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What can we learn from Deborah? Deborah was self-sacrificing and courageous. She encouraged others to do the right thing in God’s eyes. When they did so, she generously gave them credit for what they did. Until the codes introduced in the Hebrew Bible, most codes of law allowed prostitution. Classics scholars Allison Glazebrook and Madeleine M. Henry say attitudes concerning prostitution "cut to the core of societal attitude towards gender and to social constructions of sexuality." [25] :3 Many women in a variety of ancient cultures were forced into prostitution. [21] :413 Many were children and adolescents. According to the 5th century BCE historian Herodotus, the sacred prostitution of the Babylonians was "a shameful custom" requiring every woman in the country to go to the precinct of Venus, and consort with a stranger. [26] :211 Some waited years for release while being used without say or pay. The initiation rituals of devdasi of pre-pubescent girls included a deflowering ceremony which gave Priests the right to have intercourse with every girl in the temple. In Greece, slaves were required to work as prostitutes and had no right to decline. [25] :3 The Hebrew Bible code is the only one of these codes that condemns prostitution. [21] :399–418 What did she do? Mary repeatedly showed keen appreciation for Jesus as the Son of God. She expressed faith that Jesus could have prevented the death of her brother, Lazarus, and she was present when Jesus resurrected him. Her sister, Martha, criticized Mary when Mary chose to listen to Jesus rather than help with household duties. But Jesus commended Mary for having spiritual priorities.— Luke 10:38-42. There are hundreds of examples of women from the Bible as characters in painting, sculpture, opera and film. Historically, artistic renderings tend to reflect the changing views on women from within society more than the biblical account that mentions them. The Book of Judges tells the story 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. [73] Deborah could also be described as a warrior, leader of war, and a leader of faith. (Judges 4:6–22).
Who was Mary? Along with her brother, Lazarus, and her sister, Martha, she enjoyed a close friendship with Jesus. Rahab was a prostitute in Jericho. When Joshua sent two spies into the city, she took them in and protected them from the king. The book of Joshua tells the request she makes of them. For a further discussion about Leah, see the article “ Distressed Sisters Who ‘Built the House of Israel.’”
Meanwhile a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was a learned man, with a thorough knowledge of the Scripture…When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they invited him to their home and explained to him the way of God more adequately” ( Acts 18:24, 26).
In the King James translation these verses read as "Now I praise you, brethren, that ye remember me in all things, and keep the ordinances, as I delivered them to you. But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God. Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonoureth his head. But every woman that prayeth or prophesieth with her head uncovered dishonoureth her head: for that is even all one as if she were shaven. For if the woman be not covered, let her also be shorn: but if it be a shame for a woman to be shorn or shaven, let her be covered. For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, forasmuch as he is the image and glory of God: but the woman is the glory of the man. For the man is not of the woman: but the woman of the man. Neither was the man created for the woman; but the woman for the man. 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. [73] A battle is fought (led by Barak), and Sisera, the enemy commander, is defeated. [73] The central Christian prohibition against porneia "collided with the deeply entrenched patterns of Roman permissiveness" and exploitation. [93] Harper writes that Christianity sought to establish equal sexual consideration for both men and women within the sanctity of marriage, and to protect all from exploitation whatever their circumstance. [94] This was a transformation in the "deep logic" of sexual morality, a revolution in the rules of behavior, but also, a true transformation in the very image of the human being as free, with power and responsibility for one's own self. [95] Hannah is one of two wives of Elkanah. The other, Peninnah, had given birth to Elkanah's children, but Hannah remained childless. Nevertheless, Elkanah preferred Hannah. According to Lillian Klein, the use of this chiasmus underscores the standing of the women: Hannah is the primary wife, yet Peninnah has succeeded in bearing children. Hannah's status as primary wife and her barrenness recall Sarah and Rebecca in Genesis 17 and Genesis 25 respectively. Klein suggests that Elkanah took Peninnah as a second wife because of Hannah's barrenness. [70]These verses read in the Authorized Version "Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience as also saith the law. And if they will learn any thing, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a shame for women to speak in the church." Almost all Near Eastern societies of the Bronze Age (3000–1200 BCE) and Axial Age (800 to 300 BCE) were established as patriarchal societies by 3000 BCE. [4] :xxxii Eastern societies such as the Akkadians, Hittites, Assyrians and Persians relegated women to an inferior and subordinate position. There are very few exceptions, but one can be found in the third millennium B.C. with the Sumerians who accorded women a position which was almost equal to that of men. However, by the second millennium, the rights and status of women were reduced. [5] :42 [6] :4–5 Who was Miriam? She was the sister of Moses and Aaron. She is the first woman in the Bible called a prophetess. Theologians Evelyn Stagg and Frank Stagg say the Ten Commandments of Exodus 20 contain aspects of both male priority and gender balance. [36] :21 In the tenth commandment against coveting, a wife is depicted in the examples of things, possessions, belonging to a man that are 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. [37] :11,12 The story of Jephthah's daughter in Book of Judges 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. [52] :102–115
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