Women in the Bible

Eva by Lucas Cranach the Elder (1528)

Women in the Bible are rarely mentioned by name, with named women representing only 5.5 to 8 percent of the total of all named characters, male and female, in the Bible. This suggests that women were not usually in the forefront of public life. Those women that are named, rose to prominence for reasons outside the ordinary. They are often an aspect of the over-turning of man-made power structures commonly found in a biblical literary device called a "reversal." Abigail and Esther, Jael who drove a tent peg into the enemy commander's temple while he slept, are a few examples of women who turned the tables on men with power. The founding matriarchs are mentioned by name, as are some prophetesses, judges, heroines, and Queens, while the common woman is largely, though not completely, unseen. The slave Hagar's story is told, and the prostitute Rahab's story is also told, along with a few others like them.

The Bible is a patriarchal document, written by men from a patriarchal age, and many scholars see the primary emphasis of the Bible as reinforcing women's subordinate status. However, there are also scholars who claim there is gender blindness in the Bible as well. The Bible contains many noted narratives of women as both victors and victims, as well as women as actors who change the course of events and as those who are powerless and unable to affect their own destinies.

Marital Laws favored men, as did inheritance Laws. Family was the backbone of biblical society, and women were critical to the family's survival. There were strict Laws of sexual behavior with adultery a crime punishable by stoning. A woman in ancient Bible days was always under the authority of a man and was subject to strict purity Laws, both ritual and moral. However, women such as Deborah, the Shunnemite woman, and the prophetess Huldah, rise above societal limitations and show that the Hebrew Bible does not attempt to justify cultural subordination with an ideology of superiority or "otherness" in the manner of the Greeks and Romans of the same era.

The New Testament refers to a number of women in Jesus’ inner circle, and he is generally seen by scholars as dealing with women with respect. The New Testament names many women in positions of leadership in the early church as well. There are controversies within the contemporary Christian church concerning women. For example, Paul refers to Junia as "outstanding among the apostles" and there is disagreement over whether Junia was a woman and an apostle, and Mary Magdalene's role as a leader is also disputed. Sexuality has played a major role in these issues which have impacted, and continue to impact, how the modern Christian church sees the role of women. These changing views of women in the Bible are reflected in art and culture.

Hebrew Bible (Old Testament)

According to traditional Jewish enumeration, the Hebrew canon is composed of 24 books which came into being over a span of almost a millennium.[1]:17 The Hebrew Bible's earliest texts reflect a Late Bronze Age Near Eastern civilization, while its last text, usually thought to be the Book of Daniel, comes from a second century BCE Hellenistic world. This historical development should be taken into consideration in any account of women in the Bible.[1]:17 Talmudic scholar Judith Hauptman points out that coming to terms with the apparent sexism of the Bible means also coming to terms with the broad contours of the narrative and its context.[2]:168 For instance. a major theme of the Hebrew Bible is the covenant formed between the Israelites and the God of Abraham at Mount Sinai. The Book of Exodus states that both Israelite men and Israelite women were present at Sinai; however, the covenant was worded in such a way that it bound men to act upon its requirements, and left it to the men to ensure that the members of their household (wives, children, and slaves) met these requirements as well. In this sense, the covenant bound women as well, though indirectly.[2]:167-169 The books of the Hebrew Bible were written by various authors using primarily Hebrew and some Aramaic.[3]:41 The Hebrew Bible (also called Tanakh in Judaism, Old Testament in Christianity and Taurat/Tawrah in Islam) is the basis for both Judaism and Christianity, and a cornerstone of Western culture, affecting many views and values including contemporary views toward women.[4]:5

Compared to the number of men, few women are mentioned in the Bible by name, suggesting that they were rarely in the forefront of public life. The exact number of named and unnamed women in the Bible is somewhat uncertain because of a number of difficulties involved in calculating the total. For example, the Bible sometimes uses different names for the same woman, different languages translate names differently, and some names can be used for either men or women. Professor Karla Bombach says one study produced a total of 3000-3100 names, 2900 of which are men with 170 of the total being women. However, the possibility of duplication produced the recalculation of a total of 1700 distinct personal names in the Bible with 137 of them being women. In yet another study of the Hebrew Bible only, there were a total of 1426 names with 1315 belonging to men and 111 to women. Seventy percent of the named and unnamed women in the Bible come from the Hebrew Bible.[5]:33,34 "Despite the disparities among these different calculations, ... [it remains true that] women or women's names represent between 5.5 and 8 percent of the total [names in the Bible], a stunning reflection of the androcentric character of the Bible."[5]:34 A study of women whose spoken words are recorded found 93, of which 49 women are named.[6]

Historian Carol Meyers says the common, ordinary, everyday Hebrew woman is "largely unseen" in the pages of the Bible, and the women that are seen, are the unusual who rose to prominence.[4]:5 These prominent women include the Matriarchs Sarah, Rebecca, Rachel, and Leah, Miriam the prophetess, Deborah the Judge, Huldah the prophetess, Abigail, who married David, Rahab, and Esther. A common phenomenon in the bible is the pivotal role that women take in subverting man-made power structures. The result is often a more just outcome than what would have taken place under ordinary circumstances.[7]:68 Law professor Geoffrey Miller explains that these women did not meet with opposition but were instead honored for the role they had.[8]:127


Hebrew Bible views on gender

There is substantial agreement among a wide variety of scholars that the Hebrew Bible is a predominantly patriarchal document from a patriarchal age. New Testament scholar Ben Witherington III says it "limited women's roles and functions to the home, and severely restricted: (1) their rights of inheritance, (2) their choice of relationship, (3) their ability to pursue a religious education or fully participate in synagogue, (4) and limited their freedom of movement."[9] Textual scholar Phyllis Trible says "considerable evidence depicts the Bible as a document of male supremacy."[10][11] Theologian Eryl Davies writes: "From the opening chapters of the book of Genesis, where woman is created to serve as man's 'helper' (Gen.2:20-24) to the pronouncements of Paul concerning the submission of wives to their husbands and the silencing of women in communal worship (1 Cor. 14:34; Col.3:18), the primary emphasis of the Bible is on women's subordinate status."[12] Davies says the patriarchal ethos is reflected in texts ranging from legal texts to narratives, and from the prophetic sayings to the wisdom literature.[12]:1

Women had some role in ritual life as represented in the Bible, though they could not be Priests, neither could just any man, but only Levites could be Priests. Women (as well as men) were required to make a pilgrimage to the Temple in Jerusalem once a year (men each of the three main festivals if they could) and offer the Passover sacrifice. They would also do so on special occasions in their lives such as giving a todah ("thanksgiving") offering after childbirth. Hence, they participated in many of the major public religious roles that non-Levitical men could, albeit less often and on a somewhat smaller and generally more discreet scale.

