Elizabeth George - The Remarkable Women of the Bible: And Their Message for Your Life Today

As always, thank you to my dear husband, Jim George, M.Div., Th.M., for your able assistance, guidance, suggestions, and loving encouragement on this project.

THE REMARKABLE WOMEN OF THE BIBLE

Copyright 2003 by Elizabeth George

Published by Harvest House Publishers

Eugene, Oregon 97402

www.harvesthousepublishers.com

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

George, Elizabeth, 1944

The remarkable women of the Bible / Elizabeth George.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN 0-7369-0738-6 (pbk.)

1. Women in the Bible. I. Title.

BS575.G464 2003

220.92082dc21

2003012251

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, digital, photocopy, recording, or any otherexcept for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.

Printed in the United States of America.

03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 / BP-KB / 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Remarkable! What a wonderful word to describe the women of the Bible! And, dear woman of faith, theyand their life-changing messagesare available to you and me today.

If you are like me, your life resembles one long obstacle course. Every day is filled with challenges. In spite of our schedules, plans, dreams, and goals, life keeps coming at us with its constant barrage of stress, problems, set-backs, and seemingly impossible situations. Truly, life can often seem to be more than we can manage on our own!

But, dear one, helpand hopeis available from the remarkable women of the Bible. You see, whatever we are dealing with, they have experienced it. They have metand handledthe challenges of singleness, married life, and child-raising. They know about going without, about loss, about old age, about death and dying. All of the pain, the sorrow, the confusion, and the difficulties under the sun have touched their hearts. And now they live on in Gods Word to instruct and encourage us as we cope with our lives today.

I like to think of each visit with these remarkable women as sitting down and having a cup of coffee with them. There they sit, in all their wisdom, ready, willing, and able to pass on what they have learned. They are more than happy to tell us how, through strong faith in God, they triumphed in their situations. Their hearts are open to you and me, and through their lives we can find great wisdom and practical help. And God has given us their lives in His Word so we can learn their life-changing messages!

Beloved, these dear women are Gods gift to you and me. Whether or not you have a mother or a friend or a mentor who is available, you have the remarkable women of the Bible. Let them share with you. Let them encourage you. Let them counsel you. Let them show you the best wayGods wayto handle every day and every difficulty.

I also invite you to take advantage of the Remarkable Women of the Bible Growth and Study Guide. This helpful volume will propel you down the path toward living your own remarkable life by spurring you on as you seek to make the life-changing messages and timeless wisdom of Gods corps of women of faith an integral part of your every day. The practical exercises contained in this growth and study guide are suitable for individual or group study and are for women of all ages whether married or single.

May God richly bless you as you look to Him and the remarkable women in His Word for His timeless principles for living your life today!

Evewas the mother of all living.

GENESIS 3:20

I wonder if theres a person on the face of the earth who hasnt heard of Adam and Eve, the first two people on the face of the earth? It seems that even a preschoolers education begins with the remarkable story of Adam and Eve.

As the first woman in the world, Eve enjoyed many firsts. And, as youll soon see, its not easy being first!

Gods first words about the creation of mankind are these: So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them (Genesis 1:27). We cant help but wonder, How did it happen? Heres a short version of the creation of the fairest creation of all, Eve!

Creation was complete. (Well, almost!) God had been busy for six days creating His beautiful new world. Now the stage was set. Gods magnificent scenery stood finished and in place. His sun, moon, and stars lighted up His perfect planet. All creatures great and small enjoyed a perfect environment.

Yet all the universe stood at attention, awaiting Gods final creations. At last God presented His masterpieces to the rest of nature. First the man Adam, formed by God from the dust of the ground (Genesis 2:7). Thenfinally and dramaticallythe woman Eve, made from one of Adams ribs and presented by God to Adam as bone of his bones and flesh of his flesh (verses 21-22).

For now lets focus on the fact that God created Eve, deemed by poet laureate John Milton as the fairest of creation. Devised by a perfect God, Eve reflected His divine perfection in her femaleness.

What can you do to join with Eve and revel in your lovely womanhood and femaleness?

Accept your remarkable femininityTheres no need to feel inferior, second-class, or second-rate. No, woman was Gods last, most beautiful creation. It was only after God presented woman that He proclaimed His creation was very good (Genesis 1:31). Adam and Eve were alike, yet they were different from one another. One was male and one female (Genesis 1:27), yet together as well as individually they reflected Gods image and His glory. Remarkable!

Begin to cultivate your remarkable femininityThis entire book is about the lovely, gracious, glorious, beautiful, prized-by-God women of the Bible. As you read along, allow Gods truth to permeate your understanding and transform your view of yourself as a woman until it matches the high value God places on His women.