Judges 5:21-31

Judges 5:21-31 The Passion Translation (TPT)

The flooding Kishon swept them away— the ancient Kishon River contended with them. I shall march and keep marching on. So be strong, O my soul! Then thundered the horses’ hooves, pulling the chariots of the kings of Canaan. Here they come galloping on, steeds and stallions stampeding on, but they all got stuck in the mud! “Speak a curse over Meroz,” says the angel of YAHWEH, “and speak a double curse over those who live there. For they did not come to help YAHWEH’s cause nor rally to YAHWEH’s side to fight the mighty.” The most blessed of all women is Jael, wife of Heber the Kenite— the most fortunate of Bedouin women. Sisera came to Jael’s tent and asked for water, but she gave him milk; she brought him buttermilk in a beautiful bowl. With a tent peg in one hand and a workman’s hammer in the other, she struck Sisera and pierced his skull; she drove the peg through his temple. She shattered his skull, and he lay still before Jael. Sprawled on the tent floor, he bit the dust at her feet— deader than a doornail! Sisera’s mother waited for him at her window; she gazed from behind the lattice and lamented: “Why is the clatter of his chariot so late in coming? Why are his horses so slow to return?” The wisest of her princesses replied; indeed, she even thought to herself: “They must be gathering and dividing the spoils: a slave-girl or two for each man, colorful cloth and garments as plunder for Sisera, two colorful garments, embroidered, and richly embroidered garments for my neck.” YAHWEH, may all who hate you perish in the same way! But may those who love you shine like the sun, bright in its strength as it crosses the sky!

Judges 5:19-31 The Message (MSG)

The kings came, they fought, the kings of Canaan fought. At Taanach they fought, at Megiddo’s brook, but they took no silver, no plunder. The stars in the sky joined the fight, from their courses they fought against Sisera. The torrent Kishon swept them away, the torrent attacked them, the torrent Kishon. Oh, you’ll stomp on the necks of the strong! Then the hoofs of the horses pounded, charging, stampeding stallions. “Curse Meroz,” says GOD’s angel. “Curse, double curse, its people, Because they didn’t come when GOD needed them, didn’t rally to GOD’s side with valiant fighters.” * * * Most blessed of all women is Jael, wife of Heber the Kenite, most blessed of homemaking women. He asked for water, she brought milk; In a handsome bowl, she offered cream. She grabbed a tent peg in her left hand, with her right hand she seized a hammer. She hammered Sisera, she smashed his head, she drove a hole through his temple. He slumped at her feet. He fell. He sprawled. He slumped at her feet. He fell. Slumped. Fallen. Dead. * * * Sisera’s mother waited at the window, a weary, anxious watch. “What’s keeping his chariot? What delays his chariot’s rumble?” The wisest of her ladies-in-waiting answers with calm, reassuring words, “Don’t you think they’re busy at plunder, dividing up the loot? A girl, maybe two girls, for each man, And for Sisera a bright silk shirt, a prize, fancy silk shirt! And a colorful scarf—make it two scarves— to grace the neck of the plunderer.” * * * Thus may all GOD’s enemies perish, while his lovers be like the unclouded sun.

Judges 5:21-31 King James Version (KJV)

The river of Kishon swept them away, That ancient river, the river Kishon. O my soul, thou hast trodden down strength. Then were the horsehoofs broken By the means of the pransings, the pransings of their mighty ones. Curse ye Meroz, said the angel of the LORD, Curse ye bitterly the inhabitants thereof; Because they came not to the help of the LORD, To the help of the LORD against the mighty. Blessed above women shall Jael The wife of Heber the Kenite be, Blessed shall she be above women in the tent. He asked water, and she gave him milk; She brought forth butter in a lordly dish. She put her hand to the nail, And her right hand to the workmen's hammer; And with the hammer she smote Sisera, she smote off his head, When she had pierced and stricken through his temples. At her feet he bowed, he fell, he lay down: At her feet he bowed, he fell: Where he bowed, there he fell down dead. The mother of Sisera looked out at a window, And cried through the lattice, Why is his chariot so long in coming? Why tarry the wheels of his chariots? Her wise ladies answered her, Yea, she returned answer to herself, Have they not sped? have they not divided the prey; To every man a damsel or two; To Sisera a prey of divers colours, A prey of divers colours of needlework, Of divers colours of needlework on both sides, meet for the necks of them that take the spoil? So let all thine enemies perish, O LORD: But let them that love him be as the sun when he goeth forth in his might. And the land had rest forty years.

