May 7 2006

ספר שופטים פרק ה

ותשר דבורה וברק בן-אבינעם ביום ההוא לאמר:

בפרע פרעות בישראל בהתנדב עם ברכו יהוה:

שמעו מלכים האזינו רזנים

אנכי ליהוה אנכי אשירה אזמר ליהוה אלהי ישראל:

יהוה בצאתך משעיר בצעדך משדה אדום

ארץ רעשה גם-שמים נטפו גם-עבים נטפו מים

הרים נזלו מפני יהוה זה סיני מפני יהוה אלהי ישראל:

בימי שמגר בן-ענת בימי יעל חדלו ארחות

והלכי נתיבות ילכו ארחות עקלקלות:

חדלו פרזון בישראל חדלו

עד שקמתי דבורה שקמתי אם בישראל:

יבחר אלהים חדשים אז לחם שערים

מגן אם-יראה ורמח בארבעים אלף בישראל:

לבי לחוקקי ישראל:

המתנדבים בעם ברכו יהוה

רכבי אתנות צחרות ישבי על-מדין והלכי על-דרך שירו מקל מחצצים

בין משאבים שם יתנו צדקות יהוה צדקת פרזון בישראל:

אז ירדו לשערים עם-יהוה

עורי עורי דבורה עורי עורי דברי-שיר

קום ברק ושבה שביך בן-אבינעם

אז ירד שריד לאדירים עם יהוה ירד לי בגבורים:

מני אפרים שרים בעמק אחריך בנימין בעממיך

מני מכיר ירדו מחקקים ומזבולן משכים בשבט ספר

ושרי ביששכר עם-דברה ונפתלי כן ברק בעמק שלח ברגליו:

בפלגות ראובן גדלים חקקי לב

למה ישבת בין המשפתים לשמע שרקות עדרים?

בפלגות ראובן גדולים חקקי לב:

גלעד בעבר הירדן שכן ודן למה יגור אניות?

אשר ישב לחוף ימים ועל מפרציו ישכון:

זבלון עם חרף נפשו למות ונפתלי על מרומי שדה:

באו מלכים נלחמו אז נלחמו מלכי כנען בתענך

על-מי מגדו בצע כסף לא לקחו:

מן-שמים נלחמו הכוכבים ממסלותם נלחמו עם-סיסרא

נחל קישון גרפם נחל קדומים נחל קישון:

תדרכי נפשי עז אז הלמו עקבי-סוס ??מדהרות?? דהרות אביריו:

אורו מרוז אמר מלאך יהוה ארו ארור ישביה

כי לא-באו לעזרת יהוה לעזרת יהוה בגבורים:

תברך מנשים יעל אשת חבר הקיני מנשים באהל תברך

מים שאל חלב נתנה בספל אדירים הקריבה חמאה:

ידה ליתד תשלחנה וימינה להלמות עמלים

והלמה סיסרא מחקה ראשו ומחצה וחלפה רקתו:

בין רגליה כרע נפל שכב בין רגליה כרע נפל

באשר כרע שם נפל שדוד:

בעד החלון נשקפה ותיבב אם סיסרא בעד האשנב

מדוע בשש רכבו לבוא מדוע אחרו פעמי מרכבותיו:

חכמות שרותיה תענינה אף-היא תשיב אמריה לה

הלא ימצאו יחלקו שלל

רחם רחמתים לראש גבר

שלל צבעים לסיסרא שלל צבעים

רקמה צבע רקמתים לצוארי שלל:

כן יאבדו כל-אויביך יהוה ואהביו כצאת השמש בגברתו:

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ספר שופטים פרק ה

ותשר דבורה וברק בן-אבינעם ביום ההוא לאמר:

Deb'orah and Barak the son of Abin'o-am sand on that day:

בפרע פרעות בישראל בהתנדב עם ברכו יהוה:

Those who have disheveled their hair (in preparation for war); those who have volunteered among the people, bless Yahweh!

שמעו מלכים האזינו רזנים

אנכי ליהוה אנכי אשירה אזמר ליהוה אלהי ישראל:

Hear, O kings; give ear, O princes.

I sing to Yahweh, I make melody to Yahweh, God of Israel.

יהוה בצאתך משעיר בצעדך משדה אדום

ארץ רעשה גם-שמים נטפו גם-עבים נטפו מים

הרים נזלו מפני יהוה זה סיני מפני יהוה אלהי ישראל:

Yahweh, when you departed from Se'ir, when you marched from the field of Edom,

the earth trembled, and the heavens dropped water.

