Judges 4:5
in Judges 4And she would sit under the Palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim, where the Israelites would go up to her for judgment.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And she dwelt under the palm-tree of Deborah between Ramah and Beth-el in the hill-country of Ephraim: and the children of Israel came up to her for judgment.
KJV
And she dwelt under the palm tree of Deborah between Ramah and Beth–el in mount Ephraim: and the children of Israel came up to her for judgment.
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This verse in Judges 4
Commentary
3 notes on this verseon Judges 4:4-9
Because these nations have come as enemies against your people, let us hear what judgment the psalmist calls down upon them. "Deal with them as with Midian; as with Sisera." You have read the book of Judges; this is that Midian whom Gideon defeated. "As with Sisera and Jabin." Jabin and Sisera are the foes whom Deborah and Barak conquered. "At the torrent Kishon, who perished at Endor." Deborah and Barak destroyed Sisera, the general of the army. So much for what Scripture says; learn now what it means.
This site's exposition
Deborah, a prophetess, the wife
on Judges 4:4-5
Deborah is the second woman in Scripture called a prophetess, after Miriam at Exodus 15:20, and like Miriam she sings the victory in the chapter that follows. She is the one judge in the book shown doing what the word ordinarily means, since the people come up to her for judgment before any deliverer is raised. Her palm stands between Ramah and Bethel in mount Ephraim, which is the hill country in the middle of the land, while the man she summons and the war she sends him to are both far north. Genesis 35:8 buries another Deborah, the nurse of Rebekah, under an oak at that same Bethel.
The record, by era
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
She dwelt - Rather, “she sat,” namely, to judge the people Jdg 4:10, but not in the usual place, “the gate” Rth 4:1-2; Pro 22:22. It suited her character, and the wild unsafe times better, that she should sit under a palm-tree in the secure heights of Mount Ephraim, between Ramah and Bethel (Jdg 20:33 note). This verse shows that the Judges exercised the civil as well as military functions of rulers 1Sa 7:15-17.
The words behind it
17 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְ֠הִיא | vehi' | and she | H1931 → | 1879 times |
| יוֹשֶׁ֨בֶת | yoshevet | [was] dwelling | H3427 → | 1079 times |
| תַּֽחַת־ | tachat- | under | H8478 → | 505 times |
| תֹּ֜מֶר | tomer | [the] palm tree of | H8560 → | |
| דְּבוֹרָ֗ה | devorah | Deborah | H1683 → | 10 times |
| בֵּ֧ין | bein | between | H996 → | 407 times |
| הָרָמָ֛ה | haramah | <the> Ramah | H7414 → | |
| וּבֵ֥ין | uvein | and between | H996 → | 407 times |
| בֵּֽית־ | beit- | Beth- | H1008 → | 142 times |
| אֵ֖ל | ʾel | -el | H1008 → | 142 times |
| בְּהַ֣ר | behar | in [the] hill country of | H2022 → | 546 times |
| אֶפְרָ֑יִם | ʾefrayim | Ephraim | H669 → | 180 times |
| וַיַּעֲל֥וּ | vaiyaalu | and they went up | H5927 → | 890 times |
| אֵלֶ֛יהָ | ʾeleiha | to her | H413 → | 5510 times |
| בְּנֵ֥י | benei | [the] people of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל | yisrael | Israel | H3478 → | 2507 times |
| לַמִּשְׁפָּֽט׃ | lamishpat | for <the> judgment | H4941 → | 422 times |
וְ֠הִיאand she
vehi'H1931 →1879 times
יוֹשֶׁ֨בֶת[was] dwelling
yoshevetH3427 →1079 times
תַּֽחַת־under
tachat-H8478 →505 times
תֹּ֜מֶר[the] palm tree of
tomerH8560 →
דְּבוֹרָ֗הDeborah
devorahH1683 →10 times
בֵּ֧יןbetween
beinH996 →407 times
הָרָמָ֛ה<the> Ramah
haramahH7414 →
וּבֵ֥יןand between
uveinH996 →407 times
בֵּֽית־Beth-
beit-H1008 →142 times
אֵ֖ל-el
ʾelH1008 →142 times
בְּהַ֣רin [the] hill country of
beharH2022 →546 times
אֶפְרָ֑יִםEphraim
ʾefrayimH669 →180 times
וַיַּעֲל֥וּand they went up
vaiyaaluH5927 →890 times
אֵלֶ֛יהָto her
ʾeleihaH413 →5510 times
בְּנֵ֥י[the] people of
beneiH1121 →4930 times
יִשְׂרָאֵ֖לIsrael
yisraelH3478 →2507 times
לַמִּשְׁפָּֽט׃for <the> judgment
lamishpatH4941 →422 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Exodus 18:19Now listen to me; I will give you some advice, and may God be with you. You must be the people’s representative before God and bring their causes to Him.
it leads to
- Numbers 27:5
So Moses brought their case before the LORD,
- Deuteronomy 5:5
At that time I was standing between the LORD and you to declare to you the word of the LORD, because you were afraid of the fire and would not go up the mountain.…
- Genesis 39:2
And the LORD was with Joseph, and he became a successful man, serving in the household of his Egyptian master.
- Exodus 3:12
“I will surely be with you,” God said, “and this will be the sign to you that I have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, all of you will…
- Exodus 20:19
“Speak to us yourself and we will listen,” they said to Moses. “But do not let God speak to us, or we will die.”
- Numbers 27:5
Through
Genesis 35:8Now Deborah, Rebekah’s nurse, died and was buried under the oak below Bethel. So Jacob named it Allon-bachuth.
it leads to
- Genesis 24:59
So they sent their sister Rebekah on her way, along with her nurse and Abraham’s servant and his men.
- Genesis 24:59
Through
Joshua 18:25Gibeon, Ramah, Beeroth,
it leads to
- Joshua 9:17
So the Israelites set out and on the third day arrived at their cities—Gibeon, Chephirah, Beeroth, and Kiriath-jearim.
- Matthew 27:57
When it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea named Joseph, who himself was a disciple of Jesus.
- Joshua 9:17
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies4
On this verse
About Judges
Who and where
4 names in this verse with a page on the site.
- PersonJudgesDeborahProphetess and judge who held court under her palm tree, summoned Barak against Sisera's iron chariots, and sang the victory — "th…
- PlaceHill country of EphraimRamahSamuel's home town, the seat of his circuit as judge, the place David fled to, and the prophet's burial place.
- PlaceJudeaEphraimThe town near the wilderness where Jesus withdrew with His disciples before the last Passover (John 11:54).
- PlaceCentral hill countryBethelThe house of God, where Jacob saw the ladder and heard the promise, where he returned to raise an altar, and where Jeroboam’s gold…
This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Jerome, HOMILIES ON THE PSALMS 15 (Ps 82); Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: Joshua, Judges, Ruth and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.