Rotation.org Writing Team

DEBORAH

MUSIC

PASSAGE

Bible Story: Judges 4:1–5:31
Key/Memory Verse: Judges 5:31

PURPOSE

Use various rhythm instruments to create music to accompany a previously created PowerPoint rendition of the story which tells the story using LEGO® bricks. Emphasis is placed upon knowledge and sequence of the Bible story and of the characters in the story. (Note: if PowerPoint is unavailable, print out pictures to show of the story.)

Objectives for Rotation

See Bible Background.

Objectives for Music Workshop

Participants will be able to:

Locate the story in the Bible; identify the book of Judges as an Old Testament book of history.

Recognize the characters in the story and know something about them – Deborah: a judge, obedient to God, confident in her faith; Barak: military leader summoned by Deborah; Sisera: enemy general; Jael: a woman who hid Sisera but then killed him.

Explain the role and meaning of a judge in Old Testament times.

Retell the story in his/her own words.

PREPARATION

Read the Scripture for this lesson.

Read and reflect on the Bible Background provided for this lesson.

Gather the materials.

Materials List

• Bibles
  
• Computer with PowerPoint software and the created PowerPoint loaded
  
• Inflatable beach ball with at least six panels (hopefully in different colors)
  
• LCD projector
  
• Markers for newsprint or white board, 2 colors
  
• Masking tape
  
• Newsprint
  
• Permanent marker, black
  
• Rhythm instruments such as agogo bell, bongos, chime tree, claves, drums, finger cymbals, güiro, maracas, rain sticks, rattles, sandpaper blocks, shakers, sticks, talking drum, tambourines, and/or wood blocks. If you have them, bring out the Orff instruments.
  
• Screen
  
• White board
  

Advance Preparation Requirements

This workshop requires the creation of a PowerPoint. To create the PowerPoint you must first get permission from the owner of the photos to be used. The photos to use are from a web site called Brick Testament. All photos from The Brick Testament are protected by copyright and may not be used without the permission of their owner, Brendan Powell Smith. However Mr. Smith is usually happy to grant permission for the images to be used for strictly non-commercial purposes. To use the images from the Brick Testament in a PowerPoint you must do the following:

1. Send an email to thebricktestament@gmail.com, to officially request permission, making sure to provide your name, plus the name and location of your church or other religious organization, and a brief description of your intended use.
   
2. Save a copy of the email reply you receive back.
   
3. Whenever you make use of Brick Testament materials, make sure to include the “Illustrations courtesy of…” image found at http://www.thebricktestament.com/churches/index.html so that your audience knows from where the materials are borrowed.
   

Use a screen capture tool to create a PowerPoint slide show of the story Massacre of the Canaanites from the web site http://www.thebricktestament.com/judges/massacre_of_the...aanites/jg04_01.html Create a title slide. Capture the image of Deborah sitting under the palm tree from the 5th screen of the Brick Testament story. (Do so without including any words.) Type your title as “The Story of Deborah. Judges 4-5.” Create a slide from each picture in The Brick Testament starting with the second picture, the one labeled Judges 4:2. Capture the screens without the words at the bottom (do include the speech bubbles). You should have 26 slides in all.

Take a look at the Bibles used in the room in which you will lead this workshop. Is there material in these Bibles on an introduction to the book of Judges? Would this material be appropriate to share with the students? See the portion of the lesson where this step is suggested.

Practice the pronunciation of the names in this story. Jabin: yaw-bene', Sisera: see-ser-raw', Barak: baw-rawk', and Jael: yaw-ale'.

Practice the tune to the song to use to review the names of the Bible books.

Blow up the inflatable beach ball. Using the permanent marker, write the following (one per panel): Name a character in the story, Where is this story found in the Bible, What happens at the beginning of the story, What happens in the middle of the story, what happens at the end of the story, When does this story take place. [If you have more panels write: “name a character” in more than one panel.]

If using Orff instruments, set up them up in C Pentatonic. This enables the instrument to be played without hitting a "wrong" note.

On the whiteboard write the following using one color of marker:

Sisera – iron chariots
Israelites cry out
Deborah – judging under a palm tree
Barak
I will go if you will go?
10,000 went to battle
Sisera runs away - to the tent of Jael
Jael cares for Sisera
Jael kills Sisera
Israel triumphs
Deborah writes a song.

Cover up the writing using the sheets of paper.

