Day Three

Deborah: the Heroic Hero

Learning Objectives for the Kids:

• Deborah did a lot.  She helped others solve their problems.  She shared God’s words with the people.  She fought for justice.  She created music that the people could use to praise God.

• Deborah did not do these things for riches and power.  Deborah did all this because ordinary people like her needed her help.

• God does the most amazing things in the world through everyday people who care about doing what’s right.

• We all have gifts to share with others and that God uses to make the world better.

• Jesus challenges us all to find what we are best at and to use those gifts not to make ourselves great but to make the world great for everybody.  In this way we are all blessed more than can be measured!

​

Background on Deborah:                                 Judges 4 - Judges 5

     During the 1100s BCE Deborah served as the fourth judge of Israel after the exodus from Egypt but before the monarchy was established at Jerusalem.  In that time the judges served variously as prophets, warriors, informal leaders, and as literal judges.  Deborah fulfilled all of these roles. 

     We enter Deborah’s story by learning that she dispensed judgment about the people’s problems from beneath a palm tree between Benjamin and Bethel.  The king of Canaan, Jabin, had conquered the people of Israel and ruled over them for twenty years.  Deborah was called by God to end that oppression. 

     She ordered a commander named Barak to summon an army to overthrow Jabin.  He agreed on one condition, that she march at the head of the army along with him.  She agreed on one condition, that it be made known that through God a woman was responsible for the coming victory and not a man.  From among the twelve tribes of Israel, Naphtali and Zebulun answered the call and gathered for war on Mount Tabor. 

     Jabin’s commander, the fearsome Sisera, summoned a formidable army including 900 chariots of iron to put down the rebellious forces at Mount Tabor.  In that time, 900 chariots might have been seen as an invincible force.  What followed was a stunning victory for the Israelites as their force of peasants overwhelmed an army of well-trained and well-equipped soldiers.  The Biblical account even suggests that God intervened with torrents of rain to disable the enemy chariots. 

     Sisera fled on foot as he was pursued by the Israelites and took refuge in a nearby land.  A woman there named Jael took in Sisera and when his guard was dropped, assassinated him with a tent spike.  With that, the cruel rein of Jabin under the iron fist of Sisera was effectively ended by a woman, as Deborah prophesied.  Jael showed Barak what she had done and with the threat of Sisera ended, Barak and Deborah were able to easily subdue and overthrow Jabin and liberate Israel.  Together they sang Deborah’s song about the victory which became an anthem of hope for Israel. 

Key Beatitude:                         

"Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth." (Matthew 5:5 NRSV)

If you're looking for superman in the Bible, you just found her.  Clark Kent is the mild mannered reporter / superhuman hero.  Deborah is the mild-mannered musician / superfaithful hero.  Deborah rescues a nation in peril, restores faith and justice to the land, inspires others to bravely serve, and even gets her own theme song.  All she's missing is the cape.  Deborah helps us to understand that meekness is strength built from humbly putting your gifts to the best use.  Deborah can't leap over buildings or shoot lasers from her eyes, so what are her gifts?  Deborah is confident, wise, and brave.  She deeply cares for others and is willing to put her life on the line to help them.  This care is not reserved for the wealthy or powerful but directed at the common people all around her.  Above all, Deborah is faithful to God.  Whether you want to use the metaphor of solid stones building up to a strong tower or rich soil, fertilizer, water, and sunlight growing a great tree these are the gifts that make Deborah meek and great.   

Special Prayers:  As you learn about Deborah, you’re invited to choose a prayer to repeat throughout the day.  The goal is to memorize the simple prayer so that it is there for you and your kids whenever you might need it in life, just like God.  You can choose between the more challenging prayer poem and the rhyming kid’s poem:

Deborah Kid’s Prayer:

Help us to have humble hearts.
Make mine beat like a justice drum.
As you build your great kingdom, 
I will become one of its parts.
Amen.

Deborah Prayer Poem:

You make me strong.  I lean on your might.  
You make me wise.  I’m nourished by your righteousness.  
You make me brave.  I am filled with a fierceness for your fairness.
Amen.