Judges 4:8
And Barac said to her: If thou wilt come with me, I will go: if thou wilt not come with me, I will not go.
Open Judges 4:8 in the Motif Searcher, word by word across all five texts →Show on the spiral →The verse in its languages
- Vulgate (Clementine)
- Dixitque ad eam Barac : Si venis mecum, vadam : si nolueris venire mecum, non pergam.
- Septuagint (Swete)
- καὶ εἶπεν πρὸς αὐτὴν Βαράκ Ἐὰν πορευθῇς μετ᾽ ἐμοῦ πορεύσομαι, καὶ ἐὰν μὴ πορευθῇς οὐ πορεύσομαι· ὅτι οὐκ οἶδα τὴν ἡμέραν ἐν ᾗ εὐοδοῖ τὸν ἄγγελον Κύριος μετ᾽ ἐμοῦ.
- Hebrew (WLC)
- וַיֹּ֤אמֶר אֵלֶ֨יהָ֙ בָּרָ֔ק אִם תֵּלְכִ֥י עִמִּ֖י וְהָלָ֑כְתִּי וְאִם לֹ֥א תֵלְכִ֛י עִמִּ֖י לֹ֥א אֵלֵֽךְ
Haydock's commentary
Not go. Septuagint and St. Augustine (q. 26,) add, "because I know not when the Lord will send his angel to grant me success." St. Paul (Hebrews xi. 32,) praises the faith of Barac, so that he spoke thus out of prudence, that the people, seeing (Calmet) their revered prophetess in his company, (Haydock) might not condemn the undertaking as too rash and perilous. He therefore entreats her, in this earnest manner, to come with him, and point out the time when he must attack the enemy.
From Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary, 1859, in the transcription made by Todd Easton and kept online by John Paul Wohlschied at johnblood.gitlab.io/haydock.
The Fathers on this verse
St Augustine Expositions on the Book of Psalms, Psalm LXXXIII
7. Now let us see what the prophetic spirit prays may fall upon them, rather foretelling than cursing. “Do thou to them,” he saith, “as unto Madian and Sisera, as unto Jabin at the brook of Kishon” ( ver. 9 ). “They perished at Endor, they became as the dung of the earth” ( ver. 10 ). All these, the history relates, were subdued and conquered by Israel, which then was the people of God: as was the case also with those whom he next mentions: “Make their princes like Oreb and Zeb, and Zebee and Salmana” ( ver. 11 ). The meaning of these names is as follows: Madian is explained a perverted judgment: Sisera, shutting out of joy: Jabin, wise. …
St Ambrose Concerning Widows, Chapter VIII. Though many other widows came near to Judith in virtue, St. Ambrose proposes to speak of Deborah only. What a pattern of virtue she must have been for widows, who was chosen to govern and defend men. It was no small glory to her that when her son was over the host he refused to go forth to battle unless she would go also. So that she led the army and foretold the result. In this story the conflicts and triumphs of the Church, and her spiritual weapons, are set forth, and every excuse of weakness is taken from women
46. And lastly, her son Barak shows the chief part of the victory was in the hands of a woman when he said: “If thou wilt not go with me I will not go, for I know not the day on which the Lord sendeth His angel with me.” How great, then, was the might of that woman to whom the leader of the army says, “If thou wilt not go I will not go.” How great, I say, the fortitude of the widow who keeps not back her son from dangers through motherly affection, but rather with the zeal of a mother exhorts her son to go forth to victory, while saying that the decisive point of that victory is in the hand of a woman!