Introduction

T he Bible has been and continues to be one of the oldest and longest bestselling books in the history of humankind. Within the pages of this epic piece of literature, and what believers consider to be the inspired and revealed Word of God, are the fascinating stories of human beings on their journey of faith. Women play an important and vital part — not only in salvation history itself but also in the journey of faith.

Women in the Bible are prominent and obscure: the Bible mentions women by name, by title, by familial relationship (wife, mother, daughter, widow), and sometimes just by geographical location. Famous women like Eve (the first woman), Sarah (wife of Abraham), Mary Magdalene (follower of Jesus), and Mary of Nazareth (mother of Jesus) are discussed, but so are lesser known women like Judith, Dinah, Jochebed, Huldah, Dorcas, and Lydia.

About This Book

Although it’s not a substitute or replacement for the Bible, this book serves as an introduction for those who may never have read the Bible, or it can be a help for those studying the Bible. If we’re lucky, it can also serve as an eyeopener to some who never realized how many or how vital women have been in scripture. Some of these women may inspire you. Some may impress you. Some may just make good reading. Many questions, mysteries, and unknowns remain about several of these women. We may not answer every question, but that’s because the Bible often doesn’t give all the details. Unlike mystery novels in which the mystery is resolved at the end, the Bible usually unveils more mysteries and unanswered questions every time you read it.

Conventions Used in This Book

We use the New Oxford Annotated Bible, New Revised Standard Version, for most of the quotations taken from the Bible. We use the traditional dating system of B.C. (before Christ) and A.D. (anno domini, which is Latin for “year because it is better known and has been in use historically a lot longer because it is better known and has been in use historically a lot longer than the newer designation of B.C.E. (before the common era = before Christ) and C.E. (common era = year of the Lord). There is merit in using the newer system because it respects the different calendars and dating system of non-Christian religions and cultures. However, the older system is still more familiar to people because many historical documents since the time of Christ until recently have used it. Many Bibles printed until the last part of the twentieth century use the older system in their commentaries and footnotes, so we chose for the sake of consistency to keep it.

The word scripture is used synonymously in this book with the word Bible, so when you read “it says in scripture” that means “it says in the Bible.” The term Hebrew Scriptures is synonymous with the Christian designation of Old Testament in the Bible. The Hebrew Scriptures and Protestant Old Testament have the same 39 books, whereas the Eastern Orthodox and Catholic Old Testaments have seven more books (46). Those seven extra books are called the Deuterocanon (meaning “second canon,” or official list of what books belong in the Bible) by Catholics and Orthodox Christians, whereas Protestants call them Apocrypha (meaning other or hidden writings). Read more about the explanation of these books in Chapter 2. God has many names in many religions — and even in the Bible. Some refer to him as “the Lord” or “the Almighty.” Recognizing the Hebrew respect for the sacred name, we do not use the word “Yahweh” in this book as a few Bible versions do, but we instead use the more common translation of the Hebrew Adonai, “Lord,” or the Hebrew Elohim, “God.”

We often refer to idolatry in this book. Idolatry is considered a personal sin against God, but also a crime against the Hebrew nation because it violates the covenant between God and his chosen people. When someone worships false gods, as did the Canaanites, it is seen as an offense against the Lord and a breach of trust between the individual citizen and the Hebrew nation.

This book uses the traditional chapter and verse designation of a number followed by a colon. Genesis 3:15 is shorthand for the third chapter of Genesis, verse 15. Commas separate verses or chapters, while semicolons change from one passage to the next. Luke 1:28, 42 means you look at the first chapter of Luke’s Gospel, verse 28 and verse 42. Deuteronomy 6:4–6 means you look at the sixth chapter of Deuteronomy from verse 4 all the way to and including verse 6. John 6:53; 15:5 means you look at the sixth chapter of John’s gospel, verse 53, and at the 15th chapter, verse 5.

You’ll notice that some words in this book are in italic. We use italic for emphasis and to highlight new words or terms that are defined. In addition, italic is used to help you identify foreign words and phrases.