Hebrew Bible scholar Tikva Frymer-Kensky says there are evidences of "gender blindness" in the Hebrew Bible.[13]:166–167 Most theologians agree the Hebrew Bible does not depict the slave, the poor, or women, as different in 'essence' from men in the manner of the Greeks and Romans of the same era.[13]:166–167 In the Greek world, the polarized view of women allowed some classics authors to write about women as another race.[14]:41 In the Bible, the goals of women are no different from those of men.[14]:42 Theologians Evelyn Stagg and Frank Stagg say the Ten Commandments of Exodus 20 contain aspects of both male priority and gender balance.[15]:21 In the tenth commandment against coveting, a wife is depicted in the examples not to be coveted: house, wife, male or female slave, ox or donkey, or 'anything that belongs to your neighbour.' On the other hand, the fifth commandment to honor parents does not make any distinction in the honor to be shown between one parent and another.[16]:11,12

Old Testament scholar Christine Roy Yoder says that in the Book of Proverbs, the divine attribute of Holy Wisdom is presented as female. She points out that "on the one hand" such a reference elevates women, and "on the other hand" the "strange" woman also in Proverbs "perpetuates the stereotype of woman as either wholly good or wholly evil."[17]

According to Frymer-Kensky, the Hebrew Bible often portrays women as victors, leaders and heroines with qualities Israel should emulate. Hagar, Tamar, Miriam, Rahab, Deborah, Esther, and Yael/Jael, are among many female "saviors" of Israel: "victor stories follow the paradigm of Israel's central sacred story: the lowly are raised, the marginal come to the center, the poor boy makes good."[13]:333–337 She goes on to say these women conquered the enemy "by their wits and daring, were symbolic representations of their people, and pointed to the salvation of Israel."[13]:333–337

The Hebrew Bible portrays women as victims as well as victors.[13]:166–167 For example, in Numbers 31, the Israelites slay the people of Midian, except for 32,000 virgin women who are kept as spoils of war.[18][19] Frymer-Kensky says the Bible author uses vulnerable women symbolically "as images of an Israel that is also small and vulnerable..."[13]:333–337 Frymer-Kensky says "This is not misogynist story-telling but something far more complex in which the treatment of women becomes the clue to the morality of the social order."[13]:174 Professor of Religion J. David Pleins says these tales are included by the Deuteronomic historian to demonstrate the evils of life without a centralized shrine and single political authority.[20]

Sex, marriage and family

Marriage and family law in the Bible favored men over women. For example, a husband could divorce a wife if he chose to, but a wife could not divorce a husband without his consent. The law said a woman could not make a binding vow without consent of her male authority, so she could not legally marry without male approval. The practice of levirate marriage applied to widows of childless deceased husbands, not to widowers of childless deceased wives; though, if either he or she didn't consent to the marriage, a different ceremony called chalitza was done instead; this involves the widow removing her brother-in-law's shoe, spitting in front of him, and proclaiming, "This is what happens to someone who will not build his brother's house!". (Levirate marriage is not performed in modern times.) Laws concerning the loss of female virginity have no male equivalent. Women in biblical times depended on men economically. Women generally did not own property except in the rare case of inheriting land from a father who didn't bear sons. Even "in such cases, women would be required to remarry within the tribe so as not to reduce its land holdings".[2] Property was transferred through the male line and women could not inherit unless there were no male heirs (Numbers 27:1-11; 36:1-12).[12]:3 These and other gender-based differences found in the Torah suggest that women were seen as subordinate to men; however, they also suggest that biblical society viewed continuity, property, and family unity as paramount.[2]

Philosopher Michael Berger says, the rural family was the backbone of biblical society. Women did tasks as important as those of men, managed their households, and were equals in daily life, but all public decisions were made by men. Men had specific obligations they were required to perform for their wives including the provision of clothing, food, and sexual relations.[21] Ancient Israel was a frontier and life was "tough." Everyone was a "small holder" and had to work hard to survive. A large percentage of children died early, and those that survived, learned to share the burdens and responsibilities of family life as they grew. The marginal environment required a strict authority structure: parents had to not just be honored but not be challenged. Ungovernable children, especially adult children, had to be kept in line or eliminated. Respect for the dead was obligatory, and sexual lines were rigidly drawn. Virginity was expected, adultery the worst of crimes, and even suspicion of adultery led to trial by ordeal.[22]:1,2 Adultery was defined differently for men than for women: a woman was an adulteress if she had sexual relations outside her marriage, but if a man had sexual relations outside his marriage with an unmarried woman, a concubine or a prostitute, it was not considered adultery on his part.[12]:3 A woman was considered "owned by a master."[14]:20,21 A woman was always under the authority of a man: her father, her brothers, her husband, and since she did not inherit, eventually her eldest son.[22]:1,2 She was subject to strict purity laws, both ritual and moral, and non-conforming sex—homosexuality, bestiality, cross dressing and masturbation—was punished. Stringent protection of the marital bond and loyalty to kin was very strong.[22]:20

The zonah of the Hebrew Bible is a woman free of patriarchal authority. She may be a paid prostitute, but not necessarily. She lives a life similar to a young man's, free from domestic encumbrances, with energy, a love of war, and lovers. "She is dangerous, fearsome and threatening by her freedom, and yet appealing and attractive at the same time." Her freedom is recognized by biblical law and her sexual activity is not punishable because she is unmarried.[14]:42 She is the source of extra-institutional sex. Therefore she is a threat to patriarchy and the family structure it supports.[14]:43

Dinah's brothers are outraged that their sister was treated like one; Judah goes in search of one; the people go to the Moabite women that way; Joshua's spies go to Rahab; Samson goes to one; Yiftah is the son of one, as is Jephthah; the women who have the dispute about the dead babies are called zonot. The Law provides a general prohibition against turning one's daughter into one; a priest may not marry one; a bride found not to be a virgin is called one; and the professional fees of a zonah cannot be used as an offering in the sanctuary.[14]:43

This kind of unencumbered sexual activity became a metaphor in the Hebrew Bible for improper behavior. The people are said to act like zonah when they chased after other gods or other nations. Jerusalem and Zion are accused of playing the zonah. [14]:43 The term zonah appears 136 times in the Hebrew Bible, primarily in Ezekiel and Hosea, but the worst zonah is a married woman who acts like one. The lurid descriptions and the punishment accorded her in the Bible are both brutal and pornographic.[14]:43

Rahab

Joshua 2 begins the story of Rahab the prostitute (zonah), a resident of Jericho, who was known by the king of Jericho, and also the spies, since they knew her well enough to go and stay with her. The king knew the spies were there and sent soldiers to Rahab's house to capture them, but Rahab hid them, sent the soldiers off in misdirection, and lied to the King on their behalf. She said "“I know that the Lord has given you this land and that a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you. We have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed. When we heard of it, our hearts melted in fear and everyone’s courage failed because of you, for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below. Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that you will show kindness to my family, because I have shown kindness to you. Give me a sure sign that you will spare the lives of my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them—and that you will save us from death.” (Joshua 2:9-13) She was told to tie a scarlet cord in the same window through which she helped the spies escape, and to have all her family in the house with her and not to go into the streets, and if she did not comply, their blood would be on their own heads. She did comply, and she and her whole family were saved before the city was burned (Joshua 6).

Tamar

Tamar is Judah's daughter–in–law. She was married to Judah's son Er, but Er died, leaving Tamar childless. Under levirate law, Judah's next son, Onan, was told to have sex with Tamar and give her a child, but when Onan slept with her, he "spilled his seed on the ground" rather than give her a child that would belong to his brother. Then Onan died too. "Judah then said to his daughter-in-law Tamar, 'Live as a widow in your father’s household until my son Shelah grows up.' For he thought, 'He may die too, just like his brothers'." (Genesis 38:11) But when Shelah grew up, she was not given to him as his wife. One day Judah travels to town (Timnah) to shear his sheep. Tamar "took off her widow’s clothes, covered herself with a veil to disguise herself, and then sat down at the entrance to Enaim, which is on the road to Timnah. When Judah saw her, he thought she was a prostitute, for she had covered her face. Not realizing that she was his daughter-in-law, he went over to her by the roadside and said, 'Come now, let me sleep with you'."(Genesis 38:14) He said he would give her something in return and she asked for a pledge, accepting his staff and his seal with its cord as earnest of later payment. So Judah slept with her and she became pregnant. Then she went home and put on her widow's weeds again. Months later when it was discovered she was pregnant, she was accused of prostitution (zonah), and was set to be burned. Instead, she sent Judah's pledge offerings to him saying "I am pregnant by the man who owns these. Judah recognized them and said, “She is more righteous than I, since I wouldn’t give her to my son Shelah.”

Jephthah's daughter
The Daughter of Jephthah, by Alexandre Cabanel (1879).

