Deborah
Encyclopedia
Deborah was a prophet
ess of Yahweh
the God of the Israelites, the fourth Judge of pre-monarchic Israel
, counselor, warrior, and the wife of Lapidoth
according to the Book of Judges
chapters 4 and 5.
Being the only female judge in the vast history of Israel
, Deborah led a successful counterattack
against the forces of Jabin
king of Canaan
and his military commander Sisera
, the narrative is recounted in chapter 4.
Judges chapter 5 gives the same story in poetic form
. This passage, often called The Song of Deborah, may date to as early as the 12th century BC
and is perhaps the earliest sample of Hebrew poetry
. It is also significant because it is one of the oldest passages that portrays fighting women
, the account being that of Jael
, the wife of Heber, a Kenite
tent maker. Jael killed Sisera by driving a tent peg
through his temple
as he slept. Both Deborah and Jael are portrayed as strong independent women. The poem may have been included in the Book of the Wars of the Lord
mentioned in Numbers
21:14.
In Hebrew, her name, דְּבוֹרָה, translates as bee
. The Deborah number
, a dimensionless number used in rheology
, is named after her.
Not much is known about Deborah's personal life. Her name in Hebrew is pronounced Dvora. Some sources, such as Chabad.org
, state that she judged Israel from 1107 B.C. until her death in 1067 B.C. The Dictionary of World Biography: The Ancient World, claims that she might have lived from 1200 B.C. to 1124 B.C., which would have made her about 36 years old at the time of the battle against Sisera
, and 75 at the time her death. The book also says that she was most probably born in central Israel to the tribe of Ephraim
, and was also the author of The Song of Deborah.
In the Book of Judges
, it is stated that she was the wife of Lapidoth ( whose name means "torches"). She rendered her judgments beneath a palm tree between Ramah in Benjamin
and Bethel
in the land of Ephraim
. Some people today refer to Deborah as the mother of Israel because of the "Song of Deborah and Barak" found in .
After being oppressed by Jabin
, the king of Canaan
, in Hazor, for twenty years, Deborah prevailed upon Barak
to face the Assyrian General Sisera
, the commander of Jabin's army, in battle. The victory to which the Bible refers is the victory of an Israelite force of ten thousand over Sisera's force of nine hundred iron chariots.
saw the army, she said, according to :
As Deborah prophesied, the Lord gave the victory to the Israelites. Sisera fled the battle site seeking refuge in the tent of the woman Jael. In the Biblical account, Jael killed the enemy leader, Sisera. The Biblical account of Deborah ends in Judges 5.
After the battle, there was peace in the land for 40 years.
The Song of Deborah is found in Judges 5:2-31 and is a victory hymn, sung by Deborah and Barak, about the defeat of Canaanite adversaries by some of the tribes of Israel. It is recognized as one of the oldest parts of the Bible, dating somewhere in the 12th century BC based on its grammar and context. The song itself contains a number of challenging differences from the events described in Judges 4. The song mentions six participating tribes (Ephraim, Benjamin, Machir, Zebulun, Issachar, and Naphtali) as opposed to the two tribes in Judges 4:6 (Naphtali and Zebulun) and does not mention the role of Jabin. It describes Sisera's death in a different manner. Judges 4:17-21 describes Jael killing Sisera by luring him into her tent, letting him lay down to rest, and then while he was asleep hammering a tent peg into his head killing him.
Though it is not uncommon to read a victory hymn in the Hebrew Bible, the Song of Deborah stands out as unique in that it is a hymn that celebrates a military victory helped by two women: Deborah and Jael. Michael Coogan writes that Jael being a woman "is a further sign that Yahweh ultimately is responsible for the victory: The mighty Canaanite general Siera will be 'sold' by the Lord 'into the hand of a woman' (Judges 4:9) - the ultimate degradation."
After the death of Joshua, the tribe of Judah led the tribe of Simeon in a campaign against the Canaanites and Perizzites, defeating Adonibezek at Bezek. Then they marched against Kiriath-Arba (Hebron) and defeated three more kings. The descendants of Hobab the Kenite, father-in-law of Moses, accompanied Judah into the wilderness of Negeb but later left to live with the Amalakites. Judah
did not take Ashkelon
, or Ekron
. The Canaanites continued to hold Beth Shean, Dor
, and Ibleam. Zebulon
was unable to drive them out of Kitron
or Nahalol; nor could Asher
drive out the inhabitants of Acco
, Sidon
, Achzib
, or Rehob. The Amorites drove back the Danites into the highlands.
