We all have a desire to make a difference, to feel our lives has meaning. We want to leave the world a little better than it was before us. But that can be discouraging when we fall short of who we long to be. Though we wish we were strong and mighty, we often feel, instead, that we’re weak and helpless. If that’s you, good news! The Bible is filled with stories of ordinary women used by God to do mighty works.
I love studying women in the Bible. There are so many amazing Bible ladies to inspire us whatever we’re going through. Today I’d like to feature ten of my favorite notable Bible females who rocked their world and impacted history for generations to come.
Shiphrah and Puah
The story of Egyptian midwives Shiphrah and Puah is found in Exodus 1:13-21. The pharaoh decided there were too many Hebrews in Egypt–The descendants of Joseph and his brothers numbered over a million–so he tried to reduce the growing population by getting the midwives to kill off the baby boys. Only they didn’t cooperate.
Shiphrah and Puah were career women. It was to their advantage to comply with the king’s orders, but they feared God more than a worldly ruler. They disobeyed the king’s orders and allowed the baby boys to live. When confronted by the pharaoh, they explained that unlike the Egyptian women, the Hebrew women gave birth quickly, and they had the babies before the midwives arrived.
Was it true what they said? We don’t know. What we do know is they chose life over death, and God rewarded them. “Therefore God dealt well with the midwives, and the people multiplied and grew very mighty. And so it was, because the midwives feared God, that He provided households for them.” Exodus 1:20-21
These women had a difficult choice to make. Further their careers or do the right thing. They did the right thing, and as a result, many lives were saved.
Learn more about Shiphrah and Puah.
Daughters of Zelophehad
Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tizrah were the five unmarried daughters of Zelophehad. As the Israelites prepared to enter the Promised Land, Moses took a census of all the travelers. The purpose of the census was to get an idea of their warrior strength, but also to designate the land grants once they overtook the Promised Land.
Property was to be divided up by tribe to the sons of the fathers, but Zelophehad had no sons, only five daughters, so they wouldn’t have anywhere to live. This hardly seemed fair to the single sisters.
Together as a group, they went to Moses to express their concerns. They stood before Moses, Eleazar, the priest, and the other leaders of the congregation, and presented their case.
They explained that their father had died in the wilderness, but, they clarified, he was not part of the revolt against God. He died of his own sins, and he had no sons. Then they asked, “Why should the name of our father be removed from among his family because he had no son?” They closed with their request. “Give us a possession among our father’s brothers.”
In a society that considered women possessions rather than equals, this was a bold move by these five young females, but Moses listened and prayed about it.
“And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: ‘The daughters of Zelophehad speak what is right; you shall surely give them a possession of inheritance among their father’s brothers, and cause the inheritance of their father to pass to them. And you shall speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘If a man dies and has no son, then you shall cause his inheritance to pass to his daughter.
If he has no daughter, then you shall give his inheritance to his brothers. If he has no brothers, then you shall give his inheritance to his father’s brothers. And if his father has no brothers, then you shall give his inheritance to the relative closest to him in his family, and he shall possess it.’ ”. Numbers 27:6-11
The actions of Mahlah, Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tizrah paved the way for women to own property.
Learn more about the daughters of Zelophehad.
Rahab
If you were going to select a woman to impact the world, Rahab would not have been the first one to come to mind. She was a pagan harlot. How could she possibly change the world for good? Yet, she did.
After decades of wandering in the wilderness, the time had finally come for the Hebrew nation to enter the Promised Land. Joshua sent two men to scout out the land and report back the situation. The two men entered the city of Jericho and found lodging with Rahab. They probably thought it was the easiest way to blend in and scope the land. What they didn’t figure on was Rahab’s seeking heart.
Rahab hid the spies on her roof so the king’s men couldn’t find them, then she climbed onto the roof to talk to them. She opened by telling them the men of Jericho knew all about the Israelites and their God, and they trembled with fear. She professed her faith in their God and asked if when they conquered her city if they might spare her and her family.
The spies agreed. Rahab protected their lives. They protected hers. With her help, the Israelites conquered the city of Jericho. Rahab went on to marry Salmon from the line of Judah and is included in the lineage of Jesus.
Deborah
Deborah was a housewife who sat in her front yard under a tree, and the people came to her for wisdom and advice from God. She was the only female judge in the Bible, and one of only a handful of Bible prophetesses.
One day Deborah called for Barak, the military leader, and said to him, “Has not the Lord God of Israel commanded, ‘Go and deploy troops at Mount Tabor; take with you ten thousand men of the sons of Naphtali and of the sons of Zebulun; and against you I will deploy Sisera, the commander of Jabin’s army, with his chariots and his multitude at the River Kishon; and I will deliver him into your hand’?” Judges 4:6-7
Barak responded by saying he would only go if she went with him, so she did. Deborah was not a militant woman, but she left the comfort of her home in the mountains to accompany Barak and his army to Kedesh, some 70 miles away.