The story of Jephthah's daughter begins as an archetypal biblical hagiography of a hero. Jephthah is the son of a marginal woman, a prostitute (zonah), and as such he is vulnerable. He lives in his father's house, but when his father dies, his half-brothers reject him. According to Frymer-Kensky, "This is not right. In the ancient Near East prostitutes could be hired as surrogate wombs as well as sex objects. Laws and contracts regulated the relationship between the child of such a prostitute and children of the first wife... he could not be disinherited. Jephthah has been wronged, but he has no recourse. He must leave home." Frymer-Kensky says the author assumes the biblical audience is familiar with this, will know Jephthah has been wronged, and will be sympathetic to him.[23]:102–115

Nevertheless, Jephthah goes out into the world and makes a name for himself as a mighty warrior—a hero of Israel. The threat of the Ammonites is grave. The brothers acknowledge their wrongdoing to gain his protection. Frymer-Kensky says Jephthah's response reveals negotiation skills and deep piety. Then he attempts to negotiate peace with Ammon but fails. War it is, with all of Israel vulnerable. Before the battle he makes a battle vow: "If you give the Ammonites into my hand...the one who comes out of the doors of my house...I will offer to YHWH." This turns out to be his daughter. Jephthah's reaction expresses his horror and sense of tragedy in three key expressions of mourning, utter defeat, and reproach. He reproaches her and himself, but foresees only his doom in either keeping or breaking his vow. Jephthah's daughter responds to his speech and she becomes a true heroine of this story. They are both good, yet tragedy happens. Frymer-Kensky summarizes: "The vulnerable heroine is sacrificed, the hero's name is gone."[23] She adds, the author of the book of Judges knew people were sacrificing their children and the narrator of Judges is in opposition. "The horror is the very reason this story is in the book of Judges."[23]:115

Some scholars have interpreted this story to mean that Jephthah's daughter was not actually sacrificed, but kept in seclusion.[24][25]:137

Jael/Yael

In the days of Deborah the judge and Barak the leader of the army, they led a campaign against Sisera the commander of the army of Canaan. Sisera summoned all his men and 900 iron chariots, but Sisera was routed and fled on foot. "Barak pursued the chariots and army as far as Harosheth Haggoyim, and all Sisera’s troops fell by the sword; not a man was left. Sisera, meanwhile, fled on foot to the tent of Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite, because there was an alliance between Jabin king of Hazor and the family of Heber the Kenite." Jael gave him drink, covered him with a blanket, and when, exhausted from battle, Sisera slept, Jael picked up a tent peg and a hammer and drove the peg into his temple all the way into the ground and he died.

Noted women in the Hebrew Bible

Eve

Creation of Eve, marble relief by Lorenzo Maitani, Orvieto Cathedral, Italy, c. 1300

The story of Eve begins in Genesis 2:18 when "The Lord God said, 'It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him'... Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man... That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh. Adam and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.” (Genesis 2:18-25) Eve is deceived, tempted and indulges, then shares with her husband who apparently neither questions nor argues. Their eyes are opened and they realize they are naked, and they make coverings from fig leaves. When God comes to the garden, they hide, and God knows something is wrong. Everyone attempts to shift the blame, but they all end up bearing the responsibility, receiving their own curses, and getting thrown out of the garden. (Genesis 2)

Trible and Frymer-Kensky find the story of Eve in Genesis implies no inferiority of Eve to Adam; the word helpmate (ezer) connotes a mentor in the Bible rather than an assistant and is used frequently for the relation of God to Israel (not Israel to God).[11][13]:168 Trible points out that, in mythology, the last-created thing is traditionally the culmination of creation, which is implied in Genesis 1 where man is created after everything else–except Eve.[11]

New Testament scholar Craig Blomberg says ancient Jews might have seen the order of creation in terms of the laws of primogeniture (both in their scriptures and in surrounding cultures) and interpreted Adam being created first as a sign of privilege.[26]:129 Susan Lanser says biblical authors could have expected their readers to respond in culturally conditioned ways, relying on patriarchal attitudes to condemn Eve.[13]:168[27]:77

Hagar and Sarah

Phyllis Trible says Abraham is an important figure in the Bible, yet "his story pivots on two women."[10][11]:9 Hagar was Sarah's personal slave and Abraham's concubine. According to Trible, the text says Sarah used, abused then finally rejected Hagar for good.[11]:9–17 Frymer-Kensky says "This story starkly illuminates the relations between women in a patriarchy." She adds that it demonstrates the problems associated with gender intersecting with the disadvantages of class: Sarah has the power, her actions are legal not compassionate, but her motives are clear: "she [Sarah] is vulnerable, making her incapable of compassion toward her social inferior."[23]:98

Deborah

Deborah Beneath the Palm Tree (c. 1896-1902) by James Tissot

The Book of Judges describes the work of Deborah, as a prophet (Judges 4:4 ), a judge of Israel (Judges 4:4-5), the wife of Lapidoth and a mother (Judges 5:7). She was based in the region between Ramah in Benjamin and Bethel in the land of Ephraim.[28] Deborah could also be described as a warrior, leader of war, and a leader of faith. (Judges 4:6-22).

The narrative describes the people of Israel as having been oppressed by Jabin, the king of Canaan, for twenty years. Deborah sends a prophetic message to Barak to raise an army and fight them, but Barak refuses to do so without her. Deborah declares his refusal means the glory of the victory will belong to a woman.[28] A battle is fought (led by Barak), and Sisera, the enemy commander, is defeated. Sisera escapes on foot, comes to the tent of the woman Jael, and lies down to rest. While he is asleep, Jael hammers a tent-pin through his temple.[28]

The Levite's concubine

The Levite finds his concubine lying on the doorstep, James Tissot

The Levite's concubine in the book of Judges is "vulnerable as she is only a minor wife, a concubine".[13]:173 She is one of the biblical nameless. Frymer-Kensky says this story is also an example of class intersecting with gender and power: when she is unhappy she runs home, only to have her father give her to another, the Levite. The Levite and his concubine travel to a strange town where they are vulnerable because they travel alone without extended family to rescue them; strangers attack. To protect the Levite, his host offers his daughter to the mob and the Levite sends out his concubine. Trible says "The story makes us realize that in those days men had ultimate powers of disposal over their women."[11]:65–89 Frymer-Kensky says the scene is similar to one in the Sodom and Gomorrah story when Lot sent his daughters to the mob, but in Genesis the angels save them, and in the book of Judges God is no longer intervening. The concubine is raped to death.[13]:173

The Levite butchers her body and uses it to rouse Israel against the tribe of Benjamin. Civil war follows nearly wiping out an entire tribe. To resuscitate it, hundreds of women are captured and forced into marriage. Fryman-Kensky says, "Horror follows horror."[13] The narrator caps off the story with "in those days there was no king in Israel and every man did as he pleased." The decline of Israel is reflected in the violence against women that takes place when government fails and social upheaval occurs.[29]:14

According to Old Testament scholar Jerome Creach, some feminist critiques of Judges say the Bible gives tacit approval to violence against women by not speaking out against these acts.[29]:14 Frymer-Kensky says leaving moral conclusions to the reader is a recognized method of writing called gapping used in many Bible stories.[13]:395 Biblical scholar Michael Patrick O'Connor attributed acts of violence against women described in the Book of Judges to a period of crisis in the society of ancient Israel before the institution of kingship.[30] Yet others have alleged such problems are innate to patriarchy.[10]

The Shunammite woman

Elisha and the Shunammite woman. Gerbrand van den Eeckhout, 1649.

