Copyright © 2016

Written by Len Woods

Published by B&H Publishing Group, Nashville, TN

ISBN: 978-1-4336-4447-4

Dewey Decimal Classification: 220.92 Subject Heading: WOMEN / BIBLE—BIOGRAPHY \ WOMEN IN THE BIBLE

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning, or other—except for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

All Scripture quotations are taken from the HCSB®, Copyright © 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2009 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. HCSB® is a federally registered trademark of Holman Bible Publishers.

Interior Design and Typesetting: Hudson Bible

Printed in China

15 16 17 18 19 • 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

RRD

Introduction

“It begins with a character, usually, and once he stands up on his feet and begins to move, all I can do is trot along behind him with a paper and pencil trying to keep up long enough to put down what he says and does.” — William Faulkner

Faulkner’s words about writing fiction are also true for reading divine truth.

For all its emphasis on religious places and holy ideas, the Bible, in the final analysis, is about characters. “It begins with a character”—the triune God. It then proceeds to tell one great story made up of countless smaller stories. At the heart of all this action, on every page of Scripture, we meet fascinating, real-life people. These are characters worth our time and attention.

31 Women of the Bible has been written to remind readers of Scripture of three great truths:

1. Women have played an indispensable role in the great story of God. Though the Bible is without question dominated by towering male figures like Abraham, Moses, David, Pilate, and Paul, it’s far from a sexist book (as some have charged). From Sarah to Mary and from Esther to Elizabeth, a number of the most important heroes of the Christian faith were female.
2. Bible people were flawed, flesh-and-blood folks—not unlike us. We have a tendency to idealize Scriptural saints; however, it’s not necessary to either romanticize or idolize them to appreciate them. (It’s also not healthy!)
3. The most vivid and valuable lessons come not from a lecture but from a life.

In the pages that follow, you’ll find:

• A concise summary of each woman’s appearance in Scripture, viewed through the lens of our modern culture
• Surprising revelations that may cause you to rethink what you thought you knew about each woman
• Bible passages, ripe for memorization, that capture the essence of each woman’s experience
• Helpful prompts for applying the principles of each woman’s story to your own life
• Thought-provoking questions to help you find common ground with the heroes of the Christian faith

Our hope is that as you “trot along behind” the thirty-one women featured in these pages, noting what each “says and does,” you’ll be able to “keep up long enough” to be challenged, encouraged, warned, and helped.

“A woman who fears the Lord will be praised.” — Proverbs 31:30