The Tent Peg That Changed History | Judges 4:21–22

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Our text today is Judges 4:21-22:

But Jael the wife of Heber took a tent peg, and took a hammer in her hand. Then she went softly to him and drove the peg into his temple until it went down into the ground while he was lying fast asleep from weariness. So he died. And behold, as Barak was pursuing Sisera, Jael went out to meet him and said to him, “Come, and I will show you the man whom you are seeking.” So he went in to her tent, and there lay Sisera dead, with the tent peg in his temple. — Judges 4:21-22

What could God do with your ordinary tools if you had the courage to act?

This is it—the moment Deborah had prophesied. Sisera, exhausted and convinced he was safe, falls asleep in Jael’s tent. And Jael, an ordinary woman with no training in battle, picks up a tent peg and a hammer—the tools of her daily life—and strikes down the mighty commander of Canaan’s army.

When Barak finally arrives, Jael doesn’t just point him to Sisera—she shows him the lifeless body. The prophecy is fulfilled. The honor goes not to Barak, but to an unlikely woman whose courage and obedience changed the course of history.

Jael’s story is a reminder: God uses unlikely people with ordinary tools to accomplish extraordinary victories. She didn’t have a sword. She wasn’t wearing armor. She used what she had, where she was, with bold faith.

You may feel like you don’t have much to offer—just a “tent peg” and a “hammer” in your daily life. But in God’s hands, that’s enough. Don’t underestimate the impact of your simple obedience. The world doesn’t need you to be the most powerful man in the room. It needs you to be the most willing.

When others hesitated, Jael acted. And because she did, God’s Word was fulfilled.

ASK THIS:

1. What ordinary “tent peg” has God put in my hand to use for His glory?
2. Do I believe God can use me—even if I feel unqualified or overlooked?
3. How might hesitation keep me from stepping into the role God is calling me to?
4. What step of bold faith can I take today with the tools I already have?

DO THIS:

Take one “ordinary tool” in your life today—your time, a skill, a relationship—and use it intentionally for God’s purposes.

PRAY THIS:

Lord, thank You for using unlikely people like Jael. Give me courage to act with what You’ve placed in my hands, trusting You for the outcome. Amen.

PLAY THIS:

"God of the Impossible."