Women of the Bible – Huldah

Background and Overview
Huldah (2 Kings 22 and 2 Chronicles 34) lived during the divided kingdom about 625 B.C. during the rein of King Josiah. Josiah became King of Judah at age 8. His father (Amon) and grandfather (Manasseh) had promoted pagan religions (2 Kings 21). After eight years, at age 16, Josiah began seeking Yahweh and at age 20 we began removing some of the sinful practices from his land (2 Chronicles 34.3). At age 30 he ordered the Temple be restored, since it had fallen into disrepair since the time of his grandfather. During this repair, the book of the law is found.
Hilkiah, the high priest, sent the book with Shaphan, the secretary (i.e. Secretary of State), to Josiah. When Shaphan read from the book of the law Josiah was aghast and tears his robes (Chronicles 34.19). He sent Hilkiah, Shaphan and three other men to “inquire of the LORD” for him and all the people “concerning the words of the book that has been found” (34.21). These men, without discussion or question, went straight to Huldah. Huldah told them several things to say to Josiah and Josiah listens to what Huldah said to do.

Was Huldah a “Real” Prophet?
Traditional hierarchical supporters, who believe men are supposed to rule over women, are not quite sure what to do with this story and try to dismiss it in several ways. Tactic #1 is to ignore it. Many people do not even know who Huldah is. I heard a sermon preached this year on 2 Chronicles 34 in which the preacher skipped right over the Huldah verses like they were not even there and did not mention her name once. Tactic #2 is to dismiss this as “Old Testament” and therefore not applicable as an example to us today. Far too many church of Christers have been influenced by this part of the “Texas Tradition”, simply dismissing everything before Acts 2 as part of the “Old Dispensation.” This is a discussion all to itself, but I will make one inquiry here: What “scripture” is referred to in 2 Tim 3.16-17?

16All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

I will give you a hint; the “New Testament” was still being written and would not be canonized until around 200 B.C. Tactic #3 is to attack the Prophet status of Huldah. We will address this issue briefly.

John Rice (a Baptist) says:

Prophets were not preachers, they did not preach. They did not do the work of a pastor nor the work of an evangelist nor the works of a Bible teacher. To prophesy means to foretell the future. A prophecy is a revelation of the future. A prophet is a man who receives a divine revelation. A prophetess is a woman who receives a divine revelation concerning the future. A prophetess never preached in the Bible. They received brief divine revelation to give to individuals, but were never sent to preach, to address public assemblies as expounders of the word nor do they do the work of a pastor or evangelist.

Bobby Valentine’s response to this quote by John Rice was, “One wonders if [John Rice] ever heard of Jonah or Moses?” This is right on the mark. The Hebrew Bible is full of people called prophets who preached Yahweh’s message to others.

A prophet is one who speaks for God to a specific audience.

Exodus 7.1: Then the LORD said to Moses, "See, I have made you like God to Pharaoh, and your brother Aaron will be your prophet.
Exodus 4.16: He [Aaron] will speak to the people for you [Moses], and it will be as if he were your mouth and as if you were God to him.

Just as God’s prophets speak for God, Moses’ prophet, Aaron, speaks for Moses. God defines a prophet as someone sent to speak for another.

Amos 7.16: Now then, hear the word of the LORD. You say,
" 'Do not prophesy against Israel,
and stop preaching against the house of Isaac.'

The synonymous parallelism in this verse shows that preaching and prophesying are the same thing.

Jeremiah 1:5-7:

5 "Before I formed you in the womb I knew [a] you,
before you were born I set you apart;
I appointed you as a prophet to the nations."
6 "Ah, Sovereign LORD," I said, "I do not know how to speak; I am only a child."
7 But the LORD said to me, "Do not say, 'I am only a child.' You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you.

Again, God defines a prophet as someone He sends to speak to a specific audience.

1 Corinthians 14.3 contrasts tongue-speakers to prophets and defines prophets as those who speak for God to other people for their encouragement.

