Readers often want to know how this book came about—and here’s the answer: Several years ago, I’d just finished a book, The Scarlet Cord: Conversation with God’s Chosen Women, telling the stories of twelve Bible women from a first-person perspective. Because women in the Bible tend not to say much, I filled in historical details where possible: why they took the...
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Who were the ten women in the Bible who spoke the most? While it's tempting to suggest some of the best known women in the Bible (Mary Magdalene; Mary, Sarah, Eve, etc.) none of them come close to being on the list. None of the women in the New Testament make the cut, and many of the top ten may...
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Who knew that these words—"The handwriting is on the wall"—center around the last woman to be quoted in the Old Testament? We hear the phrase in boardrooms, schoolrooms and church meetings. Who knew it even came from the Bible...
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In these post-election days—depending on your point of view, of course—things might seem widely out of control, depressing, exhaustive, nonsensical. It might have appeared that way, too, in ancient Israel, in about the year 1150 BC...
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What do we really know about witches? Tragically, throughout much of history, witches have been tortured—and in the name of religion. Yet the only witch in the Bible, the Witch of Endor (1 Samuel 28:3-25), was a kind and compassionate soul who brought light to a troubled king. Her story, unknown to most contemporary Christians and Jews, has been noted with great...
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Who were the ten women who said the most in the Bible? Counting down...
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Bible women suffer horrible loss, and at times are like pawns moved around on a patriarchal chess board, but they remain bright lights in sacred history. Ever wonder what it was like for women in biblical times? We know this much: life was exceedingly tough, especially in the violent pre-monarchy years. Women were routinely assigned marriage partners by their fathers or brothers for...
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Married. Unmarried. What do we know about the marital status of women in the Bible? We assumed, when doing the four-year research project that would eventually turn into Bible Women: All Their Words and Why They Matter, that most women in the Bible would be married. After all, sadly, power in biblical times for women seemed to come from men. Daughters...
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What do we know about Bible women? Research conclusion #3: They come “over the transom,” as God’s surprise agents. In the days before central heating and air-conditioning, hotel rooms sported a large pane of glass over each guest’s doorway that could be opened for heat or fresh air. Old movies were famous for showing thieves, con men and lovers propelling themselves...
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What do we know about women in the Bible? Research conclusion #2: Start to finish, women in the Bible push against restraints, using their God given gift of free will. From the first woman to speak in the Bible (Eve) to the last (the fortune-telling slave girl in Acts), Bible women knock on doors seeking healing, redemption and freedom—or, in the case...
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