Latest / Bible in a Year with Jack Graham / The Palm of Deborah - The Book of Judges

Transcript

The Palm of Deborah - The Book of Judges · Bible in a Year with Jack Graham

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: And behold, as Barak pursued Sisera, Jael came out to
• 0:04
  Speaker 1: meet him, and said unto him, Come, and I will
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: show ye the man whom thou seekest. And when he
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: came into her tent, behold, Sisera lay dead, and the
• 0:14
  Speaker 1: nail was in his temples. Judges 4.22 Dear Heavenly Father,
• 0:20
  Speaker 1: as I reflect on the life of Deborah, I thank
• 0:23
  Speaker 1: you that you are giving me the wisdom, knowledge, and
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: understanding that I possess. Today, I declare that Deborah's boldness
• 0:31
  Speaker 1: on the battlefield will be the same boldness I have
• 0:34
  Speaker 1: as I walk through new doors of opportunity. As she
• 0:38
  Speaker 1: declared victory in advance, I too am claiming victory and
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: divine favor over my life, my decisions, and my projects.
• 0:48
  Speaker 1: I will not wait to see the victory before I
• 0:50
  Speaker 1: claim it. Because I have faith, and faith is believing
• 0:56
  Speaker 1: what is not seen. to call what is not as
• 0:59
  Speaker 1: though it was. As in Judges 4-5, I praise you
• 1:04
  Speaker 1: for setting up others to help accomplish my task, like
• 1:07
  Speaker 1: you did through the life of Barak and Jael. I
• 1:11
  Speaker 1: decree and declare that all fear-based thinking will be pinned
• 1:15
  Speaker 1: to the floor of defeat as I raise and claim
• 1:19
  Speaker 1: my victory. In Jesus' name.
• 1:23
  Speaker 2: Amen.
• 1:25
  Speaker 1: Listening to these daily prayers strengthens your relationship with God.
• 1:29
  Speaker 1: Continue hearing from the Lord by listening to today's Bible
• 1:33
  Speaker 1: in a Year. Brought to you by BibleInAYear.com.
• 1:38
  Speaker 3: Click the link in the description to grow closer to God.
• 1:41
  Speaker 3: There you'll find daily prayers, Bible plans, sleep stories, and
• 1:45
  Speaker 3: so much more, all on the Pray.com app. Click the
• 1:48
  Speaker 3: link in the description to get started.
• 1:56
  Speaker 2: The Palm of Deborah Previously we learned about the backsliding
• 2:02
  Speaker 2: people of Israel. Despite all God had done for them,
• 2:06
  Speaker 2: they continued to give themselves to other idols. As a result,
• 2:11
  Speaker 2: they were overtaken and made slaves by neighboring kingdoms. But
• 2:15
  Speaker 2: God sent the mighty judges, Othniel and Ehud, Both were
• 2:21
  Speaker 2: crafty and brave men, chosen by God to save the
• 2:25
  Speaker 2: Israelites from their own disobedience and captivity. Now we will
• 2:30
  Speaker 2: learn about the deliverance of Israel once again. God summons
• 2:35
  Speaker 2: the leadership of Deborah and Barak to free the people
• 2:38
  Speaker 2: from the oppression of the Canaanites, inspired by the book
• 2:43
  Speaker 2: of Judges.
• 2:46
  Speaker 4: Hello, I'm Jack Graham with today's episode of the Bible
• 2:49
  Speaker 4: in a Year podcast. But before we begin, I want
• 2:52
  Speaker 4: to let you know about a unique e-book that's yours
• 2:56
  Speaker 4: to download absolutely free today. It's called Breaking Free from Stress.
• 3:01
  Speaker 4: And my prayer is that it will help you conquer
• 3:04
  Speaker 4: the daily tasks and pressures and burdens that bring stress
• 3:07
  Speaker 4: in your life. Download your free copy of Breaking Free
• 3:11
  Speaker 4: from Stress today by visiting jackgraham.org slash stress. That's jackram.org
• 3:18
  Speaker 4: slash stress. In our previous episode, we enter into the
• 3:22
  Speaker 4: time of the judges. We heard how Israel entered into
• 3:26
  Speaker 4: a cycle of sinning and captivity and repentance and then
• 3:30
  Speaker 4: rescue from God. Each time they cried out to God
• 3:34
  Speaker 4: for help, God would give them a powerful man of
• 3:37
  Speaker 4: valor and righteousness who would lead God's people to freedom.
