Jael, the hospitable warrior – Part 2

Sisera had abandoned his men, fleeing on foot and making his way through the desert towards Kedesh, located in the Upper Galilee region near the current Israeli Lebanese border. Pulling back the flaps of the tent, a woman sees off in the distance the defeated Canaanite general approaching – this woman is Jael. Unexpectedly, she leaves the confines of her tent and goes out to meet the battered Canaanite general. Jael approaches Sisera and invites him into her tent. Once in the tent, Sisera asks Jael for water, but instead of giving him the water he requested, she gives him milk and covers his battle worn body with a blanket. The worn out Sisera soon falls asleep. As he lay in her tent asleep, Jael quietly approaches the Canaanite general with a mallet and tent peg in her hands. The Israelites oppressive enemy is right at her feet, she kneels, hovering over Sisera, then without any recorded hesitation, hammers the tent peg through the sleeping general’s skull with so much force the tent peg is secured to the ground. The Canaanite general is instantly killed while he slept at Jael’s feet. And just as Deborah had prophesied to Barak, Sisera died at the hands of a woman.

While the Bible narrative does not provide an exhaustive account of the events of Sisera’s death at hands of Jael or even intricate details into her life, I would like to share a couple of my observations and theories about this woman, her character, possible motives to her actions and some personal conclusions about this woman who has made an impact on my life. Please let me be clear, there is historical evidence and facts for what I am about to propose related to Kenite history, as well as the social life of women in this specific time and geographical region, but my assumptions and theories of Jael are not found in the Biblical account found in Judges. However, if we explore this story with an understanding of verified historical evidence and facts, together with some liberty, some critical thinking and understanding of a Proverbs 31 woman, we may be able to understand more clearly why Jael acted in the manner which we see written and possibly even why her story is recorded at all in the pages of Scripture.

From the Bible we are told Jael was married and are given her husband’s name and identity. Jael was married a man name Heber, who was a Kenite. Who were the Kenites and why is Heber’s nationality important? Please, allow me to provide some historical background on who the Kenites were. The Kenites are first mentioned in Genesis 15.19 and were most likely the distant descendants of Adam’s son, Cain and would have originally lived in the land of Canaan. While on the run for his life, Exodus 2.21 records that Moses married one of the daughters of a Kenite man by the name of Jethro. This marriage would not only bring together Moses and his wife but would also unite together the Israelite nation and Kenites in relations that would span years. The Kenites traveled together with the Israelites during their exodus from Egyptian slavery throughout their wilderness wanderings. Through their years of traveling, worshipping and intermarrying, the Kenites and the Israelites forged a close bond, and it wouldn’t be farfetched to assume that a level of trust grew between these two peoples. While the Israelite people desired to set up permanent residence in the Promise Land, the Kenite people preferred to maintain a nomadic lifestyle, traveling from place to place, pitching their tents when they reached their destination. There is further historical evidence which shows that the Kenites’ were known to work in the copper and metalworking trade as their primary means of providing a living for themselves.

So, now that we have a historical foundation of who the Kenites were, which was who Jael’s husband, Heber, was descended from, their way of life and their means of providing a living for themselves, allow me to share a couple of my theories about what might have led up to Jael responding in the way we see in the Biblical account. If we read in verse 11 of Judges 4, Scripture states that Heber separated himself from the rest of the Kenites, and from the rest of the Israelites and set up his tents in Kedesh. What could have made Heber want to leave the rest of his people and set his tent in Kedesh? Could there have been something in Kedesh that lured him away? What could have been so enticing in Kedesh, what’s so special there? Well, Kedesh was located near the city of Hazor and was where Jabin, the Canaanite king, reigned and his military leader, Sisera, held camp. In Judges 4, we are told that Sisera was known for his iron chariots. And if you’ll remember what the Kenites did as a primary means of employment for themselves. I’d like to propose that Jael’s husband, Heber, more likely than not worked with some form of metal or copper. So, knowing the location of Heber’s home and the historical fact about the Kenites, I wonder if Heber was contracted or hired by Sisera to maintain his collection of 900 chariots during his 20-year campaign against the Israelites. Could Heber and Sisera’s working relationship be what connected Jael and Sisera? Did Jael know who Sisera was from his possible dealings with her husband? Maybe the two had met before when Sisera had come to meet with Heber. As I’ve said before, this my theory, but I think it’s likely this could have possibly happened. It might explain why Jael would even leave the confines of her tent and approach Sisera in the first place.

Having just fought in battle and running for his life, Sisera’s appearance would probably have been shocking, his body and face bloody, bruised, worn down and haggard, not only from whatever fighting he participated in, but also the journey from the Valley of Jezreel to Kedesh. From what we read in Judges 4, Jael does not seem phased by Sisera’s physical appearance, her disposition and spirit throughout the Biblical account is not of a woman who is afraid. What thoughts must have been going through Jael’s head, she might have been scared out of her mind, but whatever Jael was feeling internally, externally she appeared calm and held it together. Her demeanor reassured the tired Sisera to trust her, to not fear her, and to come into her tent. What caused Jael to leave her tent to meet Sisera in the first place? Did she want to provide aid to this possibly wounded man? Why did she then invite him into her tent instead of calling for help?