Jabin
a king of Canaan reigned at Hazor and the commander of his army was Sisera
who lived in Haroseth-ha-goiim. The accounts of Judges 4 and 5 tell the story of a battle
at Taanach near the River Kishon
.
Few allies among the southern tribes could come to the assistance of Deborah and Barak. Israel, which the song of Deborah and Barak numbers at 40,000 spears, was unavailable except for forces from the tribes of Ephraim
, Machir
, Zebulon
, Issachar
, and Naphtali. While Sisera is said to have had 900 iron chariots, "the Song of Deborah" implies that heavy rain rendered them ineffectual.
Prophet
In religion, a prophet, from the Greek word προφήτης profitis meaning "foreteller", is an individual who is claimed to have been contacted by the supernatural or the divine, and serves as an intermediary with humanity, delivering this newfound knowledge from the supernatural entity to other people...
ess of Yahweh
Yahweh
Yahweh is the name of God in the Bible, the God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Jews and Christians.The word Yahweh is a modern scholarly convention for the Hebrew , transcribed into Roman letters as YHWH and known as the Tetragrammaton, for which the original pronunciation is unknown...
the God of the Israelites, the fourth Judge of pre-monarchic Israel
Biblical judges
A biblical judge is "a ruler or a military leader, as well as someone who presided over legal hearings."...
, counselor, warrior, and the wife of Lapidoth
Lapidoth
Lapidoth was the husband of Deborah the fourth Judge of Israel. Lapidoth is also a Hebrew male given name....
according to the Book of Judges
Book of Judges
The Book of Judges is the seventh book of the Hebrew bible and the Christian Old Testament. Its title describes its contents: it contains the history of Biblical judges, divinely inspired prophets whose direct knowledge of Yahweh allows them to act as decision-makers for the Israelites, as...
chapters 4 and 5.
Being the only female judge in the vast history of Israel
History of Israel
The State of Israel declared independence on May 14, 1948 after almost two millennia of Jewish dispersal and persecution around the Mediterranean. From the late 19th century the Zionist movement worked towards the goal of recreating a homeland for the Jewish people...
, Deborah led a successful counterattack
Counterattack
A counterattack is a tactic used in response against an attack. The term originates in military strategy. The general objective is to negate or thwart the advantage gained by the enemy in attack and the specific objectives are usually to regain lost ground or to destroy attacking enemy units.It is...
against the forces of Jabin
Jabin
Jabin is a Biblical name meaning 'discerner', or 'the wise'. It may refer to:* A king of Hazor, at the time of the entrance of Israel into Canaan , whose overthrow and that of the northern chief with whom he had entered into a confederacy against Joshua was the crowning act in the conquest of the...
king of Canaan
Canaan
Canaan is a historical region roughly corresponding to modern-day Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, and the western parts of Jordan...
and his military commander Sisera
Sisera
Sisera was commander of the Canaanite army of King Jabin of Hazor mentioned in the of the Hebrew Bible. After being defeated by Barak, Sisera was killed by Jael, who hammered a tent peg into his temple....
, the narrative is recounted in chapter 4.
Judges chapter 5 gives the same story in poetic form
Poetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
. This passage, often called The Song of Deborah, may date to as early as the 12th century BC
12th century BC
-Overview:The 12th century BC is the period from 1200 to 1101 BC. Although many human societies were literate in this period, most individual persons mentioned in this article ought to be considered legendary rather than historical...
and is perhaps the earliest sample of Hebrew poetry
Biblical poetry
The ancient Hebrews perceived that there were poetical portions in their sacred texts, as shown by their entitling as songs or chants such passages as Exodus 15:1-19 and Numbers 21:17-20; and a song or chant is, according to the primary meaning of the term, poetry.- Rhyme :It is often stated that...