PRESENTATION

Open - Introduction

Greet your students warmly, introducing yourself and any other adults. Welcome everyone to the Music Workshop.

Say: Today we are going to be making some music with instruments and with our voices. Before we get started, let’s begin with prayer. Ask for any prayer requests. Ask if anyone would like to lead the group in prayer. Be prepared to say a prayer yourself, working in prayer requests. A suggestion: “Holy One, Be with us today as we study about people from Old Testament Bible times. Help us to relate their story from long, long ago to our lives today. Amen”

Ask: Does anyone know anyone named Deborah? (Acknowledge all answers)

Say: Deborah is the name of the main character in our Bible story.

Ask: Who can tell me what they know about Deborah from the Bible? (See how much of the story your students know. It will help you know what portions of the story to emphasize.)

Say: Our story is found in the book of Judges.

Ask: Where do you suppose we would we find this book in the Bible? (Old Testament)

Will someone explain why the Bible is divided into two testaments? (New Testament was written after Jesus was on earth; the Old Testament is the Bible that Jesus learned when he was a child and what was recorded after Jesus ascended to heaven.)

Say: Besides being divided into two testaments, the 66 books in the Bible are further divided into collections. We say that the book of Judges is part of a collection of Bible books called “History.” History books start at Joshua and go through Esther.

Sing a song to review the History books in the Old Testament.

If you have a song that you have used in the past to teach books of the Old Testament, then use that. A suggestion is to use the song Books of the Old Testament. The sheet music is available from http://www.ebibleteacher.com/children/books_of_the_old_testament.htm
Modify the tune slightly: Place a CLAP on the rest in measure 5 (to signify the end of the books of Law). Remove the CLAP in measure 6. Add a CLAP in place of singing the word “Job” in measure 12. Make that note be a middle C. End the song at that point. Repeat to learn!

Say: Let’s find the book of Judges in the Bible.

Distribute Bibles if needed.

Have the students find the book of Judges. (Sing the song to find the book!)

For older students, point out any appropriate introductory material on the book of Judges in the Bible. (See Advance Preparation Requirements.)

Ask: What was life like during the time of the judges?

Say: Here’s a hint. Let’s find Judges chapter 21, verse 25.

Have a student read Judges 21:25. “In those days there was no king in Israel; all the people did what was right in their own eyes.”

Say: This story takes place at a time in history after the Israelites had entered the Promised Land. Moses is long dead; Joshua has also died. The people are left without a main leader.

Ask: What happens to the people?

Say: The people turn away from God. They do whatever they think is “right in their own eyes.” They start to follow the gods of their Canaanite neighbors, which means not following the one, true God. This gets them into lots of trouble.

Ask: What does God do?

Say: Here’s another hint. Let’s find Judges chapter 2, verse 16.

Have a student read Judges 2:16. “Then the Lord raised up judges, who delivered them out of the power of those who plundered them.”

Ask: In Bible times, what was the job of a judge? (They were delivers of the people; they taught the people about following God.)

Say: Let’s read another hint to see how well this worked.

Have a student read Judges 2:19 “But whenever the judge died, they would relapse and behave worse than their ancestors, following other gods, worshiping them and bowing down to them. They would not drop any of their practices or their stubborn ways.”

Say: But still God tried to get through to the people. He sent several judges. Let’s find the story of the judge we will learn about – Deborah.

Have students find Judges 4:1.

Say: Our story about Deborah is actually told twice. Chapter 4 is the story form, the narrative of Deborah. The second time our story is told in the form of a song.

Have the students find Judges 5:1.

Say: This is where the song of Deborah starts.

Have the students find Judges 5:31.

Have a student read Judges 5:31. “So perish all your enemies, O Lord! But may your friends be like the sun as it rises in its might. And the land had rest forty years.”

Say: This is the last line of the song of Deborah. Our story has a battle in it and lots of the “bad” guys – the enemies of the Israelites – get killed. And then – the land had rest for forty years! That means that there was peace in the land.
Ask: But then, guess what happened?

Say: The pattern started again: the people turned from God and got into trouble again. They called out to God and God sent them yet another judge. Let’s close our Bibles and hear the story about the judge named Deborah.

Dig - Main Content

Show them the PowerPoint. Read them the following story to go along with the pictures. (Note: As the Rotation progresses, ask the students to tell you the story as the pictures are shown.)

