Judges 5:6-11a - Villagers in Israel would not fight

5:6-9

Having called on Israel’s rulers and her people to respond to the call, Deborah recalls the times when Israel would not “man-up”. Things were desolate, this is the time when Shamgar and Jael did their stuff.  The “villagers in Israel would not fight”.This state of affairs continued until Deborah arose. Note it says “I, Deborah,...”, this seems to indicate that although Barak is mentioned at the start of the song, it is predominantly the song of Deborah. When Deborah did arise new leaders were chosen and the people did commit themselves to the Lord. The role of a leader is not to glorify themselves, but to call God’s people to action. In Eph 4:12 it says that the role of apostles, prophets etc is to “equip God’s people for works of service”. Ps 110:3 talks of God’s troops being willing on the day of His battle.

5:10,11a

When people do commit themselves to the Lord, then they also enjoy His victories. They should rejoice in God's victories, in the things that the Lord does. “White donkeys” is a reference to the ruling classes, and those “who walk along the road” to the “ordinary” people. God’s plan is that mankind works alongside Him, and there are things that God will not do until we do work alongside Him. So God works to encourage us to be committed to Him.