Carolyn Custis James - Lost Women of the Bible: Finding Strength and Significance through Their Stories

ZONDERVAN

Lost Women of the Bible

Copyright 2005 by Carolyn Custis James

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ePub Edition January 2009 ISBN: 978-0-310-29754-3

Requests for information should be addressed to:

Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49530

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

James, Carolyn Custis, 1948

Lost women of the Bible : finding strength and significance through

their stories / Carolyn Custis James.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN-13: 978-0-310-26390-6

1. Women in the Bible. 2. Christian women Religious life. I. Title.

BS575.J36 2005

220.9'2'082

This edition printed on acid-free paper.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible: New InternationalVersion . NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

The Scripture quotations contained herein are from the New Revised Standard Version of theBible, copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America, and are used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture taken from the New American Standard Bible. Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Scripture quotations marked NLT are taken from the Holy Bible: New Living Translation, copyright 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois. All rights reserved.

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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.

Published in association with the literary agency of Wolgemuth & Associates, Inc.

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Carolyn James brings solid exegesis, contagious passion, and stirring insight to her treatment of these lost women of the Bible. Her heralding cry for women to be strong, battle-ready helpers for the cause of Christ is a much-needed voice in the Church today.

Chuck Colson, Prison Fellowship

Men and women will benefit from reading Carolyn engagingly written book. In Lost Women of the Bible, she brings new insight to the biblical text and rightly expands our idea of what makes a woman godly. I enthusiastically recommend this book.

Tremper Longman III, Robert H. Gundry
Professor of Biblical Studies, Westmont College

From beauty queens to apostles, from theologians to praying mothers, God has chosen and used women of all kinds and places to carry out his purpose in the world. Carolyn James has given us vivid portraits of biblical women who have much to teach all of us men and women about what it means to be a person of faith. An important study of biblical retrieval.

Timothy George, Dean, Beeson Divinity School
Denise George, Contributor toThe Women Study Bible
and Author ofTilling the Soul

Lost Women of the Bible easily makes my most-provocative book list for this year. Excellent writing, thoughtful, and perspective-changing are terms that came to mind as I finished reading it (in one sitting). This is a book for anyone who likes to read about genuine courage, endurance, and nobility of spirit.

Gordon MacDonald, Editor-at-Large forLeadership Journal
and Chairman of World Relief

Defined by tradition or culture, many Christian women, single or married, are left empty hearted. Lost Women of the Bible with its gripping illustrations of their God-defined identity and purpose gives women a freeing, affirming, challenging call to embrace plan for their fulfillment.

Pamela Reeve, Author and Professor,
Multnomah Bible College and Seminary

In this compelling book, Carolyn Custis James sets about recovering the lost message for women. What she discovers may surprise you. It will certainly encourage you. The first chapter alone is worth the price of the book.

Ann Spangler, Bestselling Author ofPraying the Names of God

Carolyn title cunningly combines three thoughts: here are stories of women who spiritually were lost till the grace of God found them; here are Bible people from whom we can learn much, but of whom we have largely lost sight; and here is displayed divine wisdom, with which many of us have lost touch. At all three levels the book delivers handsomely, and I hope it will be widely read.

J. I. Packer, Board of Governors and
Professor of Theology, Regent College

Lost Women of the Bible builds a biblical basis for the important role of women in the body of Christ. It should encourage women and instruct men on this vital subject.

Jerry Bridges, Author ofThe Pursuit of Holiness

Carolyn Custis James reminds us that a identity and purpose are anchored in her relationship with Jesus Christ. Her writing is not only instructive, but it will also minister to all who read it.

Dean Hirsch, President, World Vision International
Wendy Hirsch, Marriage and Family Therapist

Carolyn Custis James gives the church a precious spiritual gift: How ten unsung heroines of the Bible shaped and expanded the kingdom of God and continue to bolster the faith of the church. Her penetrating and unforgettable biographies of these risk-taking biblical heroines are built on solid exegesis and a deft use of rhetorical criticism though she never uses the term, seeing truths in the text that only a woman can see. Her engaging style with lightning bolt sentences demonstrates the valuable resource God has given the church in her gifted daughters to minister in words and deeds. This book explicitly challenges women of every social stratum to become the culture makers God intended them to be.

Bruce K. Waltke, Professor of Old Testament, Reformed Theological Seminary
(Orlando); Professor Emeritus of Biblical Studies, Regent College

What does it look like when women do theology? Carolyn James shows us by dusting off Hagar, Tamar, and Hannah from centuries of neglect and misreading. Carolyn allows these biblical characters to jump off the page in unexpected ways right into our own often messy lives. A spiritual breath of fresh air and a must read for both women and men. Within two days of reading this book I had already used it in providing spiritual direction.

Lilian Calles Barger, Author