The Meaning of Judges 4:6 Explained

Judges 4:6

KJV: And she sent and called Barak the son of Abinoam out of Kedeshnaphtali, and said unto him, Hath not the LORD God of Israel commanded, saying, Go and draw toward mount Tabor, and take with thee ten thousand men of the children of Naphtali and of the children of Zebulun?

YLT: And she sendeth and calleth for Barak son of Abinoam, out of Kedesh-Naphtali, and saith unto him, 'Hath not Jehovah, God of Israel, commanded? go, and thou hast drawn towards mount Tabor, and hast taken with thee ten thousand men, out of the sons of Naphtali, and out of the sons of Zebulun,

Darby: She sent and summoned Barak the son of Abin'o-am from Kedesh in Naph'tali, and said to him, "The LORD, the God of Israel, commands you, 'Go, gather your men at Mount Tabor, taking ten thousand from the tribe of Naph'tali and the tribe of Zeb'ulun.

ASV: And she sent and called Barak the son of Abinoam out of Kedesh-naphtali, and said unto him, Hath not Jehovah, the God of Israel, commanded,'saying , Go and draw unto mount Tabor, and take with thee ten thousand men of the children of Naphtali and of the children of Zebulun?

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And she sent  and called  Barak  the son  of Abinoam  out of Kedeshnaphtali,  and said  unto him, Hath not the LORD  God  of Israel  commanded,  [saying], Go  and draw  toward mount  Tabor,  and take  with thee ten  thousand  men  of the children  of Naphtali  and of the children  of Zebulun? 

What does Judges 4:6 Mean?

Context Summary

Judges 4:1-11 - A Woman's Deliverance
The scene changes to the northern part of Canaan. Deborah probably belonged to Issachar, Judges 5:15; but her seat of government was removed to the hill country of Ephraim, probably for greater security. Her spirit was susceptible to God, and she recognized that the hour for the emancipation of her suffering country was at hand. Indeed, the command had gone forth, Judges 4:6. But the divine method is ever to link command and promise, as we discover in Judges 4:7. Barak had true faith, Hebrews 11:32; but it needed inspiration and stimulus, as a dying fire calls for the bellows.
Kedesh, the gathering-place, was not far from the shores of the Lake of Galilee. From the table-land on the top of Tabor, these two heroic souls watched the gathering of Sisera's vast host, far away to the slopes of Carmel and the banks of Kishon, soon to be encrimsoned with blood. What a moment that was when Deborah summoned Barak to arise, because the Lord had already gone forth! Who of us need fear and who need hesitate in the face of difficulty, if we are simply called upon to go in the wake of our Lord? [source]

Chapter Summary: Judges 4

1  Deborah and Barak deliver them from Jabin and Sisera
17  Jael kills Sisera

What do the individual words in Judges 4:6 mean?

And she sent and called for Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali and said to him Has not commanded Yahweh God of Israel go and deploy [troops] at Mount Tabor and take with you ten thousand men of the sons of Naphtali and of the sons of Zebulun
וַתִּשְׁלַ֗ח וַתִּקְרָא֙ לְבָרָ֣ק בֶּן־ אֲבִינֹ֔עַם מִקֶּ֖דֶשׁ נַפְתָּלִ֑י וַתֹּ֨אמֶר אֵלָ֜יו הֲלֹ֥א צִוָּ֣ה ׀ יְהוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֵֽי־ יִשְׂרָאֵ֗ל לֵ֤ךְ וּמָֽשַׁכְתָּ֙ בְּהַ֣ר תָּב֔וֹר וְלָקַחְתָּ֣ עִמְּךָ֗ עֲשֶׂ֤רֶת אֲלָפִים֙ אִ֔ישׁ מִבְּנֵ֥י נַפְתָּלִ֖י וּמִבְּנֵ֥י ؟ זְבֻלֽוּן

