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16 B’shallach – Haftarah
Shophtym (Judges) 4:4-5:31
And Deḇorah, a prophetess, the wife of Lappiḏoth, was ruling Yisra’ěl at that time.
And she was dwelling under the palm tree of Deḇorah between Ramah and Běyth Ěl in the mountains of Ephrayim. And the children of Yisra’ěl came up to her for judgment.
And she sent and called for Baraq son of Aḇino‛am from Qeḏesh in Naphtali, and said to him, “Has not YHWH Elohim of Yisra’ěl commanded, ‘Go, and you shall draw towards Mount Taḇor, and shall take with you ten thousand men of the sons of Naphtali and of the sons of Zeḇulun, and I shall draw unto you Sisera, the commander of Yaḇin’s army, with his chariots and his company at the wadi Qishon, and shall give him into your hand’?”
And Baraq said to her, “If you go with me, then I shall go; but if you do not go with me, I do not go.”
And she said, “I shall certainly go with you. Only, there shall be no esteem for you in the journey you are taking, for YHWH is going to sell Sisera into the hand of a woman.” So Deḇorah arose and went with Baraq to Qeḏesh.
And Baraq called Zeḇulun and Naphtali to Qeḏesh. And he went up – ten thousand men under his command – and Deḇorah went up with him.
And Ḥeḇer the Qěynite, of the children of Ḥoḇaḇ the father-in-law of Mosheh, had separated himself from the Qěynites and pitched his tent near the terebinth tree at Tsa‛anayim, which is beside Qeḏesh.
And they reported to Sisera that Baraq son of Aḇino‛am had gone up to Mount Taḇor.
So Sisera called all his chariots, nine hundred chariots of iron, and all the people who were with him, from Ḥarosheth Haggoyim to the wadi Qishon.
And Deḇorah said to Baraq, “Rise up! For this is the day in which YHWH has given Sisera into your hand. Has not YHWH gone out before you?” And Baraq went down from Mount Taḇor with ten thousand men after him.
And YHWH destroyed Sisera and all his chariots and all his army with the edge of the sword before Baraq. And Sisera leaped from his chariot and fled away on foot.
But Baraq pursued the chariots and the army as far as Ḥarosheth Haggoyim, and all the army of Sisera fell by the edge of the sword, not one was left.
Sisera, meanwhile, had fled on foot to the tent of Ya‛ěl, the wife of Ḥeḇer the Qěynite, for there was peace between Yaḇin king of Ḥatsor and the house of Ḥeḇer the Qěynite.
And Ya‛ěl went out to meet Sisera, and said to him, “Turn aside, my master, turn aside to me, do not fear.” So he turned aside with her into the tent, and she covered him with a blanket.
And he said to her, “Please give me a little water to drink, for I am thirsty.” So she opened a bottle of milk, and gave him a drink, and covered him.
And he said to her, “Stand at the door of the tent, and it shall be if anyone comes and asks you, and says, ‘Is there a man here?’ you shall say, ‘No.’”
But Ya‛ěl, Ḥeḇer’s wife, took a tent peg and took a hammer in her hand, and went softly to him and drove the peg into the side of his head, and it went down into the ground – for he was fast asleep and exhausted – and he died.
And see, as Baraq pursued Sisera, Ya‛ěl came out to meet him, and said to him, “Come, let me show you the man whom you are seeking.” And when he went into her tent, there lay Sisera, dead with the peg in the side of his head.
And on that day Elohim humbled Yaḇin king of Kena‛an in the presence of the children of Yisra’ěl.
And the hand of the children of Yisra’ěl grew stronger and stronger against Yaḇin king of Kena‛an, until they had cut off Yaḇin king of Kena‛an.
And on that day Deḇorah and Baraq son of Aḇino‛am sang, saying, “For leaders leading in Yisra’ěl, for the people volunteering, bless YHWH!
“Hear, O kings! Give ear, O princes! I, I do sing to YHWH; I sing praise to YHWH Elohim of Yisra’ěl.
“YHWH, when You went out from Sě‛ir, when You stepped from the field of Eḏom, the earth shook and the heavens poured, the clouds also poured water.
“The mountains flowed at the presence of YHWH, this Sinai, at the presence of YHWH Elohim of Yisra’ěl.
“In the days of Shamgar, the son of Anath, in the days of Ya‛ěl, the highways were deserted, and the travellers went in crooked ways.
“Leadership ceased, it ceased in Yisra’ěl, until I, Deḇorah, arose – a mother in Yisra’ěl arose.
“They chose new mighty ones, then fighting was in the gates! Neither a shield nor spear was seen among forty thousand in Yisra’ěl.
“My heart is towards the inscribers of Yisra’ěl, the volunteers among the people. Bless YHWH!
“You who ride on white donkeys, you who sit on rich carpets, and you who walk along the way, declare it!
“By the voice of shouters, between the places of drawing water, there they recount the righteous acts of YHWH, the righteous acts of His leadership in Yisra’ěl; then the people of YHWH shall go down to the gates.
“Wake up, wake up, Deḇorah! Wake up, wake up, sing a song! Arise, Baraq, and lead your captives away, O son of Aḇino‛am!
“Then He set the remnant to rule the nobles; YHWH came down for me against the mighty ones.
“Out of Ephrayim their root is against Amalěq. After you, Binyamin, with your peoples, out of Maḵir inscribers came down, and out of Zeḇulun those who handle the scribe’s reed.
“And the heads of Yissasḵar were with Deḇorah. And as Yissasḵar, so was Baraq sent into the valley under his command. Among the divisions of Re’uḇěn there were great searchings of heart.
“Why did you remain among the sheepfolds, to hear the bleatings of the flocks? The divisions of Re’uḇěn have great searchings of heart.
“Gil‛aḏ remained beyond the Yarděn, and why did Dan remain on ships? Ashěr continued at the seashore, and remained by its landing places.
“Zeḇulun is a people who risked their lives to the point of death, Naphtali also, on the heights of the field.
“Kings came, they fought, then the kings of Kena‛an fought in Ta‛anaḵ, by the waters of Meḡiddo; they took no spoils of silver.
“From the heavens they fought; the stars from their courses fought against Sisera.
“The wadi of Qishon swept them away, that age-old wadi, the wadi of Qishon. O my being, you have trampled in strength!
“Then stamped hoofs of horses, with the galloping, galloping of his steeds.
Curse Měroz,’ said a messenger of YHWH, ‘curse, curse its inhabitants, because they did not come to the help of YHWH, to the help of YHWH among the mighty.’
“Blessed above women is Ya‛ěl, the wife of Ḥeḇer the Qěynite – above women in tents she is blessed.
“He asked for water, she gave milk; she brought out curdled milk in a bowl for nobles.
“She stretched her hand to the tent peg, and her right hand to the workmen’s hammer. Then she pounded Sisera, she smashed his head, she pierced and struck through the side of his head.
“Between her feet he bowed, he fell, he lay still; between her feet he bowed, he fell; where he bowed, there he fell – destroyed.
“Through the window the mother of Sisera looked, and cried out through the lattice, ‘Why does his chariot delay to come? Why have the steps of his chariots tarried?’
“The wise ones of her princesses answered her, indeed, she answered herself, Do they not find and divide the spoil: a girl or two for each man; a spoil of dyed work for Sisera, a spoil of dyed work embroidered, dyed work richly embroidered for the necks of the looter?’
“So do all Your enemies perish, O YHWH! But let those who love Him be like the sun rising in its might!” And the land had rest forty years.