. It is also significant because it is one of the oldest passages that portrays fighting women
Timeline of women in ancient warfare
Warfare throughout written history mainly has been portrayed in modern times as a matter for men, but women also have played a role. Until very recently, little mention of these exploits was included in the historical records made available in most countries....
, the account being that of Jael
Jaël
Jaël, , is a singer-songwriter from the band Lunik. She also co-wrote and sang with Delerium on the song After All on their album Chimera, and the song Lost and Found on their album Nuages du Monde. She is both internationally famous in the Trance music community as well as domestically famous from...
, the wife of Heber, a Kenite
Kenite
Kenites or Cinites , according to the Hebrew Bible, were a nomadic clan in the ancient Levant, sent under Jethro a priest in the land of Midian. They played an important role in the history of ancient Israel. The Kenites were coppersmiths and metalworkers. Moses' father-in-law, Jethro, was a...
tent maker. Jael killed Sisera by driving a tent peg
Tent peg
A tent peg is a spike, usually with a hook or hole on the top end, typically made from wood, metal, plastic, or composite material, pushed or driven into the ground for holding a tent to the ground, either directly by attaching to the tent's material, or by connecting to ropes attached to the tent...
through his temple
Temple (anatomy)
Temple indicates the side of the head behind the eyes. The bone beneath is the temporal bone as well as part of the sphenoid bone.-Anatomy:Cladists classify land vertebrates based on the presence of an upper hole, a lower hole, both, or neither in the cover of dermal bone which formerly covered the...
as he slept. Both Deborah and Jael are portrayed as strong independent women. The poem may have been included in the Book of the Wars of the Lord
Book of the Wars of the Lord
The Book of the Wars of the is one of several non-canonical books referenced in the Bible which have now been completely lost. It is mentioned in , which reads: "From there they set out and camped on the other side of the Arnon, which is in the desert and bounding the Amorite territory. For Arnon...
mentioned in Numbers
Book of Numbers
The Book of Numbers is the fourth book of the Hebrew Bible, and the fourth of five books of the Jewish Torah/Pentateuch....
21:14.
In Hebrew, her name, דְּבוֹרָה, translates as bee
Bee
Bees are flying insects closely related to wasps and ants, and are known for their role in pollination and for producing honey and beeswax. Bees are a monophyletic lineage within the superfamily Apoidea, presently classified by the unranked taxon name Anthophila...
. The Deborah number
Deborah number
The Deborah number is a dimensionless number, often used in rheology to characterize the fluidity of materials under specific flow conditions. It was originally proposed by Markus Reiner, a professor at Technion in Israel, inspired by a verse in the Bible, stating "The mountains flowed before the...
, a dimensionless number used in rheology
Rheology
Rheology is the study of the flow of matter, primarily in the liquid state, but also as 'soft solids' or solids under conditions in which they respond with plastic flow rather than deforming elastically in response to an applied force....
, is named after her.
Deborah's personal life
Chabad.org
Chabad.org is the flagship website of the Chabad-Lubavitch Hasidic movement. It serves not just its own members but Jews worldwide in general. It was one of the first Jewish internet sites and the first and largest virtual congregation.-History:...
, state that she judged Israel from 1107 B.C. until her death in 1067 B.C. The Dictionary of World Biography: The Ancient World, claims that she might have lived from 1200 B.C. to 1124 B.C., which would have made her about 36 years old at the time of the battle against Sisera
Sisera
Sisera was commander of the Canaanite army of King Jabin of Hazor mentioned in the of the Hebrew Bible. After being defeated by Barak, Sisera was killed by Jael, who hammered a tent peg into his temple....
, and 75 at the time her death. The book also says that she was most probably born in central Israel to the tribe of Ephraim
Tribe of Ephraim
According to the Hebrew Bible, the Tribe of Ephraim was one of the Tribes of Israel. The Tribe of Manasseh together with Ephraim also formed the House of Joseph....
, and was also the author of The Song of Deborah.
In the Book of Judges
Book of Judges
The Book of Judges is the seventh book of the Hebrew bible and the Christian Old Testament. Its title describes its contents: it contains the history of Biblical judges, divinely inspired prophets whose direct knowledge of Yahweh allows them to act as decision-makers for the Israelites, as...
