Judges 4:6
in Judges 4She summoned Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali and said to him, “Surely the LORD, the God of Israel, is commanding you: ‘Go and march to Mount Tabor, taking with you ten thousand men of Naphtali and Zebulun.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And she sent and called Barak the son of Abinoam out of Kedesh-naphtali, and said unto him, Hath not Jehovah, the God of Israel, commanded, saying, Go and draw unto mount Tabor, and take with thee ten thousand men of the children of Naphtali and of the children of Zebulun?
KJV
And she sent and called Barak the son of Abinoam out of Kedesh–naphtali, and said unto him, Hath not the Lord God of Israel commanded, saying, Go and draw toward mount Tabor, and take with thee ten thousand men of the children of Naphtali and of the children of Zebulun?
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This verse in Judges 4
Commentary
12 notes on this verseBecause 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
Go and march to Mount Tabor
on Judges 4:6-7
Isaiah 9:1 names "the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali" as the country humbled in the past. Tabor is a hill and the Kishon a riverbed. So the plan puts the foot soldiers on high ground and draws the chariots down to the low.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers2 voices
For nothing, nothing is more powerful than a pious and sensible woman to bring a man into proper order, and to mould his soul as she will. For he will not endure friends, or teachers, or rulers, as he will his partner advising and counseling him, since the advice carries even some pleasure with it, because she who gives the counsel is greatly loved. I could tell of many hard and disobedient men who have been softened in this way. For she who shares his table, his bed, and his embraces, his words and secrets, his comings in and goings out, and many other things, who is entirely given up and joined to him, as it is likely that a body would be joined to a head, if she happen to be discreet and well attuned, will go beyond and excel all others in the management of her husband. Wherefore I exhort women to make this their employment, and to give fitting counsel. For as they have great power for good, so have they also for evil. A woman destroyed Absalom, a woman destroyed Amnon, a woman was like to have destroyed Job, a woman rescued Nabal from the slaughter. Women have preserved whole nations; for Deborah and Judith exhibited successes worthy of men; so also do ten thousand other women. Wherefore Paul saith, "For what knowest thou, O wife, whether thou shall save thy husband?" And in those times we see Persis and Mary and Priscilla taking part in the labors of the Apostles; whom we also needs must imitate, and not by words only, but also by actions, bring into order him that dwelleth with us.
And in time of peace there is no complaint, and no fault is found in this woman, whereas most of the judges were causes of no small sins to the people. But when the Canaanites, a people fierce in battle and rich in troops, successively joined them, showed a horrible disposition against the people of the Jews, this widow, before all others, made all the preparations for war.
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
Kedesh Naphtali - So called, to distinguish it from other places of that name, one in Judah, and another in Issachar. Hath not the Lord, &c. - That is, assuredly God hath commanded thee; this is not the fancy of a weak woman, which peradventure thou mayst despise; but the command of the great God by my mouth.
), and so many he has presently at his feet, following him, and subject to his command. God is said to call us to his feet ( Isa. xli. 2 ), that is, into obedience to him.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
And she sent and called Barak the son of Abinoam out of Kedeshnaphtali,....
5 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
When Sisera drew his forces together, he designed the destruction of Israel; but God gathered them as sheaves into the floor, for their own destruction, Mic. iv. Assemble yourselves, and you shall be broken to pieces, Isa. viii. At Barak's request, she promises to go along with him to the field of battle.
The Nineteenth Century3 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
Hath not the Lord God of Israel commanded?--a Hebrew form of making an emphatic communication. Go and draw toward mount Tabor--an isolated mountain of Galilee, northeast corner of the plain of Esdraelon. It was a convenient place of rendezvous, and the enlistment is not to be considered as limited to ten thousand, though a smaller force would have been inadequate.
She sent and called Barak - She appointed him to be general of the armies on this occasion; which shows that she possessed the supreme power in the state. Mount Tabor - “Mount Tabor,” says Maundrell, “stands by itself, about two or three furlongs within the plains of Esdraelon. It has a plain area at the top, both fertile and delicious of an oval figure, extending about one furlong in breadth, and two in length.
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
The name Barak signifies lightning, an appropriate name for a warrior. It is found also as Barca or Barcas, among Punic proper names. Compare Mar 3:17. On Kedesh-Naphtali see the marginal reference. Deborah speaks of God as Yahweh the God of Israel, because she speaks, as it were, in the presence of the pagan enemies of Israel, and to remind the Israelites, in the day of their distress, that He was ready to perform the mercy promised to their fathers, and to remember His holy covenant. This title, too, would recall to their memories in an instant all His past acts in Egypt, at the Red Sea, in the wilderness, and in the conquest of Canaan. The object of “drawing (toward Mount Tabor” rather, spreading out, compare Jdg 20:37) was to effect a junction of the northern tribes with the tribes of Ephraim and Benjamin, who were separated from them by the plain of Esdraelon, where Sisera’s chariots would naturally congregate and be most effective. Mount Tabor rises from the plain of Esdraelon, about 1,865 ft. above the sea, and its broad top of nearly a mile in circumference afforded a strong position, out of reach of Sisera’s chariots. If El Harathiyeh be Harosheth, Sisera must have marched from the west. Harathiyeh is a height in the range which separates Esdraelon from the plains of Acre, under which the Kishon breaks through in its course to the sea.
Modern Voices1 voice
Under the impetus of the Spirit of God, Deborah led the people to freedom.
