Judges 5
1 And Debbora and Barac son of Abineem
sang in that day, saying,
2 A revelation was made in Israel when
the people were made willing: Praise ye the Lord.
3 Hear, ye kings, and hearken, rulers:
I will sing, it is I who will sing to the Lord, it is
I, I will sing a psalm to the Lord the God of Israel.
4 O Lord, in thy going forth on Seir,
when thou wentest forth out of the land of Edom, the earth quaked and the
heaven dropped dews, and the clouds dropped water.
5 The mountains were shaken before the
face of the Lord Eloi, this Sina before the face of the Lord God of Israel.
6 In the days of Samegar son of Anath,
in the days of Jael, they deserted the ways, and went in by-ways; they went in
crooked paths. 7 The mighty men in
Israel failed, they failed until Debbora arose, until she arose a mother in
Israel. 8 They chose new gods; then
the cities of rulers fought;
aGr. if there should be seen.there was not a shield or spear seen among forty thousand in Israel.
9 My heart
inclines to the orders given in Israel; ye that are
willing among the people, bless the Lord.
10 Ye that mount a she-ass at
noon-day, ye that sit on the judgment-seat, and walk by the roads of them that
sit in judgment by the way; declare
11 ye that are delivered from the noise of
bGr. noisy ones.disturbers among the drawers of water; there shall they relate righteous
acts: O Lord, increase righteous acts in Israel: then the people of the Lord
went down to the cities. 12 Awake,
awake, Debbora; awake, awake, utter a song: arise, Barac, and lead thy
captivity captive, son of Abineem.
13 Then went down the remnant to the
strong, the people of the Lord went down for him among the mighty ones from
me.
14 Ephraim rooted them out in Amalec,
behind thee was Benjamin among thy people: the inhabitants of Machir came down
with me searching out the enemy, and from Zabulon came they that
cGr. Rather, draw or handle the scribe's pen, etc.draw with the scribe's pen of record.
15 And princes in Issachar were with
Debbora and Barac, thus she sent Barac on his feet in the valleys into the
portions of Ruben; great pangs
dGr. reaching.reached to the heart. 16 Why did
they sit between the sheep-folds to hear the bleating of flocks for the
divisions of Ruben? there were great searchings of
heart. 17 Galaad
is on the other side of Jordan where he pitched his
tents; and why does Dan remain in ships? Aser sat down on the sea-coasts, and
he will tabernacle at his
eOr, places of egress, etc.ports. 18 The people Zabulon
fLit. reproached.exposed their soul to death, and Nephthali came to the high places of their
land.
19 Kings set themselves in array,
then the kings of Chanaan fought in Thanaach at the water of Mageddo; they
took no gift of money. 20 The stars
from heaven set themselves in array, they set themselves
to fight with Sisara out of their paths.
21 The brook of Kison swept them
away, the ancient brook, the brook Kison: my mighty soul will trample him
down. 22 When the hoofs of the horse
were entangled, his mighty ones earnestly hasted
23 to curse Meroz: Curse ye
it, said the angel of the Lord; cursed
is every one that dwells in it, because they came not
to the help of the Lord, to his help among the mighty.
24 Blessed among women be Jael wife
of Chaber the Kenite; let her be blessed above women in tents.
25 He asked for water, she gave him
milk in a dish; she brought butter of princes.
26 She stretched forth her left hand
to
gOr, pin of the tent.the nail, and her right hand to the workman's hammer, and she
hLit. hammered.smote Sisara with it, she nailed through his head and smote him; she nailed
through his temples. 27 He rolled
down between her feet; he fell and lay between her feet; he bowed and fell:
where he bowed, there he fell
iq. d. having departed this life.dead.
28 The mother of Sisara looked down
through the window out of the loophole, saying, Why
was his chariot ashamed? why did the
jOr, feet of his horses. lit. feet of his chariots.wheels of his chariots tarry? 29 Her
wise ladies answered her, and she returned answers to herself,
saying,
30 Will they not find him dividing
the spoil? he will surely
ki. e. be gracious and kind in allowing the claim of each to a
share.be gracious to every man: there are spoils of dyed
garments for Sisara, spoils of various dyed garments, dyed embroidered
garments, they are the spoils for his neck.
31 Thus let all thine enemies perish,
O Lord: and they that love him shall be as the going forth of the sun in his
strength.
And the land had rest forty years.
Footnotes
a5:8 Gr. if there should be seen.
b5:11 Gr. noisy ones.
c5:14 Gr. Rather, draw or handle the scribe's pen, etc.
d5:15 Gr. reaching.
e5:17 Or, places of egress, etc.
f5:18 Lit. reproached.
g5:26 Or, pin of the tent.
h5:26 Lit. hammered.
i5:27 q. d. having departed this life.
j5:28 Or, feet of his horses. lit. feet of his chariots.
k5:30 i. e. be gracious and kind in allowing the claim of each to a share.