Messenger of the Lord

God Is Gender Impartial

The Bible refers to a number of prophetesses. Moses considered his sister Miriam a prophetess (Exodus 15:20, 21). Standing by his side from his earliest years, she was a faithful spokesperson for God. Through the centuries, Israel highly regarded her and included her as one of the three “sent before you” in the founding of the Israelite nation after the Exodus (Micah 6:4). At one point her humanness led her to rebel against Moses (Numbers 12), but this sad act did not jeopardize her standing as a true prophetess. MOL 18.1

Deborah was a judge during a long, dismal period in Israel’s history. Note how bleak this era was: “When all that generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation arose after them who did not know the Lord nor the work which He had done for Israel. Then the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord, and served the Baals; and they forsook the Lord God of their fathers.... And the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel. So He delivered them into the hands of plunderers who despoiled them; and He sold them into the hands of their enemies all around, so that they could no longer stand before their enemies.... Then the Lord raised up judges who delivered them out of the hand of those who plundered them.... And when the Lord raised up judges for them, the Lord was with the judge and delivered them out of the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge” (Judges 2:10-18). MOL 18.2