The Israelites were in trouble once again.  Once again they had drifted from God; once again God allowed a foreign power to oppress them; and once again they had cried out to the Lord for help.

“So the LORD sold them into the hands of Jabin, a king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor.  The commander of his army was Sisera, who…had cruelly oppressed the Israelites for twenty years, they cried to the LORD for help” (Judges 4:2-3).

God heard Israel’s prayer and raised up two strong, spiritual women who acted wisely and courageously to lead the nation to victory and freedom.

The first was Deborah, who, “…held court under the Palm of Deborah…and the Israelites came to her to have their disputes settled” (verse 5).

If you think Judge Judy is a strong, decisive presence in the courtroom of American television, Judge Deborah was an even stronger presence in the courtrooms of Israel.  She was a prophetess of God who “was leading Israel at that time” (verse 4).  She was the most dynamic person in the land and people looked to her for direction and guidance.

Deborah ordered Barak, Israel’s military leader, to take ten thousand men and fight against Sisera, the commander of the enemy army.  She assured him that God would grant him victory.  But Barak was apprehensive.  He said to Deborah, “If you go with me, I will go, but if you don’t go with me, I won’t go” (verse 8).

Somewhat exasperated with her general’s cowardice, Deborah agreed to accompany Barak into battle, but chastised him for being hesitant and warned him in advance that because of his tentativeness a woman would receive more honor from the battle than he.

That brings us to Jael, another woman whom God used in that era.

When Barak’s army fought, the enemy suffered such a resounding defeat that Sisera ran for his life.  He “fled on foot to the tent of Jael, the wife of Heber” (verse 17).

Jael was a wise and perceptive woman.  She sized up the situation quickly and lured the fleeing general into her tent.  “Jael went out to meet Sisera and said to him, ‘Come, my lord, come right in.  Don’t be afraid.’  So he entered her tent, and she put a covering over him” (verse18).

Jael gave Sisera some milk to drink and urged him to rest.  But when he went to sleep, “Jael…picked up a tent peg and a hammer and went quietly to him while he lay fast asleep, exhausted.  She drove the peg through his temple into the ground, and he died” (verse 21).

Wow!  Talk about a strong, uncompromising woman!  I doubt Heber, her husband, ever crossed or cheated on Jael!   She was tough!

God used Deborah and Jael, two Godly women with impressive leadership gifts and courageous convictions, to defeat Israel’s enemies and restore righteousness to the land.

“On that day God subdued Jabin, the Canaanite king, before the Israelites.  And the hand of the Israelites grew stronger and stronger against Jabin, the Canaanite king, until they destroyed him (verses 23-24).  “Then the land had peace for thirty years”  (Judges 5:31).

Here are three basic lessons to learn from this account:

When the righteous thrive, the people rejoice; when the wicked rule, the people groan. (Proverbs 29:2).

Lesson # 1: God can use strong women to lead a nation into His will.  Golda Maier and Margaret Thatcher are two examples from the past century that come to mind.

Lesson # 2: Satan can use ungodly women leaders to lure His people deeper into evil.  For every Deborah there is a Jezebel, for every Jael there is a Potiphar’s wife, for every Margaret Thatcher there is a Cleopatra.

Lesson # 3: The key to choosing effective leaders is not gender but character.

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Bob Russell retired from his position as the senior minister of Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, Kentucky where he served for 40 years. During his tenure, Southeast grew to become one of the ten largest churches in America. Russell is nationally known and respected for his clear, biblical preaching. He is the author of more than a dozen books, including When God Builds a Church and When God Answers Prayer.

Sermons from Bob Russell’s preaching archives are broadcast every week on the SermonCast Channel.