Biblical scholar Burke Long focuses on the "great woman" of Shunnem who appears in the Book of Kings.[31] He says the Shunammite woman is seen to acknowledge and respect the prophet Elisha's position yet is a "determined mover and shaper of events." The Shunammite was an independent woman. She is able to extend patronage, then becomes a determined petitioner willing to confront prophet and King in pursuit of the well being of her household.[13]:164 According to Frymer-Kensky, this narrative demonstrates how gender intersects with class in the Bible's portrayal of ancient Israel. These stories "take place among the rural poor" against a "backdrop of extreme poverty. The Shunammite is wealthy, giving her more boldness than poor women or sometimes even poor men."[13]:164

Huldah

2 Kings 22 shows it was not unusual for women to be prophetesses in ancient Israel even if they could not be priests.[13]:167 Josiah the King was having the Temple repaired when the High Priest Hilkiah found the Book of the Law which had been lost. He gave it to Shaphan the king's scribe, who read it, then Shaphan took it and gave it to King Josiah. The king tore his robes in distress and said "Go and inquire of the Lord for me ..." So they did, going to the prophet Huldah the wife of Shallum. The text does not comment on the fact this prophet was a woman, but says only that they took her answer back to the king (verse 20) thereby demonstrating there was nothing unusual in a female prophet.[13]:161

Abigail

Abigail was the wife of Nabal, who refused to assist the future king David after having accepted his help. Abigail, realizing David's anger will be dangerous to the entire household, acts immediately. She intercepts David bearing gifts and, with what Frymer-Kensky describes as Abigail's "brilliant rhetoric", convinces David not to kill anyone. When Nabal later dies, David weds her. Frymer-Kensky says "Once again an intelligent determined woman is influential far beyond the confines of patriarchy" showing biblical women had what anthropology terms informal power.[13]:166

Tamar

Desolation of Tamar by J.Tissot

The story of Tamar is a literary unit consisting of seven parts. According to Frymer-Kensky, the story "has received a great deal of attention as a superb piece of literature, and several have concentrated on explicating the artistry involved."[23]:399 This story focuses on three of King David's children, Amnon the first born, Absalom the beloved son, and his beautiful sister Tamar.[11]:38

Amnon desires Tamar deeply. Immediately after explaining Amnon's desire the narrator first uses the term sister to reveal Tamar is not only Absalom's sister but is also Amnon's sister by another mother. Phyllis Trible says the storyteller "stresses family ties for such intimacy exacerbates the coming tragedy." Full of lust, the prince is impotent to act; Tamar is a virgin and protected property. Then comes a plan from his cousin Jonadab, "a very crafty man."[11]:39

Jonadab's scheme to aid Amnon pivots on David the king. Amnon pretends to be sick and David comes to see him.[11]:43 He asks that his sister Tamar make him food and feed him. The king orders it sending a message to Tamar.[11]:44 Amnon sends the servants away. Alone with her brother she is vulnerable, but Tamar claims her voice. Frymer-Kensky says Tamar speaks to Amnon with wisdom, but she speaks to a foolish man. She attempts to dissuade him, then offers the alternative of marriage, and tells him to appeal to the king. He does not listen, and rapes her.[11]:45

Amnon is immediately full of shame and angrily throws Tamar out. “No!” she said to him. “Sending me away would be a greater wrong than what you have already done to me.” But he refuses to listen. Tamar is desolate: ruined and miserable. King David is furious but he does nothing to avenge his daughter or punish his son. Frymer Kensky says "The reader of the story who expects that the state will provide protection for the vulnerable now sees that the state cannot control itself."[13]:174 Absalom is filled with hatred, and kills Amnon two years later. Absalom then rebels against his father and is also killed.[11]:48

Ruth

Ruth on the fields of Boaz by Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld

Ruth is the title character of the Book of Ruth. In the narrative, she is not an Israelite but rather is from Moab; she marries an Israelite. Both her husband and her father-in-law die, and she helps her mother-in-law, Naomi, find protection. The two of them travel to Bethlehem together, where Ruth wins the love of Boaz through her kindness.[32]

She is one of five women mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus found in the Gospel of Matthew, alongside Tamar, Rahab, the "wife of Uriah" (Bathsheba), and Mary.[33]

Esther

Esther is described in the Book of Esther as a Jewish queen of the Persian king Ahasuerus. In the narrative, Ahasuerus seeks a new wife after his queen, Vashti, refuses to obey him, and Esther is chosen for her beauty. The king's chief advisor, Haman, is offended by Esther's cousin and guardian, Mordecai, and gets permission from the king to have all the Jews in the kingdom killed. Esther foils the plan, and wins permission from the king for the Jews to kill their enemies, and they do so. Her story is the traditional basis for Purim, which is celebrated on the date given in the story for when Haman's order was to go into effect, which is the same day that Jews kill their enemies after the plan is reversed.[34]

New Testament

The New Testament is the second part of the Christian Bible. It tells about the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christianity. It consists of four narratives called gospels about the life, teaching, death and resurrection of Jesus. It includes a record of the Apostolic ministries in the early church, called the Acts of the Apostles; twenty-one letters called "epistles" written by various authors to specific groups with specific needs concerning Christian doctrine, counsel, instruction, and conflict resolution; and one Apocalyptic book, the Book of Revelation, which is a book of prophecy, containing some instructions to seven local congregations of Asia Minor, but mostly containing prophetical symbology about the end times.[35]

New Testament views on gender

The New Testament names many women among the followers of Jesus and in positions of leadership in the early church.[36][37] New Testament scholar Linda Belleville says "virtually every leadership role that names a man also names a woman. In fact there are more women named as leaders in the New Testament than men. Phoebe is a 'deacon' and a 'benefactor' (Romans 16:11-2). Mary, Lydia and Nympha are overseers of house churches (Acts 12:12; 16:15; Colossians 4:15). Euodia and Syntyche are among 'the overseers and deacons' at Philippi (Philippians 1:1; cf, 4:2-3). The only role lacking specific female names is that of 'elder'--but there male names are lacking as well."[38]:54,112

New Testament scholar Craig Blomberg and other complementarians agree there are three primary texts that challenge egalitarianism that are also critical to the traditional view of women: "1 Corinthians 14:34-35, where women are commanded to be silent in the church; 1 Timothy 2:11-15 where women (according to the TNIV) are not permitted to teach or have authority over a man; and 1 Corinthians 11:2-16 where the male and female relationship is defined in terms of kephalē commonly translated head."[26][38]:97

Jesus' interactions with women

Orthodox icon of Photina, the Samaritan woman, meeting Jesus by the well.

The New Testament refers to a number of women in Jesus’ inner circle. Jesus often spoke directly to women in public. The disciples were astonished to see Jesus talking with the Samaritan woman at the well of Sychar (John 4:7-26). He spoke freely with the woman taken in adultery (John 8:10–11), with the widow of Nain (Luke 7:12–13), the woman with the bleeding disorder (Luke 8:48; cf. Matt. 9:22; Mark 5:34), and a woman who called to him from a crowd (Luke 11:27–28). Similarly, Jesus addressed a woman bent over for eighteen years (Luke 13:12) and a group of women on the route to the cross (Luke 23:27-31). Jesus spoke in a thoughtful, caring manner. Each synoptic writer records Jesus addressing the woman with the bleeding disorder tenderly as “daughter” and he refers to the bent woman as a “daughter of Abraham” (Luke 13:16). Theologian Donald G. Bloesch infers that “Jesus called the Jewish women ‘daughters of Abraham’ (Luke 13:16), thereby according them a spiritual status equal to that of men.”[39]:28

Jesus held women personally responsible for their own sin as seen in his dealings with the woman at the well (John 4:16–18), the woman taken in adultery (John 8:10–11), and the sinful woman who anointed his feet (Luke 7:44–50). Jesus dealt with each as having the personal freedom and enough self-determination to deal with their own repentance and forgiveness. There are several Gospel accounts of Jesus imparting important teachings to and about women: his public admiration for a poor widow who donated two copper coins to the Temple in Jerusalem, his friendship with Mary of Bethany and Martha, the sisters of Lazarus, and the presence of Mary Magdalene, his mother, and the other women as he was crucified. New Testament scholar Ben Witherington III says "Jesus broke with both biblical and rabbinic traditions that restricted women's roles in religious practices, and He rejected attempts to devalue the worth of a woman, or her word of witness."[16]:127

