Barak was the son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali. His story is primarily found in Judges 4 and 5, where he plays a critical role in the deliverance of Israel from the oppressive rule of Jabin, king of Canaan, and his military commander, Sisera. Barak's military leadership was connected to the prophetess Deborah, who calls upon him to lead Israel's army against the Canaanite forces.
Biography[]
Background[]
The Book of Judges describes a turbulent period in Israel's history, approximately between the 14th and 12th centuries BCE, after the conquest of Canaan but before the establishment of the monarchy under Saul and David. This era is characterized by cycles of Israelite rebellion against Yahweh, followed by oppression from foreign powers, cries for deliverance, and the rise of judges—charismatic leaders raised up by Yahweh to rescue Israel.
During the time of Barak, Israel had fallen under the oppressive rule of Jabin king of Hazor. Sisera, Jabin's commander, led a powerful army equipped with 900 iron chariots. The Israelites, weakened by disunity and subjugation, were oppressed for 20 years, leading them to cry out to Yahweh for deliverance.[1]
Barak was the son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali, a city located in the northern part of Israel, near the modern-day Lebanon. The text does not provide much detail about Barak’s lineage or personal background beyond his identification as a man of Naphtali. However, his location in the north of Israel is significant, as this region was directly affected by Sisera's military presence.
Deborah calls[]
Deborah, the only female judge mentioned in the Bible, was a prophetess and leader of Israel at the time of Barak. The narrative begins with Deborah summoning Barak and delivering a message from Yahweh. She instructs him to gather 10,000 men from the tribes of Naphtali and Zebulun and lead them to Mount Tabor, where Yahweh promises to give him victory over Sisera and his army.[2]
Barak's response reveals his wavering faith. He refused to go into battle unless Deborah went with him. Deborah agreed to go with him but warns that because of his reluctance, the glory would not go to him but to a woman.
Battle[]
Main article: Battle of Mount Tabor
Barak gathers 10,000 men from the tribes of Naphtali and Zebulun as Deborah instructed and leads them to Mount Tabor which with its strategic elevation, provided a tactical advantage for the Israelites in preparation for battle. Meanwhile, Sisera, confident in the superiority of his chariots, gathers his forces at the Kishon River in the Jezreel Valley.[3]
As the battle begins, Deborah gives Barak the signal to attack. Yahweh intervened through natural forces, possibly sending a storm that caused the Kishon River to flood. The heavy rain would have rendered Sisera's chariots ineffective, as they became stuck in the mud.[4] This divine act of nature allowed the Israelite forces to rout Sisera's army, and Sisera himself was forced to flee on foot.[5]
Barak and his army pursued the Canaanite soldiers, and not a man was left alive.[6] However, the honor of killing Sisera, as Deborah had prophesied, did not go to Barak but to a woman named Jael the wife of Heber the Kenite.
= Death of Sisera[]
After fleeing the battlefield, Sisera seeks refuge in the tent of Jael the wife of Heber the Kenite. The Kenites were a nomadic people with ties to both the Israelites and the Canaanites, and Heber had made a peace treaty with Jabin, Sisera's king.[7] This political alliance likely led Sisera to believe that Jael's tent was a safe place to hide.
Jael welcomes Sisera into her tent and offers him hospitality, including a drink of milk and a place to rest. Exhausted from the battle, Sisera falls asleep, unaware of Jael's true intentions.
As Sisera sleeps, Jael takes a tent peg and hammer and drives the peg through his temple, killing him instantly. When Barak arrives in pursuit of Sisera, Jael goes out to meet him and shows him the dead body of the Canaanite commander. Thus, the prophecy given by Deborah is fulfilled: Sisera is killed by a woman, not by Barak.[8]