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SOUNDING OUT:
Examples of Women in Ministry
It is undeniable that in both the Old and New Testaments, God affirms women in leadership and ministry. A brief perusal of the Old Testament identifies women prophets during every epoch of Israel’s history.
Exodus 15:20-21: Miriam
And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances.
21 And Miriam answered them, Sing ye to the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.
The Word of God Moses has just declared Miriam goes out and repeats in song. She not only sings but leads other women, too.
Micah 6:3,4:
O my people, what have I done unto thee? and wherein have I wearied thee? testify against me.
4 For I brought thee up out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed thee out of the house of servants; and I sent before thee Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.
Miriam was mentioned right along with Moses and Aaron. These three were mentioned as working together to bring the deliverance God promised.
Judges 4:4 mentions Deborah, the prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, and she judged Israel at that time. Therefore we know opportunities of service were not limited to just single women. Yes, married women can serve, too. In Isaiah 8:3 God instructed Isaiah to marry a the prophetess and have children whose names conveyed a message from the Lord.
II Kings 22:14-17: Huldah
So Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam, and Achbor, and Shaphan, and Asahiah, went unto Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, keeper of the wardrobe; (now she dwelt in Jerusalem in the college;) and they communed with her.
15 And she said unto them, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Tell the man that sent you to me [the king],
16 Thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will bring evil upon this place, and upon the inhabitants thereof, even all the words of the book which the king of Judah hath read:
17 Because they have forsaken me, and have burned incense unto other gods, that they might provoke me to anger with all the works of their hands; therefore my wrath shall be kindled against this place, and shall not be quenched.
You must have boldness to speak words like that. One must know who they are representing to speak words like these. This was a virtuous woman, a strong and valiant women who delivered God’s Word as He wanted it done.
II Kings 22:18:
But to the king of Judah which sent you to enquire of the LORD, thus shall ye say to him, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, As touching the words which thou hast heard;
The king sent these five men including priests to Huldah to inquire of the Lord. She must have already proven herself and gained a reputation as a spokesman for God. She must have demonstrated a service ministry among God’s people even before this time.
II Kings 22:19,20:
Because thine heart was tender, and thou hast humbled thyself before the LORD, when thou heardest what I spake against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, that they should become a desolation and a curse, and hast rent thy clothes, and wept before me; I also have heard thee, saith the LORD.
20 Behold therefore, I will gather thee unto thy fathers, and thou shalt be gathered into thy grave in peace; and thine eyes shall not see all the evil which I will bring upon this place. And they brought the king word again.
That was a functioning ministry, and the words she spoke made a difference.
Besides these great women who served God’s people as prophets, we have many examples of mothers who stepped into leadership roles as guardians of their homes, too.
Samuel 20:15-22:
And they came and besieged him in Abel of Bethmaachah, and they cast up a bank against the city, and it stood in the trench: and all the people that were with Joab battered the wall, to throw it down.
16 Then cried a wise woman out of the city, Hear, hear; say, I pray you, unto Joab, Come near hither, that I may speak with thee.
17 And when he was come near unto her, the woman said, Art thou Joab? And he answered, I am he. Then she said unto him, Hear the words of thine handmaid. And he answered, I do hear.
18 Then she spake, saying, They were wont to speak in old time, saying, They shall surely ask counsel at Abel: and so they ended the matter.
19 I am one of them that are peaceable and faithful in Israel: thou seekest to destroy a city and a mother in Israel: why wilt thou swallow up the inheritance of the LORD?
People came to Abel from all over to have matters judged and disputes settled. Abel was well know for this, and she claims to be one of them adept in these matters. She just steps up, attempting to settle this one with Joab.
Samuel 20:20-22:
And Joab answered and said, Far be it, far be it from me, that I should swallow up or destroy.
21 The matter is not so: but a man of mount Ephraim, Sheba the son of Bichri by name, hath lifted up his hand against the king, even against David: deliver him only, and I will depart from the city. And the woman said unto Joab, Behold, his head shall be thrown to thee over the wall.
22 Then the woman went unto all the people in her wisdom. And they cut off the head of Sheba the son of Bichri, and cast it out to Joab. And he blew a trumpet, and they retired from the city, every man to his tent. And Joab returned to Jerusalem unto the king.
