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Deborah and Barak
4 And again the Israelites[a] did evil in the eyes of Yahweh, and Ehud died. 2 So Yahweh sold them into the hand of Jabin king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor. The commander of his army was Sisera, and he was living in Harosheth Haggoyim. 3 And the Israelites[b] cried to Yahweh, as he had nine hundred iron chariots,[c] and he oppressed the Israelites[d] cruelly[e] for twenty years.[f]
4 Now at that time Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lappidoth, was judging[g] Israel. 5 And she used to sit under the palm tree of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim; and the Israelites[h] went up to her for judgment. 6 She sent and called for Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh Naphtali and said to him, “Has not Yahweh the God of Israel commanded you? ‘Go, march to[i] Mount Tabor, and take ten thousand men from the descendants[j] of Naphtali and Zebulun. 7 I will draw out[k] Sisera, the commander of Jabin’s army, with his chariots and troops, to the wadi[l] of Kishon, and I will give him into your hand.’” 8 Barak said to her, “If you go with me, I will go; but if you do not go with me, I will not go.” 9 She said, “Surely I will go with you; however, there will be no glory for you in the path you are taking,[m] for Yahweh will sell Sisera into the hand of a woman.” And Deborah stood up and went with Barak to Kedesh. 10 Barak summoned Zebulun and Naphtali to Kedesh; and they went up behind him,[n] ten thousand men, and Deborah went up with him.
11 And Heber the Kenite was separated from the other Kenites,[o] that is, from the descendants[p] of Hobab the father-in-law of Moses. And he was encamped[q] at Elon-bezaanannim, which is near Kedesh.
12 When they[r] reported to Sisera that Barak son of Abinoam had gone up to Mount Tabor, 13 Sisera summoned all his chariots—all nine hundred chariots[s] of iron—and the entire army that was with him from Harosheth Haggoyim to the wadi[t] of Kishon. 14 And Deborah said to Barak, “Get up! This is the day that Yahweh has given Sisera into your hand. Has Yahweh not gone out before you?” So Barak went out from Mount Tabor with ten thousand men following him. 15 And Yahweh threw Sisera and all his chariots and army into confusion[u] before the edge of Barak’s sword;[v] and Sisera dismounted from his chariot and fled on foot. 16 But Barak pursued after the chariots[w] and army as far as Harosheth Haggoyim, and all of Sisera’s army fell to the edge of the sword;[x] no one was left.
17 Sisera fled on foot to the tent of Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite, because there was peace between Jabin king of Hazor and the house of Heber the Kenite. 18 And Jael came out to meet Sisera, and she said to him, “Turn aside, my lord; turn aside to me and do not be afraid.” So he turned aside into her tent, and she covered him with a blanket.[y] 19 And he said to her, “Please, give me a drink of water, because I am thirsty.” So she opened a skin vessel of milk and gave him a drink and covered him. 20 And he said to her, “Stand at the doorway of the tent, and if anyone comes and asks you, and says, ‘Is there anyone here?’ You must answer, ‘No.’” 21 But Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite, took in her hand a tent peg and a hammer, and she went softly[z] to him and drove the peg into his temple, and it went through into the ground; he was fast asleep since he was exhausted, and he died. 22 And behold, Barak was pursuing Sisera, and Jael went out to meet him, and she said to him, “Come, and I will show you the man whom you are seeking.” And he came with her and saw that Sisera was lying dead with the peg in his temple. 23 On that day God subdued Jabin king of Canaan before the Israelites.[aa] 24 And the hand of the Israelites[ab] pressed harder[ac] and harder on Jabin king of Canaan, until they destroyed Jabin king of Canaan.
The Song of Deborah and Barak
5 And Deborah and Barak son of Abinoam sang on that day:
2 “When long hair hangs loosely in Israel,
when the people willingly offer themselves,
bless Yahweh!
3 Hear, O kings! Give ear, O princes!
I will sing to Yahweh;
I will sing praise to Yahweh,
the God of Israel.