Women in the early church

Sociologist Linda L. Lindsey says "Belief in the spiritual equality of the genders (Galatians 3:28) and Jesus' inclusion of women in prominent roles, led the early New Testament church to recognize women's contributions to charity, evangelism and teaching."[40]:131 Pliny the Younger explains in his letters to Emperor Trajan that Christianity had people from every age and rank, and both sexes, with women in leadership roles.[41] Professor of religion Margaret Y. MacDonald uses a "social scientific concept of power" which distinguishes between power and authority to show early Christian women, while lacking overt authority, still retained sufficient indirect power and influence to play a significant role in Christianity's beginnings.[42] According to MacDonald, much of the vociferous pagan criticism of the early church is evidence of this "female initiative" which contributed to the reasons Roman society saw Christianity as a threat.[43]:127[44] Accusations that Christianity undermined the Roman family and male authority in the home were used to stir up opposition to Christianity and negatively influence public opinion.[43]:126[45]

MacDonald explains that the pagan critic's focus on women draws attention to "the essence of a group where power is exercised in dangerous, illegitimate ways; where the norms of household order are subverted; where traditional male control of house and school is compromised; where the public practices of religion are ignored in favor of a god who is worshipped in private; and where the only wisdom comes from magic lore" about Jesus' miracles and resurrection.[43]:126

Some New Testament texts (1 Peter 2:12;3:15-16; 1 Timothy 3:6-7;5:14) explicitly discuss early Christian communities being burdened by slanderous rumors because of Roman society perceiving Christianity as a threat. Christians were accused of incest because they spoke of each other as brother and sister and of loving one another, and they were accused of cannibalism because of the Lord's supper as well as being accused of undermining family and society. Such negative public opinion played a part in the persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire.[43]:127[46] MacDonald says some New Testament texts concerning the behavior of women were written in response to these dangerous circumstances.[43]

Noted women in the New Testament

Junia

Paul wrote in Romans 16:7 "Greet Andronicus and Junia, my fellow Jews who have been in prison with me. They are outstanding among the apostles, and they were in Christ before I was." Bible translator Hayk Hovhannisyan says Junia was a woman and there is consensus supporting this view.[47]:297[48]:241,242 "Some scholars argue that Junia was really a man by the name of Junias... Whether this name is masculine or feminine depends on how the word was accented in Greek. ...scribes wrote Junia as feminine. Examination of ancient Greek and Latin literature confirms this idea. The masculine name Junias is nowhere attested, whereas the female name Junia...is found more than 250 times..."[47]

Belleville says some traditionalists translate [outstanding among the apostles] as "esteemed by the apostles." "The justification for this change is the contention that all biblical and extra-biblical parallels to Romans 16:7 are exclusive (esteemed by apostles, well known to apostles) rather than inclusive (honored as one of the apostles, "among" the apostles)...[but] proof is wholly lacking. ...The preposition en plus the dative plural with rare exception is inclusive "in/among" and not the exclusive "to". ...the parallels... plus the dative plural bear the inclusive meaning "a notable member of the larger group."[38]:36–40[47]:280 Professor of New Testament Craig S. Keener says the early church understood Andronicus and Junia to be a husband and wife apostolic team. "Paul nowhere limits the apostolic company to twelve plus himself as some have assumed." Keener says "it is unnatural to read the text as merely claiming that they had a high reputation with the apostles."[48]:242

Minister and Professor Leland E. Wilshire says New Testament critic Eldon Jay Epp's work comparing the Junia passage to Lucian's second century Dialogues of the Dead "has resolved the Junia controversy" by convincingly proving the phrase should be rendered with Junia as a female and as one of the apostles.[49]:4

Priscilla

In Romans 16:3-5 Paul refers to the married couple Priscilla and Aquilla as his "fellow workers" saying they risked their lives for him. Paul worked and seemingly lived with them for a considerable time, and they followed him to Ephesus before he left on his next missionary journey. In Acts 18:25,26 Luke says Apollos, a "learned man," came to Ephesus and began speaking in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquilla heard him, they took him with them and "explained the way of God more accurately." Hayk Hovhannisyan says "either Priscilla was unaware of [Paul's doctrine that a woman shouldn't teach a man], which is virtually impossible; or she knew about it and decided to rebel--or the doctrine did not exist."[47]:275

Mary of Bethany

Theologian and ethicist Stanley Grenz with Professor Denise Muir Kjesbo say it was the norm in first century Palestine for the education of women to end sometime around puberty, and that most Rabbis believed it was inappropriate to instruct women in the study of the Torah. In the story of Mary of Bethany, Jesus demonstrates His willingness to turn accepted cultural expectations upside down. In Luke 10:39, the author says Mary sat "at Jesus feet." The author "chooses terminology associated with rabbinic study (compare Acts 22:3), suggesting that Mary became Jesus' student."[50]:75

Mary Magdalene

Appearance of Jesus Christ to Maria Magdalena (1835) by Alexander Andreyevich Ivanov.

New Testament scholar Mary Ann Getty-Sullivan says Mary Magdalene, or Mary from the town of Magdala, is sometimes "erroneously identified as the sinner who anointed Jesus according to Luke's description in Luke 7:36-50. She is at times also confused with Mary of Bethany, the sister of Martha and Lazarus (John 12:1-8)", and is sometimes assumed to be the woman caught in adultery (John 7:53-8:11), though there is nothing in the text to indicate that. Luke qualifies her as "one who was healed" but otherwise little is known about her. Mary Magdalene is named first in all lists of women except the one in John 19:25 which likely indicates a position of leadership among the women. The leadership of women prompted negative pagan response.[43]:102–105 There is nothing to directly indicate Mary Magdalene was a former prostitute, and some scholars believe she was a woman of means who helped support Jesus and his ministry.[51]:183–187

In John 20:1-13, Mary Magdalene sees the risen Jesus alone and he tells her "Don't touch me, for I have not yet ascended to my father."[52]:464[53]:228

New Testament scholar Ben Witherington III says John is the only evangelist with a "keen interest" in portraying women in Jesus' story, yet, the "only Easter event narrated by all four evangelists concerns the visit of the women to the tomb of Jesus."[54]:161 Mary Magdalene and the other women go to anoint Jesus' body at the tomb, but find the body gone. Mary Magdalene is inconsolable, but she turns and Jesus' speaks to her. He calls her by name and she recognizes him.[54]:173,178 Witherington adds, "There are certain parallels between the story of the appearance to Mary and John 20:24-31 (when Jesus appears to Thomas) [however] Mary is given an apostolic task (to go tell the men) and Thomas is not... There is little doubt the Fourth evangelist wishes to portray Mary Magdalene as important, perhaps equally important for Jesus' fledgling community as Mother Mary herself."[54]:179, 181

The Roman writer Celsus left one of the primary antique anti-Christian works still in existence. Margaret MacDonald says his study of Christian scripture led him to focus on Mary Magdalene as the witness to the resurrection, as someone deluded by the "sorcery" by which Jesus did miracles, and as someone who then becomes one of Jesus' primary "instigators" and "perpetrators". MacDonald explains that, "In Celsus' work, Mary Magdalene's role in the resurrection story denigrates its credibility... From beginning to end, [Celsus says] the story of Jesus' life has been shaped by the 'fanciful imaginings' of women" thus lending enemy attestation to the importance of women in the early church and of Mary Magdalene herself.[43]:104

MacDonald sees this negative view of Mary as reflecting a challenge taking place within the church of the second century. This was a challenge to Mary's role as a woman disciple and to leadership roles for women in general. "The challenge to Mary's position has been evaluated as an indication of tensions between the existing fact of women's leadership in Christian communities and traditional Greco-Roman views about gender roles."[43]:105 MacDonald adds that "Several apocryphal and gnostic texts provide evidence of such a controversy."[43]:105[55]

