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Deborah
4 After Ehud died, the Israelites again did things that the Lord saw were evil. 2 So the Lord put them under the power of King Jabin. He was a Canaanite king who ruled in Hazor.[a] The leader of Jabin's army was called Sisera. Sisera lived in Harosheth Haggoyim. 3 He had 900 iron chariots for his army. He used his power to be cruel to the Israelites for 20 years. So they called out to the Lord for help.
4 At that time, Lappidoth's wife Deborah was leading the Israelites. She was a prophetess. 5 She would sit under a palm tree between Ramah and Bethel to judge people's problems. That was in the hill country of Ephraim. The Israelites would come to her when they had arguments. She would decide who was right.
6 One day, Deborah told Abinoam's son Barak to come to her. He lived in Kedesh, a town in Naphtali. She said to Barak, ‘The Lord, Israel's God, has given you this command: “March to Mount Tabor with 10,000 men who belong to the tribes of Naphtali and Zebulun.[b] 7 I will deceive Sisera, the leader of King Jabin's army. He will go to the Kishon river with his great army and all their chariots. I will put them all under your power.” ’
8 Barak said to Deborah, ‘I will go if you will come with me. But if you do not agree to go, I will not go either.’ 9 Deborah said, ‘Yes, I will go with you. But you will not receive honour for the battle. Instead, the Lord will put Sisera under the power of a woman.’
So Deborah went with Barak to Kedesh. 10 Barak told the men from Zebulun and Naphtali to go with him to Kedesh. 10,000 men came to follow him. Deborah also went with him.
11 A certain Kenite man called Heber, did not live with the other Kenites. They were descendants of Hobab, the father of Moses' wife. Heber was living in a tent beside the big tree in Zaanannim, near Kedesh.
12 Sisera heard news that Abinoam's son Barak had gone up to Mount Tabor. 13 So he gave a command to all his soldiers. He told them to go with him from Harosheth Haggoyim to the Kishon river. They had 900 iron chariots. 14 Then Deborah said to Barak, ‘Get ready! This is the day that the Lord will put Sisera under your power! The Lord will lead you into battle!’
So Barak led his 10,000 soldiers down from Mount Tabor. 15 When they started to attack, the Lord caused Sisera and all his army with their chariots to have great trouble. The Israelites chased them with their swords. Sisera jumped off his chariot and he ran away. 16 Barak and his soldiers chased after Sisera's army and their chariots. They chased them to Harosheth Haggoyim. They killed Sisera's whole army. Not one of their soldiers was still alive!
17 Sisera himself ran to hide in the tent of Heber's wife, Jael. He did that because King Jabin of Hazor had agreed to be friends with Heber's family. 18 Jael came out of her tent to say ‘hello’ to Sisera. She said to him, ‘Please come into my tent, sir. You can rest safely here. Do not be afraid.’ So Sisera went into her tent to rest. Jael put a cloth over him. 19 Sisera said to her, ‘I am thirsty. Please give me some water to drink.’ She gave him some milk from a leather bottle. Then she covered him again with the cloth. 20 Sisera said to her, ‘Stand at the door of your tent and watch. If someone comes to ask if anyone is here, say, “No.” ’
21 But Heber's wife Jael got a tent peg and a hammer.[c] Sisera was very tired and he was asleep. Jael used the hammer to hit the peg into the side of Sisera's head. The peg went through his head into the ground. Sisera died. 22 Barak had been chasing Sisera. Jael went out of her tent to say ‘hello’ to him. She said to Barak, ‘Come here! I will show you the man that you are looking for.’ Barak went with her into the tent. He saw Sisera there. He was lying on the ground and he was dead. Barak saw the peg that had gone through Sisera's head.
23 On that day, God caused King Jabin of Canaan to be very ashamed because the Israelites had won against his army. 24 From that time, the Israelite army became stronger, and King Jabin became weaker. Finally, the Israelites destroyed him.
Deborah's song
5 On that day Deborah sang this song, with Abinoam's son Barak:
2 ‘The leaders of Israel led their people out.
The people were happy to follow them to the battle.
Praise the Lord!
3 Hear this, you kings! Listen, you rulers!
I will sing to worship the Lord.
Yes, I will praise him with a song.
He is the Lord, Israel's God.
4 Lord, you came from Seir mountains.
Yes, you marched from the land of Edom.[d]
As you came, the earth shook.
