'Women' in the Bible

Now go and attack the Amalekites and completely destroy everything they have. Do not spare them. Kill men and women, children and infants, oxen and sheep, camels and donkeys.’”

And Samuel said, As thy sword hath made women childless, so shall thy mother be childless among women. And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the LORD in Gilgal.

And it came to pass as they came, when David was returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, that the women came out of all cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet king Saul, with tabrets, with joy, and with instruments of musick.

And the women answered one another as they played, and said, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands.

Saul was very angry and he did not like what the women sang. He told himself, "They have attributed tens of thousands to David, but to me they have attributed thousands. What else can he have but the kingdom?"

And the priest answered David, and said, There is no common bread under mine hand, but there is hallowed bread; if the young men have kept themselves at least from women.

And David answered the priest, and said unto him, Of a truth women have been kept from us about these three days, since I came out, and the vessels of the young men are holy, and the bread is in a manner common, yea, though it were sanctified this day in the vessel.

And Nob, the city of the priests, smote he with the edge of the sword, both men and women, children and sucklings, and oxen, and asses, and sheep, with the edge of the sword.

Then Abigail quickly got up and got on a donkey, with five young women walking behind her. She followed David's messengers, and she became his wife.

And had taken the women captives, that were therein: they slew not any, either great or small, but carried them away, and went on their way.

I am distressed for thee, my brother Jonathan: very pleasant hast thou been unto me: thy love to me was wonderful, passing the love of women.

May it come on the head of Joab and all his father's family: among the men of Joab's family may there ever be some who are diseased or lepers, or who do the work of women, or are put to the sword, or are wasted from need of food!

And David took more women and wives in Jerusalem, after he had come from Hebron: and he had more sons and daughters.

And he dealt among all the people, even among the whole multitude of Israel, as well to the women as men, to every one a cake of bread, and a good piece of flesh, and a flagon of wine. So all the people departed every one to his house.

When David returned to bless his household, Saul's daughter Michal came out to meet him and called out, "How the king of Israel honored himself today by undressing himself right in front of his women staff members, just like any pervert would dare to expose himself!"

I'm going to act more shamelessly than this, even to humbling myself in my own eyes. Now as to the women staff members about whom you have spoken, they are to hold me in honor!"

I gave you the household of your master and the women of your master into your lap. I also gave you the house of Israel and Judah; if [that had been too] little, I would have added to you {much more}.

Thus says Yahweh, 'Look, I [am] going to raise up evil against you from [within] your house, and I will take your women before your eyes, and I will give them to your neighbor, and he shall sleep with your wives {in broad daylight}.

And the king went forth, and all his household after him. And the king left ten women, which were concubines, to keep the house.

And Ahithophel said to Absalom, Go in to your father's women who are here looking after his house; then all Israel will have the news that you are hated by your father, and the hands of your supporters will be strong.

So they put up the tent for Absalom on the top of the house, and Absalom went in to his father's women before the eyes of all Israel.

And Joab came into the house to the king and said, Today you have put to shame the faces of all your servants who even now have kept you and your sons and your daughters and your wives and all your women safe from death;

I am this day fourscore years old: and can I discern between good and evil? can thy servant taste what I eat or what I drink? can I hear any more the voice of singing men and singing women? wherefore then should thy servant be yet a burden unto my lord the king?

And David came to his house at Jerusalem; and the king took the ten women his concubines, whom he had left to keep the house, and put them in ward, and fed them, but went not in unto them. So they were shut up unto the day of their death, living in widowhood.

Then came there two women, that were harlots, unto the king, and stood before him.

One of the women said, "My master, this woman and I live in the same house. I had a baby while she was with me in the house.

But king Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites;

from the nations that the Lord had told the Israelites about, “Do not intermarry with them, and they must not intermarry with you, because they will turn you away from Me to their gods.” Solomon was deeply attached to these women and loved them.

And he hath women, princesses, seven hundred, and concubines three hundred; and his wives turn aside his heart.

and so he hath done for all his strange women, who are perfuming and sacrificing to their gods.

He said to him, "Thus says Ben-Hadad: 'Your silver and your gold are mine, and your women and your best sons are mine.'"

The messengers returned and said, "Thus says Ben-Hadad, saying, 'I sent to you saying, "Your silver and gold are mine, and your women and your best sons you must give to me."

Then the king of Israel called all the elders of the land and said, "Please know and realize that this [man is] seeking trouble, for he sent to me for my women, my sons, my silver, and my gold, and I did not withhold [anything] from him."