• 3:41
  Speaker 4: Not just from physical captivity, but spiritual bondage. Today we'll
• 3:46
  Speaker 4: learn how Israel sinned again and were conquered by another nation.
• 3:51
  Speaker 4: As always, God will set them free from oppression. And
• 3:56
  Speaker 4: He'll work through two notable and powerful women. As you
• 4:01
  Speaker 4: listen today, take note and remember that the hero in
• 4:05
  Speaker 4: the story is never the one through whom God works,
• 4:08
  Speaker 4: but rather God Himself. So let's listen now to today's reading.
• 4:14
  Speaker 2: The pursuit of darkness continued. Israel was tempted by every
• 4:19
  Speaker 2: god of the land. They looked for any excuse to
• 4:23
  Speaker 2: satisfy their selfish desires and pursuit of simple comforts. As before,
• 4:29
  Speaker 2: God removed his hand of blessing and allowed them to
• 4:32
  Speaker 2: fill their hearts with sin. God would not beg for
• 4:37
  Speaker 2: their love, but he would not leave them either. Soon
• 4:41
  Speaker 2: after Ehud died, Jabin, king of Canaan, and his general, Sisera,
• 4:46
  Speaker 2: attacked Israel with 900 chariots of iron. Like a black wave,
• 4:51
  Speaker 2: the Canaanite army crashed upon Israel. They consumed them. Drowning
• 4:57
  Speaker 2: in oppression, sin, and helplessness, the children of Israel cried
• 5:02
  Speaker 2: out to God again. Judging over Israel at that time
• 5:06
  Speaker 2: was Deborah. She was a strong and wise woman, a
• 5:10
  Speaker 2: prophetess devoted to God. People would often seek Deborah's wisdom
• 5:15
  Speaker 2: and come to her with disputes. Her pragmatism, discernment, and
• 5:20
  Speaker 2: sensitivity to God's Spirit made her a leader worth following.
• 5:24
  Speaker 2: When the oppressive hand of Jabin pressed upon the throat
• 5:27
  Speaker 2: of Israel, Deborah sent for Barak, a commander of Israel's army.
• 5:33
  Speaker 2: Barak came at once and stood at attention before Deborah.
• 5:37
  Speaker 2: She spoke to him, saying, The Lord has commanded you
• 5:41
  Speaker 2: to take ten thousand soldiers and go against Sisera. Barak gulped,
• 5:47
  Speaker 2: slightly scared at the thought of facing nine hundred iron
• 5:51
  Speaker 2: chariots and even more foot soldiers. He looked at Deborah
• 5:55
  Speaker 2: and said, I will go, but only if you go
• 5:59
  Speaker 2: with me. Deborah smiled and nodded. saying, Of course I
• 6:03
  Speaker 2: will go with you. But know this, there will be
• 6:06
  Speaker 2: no glory for you if you are victorious, for the
• 6:09
  Speaker 2: Lord is giving Sisera into the hand of a woman.
• 6:13
  Speaker 2: Then Deborah arose and rode like the wind with Barak
• 6:17
  Speaker 2: to the valley of Kadesh. Ten thousand men followed them,
• 6:21
  Speaker 2: and they rode with purpose to war. The two armies
• 6:25
  Speaker 2: met for battle. The vast numbers of Israel looked thin
• 6:29
  Speaker 2: compared to the bulk of Sisera's chariots. Deborah could sense
• 6:33
  Speaker 2: the weakness in her men. She rode among them, clanging
• 6:37
  Speaker 2: her sword against theirs. She yelled at the top of
• 6:40
  Speaker 2: her lungs, saying, Arise! God has already given them into
• 6:45
  Speaker 2: our hands. Does he not go before you? The soldiers
• 6:50
  Speaker 2: raised their swords and spears and followed Deborah and Barak
• 6:54
  Speaker 2: into battle. The army of Israel overpowered the chariots. One
• 6:59
  Speaker 2: by one, iron fell into the dust. Barak fought among
• 7:03
  Speaker 2: the men, his sword gliding through flesh and bone. Spears
• 7:08
  Speaker 2: flew through the air, hitting the hearts of the chariot drivers.