Contemporary views on women in the New Testament

There is no consensus on the New Testament view of women. Psychologist James R. Beck points out that "Evangelical Christians have not yet settled the exegetical and theological issues."[56]:343 The early liberal Christianity represented by the development of historical criticism did no better: Elizabeth Cady Stanton tells of the committee that formed The Woman's Bible in 1895. Twenty six women purchased two Bibles, and went through them, cutting out every text that concerned women. These were pasted into a book with commentaries underneath. Its purpose was to challenge Liberal theology of the time that supported the orthodox position that woman should be subservient to man. The book attracted a great deal of controversy and antagonism. Contemporary Christianity is still divided between those who support equality of all types for women in the church, those who support spiritual equality with the compartmentalization of roles, and those who support a more modern equivalent of patriarchy.[57]:3-5

Paul the Apostle and women

Paul the Apostle was the first writer to give ecclesiastical directives about the role of women in the church. Some of these are now heavily disputed. There are also arguments that some of the writings attributed to Paul are pseudepigraphal post-Pauline interpolations.[58] Scholars agree certain texts attributed to Paul and the Pauline epistles have provided much support for the view of the role of women as subservient.[49]:22–34[38][47] Others have claimed culture has imposed a particular translation upon his texts that Paul did not actually support.[38]:80–97

1 Corinthians 14:34-35

Traditional complementarians explain that Paul distinguishes between "public and private, authoritative and non-authoritative, formal and informal" types of instruction. Linda Belleville says those distinctions are not reflected in the Greek. She also asserts the traditional English translations of these verses is colored by hierarchical bias. She uses 1 Corinthians 11:2-5 to demonstrate this by showing Paul approved women "praying and prophesying," which requires speaking in the church, adding that the context of 1 Corinthians 14 is about the order of worship and is corrective not directive.[38]:80–97

1 Timothy 2:11-15

According to Belleville, there is no other New Testament letter in which women figure as prominently as they do in 1 Timothy. "All told, 20% of the letter focuses on women."[38] Theologian Leland Wilshire says English translations of 1 Timothy 2:12b (which contains the clause authentein andros) have traditionally been translated "to have authority." Wilshire conducted a computer study and concluded "a whole theology excluding women has been built on this clause" which the computer indicates is a mis-translation in the English.[49]:22–34 Wilshire says there is a "strange and unusual verbal infinitive, (authentein), in the original language," which is used only this once in the New Testament. He adds "no other usages of this particular word in its infinitive form can be discovered in the whole of extant Greek literature outside of later repetitions" of this verse. This word "is not one of the common words used throughout the New Testament for "exercising or having authority" nor is it the same word used to describe the activity of "ruling" by any church office within the pastoral epistles."[49]:9–10 Wilshire says there has been little to no attempt within the traditional church to solve these linguistic difficulties using philological and historical methods.[49]:10

1 Timothy 5:3-16 and 3:1-7

Writings such as 1 Timothy 5:3-16 and 3:1-7 concerning the behavior of widows "reflect a heightened concern for the honor of the community" and offer a clear indication of what those who wanted to slander the community were saying.[43]:157 Widows in Greco-Roman society could not inherit their husband's estate[44] and could find themselves in desperate circumstances, but almost from the beginning the church offered widows support.[43]:137 Roman law required a widow to remarry;[44] Paul says a woman is better off if she remains unmarried.[43]:138 MacDonald explains that, "Through their deeds, the widows may have confirmed the suspicion of critics that early Christianity largely involved female initiative."[43]:158

She concludes that concerns about the public visibility of women are evident in the return to Roman concepts of traditional household roles in 1 Timothy 2:11-15 and in 1 Corinthians 14:34-5.[43]:164 There is ongoing dispute over their correct translation.[38][47][48]

1 Corinthians 11:2-16

Wilshire says the issue in 1 Corinthians 11:3-16 is whether the term kephalē translated head implies domination or subjection.[49]:49 "To say that the woman is the glory of man may have the concept of ennobling rather than a subservient or demeaning meaning."[49]:49

Apostle Peter on women

In 1 Peter 3 wives are exhorted to submit to their husbands "so they may be won over." Theologian Scot McKnight says: "This is entirely consistent with Peter's agenda at 2:11-12, that Christians live such holy lives that nothing can be lodged against the gospel because of their behavior;" this reference may be a reflection of cultural circumstances of negative pagan opinion.[9][43]

Professor James B. Hurley presents the complementarian view saying Peter's statements are not just a strategy for converting pagan husbands but are a reflection of Peter's belief that marriage is modeled after Christ and the church, Jesus' suffering and self-sacrifice, the lives of holy women, doing right, with both husbands and wives as "fellow heirs". Hurley says Peter presents the woman's role as "of great worth" to both God and the woman herself.[59]

Evolution of views on female sexuality in the early church

Historically, differing interpretations of women in the Bible have also impacted views on sexuality, marriage, and family life. Rodney Stark says these teachings have affected the status of women by promoting monogamy, condemning marital infidelity by both genders, limiting divorce, forbidding incest, polygamy, infanticide (female infants were more likely to be 'exposed' and killed), and abortion and have been both influential and controversial.[60]:104

Classics professor Kyle Harper explains that views on sexuality in the early church were diverse and fiercely debated within its various communities; these debates took place within the boundaries of the ideas in Paul's letters (especially the first three chapters of his first letter to the Corinthians) and in the context of an often persecuted minority seeking to define its difference from the world around it. In his letters, Paul often attempted to find a middle way among these disputes, which included people who saw the gospel as liberating them from all moral boundaries, and those who took very strict moral stances.[61]:84–86, 88

Christianity began within the social environment of the Roman empire which had inherited some of its sexual views and mores from the Greek world. Both the ancient Greeks and the Romans cared and wrote about sexual morality within categories of good and bad, pure and defiled, and ideal and transgression.[62] But the sexual-ethical structures of Roman society were built on status, and sexual modesty meant something different for men than it did for women, and for the well-born than it did for the poor, and for the free citizen than it did for the slave. Roman society did not believe slaves had an inner ethical life since they had no status, therefore concepts of sexual morality were not applicable to slaves.[61]:7

Scholars of early Christianity such as MacDonald and Harper, along with classics Professor John Younger, say shame was a profoundly social concept that was, in ancient Rome, always mediated by gender and status.[63] Classics Professor Rebecca Langlands adds "It was not enough that a wife merely regulate her sexual behavior in the accepted ways; it was required that her virtue in this area be conspicuous."[62]:38 Younger says men, on the other hand, were allowed live-in mistresses called pallake.[63] Langlands points out this permitted Roman society to find both a husband's control of a wife's sexual behavior a matter of intense importance, and at the same time, see the husband's sex with young boys as of little concern.[62]:12,20 Harper explains: "The model of normative sexual behavior that developed principally out of Paul's reactions to the erotic culture surrounding him...was a distinct alternative to the social order of the Roman empire."[61]:85 For Paul, according to Harper, "the body was a consecrated space, a point of mediation between the individual and the divine."[61]:88–92 The obligation for sexual self-control was placed equally on all people in the Christian communities, men or women, slave or free. Harper says this was a transformation in the deep logic of sexual morality.[61]:6,7

In Paul's letters, porneia, a single name for an array of sexual behaviors outside marital intercourse, became a central defining concept of sexual morality, and shunning it, a key sign of choosing to follow Jesus. That choice could be shown by forgoing sex altogether and practicing chastity, remaining virgin, or having sex only within a marriage. Margaret MacDonald discusses female celibacy and negative pagan response producing a "shift in perspective concerning unmarried women from Paul's [early] day to the time of the Pastoral epistles." Many widows and single women were choosing not to marry and were staying celibate and proselytizing; pagan response to this female activity was negative and sometimes violent toward Christianity as a whole. These were catalysts for the shift in perspective on women found in the epistles "which manifests itself in a return to traditional [Roman] patterns [and the requirement for women to marry]."[43]:164

