Judges 5:20

20 The stars fought from the sky; from their orbits they fought against Sisera.

Judges 5:20 Meaning and Commentary

Judges 5:20

They fought from heaven
Either the angels of heaven, afterwards called stars; or the heavens, the elements, fought for Israel, and against Sisera; a violent storm of rain and hail falling at this time, which discomfited Sisera's army; (See Gill on Judges 4:15), or this victory was obtained in such a manner as plainly showed it was not of man, but of God from heaven; so the Targum,

``from heaven war was made with them;''

with the kings before mentioned; God fought against them, and no wonder they were conquered:

the stars in their courses fought against Sisera
it seems as if it was in the night that this battle was fought, at least that the pursuit lasted till night, when the stars by their brightness and clear shining favoured the Israelites, and were greatly to the disadvantage of the Canaanites; unless it can be thought, as is by some, that the stars had an influence to cause a tempest of rain, hail, thunder, and lightnings, by which the army of Sisera was discomfited in the daytime, as before observed.

Judges 5:20 In-Context

18 Zebulun is a people that readily risked death; Naphtali too in the high countryside.

19 Kings came and made war; the kings of Canaan fought at Taanach by Megiddo's waters, but they captured no spoils of silver.

20 The stars fought from the sky; from their orbits they fought against Sisera.

21 The Kishon River swept them away; the advancing river, the Kishon River. March on, my life, with might!

22 Then the horses' hooves pounded with the galloping, galloping of their stallions.