Judges 5:21-31 New American Standard Bible - NASB 1995 (NASB1995)

The torrent of Kishon swept them away, The ancient torrent, the torrent Kishon. O my soul, march on with strength. Then the horses’ hoofs beat From the dashing, the dashing of his valiant steeds. ‘Curse Meroz,’ said the angel of the LORD, ‘Utterly curse its inhabitants; Because they did not come to the help of the LORD, To the help of the LORD against the warriors.’ “Most blessed of women is Jael, The wife of Heber the Kenite; Most blessed is she of women in the tent. He asked for water and she gave him milk; In a magnificent bowl she brought him curds. 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. Between her feet he bowed, he fell, he lay; Between her feet he bowed, he fell; Where he bowed, there he fell dead. “Out of the window she looked and lamented, The mother of Sisera through the lattice, ‘Why does his chariot delay in coming? Why do the hoofbeats of his chariots tarry?’ Her wise princesses would answer her, Indeed she repeats her words to herself, ‘Are they not finding, are they not dividing the spoil? A maiden, two maidens for every warrior; To Sisera a spoil of dyed work, A spoil of dyed work embroidered, Dyed work of double embroidery on the neck of the spoiler?’ Thus let all Your enemies perish, O LORD; But let those who love Him be like the rising of the sun in its might.” And the land was undisturbed for forty years.

Judges 5:21-31 New Century Version (NCV)

The Kishon River swept Sisera’s men away, that old river, the Kishon River. March on, my soul, with strength! Then the horses’ hoofs beat the ground. Galloping, galloping go Sisera’s mighty horses. ‘May the town of Meroz be cursed,’ said the angel of the LORD. ‘Bitterly curse its people, because they did not come to help the LORD. They did not fight the strong enemy.’ “May Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite, be blessed above all women who live in tents. Sisera asked for water, but Jael gave him milk. In a bowl fit for a ruler, she brought him cream. Jael reached out and took the tent peg. Her right hand reached for the workman’s hammer. She hit Sisera! She smashed his head! She crushed and pierced the side of his head! At Jael’s feet he sank. He fell, and he lay there. At her feet he sank. He fell. Where Sisera sank, there he fell, dead! “Sisera’s mother looked out through the window. She looked through the curtains and cried out, ‘Why is Sisera’s chariot so late in coming? Why are sounds of his chariots’ horses delayed?’ The wisest of her servant ladies answer her, and Sisera’s mother says to herself, ‘Surely they are robbing the people they defeated! Surely they are dividing those things among themselves! Each soldier is given a girl or two. Maybe Sisera is taking pieces of dyed cloth. Maybe they are even taking pieces of dyed, embroidered cloth for the necks of the victors!’ “Let all your enemies die this way, LORD! But let all the people who love you be as strong as the rising sun!” Then there was peace in the land for forty years.

Judges 5:21-31 American Standard Version (ASV)

The river Kishon swept them away, That ancient river, the river Kishon. O my soul, march on with strength. Then did the horsehoofs stamp By reason of the prancings, the prancings of their strong ones. Curse ye Meroz, said the angel of Jehovah. Curse ye bitterly the inhabitants thereof, Because they came not to the help of Jehovah, To the help of Jehovah against the mighty. Blessed above women shall Jael be, The wife of Heber the Kenite; Blessed shall she be above women in the tent. He asked water, and she gave him milk; She brought him butter in a lordly dish. She put her hand to the tent-pin, And her right hand to the workmen’s hammer; And with the hammer she smote Sisera, she smote through his head; Yea, she pierced and struck through his temples. At her feet he bowed, he fell, he lay; At her feet he bowed, he fell: Where he bowed, there he fell down dead. Through the window she looked forth, and cried, The mother of Sisera cried through the lattice, Why is his chariot so long in coming? Why tarry the wheels of his chariots? Her wise ladies answered her, Yea, she returned answer to herself, Have they not found, have they not divided the spoil? A damsel, two damsels to every man; To Sisera a spoil of dyed garments, A spoil of dyed garments embroidered, Of dyed garments embroidered on both sides, on the necks of the spoil? So let all thine enemies perish, O Jehovah: But let them that love him be as the sun when he goeth forth in his might. And the land had rest forty years.

Judges 5:21-31 New International Version (NIV)

The river Kishon swept them away, the age-old river, the river Kishon. March on, my soul; be strong! Then thundered the horses’ hooves— galloping, galloping go his mighty steeds. ‘Curse Meroz,’ said the angel of the LORD. ‘Curse its people bitterly, because they did not come to help the LORD, to help the LORD against the mighty.’ “Most blessed of women be Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite, most blessed of tent-dwelling women. He asked for water, and she gave him milk; in a bowl fit for nobles she brought him curdled milk. Her hand reached for the tent peg, her right hand for the workman’s hammer. She struck Sisera, she crushed his head, she shattered and pierced his temple. At her feet he sank, he fell; there he lay. At her feet he sank, he fell; where he sank, there he fell—dead. “Through the window peered Sisera’s mother; behind the lattice she cried out, ‘Why is his chariot so long in coming? Why is the clatter of his chariots delayed?’ The wisest of her ladies answer her; indeed, she keeps saying to herself, ‘Are they not finding and dividing the spoils: a woman or two for each man, colorful garments as plunder for Sisera, colorful garments embroidered, highly embroidered garments for my neck— all this as plunder?’ “So may all your enemies perish, LORD! But may all who love you be like the sun when it rises in its strength.” Then the land had peace forty years.

