By Reverend J. Loren Russell
Judges 4:4-9 (v. 9) NKJV
“Now Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, was judging Israel at that time. 5 And she would sit under the palm tree of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the mountains of Ephraim. And the children of Israel came up to her for judgment. 6 Then she sent and called for Barak the son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali, and said to him, “Has not the Lord God of Israel commanded, ‘Go and deploy troops at Mount Tabor; take with you ten thousand men of the sons of Naphtali and of the sons of Zebulun; 7 and against you I will deploy Sisera, the commander of Jabin’s army, with his chariots and his multitude at the River Kishon; and I will deliver him into your hand’?” 8 And Barak said to her, “If you will go with me, then I will go; but if you will not go with me, I will not go!” 9 So she said, “I will surely go with you; nevertheless there will be no glory for you in the journey you are taking, for the Lord will sell Sisera into the hand of a woman.” Then Deborah arose and went with Barak to Kedesh.”
Negotiator, arbitrator of justice, a celebrated leader, a political influencer, a counselor, a prophetess, a wife, a conquering warrior, a woman of grace and dignity, a judge. Any of these adjectives, singularly, cannot adequately describe Deborah (whose name means “Honeybee).” However, when they are bound together, we get a real feel for how great this woman of God was.
We are introduced to this mighty woman early in the historical book of Judges. She is presented to us as a prophetess and the wife of Lapidoth. She held court under the Deborah tree, a palm named after her. It was from there that she exercised her duties as a judge, settling disputes and controversies as God’s ambassador.
Being a prophetess is so much more than settling disputes, as was evidenced by Deborah when she sent for Barak, a commander of Israel’s army. A prophetess is an oracle of God; she speaks through her mouth the words of God. I should have added one more adjective to her description; she was a “mobilizer” because she told Barak to mobilize the army then “‘Go and deploy troops at Mount Tabor; take with you ten thousand men of the sons of Naphtali and of the sons of Zebulun; 7 and against you I will deploy Sisera, the commander of Jabin’s army, with his chariots and his multitude at the River Kishon; and I will deliver him into your hand.”’ Not only was she giving him his marching orders but assured him of victory.
Barak respected Deborah as a prophetess, but not fully. Instead of him doing as she instructed, he refused to go into battle unless she went with him. Because of that decision, Barak’s future did not include any mention of him defeating Sisera. Instead, the glory for Sisera’s defeat was given to a woman, Deborah! Deborah is memorialized as “the finest possibilities of a gifted, God-fearing woman who allows the spirit of God to develop her full capacities to impact the world around her” (New Spirit Filled Life Bible, p. 319).
Deborah’s example was not only good for those in her day, but good for us today. She is encouraging for women as well as men. We should follow Deborah’s leadership and let the Lord develop our full capabilities so that we can likewise impact the world around us.
Be Blessed!
Rev. J. Loren Russell is an associate minister at Goodwill Baptist Church and is the spiritual leader of the Evangelical Church of God, both in the Bronx, President/CEO of The JLR Company/J Loren R Consulting, LLC for Church Financial & Strategic Consulting (718-328-8096) and is the producer and host of “Matters of Faith – The Radio Show” on Monday nights from 8:00 – 10:00 PM on Facebook Live. Be sure to ‘Friend’ the Matters of Faith YouTube Channel. Email us at mattersoffaith.mof@gmail.com. Order your copy of Matters of Faith: The eBook at www.smashwords.com/books/view/993177.
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