Ancient Israel's Women of Faith: A Survey of the Heroines of the Old Testament

by Claude F. Mariottini

Overview

Do You Know the God of Ancient Israel’s Women of Faith?

Believers today are facing a profound spiritual poverty—an ignorance of the women who shaped their faith and, as a result, an incomplete understanding of the God those women faithfully served.

The inspired writers of the Old Testament mention over one hundred women by name and countless others in passing. Yet how many of us know the stories of these women and the God who wrote them?

• Sheerah built three cities and had one named after her.
• Jehosheba executed a covert operation to preserve the Davidic line.
• Miriam left us a legacy of worship that persists to this day.

Then there are the women who proclaimed the good news of God, prophesied truth to power, protected Israel from her enemies, relentlessly interceded for God to act, and passed along a living faith in the God who did. Each of these women and their stories finds a place in God’s redemptive plan for his creation.

In Ancient Israel's Women of Faith, Claude Mariottini introduces readers to a fresh reading of Scripture that takes seriously these stories. In doing so, he challenges anachronistic, modern readings of the text by providing helpful contextual information, including nuances in the original language, histories of translation, and observations on the cultural, political, legal, economic, and religious landscapes of their time.

Readers of this title will walk away with new insights, questions, and areas for research, but, more importantly, they’ll walk away with a new understanding of the God of ancient Israel’s women of faith.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780825449505
Publisher:	Kregel Publications
Publication date:	11/18/2025
Pages:	264
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.49(d)

About the Author

Claude F. Mariottini (PhD, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary) serves as professor emeritus of Old Testament at Northern Seminary, where he has taught for more than twenty-eight years. Some of his other works include Divine Violence and the Character of God, Job and the Problem of Suffering, and Isaiah: The Prophet of Hope. He has also published over two hundred articles and book reviews in English, Spanish, and Russian, which have appeared in The Anchor Bible Dictionary, Jewish Bible Quarterly, The Journal of Biblical Literature, and more

Editorial Reviews

The Old Testament features more than one hundred named women within its pages, as well as countless unnamed women. Many were Israelite, a number non-Israelite. Some were mothers, others prophets. Several were abused, while a few attained great distinction. Most of these women, however, have remained virtually unknown to even the most devoted Bible readers, not only in the pew but even in the seminary. In Ancient Israel’s Women of Faith: A Survey of the Heroines of the Old Testament, Claude Mariottini presents the stories of many of these remarkable women and also deals with some of the issues they faced. With the clarity and accessibility that are so characteristic of his writing, he explores the ways in which God’s plans were accomplished in the world through their lives. In reading Ancient Israel’s Women of Faith, I have no doubt that contemporary women (and men) will discover new ways that they too can be part of the realization of God’s plans today.

Professor of Religion at Averett University - Ralph K. Hawkins

Claude Mariottini’s Ancient Israel’s Women of Faith reminds of us the importance of the many and often overlooked women of the Old Testament, both their significance within Israel’s story and as models of faith for believers today. Drawing on his own careful study of the relevant biblical texts and the scholarship on those texts and on the larger ancient Near Eastern world, Mariottini brings to life the women of the Old Testament for modern readers, allowing them to experience both the challenges facing these women and the ways they served God and Israel in their contexts. One cannot fully appreciate the work of God through Israel without knowing the stories of these women of God, and Ancient Israel’s Women of Faith provides a wonderful entry into the study of these important characters.

Professor of Bible, Hazelip School of Theology, Lipscomb University - Phillip G. Camp

The inclusion of women in the Old Testament has long been taught as a rarity, sometimes causing us to miss the audacity of an ancient religious text from a patriarchal time to include such amazing narratives of women. Mariottini’s Ancient Israel’s Women of Faith captures a fresh look at how often powerful men in the ancient text encounter equally powerful women. Together, all have a role in God’s faithful plans to set the world right again. This book invites us to tell the whole story of God’s people, named and unnamed.

President, Professor of Homiletics, Northern Seminary - Joy J. Moore

If a woman asks, “Can God use me?” “Do I have a role to play in His kingdom?” point them towards this book! “Ancient Israel’s Women of Faith” is a solid scholarly work that focuses on Biblical history, uncovering insights that are often overlooked by casual readers of the Bible. Pragmatically, this text will encourage woman who may have wrestled with their roles in God’s Kingdom while challenging others who have failed to affirm a woman’s calling. This text might focus on the “ancient” but it has implications that remain powerful today!

Former Pastor and President, Northern Theological Seminary - Charles Moore

For those who desire to go beyond the frequently mentioned heroes of the Old Testament, and meet extraordinary women who are frequently overlooked, Dr. Mariottini is a valuable and able guide. Sympathy and admiration will be felt for these new friends as your understanding of their story deepens by way of Mariottini’s analysis of Hebrew terms and cultural context. May the faith of these heroes of old inspire new heroes today.

Senior Pastor of The Compass Church - Jeff Griffin