Slide

Number - Words to say:

1. This is the story of Deborah as found in Judges 4 and 5.
   
2. The Israelites were under the control of king Jabin of the Canaanites.
   
3. This king’s general was named Sisera. He had 900 iron chariots! He was very cruel.
   
4. The Israelites cried out to God, “Save us!”
   
5. At that time the judge over Israel was named Deborah. She did her judging while sitting under a palm tree. This tree is called the Palm of Deborah.
   
6. Deborah sent for Barak. [Read the words in the speech bubble.] The Lord had told her that Barak was the one that should lead the troops in battle against Sisera.
   
7. Barak said to her… [Read the words in the speech bubble.]
   
8. [Read the words in the speech bubble.]
   
9. So Barak and Deborah went into battle with 10,000 soldiers from the tribes of
   Naphtali and Zebulun.
   
10. Meanwhile general Sisera gathered his troops.
    
11. And he went into battle with his 900 iron chariots.
    
12. But the Lord was in control! Sisera saw things turning bad and he ran away on foot.
    
13. Indeed the Israelites won the battle. Not one of Sisera’s men survived.
    
14. Sisera ran to the tent of a woman named Jael. Jael’s husband had a peace treaty with king Jabin.
    
15. Jael came out to meet Sisera. She told him… [Read the words in the speech bubble.]
    
16. Jael offered Sisera to lay down to rest. She gave him a blanket.
    
17. Sisera asked Jael for water to drink because he was thirsty. Jael gave him milk.
    
18. [Read the words in the speech bubble.]
    
19. While Sisera slept, Jael took a tent peg and a hammer...
    
20. She crept up to Sisera…
    
21. And she drove the tent peg through his skull, killing him.
    
22. Meanwhile, Barak had been chasing Sisera. Barak came to Jael’s tent. Jael told him… [Read the words in the speech bubble.]
    
23. Jael showed Barak Sisera’s dead body. It was just as Deborah had said; Barak didn’t get any credit. God had given Sisera into the hands of a woman named Jael.
    
24. Meanwhile, Sisera’s mother was wondering where Sisera was. [Read the words in the speech bubble.] Alas, he would not come.
    
25. Eventually King Jabin was killed. The Israelites had triumphed.
    
26. Deborah wrote a song to remember their victory. And the land was at peace for 40 years.
    

Bring out the inflated beach ball. Toss it around and have students answer the question that their left thumb lands upon. Do this for a couple of minutes.

Say: Let’s tell the story again only this time let’s add musical sounds to the story.
Uncover the writing on the whiteboard.

Ask: What instrument could help us tell the part of the story where Deborah is sitting under the Palm Tree judging? How could you play this instrument to represent that?
Practice the part to get an idea of how to play – loud or soft, fast or slow.

Referring to the white board, continue to ask these questions, adding instruments to tell the various parts of the story. Write the name (or draw a quick picture) of the instrument next to the portion of the story on the whiteboard. (Use a different color of marker.)

Distribute instruments.

Run through the PowerPoint again playing the instruments. Do this until time is almost up (leave time for closing).

Reflect - Closure

Ask: How does this story relate to us today?

Could people today decide to do whatever was “right in their own eyes;” without regard for what God wants?

Ask: There was peace in the land for 40 years. But then what happened

Say: The cycle began again … the people fell away from following God. They cried out to God for help. God sent a judge that rescued them. Everything was fine while that judge was alive. The people needed a leader that wouldn’t die!

Ask: Did that leader ever come?

Say: Jesus was the leader who would never die.

Close in prayer.

ADDITIONAL SUGGESTIONS

Adaptations - Younger Children

Read the passages from the Bible to these students.

Adaptations - Older Children

Add a small group of students who chant a key phrase over and over in rhythm with the other instruments. Suggestions: For slides 2 & 3: “Fell away. Fell away.” For slide 4: “Save us. Save us.” Slides 5 – 8 “Obey God, obey God.” Etc. Have the students pick the words to chant.

SOURCES

# Gross, Vicki C. Story: “Jael and Sisera.” 2003. http://littlelambsministry.freeservers.com/storyjaelsisera.htm (story adaptation)

# Noel, Robin. Sheet music for the song: Books of the Old Testament. 2005. http://www.ebibleteacher.com/children/books_of_the_old_testament.htm

# Smith, Brendan Powell. “Massacre of the Canaanites.” .
http://www.thebricktestament.com/judges/massacre_of_the...aanites/jg04_01.html

CONTRIBUTOR: Carol Hulbert