The Old Testament books from Genesis to Judges speak of many people. There is a rich history of the Jewish people found in these six books. Most of the people that are documented are men, and the women are usually behind the scenes in their respective role. There are, however, a handful of women that are given a fair amount of space with regard to their importance within the history of Israel. Obviously, women were very important in Old Testament times, but unfortunately not many are expounded on with great detail. The women in this article are women who played major roles within the history Israel and of the Jewish people. Their lives, their deaths, their sins, and their victories are just some of the reasons that make the Bible so rich.

The first woman who plays not only an important role in the history of Israel, but also in the history of mankind, is Eve. She has two names which were given to her, both of which were given by her husband Adam. "The first, Ishshah, ‘woman’ (literally, "man-ess"), is not strictly a name but a generic designation, referring to her relation to the man; a relation she was created to fulfill in default of any true companionship between man and the beasts, and represented as intimate and sacred beyond that between child and parents (2:18-24)." The second name given to her was simply Eve which means "life." This name was given after she sinned by eating the forbidden fruit. This name denotes "the spiritual history or evolution of which she is the beginning (3:16,20)."

Eve’s importance cannot be underestimated because she is literally the "mother of all mankind." In the book of Genesis, according to chapter 2, verses 18-22, her specific purpose was to be a "helpmate" to her husband Adam. Adam realized his need for a mate after noticing that all the animals that God created had mates. God put him into a deep sleep and formed a woman (Eve) from his own flesh. Eve was married to Adam, and she was the first wife, thus, forming the first marriage. God gave to Adam this person who was different from himself and the animals, and he called her "bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh." Without Eve there is no foundation and no one to trace a human origin. The details of her life are sketchy, but her existence, no matter how evil or good, is essential for all other people who came from her and after her.

A second, and very important woman in the history of Israel is Sarah, the wife of Abraham. Though she, like Eve, is not technically a part of the "history of Israel" she is still pivotal for Israel to have a history! The first mention of Sarah is found in Genesis 11:29 where she is mentioned as the wife that Abraham took while he was still in Ur of the Chaldees (among his own people). It is specified here that Sarah was barren because she was unable to have children. God later changes her name in Genesis 17:15 from Sarai to Sarah which means "princess." In verse 16 it is declared of Sarah that "she shall be a mother of nations and kings of peoples shall be of her" (Genesis 17:16). From this passage, the prophecy of her importance is obvious. God has great and wonderful plans for Sarah. It is through her that all of Israel comes into being.

After a relatively quiet and barren life Sarah becomes a mother, though not legitimately, around the age of 76. Due to her loss of faith in God’s perfect plan, her handmaid, Hagar, gives birth to a son whom her husband Abraham fathered. The boy is named Ishmael. Sarah, though told she would bear a son who would be the father of many nations, loses her faith in God and decides to do things her own way. Her mistake has plagued Israel to this day. God, however, remained true to His promise and opened Sarah’s own womb when she was around the age of 90. She later had a son named Isaac. It was through Isaac that many nations came into being.

Sarah’s character is a mix between strong and weak. At one time she waivers in her faith and it results in the birth of Ishmael and an entire enemy nation. During the same trial she quarrels with her husband Abraham which results in gross injustice to Hagar and Ishmael as they were both banned from the camp. Yet at another time, in New Testament references, she is one who through a long life of companionship with Abraham shared his hope in God, his faith in the promises, and his power to become God's agent for achieving what was humanly impossible (Hebrews 11:11; 1 Peter 3:6). "In fact, to Sarah is ascribed a sort of spiritual maternity, correlative with Abraham's position as ‘father of the faithful’; for all women are declared to be the (spiritual) daughters of Sarah, who like her are adorned in ‘the hidden man of the heart,’ and who are ‘doers of good’ and ‘fearers of no terror.’" All of this in spite of her downfalls previously mentioned. She was, generally speaking, "subject to her husband" and of "a meek and quiet spirit." Given Abraham’s grief at her death it appears he loved her deeply. Even Isaac had an extensive mourning for her at her death (Genesis 24:67; 17:17 and 23:1; 25:20). "And He who maketh even the wrath of man to praise Him used even Sarah's jealous anger to accomplish His purpose that ‘the son of the freewoman,’ Isaac, ‘born through promise,’ should alone inherit that promise (Gal 4:22-31)." Sarah, though the mother of all nations, like Eve before her, is not mentioned as often as might be expected given her role in the birth of all nations. "Yet her existence and her history are of course presupposed wherever allusion is made to the stories of Abraham and of Isaac."

A third woman who is of great importance in the history of Israel is Rebekah. Rebekah became the wife of Isaac who was the son of Sarah. This marriage immediately puts Rebekah in a pivotal position within Israel’s history because now she will also be a part of "the mother of all nations" line. Her story is found in Genesis 24 when Abraham sends his chief servant on a mission to find a wife for his son. His servant goes into Mesopotamia and, after praying that God would make His will very obvious, meets Rebekah. This woman pleased Abraham because he had insisted that the woman his son marry be a native from his own country and not a Canaanite. As it turns out she Rebekah was Isaac’s second cousin.

Rebekah and Isaac married and had twin sons -- Esau and Jacob. These two boys were difficult for Rebekah to carry because she was told by God that two nations were represented in her womb. Esau became the father of the Edomites while Jacob became the "father of all nations" just like God had promised. As told in the Biblical account, Esau was the favorite of his father, but Rebekah favored Jacob.