• 7:12
  Speaker 2: Horses and men fell to the ground, and Sisera could
• 7:16
  Speaker 2: already sense he had lost the battle. Sisera leapt off
• 7:20
  Speaker 2: his chariot and ran away on foot, looking back to
• 7:23
  Speaker 2: make sure none of his men witnessed his cowardice. He
• 7:27
  Speaker 2: ran further and further away from the camp, and the
• 7:30
  Speaker 2: screams of men were replaced by silence. None were left alive.
• 7:36
  Speaker 2: Sisera had escaped up towards the tent of one of
• 7:39
  Speaker 2: his allies, Heber. There Sisera met with Heber's wife, Jael.
• 7:45
  Speaker 2: He ordered Jael to bring him food and something to drink.
• 7:48
  Speaker 2: and then keep watch while he slept. Jael brought Cicera
• 7:52
  Speaker 2: milk in a blanket. Do not be afraid, she whispered.
• 7:56
  Speaker 2: Stroking his hair, she hushed him to sleep. She brushed
• 8:00
  Speaker 2: his hair until Cicera fell into a deep slumber. She
• 8:03
  Speaker 2: covered him with a blanket. Jael went to the entrance
• 8:07
  Speaker 2: of the tent and picked up a tent peg and hammer.
• 8:11
  Speaker 2: She turned towards Cicera and slowly approached him. She stroked
• 8:15
  Speaker 2: his hair some more, and then in one decisive swoop,
• 8:18
  Speaker 2: hammered the tent peg into Cicera's skull. The peg was
• 8:23
  Speaker 2: driven straight through his temple and touched the dirt. Meanwhile,
• 8:28
  Speaker 2: Barak was in hot pursuit of Cicera and had followed
• 8:31
  Speaker 2: him to Jael's tent. Jael rushed out of the tent
• 8:34
  Speaker 2: and stopped him, saying, Come quick, I will show you
• 8:37
  Speaker 2: where he is. Barak's eyes widened as he saw Cicera's
• 8:41
  Speaker 2: dead body bolted to the floor by his head. It
• 8:45
  Speaker 2: was true. God did grant victory over Sisera to a woman,
• 8:49
  Speaker 2: but it was not Deborah, but Jehel. A pool of
• 8:53
  Speaker 2: blood surrounded his skull. Back on the battlefield, a pool
• 8:57
  Speaker 2: of blood surrounded the Canaanite army.
• 9:06
  Speaker 4: Today's story begins with Israel being seduced again by foreign gods.
• 9:11
  Speaker 4: The hearts of God's people turn away from him again.
• 9:15
  Speaker 4: Living among those who do not know God or follow
• 9:18
  Speaker 4: Him is a challenge today just as it was for
• 9:20
  Speaker 4: these Israelites so long ago. And the only hope for
• 9:26
  Speaker 4: staying true to God and keeping our faith in Him
• 9:29
  Speaker 4: is to always keep our eyes on the Lord and
• 9:32
  Speaker 4: trust in His Word to us from generation to generation.
• 9:37
  Speaker 4: We see from generation to generation in the life of
• 9:40
  Speaker 4: Israel the people turning away from Him and then repenting
• 9:44
  Speaker 4: and then coming back. We see this in our own generation.
• 9:49
  Speaker 4: And we are praying for revival and restoration because the
• 9:53
  Speaker 4: Bible says, blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord.
• 9:58
  Speaker 4: There was a foreign king in our story, Jabin of Canaan,
• 10:00
  Speaker 4: who attacked Israel with his army. The army was led
• 10:03
  Speaker 4: by a man named Caesarea and they endured cruel enslavement
• 10:07
  Speaker 4: for 20 years. God's people cried out to him for
• 10:11
  Speaker 4: help as they often did when things became difficult. How
• 10:16
  Speaker 4: much heartache and how much pain could have been spared
• 10:19
  Speaker 4: if they simply had called upon God not just in
• 10:22
  Speaker 4: the bad times, but in the good times. But God
• 10:26
  Speaker 4: did not abandon His people. God is faithful to His
• 10:28
  Speaker 4: promise and to His people. He heard their cries for help.