These verses are more than examples (and we could find plenty of those), they are definitions of a prophet given to us by God. Sometimes God's message is about future events, but it not limited to that. In fact, it usually is not a prediction of the future but a message about the now. There is no doubt that most, if not all, prophets preached to their varied audiences on behalf of God. Sometimes they quoted Him; sometimes they gave their interpretation of God’s message for the people. In both cases, they preached the word of God.

Given this biblical definition of a prophet, what are we to do with Deborah (whom we discussed earlier)? She was a prophet, and therefore a preacher. So was Huldah. So were Miriam, the female false prophet Noadiah (Nehemiah 6), the wife of Isaiah, and the female false prophets of Ezekiel 13.17-23 (the male false prophets were in 13.1-16). (Please note that being male or female has nothing to do with being a false prophet. A false prophet is a prophet who tells lies instead of the truth. Gender is irrelevant.)
And in the Greek Bible we see Anna, the female prophets at Pentecost (Acts 2), the daughters of Phillip (Acts 21) and the Corinthian female prophets (1 Corinthians 11).
It is impossible to escape the fact that these women preached and did so with God’s approval. Some passages state the preaching explicitly (i.e. Huldah and 1 Corinthians 11) and others express it simply by calling them prophets. The prophetic ministry is analogous to the preaching ministry today. Nevertheless, some supporters of the status quo refuse to accept female leadership.

Here is a letter to the editor published in the Christian Chronicle in 2004:

[Lenny Adams’ article Dealing with the Role of Women] reveals an area of debate that fails to consider the heart of the problem. We’re not saying a great deal about the role of women in the secular realm; this is the heart of the issue. This is the area in which all the problems of leadership originate. But the first question we must answer is, “Does the Bible authorize women to be in positions of authority over men in any area of life?” It is my belief, and one in which I would debate, that women have no Biblical authority to be over men in any area of life. Their subjection role was given at creation and has never changed.

Scripture does not support this stance. I know many Christians who truly believe this convoluted perspective. I love them, but I think they put to much stock in what they have been taught (man-made traditions) and not enough stock in scripture.

A Closer Look at the Prophet Huldah
First we need to understand the importance of Huldah during her own time. We may not hear a lot about Huldah today, but during the reign of King Josiah, she was the “go-to guy”. Jeremiah was preaching during this exact point in time. So were Zephaniah, Nahum and possibly Habakkuk as well. These are names we are more familiar with, yet the King does not inquire of any of these male prophets. He also does not turn to his own male seer, Jeduthun (2 Chronicles 35.15). When Josiah sends “his men” to “inquire of the Yahweh”, they go straight to Huldah.
Who are these men King Josiah sends?

1. Hilkiah, the High Priest
2. Ahikam, the son of Shaphan (his son becomes governor of Judea, 2 Kings 25.22)
3. Abdon son of Micah
4. Shaphan, the secretary (i.e. Secretary of State)
5. Asaiah the king’s attendant

These men are the top leaders in the kingdom. They have the king’s ear. Hilkiah is the High Priest! Please notice that neither Josiah nor Hilkiah think the High Priest is the one who should speak Yahweh’s message concerning “this book”. Some claim that the priesthood is analogous to the preaching ministry today. I think not.
We should also consider the textual importance of Huldah. Chronicles and Kings do not mention most prophets. Those that are mentioned, like Jeremiah, are usually mentioned in passing (2 Chronicles 35.25) in one or the other but not in both Chronicles and Kings. Very few (such as Isaiah) are mentioned in both. Huldah is not only mentioned, but she receives almost a page of text in each. Her introduction alone is more text than many kings get!
Most importantly, this Hebrew text is structured into a chiasm. A chiastic structure points to the main idea of a story by building up to it, then unwinding back out using parallel points. Here is the chiastic structure of the Huldah narrative:
A. Introduction (2 Chronicles 34.1-2)
B. Cultic Purification of Jerusalem and Judah (34.3-5)
C. Purification of the North (Northern Kingdom) (34.6-7)
D. Discovery of the book (34.8-18)
E. The Prophecy of Huldah (34.19-32)
D. Implementation of the book (34.29-32)
C. Purification of the North (34.33)
B. Celebration of the Passover (cultic observance) (35.1-19)
A. Formulaic Conclusion (35.20-36.1)
Huldah is the focus of the story. She is the theological and structural center. The structure stresses the authority of the prophetic word and what comes to be “scripture.” The spoken word of God (Huldah), along with the written word of God (the book of the law), dominate this passage.

