Deborah from the Bible and Life lessons from her!

Deborah! Her story is filled with courage, and her faith could leave us all inspired.



Anyway who was Deborah in the Bible and what was her role in the book of Judges?

-Well, Deborah was a prophet of God.
-She is the 4th judge mentioned in the book of Judges, and the only female judge mentioned in the Bible.
-She was a leader of Israel.
-Deborah was the wife of Lapidoth.
-She became a military leader.
-She was a songwriter and minstrel leading her people in worship after the victory had been won.

Sadly scripture doesn’t go into a lot of Deborah’s story, we aren’t told how she rose to these positions or her triumphs and struggles along the way. We simply step into Deborah’s story in Judges 4 and find her holding “court” under a palm tree. This setting was prolly a symbol of her fairness, and refusal to show partiality in her rulings. Scripture says that the people sought out Deborah’s judgment.

How did Deborah become a leader?

Perhaps the most striking verse is Judges 4:6, it says that Deborah sends for a man called Barak. She doesn’t ask him to come, she doesn’t plead. She simply sends for him "with authority". Her authority didn’t come from herself, her skill, her reputation, her job titles, but from the God she served.

When God calls you to something, when He lays something on your heart it doesn’t matter what people think, it doesn’t matter if you have the perfect skills or the words to say. Your authority comes from God. By yourself, you may not be able to do what God has called you to, but with Him, you can do all things, you don’t have to be enough because He is.

Characteristics of Deborah

I love how as you read verse 6 you can almost feel the weight of authority in her words as she sends for Barak. It says that she “sent word” and “summoned” him. Deborah tells him to gather men and prepare to go to war. Just like that she just appointed him a military leader, and declared war on those who have been oppressing them.

What are we being oppressed by, that we should be taking authority over? 

Maybe we aren’t physically at war, but spiritually and emotionally we are waging a war that we feel like we just can’t win. Your authority comes from God, the attacks from the enemy are coming from a retreating army that has already lost the war. Your victory has already been won. Trust your God, adjust your mindset, and step into the authority God has given you. 

Deborah was humble and grateful (Judges 5:1-31)

When reading through the Book of Judges, this is one chapter which we could easily bypass in favor of reading about the next judge. In doing so, we miss a poetic description of the preceding events as they recap God's deliverance. Also, failure to spend some time in this chapter robs us of reading one of the masterpieces of Hebrew poetry.

The "Song of Deborah" begins with the historical past. She calls for a remembrance of God's marvelous manifestations. It goes back to Mount Sinai where God demonstrated His power and spoke verbally to them. Then it covers the overall journey to Edom. This part of history includes God's punishment for sin as well as His provision. It also points to God's revelation of Himself.

It is easy to think of the specific events referred to here and miss the key point — praise. Deborah and Barak knew what their response needed to be. God deserved all the honor and glory. The tremendous victory over superior forces came through divine intervention. By themselves, Barak and his foot soldiers could never have accomplished such a feat.

Deborah was truly a woman who showed the world how feminity and leadership could go hand in hand, and how working alongside with men was not a herculean task. 

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