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Towering Figures of the Old Testament |
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Deborah and Barak
The Fourth and Fifth Judges, the Book of Judges |
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Introduction |
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The Book of
Judges derives its title from the twelve heroes
of Israel whose deeds it records.
They were not
magistrates, but military leaders sent by God to
aid and to relieve his people in time of
external danger. They exercised their activities
in the interval of time between the death of
Joshua and the institution of the monarchy in
Israel.
Deborah and
Barak are the fourth and fifth Judges and Barak
is one of the Major Judges, along with Othniel,
Ehud, Gideon, Jephthah and Samson.
Deborah
Summons Barak
After Ehud's
death, however, the Israelites again offend the
LORD. So the LORD allows them to fall into the
power of the Canaanite king, Jabin, who reigns
in Hazor. The general of his army is Sisera. |
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But the Israelites
cry out to the LORD; for with his nine hundred
iron chariots Jabin oppresses the
Israelites for twenty years. At this time the
prophetess Deborah, wife of Lappidoth who sits
under Deborah's palm tree where the Israelites
come up to her for judgment, summons Barak,
son of Abinoam, from Kedesh of Naphtali.
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She tells him to go and march on Mount Tabor, and
take with him ten thousand Naphtalites and
Zebulunites. She tells him that she will lead
Sisera, the general of Jabin's army, out to him
at the Wadi Kishon, together with his chariots
and troops, and will deliver them into his
power.
But Barak tells
her that he will go only if Deborah comes with
him. Deborah tells him that she can go with him
but he has to understand that he will not gain
glory, for the LORD will deliver Sisera unto the
hands of a woman.
So Deborah
joins Barak and journeys with him to Kedesh.
Barak summons Zebulun and Naphtali to Kedesh,
and ten thousand men follow him. Deborah
also goes up with him. |
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At this time the
Kenite Heber has separated himself from his own
people, the descendants of Hobab, Moses'
brother-in-law, and pitched his tent by the
tere-binth of Zaanannim, which is near Kedesh.
His wife is named Jael.
When Sisera
learns that Barak, son of Abinoam, has gone up
to Mount Tabor, he assembles all nine hundred of
his iron chariots and all his forces.
Deborah then says
to Barak that this is the day on which the LORD
will deliver Sisera into his power. She tells
him that the LORD marches before him. So Barak
goes down Mount Tabor with his ten thousand men.
And the LORD puts Sisera and all his chariots
and all his forces to rout before Barak. Sisera
himself dismounts from his chariot and flees on
foot. |
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Sisera Falls |
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Barak
pursues the chariots. The army and the
entire army of Sisera falls and not one man
survives. Sisera, in the meantime, flees on
foot to the tent of Jael, wife of the Kenite
Heber, since Jabin, king of Hazor, is at
peace with the family of the Kenite Heber.
Jael goes out
to meet Sisera and tells him to hide in her
tent. Then Jael gets a tent peg and takes a
mallet in her hand. While Sisera is sound
asleep, Jael stealthily approaches him
and drives the peg through his temple down
into the ground. |
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Then when Barak
comes in pursuit of Sisera, Jael goes out to
lead him to
the man he seeks. So he goes in with her, and
there lays Sisera dead, with the tent peg
through his temple.
Thus on that
day God humbles and destroys the Canaanite king,
Jabin. |
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Samson and Delilah and Other Old Testament
Stories (Discovering the Bible)
(Hardcover) by Victoria Parker (Author), Retold
by Victoria Parker (Author)
This book provides known Bible stories from
Israel in the Promised land to the Story of
Ruth. It has the stories we grew up with but it
adds historical and religious facts to each
story. It tells the stories gearing them toward
elementary school children. |
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Moses Great Lives Series: Volume 4 ,
by Charles R. Swindoll. This book presents the
Bible's real Moses-the Moses who tried to
decline his assignment from God; the Moses who
dazzled Pharoh; the Moses who received the Ten
Commandments; the Moses who was disobedient and
weak; the Moses who was the greatest leader of
God's people in all of history. Through his
faith and selfless dedication, Moses continually
chose to follow God's will through difficult and
seemingly impossible situations.
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Jacob and Esau
by Harriette Augusta Curtiss and F. Homer
Curtiss (Paperback - Dec 30, 2005) |
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The Prophecy of Isaiah: An Introduction &
Commentary
by J. A. Motyer
Recipient of a Christianity Today 1994 Critics
Choice Award! Among Old Testament prophetic
books no other equals Isaiah's brilliance of
style and metaphor, its arresting vision of the
Holy One of Israel and its kaleidoscopic vision
of God's future restoration of Israel and the
world. Now, after over three decades of studying
and teaching Isaiah, Alec Motyer presents a
wealth of commentary and perspective on this
book. |
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Saint of the Day: Lives, Lessons, and Feasts
(Paperback)
by Leonard Foley (Editor), Pat McCloskey
(Editor) |
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Lives of the
Saints You Should Know by Margaret R. Bunson,
Matthew E. Bunson |
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New Illustrated Book of Saints
Author: Catholic Book Publishing Company |
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One Hundred Saints: Their Lives and Likenesses
Drawn from Butler's
This is a coffee-table collection of 100 popular
saints illustrated with art works taken from
international galleries. The saints are listed
alphabetically in a valuable table of contents,
with a larger list of patron saints following
the text. Inclusion is based on popularity
within the Christian world and the
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availability of
atypical art works. Entries are generally based
on the 1926-38 edition of Butler's Lives of the
Saints, with the length of each entry varying
from one-half page to several pages. Short
entries giving written insight into the lives of
pious individuals are combined with depictions
rendered by artists such as Raphael and El
Greco. An inexpensive tribute to art and faith
more appropriate for gift-giving than for
libraries. |
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Apologetics |
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Mary
and the Saints |
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Mass
and the Eucharist |
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Prayers |
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Novenas |
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The Rosary |
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Traditional Prayers:
Discover the origin of your favorite prayer. We might
even have the original Latin version, too. |
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Novenas:
Learn how
to say a novena in honor of your favorite
Saint.
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Archived Articles |
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Prayer Requests |
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Tours and Pilgrimages |
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