BARAC (Heb. Bāraq "lightning"). - Collaborator of Deborah (v.), son of Abinoam, born at Kedesh of Naphtali (Judg. 4, 5). Called by Deborah, in the name of Yahweh, to free the Israelites of the plain of Esdraelon from the yoke of the Canaanites, B., who had suffered personally at their hands (Judg. 5, 12), accepts, but on condition that she accompany him and assist him in battle.

Deborah goes with B.; to their appeal, besides Naphtali and Zebulun, who were more directly concerned, Ephraim, Benjamin, Issachar and Machir, an important clan of Manasseh, responded, in all about 40,000 men (Judg. 5, 8), but poorly armed. Of these, 10,000 are with Deborah and B. on Tabor (Judg. 4, 10), the others stand ready on the hills of Ephraim, which surround the plain. Sisera, general of the Canaanites, gathers between Megiddo and Taanach, along the Kishon, his 900 chariots and his infantry. Perhaps by night (Judg. 5, 20), B. attacks him by surprise, while the Lord sends a great storm, which swells the torrent and makes the ground slippery. Confused and terror-stricken, the Canaanites perished in the waters of the Kishon, or were pursued and killed by the victors. B. finds Sisera killed by Jael (v.).

Bibliography

BIBL.: L. Desnoyers, Histoire du peuple hébreu, I: La période des Juges, Paris 1922, pp. 140-48, 390-92.

Francesco Spadafora

@incollection{ec2_barac_ebr_baraq_fulmine, author = {Spadafora, Francesco}, title = {Barac (Ebr. BĀRaq «Fulmine»)}, booktitle = {Enciclopedia Cattolica}, volume = {II}, pages = {795--796}, note = {Cited by column}, publisher = {Ente per l’Enciclopedia Cattolica e per il Libro Cattolico}, address = {Città del Vaticano}, year = {1949}, url = {https://azioneromana.com/article/barac-ebr-baraq-fulmine} }

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