Not a lot is told about Rebekah, but it is evident that she was not above deception. At the end of Isaac’s life, when the time came for handing out birthrights, Rebekah stepped in with a plan all her own. Since Esau was the firstborn it was his right to receive the greater blessing, but since Rebekah favored Jacob she arranged to have him receive the birthright from Isaac. Her plan succeeded, and it became evident in the life of Jacob that her deceptive personality trait was passed on. As expected, when Esau realized what had happened he was angry and threatened to kill his brother. Jacob was forced to flee to Padan Aram to escape Esau's wrath. Though Rebekah had good intentions it seems, this deception caused tremendous problems for her. This would be the last she would ever see of her favorite son Jacob. Apparently she died while Jacob was in Mesopotamia. Genesis 49:30-31 says that she was buried in the cave of Machpelah where Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Sarah, and Leah were also buried. She was of utmost importance in Israel’s history because through her came the people who would fulfill the promises made to Abraham.

Following Rebekah in the line of Israel’s important women came four other women. Leah and Rachel and their two maidservants. These four women serve, even today, as the mothers of the tribes of Israel. Leah is important because she became the first wife of Jacob -- who later received the name Israel. Leah had six sons: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun (Genesis 29:31-35; 30:17-20) -- and a daughter, Dinah (30:21). Leah's maid, Zilpah, who also had sexual relations with Jacob, produced two more sons: Gad and Asher (30:9-13). Though Leah was not the favorite wife of Jacob, the fruit of her womb, namely Judah, was the line in which the Messiah would come. Her life and her contribution to the history of Israel is without equal. God blessed her, though in her lifetime she most likely never knew it. She died in the land of Canaan and was buried in the Cave of Machpelah in Hebron.

Though Leah had eight sons, two through her maidservant, Rachel produced two of her own and also had a maidservant that produced two more, totaling twelve sons in all for Jacob. Rachel, as Jacob’s favorite wife, had Joseph and Benjamin. The other two were named Dan and Naphtali. Rachel was the reason for all that happened to Jacob. He had originally intended to work seven years to marry her, but he was deceptively given Leah instead. The next seven years he spent working again for Rachel, and he spent an additional amount of time working for Rachel’s father after that. Without Rachel Jacob would never have spent those twenty years away from home, and he never would have married Leah who was so pivotal in the line of the Messiah. Nevertheless, Rachel had great importance in her line of children as well. Her son Joseph, though enduring much pain and hardship, modeled true faith that teaches pertinent lessons even today. Benjamin established a tribe, albeit small, that produced the first king of Israel, Saul, and also the greatest missionary for Jesus Christ the world will ever know -- the Apostle Paul.

In addition, Rachel, in Matthew 2:18, became symbolic of the sorrow and tragedy suffered by the Israelites. Matthew points out that the murder of all the male children in Bethlehem, from two years old and under, by Herod the Great, was the fulfillment of Jeremiah's prophecy (Matthew 2:16-18).

Finally, an eighth woman who aids in the rich history is Israel is Deborah. Deborah is unique in that she was a judge of Israel (Judges 4:4). During a time when the nation seemed to lack any adequate male leadership Deborah was a woman who stood in that gap. She was a prophetess and the wife of Lappidoth. When the time came for an Israelite revolt against their enemies Deborah lead the forces. She came to power around 1120 B.C. After the death of Ehud the children of Israel fell away from the Lord and were given into the hands of "Jabin, king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor." He oppressed them severely for twenty years.

During this period of oppression by Jabin, Deborah, "the prophetess," dwelt under a palm tree (which bore her name) between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim. It was at this place that people came to her for judgment. "She sent an inspired message to Barak, bidding him assemble ten thousand men of Naphtali and Zebulun at Mt. Tabor, for Jehovah would draw Sisera (Jabin's general) and his host to meet him at the river Kishon and would deliver them into his hand. Barak agreed, but only on the condition that Deborah would accompany him. Deborah consented but assured him that the prize of victory, the defeat of the hostile general, should be taken out of his hand, for Jehovah would sell Sisera into the hand of a woman (Jael)." In Judges 4:15 the result of Deborah’s attack is given: "And the Lord routed Sisera and all his chariots and all his army, with the edge of the sword before Barak." After this the land had rest for another forty years. The song of Deborah, which followed this great victory, is universally acclaimed an early masterpiece of Hebrew poetry. "Critics laud it as one of the first songs in Hebrew literature." Since Deborah has been widely acclaimed as its author, her impact on the history of Israel continues on as long as the Bible continues on. Distinguished for its depth of imagery, preserved archaisms, and insight into the rude, barbaric life of the twelfth century B.C., this song and its author live on long after the victory which prompted it.

In conclusion, women have had a remarkable role in the history of the nation of Israel. They do not receive the praise due them, but they are important nonetheless. Just as men today do not amount to much without faithful women, men in Jewish history would be stuck in Ur of the Chaldees without Godly, faithful women. They have not only given birth to the leaders of that great nation, but they have also led that great nation. God worked through them in different ways than he worked through the men, but He does the same thing even today with all men everywhere. God’s dealing with women in Israel is the model by which he deals with and uses them even today.

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, 1996 Electronic Database Copyright (C) 1996 by Biblesoft), "Eve in the Old Testament."

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, 1996 Electronic Database Copyright (C) 1996 by Biblesoft), "Sarah."

Nelson’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary, 1986 Ed., "Rebekah."

Nelson’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary, 1986 Ed., "Leah."

Unger’s Bible Dictionary, 1983 Ed., "Rachel."

Unger’s Bible Dictionary, 1983 Ed., "Deborah."