• 10:32
  Speaker 4: In those days, there was a woman by the name
• 10:34
  Speaker 4: of Deborah, a prophetess and the only woman ever named
• 10:39
  Speaker 4: as a judge in the Bible. A judge in the
• 10:42
  Speaker 4: Bible is a deliverer, a conqueror. And the people looked
• 10:46
  Speaker 4: to Deborah for wisdom, strength, and guidance. So Deborah, responding
• 10:51
  Speaker 4: to God's Spirit, sent for Barak, a commander of Israel's army.
• 10:56
  Speaker 4: Deborah spoke prophetic words to Barak, revealing what God had
• 11:00
  Speaker 4: commanded Barak to do in order to defeat Jabin and
• 11:03
  Speaker 4: free Israel from captivity. She spoke with confidence, trusting that
• 11:08
  Speaker 4: God would be true to His word. Barak agreed to
• 11:12
  Speaker 4: go into battle, but only if Deborah went with him.
• 11:16
  Speaker 4: Surely he was expecting the confidence that comes from God,
• 11:20
  Speaker 4: but also the wisdom from Deborah. All we know is
• 11:24
  Speaker 4: he wanted Deborah to go with him, and she agreed.
• 11:27
  Speaker 4: But she made it clear that the glory for the
• 11:30
  Speaker 4: victory would not go to men, but that God would
• 11:33
  Speaker 4: be given the glory. In fact, God would give over
• 11:37
  Speaker 4: Jabin's general, Caesarea, into the hands of a woman. Surely
• 11:41
  Speaker 4: Barak assumed Deborah was speaking of herself. The truth would
• 11:45
  Speaker 4: prove much more surprising. So Deborah went with Barak to
• 11:49
  Speaker 4: meet the Canaanite army in battle. They would not have
• 11:52
  Speaker 4: been favored to win this battle. They were outmatched, outweaponized,
• 11:57
  Speaker 4: and outnumbered. But Deborah didn't view things through human eyes.
• 12:03
  Speaker 4: She looked with eyes of faith, and her faith filled
• 12:06
  Speaker 4: Barak with courage as well as he fought the battle.
• 12:10
  Speaker 4: God granted the Israelites victory that day. It wasn't through
• 12:14
  Speaker 4: the might of their army, but by the hand of
• 12:16
  Speaker 4: their God. Every Canaanite warrior, all the enemies were killed.
• 12:21
  Speaker 4: But General Caesarea escaped to the tent of Heber, one
• 12:25
  Speaker 4: of King Jabin's allies. He certainly thought he had cheated death.
• 12:30
  Speaker 4: But Jael, the wife of Heber, drove a stake through
• 12:33
  Speaker 4: Caesarea's temple as he lay sleeping. And when Barak, who
• 12:37
  Speaker 4: had pursued Caesarea, came to the tent, Jael showed him
• 12:40
  Speaker 4: his enemy dead by her hand. It was the fulfillment
• 12:43
  Speaker 4: of Deborah's prophecy. Israel was freed that day, And it
• 12:47
  Speaker 4: was two very different women who played such a huge
• 12:50
  Speaker 4: role in the victory. God will use us, both men
• 12:54
  Speaker 4: and women, to accomplish his purposes for his children and
• 12:57
  Speaker 4: for his glory. Dear God, thank you that you use
• 13:02
  Speaker 4: seemingly unimportant, unknown people to accomplish wonderful and powerful things.
• 13:08
  Speaker 4: Thank you that as you did for Israel, you go
• 13:11
  Speaker 4: before us and never leave us or forsake us in
• 13:14
  Speaker 4: our personal battles. In Jesus' name. Amen. Thank you for
• 13:19
  Speaker 4: listening to today's Bible in a Year podcast. Before we go,
• 13:23
  Speaker 4: I want to let you know about a unique ebook
• 13:26
  Speaker 4: that's yours to download absolutely free today. It's called Breaking
• 13:31
  Speaker 4: Free from Stress. And my prayer is that it will
• 13:34
  Speaker 4: help you conquer the daily task and pressures and burdens
• 13:37
  Speaker 4: that bring stress into your life. Download your free copy
• 13:41
  Speaker 4: of Breaking Free from Stress today by visiting jackgram.org slash stress.
• 13:47
  Speaker 4: That's jagram.org slash stress.
• 13:52
  Speaker 3: If today's reading moved you, the Pray.com app is where
• 13:55
  Speaker 3: you can go deeper with daily prayers, Bible plans, and more.
• 13:59
  Speaker 3: Download it free. Link in the description.