What You’re Not to Read

Well, maybe you shouldn’t take it to that extreme, but we should let you in on a couple of things to know about this book:

Sidebars contain information that you don’t have to read to understand the Bible or the women mentioned in it. They serve as asides, anecdotes, or extended examples of what we discuss in the regular text.

Order doesn’t matter. That being said, you can read anything you want without hurting our feelings. Feel free to skip around. We use copious cross-references to help you understand anything you may have skipped over.

Foolish Assumptions

In writing this book, we made some assumptions about you. Want to know what they are?

You want to know something about the women who are mentioned in the Bible, whether you’re a woman or a man.

You’re curious about what the Bible has to say about women or how it describes women.

You’ve heard or seen some of the names of these women in the Bible before — maybe you’ve even read about them in another book — but you want to know how much of what you know or have read is actually from the Bible, and how much is fiction.

You want to know the actual stories about these ladies in easy-to-readand-understand formats.

How This Book Is Organized

We’ve intentionally written this book in such a way that you can jump into it at any point and just go. You can read straight through, cover to cover, from Chapter 1 to Chapter 24, or you can go directly to the section that interests you. Here’s a brief summary of our organization.

Part I: Connecting with the Women of Ancient History

This part gives a brief background on the origin, history, and development of the Bible; the biblical, religious, social, and cultural roles and perspectives on women in general; and the impact of language, gender, and ideology on how women are treated. Because the Bible was written over a period of many centuries and by people influenced by various philosophies, cultures, and societies, this part also looks at how those factors affected what was written, what was intended, and how it is understood today.

Part II: The Big Six: The Most Famous Women of the Bible

This section begins our actual look at the women mentioned in the Bible, and we discuss the six most famous for starters. Eve, the first woman; the Virgin Mary, the mother of Jesus of Nazareth; and Mary Magdalene, follower of Jesus, are the starting lineup here. We also discuss the only three women to have a book of the Bible named after them: Ruth, Judith, and Esther.

Part III: Influencing Lives, Shaping History: Women of Faith and Power

This part deals with the women who were the movers and shakers of their time. We look at the matriarchs who helped shape the foundation of the Hebrew people, the women during the times of slavery and persecution, the powerful and influential women who helped establish the Hebrew kingdom (particularly those women who ruled), and the women who knew and followed Jesus, as well as the women who helped the early Christian church get off the ground.

Part IV: Women of Public Debate . . . or Disdain

This part looks at the obscure, the intriguing, and the scheming women of the Bible. Their motives may not have been known, but what they said and/or did as recorded in the Bible is examined.

Part V: The Nameless: Wives, Mothers, Daughters, and Widows

This part zeroes in on the women of scripture who have no name. They’re merely identified by their familial relationship (wife, mother, daughter, or widow), their location (the town or region they are from), or their situation (physical or spiritual health).

Part VI: The Part of Tens

Here’s the fun part. We give you quick overviews of the most misunderstood women of the Bible, the most famous women of the Bible in art, and the most influential women of the Bible.

Appendix

Here we list the women in the Bible — even the ones we did not discuss in depth — alphabetically and with their corresponding biblical citation.

Icons Used in This Book

Throughout this book, we guide you toward important points by using the following icons:

Next to this icon, you find information that’s good to keep in mind. This is just stuff we think is important to remember.

Lots of people have lots of different opinions about the Bible’s stories. We use this icon to point out many of the points about which people disagree.

This icon signals that we’re going to delve a little deeper than usual into an explanation or definition. We don’t mean to suggest the information is too difficult to understand — just a little more detailed.

“Exactly!” That’s what you’ll think when you read this icon’s info — because it quotes exactly what the Bible says about a woman or an event.

Where to Go from Here

Women in the Bible For Dummies is like an appetizer. You can get a taste of the women who are mentioned in the Bible, what they said or did, and maybe what impact they had. We recommend that you have a Bible of your choosing nearby as you read just in case you want to look up what the scripture says about these women. Otherwise, jump right in.