In the annals of Jewish history, separated by over three millennia, two women wielded an unexpected weapon in times of war: hospitality. Their stories, though distant in time, mirror each other in surprising ways, demonstrating how courage can wear many faces.
The story of Jael unfolds during a dark period in ancient Israel’s history. The Israelites had been brutally oppressed for twenty years under Jabin, king of Canaan, whose military commander Sisera wielded nine hundred iron chariots – the ancient equivalent of modern tanks. The prophetess Deborah had called for resistance, sending Barak to lead an army against Sisera’s forces.
When Sisera’s army was routed in battle, the commander fled on foot, seeking refuge in what he thought was friendly territory. He arrived at the tent of Jael, wife of Heber the Kenite. The Kenites maintained peaceful relations with both Israelites and Canaanites, and Sisera believed he would find safe harbor. The biblical text tells us:
Jael played the role of the perfect hostess, offering not just shelter but comfort. When Sisera asked for water, she gave him milk. As the text records:
This act of providing milk instead of water was both generous and strategic – the warm drink would help induce sleep in the exhausted commander.
When Sisera fell into a deep sleep, Jael took a tent peg and a hammer and, with devastating precision, drove the peg through his temple into the ground. The mighty commander who had terrorized Israel for decades met his end not on the battlefield but in a woman’s tent. So significant was this act that Deborah’s victory song devotes several verses to praising Jael, calling her “blessed above women:”
Fast forward to October 7, 2023, in the small Israeli town of Ofakim. Rachel Edri, known affectionately as the “mother of the soldiers” for running the canteen at the Tze’elim army base, found herself in an eerily similar situation. When Hamas militants broke into her home, she responded not with fear but with an offer of hospitality – coffee, cookies, and conversation.
Both women understood a profound truth: that sometimes the strongest weapon is not a sword or a gun, but the ability to maintain composure in the face of danger. While Jael’s hospitality was a prelude to a decisive act of violence that helped free her people, Edri’s weapon was time itself. She kept her captors engaged for 20 hours, singing Arabic songs, serving homemade cookies, dressing their wounds and skillfully managing their volatile emotions until rescue arrived.
“I could see they were angry,” Edri later told Channel 12, describing how she transformed from captive to hostess. Her neighbors weren’t surprised, saying, “If there’s one person in Ofakim who could charm even Hamas terrorists, then it’s Rachel.” She understood, as they noted, that “a hungry man is more dangerous than a recently fed one.”
Where Jael weaponized hospitality for a swift victory, Edri wielded it for survival. Both women understood how to use it strategically in the face of mortal danger, and both women turned traditional feminine roles – the hostess, the caregiver – into instruments of warfare. Their stories challenge our understanding of heroism, showing that courage isn’t always about confrontation; sometimes it’s about the strategic use of kindness.
These two women, bookending thousands of years of Jewish history, prove that heroism comes in many forms. While their methods and outcomes differed, both demonstrated remarkable presence of mind and the courage to face mortal danger with composure. Their stories remind us that victory sometimes comes not through force of arms, but through unexpected powers – even something as seemingly gentle as hospitality. In doing so, they expand our understanding of what it means to be a hero.
To read more about Rachel Edri and other heroes of October 7, 2023, order your copy of Into the Fire: Stories of Heroism from October 7th now.
Into the Fire: Stories of Heroism from October 7th reveals the heart-wrenching and inspiring true stories of ordinary Israelis who became extraordinary heroes on October 7, 2023, as they faced unimaginable terror. This powerful narrative not only chronicles their bravery and resilience but also challenges readers to reflect on their own capacity for heroism in times of crisis—don’t miss your chance to be inspired; Order your copy today!