What exactly did Huldah do?
Huldah does three major things in this story. First, she authenticates/authorizes scripture. Please understand that this is the first time this has ever happened. We discussed earlier that Deborah was the first author of scripture and now Huldah is the first person to declare, with authority, that a writing is scripture (i.e. from Yahweh). This is what King Josiah is asking his advisor to find out. Is this book the real thing? He just got some really bad news (since the people had not been obeying the laws) and he wants to know if it is true. Huldah tells him it is and he believes her.

Second, Huldah interprets Scripture. She says that the people of Judah will be struck with disaster because they have forsaken Yahweh and instead worshiped idols. The book of the law does say this directly. Huldah is “preaching” the message of Yahweh as his mouthpiece (prophet).

Third, Huldah delivers a custom message from Yahweh. She tells the King that since he responded with humility and angst when he found out about the book, Yahweh will suspend his judgment until after Josiah’s rein.

Huldah’s authority is accepted by the King and High Priest of Judah, and then by all “the remnant.” Those that claim her authority was limited to a closed-door session are mistaken. The words of Yahweh as they came from Huldah had authority over all of Judah. Furthermore, there is never a hint that a woman acting in this authoritative role is unexpected or unwelcomed by the men in the story. Her womanhood is irrelevant to the authoritative role Yahweh gave her. Huldah, like Deborah, was married. This also did not affect her role as prophet of Yahweh.

Conclusion
Yahweh used Huldah to lead His people back to Him. She was viewed as Yahweh’s spokesperson and the King’s men went directly to her to find out Yahweh’s will. She authenticated the book of the law, interpreted it in the present context and delivered a personal message from Yahweh to Josiah. The King and his advisers, including the High Priest, accepted her authority. Josiah went on to restore Judah based on Yahweh’s words though Huldah and through the book of the law she validated.

Women of the Bible - Deborah

Historical Background
Life in Israel was difficult during the age of the judges (~1400-1050 B.C.). Joshua had put down all major organized resistance in the land and divided Canaan amongst the 12 tribes. There were, however, still pockets of resistance and Yahweh wanted these pagans driven out of the land. Judges 1.19 sums up the situation very well:

The LORD was with the men of Judah. They took possession of the hill country, but they were unable to drive the people from the plains, because they had iron chariots.

Archeology confirms that the Israelites lived in the hill country. Furthermore, the Israelites did not know how to work iron, but their adversaries (the Philistines) did. This gave these canaanites a military and economic advantage, thus they ruled the fertile plans near the Mediterranean Sea while the Israelites were confined to the hills.

Ehud, a prior Judge, died and Israel fell back into Sin (Judges 4.1). This is the normal cycle for Judges: sin, servitude, supplication, salvation. Deborah continues this pattern as the people cry out to Yahweh (4.3) and he sends them a new Judge: Deborah (4.4). Deborah is unique among judges in that she was also a prophet, and like other prophets, she spoke the word or Yahweh (3.28, 4.6).

What is a Judge?
A judge was a supreme ruler, in the name of Yahweh, during this period. He or she was the spiritual, political and military leader of one or more tribes of Israel, who was raised up by Yahweh (2.16) to save His people. Deborah should be viewed, as should the other judges, as part of this larger context.

Judges tells the story of Deborah twice: in chapter 4 in prose and in chapter 5 in poetry. Chapter 5 was written by Deborah (even though the introduction says “Deborah and Barak”, all the pronouns are feminine-singular). Most scholars think Deborah’s Song (Judges 5) is the oldest writing in the Bible (O. Eissfeldt, The Old Testament: An Introduction, 1965: 100-101). I find it fascinating that a woman wrote the oldest scripture we have.