Because of Deborah’s faith, the Israelites defeated their enemies, and the land had peace for forty years.
Hannah
In a time when a woman’s value was based on her ability to conceive, Hannah was a barren woman with a co-wife who despised her. Though Hannah’s husband Elkanah loved her, it didn’t take away her shame of being childless. To make matters worse, Penninah, Elkanah’s other wife, made her life unbearable.
Hannah prayed continuously for a son, but not just any son. She saw the tragic state of the world around her, and asked God to give her a son who would help lead the Israelites back to God. She promised that if God gave her a son, she would give him back to God to serve all the days of his life.
God blessed Hannah with a son. She called him Samuel, and true to her word, she dedicated him to the Lord, leaving him in the care of the priest Eli.
Though Samuel grew up around the evil sons of Eli, he maintained the faith of his mother. He became a mighty prophet for the Lord.
Hannah could have prayed selfishly for a son of her own, but she graciously gave up her son in order that he could serve God and lead God’s people back to Him. That act didn’t go unnoticed. God blessed her with other children.
Wise Woman of Abel
2 Samuel chapter 20 opens with the rebellion of Sheba, a Benjamanite who convinced the men of Israel to desert David as their king. In response, David gathered his army to go after Sheba before he could find safety in a fortified city.
The army pursued Sheba to the city of Abel. Since he was safe within the city’s walls, they set up a siege mound, and the troops battered the wall in order to tear it down.
The folks inside the city were terrified with no idea why the king’s army would be attacking them. Fortunately, one woman had a plan. This wise woman of Abel went towards the wall and yelled out that she wanted to speak to Joab, the military leader.
When he came to the other side of the wall, she told him to listen to what she had to say. She asked why he would destroy their city and kill men and women of God. He said he was only after Sheba because he’d led a revolt against King David. If they handed over Sheba, the troops would depart from their city.
She then went to the people of the city and explained the situation. They found Sheba, killed him, chopped off his head, and threw it over the wall. Joab responded by withdrawing the troops. The wise woman of Abel saved her city from attack.
Learn more about the wise woman of Abel.
Jehosheba
Ahaziah was king, then he was killed. When his mother Athaliah learned of his death, she decided to take over the throne. To insure that she wouldn’t have any opposition, she immediately killed all the royal heirs, which included her grandsons. However Jehosheba, daughter of King Johoram and wife of high priest Jehoiada, realized what was going on and found a way to rescue her nephew, baby Joash.
Jehosheba hid Joash and his nurse in the bed chamber where they stored bedding. For six years Jehosheba and Jehoiada kept Joash hidden in the temple. Then, when he was seven years old, Jehoiada brought him out and anointed him king. As king, Joash repaired the temple from Athaliah’s destruction and set the temple in order.
Esther
The story of Esther reads like a fairy tale. An orphaned Hebrew girl competes in a national beauty contest and wins the hand of the king of the land. As queen, Esther finds out about a plot to kill the Hebrews, so she devises a plan to speak to the king and convince him to save her people. She enlists the help of her people by asking everyone to join her in prayer and fasting.
Like every good fairy tale, the story of Queen Esther ends with a happy ending. Esther went before the king and pleaded her case. Though he couldn’t stop the attacks against the Hebrews, he allowed them to defend themselves, which they did.
To this day, Jewish people celebrate the Feast of Purim that celebrates Queen Esther and her efforts to save her people from destruction.
Learn more about Queen Esther.
Samaritan Woman at the Well
The Samaritan woman getting water at the well would have been at the top of the list of “Least Likely to Succeed” women in her town. She was an outcast, rejected by all who knew her, and yet, Jesus reached out to her.
Jesus drew out the Samaritan woman, answering her theology questions, and explaining the gospel to her. He knew who she was, yet he singled her out to have a deep theological discussion.
At the end of their discussion, the Samaritan woman hurried into two to tell the men of the city about Jesus. “Come, see a Man who told me all things that I ever did. Could this be the Christ?” John 4:29
Because of the outcast woman’s testimony, revival took place and many Samaritans were saved.
Learn more about the Samaritan woman.
Mary, Mother of Jesus
No list of notable women in the Bible would be complete without Mary, the mother of Jesus. Like others on the list, Mary was a nondescript young woman, minding her own business, when her life took a dramatic turn.
An angel appeared to the young girl, telling her she’d found favor with the Lord and was going to be the mother of the Savior of the world. This would have been shocking news, to say the least. Most women would have resisted, knowing the precarious position they would be in and the attacks they would face. Yet Mary didn’t let fear restrain her. She responded to the angel, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” Luke 1:38
God knew Mary’s heart. He knew that though she was young and innocent, she had the strength to endure all that the future held for her. It couldn’t have been easy, but she raised Jesus to the best of her abilities and was there for Him throughout His short life.
Learn more about Mary, mother of Jesus.
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