The One Year Bible TLB (93 page)
Read The One Year Bible TLB Online
Authors: Tyndale
April 25After Ehud’s death the people of Israel again sinned against the Lord,
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so the Lord let them be conquered by King Jabin of Hazor, in Canaan. The commander-in-chief of his army was Sisera, who lived in Harosheth-hagoiim. He had nine hundred iron chariots and made life unbearable for the Israelis for twenty years. But finally they begged the Lord for help.
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Israel’s leader at that time, the one who was responsible for bringing the people back to God, was Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lappidoth.
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She held court at a place now called “Deborah’s Palm Tree,” between Ramah and Bethel, in the hill country of Ephraim; and the Israelites came to her to decide their disputes.
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One day she summoned Barak (son of Abinoam), who lived in Kedesh, in the land of Naphtali, and said to him, “The Lord God of Israel has commanded you to mobilize ten thousand men from the tribes of Naphtali and Zebulun. Lead them to Mount Tabor
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to fight King Jabin’s mighty army with all his chariots, under General Sisera’s command. The Lord says, ‘I will draw them to the Kishon River, and you will defeat them there.’”
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“I’ll go, but only if you go with me!” Barak told her.
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“All right,” she replied, “I’ll go with you; but I’m warning you now that the honor of conquering Sisera will go to a woman instead of to you!” So she went with him to Kedesh.
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When Barak summoned the men of Zebulun and Naphtali to mobilize at Kedesh, ten thousand men volunteered. And Deborah marched with them.
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(Heber, the Kenite—the Kenites were the descendants of Moses’ father-in-law Hobab—had moved away from the rest of his clan, and had been living in various places as far away as the Oak of Zaanannim, near Kedesh.)
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When General Sisera was told that Barak and his army were camped at Mount Tabor,
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he mobilized his entire army, including the nine hundred iron chariots, and marched from Harosheth-hagoiim to the Kishon River.
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Then Deborah said to Barak, “Now is the time for action! The Lord leads on! He has already delivered Sisera into your hand!”
So Barak led his ten thousand men down the slopes of Mount Tabor into battle.
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Then the Lord threw the enemy into a panic, both the soldiers and the charioteers, and Sisera leaped from his chariot and escaped on foot.
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Barak and his men chased the enemy and the chariots as far as Harosheth-hagoiim, until all of Sisera’s army was destroyed; not one man was left alive.
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Meanwhile, Sisera had escaped to the tent of Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite, for there was a mutual-assistance agreement between King Jabin of Hazor and the clan of Heber.
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Jael went out to meet Sisera and said to him, “Come into my tent, sir. You will be safe here in our protection. Don’t be afraid.” So he went into her tent, and she covered him with a blanket.
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“Please give me some water,” he said, “for I am very thirsty.” So she gave him some milk and covered him again.
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“Stand in the door of the tent,” he told her, “and if anyone comes by, looking for me, tell them that no one is here.”
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Then Jael took a sharp tent peg and a hammer and, quietly creeping up to him as he slept, she drove the peg through his temples and into the ground; and so he died, for he was fast asleep from weariness.
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When Barak came by looking for Sisera, Jael went out to meet him and said, “Come, and I will show you the man you are looking for.”
So he followed her into the tent and found Sisera lying there dead, with the tent peg through his temples.
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So that day the Lord used Israel to subdue King Jabin of Canaan.
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And from that time on Israel became stronger and stronger against King Jabin, until he and all his people were destroyed.
5:
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Then Deborah and Barak sang this song about the wonderful victory:
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“Praise the Lord!
Israel’s leaders bravely led;
The people gladly followed!
Yes, bless the Lord!
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Listen, O you kings and princes,
For I shall sing about the Lord,
The God of Israel.
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When you led us out from Seir,
Out across the fields of Edom,
The earth trembled
And the sky poured down its rain.
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Yes, even Mount Sinai quaked
At the presence of the God of Israel!
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In the days of Shamgar and of Jael,
The main roads were deserted.
Travelers used the narrow, crooked side paths.
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Israel’s population dwindled,
Until Deborah became a mother to Israel.
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When Israel chose new gods,
Everything collapsed.
Our masters would not let us have
A shield or spear.
Among forty thousand men of Israel,
Not a weapon could be found!
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How I rejoice
In the leaders of Israel
Who offered themselves so willingly!
Praise the Lord!
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Let all Israel, rich and poor,
Join in his praises—
Those who ride on white donkeys
And sit on rich carpets,
And those who are poor and must walk.
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The village musicians
Gather at the village well
To sing of the triumphs of the Lord.
Again and again they sing the ballad
Of how the Lord saved Israel
With an army of peasants!
The people of the Lord
Marched through the gates!
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Awake, O Deborah, and sing!
Arise, O Barak!
O son of Abinoam, lead away your captives!
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Down from Mount Tabor marched the noble remnant.
The people of the Lord
Marched down against great odds.
They came from Ephraim and Benjamin,
From Machir and from Zebulun.
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Down into the valley
Went the princes of Issachar
With Deborah and Barak.
At God’s command they rushed into the valley.
(But the tribe of Reuben didn’t go.
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Why did you sit at home among the sheepfolds,
Playing your shepherd pipes?
