Are you aware that two famous songs in the bible seem to be reversed?
The Song of Deborah is one of the oldest Hebrew manuscripts in existence. It is known as one of the greatest works of historical literature.
This famous poem is useful in our knowledge of the early history of civilizations.
But, it is more than both of those things.
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PROPHETIC MEANING
The most outstanding fact of this ancient poem is its ability to proclaim a prophecy for God’s people while giving glory, honor and praise for the work of God among His people.
Most people would make comparisons of The Song of Deborah to The Song of The Sea, The Song of Miriam and The Song of Moses; because all of these ancient poems are great victory songs. They all explain how God delivered His people from impossible situations with great victories. This is a fact from the Song of Deborah also.
So why on earth would I even begin to compare this song with The Song of Solomon? Could that possibly make any sense at all?
It is in the use of the prophetic symbolism which is telling the ongoing story of God and His people where I see the beauty in each beautiful piece of both of these ancient poems.
TWO GREAT SONGS
The Song of Songs/Solomon speaks of God’s love, the love between Messiah and The Church, The Bride and The Groom. We have written of this beautiful Song in our Elul Meditations articles. If you wish to review some of those thoughts click here: https://theinseasonlifestyle.com/i-am-my-beloved-and-my-beloved-is-mine-meditations-of-elul-meditation-4/.
We have often observed that The Song of Songs is the symbolic beginning of the story of mankind and God. Have you read it yet? https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Song%20of%20Songs%201&version=NIV. Compare what you read here with The Song of Deborah https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Judges%205&version=NIV and tell me what comes to mind as you read the two songs together.
It is as if The Song of Deborah is reversed in the order of time as it speaks symbolically of how this story of the bride and groom (the two lovers in The Song of Songs) plays out further.
The great battle plan given to a woman by God is put into practice to defend the people who are loyal to God’s causes. Was Eve not told that a special son would be born, right from the very beginning of time? Now God reveals another plan to Deborah. Both plans bring victory and salvation to God’s people.
A TIME OF JUDGMENT
There are those tribes of Israel who chose not to participate in the battle. Some chose only to give words to the story, but not to actually go out and fight for the cause.
In this Song of Deborah we see a continuation of the rest of the love story between God and mankind. It started symbolically in The Song of Songs/Solomon and it continues in The Song of Deborah. The order is reversed.
AN ON-GOING NEVER-ENDING STORY
As The Song of Deborah continues, those who are loyal to The Kingdom of God join in together and fight with God to overcome His enemies in the land.
Here the work of the woman in the story (symbolic of the Bride of Christ) will be very significant and matter very much. Her loyalty, her obedience, and her ability to come alongside the Groom and fight for the Kingdom will make all the difference in the outcome of the story.
The woman in The Song of Deborah never takes one ounce of credit for the victory. All glory is given to God. Yet; without the woman’s participation the story would not go on.
The story of God and mankind must go on!
THE PART IN THE MIDDLE
This prophetic poem is so significant in understanding the future of the Church that reaches beyond the days of Deborah and Israel’s first baby-steps as a holy nation.
Like the center of an Oreo cookie, The Song of Deborah tells of the middle section of the greatest story ever told – that of the unfolding plan of The Kingdom of God and mankind.
The Song of Deborah continues the prophesy of God’s Church. It speaks in symbolic language of the coming battle of Armageddon and how God will lead His Bride, The Church to outwit Satan in one last and final victory.
WHEN AND HOW PEACE WILL COME
There are secrets to this great battle hiding inside the poem. After God is given all of the glory for the victory of this final future battle; The Kingdom of God will come to earth and there will be one thousand years of peace.
After Deborah and Barak fought for Israel; peace prevailed for a long time into the future.
A PROPHETIC REVERSAL
The Song of Songs/Solomon begins the story; and The Song of Deborah picks up after and a little past the middle of the story of the plight of mankind and God. You have to reverse the poems to see the story properly.
In the story’s beginning, the two young lovers (Messiah and His Church) are awakening to each other. This is how they are presented in Song of Songs.
DARK BUT LOVELY
The young maiden represented in The Song of Songs says “I am dark but lovely.” Isn’t this mankind compared to God?
We are dark in so many ways, but when we come into His presence, we become lovely.
Our darkness is removed and our true loveliness is revealed beneath it.
Messiah, represented by the young man in The Song of Songs, took away our sins and made us whole, totally lovely and acceptable before God. He is the light of the world that dispels all darkness.
DEBORAH CONTINUES THE STORY
In the continuing story of this maiden, The Beloved from The Song of Songs; the Bride, is represented by Deborah. She needed to meet up with someone (Messiah) in order to find her loveliness.
She was strong, but not capable of pulling off a victory on her own. The Beloved realizes the need for her partner, as Deborah realized the need for Barak in this Song of Deborah.
It is the perfect partnership of the two (first formed in The Song of Songs) which brings together the plan for the victory (presented in The Song of Deborah.) This is a reversed story, as so often happens when God brings a victory.
The first is the last and the last is the first.
A RIDDLE ANSWERED
The story, the riddle of the fate of mankind and God, is played out in this pattern in these prophetic songs/poems.
It is obvious that the original writers were totally unaware of their prophetic significance. How could they have known with this story being told by both poems so far apart in time and backwards in order? The reversal of the stories was for a future generation’s notice.
That is just more proof of their prophetic significance. It deepens their importance in the eyes of those who are watchmen on the wall, those of the faith who are constantly watching the story of God and mankind unfold through history.
