Deborah ~ Prophetess & Judge
Disclosure: This is Part 1 of a 2-part series. Two brave women are involved in taking down an army. This is the tale of the first woman.
A lot of times people don’t like to talk about or believe in the supernatural. But it is very much so a real thing. Call it woman’s intuition. Call it a gut feeling. A hunch, a sixth sense, a premonition, an instinct. Call it what you will. Deborah was in tune with a Master Power.
There is not much evidence confirming how she came to be the only woman to ever acquire a position as a judge of Israel. She most likely rose to power by tapping into her natural born gift as a prophetess. I would imagine her visions started when she was very young. Maybe they weren’t visions in the sense that you or I may have “seen in the movies”, but an early onset of being able to read the characters of the people around her. See their “aura”, if you will. I would suspect that Deborah played the role of mediator early on in her life. She used her keen sense of awareness to see both sides of a disagreement, and aid those around her into finding a middle ground. As she grew older, I can see her waking in the night, covered in sweat from a dream she had about someone she casually bumped into the day before. This dream calling her to speak on an illness or catastrophe that was to come in that person’s life. She sees things in a room full of people that no one else can see.
The urges to voice her intuitiveness became stronger as the years pass. She can’t hold her tongue any longer. She begins to reach out to this stranger and that friend about visions she’s having about them. She predicts events that haven’t happened yet, only for the townsfolk to be astonished when they finally come to pass.
As time goes on, Deborah no longer has to seek out individuals to help. They come to her. Instead of having them beat down her door she sits under a palm tree between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim and speaks to people who flock to hear her words of wisdom and encouragement. Soon, she has a wide enough following as an influencer of Israel that the people elect her 4th judge of the land. Her wisdom, courage, and leadership qualities enable her to guide Israel during a time of oppression by the Canaanites. She becomes proficient at combining spiritual insight with practical judgment, earning the respect of her constituents and fulfilling God’s purpose in delivering Israel from their enemies.
Deborah sought guidance from the Lord by praying and meditating before proclaiming her ruling on a matter. I can see her, sneaking off for a moment of meditation. Needing a quiet moment to gather her thoughts, not unlike The Messiah, Jesus, in his time of teachings, which would come years later. Out of seemingly nowhere, she receives instructions from Yahweh. He tells her to summon Barak, an Israelite warrior, and have him bring 10,000 troops to Mount Tabor. They are to attack the brutal King Jabin’s commander of the Canaanite Army; a cruel general named Sisera. Too long the people of Israel had been under his oppression. Things were about to change…
Her eyes snap open. She stands up quickly and rushes to find him. This information cannot wait.
“Barak! Barak! I have received news from Yah! You must gather 10,000 troops. Take them to Mount Tabor. Here you will defeat that brutal Sisera, the general of King Jabin’s army!”
Even after working with Deborah all these years, Barak still pauses. “Ok, Deb. You think we’re ready for this? They have over 900 iron chariots! We have been under their tyrant bullying for so long! How can we overcome?! I tell you what, I’ll go, but you’re riding shotgun. If we go, you go too.” He thought surely that would deter her decision.
Deborah stares him down. How dare he use sarcasm towards her! After 40 years of her doing this, you think he’d know by now. She raises her hand toward the heavens and loudly makes the proclamation. "I will surely go with you; nevertheless, the road on which you are going will NOT lead to YOUR glory, for the Lord will deliver Sisera into the HANDS. OF. A WOMAN." There. Let that sink in on the trip to battle.
Barak looks taken aback! Deliver Sisera into the hands of woman?! Deborah has finally lost her mind. He shakes his head yet begins the preparations for gathering the troops.
Days later, the battle finally commences. The Israelite army marches to Mount Tabor. Their movements are reported to Sisera, who went to the Wadi Kishon, near Mount Tabor, to watch the battle unfold. God causes a strong rainstorm that saturates the ground, causing the heavy iron chariots of the Canaanites to become stuck in the mud. Rain fills the streams on the mountain causing a flash flood at the Wadi Kishon, sweeping many away. The Canaanites panic and flee, yet the Israelites pursue them and slay them to the last man.
Frazzled and frightened, Sisera leaves his chariot and runs for his life. He goes for what seems like hours and reaches a small nomadic village filled with many tents. He approaches one in particular where a woman stands outside hammering in the last stake to secure the shelter. It is here, where Deborah’s prophecy would find its fulfillment at the hands of woman.
All through time, women have been called crazy for their intuitions.’ Blown off, unheard, and dismissed. And yes, some women are crazy, let’s just be honest! However, when you have been gifted by The Almighty, when you are truly called by the Creator, no amount of naysaying can stop you from what He wills. Deborah understood this. Sometimes you just have to let them all you crazy and stay in tune with The Master Power. Nine times out of ten if you truly seek His guidance and discernment, it will NOT be easy. Your gifts can sometimes grow heavy, but you’ve been trusted to carry it. You will be met with persecution, ridicule, and those who will downright say you don’t even believe in God at all. Deborah teaches us to stay true to the gifts Yahweh gives us. You may not have the gift of prophecy, but you have a divine passion in your soul. Tap into that. Nurture it. Explore that tug on your heart strings. Keep being obedient to the gift that God has given you. That’s how non-believers start to see Him. Be a part of what Yahweh wills for your life and speak that truth out loud! Don’t misuse it, PROCLAIM it! Just like Deborah!
(Continue to part 2, Jael, where we meet our next heroine who took down Sisera, and fulfilled Deborah’s prophecy.)
