When we open the pages of the Old Testament, we encounter narratives shaped by male scribes, editors, and theologians—men who wrote primarily for male audiences within elite religious circles. Yet beneath these masculine editorial layers lies a more complex and compelling reality: women were not passive figures in ancient Israelite society, but active agents whose contributions shaped their nation’s spiritual legacy.

My new book, Ancient Israel’s Women of Faith: A Survey of the Heroines of the Old Testament, emerges from a question I posed to my students at Northern Baptist Seminary: If women were so central to Israel’s faith community, why does the biblical text often obscure their influence? The answer lies not in the absence of women’s roles, but in understanding how our sources came to us—filtered through male perspectives and priorities.

What becomes clear upon careful examination is that the Old Testament preserves remarkable evidence of women’s leadership and expertise. Israel’s communities included professional prophets, mourners, singers, weavers, diviners, musicians, dancers, and midwives—women whose specialized knowledge was sought and valued. Some women held power as city builders, clan leaders, and queens. Others, like Huldah and the wise women of Israel, served as counselors to kings and community elders. Their stories remind us that capability knows no gender.

Yet this reality coexists alongside a patriarchal legal structure. Israelite law positioned women as subordinates within households, restricted their autonomy, and treated them as property. This tension—between what women actually accomplished and what the law prescribed for them—reveals the texture of ancient Israelite society.

The most hopeful development in this story appears in Deuteronomy. This seventh-century reform movement attempted something revolutionary: to extend legal protections and social dignity to Israel’s most vulnerable members, including women. Here we find evidence of cultural movements toward greater justice.

The women whose stories fill these pages—from the matriarchs to lesser-known figures like Rizpah—speak across centuries. The injustices they navigated, the agency they exercised, and the barriers they faced find echoes in women’s experiences today. By studying their lives, we honor their memory and draw wisdom for our present moment.

To order the book, visit my author page on Amazon [https://www.amazon.com/dp/0825449502].

Claude Mariottini
Emeritus Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

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