In Judges 4…where Sisera, the captain of Jabins (of Canaan) army has escaped Barak-has hid in the tent of Jael (the wife of Haber the Kenite). He asks her for water and was given a “bottle of milk”. She covers him up , he falls asleep so soundly that she is able to drive a tent stake through his temples pinning him to the ground ,killing him. Now Heber of Kenite was a relative of Hobab (Moses brother in law), and he told Sisera about Barak’s battle plans.
I don’t get the significance of all this, especially the milk instead of water, the murder of someone aided by her husband, and the connection to Moses father in law. Can you help me ?
Although he was a friend of Jael’s family, Sisera was the commander of the enemy forces of Jabin, the Canaanite King. Sisera had cruelly oppressed the Israelites for 20 years. When Jael gave him warm milk to drink instead of water, the amino acid L-triptophan in the milk was converted into melatonin, a sleep inducing enzyme, as Sisera digested it. This helped him fall into a deep sleep, as he was already exhausted from battle, making it possible for Jael to kill him, helping the Lord subdue Jabin and finally destroy him.