And the war-carriage was washed by the pool of Samaria, which was the bathing-place of the loose women, and the dogs were drinking his blood there, as the Lord had said.

And Hazael said, Why weepeth my lord? And he answered, Because I know the evil that thou wilt do unto the children of Israel: their strong holds wilt thou set on fire, and their young men wilt thou slay with the sword, and wilt dash their children, and rip up their women with child.

Then Menahem smote Tiphsah, and all that were therein, and the coasts thereof from Tirzah: because they opened not to him, therefore he smote it; and all the women therein that were with child he ripped up.

And he brake down the houses of the sodomites, that were by the house of the LORD, where the women wove hangings for the grove.

Zechariah, Aziel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Unni, Eliab, Maaseiah, and Benaiah played harps to accompany the women singers,

Then he distributed to each and every Israelite, both men and women, a loaf of bread, a date cake, and a raisin cake.

but all who will not seek Yahweh the God of Israel should be killed, from young to old, from men to women.

And the children of Israel carried away captive of their brethren two hundred thousand, women, sons, and daughters, and took also away much spoil from them, and brought the spoil to Samaria.

Now you're intending to make the men and women of Judah and Jerusalem to be your slaves. Surely you have your own sins against the LORD your God for which you're accountable, don't you?

And Jeremiah lamented for Josiah: and all the singing men and the singing women spake of Josiah in their lamentations to this day, and made them an ordinance in Israel: and, behold, they are written in the lamentations.

He brought against them the king of the Babylonians, who slaughtered their young men in their temple. He did not spare young men or women, or even the old and aging. God handed everyone over to him.

Beside their servants and their maids, of whom there were seven thousand three hundred thirty and seven: and there were among them two hundred singing men and singing women.

because they and their sons have married foreign women. As a result, the holy people have mingled themselves among the nations of these lands. As a matter of fact, the senior officials and the rulers have been foremost in this sin."

Now when Ezra had prayed, and when he had confessed, weeping and casting himself down before the house of God, there assembled unto him out of Israel a very great congregation of men and women and children: for the people wept very sore.

Then Shecaniah son of Jehiel, an Elamite, responded to Ezra: “We have been unfaithful to our God by marrying foreign women from the surrounding peoples, but there is still hope for Israel in spite of this.

and now, let us make a covenant with our God, to cause all the women to go out, and that which is born of them, by the counsel of the Lord, and of those trembling at the command of our God, and according to law it is done;

Then Ezra the priest stood up and said to them, “You have been unfaithful by marrying foreign women, adding to Israel’s guilt.

and, now, make confession to Jehovah, God of your fathers, and do His good pleasure, and be separated from the peoples of the land, and from the strange women.'

Let our leaders represent the entire assembly. Then let all those in our towns who have married foreign women come at appointed times, together with the elders and judges of each town, in order to avert the fierce anger of our God concerning this matter.”

and by the first day of the first month they had dealt with all the men who had married foreign women.

The following were found to have married foreign women from the descendants of the priests:from the descendants of Jeshua son of Jozadak and his brothers: Maaseiah, Eliezer, Jarib, and Gedaliah.

All of these had married foreign women, and some of the wives had given birth to children.

Beside their manservants and their maidservants, of whom there were seven thousand three hundred thirty and seven: and they had two hundred forty and five singing men and singing women.

And Ezra the priest brought the law before the congregation both of men and women, and all that could hear with understanding, upon the first day of the seventh month.

And he read therein before the street that was before the water gate from the morning until midday, before the men and the women, and those that could understand; and the ears of all the people were attentive unto the book of the law.

On that day they offered great sacrifices and rejoiced because God had given them great joy. The women and children also celebrated, and Jerusalem’s rejoicing was heard far away.

In those days I also saw Jews who had married women from Ashdod, Ammon, and Moab.

Did not Solomon king of Israel sin by these things? yet among many nations was there no king like him, who was beloved of his God, and God made him king over all Israel: nevertheless even him did outlandish women cause to sin.

Why then should we hear about you doing all this terrible evil and acting unfaithfully against our God by marrying foreign women?”

Also Vashti the queen made a feast for the women in the royal house which belonged to king Ahasuerus.

For this deed of the queen shall come abroad unto all women, so that they shall despise their husbands in their eyes, when it shall be reported, The king Ahasuerus commanded Vashti the queen to be brought in before him, but she came not.