Over the first three centuries of the early Church, the church's position on sexuality was elaborated, an entire debate about free will was generated within the communities and in debate with people outside of those communities, and by around 300 BCE, the orthodox position had generally crystallized into seeing celibacy as best—the Symposium of Methodius is an example of a Christian "philosophy distinctly apart from the machinery of society."[61]:80–83

Women from the Bible in art and culture

There are hundreds of examples of women from the Bible as characters in art and opera. The story of Adam and Eve, according to Near Eastern scholar Carol Meyers, "Perhaps more than any other part of the Bible, has influenced western notions of gender and identity."[4]:72 Sociologist Linda L. Lindsey says "women have born a greater burden for 'original sin'... Eve's creation from Adam's rib, second in order, with God's "curse" at the expulsion is a stubbornly persistent frame used to justify male supremacy."[40]:133,397

Historically, paintings tend to reflect the changing views of women in society more than the biblical account that mentions them. Eve is a perennial favorite subject, with the courageous and victorious women, such as Jael, Judith and Esther, popular "moral" figures in the Middle Ages. The Renaissance, which preferred the sensuous female nude through the eighteenth century, and the "femme fatale", such as Delilah, from the nineteenth century onward all demonstrate how the Bible and art both shape and reflect views of women.[64]

Art historian Mati Meyer says society's views of women are observable in the differing renderings of Eve in art over the centuries. Meyer explains: "Genesis 2–3 recounts the creation of man and the origins of evil and death; Eve, the temptress who disobeys God’s commandment, is probably the most widely discussed and portrayed figure."[65] According to Mati Meyer, Eve is historically portrayed in art in a favorable light up through the Early Middle Ages (AD 800's), but by the Late Middle Ages (1400's) artistic interpretation of Eve becomes heavily misogynistic. Meyer sees this change as influenced by the writings of Augustine "who sees Eve’s sexuality as destructive to male rationality".[65] By the seventeenth century, the Fall as a male-female struggle emerges, and in the eighteenth century, the perception of Eve is influenced by "Paradise Lost" where Adam's free will is emphasized along with Eve's beauty. Thereafter a secular view of Eve emerges "through her transformation into a femme fatale—a compound of beauty, seductiveness and independence set to destroy the man."[65]

