But do you know who Jael is? Maybe, if you’ve delved deeply
into your Bible or various women’s Bible studies.
Jael killed Sisera, a general hell-bent on oppressing the
Israelites. Her story can be found in Judges 4-5. While everyone knows the story of David and Goliath, very few know the story of Jael and Sisera, a story with a number of striking similarities. Let's learn about the woman who predated the man.
1.
David and Jael both killed a key enemy leader,
bringing victory to the Israelites. David killed Goliath, a Philistine
emissary. Jael killed Sisera, a Canaanite general.
2.
David and Jael both used their own traditional
tools rather than typical battle weapons. David used the stones and slingshot
that he used as a shepherd. Jael used a tent peg and hammer: as a woman it’s
likely that she would’ve been in charge of setting up the domestic tents and
therefore skilled at driving tent pegs into the ground.
3.
David and Jael were both underdogs. David was so
short and small that Saul’s armor didn’t fit him. Jael was a young wife, not a
strong soldier.
4.
David and Jael were both used by God. David
articulates this clearly by saying that God is on his side and Goliath is
nothing more than an animal. Deborah prophesies that God will use “a woman” to
defeat Sisera. Why a woman? Because Deborah’s general, Barak, was showing
cowardice.
5.
Both David and Jael faced their adversary alone.
David fought Goliath in direct one to one combat. Jael invited Sisera into her tent where they were alone.
6.
Both David and Jael disabled their enemy before
killing him. David knocked Goliath down with a stone and then beheaded him,
while Jael soothed Sisera to sleep and then impaled his head with a tent peg.
7.
Both David and Jael were outside the official
army. David was only present because he was bringing lunch to his brothers.
Jael was in her home and there’s no indication that she was a solider.
8.
Both David and Jael were acknowledged as heroes
for their actions.
Given all the similarities, why is Jael left out of all
children’s Bible story books? Why is Jael never mentioned in Sunday School? How
could I attend church weekly from birth through college and not learn about
Jael until my mid-20’s?
Some would argue that it’s because Jael didn’t “fight fair.” She
lures Sisera to sleep, then murders him. But it’s clear from the song in Judges
5 that Jael’s technique is not shameful. The song recounts Jael’s actions very
clearly as praise.
Thinking further reveals the absurdity of this argument
about fighting “fair.” Sisera was much bigger and stronger than Jael. If she
had openly resisted him, it’s quite likely she would’ve been injured, raped,
and possibly killed. Not only was her act beneficial to Israel, one could easily argue it was an act of self-defense. She chose to resist. Yes, she did it through
deception. She used her wits to even the playing field.
Are we saying that killing an enemy
solider is only OK if you use brute strength rather than trickery? That seems
like a pretty fine hair to split. Either killing the enemy is OK, or it isn’t.
Isn’t it far more likely that we don’t talk about Jael
because she’s a woman? And that we leave out Deborah’s story for the same
reason? Somehow, if we talk about Deborah as a leader, we have to include this
morally messy story of Jael, and that’s a problem. Yet when we talk about King
David, a “man after God’s own heart,” we’re OK with including the objectively
evil story of David’s actions towards Bathsheba and Uriah.
My daughter asks me for Bible stories every day. And I tell
her the story of Jael. I tell her that Jael chose to deceive Sisera because she
knew she couldn’t fight him and win. It’s time we stopped telling only half of
the stories in the Bible. It’s time to start celebrating all Bible heroes,
regardless of gender.
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