Deborah (Judges 4, 5)

by

Charles L. Echols

• LAST REVIEWED: 26 September 2022
• LAST MODIFIED: 26 September 2022
• DOI: 10.1093/obo/9780195393361-0307

Introduction

The Old Testament/Hebrew Bible features two women named Deborah: the handmaid of Rebekah (Gen. 35:8) and the prophetess, wife, and judge (Judges 4, 5). A third, the mother of Tobiel, appears in the Apocrypha (Tobit 1:8). This article is on the second biblical figure. Similarly, while Deborah may be the poet of the so-called Song of Deborah (Judges 5) and features in it, the Song is a discrete subject apart from present focus. Deborah is arguably the most important woman in the Old Testament/Hebrew Bible by virtue of her leadership roles in both spiritual and civil spheres. So influential was she that her story is preserved in juxtaposed accounts in prose and poetry (respectively, Judges 4, 5)—the exodus from Egypt being the only other event so preserved (respectively, Exodus 14, 15). Deborah lived during the period of the judges. Scholars debate over the precise dates of the period, but a span from c. 1250 BCE to 1020 BCE is reasonable. It was Israel’s heroic age, before the monarchy, when male and female roles were less fossilized. The context of the Deborah story was a battle that occurred near the wadi Kishon between the superior Canaanite forces under Sisera and a coalition of Israelite tribes. Deborah summoned Barak to lead the Israelite forces, and she might have helped lead them. While the narrative attributes the unexpected Israelite victory to YHWH and the poem implies the same (respectively, Judg. 4:14; 5:20), both highlight a foreign woman, Jael, with slaying Sisera (respectively, Judg. 4:17–22; 5:24–27). Because Deborah had multiple roles, scholarly attention has pursued an astonishing number of directions as the following areas evince. Studies pertaining to more than one category are listed according to their primary area of importance and cross-referenced in the others. For information on the book of Judges and the nature of ancient Israel’s judgeship, see the separate Oxford Bibliographies article “Book of Judges.”

Dictionaries and Encyclopedias

Although most dictionaries and encyclopedias devote cursory attention to Deborah, they remain a good starting point. Tischler 2002 provides a general overview. Other articles pursue a particular methodology. For example, for the history of reception, see Davis 2013, Gunn 2013, Kadari 2013, Koldau 2013, Mariottini 2013, and Veldman 2013. Frymer-Kensky 2000 is text focused, with intertextual observations. Meyers 2000 looks at possible sociological implications based on one of the meanings of Deborah’s name. For a history of modern research, see Mayfield 2009.

• Davis, Joseph. “Deborah (Judge)—II. Judaism. B. Modern Judaism.” In Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception. Edited by Dale C. Allison Jr., Hans-Josef Klauck, Volker Leppin, et al., 410–411. Berlin: De Gruyter, 2013.

  A brief survey of Jewish interest in Deborah beginning with Aguilar’s 1845 foundational monograph and spanning to modern feminist criticism and popular interest.

• Frymer-Kensky, Tikva. “Deborah 2.” In Women in Scripture: A Dictionary of Named and Unnamed Women in the Hebrew Bible, the Apocryphal/Deuterocanonical Books, and the New Testament. Edited by Carol L. Meyers, 66–67. New York: Houghton Mifflin, 2000.

  Provides an overview of Judges 4, 5, then turns to one of the better discussions of the interpretive possibilities of Deborah’s title, “Mother in Israel,” as well as outlines connections between Deborah and Miriam, Huldah, and Noadiah.

• Gunn, David M. “Deborah (Judge)—III. Literature.” In Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception. Edited by Dale C. Allison Jr., Hans-Josef Klauck, Volker Leppin, et al., 411–414. Berlin: De Gruyter, 2013.

  A short survey of Deborah’s reception in general literature from Spenser (1590) and Shakespeare (1591) to the romance novel of Etzioni-Halevy (2008).

• Kadari, Tamar. “Deborah (Judge)—II. Judaism. A. Second Temple and Hellenistic through Medieval Judaism.” In Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception. Edited by Dale C. Allison Jr., Hans-Josef Klauck, Volker Leppin, et al., 407–410. Berlin: De Gruyter, 2013.

  A concise treatment of Jewish literature from the Second Temple to the medieval periods on Deborah’s roles as wife, judge, and prophetess as well as the etymology of her name and her collaboration with Barak.

• Koldau, Linda Maria. “Deborah (Judge)—V. Music.” In Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception. Edited by Dale C. Allison Jr., Hans-Josef Klauck, Volker Leppin, et al., 415–418. Berlin: De Gruyter, 2013.

  Reviews how Deborah features in musical works from 1656 librettos and oratorios to contemporary music.

• Mariottini, Claude. “Deborah (Judge)—V. Film.” In Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception. Edited by Dale C. Allison Jr., Hans-Josef Klauck, Volker Leppin, et al., 415–418. Berlin: De Gruyter, 2013.

  The only representation of Deborah in film to date is a children’s production, “People of Faith,” produced by Franciscan Communications.

• Mayfield. “The Accounts of Deborah (Judges 4–5) in Recent Research.” Currents in Biblical Research 7 (2009): 306–335.

  DOI: 10.1177/1476993X09104456

  Although not a reference work per se, the article surveys research from the 1960s to 2008.

• Meyers, Carol L. “Deborah.” In Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible. Edited by David Noel Freedman, 331–332. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans, 2000.

  Discusses Deborah as a woman in her culture, for example, how an alternative Hebrew meaning of Deborah’s name, “fiery woman,” implies her independence from men.

• Tischler, Nancy M. Men and Women of the Bible: A Reader’s Guide. Westport, CT: Greenwood, 2002.

  A succinct treatment of the story of Deborah, the sociohistorical context, archaeology, and history of reception as well as a brief bibliography from 1969–2000.

• Veldman, Ilja M. “Deborah (Judge)—IV. Visual Arts.” In Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception. Edited by Dale C. Allison Jr., Hans-Josef Klauck, Volker Leppin, et al., 414–416. Berlin: De Gruyter, 2013.

  After a précis of the plot of Judges 4, 5, summarizes the representation of Deborah from medieval Bibles to modern portrayals in paintings and even playing cards.