Salome by Richard Strauss was highly controversial when first composed due to its combination of biblical theme, eroticism and murder. Samson and Delilah by Camille Saint-Saëns is one of the pieces that defines French opera.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Mittleman, Alan L. (2012). A Short History of Jewish Ethics: Conduct and Character in the Context of Covenant. Chichester, West Suffix: Wiley-Blackwell. ISBN 978-1-4051-8942-2.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Hauptman, Judith (2005). "Women". In Blumenthal,, Jacob; Liss, Janet L. Etz Hayim Study Companion. New York: The Jewish Publications Society. ISBN 978-0-82760-822-1.
  3. ↑ Lim, Timothy H. (2005). The Dead Sea Scrolls: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780191517532. OCLC 929408500.
  4. 1 2 3 Meyers, Carol (1988). Discovering Eve: Ancient Israelite Women in Context. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780195049343. OCLC 242712170.
  5. 1 2 Craven, Toni; Kraemer, Ross; Myers, Carol L., eds. (2000). Women in Scripture: A Dictionary of Named and Unnamed Women in the Hebrew Bible, the Apocryphal/Deuterocanonical Books and New Testament. Houghton Mifflin. p. xii. ISBN 978-0395709368. Retrieved 30 January 2017.
  6. ↑ Freeman, Lindsay Hardin (2014). Bible Women: All Their Words and Why They Matter (3rd ed.). Forward Movement. ISBN 978-0880283915.
  7. ↑ Rosenberg, Joel. "Bible: Biblical Narrative." Back to the Sources: Reading the Classic Jewish Texts, edited by Barry W. Holtz, Simon & Schuster, 1984, pp. 31-81
  8. ↑ Miller, Geoffrey P. (1998). "A Riposte Form in the Song of Deborah". In Matthews, Victor H.; Levinson, Bernard M.; Frymer-Kensky, Tikva. Gender and Law in the Hebrew Bible and the Ancient Near East. New York: T & T Clark International. ISBN 0567080986.
  9. 1 2 McKnight, Scot (1996). 1 Peter: The NIV application commentary. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan. ISBN 978-0-310-87120-0.
  10. 1 2 3 Trible, Phyllis (1973). "Depatriarchalizing in Biblical Interpretation". Journal of the American Academy of Religion. 41 (1): 30–48. JSTOR 1461386.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Trible, Phyllis (1984). Texts of Terror: Literary feminist readings of biblical narratives. Philadelphia: Fortress Press. ISBN 978-0-8006-1537-6.
  12. 1 2 3 4 Davies, Eryl W. (2003). The Dissenting Reader Feminist Approaches to the Hebrew B ible. Burlington, Vermont: Ashgate Publishing. p. vii. ISBN 0-7546-0372-5.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 Frymer-Kensky, Tikva (2006). Studies in Bible and feminist criticism (1st ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Jewish Publication Society. ISBN 9780827607989. OCLC 62127975.
  14. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Blumenthal, David R. (2005). "The Images of Women in the Hebrew Bible". In Broyde, Michael J.; Ausubel, Michael. Marriage, Sex and Family in Judaism. New York: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers Inc. ISBN 0-7425-4516-4.
  15. ↑ Stagg, Evelyn; Stagg, Frank (1978). Woman in the World of Jesus. Philadelphia: The Westminster Press.
  16. 1 2 Witherington III, Ben (1984). Women in the Ministry of Jesus: A Study of Jesus' attitudes to women and their roles as reflected in his earthly life. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0 521 34781 5.
  17. ↑ Yoder, Christine Elizabeth; Yoder, Christine Roy (2009). Abingdon Old Testament Commentaries Proverbs. Nashville: Abingdon Press. p. 102. ISBN 978-1-4267-0001-9.
  18. ↑ Chirot, Daniel; McCauley, Clark (1 July 2010). Why Not Kill Them All?: The Logic and Prevention of Mass Political Murder. Princeton University Press. p. 27. ISBN 978-1400834853 – via Google Books.
  19. ↑ "Numbers 31 NIV - Biblica". www.biblica.com.
  20. ↑ Pleins, J. David (2001). The Social Visions of the Hebrew Bible: A Theological Introduction. Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press. p. 116. ISBN 978-0-664-22175-1.
  21. ↑ Telushkin, Joseph. Biblical Literacy: The Most Important People, Events, and Ideas of the Hebrew Bible. New York: William Morrow and Company, 1997. p. 403.
  22. 1 2 3 Berger, Michael S. (2005). "Marriage, Sex and Family in the Jewish Tradition: A Historical Overview". In Broyde, Michael J.; Ausubel, Michael. Marriage, Sex, and Family in Judaism. New York: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers Inc. ISBN 0-7425-4516-4.
  23. 1 2 3 4 5 Frymer-Kensky, Tikva (2002). Reading the Women of the Bible: A New Interpretation of Their Stories. New York: Schoken Books. ISBN 9780805211825. OCLC 49823086.
  24. ↑ Hirsch, Emil G.; Seligsohn, M.; Schechter, Solomon; Barton, George A. (1906). "Jephthah (יפתח)". In Cyrus Adler; et al. Jewish Encyclopedia. New York: Funk & Wagnalls Co.
  25. ↑ Stewart, Anne E (2012). "Jephthah's Daughter and her Interpreters". In Newsom, Carol A.; Ringe, Sharon H.; Lapsley, Jacqueline E. Women's Bible commentary (3rd, 20th anniversary ed.). Louisville, Ky: Westminster John Knox Press. pp. 133–137. ISBN 9780664237073.
  26. 1 2 Craig L. Blomberg (2009). "Chapter 2: Women in Ministry: a complementarian perspective". In Beck, James R.; et al. Two views on women in ministry. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan. ISBN 9780310254379. OCLC 779330381.
  27. ↑ Lanser, Susan S (December 1996). White, Hugh C., ed. "(Feminist) Criticism in the Garden: Inferring Genesis 2–3". Semeia. 41 (Speech Act Theory and Biblical Criticism): 67–84.
  28. 1 2 3 Hirsch, Emil G.; Levi, Gerson B.; Schechter, Solomon; Kohler, Kaufmann (1906). "Deborah". In Cyrus Adler; et al. Jewish Encyclopedia. New York: Funk & Wagnalls Co.
  29. 1 2 Creach, Jerome (Jul 2016). "Violence in the Old Testament". The Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Religion. Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/acrefore/9780199340378.001.0001/acrefore-9780199340378-e-154 (inactive 2018-09-08). Retrieved 23 December 2017.
  30. ↑ O'Connor, Michael Patrick (1986). "The Women in the Book of Judges". Hebrew Annual Review. 10: 277–293. hdl:1811/58724.
  31. ↑ Long, Burke O. "The Shunammite Woman". The BAS Library. Biblical Archaeology Society Online Archive. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
  32. ↑ Barton, George A. (1936). "Ruth, Book of". Jewish Encyclopedia. New York: Funk & Wagnalls Co.
  33. ↑ Weren, Wim J. C. (1997). "The Five Women in Matthew's Genealogy". The Catholic Biblical Quarterly. 59 (2): 288–305. JSTOR 43722942.
  34. ↑ Hirsch, Emil G.; Prince, John Dyneley; Schechter, Solomon (1936). "Esther". Jewish Encyclopedia. New York: Funk & Wagnalls Co.
  35. ↑ Geisler, Norman (1998). "Albright, William F.". Baker Encyclopedia of Christian Apologetics. Baker Reference Library. Ada, Michigan, USA: Baker. pp. 14f, 46ff, 37–41. ISBN 0801021510.
  36. ↑ Richards, Sue Poorman; Richards, Lawrence O. (2003). Women of the Bible: The Life and Times of Every woman in the Bible. Nashville, Tenn.: Thomas Nelson Publishers. ISBN 978-0-7852-5148-4.
  37. ↑ Keng Mun Chung, Mary (2005). Chinese Women in Christian Ministry: An Intercultural Study. New York: Peter Lang. p. 14. ISBN 978-0-8204-5198-5.
  38. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Linda Belleville (2009). "Chapter 1: Women in Ministry: an egalitaritan perspective". In Beck, James R.; et al. Two views on women in ministry. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan. ISBN 9780310254379. OCLC 779330381.
  39. ↑ Bloesch, Donald G. (2001). Is the Bible Sexist? Beyond Feminism and Patriarchalism. Eugene, Oregon: Wipf & Stock. ISBN 978-1-57910-691-1.
  40. 1 2 Lindsey, Linda L (2016). Gender Roles: A Sociological perspective. New York: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-205-89968-5.
  41. ↑ Painter, Luke (2017). Finding the Roots of Christianity: A Spiritual and Historical Journey. Eugene, Oregon: Resource Publications. p. 104. ISBN 978-1-5326-1031-8.
  42. ↑ McLeese, Constance E (1998). "Book Review: Margaret MacDonald. Early Christian Women and Pagan Opinion: The Power of the Hysterical Woman. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1996". Journal of Early Christian Studies. 6 (1): 150–151. doi:10.1353/earl.1998.0008.
  43. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 MacDonald, Margaret Y. (1996). Early Christian Women and Pagan Opinion The power of the hysterical woman. NY: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0 521 56174 4.
  44. 1 2 3 Gardner, Jane F. (1991). Women in Roman Law & Society. Indianapolis: Indiana University Press. p. 67. ISBN 978-0-253-20635-0.
  45. ↑ Ramnarine, Kay (2008). Women Belong in Leadership: Let Critics Keep Silent. Eugene, Oregon: Wipf and Stock. p. 57. ISBN 978-1-55635-576-9.
  46. ↑ Richardson, Peter (25 June 2016). "Book Review: Margaret MacDonald. Early Christian Women and Pagan Opinion: The Power of the Hysterical Woman. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1996". Studies in Religion/Sciences Religieuses. 27 (2): 214–215. doi:10.1177/000842989802700210.
  47. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Hovhannisyan, Hayk (2014). Men and Women in the Ministry for Christ. Bloomington, Indianna: West Bow Press. p. 297. ISBN 978-1-4908-5075-7.
  48. 1 2 3 Keener, Craig S. (2009). Paul, Women, and Wives: Marriage and Women's Ministry in the Letters of Paul. Peabody, Massachusettes: Hendrikson Publishers Inc. ISBN 978-0-943575-96-4.
  49. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Wilshire, Leland E. (2010). Insight Into Two Biblical Passages: Anatomy of a Prohibition I Timothy 2:12 , the TLG computer and the Christian church; The servant city,The Servant Songs of Isaiah 40-60 and the fall of Jerusalem in 586 BC/BCE. Lanham, Maryland: University Press of America. ISBN 978-0-7618-5208-7.
  50. ↑ Grenz, Stanley J.; Kjesbo, Denise Muir (1995). Women in the Church: A Biblical Theology of Women in Ministry. Downer's Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press. ISBN 978-0-8308-1862-4.
  51. ↑ Getty-Sullivan, Mary Ann (2001). Women in the New Testament. Collegeville, Minnesota: The Liturgical Press. ISBN 978-0-8146-2546-0.
  52. ↑ Casey, Maurice (2010). Jesus of Nazareth: An Independent Historian's Account of His Life and Teaching. New York City, New York and London, England: T & T Clark. ISBN 978-0-567-64517-3. OCLC 775849664.
  53. ↑ Ehrman, Bart D. (2006). Peter, Paul, and Mary Magdalene: The Followers of Jesus in History and Legend. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-530013-0. OCLC 918205375.
  54. 1 2 3 Witherington III, Ben (1988). Women in the Earliest Churches. New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-40789-2.
  55. ↑ Ruether, Rosemary Radford (1998). Introducing Redemption in Christian Feminism. Sheffield, England: Sheffield Academic Press. p. Foreward. ISBN 978-1-85075-888-4.
  56. ↑ James R. Beck (2009). "Conclusion". In Beck, James R.; et al. Two views on women in ministry. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan. ISBN 9780310254379. OCLC 779330381.
  57. ↑ Moore, Rebecca (2015). Women in Christian Traditions. New York: New York University Press. ISBN 978-1-4798-2961-3.
  58. ↑ Odell-Scott, D.W. "Editorial dilemma: the interpolation of 1 Cor 14:34-35 in the western manuscripts of D, G and 88." Web: 15 Jul 2010. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0LAL/is_2_30/ai_94332323/
  59. ↑ Hurley, James B. (July 2002). Man and Woman in Biblical perspective. Eugene, Oregon: Wipf and Stock. pp. 153–157. ISBN 978-1-57910-284-5.
  60. ↑ Stark, Rodney (1996). The Rise of Christianity. Princeton University Press. ISBN 978-0-691-02749-4.
  61. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Harper, Kyle (2013). From Shame to Sin: The Christian Transformation of Sexual Morality in Late Antiquity. Cambridge, Massachusettes: Harvard University Press. p. 4. ISBN 978-0-674-07277-0.
  62. 1 2 3 Langlands, Rebecca (2006). Sexual Morality in Ancient Rome. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. p. 10. ISBN 978-0-521-85943-1.
  63. 1 2 Younger, John (2005). Sex in the Ancient World from A to Z. New York: Routledge. p. 106. ISBN 978-0-415-24252-3.
  64. ↑ Apostolos-Cappadona, Diane (Jul 2016). "Women in Religious Art". Religion. Oxford Research Encyclopedias. 1. doi:10.1093/acrefore/9780199340378.013.208. Retrieved 18 May 2018.
  65. 1 2 3 Meyer, Mati. "Art: Representation of Biblical Women". Jewish Women's Archive. Jewish Women's Archive.
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