, it is stated that she was the wife of Lapidoth ( whose name means "torches"). She rendered her judgments beneath a palm tree between Ramah in Benjamin
Ramah in Benjamin
Ramah in Benjamin is a city of ancient Israel. It was located near Gibeon and Mizpah to the West, Gibeah to the South, and Geba to the East. It is identified with modern Er-Ram, about 8 km north of Jerusalem. The city is first mentioned in Joshua 18:25, near Gibeah of Benjamin. A Levite came...
and Bethel
Bethel
Bethel was a border city described in the Hebrew Bible as being located between Benjamin and Ephraim...
in the land of Ephraim
Tribe of Ephraim
According to the Hebrew Bible, the Tribe of Ephraim was one of the Tribes of Israel. The Tribe of Manasseh together with Ephraim also formed the House of Joseph....
. Some people today refer to Deborah as the mother of Israel because of the "Song of Deborah and Barak" found in .
After being oppressed by Jabin
Jabin
Jabin is a Biblical name meaning 'discerner', or 'the wise'. It may refer to:* A king of Hazor, at the time of the entrance of Israel into Canaan , whose overthrow and that of the northern chief with whom he had entered into a confederacy against Joshua was the crowning act in the conquest of the...
, the king of Canaan
Canaan
Canaan is a historical region roughly corresponding to modern-day Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, and the western parts of Jordan...
, in Hazor, for twenty years, Deborah prevailed upon Barak
Barak
Barak , Al-Burāq the son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali, was a military general in the Book of Judges in the Bible. He was the commander of the army of Deborah, the prophetess and heroine of the Hebrew Bible...
to face the Assyrian General Sisera
Sisera
Sisera was commander of the Canaanite army of King Jabin of Hazor mentioned in the of the Hebrew Bible. After being defeated by Barak, Sisera was killed by Jael, who hammered a tent peg into his temple....
, the commander of Jabin's army, in battle. The victory to which the Bible refers is the victory of an Israelite force of ten thousand over Sisera's force of nine hundred iron chariots.
saw the army, she said, according to :
As Deborah prophesied, the Lord gave the victory to the Israelites. Sisera fled the battle site seeking refuge in the tent of the woman Jael. In the Biblical account, Jael killed the enemy leader, Sisera. The Biblical account of Deborah ends in Judges 5.
After the battle, there was peace in the land for 40 years.
The Song of Deborah
Though it is not uncommon to read a victory hymn in the Hebrew Bible, the Song of Deborah stands out as unique in that it is a hymn that celebrates a military victory helped by two women: Deborah and Jael. Michael Coogan writes that Jael being a woman "is a further sign that Yahweh ultimately is responsible for the victory: The mighty Canaanite general Siera will be 'sold' by the Lord 'into the hand of a woman' (Judges 4:9) - the ultimate degradation."
Historical and biblical context
Tribe of Judah
According to the Hebrew Bible, the Tribe of Judah was one of the Tribes of Israel.Following the completion of the conquest of Canaan by the Israelite tribes after about 1200 BCE, Joshua allocated the land among the twelve tribes....
did not take Ashkelon
Ashkelon
Ashkelon is a coastal city in the South District of Israel on the Mediterranean coast, south of Tel Aviv, and north of the border with the Gaza Strip. The ancient seaport of Ashkelon dates back to the Neolithic Age...
, or Ekron
Ekron
The city of Ekron , was one of the five cities of the famed Philistine pentapolis, located in southwestern Canaan. Ekron lies 35 kilometers west of Jerusalem, and 18 kilometers north of ancient Gath, on the eastern edge of Israel's coastal plain.-History:...
. The Canaanites continued to hold Beth Shean, Dor
Dor
Tel Dor , is an archeological site located on Israel's Mediterranean coast, about 30 km south of Haifa. Lying on a small headland at the north side of a protected inlet, it is identified with D-jr of Egyptian sources, Biblical Dor, and with Dor/Dora of Greek and Roman sources...
