Judges 4:8-13: a reflection

8Barak said to her, “If you will go with me, then I will go; but if you will not go with me, I will not go.” 9She said, “I will surely go with you. Nevertheless, the journey that you take won’t be for your honor; for the LORD will sell Sisera into a woman’s hand.” Deborah arose, and went with Barak to Kedesh. 10Barak called Zebulun and Naphtali together to Kedesh. Ten thousand men followed him; and Deborah went up with him. 11Now Heber the Kenite had separated himself from the Kenites, even from the children of Hobab, Moses’ brother-in-law, and had pitched his tent as far as the oak in Zaanannim, which is by Kedesh. 12They told Sisera that Barak the son of Abinoam had gone up to Mount Tabor. 13Sisera gathered together all his chariots, even nine hundred chariots of iron, and all the people who were with him, from Harosheth of the Gentiles, to the river Kishon.

When the prophetess Deborah calls Barak to lead God's people against their oppressor, with the assurance that God will give the victory, Barak agrees, but only on a condition: If you will go with me, then I will go; but if you will not go with me, I will not go. His obedience is hesitant and conditional; he will go only if Deborah goes with him, unwilling to step out fully on God's word alone. Deborah agrees to go, but tells him that because of the way he is taking, the honor of the victory will go to another, to a woman. Barak's hesitant, conditional obedience, his unwillingness to go wholeheartedly on God's word, cost him the fuller honor that wholehearted obedience would have brought. He obeyed, but conditionally and hesitantly; and the hesitation cost him. Hesitant, conditional obedience can cost us the fuller blessing that wholehearted obedience would bring. Barak's conditional obedience cost him honor. To obey God only on our own conditions is to fall short of wholehearted obedience and its fuller blessing.

Notice the conditional character of Barak's obedience, and what it cost. God, through Deborah, called him to the task with the promise of victory; but Barak would go only if Deborah went with him, unwilling to obey wholeheartedly on God's word alone. His obedience was real but hedged, conditional, hesitant. And Deborah told him plainly that because of this, the honor of the decisive moment would go to another. His hesitation did not cost him the victory, which God still gave; but it cost him the fuller honor that wholehearted obedience would have brought. This is instructive: we can obey God, but hesitantly, conditionally, only on our own terms, unwilling to step out fully on his word; and such half-hearted obedience, while still obedience of a kind, falls short of the wholehearted obedience God calls for and can cost us the fuller blessing. To obey God only on our conditions, hesitantly, is not the same as obeying him wholeheartedly, and it costs us something. Wholehearted obedience, stepping out fully on God's word, brings a fuller blessing than hesitant, conditional obedience. Barak obeyed, but his hesitation cost him. Conditional obedience falls short of the fuller blessing of wholehearted obedience.

That is worth taking to heart, for hesitant, conditional obedience falls short of the fuller blessing that wholehearted obedience brings, and we are called to obey God wholeheartedly. We can obey God, but hesitantly and conditionally, only on our own terms, unwilling to step out fully on his word, as Barak would go only if Deborah went with him; but such conditional obedience, while still obedience of a kind, cost Barak the fuller honor and falls short of what God calls for. Wholehearted obedience, stepping out fully on God's word, brings a fuller blessing. Do not offer God a hesitant, conditional obedience, only on your own terms; obey him wholeheartedly, stepping out fully on his word, rather than falling short as Barak did. Obey God wholeheartedly, stepping out fully on his word, rather than offering a hesitant, conditional obedience only on your own terms, as Barak would go against the oppressor only if Deborah went with him and so the fuller honor of the victory went to another; for hesitant, conditional obedience, while still obedience of a kind, falls short of the wholehearted obedience God calls for and can cost us the fuller blessing that stepping out fully on his word would bring, so that to obey God only on our own conditions is to fall short, while wholehearted obedience, trusting his word without hedging, brings the fuller blessing.

Lord, when the prophetess Deborah calls Barak to lead your people against their oppressor, with the assurance that you will give the victory, Barak agrees, but only on a condition: If you will go with me, then I will go; but if you will not go with me, I will not go. His obedience is hesitant and conditional; he will go only if Deborah goes with him, unwilling to step out fully on your word alone. Deborah agrees to go, but tells him that because of the way he is taking, the honor of the victory will go to another. Barak's hesitant, conditional obedience cost him the fuller honor that wholehearted obedience would have brought. Show me the conditional character of Barak's obedience, and what it cost. You called him to the task with the promise of victory; but Barak would go only if Deborah went with him. His obedience was real but hedged, conditional, hesitant. And Deborah told him that because of this, the honor of the decisive moment would go to another. His hesitation did not cost him the victory, which you still gave; but it cost him the fuller honor. This is instructive: I can obey you, but hesitantly, conditionally, only on my own terms, unwilling to step out fully on your word; and such half-hearted obedience falls short of what you call for and can cost me the fuller blessing. Take that to my heart, for hesitant, conditional obedience falls short of the fuller blessing that wholehearted obedience brings, and I am called to obey you wholeheartedly. I can obey you, but hesitantly and conditionally, only on my own terms, as Barak would go only if Deborah went with him; but such conditional obedience cost Barak the fuller honor. Keep me from offering you a hesitant, conditional obedience, only on my own terms; help me obey you wholeheartedly, Lord, stepping out fully on your word, rather than falling short as Barak did, that I may not miss the fuller blessing that trusting your word without hedging brings.