Mountains quaked before Yahweh; this Sinai (quaked) before Yahweh, God of Israel.

בימי שמגר בן-ענת בימי יעל

חדלו ארחות והלכי נתיבות ילכו ארחות עקלקלות:

In the days of Shamgar, son of Anath, in the days of Ja'el,

caravans ceased and travelers kept to the byways.

חדלו פרזון בישראל חדלו עד שקמתי דבורה שקמתי אם בישראל

יבחר אלהים חדשים אז לחם שערים:

The peasantry ceased in Israel. They ceased until I, Deborah, arose as a mother in Israel.

When he (Israel) chose new leaders, then war was in the gates.

מגן אם-יראה ורמח בארבעים אלף בישראל

לבי לחוקקי ישראל:

Was shield or spear to be seen among forty thousand in Israel,

when my heart was given to the commanders of Israel?

המתנדבים בעם ברכו יהוה

רכבי אתנות צחרות ישבי על-מדין והלכי על-דרך שיחו מקול מחצצים:

You who volunteer among the people, bless Yahweh.Talk of the sound of archers, you who ride on tawny asses, you who sit on rich carpets and you who walk by the way.

בין משאבים שם יתנו צדקות יהוה צדקת פרזון בישראל

אז ירדו לשערים עם-יהוה:

At the watering places, there they repeated the triumphs of Yahweh, the triumphs of his peasantry in Israel. Then the people of Yahweh went down to the gates, saying:

עורי עורי דבורה עורי עורי דברי-שיר

קום ברק ושבה שביך בן-אבינעם

Awake, awake, Deb'orah! Awake, awake, utter a song! Arise, Barak, lead away your captives, O son of Abin'o-am.

אז ירד שריד לאדירים עם יהוה ירד לי בגבורים:

Then the remnant of the nobles descended; the people of the LORD marched down for me, among the mighty.

מני אפרים שרים בעמק אחריך בנימין בעממיך

From E'phraim princes set out to the valley, following Benjamin among his people.

מני מכיר ירדו מחקקים ומזבולן משכים בשבט ספר

From Machir commanders descended, and from Zeb'ulun those who carry the marshal's staff.

ושרי ביששכר עם-דברה ונפתלי כן ברק בעמק שלח ברגליו:

The princes of Is'sachar came with Deb'orah, and Naphtali followed Barak;

into the valley he (Naphtali) rushed forth at his (Barak) heels.

בפלגות ראובן גדלים חקקי לב

למה ישבת בין המשפתים לשמע שרקות עדרים?

בפלגות ראובן גדולים חקקי לב:

In Pelagoth Reuben (Streams of Reuben) there are great commanders of heart.Why did you tarry among the sheepfolds, to hear the piping for the flocks?

In Pelagoth Reuben there are great commanders of heart.

גלעד בעבר הירדן שכן ודן למה יגור אניות

אשר ישב לחוף ימים ועל מפרציו ישכון:

Gilead stayed beyond the Jordan; and Dan, why did he abide with the ships?

Asher sat still at the coast of the sea, settling down by his landings.

זבלון עם חרף נפשו למות ונפתלי על מרומי שדה:

Zeb'ulun is a people that jeoparded their lives to the death; Naph'tali too, from the heights of the field.

באו מלכים נלחמו אז נלחמו מלכי כנען בתענך

על-מי מגדו בצע כסף לא לקחו:

The kings of Canaan came and fought against Taanach;

Over the waters of Megiddo (they fought) without taking any silver gain.

מן-שמים נלחמו הכוכבים ממסלותם נלחמו עם-סיסרא

נחל קישון גרפם נחל קדומים נחל קישון:

But the stars from heaven fought; from their courses they fought against Sis'era.

The torrent Kishon swept them away, the onrushing torrent, the torrent Kishon.

תדרכי נפשי עז

אז הלמו עקבי-סוס ??מדהרות?? דהרות אביריו:

My soul, stampeded with might!Then the horses' hoofs were beaten and the galloping steeds were ??stranded??

אורו מרוז אמר מלאך יהוה ארו ארור ישביה

כי לא-באו לעזרת יהוה לעזרת יהוה בגבורים:

Meroz shall be cursed, says the angel of Yahweh; its inhabitants utterly cursed.