The words behind it
27 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וַתִּשְׁלַ֗ח | vatishlach | and she sent | H7971 → | 845 times |
| וַתִּקְרָא֙ | vatikra' | and she summoned | H7121 → | 733 times |
| לְבָרָ֣ק | levarak | <to> Barak | H1301 → | 13 times |
| בֶּן־ | ben- | [the] son of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| אֲבִינֹ֔עַם | ʾavinoam | Abinoam | H42 → | 4 times |
| מִקֶּ֖דֶשׁ | mikedesh | from Kedesh | H6943 → | 12 times |
| נַפְתָּלִ֑י | naftali | Naphtali | H5321 → | 51 times |
| וַתֹּ֨אמֶר | vatomer | and she said | H559 → | 5305 times |
| אֵלָ֜יו | ʾelav | to him | H413 → | 5510 times |
| הֲלֹ֥א | halo' | ¿ not | H3808 → | 5168 times |
| צִוָּ֣ה׀ | tzivah | has he commanded | H6680 → | 494 times |
| יְהוָ֣ה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| אֱלֹהֵֽי־ | ʾelohei- | [the] God of | H430 → | 2601 times |
| יִשְׂרָאֵ֗ל | yisrael | Israel | H3478 → | 2507 times |
| לֵ֤ךְ | lekh | go | H1980 → | 1546 times |
| וּמָֽשַׁכְתָּ֙ | umashakhta | and you will march | H4900 → | 36 times |
| בְּהַ֣ר | behar | at [the] mountain of | H2022 → | 546 times |
| תָּב֔וֹר | tavor | Tabor | H8396 → | 10 times |
| וְלָקַחְתָּ֣ | velakachta | and you will take | H3947 → | 966 times |
| עִמְּךָ֗ | ʾimekha | with you | H5973 → | 1050 times |
| עֲשֶׂ֤רֶת | ʾaseret | ten | H6235 → | 176 times |
| אֲלָפִים֙ | ʾalafim | thousand<s> | H505 → | 505 times |
| אִ֔ישׁ | ʾish | man | H376 → | 1663 times |
| מִבְּנֵ֥י | mibenei | from [the] descendants of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| נַפְתָּלִ֖י | naftali | Naphtali | H5321 → | 51 times |
| וּמִבְּנֵ֥י | umibenei | and of [the] descendants of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| זְבֻלֽוּן׃ | zevulun | Zebulun | H2074 → | 45 times |
וַתִּשְׁלַ֗חand she sent
vatishlachH7971 →845 times
וַתִּקְרָא֙and she summoned
vatikra'H7121 →733 times
לְבָרָ֣ק<to> Barak
levarakH1301 →13 times
בֶּן־[the] son of
ben-H1121 →4930 times
אֲבִינֹ֔עַםAbinoam
ʾavinoamH42 →4 times
מִקֶּ֖דֶשׁfrom Kedesh
mikedeshH6943 →12 times
נַפְתָּלִ֑יNaphtali
naftaliH5321 →51 times
וַתֹּ֨אמֶרand she said
vatomerH559 →5305 times
אֵלָ֜יוto him
ʾelavH413 →5510 times
הֲלֹ֥א¿ not
halo'H3808 →5168 times
צִוָּ֣ה׀has he commanded
tzivahH6680 →494 times
יְהוָ֣הYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
אֱלֹהֵֽי־[the] God of
ʾelohei-H430 →2601 times
יִשְׂרָאֵ֗לIsrael
yisraelH3478 →2507 times
לֵ֤ךְgo
lekhH1980 →1546 times
וּמָֽשַׁכְתָּ֙and you will march
umashakhtaH4900 →36 times
בְּהַ֣רat [the] mountain of
beharH2022 →546 times
תָּב֔וֹרTabor
tavorH8396 →10 times
וְלָקַחְתָּ֣and you will take
velakachtaH3947 →966 times
עִמְּךָ֗with you
ʾimekhaH5973 →1050 times
עֲשֶׂ֤רֶתten
ʾaseretH6235 →176 times
אֲלָפִים֙thousand<s>
ʾalafimH505 →505 times
אִ֔ישׁman
ʾishH376 →1663 times
מִבְּנֵ֥יfrom [the] descendants of
mibeneiH1121 →4930 times
נַפְתָּלִ֖יNaphtali
naftaliH5321 →51 times
וּמִבְּנֵ֥יand of [the] descendants of
umibeneiH1121 →4930 times
זְבֻלֽוּן׃Zebulun
zevulunH2074 →45 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
Acts 13:47For this is what the Lord has commanded us: ‘I have made you a light for the Gentiles, to bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’”
it leads to
- Isaiah 49:6
He says: “It is not enough for You to be My Servant, to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the protected ones of Israel. I will also make You a light…
- Isaiah 42:6
“I, the LORD, have called you for a righteous purpose, and I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and appoint you to be a covenant for the people and a…
- Luke 2:32
a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to Your people Israel.”
- Isaiah 45:22
Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is no other.
- Zechariah 8:20–23
This is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Peoples will yet come—the residents of many cities—
- Isaiah 49:6
Through
Hebrews 11:32And what more shall I say? Time will not allow me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and the prophets,
it leads to
- 1 Samuel 16:1
Now the LORD said to Samuel, “How long are you going to mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil and go. I am sending…
- 1 Samuel 1:20
So in the course of time, Hannah conceived and gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, saying, “Because I have asked for him from the LORD.”
- 1 Samuel 16:13
So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and the Spirit of the LORD rushed upon David from that day forward. Then Samuel set out and…
- 1 Samuel 16:1
Where this verse is studied
On this page
About Judges
This page draws on 12 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Ambrose of Milan, Concerning Widows 8.43-46; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, HOMILIES ON THE PSALMS 15 (Ps 82); John Chrysostom, HOMILIES ON THE GOSPEL OF JOHN 61; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament; Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: Joshua, Judges, Ruth; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and R. C. Sproul, Who Was Deborah?.