These questions may sound odd, I know the idea of Jael approaching a man may not sound shocking to us today and the thought of not helping an injured individual may be foreign, but remember this woman lived in a very different time and culture than us. For a woman in ancient times and the background from which Jael came from, women were especially known for their hospitality, but they were also very modest and approaching a man, unchaperoned, was unheard of. While Jael’s approaching Sisera was uncommon for a woman, her invitation to enter her tent would have been even more scandalous for two reasons. Firstly, women and men in that time and culture had their own tent and there was a separate tent where women and men would comingle and where entertaining would take place. Women in ancient times did not cohabitate in the same tent as their husbands or male relatives like we do today. Secondly, Jael inviting a man, who was not her husband or relative, into her tent is probably the most scandalous and dangerous of the two reasons, as her, her husband, and her family’s reputation could be marred at the accusations which could arise at such an event. Nevertheless, this woman for whatever reason set aside cultural precedence and Sisera entered her tent.

Once Sisera was in her tent, we see Jael going above and beyond his requests. He asked her for water and instead she gave him milk. Is she being hospitable or are Jael’s actions a strategic move? She seems to be going above and beyond, could she have an alternative motive? Her actions may seem as nothing calculated: handing out milk verses water is something so nonthreatening, but in contrast to water, milk, especially warm milk which would have been the case due to lack of modern refrigeration, would have been more satisfying to Sisera. And due to tryptophan, a natural property found in warm milk, which produces a sleep-inducing chemical reaction, Sisera would have become sleepy. Was she a mother who had knowledge of this facts as she would have seen the benefits of warm milk on a tired child and hoped it would have the same effect on this evil man? Jael must have known the cruelty that this man was capable of, she does not appear to be the type of women who was blind to the events going on around her.

Sisera was not a nice man, he was not a gentleman, he was a man of war. You’ll notice that in Judges 4.18-19, twice the Bible mentions the need for Jael to cover Sisera. What were Sisera’s intentions toward Jael, is it possible that he had previously, was attempting to or, would have eventually forced himself on her and raped Jael? Another proposition that I’d like to throw out for consideration is, is it possible that Jael may have found herself in a position where she needed to protect herself and quite possibly even the other female family members in her tent. Whatever Jael’s reasons or motives for acting in the way we see in Scripture, God brought the Israelite enemy to her tent, and she had an opportunity of a lifetime to do something that would be impactful not only on her life, but on the lives of others – the lives of the Israelites, and Jael did not let a providential moment go to waste. 

So why does this obscure Old Testament women have such a hold on me? Several years ago, I was first introduced to this woman, Jael, at a retreat which was sponsored by my church. I loved hearing this woman’s story of heroism and hadn’t really heard of her before then and didn’t really think much of her in the years since. Recently I was struggling, prompted by events going on in my life, and I was at a place where I was searching and needing to figure out the type of woman God wanted me to be and become. I spent a lot of time questioning who I was and what my purpose would be as a Christian woman. As I spent more time praying and reading, trying to find to find my purpose in Scripture, I landed on the book of Judges, I found myself becoming reacquainted with Jael and grew an extreme admiration for this woman like I had never had before. Christian women do not have to be what society or what some churches want them to be, but rather be the woman that God wants them to be. Jael was just a normal woman, she is a housewife, she’s going about her day at home minding her business, her story is not pretty, it’s not the typical fairy tale type, it’s not the story that you dream up and she’s not the princess we want to be when we’re young girls. But Jael is who God wants her to be, a fearless, courageous, strong woman who walks by faith and when she faced with a challenge and a God given opportunity to make a difference in her life and the lives of others, instead of cowering and withdrawing from the fight at her door – she steps in to action. We may not encounter a Canaanite general at our door, but are we not we faced with unexpected, shocking, unnerving, scary and ­­­­­­­uncomfortable challenges on regular basis. We do not know what challenges we will face as we live our lives, but we do know that they will come, and we can either run from them or run to them and face them head on. That is the spirit of Jael and countless other woman who can be found in the pages of Scripture. Women who were just average woman, who may have grown up in a Godly environment or they may have had baggage and were far from perfect; they have been accepted or shunned; they were married, widowed, single, mothers or childless. There is women all though the Bible with stories and lives that vary just like we do, but they are there to be examples for us.  Jael, is like so many other strong and courageous women in the Bible who I aspire to be like, to know more of and who I will write about – I think we can and need to be like Jael and these other women in Bible.

I’ve seen a phrase used within the Christian community which basically summed up says that you cannot be a Proverbs 31 women without being a Judges 4-5 woman and I agree, and I want to be both one day. To me, Jael embodies, Proverbs 31.25 – “Strength and honor are her clothing; and she shall rejoice in time to come.” I love Jael’s attitude, especially her approach for handling a situation she was faced with. She was in a difficult situation, and as far as we can tell, she was calm and calculated, she was not hysterical or paralyzed with fear of the situation she found herself providentially in and ultimately, she was used greatly in fulfilling God’s plan and her story recorded for generations to know of in the years that came after her. Each of us women can be Jaels, and my hope is that this space will serve as a place for me to write and share things that I come across in God’s Word though my personal studies. I pray that something I write in this journal will be a blessing and encouragement to you too as we all face our own battles. I believe that God does not want the role of a Christian woman in this world to be passive. Jael is one of many examples in the Bible of God using an unexpected heroine to fulfill His story. The enemy, Satan, is at our doorstep, he’s in our homes and infiltrating our lives on a daily basis, he’s in this world and we need to take action against him as best as we can, using the lessons and tools, maybe not in the form of tent stake and hammer, but rather from those in the Bible, from these woman who have fought similar battles that we find ourselves in today we can prevail.

The Biblical account of Jael’s story can be found in Judges 4-5.

Up Next: Deborah, the Judge and Prophet