Because they dsid not come to the help of Yahweh among the mighty warriors.

תברך מנשים יעל אשת חבר הקיני מנשים באהל תברך

מים שאל חלב נתנה בספל אדירים הקריבה חמאה:

Ja'el, the wife of Heber the Ken'ite, shall be blessed among tent-dwelling women.

He asked water but she gave him milk, she brought him curds in a noble bowl.

ידה ליתד תשלחנה וימינה להלמות עמלים

והלמה סיסרא מחקה ראשו ומחצה וחלפה רקתו:

She put her hand to the tent peg and her right hand to the workmen's mallet.

She struck Sis'era a blow, she crushed his head, she shattered and pierced his temple.

בין רגליה כרע נפל שכב בין רגליה כרע נפל

באשר כרע שם נפל שדוד:

He kneed, fell down, and lay still at her feet;

where he kneed, there he fell dead.

בעד החלון נשקפה ותיבב אם סיסרא בעד האשנב

מדוע בשש רכבו לבוא מדוע אחרו פעמי מרכבותיו:

Out of the window she peered; the mother of Sis'era gazed through the lattice:

`Why is his chariot so long in coming? Why tarry the hoofbeats of his chariots?'

חכמות שרותיה תענינה אף-היא תשיב אמריה לה

Her wisest ladies make answer, nay, she gives answer to herself:

הלא ימצאו יחלקו שלל

רחם רחמתים לראש גבר

Are they not finding and dividing the spoil,

one womb or two wombs to the head of each mighty warrior?

שלל צבעים לסיסרא שלל צבעים

רקמה צבע רקמתים לצוארי שלל:

spoil of dyed garments for Sis'era,

one or two embroidered dyed garments for my neck as spoil?

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The previous is an all-new translation based on my extensive research. It should be noted that the "Song of Deborah" is one of the oldest pieces of literature in the Bible, if not the oldest. This is why we must be very creative when interpreting this poem. There is the likelihood of terms that do not occur elsewhere in the bible and there's also the likelihood of copyist errors, which further impede our ability to properly understand the original meaning of the poem.

My English translation is based on the NRSV and I have retained some of its amendations to the Hebrew text. But I have also rejected much of it and I have divided the poem into different stanzas and verses based on a new reading. I will point out some of my findings below:

First I must emphasize that this poem, as we have it, is the word of Deborah (after she and Barak defeated Sisera and the Canaanites). Some scholars have suggested otherwise, seemingly because of the saying "awake Deborah..." which seems to come from someone else. However, as you will see below, Deborah is quoting what the warriors said to her and Barak when preparing for battle. This should be compared with the poem of Chanah in 1samuel, which is also authored by a woman. (This, however, does not mean that the poem was actually authored by a Deborah or Chanah. It's just that the poem is recited from Deborah's perpective, as if she's singing it).

The first verse talking about long disheveled hair refers to the practice of growing long hair when preparing for battle. This is known as an ancient Canaanite custom and we also see it with Samson whose strength is sapped as soon as his hair is cut. However, the Hebrew letter "beth" prefixed to "pr'" (those who grow their hair long) and to "hithnadeb be'am" (those who volunteer among the people) does not mean "when"; it does not talk about a timing. Rather, it means "among". Throughout the poem, Deborah is contrasting those who contributed to the Israelite cause in the battle and those who did not; the good guys (Deborah, Barak, Ephraim, Benjamin, Makir, Zebulun, Issachar, Naphtali and Ya'el) and the bad guys (Reuben, Gile'ad, Dan, Asher, Canaanite kings, Sisera and Mother of Sisera). We see that not all Israelite tribes joined the battle, and this is why Deborah emphasizes that only those who grew long hair and volunteered to join the coalition against Sisera, are entitled to "bless yahweh". Presumably, those who did not join the coalition are still under tribute to Sisera and the Canaanites and so have no reason to celebrate.

Verse 4 and 5. The common understanding is that Deborah is recounting history here and is referring to the Covenant Proclamation (Matan Torah) at Sinai some several centuries earlier. But I am reluctant to accept this for several reasons: 1. There is no mention of rain anywhere in J, E, P or D with regard to the Matan Torah episode. Secondly, it simply does not relate to the events at hand. These verses, so understood, seem highly intrusive and impede the flow of the text. There is no connection at all between verse five and six. Third, Deborah implies later in the poem that the defeat of Sisera and the Canaanites had something to do with the plain of Jezreel becoming swmaped and thus stranding the Canaanite horses (the Israelites had no horses).

