Judges 5:24-27 meaning

After a downhearted description of those who failed to aid Israel in the defining battle against Sisera (Judges 5:23), Jael joins the narrative to bring hope:

“Most blessed of women is Jael,
The wife of Heber the Kenite;
Most blessed is she of women in the tent” (v 24).

In this triumphant song, Jael is pronounced most blessed of women, denoting a place of high honor. Jael was the wife of Heber the Kenite, a clan related to the Midianites and the descendants of Moses’s father-in-law, Jethro (Exodus 3:1). The Kenites lived as nomads in the land of Canaan, likely near the region controlled by King Jabin of Hazor, the oppressive enemy of Israel. Judges 4:17 describes a “peace between Jabin the king of Hazor and the house of Heber the Kenite.”

Describing Jael in relation to her husband emphasizes how she was presumed to be a part of this peace between Jabin, his general Sisera, and Heber. She was the wife of Heber the Kenite, therefore Sisera believed her to be a friend, not a foe, since there was peace between Sisera and her husband Heber. But Jael’s sympathies clearly lay with Israel, not Sisera of Hazor. She did not care to share in the peace between her husband and the king of Hazor or his general. Jael acted shrewdly and bravely to secure a decisive victory for the Israelites.

Furthermore, her inclusion among the most blessed of women in the tent (v 24) underscores how she was not connected to the military efforts of Israel, but was a normal, domestic woman who managed her family’s tent. She was an ordinary woman in an unusual circumstance from which God’s extraordinary deliverance emerges.

The song then enters quickly into Sisera’s encounter with Jael after he fled from the battle (Judges 4:17).

“He asked for water and she gave him milk;
In a magnificent bowl she brought him curds” (v 25) .

The he in this passage refers to Sisera, the commander of King Jabin’s army. Sisera had long oppressed the Israelites with superior chariots of iron, terrorizing them until the Lord raised up Deborah and Barak to fight (Judges 4:7).

After being defeated by Israel’s army, Sisera fled on foot and sought refuge in Jael’s tent. Instead of providing just water, Jael offered milk and curds in a magnificent bowl, an act of hospitality that lulled Sisera into a false sense of security. This simple gesture reveals a strategic kindness, making Sisera feel at ease before his downfall. He had nothing to worry about, from his perspective, in the tent of Heber, with whom his king was at peace, And with Heber’s wife offering him rich food in her lavish serving bowl, Sisera felt safe hiding from his enemies in such seemingly hospitable surroundings.

The song continues to vividly recount Jael’s killing of Sisera: 

“She reached out her hand for the tent peg,
And her right hand for the workmen’s hammer.
Then she struck Sisera, she smashed his head;
And she shattered and pierced his temple” (v 26).

Jael, accustomed to setting up tents in her nomadic life, deftly wields a tent peg and workmen’s hammer. She uses ordinary tools of daily life to accomplish God’s purpose. By striking Sisera, she ends his life and liberates Israel from a cruel tyrant, demonstrating how God can deliver His people through unexpected people.

Women such as Rahab can be easily paralleled to Jael. Both betrayed their own people or their allies to execute God’s will in delivering Israel, His people. Both stories show God using women of courage from outside of Israel. Rahab, in particular, was even described as a prostitute. The Lord consistently declares that it is the humble who will be raised up. One of the greatest examples of this is the virgin Mary, who sings of how God brings down the proud and cares for the lowly:

“He has done mighty deeds with His arm;
He has scattered those who were proud in the thoughts of their heart.
He has brought down rulers from their thrones,
And has exalted those who were humble.”
(Luke 1:51-52)

To contrast the humble and the proud is a consistent theme throughout Scripture, culminating in the state of Christ as He came down to earth as a man and unjustly suffered for His people (Philippians 2:5-8).

The song continues to recount Jael’s tale of humble strength and Sisera’s fall from pride. The passage’s poetic nature particularly stands out in verse 27: “

Between her feet he bowed, he fell, he lay;
Between her feet he bowed, he fell;
Where he bowed, there he fell dead” (v 27).

The repetition in these lines emphasizes Sisera’s utter defeat. He bowed, he fell, he lay—each phrase marking a step in his final downfall. The image of Sisera falling between her feet reinforces Jael’s victory over the one who had terrorized God’s people. The language in verse 27 also highlights the lowly death of the great general. Instead of dying gloriously on the battlefield, he is killed by a woman in his sleep after fleeing from the fight. The nature of his downfall is reminiscent of the biblical principle seen in the book of James:

“For judgment will be merciless to one who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment.”
(James 2:13)