Yes, the tribe of Reuben has an uneasy conscience.
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Why did Gilead remain across the Jordan,
And why did Dan remain with his ships?
And why did Asher sit unmoved
Upon the seashore,
At ease beside his harbors?)
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But the tribes of Zebulun and Naphtali
Dared to die upon the fields of battle.
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The kings of Canaan fought in Taanach
By Megiddo’s springs,
But did not win the victory.
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The very stars of heaven
Fought Sisera.
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The rushing Kishon River
Swept them away.
March on, my soul, with strength!
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Hear the stamping
Of the horsehoofs of the enemy!
See the prancing of his steeds!
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But the Angel of Jehovah
Put a curse on Meroz.
‘Curse them bitterly,’ he said,
‘Because they did not come to help the Lord
Against his enemies.’
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Blessed be Jael,
The wife of Heber the Kenite—
Yes, may she be blessed
Above all women who live in tents.
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He asked for water
And she gave him milk in a beautiful cup!
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Then she took a tent pin and a workman’s hammer
And pierced Sisera’s temples,
Crushing his head.
She pounded the tent pin through his head.
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He sank, he fell, he lay dead at her feet.
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The mother of Sisera watched through the window
For his return.
‘Why is his chariot so long in coming?
Why don’t we hear the sound of the wheels?’
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But her ladies-in-waiting—and she herself—replied,
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‘There is much loot to be divided,
And it takes time.
Each man receives a girl or two;
And Sisera will get gorgeous robes,
And he will bring home
Many gifts for me.’
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O Lord, may all your enemies
Perish as Sisera did,
But may those who love the Lord
Shine as the sun!”
After that there was peace in the land for forty years.
Then Jesus asked them,
“When I sent you out to preach the Good News and you were without money, duffle bag, or extra clothing, how did you get along?”
“Fine,” they replied.
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“But now,”
he said,
“take a duffle bag if you have one and your money. And if you don’t have a sword, better sell your clothes and buy one!
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For the time has come for this prophecy about me to come true: ‘He will be condemned as a criminal!’ Yes, everything written about me by the prophets will come true.”
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“Master,” they replied, “we have two swords among us.”
“Enough!”
he said.
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Then, accompanied by the disciples, he left the upstairs room and went as usual to the Mount of Olives.
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There he told them,
“Pray God that you will not be overcome by temptation.”
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He walked away, perhaps a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed this prayer:
“Father, if you are willing, please take away this cup of horror from me. But I want your will, not mine.”
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Then an angel from heaven appeared and strengthened him,
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for he was in such agony of spirit that he broke into a sweat of blood, with great drops falling to the ground as he prayed more and more earnestly.
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At last he stood up again and returned to the disciples—only to find them asleep, exhausted from grief.
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“Asleep!”
he said.
“Get up! Pray God that you will not fall when you are tempted.”
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But even as he said this, a mob approached, led by Judas, one of his twelve disciples. Judas walked over to Jesus and kissed him on the cheek in friendly greeting.
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But Jesus said,
“Judas, how can you do this—betray the Messiah with a kiss?”
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When the other disciples saw what was about to happen, they exclaimed, “Master, shall we fight? We brought along the swords!”
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And one of them slashed at the high priest’s servant and cut off his right ear.
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But Jesus said,
“Don’t resist anymore.”
And he touched the place where the man’s ear had been and restored it.
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Then Jesus addressed the chief priests and captains of the Temple guards and the religious leaders who headed the mob.
“Am I a robber,”
he asked,
“that you have come armed with swords and clubs to get me?
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Why didn’t you arrest me in the Temple? I was there every day. But this is your moment—the time when Satan’s power reigns supreme.”
Lord God, to whom vengeance belongs, let your glory shine out. Arise and judge the earth; sentence the proud to the penalties they deserve.
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Lord, how long shall the wicked be allowed to triumph and exult?
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Hear their insolence! See their arrogance! How these men of evil boast!
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See them oppressing your people, O Lord, afflicting those you love.
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They murder widows, immigrants, and orphans, for “The Lord isn’t looking,” they say, “and besides, he
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doesn’t care.”
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Fools!
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Is God deaf and blind—he who makes ears and eyes?
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He punishes the nations—won’t he also punish you? He knows everything—doesn’t he also know what you are doing?
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The Lord is fully aware of how limited and futile the thoughts of mankind are,
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so he helps us by punishing us. This makes us follow his paths and gives us respite from our enemies while God traps them and destroys them.
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The Lord will not forsake his people, for they are his prize.
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Judgment will again be just, and all the upright will rejoice.
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Who will protect me from the wicked? Who will be my shield?
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I would have died unless the Lord had helped me.
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I screamed, “I’m slipping, Lord!” and he was kind and saved me.
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Lord, when doubts fill my mind, when my heart is in turmoil, quiet me and give me renewed hope and cheer.
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Will you permit a corrupt government to rule under your protection—a government permitting wrong to defeat right?
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Do you approve of those who condemn the innocent to death? No! The Lord my God is my fortress—the mighty Rock where I can hide.
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God has made the sins of evil men to boomerang upon them! He will destroy them by their own plans. Jehovah our God will cut them off.