Deborah is a wonderful example of the power of women to influence society for good. Deborah was one of the judges of Israel in a culture generally ruled by men.
The position of judge apparently meant different things depending on the person holding it. Deborah was not the sort of judge Samson was, for instance, who traveled from place to place. Deborah sat under a palm tree between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim. There, the Israelites would come to her for judgments on their disputes.
Is that because she was “a mother in Israel,” and as most of us women have been at one time or another, relatively restricted in her movements? I imagine her sitting under the palm tree as her children play around her feet, listening intently as people bring their problems to her, listening for the guidance of her own heart and God’s word to make wise decisions.
But when the Israelites cry to God for help against their enemies the Canaanites, with their terrifying iron chariots, Deborah sends for Barak. She gives him God’s message that he should lead troops from his home tribe of Naphtali and from nearby Zebulun to fight at Mount Tabor. Worn down by 20 years of Canaanite tyranny, Barak refuses to go unless Deborah will go with him.
Deborah doesn’t hesitate. She accompanies the troops into battle and orders the attack, assuring the soldiers that the Lord has gone ahead of them. Deborah’s trust in God enables the Israelites to succeed against overwhelming opposition.
According to John Bernbaum, founder and president of Russian-American Christian University in Moscow, “Deborah was not driven by personal ambition, nor was she seeking an expanded leadership role in Israel. She was simply being faithful to the God she served, accepting the responsibilities given to her by others who sought her counsel, and trusting God as she took on the challenge of military leadership, for which she had not been trained. Deborah did what she knew was right in God’s eyes, confident that the Lord would honor her actions.”
After the battle, Deborah praised God in song. We can help others by listening to our hearts, to God’s Word, and to the cries of those around us. We can work with others to be an influence for good. And we can praise God when we are able to work with him to make our neighborhoods better places. |
