Why Do We Want To Raise David, But Not Jael?

Evening campfires were one of the highlights of my daughter’s Christian scouting experience. During every upper-grade campout, we’d share a devotion before making s’mores and turning in for the night. The last years before she graduated, she was assigned to deliver or delegate the topic for our evening discussion. Sometimes they came to her easily; on other occasions, she’d be scouring the Internet for possibilities until the moment we left. Every time that I found her in a panic, my mostly tongue-in-cheek suggestion was the same: 

“Honey, there’s always Jael.” You know, the woman who drove a tent peg through the head of the Canaanite army commander. We’re a bunch of women doing devotions. We literally just hammered tent pegs into the ground. The connections practically wrote themselves.

And her answer was always the same, accompanied by an eye roll. “Mom, NO. The other moms would kill me.”

My daughter and I shared our ongoing joke with Worthy Founder Pastor Erin Arruda shortly after I was assigned this post. Pastor Erin laughed, but her chuckle had an ironic edge. Isn’t it funny, she noted, that the story of David and Goliath is a Sunday school staple. The one where the shepherd boy sinks a rock into the Philistine’s head, then proceeds to decapitate the giant. But Jael? No, we all agree that story is too graphic to be used as an example even for teenage  girls.

Now, I’m not picking on our scouting leaders. I never pushed the issue, either. Because our church culture highlights the passages describing women as weaker vessels, as submissive, as nurturing. Driving a footlong hardwood peg through a man’s head and pinning him to the ground doesn’t exactly paint that picture. 

To be honest, there are a lot of similarities between David and Jael. David was adept at subterfuge, most notably when he tried to orchestrate a situation where he could pass off his child that Bathsheba carried as belonging to her husband Uriah. Before sending the man off to be killed in war. And in many lesser-known, but equally questionable, circumstances. David was rebuked by God’s prophet, but held up in thousands of childrens’ lessons annually. Jael deceived Sisera as she lured him into her tent, was praised by God, and yet we feel squeamish telling her story.  

So why do we want to raise David but not Jael? 

Some modern writers criticize Jael for violating ancient codes of nomad hospitality. For attacking Sisera despite the treaty her husband had with King Jabin. Others seem to downplay her actions by implying she must have been second choice - only taken off the bench because of a man’s hesitation. 

You know who doesn’t criticize Jael? Who doesn’t hint that she was only Plan B? 

God. 

Jael was the fulfillment of Deborah’s prophecy in Judges 4:9, which predicts that Sisera would be delivered to and defeated by a woman. Deborah’s victory song, recorded in Judges 5, calls Jael “most blessed among women.” Scripture doesn’t denigrate Jael. It elevates her. 

Let me be clear. As a Christian, I don’t believe our current covenant calls us to be decapitating anyone or nailing anyone to the ground. However, all Scripture is given to us for doctrine, reproof, correction, and instruction in righteousness. The story of Jael is in there. It doesn’t have a highly doctrinal flavor. I’ve never seen it used to criticize or correct. Instruction seems the most likely option. So what can we learn from this passage?

1. Sometimes God’s way doesn’t make sense. 

On the surface, Jael’s actions weren’t particularly reasonable. She was not an Israelite, but a Kenite - a nomadic tribe that allied with Israel and adopted many of its practices after Moses married one of its women. Jael’s husband, Heber, had a treaty with King Jabin - Sisera’s boss. The general felt safe enough come to her family’s tents, and took little coaxing to lay down and take a nap. In the patriarchal society of the time, Jael could have faced serious consequences from her husband, who provided her comfort and security. Worse yet, she could have made her tribe a target of military retribution. In spite of all this, she followed the path He set before her. 

2. We must take the opportunities God gives us, and do it promptly. 

We can’t know for sure if God told Jael what to do, or if she simply saw a chance and took it. But it sure seems like God set the plan in motion. Without the use of Google Maps, Sisera showed up outside Jael’s tent, practically wearing a bright red bow tied around his neck. Jael didn’t hem and haw about her qualifications or whether God really wanted her to act. She gave Sisera a glass of milk and went to work once he fell asleep. Waffling would have put her in even greater danger, risking the general waking up and overpowering Jael after catching her in the act. When God opens a door in front of us, we must be diligent to walk through it rather than wasting time testing every other doorknob. 

3. We don’t need special qualifications to accomplish God’s will.

Jael’s act of courage was prophesied by a judge of Israel, but Jael wasn’t a judge herself. She wasn’t an Israelite leader - she wasn’t even an Israelite. She had no military training, and wasn’t a hunter. However, she was likely a skilled metal smith and had years of experience setting up the family’s tents. Though they were unorthodox, the skills God provided were exactly the ones she needed to accomplish His will. And He equips us for what we need to do, too. 

I’m grateful that my daily duties don’t involve forging hot iron tools or lugging heavy goatskin tents. I’m thankful I was born in the New Covenant era, and I’m called to love my neighbors rather than battle them. This new commission has a different end goal, but we are still called to share God’s love using the same kind of boldness and obedience Jael used to bring peace to Israel. 

The lesson of Jael still might not make a good bedtime story. It may not have a place in a kindergarten Sunday school curriculum. But when we’re gathered in campfire moments with other women, whether they’re teens, peers, or a blend of generations, it’s important for us not to shy away from difficult stories. Difficult truths. Difficult times in our lives, when we listen to the voice of God, muster up our courage, and do what needs to be done. 

In the end, it’s not about replacing David with Jael. It’s about raising a generation where both are recognized and valued. By learning to work together, male and female, we can do God’s work more effectively and model it for the next generation. Because often, the best way to raise up a bold leader is by being one yourself. 

~Kristin Yarbrough, Worthy Content Writer

1. Have you shared the story of David in a teaching setting? Did anything about it make you uncomfortable?

2. Have you ever taught the story of Jael, at church or in your home? If not, why?

3. Are there times you have shied away from action because you didn’t feel qualified?

4. Do you serve with mostly men, mostly women, or a mix? Have you experienced advantages and disadvantages?