We must avoid projecting feminist or anti-feminist ideas into this story. Remember, this is primarily a story about Yahweh raising up a leader to save His people. One mistake that is made by feminists is to diminish Deborah’s introduction as the “wife of Lepidoth.” Instead, they try to translate this phrase as, “a woman of valor.” We must set this story in its proper historical and societal context. This was a strongly patriarchal society, people were known by what family they belonged to and families were named by the patriarch of the family. Introducing Deborah as the wife of Lepidoth is a very standard introduction for this period. Furthermore, it does not diminish Deborah, but rather shows that a wife can be a leader raised up by Yahweh, even in this strongly patriarchal society.

On the other hand, anti-feminists have attacked Deborah on various fronts. Consider David L. Brown's explanation of Deborah:

Yahweh's perfect will is for men to lead, but when men will not assume their responsibilities, Yahweh uses women. The men in Deborah's day were weak and chicken-hearted. Barak, the captain of the armies of Israel, proves this to be true. He refused to go into battle unless Deborah went with him. Deborah had to remind him that Yahweh had said it is time to fight. Deborah had to encourage and challenge him to go. Deborah had to go with him!
"And Barak said unto her, If thou wilt go with me, then I will go: but if thou wilt not go with me, then I will not go" Judges 4:8
Deborah clearly realized that this was neither right nor natural for her to have the leadership position.

Always beware an author who calls something “clear” when it is not. First, Brown says that the men here were “weak and chicken-hearted.” We do not see either of these points made in Judges 4 or 5. At Deborah’s command, 10,000 men assembled to attack the Canaanites, who had better weapons and who had oppressed the Israelites for twenty years. What is “chicken-hearted” about that? It is not explained why Barak refuses to go without Deborah. Brown (and others in his camp) assumes it is because Barak is a poor leader. Barak is the one who assembles the 10,000 men at Deborah’s command. He leads them into battle and destroys the entire Canaanite army. Barak seems to have a reasonable grasp of leadership. Perhaps it is the huge respect that Deborah had during this time that causes Barak to demand her accompaniment. As Yahweh’s judge and prophet, Barak may have viewed her as a talisman (i.e. the Arc of the Covenant) to be carried before the army to ensure victory. This is just another possible explanation. As I said above, we just are not told why Barak demands this of Deborah.

Second, Brown says that it “was neither right nor natural for [Deborah] to have a leadership position.” Where does this idea come from? Not Judges 4-5. Yahweh raised up judges to save His people (Judges 2.16). Yahweh choose Deborah and I do not believe he made a mistake nor that He would have chosen a male if one of good quality would have been available. Yahweh has no problem using poor-quality men to accomplish His plans (i.e. Jonah).

Some have also attacked Deborah’s prophet status, but she is a prophet by any definition of the word. She speaks for Yahweh (4.6), prophesies the outcome of the battle (4.7, 9) and encourages faithfulness and obedience (4.14). These are normal activities of prophets and Deborah’s gender limits her in no way as a prophet of Yahweh.

Back to the Main Story
At this point, it is worth pulling our thoughts back to the main point of Judges 4-5: Yahweh saves His people. Consider Judges 5.4:

O LORD, when you went out from Seir,
when you marched from the land of Edom,
the earth shook, the heavens poured,
the clouds poured down water.

To reach the battlefield, Sisera’s army had to dismantle their chariots and reassemble them on the flat plain. The rain and mud would have made this difficult and made the chariots bog down in the mud. Yahweh apparently neutralized the technological advantage of the Canaanites and led his people to victory against them. Deborah’s Song is not primarily about Deborah, Barak, or Jael (who killed Sisera by driving a tent peg through his head); it is about Yahweh saving His people.

Summary
God raised up a judge, prophet and military leader named Deborah. She led several tribes of Israel (including all the men of those tribes) as Yahweh commanded her. Barak recognized her authority, obeyed her instructions, and so won the battle at Megiddo. Yahweh was pleased with this and granted victory over the Canaanites. Forty years of peace followed because they obeyed Yahweh’s will.

Charme E. Robarts (Deborah, Essays on Women in Earliest Christianity, Volume II) profoundly states:

To suggest that Deborah would not have played the role of military or spiritual leader if the men of Israel had been responsible is to make current gender conflicts apply to the ancient setting rather than allowing the text to apply its meaning to the present situation.

For a visual (and somewhat accurate) representation of this story, refer to The Brick Testament.