• Jeroboam’s Wife

    Jeroboam’s Wife

    King Jeroboam was an evil man. He brought idol worship to a new level. He made priests out of every class of people. Whoever wanted to be a priest, he consecrated, and he became one of the priests of the high places where they worshipped their idols. Then his son Abijah got sick. Since Jeroboam… Read more

  • Wives of Solomon

    Wives of Solomon

    Solomon’s wealth and wisdom were unsurpassed. He had everything he could possibly desire, yet it wasn’t enough. He wanted more.  In addition to the daughter of Pharaoh, he married Moabite, Ammonite, Edomite, Sidonian, and Hittite women, women from lands where the Israelites were forbidden to intermarry because of their pagan worship. Since these women were… Read more

  • Abishag in the Bible: David’s Faithful Nurse

    Abishag in the Bible: David’s Faithful Nurse

    King David grew old and sickly and suffered from chills that couldn’t be warmed by merely piling on blankets. His physicians prescribed a treatment that to us sounds strange, but was an accepted medical practice at the time. The doctors said to find a young virgin to care for the king and to lie in… Read more

  • King David’s Wives

    King David’s Wives

    Once David was anointed king, it didn’t take long to acquire more wives. In addition to Ahiroam, Abigail, and Michal, he married Maacah, Haggith, Abital, and Elgah while living in Hebron. Then came Bathsheba. Ahinoam bore him Amnon. Abigail bore Chileab. Maacah, the daughter of Talmai, king of Geshur, bore Absalom. Haggith bore Adonijah. Abital bore… Read more

  • Ahinoam and Abigail

    Ahinoam and Abigail

    Two Bible women are named Ahinoam. The first was Saul’s wife. The second was one of David’s wives. She was from Jezreal, and David married her while he was a fugitive in the wilderness.  Ahinoam and Abigail were in Ziklag when the Amalekites invaded the city and burned it down. The two women, along with… Read more

  • Merab Daughter of Saul

    Merab Daughter of Saul

    Saul had two daughters – Merab and Michal. Though they were daughters of the king, princesses in those days were often used as political pawns. Such is the case with Merab and Michal. In 1 Samuel 18: 17, Saul offered Merab, his oldest daughter, to David if we would fight the Lord’s battles. Saul’s thoughts… Read more

  • Dancing Women in the Bible

    Dancing Women in the Bible

    The Israelites lived in fear of the Philistines. Everyone feared them, especially the Philistine champion Goliath who was six cubits and a span. That translates into nine feet nine inches tall. Though this is hard for us to comprehend, several historians of the times mentioned giants that were seven cubits. Nonetheless, Goliath towered over the… Read more

  • Ahinoam Wife of King Saul

    Ahinoam Wife of King Saul

    In 1 Samuel 10 the prophet Samuel anointed Saul as the first king of the Israelites. The chapters that follow cover Saul’s political and spiritual battles.  Chapter 14 tells us that Saul established his sovereignty over Israel and fought against his enemies on every side. He fought Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, kings of Jobah, and the… Read more

  • Young Maidens Drawing Water

    Young Maidens Drawing Water

    Before Saul was king over Israel, he was a handsome young man whose father was Kish, a Benjaminite. Kish’s donkey got loose, so Kish sent his son Saul to go look for them. Saul and a servant searched for the donkeys throughout the mountains of Ephraim and through the land of Shalisha, but they couldn’t… Read more

  • Tabernacle Women in the Old Testament

    Tabernacle Women in the Old Testament

    In Exodus 38 we first learned of the serving women who assembled at the tabernacle. Though we don’t know their exact duties, we know there were many women who served in some capacity at the tabernacle.  In 1 Samuel we see the tabernacle women mentioned again.  It was the time of the judges. Eli was… Read more

  • Peninnah in the Bible

    Peninnah in the Bible

    Elkanah, a certain man of Ramathaim in the mountains of Ephraim, had two wives. His first wife was Hannah. The second was Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah was barren. Though we usually focus on Hannah, let’s take a look at the family dynamics from Peninnah’s point of view. Though the customs of the times… Read more

  • Naomi, Orpah, and Ruth

    Naomi, Orpah, and Ruth

    During the days of the judges a famine hit Bethlehem. A certain man named Elimelech, his wife Naomi, and their two sons, Mahlon and Chilion tried to escape the famine by moving to Moab.  They stayed in Moab for awhile before Elimelech died, leaving Naomi to depend on her two sons. Then they took wives… Read more

  • Wives for the Benjaminites

    Wives for the Benjaminites

    What started out as one man of God going astray led to a civil war among the tribes of Israel. The men of Israel fought against the tribe of Benjamin, killing all but six hundred unmarried men.  After the glory of the battle victory wore off, the people then lamented that since they’d sworn not… Read more

  • The Levite’s Concubine

    The Levite’s Concubine

    During the times when Israel had no king, a Levite lived in the remote mountains of Ephraim. He took for himself a concubine from Bethlehem, but his concubine was unfaithful to him and left him, returning to her father’s house and staying there for four months.  As a man of God, this Levite should have… Read more

  • Micah’s Mother

    Micah’s Mother

    The later part of the book of Judges includes a series of stories that illustrate the pagan influences on the people of Israel. Chapter 17 tells the story of Micah and his mother. They lived in the mountains of Ephraim.  Micah’s mother had a large stash of money that was stolen, so she put a… Read more

  • The Tragedy of Jephthah’s Daughter

    The Tragedy of Jephthah’s Daughter

    The book of Judges is filled with tragic stories of sin. So often, women were innocent victims of the sins of their fathers, husbands, or family members. Jephthah’s daughter is one of those women. Jephthah was the son of a harlot who was used by God to deliver the Israelites from their enemies. Though he… Read more

  • Jephthah’s Mother

    Jephthah’s Mother

    The time of the judges was a challenging time for the Israelites. As long as they had a strong judge, the people tended to listen and obey God. But as soon as the judge died, they went back to their old ways of following other gods.  God responded to their unfaithfulness by allowing them to… Read more

  • Woman of Thebez

    Woman of Thebez

    Abimelech ruled with the support of his fellow men from Shechem, until three years into his reign when they turned against him. What followed was a series of battles between Abimelech and the men of Shechem. Abimelech and his army destroyed the city of Shechem, killing everyone in it. When word reached the people at… Read more

  • Gideon’s Concubine

    Gideon’s Concubine

    In addition to Gideon’s many wives, he had a concubine who lived in Shechem. She bore Gideon a son who he called Abimelech, which means “my father is king”. Gideon died in peace at a good old age, but as soon as he died, the people of Israel went back to the worship of Baal.… Read more

  • All Gideon’s Wives

    All Gideon’s Wives

    We first meet Gideon in Judges chapter 6, but it’s not until almost three chapters later when he’s on his deathbed, that we discover Gideon had many wives plus at least one concubine.  Gideon started off a humble man. The Angel of the Lord came to him while he threshed wheat in the winepress in… Read more

  • Jael, Conquerer of Sisera

    Jael, Conquerer of Sisera

    When God sent the storm and Sisera’s chariot got clogged in the mud, Sisera dismounted and ran on foot to get away. He came to the home of Heber and Jael, and since Heber and Jabin the king were allies, Sisera thought nothing of it when Jael invited him into their tent. She offered him… Read more