Day 13 - Death By Tent Peg (Spooky/Scary/Weird stories from the Bible)

Day 13 - Death By Tent Peg (Spooky/Scary/Weird stories from the Bible)

Biblical stories that could make good horror/paranormal movies

Today’s is a story of two women: a Judge named Deborah, and a warrior’s wife named Jael. From the Book of Judges, which describes the time when the Israelites had finished their wilderness wandering and were trying to find their place in the Promised Land, waging war against the people who already lived there. The people do a lot of bad, and so the book of Judges uses this refrain “...did what was evil in the sight of the Lord” quite often to introduce new stories.

Judges 4:1 The Israelites again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, after Ehud died. 2 So the Lord sold them into the hand of King Jabin of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor; the commander of his army was Sisera, who lived in Harosheth-ha-goiim. 3 Then the Israelites cried out to the Lord for help, for he had nine hundred chariots of iron and had oppressed the Israelites cruelly twenty years. 4 At that time Deborah, a prophet, wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel. … 6 She sent and summoned Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali and said to him, “The Lord, the God of Israel, commands you, ‘Position yourself at Mount Tabor, taking ten thousand from the tribe of Naphtali and the tribe of Zebulun. 7 I will draw out Sisera, the general of Jabin’s army, … and I will give him into your hand.’ 

…

12 When Sisera was told that Barak son of Abinoam had gone up to Mount Tabor, 13 Sisera called out all his chariots. 14 Then Deborah said to Barak, “Up! For this is the day on which the Lord has given Sisera into your hand. Has not the Lord gone out before you?” So Barak went down from Mount Tabor with ten thousand warriors following him. 15 And the Lord threw Sisera and all his chariots and all his army into a panic[b] before Barak; Sisera got down from his chariot and fled away on foot. 16 All the army of Sisera fell by the sword; not one was left.

17 Now Sisera had fled away on foot to the tent of Jael wife of Heber the Kenite, for there was peace between King Jabin of Hazor and the clan of Heber the Kenite. 18 Jael came out to meet Sisera and said to him, “Turn aside, my lord, turn aside to me; have no fear.” So he turned aside to her into the tent, and she covered him with a rug. 19 Then he said to her, “Please give me a little water to drink, for I am thirsty.” So she opened a skin of milk and gave him a drink and covered him. 20 He said to her, “Stand at the entrance of the tent, and if anybody comes and asks you, ‘Is anyone here?’ say, ‘No.’ ” 21 But Jael wife of Heber took a tent peg and took a hammer in her hand and went softly to him and drove the peg into his temple, until it went down into the ground—he was lying fast asleep from weariness—and he died. 

Death by tent peg. Not a noble way to die, I should imagine. And to be killed by a woman, too, even more humiliating. Women power!

All text is from the New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition.