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		⚫	#REDIRECT ]
	{{Original research\|date=October 2009}}

	The views of women presented in the ] (also called ] in Judaism, ] in Christianity and Taurat/] in Islam) are complex and often ambivalent.{{Dubious\|date=September 2010}}
	The question of women's status relative to men in the society depicted in the biblical books, i.e. Iron Age and Hellenistic era ], remains a central and controversial issue.

	The ] have been used to deprecate women on the authority of the Bible: ] and ], throughout their history, have used the story of ] to justify the inferior status for women. Thus, Paul and other early Christians looked to the Adam and Eve story to put the blame for ] on Eve and derived from that the conclusion that women should not be allowed to hold positions of authority or to teach.

	==Creation narratives==
	{{Over-quotation\|date=September 2010}}
	The creation of ] is narrated from somewhat different perspectives in {{bibleref2\|Genesis\|1:26-27}} and {{bibleref2\|Genesis\|2:24}}. The Genesis 1 narration declares the purpose of God, antedating the creation of the sexes.<ref name="Starr">Starr, L. A. ''The Bible Status of Woman.'' New York: Fleming H. Revell, 1926</ref> It has been called the "non-subordinating" view of woman.<ref name="Staggs">Stagg, Evelyn and Frank. ''Woman in the World of Jesus.'' Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1978</ref> God gave the human pair joint responsibility and "rulership" over his creation.

	{{Quotation\|Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground." So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.\|Genesis 1:26-27}}

	{{bibleref2\|Genesis\|5:1-2}} reaffirms that perspective and has been described as interpretative of that decree of God's initial purpose.<ref name="Starr" />

	{{Quotation\|When God created man, he made him in the likeness of God. He created them male and female and blessed them. And when they were created, he called them "man" .\|Genesis 5:1-2}}

	The {{Bibleref2\|Genesis\|2}} narrative has been called the "subordinating view" of woman for two reasons: man is created first, and woman is created out of man.<ref name="Staggs" />

	{{Quotation\|...But for Adam (or the man) no suitable helper was found. So the {{LORD}} God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man's ribs (or "took part of the man's side") and closed up the place with flesh. Then the {{LORD}} God made a woman from the rib (or "took part of the man's side") he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man. The man said, "This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called 'woman,' for she was taken out of man." For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.\|Genesis 2:20b-24, NIV}}

	"…for Adam there was not found an help meet for him." {{bibleref2c\|Gen.\|2:20b\|KJV}} "…no suitable helper was found" (NIV). The word translated "suitable" ''(kenegdo)'' means "face to face" and denotes equality and adequacy.<ref name="Nicole">Nicole, Roger. "Biblical Egalitarianism and the Inerrancy of Scripture." ''Priscilla Papers,'' Vol. 20, No. 2. Spring 2006</ref> Woman for centuries has been instructed to be an ''"helpmeet"'' for her husband. However, any text search of both Old and New Testaments (every translation) will demonstrate that the noun "helpmeet" does not appear anywhere in the Bible. It has become a distorted contraction of the two KJV words, the noun "help" and the adverb "meet," the latter being Shakespearian English for "corresponding to" or "suitable," a phenomenon that has been corrected in all later translations.<ref>From misunderstanding of the phrase <tt>an help meet for him</tt>, ''a helper suitable for him (Adam), in Genesis 2:18, referring to Eve''. The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition, 2003.</ref>

	Although the {{Bibleref2\|Genesis\|2}} passage is often cited as biblical evidence that subordination represents God’s will for women, theologian ] disagrees. He believes women's place in the home, in society, and in the church is not an issue that can be conclusively determined by a few apparently restrictive passages. He writes that the starting point must be at the creation of humanity, as ] himself exemplified by quoting {{Bibleref2\|Genesis\|1:27}} and {{bibleref2\|Genesis\|2:24\|}} in response to a question by the Pharisees.{{Bibleref2c\|Matt.\|19:4–5}} {{Bibleref2c\|Mk.\|10:6–7}} <ref name="Nicole" />

	==The Fall of humanity==
	{{Main\|Fall of man}}

	Eve's weakness has been blamed for causing ], and thus for humanity's fall into ].<ref>Smith, Russell E. Jr. "Adam's Fall." ''ELH: a Journal of English Literary History,'' Vol. 35, No. 4 (Dec., 1968), pp. 527-539</ref> This claim was frequently made during the ] and was a subject in John Milton's classic epic, ''].''

	There is no mention of subordination in scripture until the end of {{Bibleref2\|Genesis\|3:16}}. There, God explains what will become the natural consequences of the woman's disobedience, now that they both are in a fallen (sinful) state: "He will rule over you." For eons this has been colloquially called "The Curse."

	However, theologian Nicole does not see it that way:<ref name="Nicole" /> arguing that the passage is ''not a commandment'', but a ''prophecy'' that has been fulfilled extensively over the centuries in all the earth. Whatever we may do to alleviate God’s curse is legitimate in the matter of subordination, no less than in providing some relief from the pains of the delivery of children (3:16) and the sweat in cultivating the ground and earning a living (3:17–19).

	In addition, those who argue that Judaism is founded upon patriarchal principles point out that religious and governmental authority within Jewish cultures has usually been restricted to the male gender.

	However, even in the Jewish ] there are countercurrents to this patriarchal emphasis. For example, "God said, ‘Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over ’. So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them."{{bibleref2c\|Genesis\|1:26-27}} implying that male and female are both "in God's image".

	==Double standard and male priority==
	The status of woman in the Old Testament is not uniform.
	According to classicist ], the Old Testament writers considered women just as impartially as they did men, free from prejudice and even from condescension.<ref>Quoted in Tanner, Stephen L. ''Women in Literature of the Old Testament.'' University of Idaho, 1975. ERIC ED112422.</ref>
	In the ] (Ten Commandments) of {{Bibleref2\|Exodus\|20}}, both male priority and gender balance can be seen. In the tenth commandment, a wife is depicted in the examples of a neighbor's property not to be coveted: house, wife, male or female slave, ox or donkey, or any other property. In this perspective, wife along with other properties belongs to the husband. On the other hand, the fourth commandment does not make any distinction between honor to be shown to parents: "father and your mother." This is consistent with the mutual respect shown for both parents throughout the Old Testament.<ref name="Staggs" />

	Double standard and male priority can also be seen in Moses' orders on what to do with the captured Midianites: "Kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman who has known man intimately. But all the girls who have not known man intimately, spare for yourselves."{{Bibleref2c\|Num.\|31:17-18\|NASB}} The women of Israel were most honored and influential within the family. They gained considerable respect on the birth of her first child, especially if it was a male child.{{Bibleref2c\|Gen.\|16:4}} {{Bibleref2c-nb\|Gen.\|29:31-30:24}} Even here, she was honored because of her function of providing a male heir, not because of her value as a person.

	On a positive note, {{Bibleref2\|Proverbs\|1:8}} tells a son not to reject his mother's teaching, and {{Bibleref2\|Proverbs\|31:10-31}} eulogizes the ideal wife, even though she is idealized for her hard labor for her family. The laws of inheritance favored the male. A male Hebrew slave was freed after six years of servitude, while a different set of rules covered female slaves.{{Bibleref2c\|Ex.\|21:1-11}} If a man rapes an unbetrothed virgin, he must pay her father 50 ]s of silver and then marry her.{{Bibleref2c\|Deut.\|22:28-29}} {{Bibleref2\|Judges\|19}} records a most degrading use of a daughter by her father. "The gruesome story of his using his concubine to protect himself defies imagination." Infidelity to God is portrayed as an "adulteress," not an "adulterer."<ref name="Staggs" />

	==Judges and prophets==
	Scripture portrays ], ], ], ], ],<ref>The ] is not deemed canonical in the Tanakh nor in the Protestant versions of the Old Testament. It is placed among the apocryphal writings by Jerome in the ].</ref>{{Dubious\|Scope of the Article\|date=December 2011}} and ] and their contributions to the nation of Israel with faithfulness and extreme candor. These women are represented in the Old Testament as multidimensional human beings – self-reliant, resourceful, influential, and courageous – but at the same time capable of resorting to morally questionable means in order to accomplish their ends.<ref>Tanner, Stephen L. ''Women in Literature of the Old Testament.'' University of Idaho, 1975. ERIC ED112422.</ref>

	Distinctions were usually made between men and women during the Old Testament period. Only men were required to attend the annual festivals{{Bibleref2c\|Ex.\|23:17}} {{Bibleref2c\|Lev.\|23}} though women were permitted to attend if they chose to do so due to unweaned children.{{Bibleref2c\|1Sam\|1:9\|\|1 Sam. 1:9}} {{Bibleref2c-nb\|1Sam\|1:21-22}} The Mosaic Law recognized women’s responsibilities at home as wives and mothers. However, this did not prohibit women from all religious service. Women served at the door of the Tabernacle.{{Bibleref2c\|Ex.\|38:8}} Both men and women contributed their valuables for use in the building of the Tabernacle.{{Bibleref2c\|Ex.\|35:22-26}} The Laver for ministry in the court of the tabernacle was made of brass from the mirrors of the women only.<ref>"Kinship in Ancient Israel." http://moses.creighton.edu/simkins/201/cmat/kinship.html</ref>

	Deborah was a prophetess who actually judged Israel.{{bibleref2c\|Judges\|4:4}} When the Israelite men lacked faith in yahuah to assume leadership, Deborah shamed Barak, the military commander of Israel’s army, for failing to assume his God-given leadership. Ultimately, he refused to advance against the enemy without Deborah’s presence and commanding influence (Judges 4:8).<ref>http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=187&letter=D Jewish Encyclopedia: Deborah</ref>

	], a married prophetess{{bibleref2c\|2Kings\|22:13-20\|\|2 Ki. 22:13-20}} interpreted the Book of the Law found during the renovation of the Temple, a book that had been lost for centuries and therefore neglected. She was trusted by Josiah, king of ], to be the one to verify the authenticity of the Book of the Law. Huldah’s husband was keeper of the wardrobe in the court.<ref>http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=187&letter=H Jewish Encyclopedia: Hulda</ref>

	==Religious privileges of women==
	Women as well as men were able to consecrate themselves with the vow of a Nazarite.{{Bibleref2c\|Num.\|6:2}} Women shared in the sacred meals and great annual feasts.{{Bibleref2c\|Deut.\|16:11,14}} They shared with the men in offering sacrifices. They also were privileged to experience ] (appearances of angels and other divine apparitions).<ref name="Oppenheimer">Oppenheimer, Mike. “Women in the Old Testament.” http://www.letusreason.org/Pent45.htm Let Us Reason Ministries.</ref>

	The ] presents strong female role models, like the Judge ] and Queen ], who were depicted as saving the Hebrew people from disaster. In the book of ], the divine attribute of ] is presented as female.<ref>, Christine Elizabeth] ''Wisdom as a Woman of Substance: A Socioeconomic Reading of Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 (Beiheft zur Zeitschrift für die Alttestamentliche Wissenschaft).''</ref>

	==Liturgical song and dance==
	Hebrew women attended worship services and provided a ministry in music.{{Bibleref2c\|Ex.\|15:20-21}} {{Bibleref2c\|1Chr\|25:5\|\|1 Chron. 25:5}} They sang and danced in worship and often celebrated before the Lord with singing, dancing, and tambourines.{{Bibleref2c\|1Samuel\|18:6\|\|1 Sam. 18:6}} {{Bibleref2c\|Ps.\|68:25}} The “daughters of music”{{Bibleref2c\|Eccl.\|12:4}} were singing women, but they were not included in the temple choir.

	Prophecy was also often sung as may be seen in the Psalms which were inspired words put to song. Miriam and Deborah composed the two oldest pieces of literature preserved in the Bible, which are regarded as literary masterpieces.{{Bibleref2c\|Ex.\|15}} {{Bibleref2c\|Judg\|5}} Prophecy often included instruments.{{Bibleref2c\|1Chr\|25:1-3\|\|1 Chr. 25:1-3}} In {{Bibleref2\|Exodus\|15:19-21}} Israel’s first prophetess (Miriam) led the women in timbrel, dancing, and singing of the same song of Moses which is the most ancient praise song in the biblical record.

	==See also==
⚫	* ]

	==References==
	{{Reflist}}

	{{DEFAULTSORT:Women In The Hebrew Bible}}
	]
	]
	]
	]
	]

Latest revision as of 23:31, 19 May 2018

Redirect to:

Women in the Bible

Revision as of 21:35, 9 January 2018 editLaurel Lodged (talk \| contribs)Extended confirmed users66,338 edits removed Category:Hebrew Bible topics; added Category:Hebrew Bible content using HotCat ← Previous edit		Latest revision as of 23:31, 19 May 2018 edit undoJytdog (talk \| contribs)Autopatrolled, Extended confirmed users, Pending changes reviewers, Rollbackers187,951 edits merging what remains and is useful to the mainTag: New redirect
(34 intermediate revisions by 2 users not shown)
Line 1:		Line 1:
		⚫	#REDIRECT ]
	{{Original research\|date=October 2009}}

	The views of women presented in the ] (also called ] in Judaism, ] in Christianity and Taurat/] in Islam) are complex and often ambivalent.{{Dubious\|date=September 2010}}
	The question of women's status relative to men in the society depicted in the biblical books, i.e. Iron Age and Hellenistic era ], remains a central and controversial issue.

	The ] have been used to deprecate women on the authority of the Bible: ] and ], throughout their history, have used the story of ] to justify the inferior status for women. Thus, Paul and other early Christians looked to the Adam and Eve story to put the blame for ] on Eve and derived from that the conclusion that women should not be allowed to hold positions of authority or to teach.

	==Creation narratives==
	{{Over-quotation\|date=September 2010}}
	The creation of ] is narrated from somewhat different perspectives in {{bibleref2\|Genesis\|1:26-27}} and {{bibleref2\|Genesis\|2:24}}. The Genesis 1 narration declares the purpose of God, antedating the creation of the sexes.<ref name="Starr">Starr, L. A. ''The Bible Status of Woman.'' New York: Fleming H. Revell, 1926</ref> It has been called the "non-subordinating" view of woman.<ref name="Staggs">Stagg, Evelyn and Frank. ''Woman in the World of Jesus.'' Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1978</ref> God gave the human pair joint responsibility and "rulership" over his creation.

	{{Quotation\|Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground." So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.\|Genesis 1:26-27}}

	{{bibleref2\|Genesis\|5:1-2}} reaffirms that perspective and has been described as interpretative of that decree of God's initial purpose.<ref name="Starr" />

	{{Quotation\|When God created man, he made him in the likeness of God. He created them male and female and blessed them. And when they were created, he called them "man" .\|Genesis 5:1-2}}

	The {{Bibleref2\|Genesis\|2}} narrative has been called the "subordinating view" of woman for two reasons: man is created first, and woman is created out of man.<ref name="Staggs" />

	{{Quotation\|...But for Adam (or the man) no suitable helper was found. So the {{LORD}} God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man's ribs (or "took part of the man's side") and closed up the place with flesh. Then the {{LORD}} God made a woman from the rib (or "took part of the man's side") he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man. The man said, "This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called 'woman,' for she was taken out of man." For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.\|Genesis 2:20b-24, NIV}}

	"…for Adam there was not found an help meet for him." {{bibleref2c\|Gen.\|2:20b\|KJV}} "…no suitable helper was found" (NIV). The word translated "suitable" ''(kenegdo)'' means "face to face" and denotes equality and adequacy.<ref name="Nicole">Nicole, Roger. "Biblical Egalitarianism and the Inerrancy of Scripture." ''Priscilla Papers,'' Vol. 20, No. 2. Spring 2006</ref> Woman for centuries has been instructed to be an ''"helpmeet"'' for her husband. However, any text search of both Old and New Testaments (every translation) will demonstrate that the noun "helpmeet" does not appear anywhere in the Bible. It has become a distorted contraction of the two KJV words, the noun "help" and the adverb "meet," the latter being Shakespearian English for "corresponding to" or "suitable," a phenomenon that has been corrected in all later translations.<ref>From misunderstanding of the phrase <tt>an help meet for him</tt>, ''a helper suitable for him (Adam), in Genesis 2:18, referring to Eve''. The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition, 2003.</ref>

	Although the {{Bibleref2\|Genesis\|2}} passage is often cited as biblical evidence that subordination represents God’s will for women, theologian ] disagrees. He believes women's place in the home, in society, and in the church is not an issue that can be conclusively determined by a few apparently restrictive passages. He writes that the starting point must be at the creation of humanity, as ] himself exemplified by quoting {{Bibleref2\|Genesis\|1:27}} and {{bibleref2\|Genesis\|2:24\|}} in response to a question by the Pharisees.{{Bibleref2c\|Matt.\|19:4–5}} {{Bibleref2c\|Mk.\|10:6–7}} <ref name="Nicole" />

	==The Fall of humanity==
	{{Main\|Fall of man}}

	Eve's weakness has been blamed for causing ], and thus for humanity's fall into ].<ref>Smith, Russell E. Jr. "Adam's Fall." ''ELH: a Journal of English Literary History,'' Vol. 35, No. 4 (Dec., 1968), pp. 527-539</ref> This claim was frequently made during the ] and was a subject in John Milton's classic epic, ''].''