Rain poured down from the clouds in the sky.
5 The mountains shook when you appeared,
as they shook at Sinai mountain when you showed your power.
You are the Lord, the God of Israel.
6 When Anath's son Shamgar ruled the land,
nobody travelled on the roads.
When Jael ruled, people walked on secret paths,
because they were afraid.
7 Nobody lived in the small villages.
Then I, Deborah, became their leader.
I became like a mother for Israel's people,
to keep them safe.
8 When the Israelites chose new gods to worship,
enemies attacked their cities.
No one in Israel was ready to fight.
Not one of their 40,000 soldiers had a shield or a spear.
9 I thank God for Israel's leaders,
and the people who are ready to fight our enemies.
Praise the Lord!
10 Listen to me, you rich people who ride on white donkeys,
with beautiful cloths to sit on.
And you people who walk along the road,
you should listen too!
11 Listen to the voices of the singers near the wells of water.
They sing about the great things that the Lord has done.
They tell how Israel's soldiers have won against their enemies.
Then the Lord's people marched down to the city gates.
12 “Wake up, Deborah! Wake up and sing a song!
Get up, Barak, son of Abinoam!
Take your enemies away as your prisoners.”
13 The faithful men who remained returned to their leaders.
The Lord's people came to me.
They were ready to fight against our enemies.
14 Some men of Ephraim's tribe came to help,
from the land where Amalek lived.
They followed men of Benjamin's tribe, with their soldiers.
Leaders also came from Makir.
Army officers came from Zebulun's tribe.
15 The leaders of Issachar's tribe were with Deborah.
Yes, the men of Issachar joined with Barak.
Barak led them into the valley.
But the men of Reuben's tribe could not decide what to do.
16 Instead, they stayed to take care of their sheep.
Did they want to listen to the shepherds as they called out to their sheep?
The clans of Reuben's tribe could not agree what they should do.
17 The men of Gilead stayed at home,
on the east side of the Jordan River.
The men of Dan's tribe stayed with their ships.
The men of Asher's tribe also stayed in their homes near the sea.
18 But the men of Zebulun's tribe were not afraid to die in war.
The men of Naphtali's tribe were also ready to attack the enemy.
19 Kings of Canaan came and they fought against us.
They attacked us at Taanach, near the stream at Megiddo.
But they could not take any valuable silver from us.
20 Even the stars fought against Sisera!
They travelled across the sky to attack him.
21 The Kishon river carried away Sisera's soldiers.
It used its power to stop them.
So I will be brave and I will continue to fight!
22 As for the horses of Sisera's army,
their feet made a loud noise as they ran away.
23 The Lord's angel says, “Punish Meroz!
Punish the people who live there,
because they did not come to help the Lord.
They did not agree to fight against the Lord's strong enemy.”
24 But Jael should receive great honour!
Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite,
should receive more honour than all other women who live in tents.
25 Sisera asked her for water to drink, and she gave him milk.
She gave him the best cream in a beautiful bowl.
26 She took a tent peg in her left hand.
She took a worker's hammer in her right hand.
She hit the peg through Sisera's head.
She broke his skull. She broke it completely.
She knocked the sharp peg through his head.
27 He fell to the floor at her feet.
He lay there and he did not move.
He died at the place where he fell.
Jael had killed him!
28 Sisera's mother looked out from the window of her house.
She waited for Sisera to return.
She said, “His chariot has taken a long time to come!
Why do I not yet hear the sound of his horse's feet?”
29 Her wise ladies replied,
and she herself thought the same thing:
30 “They are taking valuable things from their enemies.
They are sharing the things between them.
Each soldier will bring one or two women for himself.
Sisera's share will be some beautiful cloth.
Yes, he is bringing pieces of valuable cloth,
and a beautiful necklace for me!
That is why he is so late to return home.”
31 I pray that all your enemies will die as Sisera died, Lord!
But I pray that those who love you will shine brightly.
May they be strong like the sun at dawn.’
After that, there was peace in Israel for 40 years.
35 Jesus then asked the disciples, ‘When I sent you out without a purse, a bag or shoes, did you need anything?’ ‘No,’ they replied, ‘nothing.’
36 ‘Now it is different,’ he said. ‘If you have a purse or bag, you should take it with you. If you do not have a sword, sell your coat. Use the money to buy one. 37 I tell you this: Long ago people wrote in the Bible what must happen to me. It says, “People will think that he is a wicked person.” And this must happen to me soon, so that it becomes true.’
