God is at work all of the time, but sometimes we are too blind to see it (John 5:16-17). How can someone be so blind that they miss the all-powerful Creator of all things at work in his world? We could answer this question a couple different ways (see John 3:3; 2 Cor 4:3-4). But I want to focus on the fact that God often does not work miraculously. A miracle is something that breaks God’s established laws of nature. From our perspective, a miracle is something that defies our normal experiences of how the world works. God frequently uses miracles to demonstrate the truth of his word, and thus they are often referred to as signs (Exod 4:8-9; Num 14:11; Matt 16:1; Luke 11:29; John 2:18; 4:48; 1 Cor 1:22). The point is that God does not normally work through miracles. Instead, God tends to work through what appears normal to us, because he often accomplishes his will through people and natural events.

            The Book of Judges constantly reminds us of the seemingly invisible hand of God at work through normal events such as a flood caused by a great rainstorm. Chapter 4 in the book of Judges gives the narrative of Deborah and Barak. At this time, Israel was experiencing oppression from the Canaanites, particularly from their advanced military forces led by the commander, Sisera (Judg 4:2-3). God promised to give Sisera and his forces into the hands of Israel, but the Israelites were required to go out and fight (Judg 4:6-7). Sisera’s army, with all of its high-tech chariots, was camped out in the Jezreel Valley by the Kishon River (Judg 4:13-14). Barak and the Israelite army were stationed atop one of the mountains that bordered the valley, Mount Tabor (Judg 4:12). Right before the action began, the prophetess Deborah made an interesting comment to Barak: “…Has not the LORD gone out before you?” (Judg 4:14). It’s true that God promised to go out before Israel, but her question seems to assume that Barak should have been able to clearly see God’s providential hand at work before the battle even started. The battle itself is only given two verses; we read in them that God threw Sisera’s army into confusion, and that the Israelite foot soldiers were able to chase down the iron chariots (Judg 4:15-16). For his part, Sisera chose to flee on foot (Judg 4:17). You might be wondering what this all has to do with a flood caused by a great rainstorm. The answer comes in the following chapter, where we get to read a poetic retelling of how God delivered Israel from Sisera and his army (Judg 5:1).

            In song, Deborah tells us that the LORD came up from the south; like a warrior, he came up upon Sisera’s camp (Judg 5:4). This is the moment all of the blanks are filled in – we learn why Deborah questioned Barak the way she did, how God confused the Canaanite army, how the Israelite foot soldiers could chase down chariots, and why Sisera would flee on foot. In the presence of the God of angel armies, the Lord of hosts, there was an earthquake, the clouds let down their water, and the mountains poured the water into the valley below, the Jezreel Valley where the Kishon River lay (Judg 5:4-5). God used a great rainstorm that caused a flood right in the area where Sisera’s army was camped. And this is stated even more clearly later on in the song. We hear that the river of Kishon overflowed and began to sweep the army away, which would have rendered those iron chariots next to useless (Judg 5:21). But what amazes me the most is how this seemingly natural disaster is described. It is described as the Lord’s angels fighting against Sisera (Judg 5:20; see 1 Kgs 22:19; Job 38:7; Isa 40:26; Dan 8:10). What could appear as just a natural disaster was actually the Lord fighting for his people, sending his angels to wreak havoc on God’s enemies through a great storm. Here we see God working in a non-miraculous way; a big storm that fills a low-lying valley with water is not abnormal. It might be what you call natural. But under the surface of this “natural event,” the Scriptures remind us that God was fighting for his people.

            But God does not just work through natural events – he actually works through people. This fact might rub against the individualist-free-will-mindset of our age, but it is undeniable that the Scriptures present God as accomplishing his will through normal people. That does not mean that we don’t have the capacity to make choices, but it does mean that things are more complex than how we normally see them. There is a story in Judges that demonstrates how God works through people. We find this story in Chapter 9 of Judges. It is about Abimelech, who is arrogant, unqualified, and thirsty for power, a toxic brew that, as prophesied, would produce destruction of himself and those who chose him to be king (Judg 9:1-21).

            The actual story of this destruction of Abimelech and Shechem, the people who chose him, is bracketed by a reminder of God’s work in the whole affair. The story begins with God sending an evil spirit between Abimelech and the lords of Shechem (Judg 9:23; see 1 Sam 16:14; 2 Sam 24:1; 1 Kgs 22:19-23; 1 Chr 21:1). The rest of the story will show us what it practically means for God to have sent this evil spirit between the two parties. Ultimately, the purpose of this spirit is clear: God was going to bring justice upon Abimelech and the lords of Shechem for the evil they had done (Judg 9:24). The story ends with a reminder that the whole narrative was God returning the evil of Abimelech and Shechem back on their own heads (Judg 9:56-57). But when you actually read the narrative, there is nothing supernatural about it. The men of Shechem got tired of their leader, Abimelech, rebelled against him, and then decided to make a new guy the king (Judg 9:25-29). Abimelech found out and decided to completely destroy Shechem and its inhabitants. He slaughtered many and burned the rest alive (Judg 9:30-49). But Abimelech, full of vengeful anger and a haughty desire to see the world burn, brashly approached another city’s tower to set it ablaze, too, only to be killed by a woman dropping a millstone on his head (Judg 9:50-55). Does any of that sound miraculous? To me, it sounds like a bunch of interpersonal conflicts that were blown way out of proportion. But that is why the narrative begins and ends with the reminder that God’s hand was at work here. God works through people, and in Judges 9, he worked through people to bring judgment.

            God is at work, but not everyone has the eyes to see. The stories in both Judges 4-5 and 9 remind us that God is at work even if we don’t recognize his hand. These narratives make the invisible hand of God visible. He is the one who brought the storm and the flood; it was his angels that were fighting against Sisera. That is why Israel was guaranteed victory. He is also the one who sent the evil spirit that caused so much animosity between the people of Shechem and Abimelech. That is why Jotham could prophesy that Abimelech and Shechem would be destroyed. God had a plan, and he accomplished what he purposed in both cases, but to the untrained eye, this might have all looked like happenstance. But there is no chance, because God is always at work.