Gibbs: No, no, no, no, no, it’s frightful bad luck to bring a woman aboard, sir.
Jack: It’d be far worse not to have her. (A scene from Pirates of the Caribbean.)
The Bible is full of great stories! But let’s face it, most of them are about men. That doesn’t mean God loves women any less or that they are any less important to Him. It is just a reflection of woman’s importance in the culture of the time. Despite that, there are several great stories involving special women in the Bible. God made sure that certain women were remembered for what they did, good or bad.
Now Deborah, a prophet, the wife of Lappidoth, was leading Israel at that time. She held court under the Palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim, and the Israelites went up to her to have their disputes decided (Judges 4:4–5 NIV).
Deborah is one of five women in the Old Testament who was called a prophetess. The other four were:
Miriam
Then Miriam the prophet, Aaron’s sister, took a timbrel in her hand, and all the women followed her, with timbrels and dancing (Exodus 15:20 NIV).
Huldah
Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam, Acbor, Shaphan and Asaiah went to speak to the prophetess Huldah, who was the wife of Shallum son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, keeper of the wardrobe. She lived in Jerusalem, in the Second District (2 Kings 22:14 NIV).
Isaiah’s wife
Then I went to the prophetess, and she conceived and gave birth to a son. And the LORD said to me, “Name him Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz (Isaiah 8:3 NIV).
Noadiah, who was a false prophetess
Remember Tobiah and Sanballat, O my God, because of what they have done; remember also the prophetess Noadiah and the rest of the prophets who have been trying to intimidate me (Nehemiah 6:14 NIV).
And let us not forget these very important women mentioned in God’s Word: Sarah, Ruth, Elizabeth, Esther, Mary and Martha; and of course, Mary the mother of Jesus. These women are mentioned throughout the Bible. Sure, they are buried among a bunch of stories about men, but their stories are just as powerful as the stories involving men.
God recognized these women because He thought they were worthy of mentioning.
Today, He recognizes us, too, man or woman. He still keeps track and writes down all the great things we do for Him. Whenever we do anything that pleases Him, He rejoices with the angels, and our names are known in the heavenly realms!
Whoever acknowledges me before others, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven (Matthew 10:32 NIV).
So, let’s give the Lord and the angels something to rejoice about!
Debbie Mitchell