TRUTH AND HOPE
Both Songs strung together in this reversed order offer so much truth and hope to God’s people.
When the man and the woman, coming from separate places of the battlefield, draw and lead away the enemy, the victory is assured. Yet; it isn’t by their heroic efforts, but by God controlling nature in a way that defeats their foes.
ARMAGEDDON AND JUDGMENT DAY
Can you see that this battle scene is the battle of Armageddon in symbolic story form?
It also represents the symbolic representation of a day of judgment for the enemies of God.
Those who chose not to participate are part of that enemy’s group of soldiers. Though they appear to be from the nation of Israel, they are tyrants and traitors.
These uncaring tribes choose not to go with Deborah and Barak into battle. This action by them was the same as actually joining in with the enemy. “Those who are not for me are against me.”
The unresponsive tribes represent the people who are judged on Judgment Day for being “lukewarm” at the time of the apocalypse and/or the return of Christ. They are all too busy caring for themselves and their own selfish needs. There is no consideration for the causes of God from them.
SYMBOLISM OF BARAK
The actions of Barak in The Song of Deborah are symbolic of the actions of Christ. He lets the woman (symbolic of the Church) prepare and draw forth his army.
Deborah is inspirational to all of the warriors she draws into the army that go out to fight with Barak. She tells Barak that his victory will not be recognized as that of a man. In the end this turns out to be prophetic. It is true, the church is shown in symbolism always as a woman, and it is the woman who gets the victory at the end of this story.
HOW THE CHURCH PREVAILS
Though Messiah literally saves the souls of all of mankind who are drawn into God’s great battle for peace, He is very humble and He takes no credit for the battle. He allows the woman, the Church to lead and it is the Church seeking God’s will and God’s will alone who prevails.
Deborah never gave honor and glory to her own actions. She only had praise for the power and glory of God. This becomes very obvious all the way through the part of the story that she is proclaiming in her song.
A GENTILE WHO IS A SERVANT OF GOD
Jael was a Kenite, not a native of Israel. Jael represents the part of the Bride of Christ who comes to the cause as an adopted child. This woman joined forces with Israel because of the desires of her heart, not the blood in her veins. She is not a Jew, but a Gentile who has a heart that has decided to be true to the work of God’s Hebraically-formed nation.
Jael is proof positive of how Christians will play into the final battle at Armageddon. We will crush the enemies head as we work with the nation of Israel for the victory of the Kingdom of God. Messiah will lead us.
In the end of the battle, Deborah, though Jewish, sees that Jael is a part of the plan. She praises her loyalty to Israel.
WHEN ISRAEL OPENS HER EYES
The two women are working together, though separate. In the end of the battle, the bravery and courage of Jael are noted and praised.
One day Israel will wake up to the truth of Messiah and join in with God’s Church. The two will work together as One for God’s Kingdom.
This all ties into the prophetic meaning of the Song of Deborah as a continuation of the Song of Songs, and it is all well worth considering as we think of the future.
A CALL TO RESPONSIBLE LEADERSHIP
In the meantime, we can also consider what The Song of Deborah has to teach us in the present day.
The Song of Deborah is a call to responsible leadership among all nations.
Deep within the root of the problem that led to this battle in the first place were the sins of Israel. A whole generation had grown up in the land who refused to honor God. They betrayed their own people and their own culture. Instead they went after Canaan’s false idols.
This next generation chose their own imagination’s man-made gods. They left the true God who should have been their nation’s moral center. It made the nation weak and vulnerable to their enemies.
This was the political anarchy of Israel. Political anarchy always results in spiritual weakness.
WHEN POLITICAL ANARCHY RULES
This new generation was in total disorder. Civilization had become so bad in some parts of Israel that cities and villages ceased to operate and chaos prevailed.
Does any of this sound like a generation of today?
SECURITY AND JUSTICE FOR THE COMMON PEOPLE
The land of promise which God had claimed belonged to Israel now had compromised borders.
Until the people of Israel brought forth a defense and stopped the invasions, there would always be terror in the streets.
Trade would suffer and there would be no peace in the land.
It was critical that the leaders of the land step up and take the lead in preventing these circumstances. Someone had to step up and stand up to the current political order.
A new leader needed to bring a new order which would provide security and justice for the common people. Deborah was the person that God chose to use in that day. Her actions would save the nation and bring a temporary peace to the land.
WHO WILL STEP UP TODAY?
Where are the Deborah’s of America and other nations today?
Who will inspire the current generations to see truth and justice as it truly is?
Where is the person that will take a stand against the politicians and truly work for the good of the common people in the land?
Is there anyone left who cannot be bought with money?
THE FUTURE BATTLE LOOMS
Another great battle is coming.
We all must be prepared for that day.
Who will God use to rally His people again? Pray that they come forth and begin to lead soon.
Is there a poem or a song lurking deep within the heart of our nation’s next leaders that has not yet been told or sung?
Where is the Song of America?
HOPE REIGNS ETERNAL
As long as the sun rises in the morning and the moon wanes at nighttime; there is still hope.
For as often as we see the seasons of springtime and summer and winter and fall; we know that God is still at work on this earth among His people.
Also; as always, we know that God always keeps His promises.
There is yet another victory coming. Pray that the casualties of this war are not great and that victory will be swift and lasting.
Oh Church arise!
Come forth and sing the new song!