How Can We Be A Vital Voice of Wisdom and Encouragement for Others?
Recently, I have been making my way through the book of Judges. The book of Judges takes place after the death of Joshua and before Israel's first king, King Saul. Repeatedly, the hearts of the people of Israel would turn from Jehovah, the God who mightily delivered them from the powerful pharaoh of Egypt to the false gods of the enemies living in their land. Every time they handed over their trust to false gods, their enemies overtook and enslaved them. They would cry out to Jehovah for help and in His lovingkindness and mercy, He would provide a judge. Empowered by Jehovah, the judge would provide victory over Israel's enemies and bring peace to the lives of the Israelites, usually through military-type measures.
Deborah was Israel's judge during and toward the end of Sisera's twenty years of cruel oppression. Sisera was the commander of the Canaanite king's army. Judges 4:4-5 describes Deborah as a prophetess and one who would "sit under the palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim, and the people of Israel came up to her for judgment.", and in Judges 5:7 she is described as the mother of Israel. Deborah was different from the other judges. She helped Barak, the man who would lead the Israelites into battle.
In Judges 4:6-7, she summons Barak and challenges him to do what Jehovah had commanded.
"Has not the LORD, the God of Israel, commanded you, ‘Go, gather your men at Mount Tabor, taking 10,000 from the people of Naphtali and the people of Zebulun. And I will draw out Sisera, the general of Jabin’s army, to meet you by the river Kishon with his chariots and his troops, and I will give him into your hand’?”
Barak responded, “If you will go with me, I will go, but if you will not go with me, I will not go.” Deborah wasn't the one who physically fought and won the war over Israel's enemy, as far as we can tell, but she accompanied Barak to the battle and was a vital voice of wisdom and encouragement to him as we can see in the following verses.
Judges 4:10, 12-16
"And Barak called out Zebulun and Naphtali to Kedesh. And 10,000 men went up at his heels, and Deborah went up with him. When Sisera was told that Barak the son of Abinoam had gone up to Mount Tabor, Sisera called out all his chariots, 900 chariots of iron, and all the men who were with him, from Harosheth-hagoyim to the river Kishon.
And Deborah said to Barak, “Up! For this is the day in which the LORD has given Sisera into your hand. Does not the LORD go out before you?”
So Barak went down from Mount Tabor with 10,000 men following him. And the LORD routed Sisera and all his chariots and all his army before Barak by the edge of the sword. And Sisera got down from his chariot and fled away on foot. And Barak pursued the chariots and the army to Harosheth-hagoyim, and all the army of Sisera fell by the edge of the sword; not a man was left."
Let's take a closer look at what Deborah tells Barak.
When she first summoned him, she reminded him of God's previous command to gather men and fight Sisera. We aren't sure when God commanded Barak to do this previously and how much time had passed before Deborah reminded him, but we do know that Deborah didn't beat around the bush or shirk away from asking Barak an important question that highlighted his responsibility to obey. Yet Deborah didn't cut short her wisdom by ending with Barak's obedience. She then encouraged Barak by pointing HIm to the work God was going to accomplish and God's promise to powerfully and miraculously hand Sisera over to him.
Next, we read that on the day of battle, Deborah confidently states, "Up!", which can be translated as "Arise!" or "Stand up!". I imagine her rising early, tip-toeing to where Barak was sleeping, and shaking him awake with these words: "For this is the day in which the LORD has given Sisera into your hand. Does not the LORD go out before you?”
These are the words that especially caught my attention!
Deborah was using her words to sure up Barak for battle by reminding him of what Jehovah would do, and what Jehovah had already done throughout the history of the Israelite people. The phrase, "Does not the Lord go out before you?" can be explained as a king going out before his army into battle; a king who bravely leads the charge and helps clear the path for his soldiers.
Maybe we don't readily remember how Jehovah went out before His chosen people, but here are a couple of historical accounts I can think of that may have come to Barak's mind:
~Exodus 6-Exodus 12 (God miraculously performed plagues that led to the release of the Israelites from Pharaoh's tyrannical grip)
~Exodus 14 (God parted the Red Sea)
~Joshua 6 (God caused the walls of Jericho to fall)
~Judges 3 (God gave victory to Othniel, Ehud, and Shamgar)
As with any account in the Old Testament, this account is a signpost pointing us toward Jesus. Time and time again, Jehovah gave victory to the Israelites through judges, kings, and prophets, but those victories were temporary. Whether the Israelites recognized it or not, their hearts longed for a victor, who would defeat their enemy forever, and provide everlasting peace. The Canaanites were cruel oppressors, yes, but Israel's greatest enemy lay within and that was their sinful, wandering hearts. Did you know that a sinful, wandering heart is every human being's greatest enemy? The Good News is, that Jesus, our Conqueror, did come and was victorious over sin, death, and the grave.
Jesus, the King who went before us, came to earth, lived the life we couldn't live with His sinless heart, died the death we deserved for our sin, and rose up from the grave so that He could secure our victory over sin and death. He is our peace and through faith in Him, we have peace with our heavenly Father.
This passage encouraged and convicted me as a follower of Jesus, to be someone who points others to Jesus and acts as a vital voice of wisdom and encouragement to those in my life, who like Barak, may need me by their side. As a spouse, a mother, a daughter, a sister, a niece, a friend, and a co-worker, I was encouraged by this passage to apply this in all the relationships in my life.
And I want to encourage you as a follower of Jesus to do the same.
Let's strive to be people of God, who remain by others' sides when they are waging war, whether spiritual, physical, or emotional, and speak words that:
humbly and boldly remind them of God's life-giving commands and His mercies that greet us fresh every morning when we've failed to follow those commands
confidently remind them of God's miraculous ability to make a way when we can't see one because Jesus is the Way and through Him, there is always a way forward
remind them of God's promises with hope and expectancy and how all of God's promises are yes and amen in Jesus
remember and rehearse what God has done for us through Jesus, what he has done for them personally, and what He has done for His people from the beginning of time and throughout all the ages of the world
And when we are like Barak and need a Deborah by our side, let's ask someone we trust who loves God's truth and will point us to His Word. Let's humbly receive the gentle, loving, straightforward admonishment and the wisdom they share.
After Sisera and the Canaanite army were defeated, Deborah and Barak composed a song of celebration. It begins like this:
vs. 3 “Hear, O kings; give ear, O princes; to the LORD I will sing; I will make melody to the LORD, the God of Israel."
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