PrayerBits for Thursday

PrayerBits

A bite sized devotional program
produced by the West Side Presbyterian Church

Thursday

Scripture lesson: Judges 4:1-7 Judge Deborah

Time to reflect: The actual point of the Deborah passage falls outside of this paragraph – in verses 8-9, when Barak doesn't trust God quite enough. However, this passage again points out that modern assumptions about the Old Testament and Old Testament times are often wrong. How often do we think of these early days as being strictly patriarchal and demeaning of women. In reality it was not consistently so (We are talking about a 1000 year time span here!). Deborah was the leader of all Israel (however that was defined for that particular time), and Barak was her general.

 

Moving through the day: What assumptions do you have about the OT that might or might not be accurate? Take time to list these and try to find out whether they are valid.

 

Scripture:

After Ehud died, the Israelites once again did evil in the eyes of the LORD. So the LORD sold them into the hands of Jabin, a king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor. The commander of his army was Sisera, who lived in Harosheth Haggoyim. Because he had nine hundred iron chariots and had cruelly oppressed the Israelites for twenty years, they cried to the LORD for help.

Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lappidoth, was leading Israel at that time. She held court under the Palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim, and the Israelites came to her to have their disputes decided. She sent for Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali and said to him, "The LORD, the God of Israel, commands you: 'Go, take with you ten thousand men of Naphtali and Zebulun and lead the way to Mount Tabor. I will lure Sisera, the commander of Jabin's army, with his chariots and his troops to the Kishon River and give him into your hands.' "