REVELATION Women f] k_\ Bible This page is intentionally left blank Women f] k_\ Bible A One-Year Devotional Study of Women in Scripture Updated & Expanded Ann Spangler Jean E. Syswerda We want to hear from you. Please send your comments about this book to us in care of
[email protected] Thank you. Women of the Bible ® Adobe ® Acrobat ® eBook Reader format Copyright © 2007 by Ann Spangler and Jean Syswerda Requests for information should be addressed to: Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49530 ISBN : 0 - 3 1 0 - 2 9 5 8 6 - 6 - All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Also the Holy Bible, Today’s New International VersionTM. TNIV®. Copyright © 2001, 2005 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. Internet addresses (websites, blogs, etc.) and telephone numbers printed in this book are offered as a resource to you. These are not intended in any way to be or imply an endorsement on the part of Zondervan, nor do we vouch for the content of these sites and numbers for the life of this book. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means — electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other — except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher. Interior design by Pamela J. L. Eicher To Judy Weaver Your faith has strengthened mine. — Ann Spangler N To my daughters, Holly and Shelly You have shown me the beauty of young women of God. — Jean E. Syswerda This page is intentionally left blank Contents Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Eve . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Sarah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Hagar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Lot’s Wife . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 Rebekah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 Rachel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 Leah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 Tamar, Daughter-in-Law of Judah. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71 Potiphar’s Wife . . . . . . . . . . . 79 The Mothers of Moses: Jochebed and Pharaoh’s Daughter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86 Miriam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93 Rahab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100 Deborah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 Jael . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115 Delilah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122 Naomi. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130 Ruth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138 Hannah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146 Michal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153 Abigail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .161 The Woman of Endor . . . . . 169 Bathsheba . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .176 Tamar, Daughter of King David . . 185 The Wise Woman of Abel . . 191 Rizpah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199 The Queen of Sheba . . . . . . 206 Jezebel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213 The Widow of Zarephath . . 220 The Shunammite Woman . . 227 Athaliah and Jehosheba . . . . 234 Huldah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242 Esther . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250 The Woman of Proverbs 31 . . . . . . . . . . 259 The Shulammite Woman. . . 267 Gomer. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 276 Elizabeth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283 Mary, Mother of Jesus . . . . . 291 Anna . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 301 The Woman of Samaria . . . . 308 The Woman Who Lived a Sinful Life. . . . . . . . . . . . .316 The Woman with the Issue of Blood . . . . . . . 324