Therefore, I believe, that Deborah is talking about the event at hand. She is saying that Yahweh departed from Se'ir/Edom/Sinai, crossing the Jordan and continuing north to the plain of Jezreel and dropping rain upon the valley thus stranding the Canaanites and facilitating their defeat. Why is there a need for Yahweh to leave Se'ir? Well, in those days, most people believed in "henotheism" (existence of multiple gods, each dominant in his own land). Yahweh was known to be en Edomite god, that is, a god that had power over the southern region only. In attributing Israel's victory to Yahweh, Deborah had to imagine that Yahweh traveled all the way from his home turf in Sinai/Edom to the Jezreel valley in order to help the Israelites. This was a relatively novel concept at the time (the ability of a local deity to help people at a different location) and that's why Deborah had to explain this process in detail.

Wasn't Yahweh already widely worshipped in the North, in Deborah's days?

Not quite! According to our theory, Yahwism originated among the Levites in the south. Gershom the Levite who served in Micah's temple for some time, was later transferred all the way to Dan (in the far north of Israel) and in the process spread the new religion throughout the land. We see that Deborah was a Yahwist but she was, nonetheless, a recent convert to Yahwism and she still thought of Yahweh as a southern god. It took some time for the northerners to adopt Yahweh as their own and perceive him as dwelling in their midst. In fact, the Northerners never quite accomplished this and up to the very end of their kingdom they continued to worship local Canaanite deities such as Ba'al and Astarte (ashtoreth) while at the same time maintaining some fealty to Yahweh as well.

Verse 8. "He chose new gods" is the literal meaning of "yibchar elohim chadashim" but such a statement does not seem to make any sense here and so scholars have come up with various interpretations. My interpretation makes use of the fact that we find "elohim" to sometimes mean a leader elsewhere in the Bible. See Ex 7:1 "See I have appointed you a God over Pharaoh". Deborah is bragging about her accomplishments. She is contrasting the state of political affairs before she same to power and afterwards: When Israel chose new leaders (that is, me, Deborah) then they became ready to wage war upon the gates of their enemy.As you can see from my translation, the following verse actually contains the same theme. "My heart to the commanders of Israel" means "I give my heart and courage to the commanders of Israel". Evidence that this is the meaning of the phrase can be seen from the term "choqeqei leb" mentioned with regard to Reuben (verse 15). This, in my opinion, could have no other meaning than "commanders of heart" (couragous commanders). Accordingly, here too, Deborah is instilling her heart (courage) in the Israelite commanders (from macir, v. 14). Deborah is pointing out the bravery of the figthers, how they had no iron weapons, whereas the Canaanites did, and yet had the courage to resist their oppression with whatever meager weaponry was available to them.

Verse 10. "mechatsetsim" is an obscure word and scholars are struggling to make sense of it. I think it means "archers" (from the root chts) and that this clause is a parallel to the previous one calling on the volunteers to bless Yahweh. Deborah is calling upon the various Israelite classes; those who ride on asses, those who sit on carpets and those who walk on their feet. She is calling on them to "talk about the sound of the archers", which means praise the archers or praise Yahweh for the archers success.

I have some suspicion that the word "qol" may have originally spelled "qal" without a waw which could mean "lightness/agility". Accordingly, Deborah is praising the agility of the archers in pursuing the horseriding Cananites (archers had to be fast runners). Compare this to the "Jonathan Song" in 2Samuel 1. The song talks about the "bow song" or of the necessity to teach Israel how to use the bow and then it mentions how the gazelle of Israel had been slain, (the gazelle being well known for its agility) thus comparing the archer to an agile gazelle. Later in verse 23, the Jonathan poem says openly "they were more agile than eagles" using the Hebrew root "qal" for agility. There is also a possibility that the Hebrew "sichu" (talk) should be "shiru" (sing).

Verse 11. This verse begins at "bein mishabim" (between the water-pumps, outside the village) and returns to the past. While the previous verse talked about blessing Yahweh for the victory, now Deborah is recounting what occurred at the watering pumps outside the Israelite villages where they had assembled for battle. They were talking about the anticipated triumphs of the "villagers" and asking Deborah to sing to them and Barak to lead them in war. It appears that it was an ancient custom to have a female singer entertain warriors preparing for battle with hymns praising the virtues of courage and bravery. Only then did the warriors descend from the village plateau (Mt. Tabor?) to the Canaanite city gates in the valley.

