Have you ever faced a difficult or unexpected decision? Or felt forced into a situation you didn't choose? Jael faced such a situation in Judges 4-5 (as did Mary in Luke 1.) Yet, I believe God arranged circumstances so that the right choice was the only decision Jael could make.

 

We know Jael is a foreigner but she is related to the Israelites. However, her husband, Heber, had separated from his people to form an alliance with the enemy Canaanites. This has proven to be an unwise decision now the Canaanite army has been defeated by Israel. As Jael sees Sisera fleeing for his life, heading for her tent, she is caught in a perilous situation.

 

She could not pretend she was not home. Turning Sisera away would have meant possible death. He was still her husband's ally ... and a soldier ... having a bad day! But, sheltering him would have meant death also, once the Israelite army arrived. They were flush with victory and out for revenge. Her only option was to seize the initiative, convince Sisera that he was safe, and then kill or incapacitate him to demonstrate her loyalty to Israel before their army arrived.

 

Jael masterfully convinces Sisera he is safe, and once he is asleep she faces her gruesome task with resolve. Like Rahab, her motivations may have been mixed, but her actions were certainly courageous. She was alone and Sisera could have stirred at any moment.

 

In Judges 5:26 the slow-motion stealth in the first half of the verse is in contrast with the striking, piercing blows in the second half. Then the progressively shorter lines of Judges 5:27 seem to portray the life ebbing out of Sisera as he expires on the floor.

 

When we are forced to face difficult decisions under trying circumstances, it gives us hope to know that God controls our circumstances. We may not know all the facts; we may be under pressure. But God can and does use the difficult decisions of everyday people for his glory and his plan. People who trust him in these times are rightly called "blessed" (Judges 5:24, Luke 1:42.)