4 Yahweh, when you went down from Seir,
when you marched from the region of Edom,
the earth trembled, the heavens poured down,
the clouds poured down water.
5 The mountains trembled[ad] before Yahweh,
this Sinai, at the presence of Yahweh, the God of Israel.
6 “In the days of Shamgar son of Anath,
in the days of Jael, the caravans had ceased,
the travelers,[ae] they kept to the byways.[af]
7 The warriors[ag] ceased;
they failed to appear in Israel,
until I,[ah] Deborah, arose;
I[ai] arose as a mother in Israel.
8 God chose new leaders,[aj]
then war was at the gates;
a small shield or a spear was not seen
among forty thousand in Israel.
9 My heart goes out to the commanders of Israel,
those offering themselves willingly among the people;
bless Yahweh!
10 The riders of white female donkeys,
those sitting on saddle blankets,
and those going on the way, talk about it!
11 At the sound of those dividing[ak] the sheep
among the watering places,
there they will recount the righteous deeds of Yahweh,
the righteous deeds for his warriors[al] in Israel.
Then the people of Yahweh went down to the gates.
12 “Wake up, wake up, Deborah!
Wake up, wake up, sing a song!
Get up, Barak!
Take captive your captives, O son of Abinoam.
13 Then the remnant went down to the nobles;
the people of Yahweh went down for him[am] against the mighty.
14 From Ephraim is their root into Amalek,
after you, Benjamin, with your family;
from Makir the commanders went down,
and from Zebulun those carrying the scepter
of the military commander.
15 And the chiefs[an] in Issachar were with Deborah;
and Issachar likewise was with Barak;
into the valley he was sent to get him from behind.[ao]
Among the clans of Reuben
were great decisions of the heart.[ap]
16 Why do you sit among the sheepfolds,
to hear the calling sounds of the herds?
For the clans of Reuben,
there were great searchings of the heart.
17 Gilead has remained[aq] beyond the Jordan.
Why did Dan dwell as a foreigner with ships?
Asher sat at the coast of the waters,
and by his coves he has been settling down.
18 Zebulun is a people who scorned death,
and Naphtali, on the heights of the field.
19 “The kings came, they fought;
then the kings of Canaan fought;
at Taanach by the waters of Megiddo,
they got no plunder in silver.
20 The stars fought from heaven;
from their courses they fought against Sisera.
21 The wadi[ar] torrent of Kishon swept them away,
the raging wadi torrent,
the wadi torrent of Kishon.
March on, my soul, with strength!
22 “Then the hooves of the horse beat loudly,
because of galloping, galloping of his stallions.
23 ‘Curse Meroz,’ says the angel of Yahweh;
‘curse bitterly its inhabitants,
because they did not come to the help of Yahweh,
to the help of Yahweh against the mighty.’
24 “Most blessed of women is Jael,
the wife of Heber the Kenite;
most blessed is she of women among tent dwellers.
25 He asked for water, and she gave milk;
in a drinking bowl for nobles, she brought curds.
26 She reached out her hand to the peg,
and her right hand for the workman’s hammer;
and she struck Sisera, crushed his head,
and she shattered and pierced his temple.
27 Between her feet he sank, he fell, he lay.
Between her feet he sank down, he fell;
Where he sank down, there he fell—dead.[as]
28 “Through the window she looked down;
the mother of Sisera cried out through the lattice,
‘Why is his chariot delayed in coming?
Why do the hoof beats[at] of his chariot tarry?’
29 The wisest of her ladies answer her;
she also answers the question herself:
30 ‘Are they not finding and dividing the plunder?
A bedmate or two bedmates for every man;[au]
colorful garments for Sisera,
plunder of colorful garments,[av]
beautifully finished colorful garments,
on the neck of the plunderer?’
31 So may all your enemies perish, O Yahweh,
but those who love him are like the rising sun at its brightest.”
And the land had rest for forty years.
