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Deborah—A Fiery Woman of YHVH

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Judges 4–5

During the time of the judges, the nation Israel was languishing under oppressive foreign powers, yet on numerous occasions, YHVH mercifully sent them a savior to deliver them and through miracles and against overwhelming odds, Israel defeated its oppressors and the nation was brought to a new spiritual level. During this time, YHVH raised up powerful leaders, some of whom were prophets, to lead his people in national spiritual revival and to defeat their oppressive enemies. Most of these leaders were men, but when no man would step forward, he would use women to deliver his people. Deborah, a fiery woman of Elohim, was such a leader.

I have encountered no better description of Deborah the prophetess than this one found in a dusty old book in my library:

Deborah—what a strong solitary ray of light strikes from her story and song, upon the peaks of the past! A mother in Israel, the wise woman of her neighborhood, curing diseases, deciding differences, perhaps, at times, conducting the devotions of her people—how little was she, or were they, aware of the depth which lay in her heart and in her genius. It required but one action and one strain to cover her with glory. In her, as in all true women, lay a quiet fund of strength, virtue, and courage, totally unsuspected by herself.…The Great Spirit, seeking for a vent through which to pour a flood of ruin upon the invaders of Israel, found this woman sitting under her palm tree, on the mountain side, and she did his bidding.…The calm matron becomes the Nemesis of her race, and the mantle of Miriam falls on her shoulders, and the sword of Joshua flames her hand. [Her] prophetic fury sinks not, till the enemy of her country is crushed, and till she has told the tidings to the earth, to heaven, and to all after-time. And then like a sword dropped from a hero’s side, she quietly falls back into her peaceful solitude again.…How wonderful are the gust which surprise and uplift men, and women too, into greatness—greatness before unknown, and terrible even to themselves. (The Bards of the Bible, p. 98, by George Gilfillan, 1851)

The story of Deborah often brings up the question concerning the role of women among YHVH’s people. Proponents of women in leadership roles point to Deborah as a champion to their cause. Those who decry any sort of women leadership within the Christian church often blush when the example of Deborah is brought up, and are quick to add that she was a one-time exception to this rule. What does the Bible say about women leadership among believers? 

As proof that on numerous occasions, YHVH raised up to prominent leadership roles among his people, please note the following examples as Batya Wootten points out in her book, Mama’s Torah—the Role of Women:

  • Miriam was a prophetess and coworker with her brothers Moses and Aaron in leading Israel (Mic 6:4).
  • YHVH used the daughters of Zelophehad to help instruct Moses, and on the basis of their wisdom, the Torah was amended (Num 27:1–11).
  • Huldah was a prophetess and an advisor to King Josiah (2 Kgs 22:11–20).
  • Queen Esther helped to write law (Est 9:29).
  • Phoebe was a deacon or minister within the spiritual body of early Messianic believers (Rom 16:1–2).
  • Junia along with Andronicus, her husband, are listed as apostles (Rom 16:7).
  • Priscilla and Aquila were a husband and wife ministry team and pastored a congregation that met in their home. There are times when the Scripture even records Priscilla’s name first. She was evidently a dynamic leader, along with her husband (Acts 18:2, 18, 26; Rom 16:3; 1 Cor 16:19; 2 Tim 4:19).
  • The women in Corinth prayed and prophesied publicly (1 Cor 11:5–6).
  • Philip had four daughters who prophesied (Acts 21:9).
  • A nucleus of women developed a congregation at Philippi (Acts 16:12–15,40).

Wootten then deduces from the biblical record that “believing communities should be aligned with biblical patterns of the Scripture. And while it clearly depicts a pattern of male leadership, is also clearly shows female participation” (ibid. p. 37).

In light of the example of Deborah we must ask the question: will YHVH’s plans and purposes be put on hold or thwarted simply because there is no person of the male gender to fulfill those plans? For example, can he who spoke through the mouth Balaam’s donkey, and who, Yeshua declared, could raise up rocks to declare his praises not also use women as he so chooses, when there lacks male leadership for the job? At the very least, could he not use women in powerful and instrumental ways to assist men in fulfilling the purposes of Elohim?

