The History of Antiquity, Vol. 2 (of 6)Duncker, Max
History
The History of Antiquity, Vol. 2 (of 6)
Duncker, Max
History, Ancient
Israel's song of victory is as follows: "Listen, ye kings; give ear, ye
princes; I will sing to Jehovah, I will play on the harp of Jehovah, the
king of Israel. There were no princes in Israel till I, Deborah, arose a
mother in Israel. Arise, Barak; bring forth thy captives, thou son of
Abinoam. Shout, ye that ride on she-asses, and ye that sit upon carpets,
and ye that go on foot, and let the people come down into the plain, to
the gates of the cities. Then I said, Go down, O people of Jehovah,
against the strong; a small people against the mighty. From Ephraim they
came and from Benjamin, from Machir (_i.e._ from the Manassites on the
east of the lake of Gennesareth) the rulers came, and the chiefs of
Issachar were with Deborah, and Zebulun is a people which perilled his
life to the death, and Naphtali on the heights of the field. On the
streams of Reuben there was taking of counsel, but why didst thou sit
still among the herds to hear the pipe of the herdsmen? Gilead also
remained beyond Jordan, and Asher abode on the shore of the sea in his
valleys, and Dan on his heights. The kings came, they fought at the
water of Megiddo; they gained no booty of silver. Issachar, the support
of Barak, threw himself in the valley at his heels. The brook Kishon
washed away the enemy: a brook of battles is the brook Kishon. Go forth,
my soul, upon the strong. Blessed above women shall Jael be, above women
in the tent. He asked for water, she gave him milk; she brought him
cream in a lordly dish. She put forth her hand to the nail, and her
right hand to the workman's hammer, and she smote Sisera, she shattered
and pierced his temples. Between her feet he lay shattered. The mother
of Sisera looked from her window; she called through the lattice: 'Why
linger his chariots in returning? why delay the wheels of his chariot?'
Her wise maidens answered her; nay, she answered herself: 'Will they not
find spoil and divide it; one or two maidens to each, spoil of broidered
robes for Sisera?' So must all thine enemies perish, O Jehovah, but may
those who love him be as the sun going forth in his strength." Whether
this song was composed by Deborah, or by some other person in her name,
it is certainly an ancient song of victory and contemporary with the
events it celebrates.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account