The Two Swords
35 And he said to them, “When I sent you out without a money bag and a traveler’s bag and sandals, you did not lack anything, did you?”[a] And they said, “Nothing.” 36 And he said to them, “But now the one who has a money bag must take it,[b] and likewise a traveler’s bag. And the one who does not have a sword must sell his cloak and buy one. 37 For I tell you that this that is written must be fulfilled in me: ‘And he was counted with the criminals.’[c] For indeed, what is written[d] about me is being fulfilled.”[e] 38 So they said, “Lord, behold, here are two swords!” And he said to them, “It is adequate.”
The Prayer in Gethsemane
39 And he went away and[f] proceeded, according to his[g] custom, to the Mount of Olives, and the disciples also followed him. 40 And when[h] he came to the place, he said to them, “Pray that you will not enter into temptation.” 41 And he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw and knelt down[i] and[j] began to pray,[k] 42 saying, “Father, if you are willing, take away this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will but yours be done.” [[43 And an angel from heaven appeared to him, strengthening him. 44 And being in anguish, he began praying[l] more fervently and his sweat became like drops of blood falling down to the ground.]][m] 45 And when he[n] got up from the prayer and[o] came to the disciples, he found them sleeping from sorrow, 46 and he said to them, “Why are you sleeping? Get up and[p] pray that you will not enter into temptation!”
The Betrayal and Arrest of Jesus
47 While[q] he was still speaking, behold, there came a crowd, and the one named Judas, one of the twelve, leading them. And he approached Jesus to kiss him. 48 But Jesus said to him, “Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?” 49 And when[r] those around him saw what was about to happen, they said, “Lord, should we strike with the sword?” 50 And a certain one of them struck the slave of the high priest and cut off his right ear. 51 But Jesus answered and[s] said, “Stop! No more of this!”[t] And he touched his[u] ear and[v] healed him. 52 And Jesus said to the chief priests and officers of the temple and elders who had come out against him, “Have you come out with swords and clubs, as against a robber? 53 Every day when[w] I was with you in the temple courts,[x] you did not stretch out your[y] hands against me! But this is your hour and the domain of darkness!”
A Prayer for Retribution against Oppressors
94 O Yahweh, God of vengeance,
God of vengeance, shine forth.
2 Rise up, O Judge of the earth.
Repay upon the proud what is their rightful due.
3 How long will the wicked, O Yahweh,
how long will the wicked exult?
4 They gush words[a] unrestrained.
All the evildoers boast.
5 They crush your people, O Yahweh;
they oppress your inheritance.
6 They kill widow and stranger,
and they murder orphans,
7 while[b] they say, “Yah[c] does not see,”
and “The God of Jacob does not pay attention.”
8 You pay attention, O brutes among the people.
And you fools, when you will show insight?
9 Will the one who planted the ear not hear?
Will the one who formed the eye not see?
10 Will the one who instructs nations not rebuke,
the one who teaches humankind knowledge?
11 Yahweh knows the thoughts of humankind,
that they are to no purpose.[d]
12 Blessed is the man, O Yah, whom you instruct
and teach from your law,
13 to give him rest from days of trouble,
until a pit is dug for the wicked.
14 For Yahweh will not abandon his people,
nor forsake his inheritance.
15 For judgment will return to righteousness,[e]
and all the upright in heart will follow after it.
16 Who rose up for me against the wicked?
Who stood up for me against the workers of iniquity?
17 If Yahweh had not been my help,
my soul would soon have dwelt in silence.
18 When I thought,[f] “My foot is slipping,”
your loyal love, O Yahweh, supported me.
19 When my troubled thoughts were many within me,[g]
your consolations cheered my soul.
20 Can there be allied with you a throne of destruction,
one that forms trouble based on statute?
21 They band together against the life of the righteous,
and declare the blameless guilty of blood.[h]
22 But Yahweh has become my high stronghold,
and my God has become my rock of refuge.
23 And he will repay on them their iniquity,
and by[i] their evil he will destroy them.
Yahweh our God will destroy them.
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