Before this day is over, the noble women of Persia and Media who hear about the queen’s act will say the same thing to all the king’s officials, resulting in more contempt and fury.

The decree the king issues will be heard throughout his vast kingdom, so all women will honor their husbands, from the least to the greatest.”

and servants of the king, his ministers, say, 'Let them seek for the king young women, virgins, of good appearance,

And let the king appoint officers in all the provinces of his kingdom, that they may gather together all the fair young virgins unto Shushan the palace, to the house of the women, unto the custody of Hege the king's chamberlain, keeper of the women; and let their things for purification be given them:

So it came to pass, when the king's commandment and his decree was heard, and when many maidens were gathered together unto Shushan the palace, to the custody of Hegai, that Esther was brought also unto the king's house, to the custody of Hegai, keeper of the women.

And the maiden pleased him, and she obtained kindness of him; and he speedily gave her her things for purification, with such things as belonged to her, and seven maidens, which were meet to be given her, out of the king's house: and he preferred her and her maids unto the best place of the house of the women.

and during every day Mordecai is walking up and down before the court of the house of the women to know the welfare of Esther, and what is done with her.

Now when every maid's turn was come to go in to king Ahasuerus, after that she had been twelve months, according to the manner of the women, (for so were the days of their purifications accomplished, to wit, six months with oil of myrrh, and six months with sweet odours, and with other things for the purifying of the women;)

Then thus came every maiden unto the king; whatsoever she desired was given her to go with her out of the house of the women unto the king's house.

In the evening she went, and on the morrow she returned into the second house of the women, to the custody of Shaashgaz, the king's chamberlain, which kept the concubines: she came in unto the king no more, except the king delighted in her, and that she were called by name.

Now when the turn of Esther, the daughter of Abihail the uncle of Mordecai, who had taken her for his daughter, was come to go in unto the king, she required nothing but what Hegai the king's chamberlain, the keeper of the women, appointed. And Esther obtained favour in the sight of all them that looked upon her.

And the king loved Esther above all the women, and she obtained grace and favour in his sight more than all the virgins; so that he set the royal crown upon her head, and made her queen instead of Vashti.

When the young women were assembled together for a second time, Mordecai was sitting at the King’s Gate.

And the letters were sent by posts into all the king's provinces, to destroy, to kill, and to cause to perish, all Jews, both young and old, little children and women, in one day, even upon the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month Adar, and to take the spoil of them for a prey.

When Esther's young women and her eunuchs came and told her, the queen was greatly distressed. She sent clothes for Mordecai to put on so he could take off the sackcloth that he had on, but he would not take them.

"Go and gather all the Jewish people who are in Susa and fast for me. Don't eat or drink for three days, night or day. Both I and my young women will also fast in the same way, and then I'll go in to the king, even though it's against the law. And if I perish, I perish."

for we have been sold, I and my people, to be destroyed, to be killed and to be annihilated. Now if we had only been sold as slaves, men and women, I would have remained silent, for the trouble would not be commensurate with the annoyance to the king.”

Wherein the king granted the Jews which were in every city to gather themselves together, and to stand for their life, to destroy, to slay, and to cause to perish, all the power of the people and province that would assault them, both little ones and women, and to take the spoil of them for a prey,

But he said unto her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips.

Human beings born by women are short-lived and full of trouble.

The sojourners in my house and my slave women count me as a stranger; I have become a foreigner in their eyes.

Will you make sport with him, as with a bird? or put him in chains for your young women?

And in all the land were no women found so fair as the daughters of Job: and their father gave them inheritance among their brethren.

Kings' daughters were among thy honourable women: upon thy right hand did stand the queen in gold of Ophir.

She is brought to the king [in] colorful garments. [The] young women behind her, her attendants, [are] being brought to you.

The Lord gave the command;a great company of women brought the good news:

Kings of armies quickly go in flight: and the women in the houses make a division of their goods.

Singers lead the way,with musicians following;among them are young womenplaying tambourines.

Fire consumed His chosen young men,and His young women had no wedding songs.

young men as well as young women,old and young together.

She has sent out her young women, while calling out from the heights of the city,

The wisdom of women buildeth their house; but folly plucketh it down with her hands.

The mouth of strange women is a deep pit: he that is abhorred of the LORD shall fall therein.

Thine eyes shall behold strange women, and thine heart shall utter perverse things.

The man who loves wisdom brings joy to his father, but anyone who consorts with immoral women squanders his wealth.

Give not thy strength unto women, nor thy ways to that which destroyeth kings.