וַתִּשְׁלַ֗ח  And  she  sent 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: שָׁלַח  
Sense: to send, send away, let go, stretch out.
וַתִּקְרָא֙  and  called 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: קָרָא  
Sense: to call, call out, recite, read, cry out, proclaim.
לְבָרָ֣ק  for  Barak 
Parse: Preposition-l, Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: בָּרָק  
Sense: son of Abinoam of Kedesh who, incited by Deborah, a prophetess of Ephraim, delivered the Israelites from the yoke of Jabin by routing the Canaanites in the plain of Jezreel.
בֶּן־  son 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: בֵּן 
Sense: son, grandson, child, member of a group.
אֲבִינֹ֔עַם  of  Abinoam 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: אֲבִינׄעַם  
Sense: father of Barak, descendant of Naphtali.
מִקֶּ֖דֶשׁ  from  Kedesh  in 
Parse: Preposition-m, Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: קֶדֶשׁ  
Sense: a city in the extreme south of Judah.
נַפְתָּלִ֑י  Naphtali 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: נַפְתָּלִי  
Sense: the 5th son of Jacob and the 2nd by Bilhah the handmaid of Rachel.
וַתֹּ֨אמֶר  and  said 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
אֵלָ֜יו  to  him 
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine singular
Root: אֶל  
Sense: to, toward, unto (of motion).
הֲלֹ֥א  Has  not 
Parse: Adverb, Negative particle
Root: הֲלֹא 
Sense: not, no.
צִוָּ֣ה ׀  commanded 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: צָוָה  
Sense: to command, charge, give orders, lay charge, give charge to, order.
יְהוָ֣ה  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
אֱלֹהֵֽי־  God 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: אֱלֹהִים  
Sense: (plural).
יִשְׂרָאֵ֗ל  of  Israel 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יִשְׂרָאֵל  
Sense: the second name for Jacob given to him by God after his wrestling with the angel at Peniel.
לֵ֤ךְ  go 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperative, masculine singular
Root: הָלַךְ  
Sense: to go, walk, come.
וּמָֽשַׁכְתָּ֙  and  deploy  [troops] 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, second person masculine singular
Root: מָשַׁךְ  
Sense: to draw, drag, seize.
בְּהַ֣ר  at  Mount 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: הַר  
Sense: hill, mountain, hill country, mount.
תָּב֔וֹר  Tabor 
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: תָּבֹור  
Sense: a mountain in the plain of Esdraelon rising abruptly and insulated except for a narrow ridge on the west connecting it to the hills of Nazareth.
וְלָקַחְתָּ֣  and  take 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, second person masculine singular
Root: יָקַח 
Sense: to take, get, fetch, lay hold of, seize, receive, acquire, buy, bring, marry, take a wife, snatch, take away.
עִמְּךָ֗  with  you 
Parse: Preposition, second person masculine singular
Root: עִם  
Sense: with.
עֲשֶׂ֤רֶת  ten 
Parse: Number, masculine singular construct
Root: עֶשֶׂר 
Sense: ten.
אֲלָפִים֙  thousand 
Parse: Number, masculine plural
Root: אֶלֶף 
Sense: a thousand.
אִ֔ישׁ  men 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: אִישׁ 
Sense: man.
מִבְּנֵ֥י  of  the  sons 
Parse: Preposition-m, Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: בֵּן 
Sense: son, grandson, child, member of a group.
נַפְתָּלִ֖י  of  Naphtali 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: נַפְתָּלִי  
Sense: the 5th son of Jacob and the 2nd by Bilhah the handmaid of Rachel.
וּמִבְּנֵ֥י  and  of  the  sons 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Preposition-m, Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: בֵּן 
Sense: son, grandson, child, member of a group.
؟ זְבֻלֽוּן  of  Zebulun 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: זְבוּלוּן  
Sense: the 0th of the sons of Jacob, 6th and last of Leah; progenitor of Zebulun.