 

Natan’s Commentary on Judges 4 and 5

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Judges 4

Judges 4:4, Deborah the prophetess. Deborah is but one of a number of women prophets or, more correctly, prophetesses that are mentioned in the Bible. Miriam, the sister of Moses and Aaron was the first prophetess mentioned (Exod 15:20). Huldah the prophetess ministered in the time of righteous King Josiah (2 Kgs 22:14; 2 Chron 34:22). The wife of Isaiah the prophet was also a prophetess making them a prophetic team (Isa 8:3). Noadiah the prophetess ministered in the time of Nehemiah (Neh 6:14). She must have been notable, since other prophets, presumably male, are listed along with her, but she is the only one whose name is mentioned. There was also Anna the prophetess who ministered near the temple and recognized the young Yeshua to be the Messiah (Luke 2:36). Philip the evangelist had four daughters who also prophesied (Acts 21:9). Beyond that, Joel the prophet predicted that a time would come when both men and women would prophecy (Joel 2:28). Peter recognized that this prophecy was, at least, in part fulfilled on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:17). Joel’s prophecy was also likely fulfilled in the church at Corinth where everyone was allowed to prophecy, presumably both men and women, for the purpose of edifying the brethren (1 Cor 14:29–33), and Paul refers to them all as “prophets” (1 Cor 14:29, 32).

The wife of Lapidoth (KJV). The ArtScroll Tanach has translated this phrase as “a fiery woman” since the Hebrew word lapid means torch. This implies that Deborah was energetic and decisive. The Jewish sages teach that Lapidoth is but another name for Barak since both names connote flashes of lightning, and therefore are used interchangeably (The ArtScroll Rubin Edition Joshua/Judges Commentary, p. 137). If the sages are correct, then Deborah was assisting her husband, Barak. He was the military leader of Israel, while she was the spiritual leader. Does this shake your paradigm about the role of women in biblical societies? Many times fiery women are labeled and branded as persona non grata. Is this a fair thing to do if they are women who walk in and uphold biblical standards of righteousness, and who honor and defer to male headship, if there is righteous male headship worthy of honor?

Often Barak is viewed as a reluctant, even cowardly military leader. Is this a fair assessment? Didn’t he display great faith when he heeded the Word of Elohim through Deborah, and furthermore abandoned the strategic high ground when attacking the enemy on the plain where the enemy’s chariots would be most advantageous? If Barak and Deborah were husband and wife, what does this story teach us about husbands and wives not only respecting, but heeding each other’s counsel, and then working together as a team? Who knows, YHVH may be using your wife or husband to speak to you right now!

Judging Israel at that time. Not only was Deborah a prophetess, but she acted as a judge—a de facto head leadership position in Israel at that time when there was not central leadership or government.

Judges 4:11, 17, The children of Hobab. This is another name for Jethro, the father-in-law of Moses, the priest of Midian, who was a righteous man and a descendant of Abraham. Thus, the children of Hobab and the Israelites were blood related cousins and possibly fellow believers in the Elohim of Abraham. Perhaps this is why Jael was willing to kill Sisera, the heathen enemy of Israel. Because of family and, possibly, spiritual ties, despite her people being at peace with Israel’s enemies, who was will to kill Sisera out of family loyalty and devotion to Elohim.

Judges 4:14, Deborah said to Barak. Deborah, on the instructions of Elohim, commissioned Barak to go up with his army to fight Sisera with his 900 chariots of iron. This required great faith and human boldness on Barak’s part, for this would be like lightly armed infantry soldiers in our day going up against tanks. Yet armed with a prophetic word from Elohim and faith, Barak obeyed. Had Barak been a sexist, he would have dismissed the prophetesses words and not secured the victory for Israel. If Barak was the wife of Deborah (see notes at verse 4), then the lesson here is that men should listen to their godly wives. If they were not married, then men still need to listen to the counsel of godly and Spirit-led women.

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Deborah Was a Fiery Woman of YHVH

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Haftorah Reading—Judges 4:4-5:31

The Torah and Haftorah portions for this week bear many similarities. In both pericopes, Israel was languishing under oppressive foreign powers, YHVH sent them a savior to deliver them and through miracles and against overwhelming odds, Israel defeated its oppressors and the nation was brought to a new spiritual level. Prophets were instrumental in both cases, and women were used of YHVH in the deliverance of his people. And finally, both scenarios climax in the production of a psalm of praise to YHVH for his mighty hand in setting his people free.

The beautiful gothic girl holds a sword in a hand

1 The story of Deborah often brings up the question concerning the role of women among YHVH’s people. Proponents of women in leadership roles point to Deborah as a champion to their cause. Those who decry any sort of women leadership blush when the example of Deborah is brought up and are often quick to add that she was a one-time exception to this rule. What is the truth as presented by Scripture? Please note the role of women in Scripture by reviewing the following examples as Batya Wootten points out in Continue reading →