A reading from the Book of Judges.

And the people of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord after Ehud died.

And the Lord sold them into the hand of Jabin, King of Canaan, who reigned in Hotsor.

The commander of his army was Cicera, who lived in Hirosheth Hagoyim. Then the people of Israel

cried out to the Lord for help, for he had 900 chariots of iron, and he oppressed the people

of Israel cruelly for 20 years. Now Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, was judging Israel at that time.

She used to sit under the palm of Deborah between Rama and Bethel in the hill country

of Ephraim, and the people of Israel came up to her for judgment.

She sent and summoned Berwick, the son of Abinamam, from Cadesh Naftoli, and said to him,

Has not the Lord the God of Israel commanded you, go, gather your men at Mount Tabor, taking 10,000

from the people of Naftali and the people of Zebulon. And I will draw out Cicero, the general of Jabin's army,

to meet you by the River Kishon, with his chariots and his troops, and I will give him into your

hand. Berwick said to her, If you will go with me, I will go. But if you will not go with me, I will not go.

And she said, I will surely go with you. Nevertheless, the road on which you are going will not lead to your glory, for the Lord will sell Cicera into the hand of a woman.

Then Deborah arose and went with Berwick to Kedish.

And Beric called out Zebulin and Naftali to Kedish,

and ten thousand men went up at his heels,

and Deborah went up with him.

Now Hebra the Kenite had separated from the Kenites, the descendants of

Hobab the father-in-law of Moses, and had pitched his tent as far away as the oak in Zeinaeum,

which is near Kedish. When Cicer was told that Beric the son of Abinuam had gone up to Mount Tabor,

Cicero called out all his chariots,

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