Study Desk

^(C1)Then Deborah and Barak the son of Abinoam sang on that day, saying,

"^(C1)For ^(F1)the leaders leading in Israel, For ^(C2)the people volunteering, Bless the LORD!

-"Hear, you kings; listen, you dignitaries! ^(C1)I myself—to the LORD, I myself will sing, I will sing praise to the LORD, the God of Israel!

-"^(C1)LORD, when You went out from Seir, When You marched from the field of Edom, ^(C2)The earth quaked, the heavens also dripped, The clouds also dripped water.

-"^(C1)The mountains ^(F1)flowed with water at the presence of the LORD, ^(C2)This Sinai, at the presence of the LORD, the God of Israel.

"In the days of ^(C1)Shamgar the son of Anath, In the days of ^(C2)Jael, the roads ^(F1)were deserted, And travelers went by ^(F2)roundabout ways.

-"The ^(F1)peasantry came to an end, they came to an end in Israel, Until I, Deborah, arose, Until I arose, a mother in Israel.

-"^(C1)New gods were chosen; Then war was in the gates. Not a shield or a spear was seen Among forty thousand in Israel.

-"My heart goes out to ^(C1)the commanders of Israel, The volunteers among the people; Bless the LORD!

-"^(C1)You who ride on ^(F1)white donkeys, You who sit on rich carpets, And you who travel on the road—shout in praise!

-"At the sound of those who distribute water among ^(C1)the watering places, There they will recount ^(C2)the righteous deeds of the LORD, The righteous deeds for His ^(F1)peasantry in Israel. Then the people of the LORD went down ^(C3)to the gates.

"^(C1)Awake, awake, Deborah; Awake, awake, ^(F1)sing a song! Arise, Barak, and ^(C2)lead away your captives, son of Abinoam.

-"Then survivors came down to the nobles; The people of the LORD came down to me as warriors.

-"From Ephraim those whose root is ^(C1)in Amalek came down, Following you, Benjamin, with your peoples; From Machir commanders came down, And from Zebulun those who wield the staff of ^(F1)office.

-"And the ^(F1)princes of Issachar were with Deborah; As was Issachar, so was Barak; Into the valley they rushed ^(C1)at his ^(F2)heels; Among the divisions of Reuben There were great determinations of heart.

-"Why did you sit among ^(C1)the ^(F1)sheepfolds, To hear the piping for the flocks? Among the divisions of Reuben There were great searchings of heart.

-"^(C1)Gilead ^(F1)remained across the Jordan; And why did Dan stay on ships? Asher sat at the seashore, And ^(F1)remained by its landings.

-"^(C1)Zebulun was a people who risked their lives, And Naphtali too, on the high places of the field.

"^(C1)The kings came and fought; Then the kings of Canaan fought ^(C2)At Taanach near the waters of Megiddo; ^(C3)They took no plunder in silver.

-"^(C1)The stars fought from heaven, From their paths they fought against Sisera.

-"The torrent of Kishon swept them away, The ancient torrent, the torrent Kishon. ^(C1)My soul, march on with strength!

-"^(C1)Then the horses' hoofs beat From the galloping, the galloping of his mighty stallions.

'Curse Meroz,' said the angel of the LORD, 'Utterly curse its inhabitants, ^(C1)Because they did not come to the help of the LORD, To the help of the LORD against the warriors.'

"^(C1)Most blessed of women is Jael, The wife of Heber the Kenite; Most blessed is she of women in the tent.

-"He asked for water, she gave him milk; In a magnificent bowl she brought him curds.

-"She reached out her hand for the tent peg, And her right hand for the workmen's hammer. Then she struck Sisera, she smashed his head; And she shattered and pierced his temple.

-"Between her feet he bowed, he fell, he lay; Between her feet he bowed, he fell; Where he bowed, there he fell ^(F1)dead.

"Out of the window she looked and wailed, The mother of Sisera through the ^(F1)lattice, 'Why does his chariot delay in coming? Why do the ^(F2)hoofbeats of his chariots delay?'

-"Her wise princesses would answer her, Indeed she repeats her words to herself,

'^(C1)Are they not finding, are they not dividing the spoils? A concubine, two concubines for every warrior; To Sisera a spoil of dyed cloth, A spoil of dyed cloth embroidered, Dyed cloth of double embroidery on the ^(F1)neck of the plunderer?'

-"^(C1)May all Your enemies perish in this way, LORD; ^(C2)But may those who love Him be like the rising of the sun in its might." And the land was at rest for forty years.

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