Barak
“Lightning; thunderbolt”
Summary
An Israelite military leader from Kedesh-naphtali who, summoned by the prophetess Deborah, led Israel to victory over the Canaanite army of Sisera.
☩The Call to Battle
Barak was the son of Abinoam, from Kedesh, a city of refuge in the hill country of Naphtali. The prophetess Deborah, who judged Israel at that time, summoned him to gather 10,000 men from Naphtali and Zebulun and engage the Canaanite forces. Israel had suffered grievously under Sisera's oppression—the roads were unsafe, villages abandoned, and the people were virtually disarmed.
☩Conditional Obedience
Barak agreed to go but only if Deborah would accompany him, revealing both faith and its limitation. Deborah consented but announced that the honor of victory would therefore go to a woman rather than to him. His faith was genuine—he faced 900 iron chariots with rudely armed infantry—but it required another's presence to sustain it. Many believers can follow when another leads, though unable to stand alone.
☩The Battle at Kishon
Barak assembled his forces on Mount Tabor, terrain unsuitable for Sisera's chariot warfare. When Deborah gave the signal to attack, the Israelites rushed down the slopes. A providential storm broke, the river Kishon flooded, and the Canaanite chariots became mired in the muddy plain. The victory was complete—Sisera's entire army was destroyed, and the general himself fled on foot.
☩Aftermath and Legacy
Barak pursued the fleeing Sisera to the tent of Jael, wife of Heber the Kenite, only to find that she had already killed the enemy commander with a tent peg. The victory was celebrated in the magnificent Song of Deborah and Barak, one of the oldest poems in Scripture. Israel enjoyed peace for forty years afterward. The faith of Barak, though imperfect, is commended in Hebrews among those who 'through faith conquered kingdoms.'
References
- 1.John McClintock and James Strong, "Barak," in Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, vol. I (Harper & Brothers, 1867–1887).
- 2.James Orr (ed.), "Barak," in International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, vol. I (Howard-Severance Company, 1915).
- 3.George Morrish, "Barak," in Morrish's Concise Bible Dictionary (George Morrish, 1898).