Judges 5:18 Komentář

This chapter contains the triumphal song which was composed and sung upon occasion of that glorious victory which Israel obtained over the forces of Jabin king of Canaan and the happy consequences of that victory. Probably it was usual then to publish poems upon such occasions, as now; but this only is preserved of all the poems of that age of the judges, because dictated by Deborah a prophetess, designed for a psalm of praise then, and a pattern of praise to after-ages, and it gives a great deal of light to the history of these times. I. It begins with praise to God (Jdg 5:2, Jdg 5:3). II. The substance of this song transmits the memory of this great achievement. 1. Comparing God's appearances for them on this occasion with his appearances to them on Mount Sinai (Jdg 5:4, Jdg 5:5). 2. Magnifying their deliverance from the consideration of the calamitous condition they had been in (Jdg 5:6-8). 3. Calling those to join in praise that shared in the benefits of the success (Jdg 5:9-13). 4. Reflecting honour upon those tribes that were forward and active in that war, and disgrace on those that declined the service (Jdg 5:14-19, Jdg 5:23). 5. Taking notice how God himself fought for them (Jdg 5:20-22). 6. Celebrating particularly the honour of Jael, that slew Sisera, on which head the song is very large (Jdg 5:24-30). It concludes with a prayer to God (Jdg 5:31).

INTRODUCTION TO JUDGES 5 This chapter contains a song of praise on account of the victories obtained over Jabin, and his kingdom; after an exhortation to praise is given, and kings excited to attend to it, the majestic appearance of God at Seir, on Sinai, is observed, to raise in the mind a divine veneration of him, Jdg 5:1; then the miserable state and condition Israel was in before these victories, and therefore had the more reason to be thankful, Jdg 5:6; the governors, and judges, and the people that were delivered, together with Deborah and Barak, are stirred up to rehearse the righteous acts of the Lord, and bless his name, Jdg 5:9; and those who willingly engaged in the war are praised, and such who were negligent reproved, and some even cursed, Jdg 5:14; but Jael, Heber's wife, is particularly commended for her exploit in slaying Sisera, Jdg 5:24; and the mother of Sisera, and her ladies, are represented as wondering at his long delay, and as assured of his having got the victory, Jdg 5:28; and the song is concluded with a prayer for the destruction, of the enemies of the Lord, and for the happiness and glory of them that love him, Jdg 5:31.

Zebulun and Naphtali were a people,.... These two tribes were chiefly concerned in this war; out of them were the 10,000 men that followed Barak, who willingly offered themselves, and were the most active and vigorous: that jeoparded themselves unto the death; exposed them to the utmost danger, fearless of death itself: or reproached (k) their lives; were careless of them, valued them not; they were not dear to them, but were ready to part with them freely, in the cause of liberty in which they were engaged: in the high places of the field; on the top of Mount Tabor, where they were mustered, and from whence they beheld the vast host of Sisera surrounding them; and yet, with an undaunted bravery and courage, descended the hill to fight with them. The Vulgate Latin version reads, "in the country of Merome"; in the plains and fields of it, near which were the waters of Merom, where Joshua fought Jabin, a former king of Canaan, and supposed by some to be the same with Kishon here, Jos 11:5. (k) "probris affecit", Pagninus; so the Targum.

(Judges 5:18) Zebulun and Naphtali offered their lives unto death in the region of Morome. In Hebrew, it is 'super regionem Morome'. The meaning is that while the other tribes were unwilling to go, these two tribes offered their lives unto death. In the region of Morome. For Morome is interpreted as 'exalted': they are said to have offered their lives for the sake of the exalted region, that is, for God, and therefore they are praised, while the other tribes are criticized.

DEBORAH AND BARAK'S SONG OF THANKSGIVING. (Jdg. 5:1-31) Then sang Deborah and Barak . . . on that day--This noble triumphal ode was evidently the composition of Deborah herself.

Deborah's Song of Victory - Judges 5 This highly poetical song is so direct and lively an utterance of the mighty force of the enthusiasm awakened by the exaltation of Israel, and its victory over Sisera, that its genuineness if generally admitted now. After a general summons to praise the Lord for the courage with which the people rose up to fight against their foes (Jdg 5:2), Deborah the singer dilates in the first section (Jdg 5:3-11) upon the significance of the victory, picturing in lively colours (1) the glorious times when Israel was exalted to be the nation of the Lord (Jdg 5:3-5); (2) the disgraceful decline of the nation in the more recent times (Jdg 5:6-8); and (3) the joyful turn of affairs which followed her appearance (Jdg 5:9-11). After a fresh summons to rejoice in their victory (Jdg 5:12), there follows in the second section (Jdg 5:13-21) a lively picture of the conflict and victory, in which there is a vivid description (a) of the mighty gathering of the brave to battle (Jdg 5:13-15); (b) of the cowardice of those who stayed away from the battle, and of the bravery with which the braver warriors risked their lives in the battle (Jdg 5:15-18); and (c) of the successful result of the conflict (Jdg 5:19-21). To this there is appended in the third section (Jdg 5:22-31) an account of the glorious issue of the battle and the victory: first of all, a brief notice of the flight and pursuit of the foe (Jdg 5:22-24); secondly, a commemoration of the slaying of Sisera by Jael (Jdg 5:24-27); and thirdly, a scornful description of the disappointment of Sisera's mother, who was counting upon a large arrival of booty (Jdg 5:28-30). The song then closes with the hope, founded upon this victory, that all the enemies of the Lord might perish, and Israel increase in strength (Jdg 5:31). The whole song, therefore, is divided into three leading sections, each of which again is arranged in three somewhat unequal strophes, the first and second sections being introduced by a summons to the praise of God (Jdg 5:2, Jdg 5:12), whilst the third closes with an expression of hope, drawn from the contents of the whole, with regard to the future prospects of the kingdom of God (Jdg 5:31).

Zebulun and Naphtali acted quite differently. Zebulun showed itself as a people that despised its life even to death, i.e., that sacrificed its life for the deliverance of its fatherland. Naphtali did the same in its mountain home. The two tribes had raised 10,000 fighting men at Barak's call (Jdg 4:10), who constituted at any rate the kernel of the Israelitish army. If we run over the tribes enumerated, it seems strange that the tribes of Judah and Simeon are not mentioned either among those who joined in the battle, or among those who stayed away. The only way in which this can be explained is on the supposition that these two tribes were never summoned by Barak, either because they were so involved in conflict with the Philistines, that they were unable to render any assistance to the northern tribes against their Canaanitish oppressors, as we might infer from Jdg 3:31, or because of some inward disagreement between these tribes and the rest. But even apart from Judah and Simeon, the want of sympathy on the part of the tribes that are reproved is a sufficient proof that the enthusiasm for the cause of the Lord had greatly diminished in the nation, and that the internal unity of the congregation was considerably loosened. In the next strophe the battle and the victory are described: -