She was a woman of action. She had some clout and influence in the city, and she promised Joab that he would receive the man’s head thrown over the wall to him. She spoke to the people and covinced the elders of the city that this was the right thing to do. She saved the whole city.
In the New Testament almost every leadership role that names a man also names a woman. Women are identified as prophets:
Luke 2:36-38:
And there was one Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Aser: she was of a great age, and had lived with an husband seven years from her virginity;
37 And she was a widow of about fourscore and four years, which departed not from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day.
38 And she coming in that instant gave thanks likewise unto the Lord, and spake of him to all them that looked for redemption in Jerusalem.
If we estimate that she was married at 16 years of age. Then she was married for seven years, and she has been a widow for eighty-four. That makes her around 107 years old, give or take five years. What a woman! She is still active and serving the Lord night and day at 107. She still walks by the spirit and shows up in the Temple at just the right time to deliver this prophesy. What an example.
Philippians 4:2,3:
I beseech Euodias, and beseech Syntyche, that they be of the same mind in the Lord.
3 And I intreat thee also, true yokefellow, help those women which laboured with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and with other my fellowlabourers, whose names are in the book of life.
“To labor in the gospel” is “to do the work of an evangelist.” They helped Paul move the Word. They were out holding forth the word of life, getting people born again and established in the faith.
Acts 18:24-26:
And a certain Jew named Apollos, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man, and mighty in the scriptures, came to Ephesus.
25 This man was instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in the spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John.
26 And he began to speak boldly in the synagogue: whom when Aquila and Priscilla had heard, they took him unto them, and expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly.
Aquila and Priscilla both taught Apollos. They both expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly. They had been with Paul and learned things Apollos had never been taught, so they shared with him what they knew.
Titus 2:3-5:
The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things;
4 That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children,
5 To be discreet, chaste, keepers at home [guardians of the home], good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God be not blasphemed.
That is quite an admonition. What a responsibility lay in these aged women’s hands.
Romans 16:7:
Salute Andronicus and Junia, my kinsmen, and my fellowprisoners, who are of note among the apostles, who also were in Christ before me.
Look at Paul’s respect for these two. They were serving the Lord as apostles before Paul came on the scene in Acts 9. This man Andronicus and this woman Junia were serving at Rome. Paul mentions that of all the apostles these two have distinguished themselves. Paul also affectionately calls them kinsmen and recognizes their sold out commitment to do God’s Word as fellow prisoners, also.
Some traditionalists question the female gender of the Greek, Iounian, translated Junia in Romans 16:7. However, there is no objective reason for anything other than a feminine rendering. Both older versions and translations (see Vulg., Syr., Copt., Wycliffe, Tyndale, Great, Geneva, Bishop, KJV, Rheims, Webster, Reina-Valera, Weymouth, BBE), as well as more recent revisions and translations (NRSV, REB, Revised NAB, NKJV, NCV, NLT, GWT, NET, ESV, CSB, TNIV) translate Iounian as the feminine Junia. The masculine name “Junias” does not appear in any inscription, tombstone, letterhead or letter, or in any literary work contemporary with the New Testament. In fact, “Junias” does not exist in any extant Greek or Latin document of the Greco-Roman period. Conversely, the feminine “Junia” is quite common and well attested in both Greek and Latin inscriptions.
Let me give you an example of a translational bias.
Romans 16:1
I commend unto you Phoebe our sister, which is a servant of the church which is at Cenchrea.
If you were to look at the NIV, there is a text note on the word servant which says, “deaconess.” The word “servant” in Romans 16:1, diakonos, is the same word that in Timothy is translated “deacon.” Phoebe is a woman. It is a female name. In this verse, the translators say she is a servant, but the Greek word is the word for deacon. By the way, it is not even feminine in the Greek texts. It is masculine. Is it true that a deacon is a servant? Yes, but I would say, “look” if you are going to translate the word deacon of the men in Timothy and Titus, then translate it deacon here as well..
You are seeing a translational bias, we translate this servant here [Romans] because we do not want to call Phoebe a deacon, a servant-leader. It is the exact same word translated deacon over in Timothy and Titus, and it is even in the masculine despite the fact that it says “our sister Phoebe.”
Phoebe is the first of 35 people listed. There are 28 men and 7 women. That’s 20% 1 out of 5. We not only need Pauls today, we also need Phoebes. Who knows, we may witness to the next apostle Pauline.
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