38 The disciples said, ‘Look, Master, we have two swords here.’ Jesus replied, ‘That is enough.’[a]
Jesus prays on the Mount of Olives
39 Jesus left the city. He went to the Mount of Olives. This is what he usually did. His disciples went with him. 40 When they arrived there he said to them, ‘Ask God to help you, so that you do not want to do wrong things.’
41 Then he went away from them about as far as you can throw a stone. He went down on his knees and he prayed, 42 ‘Father, if you want, you can save me from this time of great pain. But I do not ask you to do what I want. Do what you want to do.’
43 Then an angel came to him from heaven. The angel made him stronger. 44 Jesus began to have troubles in his mind. He prayed again even more strongly. His sweat became like blood and it fell to the ground.[b]
45 Then Jesus finished praying and he stood up again. He returned to the disciples. He saw that they were sleeping. They were very weak and tired because they were so sad. 46 ‘You should not be sleeping,’ he said. ‘Get up and pray! Ask God to help you, so that you do not want to do wrong things.’
The soldiers catch Jesus
47 While Jesus was still speaking, a crowd of people came towards him. Judas led the crowd to that place. He was one of the 12 apostles. He came near to Jesus to kiss him. 48 Jesus said to him, ‘Judas, why do you want to kiss me, the Son of Man? You are helping my enemies to take hold of me!’
49 The people near to Jesus saw what was happening. They asked him, ‘Lord, should we use our swords to fight?’ 50 One of them hit the servant of the leader of the priests. He cut off the servant's right ear. 51 ‘That is enough!’ Jesus said. He then touched the man's ear and made him well again.
52 Then Jesus spoke to the people that had come to take hold of him. They were the leaders of the priests, and the leaders of the police in the temple. Other important Jews were also there. He said to them, ‘You have come here with swords and heavy sticks. Do you really think that I am leading people to fight against our country's rulers? 53 No! But I was with you every day in the yard of the temple. You did not try to take hold of me then. But now really is the time and the place for you to work. Now it is a bad dark time, when the Devil has authority.’
God judges all people
94 Lord, you are the God
who punishes guilty people.
God, show your power
to punish people as they deserve![a]
2 Judge of all people on the earth, do something!
Punish proud people as they deserve!
3 How long will wicked people continue to be happy?
Yes, Lord, how long?
4 Those people who do evil things
speak many proud words.
They boast about how great they are.
5 Lord, see how they hurt your own people.
They are cruel to the people that belong to you.
6 They kill widows
and foreign people who live in our land.
They murder children that have no family.
7 They say, ‘The Lord does not see us.
Israel's God does not see what we are doing.’
8 Think again, all you fools among the people!
Stupid people, become wise!
9 God made our ears!
Can he himself not hear?
He made our eyes!
Does he not see?
10 He teaches the nations what is right.
Will he not punish you,
when you do what is wrong?
He teaches people what they should know.
11 The Lord knows what people think.
He knows that their thoughts are empty.
12 Lord, when you teach people what is right,
you have really blessed them.
You use your Law to teach them.
13 When those people have troubles,
you keep them safe.
Then the wicked people fall into a deep hole
that you have dug to catch them.
14 The Lord will not leave his people alone.
He will not forget to help the people that belong to him.
15 Once again, judges will do what is right and fair,
and good, honest people will agree.
16 Who would fight for me
against the wicked people?[b]
Who would keep me safe
from the people who do evil things?
17 Unless the Lord had helped me,
I would soon have become silent in death.
18 When I think, ‘I am falling down,’
your faithful love keeps me safe, Lord.
19 When I have troubles in my mind,
so that I am afraid,
you help me to be happy again.
20 You will not become a friend of cruel rulers.
They make laws that only hurt people.
21 They join together to work against good people.
They say that people are guilty
who have done nothing wrong.
They say that they must die.
22 But the Lord is a strong place for me.
Yes, my God is a rock
where I can hide and be safe.
23 He will punish those wicked leaders.
He will destroy them,
because they do evil things.
The Lord our God will completely destroy them.
3 When fools boast, they bring punishment on themselves.
But the words of wise people keep them safe.
4 When a farmer has no oxen to plough his fields,
he does not have to feed them.
But he needs strong oxen to grow plenty of crops.
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