	There is no mention of subordination in scripture until the end of {{Bibleref2\|Genesis\|3:16}}. There, God explains what will become the natural consequences of the woman's disobedience, now that they both are in a fallen (sinful) state: "He will rule over you." For eons this has been colloquially called "The Curse."

	However, theologian Nicole does not see it that way:<ref name="Nicole" /> arguing that the passage is ''not a commandment'', but a ''prophecy'' that has been fulfilled extensively over the centuries in all the earth. Whatever we may do to alleviate God’s curse is legitimate in the matter of subordination, no less than in providing some relief from the pains of the delivery of children (3:16) and the sweat in cultivating the ground and earning a living (3:17–19).

	In addition, those who argue that Judaism is founded upon patriarchal principles point out that religious and governmental authority within Jewish cultures has usually been restricted to the male gender.

	However, even in the Jewish ] there are countercurrents to this patriarchal emphasis. For example, "God said, ‘Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over ’. So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them."{{bibleref2c\|Genesis\|1:26-27}} implying that male and female are both "in God's image".

	==Double standard and male priority==
	The status of woman in the Old Testament is not uniform.
	According to classicist ], the Old Testament writers considered women just as impartially as they did men, free from prejudice and even from condescension.<ref>Quoted in Tanner, Stephen L. ''Women in Literature of the Old Testament.'' University of Idaho, 1975. ERIC ED112422.</ref>
	In the ] (Ten Commandments) of {{Bibleref2\|Exodus\|20}}, both male priority and gender balance can be seen. In the tenth commandment, a wife is depicted in the examples of a neighbor's property not to be coveted: house, wife, male or female slave, ox or donkey, or any other property. In this perspective, wife along with other properties belongs to the husband. On the other hand, the fourth commandment does not make any distinction between honor to be shown to parents: "father and your mother." This is consistent with the mutual respect shown for both parents throughout the Old Testament.<ref name="Staggs" />

	Double standard and male priority can also be seen in Moses' orders on what to do with the captured Midianites: "Kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman who has known man intimately. But all the girls who have not known man intimately, spare for yourselves."{{Bibleref2c\|Num.\|31:17-18\|NASB}} The women of Israel were most honored and influential within the family. They gained considerable respect on the birth of her first child, especially if it was a male child.{{Bibleref2c\|Gen.\|16:4}} {{Bibleref2c-nb\|Gen.\|29:31-30:24}} Even here, she was honored because of her function of providing a male heir, not because of her value as a person.

	On a positive note, {{Bibleref2\|Proverbs\|1:8}} tells a son not to reject his mother's teaching, and {{Bibleref2\|Proverbs\|31:10-31}} eulogizes the ideal wife, even though she is idealized for her hard labor for her family. The laws of inheritance favored the male. A male Hebrew slave was freed after six years of servitude, while a different set of rules covered female slaves.{{Bibleref2c\|Ex.\|21:1-11}} If a man rapes an unbetrothed virgin, he must pay her father 50 ]s of silver and then marry her.{{Bibleref2c\|Deut.\|22:28-29}} {{Bibleref2\|Judges\|19}} records a most degrading use of a daughter by her father. "The gruesome story of his using his concubine to protect himself defies imagination." Infidelity to God is portrayed as an "adulteress," not an "adulterer."<ref name="Staggs" />

	==Judges and prophets==
	Scripture portrays ], ], ], ], ],<ref>The ] is not deemed canonical in the Tanakh nor in the Protestant versions of the Old Testament. It is placed among the apocryphal writings by Jerome in the ].</ref>{{Dubious\|Scope of the Article\|date=December 2011}} and ] and their contributions to the nation of Israel with faithfulness and extreme candor. These women are represented in the Old Testament as multidimensional human beings – self-reliant, resourceful, influential, and courageous – but at the same time capable of resorting to morally questionable means in order to accomplish their ends.<ref>Tanner, Stephen L. ''Women in Literature of the Old Testament.'' University of Idaho, 1975. ERIC ED112422.</ref>

