Bible Browser

The Song of Deborah

5Then Deborah and Barak son of Abinoam sang on that day, saying:
² ‘When locks are long in Israel,
   when the people offer themselves willingly—
   bless ^* the Lord!

³ ‘Hear, O kings; give ear, O princes;
   to the Lord I will sing,
   I will make melody to the Lord, the God of Israel.

⁴ ‘Lord, when you went out from Seir,
   when you marched from the region of Edom,
the earth trembled,
   and the heavens poured,
   the clouds indeed poured water.
⁵ The mountains quaked before the Lord, the One of Sinai,
   before the Lord, the God of Israel.

⁶ ‘In the days of Shamgar son of Anath,
   in the days of Jael, caravans ceased
   and travellers kept to the byways.
⁷ The peasantry prospered in Israel,
   they grew fat on plunder,
because you arose, Deborah,
   arose as a mother in Israel.
⁸ When new gods were chosen,
   then war was in the gates.
Was shield or spear to be seen
   among forty thousand in Israel?
⁹ My heart goes out to the commanders of Israel
   who offered themselves willingly among the people.
   Bless the Lord.

¹⁰ ‘Tell of it, you who ride on white donkeys,
   you who sit on rich carpets,^*
   and you who walk by the way.
¹¹ To the sound of musicians^* at the watering-places,
   there they repeat the triumphs of the Lord,
   the triumphs of his peasantry in Israel.

‘Then down to the gates marched the people of the Lord.