tribe of Zebulun to count the number of the recruits; so that everyone would enjoy his portion of the spoil. According to some, having this assignment refers to their prominent position among the warriors. “And the princes of Issachar, were with Deborah, as Issachar, so was Barak, sent into the valley under his command” (15) Here she commends the princes of Issacher who willingly joined Debprah, as she was already in the battle field. They did not just send their men, but came out themselves. To proclaim their courage, she did not liken them to the brave Barak, but even encouraged Barak by their example. They rushed to the valley under his command (4: 14); namely to the valley where the enemy were, with their foot soldiers, horsemen, and iron chariots.. “Among the divisions of Reuben There were great resolves of heart; Why did you sit among the sheepfolds, To hear the pipings for the flocks? The divisions of Reuben have great searching of heart” (15, 16) “Zebulun is a people who jeopardized their lives to the point of death; Naphtali also, on the heights of the battlefield” (18) https://coptic-treasures.com/ In the last chapter we saw how Barak called Zebulun and Naphtali to war in Kedesh (18). where they had a lion’s share in the battle; to be commended by Deborah as holding the recruiting staff (14). Now, at the end of her talk about the tribes, Deborah adds that Zebulun and Nephtali jeopardized their lives to the point of death with rare courage and love, on the heights of the battle field, a further sign of bravery, to confront the enemy on a high place without fear. Together with commending the tribes who fought under the command of Barak, Deborah tactfully and gently rebuked those who refrained to take part; particularly those who were dwelling east of the Jordan, in the land of Gilead (the two tribes of Reuben, Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh); joined in that slothfulness by the tribes of Dan and Asher. In our study of the book of Numbers, we saw how those two and a half tribes, who chose to dwell east of the Jordan, represent the Jews who did not enjoy crossing the Jordan, to enjoy the inheritance of the new covenant. The tribe of Dan, according to some scholars, they refer to the heretics, out of whom the antichrist will come in the era of apostasy. As to Asher; Deborah mentions that, dwelling on the sea coast, they were bound to the disturbances and riots of the world………. It is as though those who rejected the crown of conquest, were those who rejected Jesus (the Jews); and the heretics, bearers of the spirit of the antichrist; and lovers of the world. It is as though she says to Reuben. The firstborn among the tribes, that he forsook his brothers by sitting at the water streams, to think about the situation; and the fertility of the land, instead of joining his brethren in their strife against the enemy. He preferred to sit among the sheepfolds to hear the pipings of the shepherds for the flocks, instead of hearing the sound of the trumpets of war. This tribe represents the soul bound to the water streams of the world; and to the sheep, namely to the carnal body. In other words, those whose spirit was https://coptic-treasures.com/ corrupted by the love of the world, the evil desires of the body, away from the spiritual strive against sin. . “Gilead stayed beyond the Jordan, and why did Dan remain on ships [ Asher continued at the seashore, And stayed by his inlets?” (17). She continued to rebuke the rest of the tribes who dwelt east of the Jordan. Gilead refers to the soul that stayed beyond the Jordan, and abstained from being buried together with the Lord Christ in the waters of the Jordan; choosing the easy and wide road, rather than the fellowship with the passions and burial of the Lord. Then Deborah moved to talk about the enemy themselves. Or the battlefield, and said” “ “The kings came and fought, Then the kings of Canaan fought In Taanach, by the waters of Megiddo; They took no spoils of silver” (19) Here she talks about the kings who supported the king of Canaan, in ‘Taanash’, a town five miles south-east of ‘Megiddo’. Its Canaanite name, meaning (sandy land) belonged to Issachar, then moved to Manasseh, then to the Levites. By coming down to it, they assumed that they will take the spoil and the silver from the king of Canaan as wages; nut were shocked to see that heaven itself fought against them: .. “They fought from the heavens; the stars from their courses fought against Sisera. the torrent of Kishon swept them away, that ancient torrent, the torrent of Kishon. O my soul, march on in strength!” (20, 21) https://coptic-treasures.com/ Expecting to have conquest with