	Distinctions were usually made between men and women during the Old Testament period. Only men were required to attend the annual festivals{{Bibleref2c\|Ex.\|23:17}} {{Bibleref2c\|Lev.\|23}} though women were permitted to attend if they chose to do so due to unweaned children.{{Bibleref2c\|1Sam\|1:9\|\|1 Sam. 1:9}} {{Bibleref2c-nb\|1Sam\|1:21-22}} The Mosaic Law recognized women’s responsibilities at home as wives and mothers. However, this did not prohibit women from all religious service. Women served at the door of the Tabernacle.{{Bibleref2c\|Ex.\|38:8}} Both men and women contributed their valuables for use in the building of the Tabernacle.{{Bibleref2c\|Ex.\|35:22-26}} The Laver for ministry in the court of the tabernacle was made of brass from the mirrors of the women only.<ref>"Kinship in Ancient Israel." http://moses.creighton.edu/simkins/201/cmat/kinship.html</ref>

	Deborah was a prophetess who actually judged Israel.{{bibleref2c\|Judges\|4:4}} When the Israelite men lacked faith in yahuah to assume leadership, Deborah shamed Barak, the military commander of Israel’s army, for failing to assume his God-given leadership. Ultimately, he refused to advance against the enemy without Deborah’s presence and commanding influence (Judges 4:8).<ref>http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=187&letter=D Jewish Encyclopedia: Deborah</ref>

	], a married prophetess{{bibleref2c\|2Kings\|22:13-20\|\|2 Ki. 22:13-20}} interpreted the Book of the Law found during the renovation of the Temple, a book that had been lost for centuries and therefore neglected. She was trusted by Josiah, king of ], to be the one to verify the authenticity of the Book of the Law. Huldah’s husband was keeper of the wardrobe in the court.<ref>http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=187&letter=H Jewish Encyclopedia: Hulda</ref>

	==Religious privileges of women==
	Women as well as men were able to consecrate themselves with the vow of a Nazarite.{{Bibleref2c\|Num.\|6:2}} Women shared in the sacred meals and great annual feasts.{{Bibleref2c\|Deut.\|16:11,14}} They shared with the men in offering sacrifices. They also were privileged to experience ] (appearances of angels and other divine apparitions).<ref name="Oppenheimer">Oppenheimer, Mike. “Women in the Old Testament.” http://www.letusreason.org/Pent45.htm Let Us Reason Ministries.</ref>

	The ] presents strong female role models, like the Judge ] and Queen ], who were depicted as saving the Hebrew people from disaster. In the book of ], the divine attribute of ] is presented as female.<ref>, Christine Elizabeth] ''Wisdom as a Woman of Substance: A Socioeconomic Reading of Proverbs 1-9 and 31:10-31 (Beiheft zur Zeitschrift für die Alttestamentliche Wissenschaft).''</ref>

	==Liturgical song and dance==
	Hebrew women attended worship services and provided a ministry in music.{{Bibleref2c\|Ex.\|15:20-21}} {{Bibleref2c\|1Chr\|25:5\|\|1 Chron. 25:5}} They sang and danced in worship and often celebrated before the Lord with singing, dancing, and tambourines.{{Bibleref2c\|1Samuel\|18:6\|\|1 Sam. 18:6}} {{Bibleref2c\|Ps.\|68:25}} The “daughters of music”{{Bibleref2c\|Eccl.\|12:4}} were singing women, but they were not included in the temple choir.

	Prophecy was also often sung as may be seen in the Psalms which were inspired words put to song. Miriam and Deborah composed the two oldest pieces of literature preserved in the Bible, which are regarded as literary masterpieces.{{Bibleref2c\|Ex.\|15}} {{Bibleref2c\|Judg\|5}} Prophecy often included instruments.{{Bibleref2c\|1Chr\|25:1-3\|\|1 Chr. 25:1-3}} In {{Bibleref2\|Exodus\|15:19-21}} Israel’s first prophetess (Miriam) led the women in timbrel, dancing, and singing of the same song of Moses which is the most ancient praise song in the biblical record.

	==See also==
⚫	* ]

	==References==
	{{Reflist}}

	{{DEFAULTSORT:Women In The Hebrew Bible}}
	]
	]
	]
	]
	]