Judges 5:21-31 New King James Version (NKJV)

The torrent of Kishon swept them away, That ancient torrent, the torrent of Kishon. O my soul, march on in strength! Then the horses’ hooves pounded, The galloping, galloping of his steeds. ‘Curse Meroz,’ said the angel of the LORD, ‘Curse its inhabitants bitterly, Because they did not come to the help of the LORD, To the help of the LORD against the mighty.’ “Most blessed among women is Jael, The wife of Heber the Kenite; Blessed is she among women in tents. He asked for water, she gave milk; She brought out cream in a lordly bowl. She stretched her hand to the tent peg, Her right hand to the workmen’s hammer; She pounded Sisera, she pierced his head, She split and struck through his temple. At her feet he sank, he fell, he lay still; At her feet he sank, he fell; Where he sank, there he fell dead. “The mother of Sisera looked through the window, And cried out through the lattice, ‘Why is his chariot so long in coming? Why tarries the clatter of his chariots?’ Her wisest ladies answered her, Yes, she answered herself, ‘Are they not finding and dividing the spoil: To every man a girl or two; For Sisera, plunder of dyed garments, Plunder of garments embroidered and dyed, Two pieces of dyed embroidery for the neck of the looter?’ “Thus let all Your enemies perish, O LORD! But let those who love Him be like the sun When it comes out in full strength.” So the land had rest for forty years.

Judges 5:21-31 Amplified Bible (AMP)

“The torrent Kishon swept the enemy away, The ancient torrent, the torrent Kishon. O my soul, march on with strength. “Then the horses’ hoofs beat [loudly] Because of the galloping—the galloping of his valiant and powerful steeds. ‘Curse Meroz,’ said the messenger of the LORD, ‘Utterly curse its inhabitants; Because they did not come to the help of the LORD, To the help of the LORD against the mighty.’ ¶“Most blessed of women is Jael, The wife of Heber the Kenite; Most blessed is she of women in the tent. “Sisera asked for water and she gave him milk; She brought him curds in a magnificent bowl. “She reached out her [left] 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. “He bowed, he fell, he lay [still] at her feet; At her feet he bowed, he fell; Where he bowed, there he fell dead. ¶“Out of the window she looked down and lamented (cried out in a shrill voice), The mother of Sisera through the lattice, ‘Why is his chariot delayed in coming? Why have the hoofbeats of his chariots delayed?’ “Her wise ladies answered her, Indeed, she repeated her words to herself, ‘Are they not finding and dividing the spoil? A maiden (concubine) or two for every man; A spoil of dyed garments for Sisera, A spoil of dyed garments embroidered, Two pieces of dyed garments embroidered for the neck of the plunderer?’ “So let all Your enemies perish, O LORD; But let those who love Him be like the rising of the sun in its might.” And the land was at rest for forty years.

Judges 5:21-31 New Living Translation (NLT)

The Kishon River swept them away— that ancient torrent, the Kishon. March on with courage, my soul! Then the horses’ hooves hammered the ground, the galloping, galloping of Sisera’s mighty steeds. ‘Let the people of Meroz be cursed,’ said the angel of the LORD. ‘Let them be utterly cursed, because they did not come to help the LORD— to help the LORD against the mighty warriors.’ “Most blessed among women is Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite. May she be blessed above all women who live in tents. Sisera asked for water, and she gave him milk. In a bowl fit for nobles, she brought him yogurt. Then with her left hand she reached for a tent peg, and with her right hand for the workman’s hammer. She struck Sisera with the hammer, crushing his head. With a shattering blow, she pierced his temples. He sank, he fell, he lay still at her feet. And where he sank, there he died. “From the window Sisera’s mother looked out. Through the window she watched for his return, saying, ‘Why is his chariot so long in coming? Why don’t we hear the sound of chariot wheels?’ “Her wise women answer, and she repeats these words to herself: ‘They must be dividing the captured plunder— with a woman or two for every man. There will be colorful robes for Sisera, and colorful, embroidered robes for me. Yes, the plunder will include colorful robes embroidered on both sides.’ “LORD, may all your enemies die like Sisera! But may those who love you rise like the sun in all its power!”

Judges 5:21-31 English Standard Version 2016 (ESV)

The torrent Kishon swept them away, the ancient torrent, the torrent Kishon. March on, my soul, with might! “Then loud beat the horses’ hoofs with the galloping, galloping of his steeds. “Curse Meroz, says the angel of the LORD, curse its inhabitants thoroughly, because they did not come to the help of the LORD, to the help of the LORD against the mighty. “Most blessed of women be Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite, of tent-dwelling women most blessed. He asked for water and she gave him milk; she brought him curds in a noble’s bowl. She sent her hand to the tent peg and her right hand to the workmen’s mallet; she struck Sisera; she crushed his head; she shattered and pierced his temple. Between her feet he sank, he fell, he lay still; between her feet he sank, he fell; where he sank, there he fell—dead. “Out of the window she peered, the mother of Sisera wailed through the lattice: ‘Why is his chariot so long in coming? Why tarry the hoofbeats of his chariots?’ Her wisest princesses answer, indeed, she answers herself, ‘Have they not found and divided the spoil?— A womb or two for every man; spoil of dyed materials for Sisera, spoil of dyed materials embroidered, two pieces of dyed work embroidered for the neck as spoil?’ “So may all your enemies perish, O LORD! But your friends be like the sun as he rises in his might.”