THE TENT
You have to read carefully, IMO, because the story seems to hang on so few words, and may even depend on whether you believe there’s a difference between “the tent” and “her tent”.
Briefly; an escaped fugitive seeks refuge from a woman who is ‘home alone’ and she offers him some buttermilk when he’s thirsty, and a place to sleep in the tent. We aren’t told much about his character, but he warns Jael (her name) not to reveal him to anyone who comes looking, and then goes to sleep.
Apparently he never wakes from that sleep because she takes a tent peg and hammer, and kills him!
Later, she tells the authorities what she’s done, and shows them the dead body in “her tent”.
This all happens in Judges 4 (you’ll want to read it for yourself), and leaves us with more questions than answers. Maybe he didn’t like buttermilk? Maybe she didn’t like being ordered around? Did she know him, but didn’t let on?
My understanding is that women had separate tents, based on the story in Gen31:33 about Rachel hiding the idols, and it appears to me that Sisera had only himself to blame. What do YOU think?