, and Ibleam. Zebulon
Zebulon
Zebulun, was the sixth son of Jacob and Leah in the Hebrew Bible.Zebulon, Zebulun or Zébulon may also refer to:*Tribe of Zebulun, ancient Israelite tribeGiven names...
was unable to drive them out of Kitron
Kitron
Kitron is a lemon liqueur produced on the Greek island of Naxos. It is made from the fruit and leaves of the citron tree, which is similar to the lemon tree but stronger and slightly different in taste....
or Nahalol; nor could Asher
Asher
Asher , in the Book of Genesis, is the second son of Jacob and Zilpah, and the founder of the Tribe of Asher.-Name:The text of the Torah argues that the name of Asher means happy/blessing, implying a derivation from the Hebrew term osher ; the Torah actually presents this in two variations—beoshri...
drive out the inhabitants of Acco
Acco
Acco was a chief of the Senones in Gaul, who induced his countrymen to revolt against Julius Caesar in 53 BC. On the conclusion of the war, and after a conference at Durocortorum, Caesar had Acco tried and convicted on charges of treason. As punishment, he was flogged to death in the full sight...
, Sidon
Sidon
Sidon or Saïda is the third-largest city in Lebanon. It is located in the South Governorate of Lebanon, on the Mediterranean coast, about 40 km north of Tyre and 40 km south of the capital Beirut. In Genesis, Sidon is the son of Canaan the grandson of Noah...
, Achzib
Achzib
Achziv is an archaeological site on the northern coast of Israel, 15 kilometers north of Acco. It was first settled in the Middle Canaanite II period by the Phoenicians. In the Bible, it is described as falling within territory assigned to the tribe of Asher. An Arab village, Az-Zeeb, was...
, or Rehob. The Amorites drove back the Danites into the highlands.
Jabin
Jabin
Jabin is a Biblical name meaning 'discerner', or 'the wise'. It may refer to:* A king of Hazor, at the time of the entrance of Israel into Canaan , whose overthrow and that of the northern chief with whom he had entered into a confederacy against Joshua was the crowning act in the conquest of the...
a king of Canaan reigned at Hazor and the commander of his army was Sisera
Sisera
Sisera was commander of the Canaanite army of King Jabin of Hazor mentioned in the of the Hebrew Bible. After being defeated by Barak, Sisera was killed by Jael, who hammered a tent peg into his temple....
who lived in Haroseth-ha-goiim. The accounts of Judges 4 and 5 tell the story of a battle
Battle of Mount Tabor (biblical)
The biblical Battle of Mount Tabor takes place during the time of the Book of Judges between Canaanite forces of the king of Hazor and the Israelite army led by Barak.- Background :...
at Taanach near the River Kishon
Kishon River
The Kishon River is a river in Israel that flows into the Mediterranean Sea at the city of Haifa.- Course :The Kishon River is a 70-km-long perennial stream in Israel...
.
Few allies among the southern tribes could come to the assistance of Deborah and Barak. Israel, which the song of Deborah and Barak numbers at 40,000 spears, was unavailable except for forces from the tribes of Ephraim
Ephraim
Ephraim ; was, according to the Book of Genesis, the second son of Joseph and Asenath. Asenath was an Egyptian woman whom Pharaoh gave to Joseph as wife, and the daughter of Potipherah, a priest of On. Ephraim was born in Egypt before the arrival of the children of Israel from Canaan...
, Machir
Machir
Machir/Makir - meaning bartered - was the name of two figures in the Bible.1. Machir, the son of Manasseh, and father of Gilead....
, Zebulon
Zebulon
Zebulun, was the sixth son of Jacob and Leah in the Hebrew Bible.Zebulon, Zebulun or Zébulon may also refer to:*Tribe of Zebulun, ancient Israelite tribeGiven names...
, Issachar
Issachar
Issachar/Yissachar was, according to the Book of Genesis, a son of Jacob and Leah , and the founder of the Israelite Tribe of Issachar; however some Biblical scholars view this as postdiction, an eponymous metaphor providing an aetiology of the connectedness of the tribe to others in the Israelite...
, and Naphtali. While Sisera is said to have had 900 iron chariots, "the Song of Deborah" implies that heavy rain rendered them ineffectual.
External links
- Book of Judges article, Jewish Encyclopedia
- Debbora, Catholic Encyclopedia
- Biblical Hebrew Poetry - Reconstructing the Original Oral, Aural and Visual Experience
- Song of Deborah (Judges 5) Reconstructed