Verse 11, 12, 13 could be rearranged for ease of understanding, as follows:

בין משאבים שם יתנו צדקות יהוה צדקת פרזנו בישראל

עורי עורי דבורה עורי עורי דברי-שיר

קום ברק ושבה שביך בן-אבינעם

אז ירדו לשערים עם-יהוה

אז ירד שריד לאדירים עם יהוה ירד לי בגבורים:

Verse 13. Remnants of the nobles. Apparently, many Israelite nobles have died in past battles or have been subdues and assimilated with the Canaanites. MT has "the people of Yahweh descended for me among the mighty" but "for me" is a bit difficult to understand since they are not doing it for Deborah. Most modern translations agree that it should be "for him" referring to Yahweh.

Verse 14. The MT has "Ephraim has its roots in Amalek". This is almost certainly a currupt text. Not only do we not find Ephraim to have its roots in Amalek but this has no relevance at all to the poem. It seems that Amalek stand for emeq (valley) which word is mentioned again in verse 15. The Hebrew word for "root" is a bit harder to decipher. I believe that it stands for "sarim" (princes) just like the Issachar princes are mentioned in the following verse.

Verse 15. The second Issachar has been amended to Naphtali. This is the PCB (Peake's Bible Commentary) suggestion and I accpet it tentatively. The problem with Issachar is that he is already mentioned as going with Deborah. Indeed, Deborah was from the Issachar tribe and Baraq was from Naphtali and so it seems natural that Naphtali follow on Naptali's heels just as Issachar warriors are following Deborah's leadership.

Verse 16. "among the clans of Reuben there were great searchings of heart" is the NRSV translation. Unfortunately this makes little sense to me. Furthermore, this phrase is mentioned twice and in the first instance it is "choqeqei leb", not "chiqerei leb" and choqeq relates to someone who wields a staff, a militray commander or lawgiver. Indeed, the word "choqeq/mechoqeq" as such is mentioned in both the Blessing of Jacob (...the marshall's staff from between Judah's legs) and the blessing of Moses (there the commander's inheritence is reserved). Accordingly, and in light of our interpretation of the additional occurrence of this root in verse 9, I believe that both phrases shoul read "choqeqei leb" and the meaning is "couragous commanders".

Verse 19. Note how the phrase "on the waters of Megiddo" is a new clause. This is suggested first and foremost by the neat symmetry of Hebrew poetry (the first clause of this verse should be of roughly equal length to the second clause). Secondly, why the expression "over the waters of Megiddo"? It should say simply "the canaanite kings fought alongside Taanach and Megiddo". Thirdly, what is the significance of not taking "betsa'", which means unjustified gain; how and why would unjust gain be expected here? Under our interpretation all this is well understood.

Verse 20. The stars are fighting. This verse seems to say that the stars are fighting against Sisera, not with Sisera, as the Canaanites of the previous verse are doing. However, the question of how the stars contributed to Sisera's defeat beckons. Is it possible that it was thought that the stars produced rain and so the marsh, previously attributed to clouds (verse 4), is now being attributed to the stars? We don't know for sure the meaning of this. As I said, this is an extremely ancient poem and this verse might depend on some ancient belief or common idiom that we have since completely forgotten.

Verse 22. My soul trampled with power. I am convinced that this clause should belong to the following verse. As it stands in most translations the reader is left wondering what its connection with verse 21 is? Its connection with verse 22 is perhaps better understood, thus: after the Qishon riverbed became marshy, the soul of Deborah (representing the sole of Israel as a whole) continued to march on pursuing the Canaanites, thus allowing the Israelites to "catch up" with the speed of the Canaanite horses and then perhaps disable them with arches. It seems that horses and chariots are more severely affected by marshes than foot soldiers. This is also evident in the J "crossing of the red sea" episode (See ex 14:25).

Verse 30. This verse could be divided in two. Note the parallelism between the first caluse and the second. In the first clause, Sisera's mother is imagining how Sisera is appropriating for himself "manly" spoil: one or two girls. In the second clause she is imagining what Sisera will be bringing home for her: one or two dyed and embroidered garments.