ease, and to enjoy their wages in silver and spoil; the allies of the king of Canaan found out that nature itself fought against them; the stars of heaven, like soldiers stood against them; and the torrent of Kishon swept the dead together with the wounded and the survivors; which was confirmed by the Historian Josephus. Once man return to God with repentance, neither the left nor the right strokes of the enemy can reach him; But God would grant him support from heaven; and the heavenly creatures, together with the saints, as spiritual hosts will come to their aid. The water of the rivers (the fountains of the Holy Spirit) will sweep the sin away; and, by the strength of the Spirit, he will say: “Tread, O my soul, with majesty”. When our soul overcomes the devil and his evil works, that have captivated her for such a long time, she will say: “Do not rejoice over me, my enemy. When I fall, I will arise. When I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me” (Micah 7: 8). 5- THE DEFEAT OF SISERA: Having revealed in the second part of her praise that God intervened, using nature to the account of His believers, she reveals now in the last part of her song of praise, the weakness of Sisera and his defeat, saying: “Then the horses’ hooves pounded, the galloping, galloping of his steeds” (22) Perceiving that they confront defeat, the army of Sisera attempted madly to flee in terror; by striking their horses so strongly that they pounded the ground with their hooves; but “A horse is a vain hope for safely. Neither shall it deliver any by its great strength” (Psalm 33: 17) https://coptic-treasures.com/ What are those horses that pound the ground with their hooves, and deliver no salvation for man; but trusting in human help, or in himself for salvation; As, according to St. Augustine: [He is deceived, who thinks he acquires salvation from men; and he who depends on his own strength to escape from perdition]. . “ ‘Curse Meroz,’ said the angel of the Lord, ‘Curse its inhabitants bitterly, because they did not come to the help of the Lord, to the help of the Lord against the mighty.’ “Most blessed among women is Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite; blessed is she among women in tents” (23, 24) Curse dwelt upon the town of ‘Meroz’ with all its inhabitants; while blessing dwelt upon ‘Jael’ wife of Heber the Kenite………...’Meroz’ for taking a negative stand; seeing Sisera fleeing, it did not hold him nor delivered him to those whom God supported. ……….Whereas ‘Jael’ killed him. The town of ‘Meroz’ represents him who does not gather with the Lord, but scatters (Matthew 12: 30; Luke 11: 23). ‘Jael’, on the other hand, represents him who works against the kingdom of the devil, to the account of the Lord…………While the town of ‘Meroz’ with all her inhabitants showed cowardice, the woman, lonely in her tent, showed courage against evil. It is said that the town of ‘Meroz’, close to the River Kaishon has been utterly wiped out, for sparing Sisera’s life; and not supporting Deborah and Barak. “He asked for water, she gave milk; she brought out cream in a lordly bowl. she stretched her hand to the tent peg, her right hand to the workmen’s hammer; she pounded Sisera, https://coptic-treasures.com/ she pierced his head, she split and struck through his temple. At her feet he sank, he fell, he lay still;……..; where he sank, there he fell dead” (25 - 27). As we said before, ‘Jael’ is a portrait of the church of the Gentiles, who, with faith in the cross, struck the head of the serpent, crushed the devil underneath her feet, and deprived him of any authority on her. “The mother of Sisera looked through the window, and cried out through the lattice, ‘Why is his chariot so long in coming? Why tarries the clatter of his chariots?’ Her wisest ladies answered her, Yes, she answered herself, ‘Are they not finding and dividing the spoil: To every man a girl or two; For Sisera, plunder of dyed garments, Plunder of garments embroidered and dyed, two pieces of dyed embroidery for the neck of the looter?’” (28-30) 6- THE END OF DEBORAH”S SONG OF PRAISE: . “Thus let all Your enemies perish, O Lord! But let those who love Him be like the sun When it comes out in full strength.” So the land had rest for forty years. (31) In some versions, “Let those who love You”, refer to the people of God, whose enemy (the devil) God destroyed. And the church shined like the sun, when it https://coptic-treasures.com/ comes out in full strength. Let our land, namely our bodies, have rest in the Lord from the wars and evil desires; as long as the Lord Himself is working in us against the true enemy.
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