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Bad Girls of the Bible: Exploring Women of Questionable Virtue
Barbara Essex brings to life the Bible's "bad girls"--notorious women we love to hate. Exploring lives filled with betrayal, deception, rejection, jealousy, and exploitation, Essex looks beyond the notoriety to show us women of exceptional boldness, courage, determination, and independence. These stories tell us about women we know--women not that different from ourselves. This twelve-week study is designed for women and men, laity and clergy, who seek fresh ways to preach and teach the stories of biblical women.
- GenresWomens
118 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 1999
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
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November 30, 2011I loved this book it was made for me because I am the ultimate bad girl for a season. I love this term because it's me. I lived a tough childhood and coming of age years. I did everything you shouldn't simply because I could. But in this book I related to some knoble women in the bible who were simply bad for a season and God still chose to use them to further his kingdom and he too will us me. I am so greatful for this.
January 20, 2025
The title of this book piqued my curiosity. After looking through different sections, this is a perfect example of how *not* to interpret the Bible. It is a theologically liberal, humanistic, sin-condoning tragedy of Biblical interpretation. Maybe the author had good intentions, but parts of this book are demonstrably false and completely contrary to the Biblical narrative. The author takes the sinful actions of various women throughout the Bible and not only condones but celebrates some of their reprehensible behavior, masked as feminist liberation from patriarchy. There are no doubt lessons to be learned from the sin of people in Scripture - men and women. But sinful depictions in Scripture should be understood as an example, a warning, not something to be imitated.
For example, on p. 41, discussing Potiphar's wife, it says, "Mrs. Potiphar is most often portrayed in a negative light - she demands, seduces, and lies. She is almost a caricature of the sexually powerful and evil woman. She stands in stark contrast to the squeaky clean Joseph. Yet in this story, she is an actor - she determines what she wants and goes after it. She is persistent and consistent. She is focused and determined. When her plans are thwarted, she shifts gears and makes another plan. She is not undone by rejection - she keeps on keeping on...she is a strong woman - focused, powerful, sexually liberated. Within patriarchy, she is a dangerous woman." This is utter nonsense. In Genesis 39, Potiphar's wife, a married woman, seduces Joseph, a faithful servant of the Lord who was sold into slavery by his own brothers. When he refuses to be with her, she lies about him, which results in his imprisonment (and would have been his death but for God).
An even better example of her dangerous hermeneutics is the story of Jezebel, a name synonymous with evil, and for good reason. One of Jezebel's first acts as a ruler in Israel was to order the extermination of the prophets of the Lord and set up altars to Baal (1 Kings 18:4, 13). She rejected the God of Israel and sought to kill the prophet Elijah (1 Kings 19:1-2). There was a man named Naboth who owned a vineyard and refused to sell it to King Ahab. While the king was sulking, Jezebel falsely accused and killed the man, then stole his vineyard (1 Kings 21:1-16). While defying the next king of Israel, she was thrown from a window, trampled, and eaten, a death prophesied by Elijah himself (1 Kings 21:2; 2 Kings 9:30-37). Listen to how the author interprets her life (p. 62-63):
"[Jezebel] just could not understand the insecurity of the Israelite God...[who] may have seemed incomplete - there was no female counterpart. Besides, Baal had been around longer - he had seniority. So, Jezebel saw nothing wrong with promoting her god. She was doing the bumbling Israelites a favor by providing a more reliable and less demanding god...Jezebel deserves another look. She was not a harlot or seductress. She was involved in any sexual scenes. She was a woman from another culture and worldview trying to adjust in a new and strange land. She was not a villain to be eternally despised - she was religiously committed, politically savvy, determined, self-assured, bodacious, and clever. She was dedicated to her family and a zealous missionary for Baal. And she died as she lived - royally!"
That rendered me speechless. This is a disgraceful way to treat Scripture. It contradicts the character of God and the exegetical narrative of the passages of Scripture. I will be keeping this book as an example of how not to read, interpret, study, and teach the Bible. Read it if you wish, but at your own risk, and with great discernment.
I'm not a big John MacArthur fan, but I would recommend his book Twelve Extraordinary Women over this. Another great options is They Found the Secret by V. Raymond Edman.
For example, on p. 41, discussing Potiphar's wife, it says, "Mrs. Potiphar is most often portrayed in a negative light - she demands, seduces, and lies. She is almost a caricature of the sexually powerful and evil woman. She stands in stark contrast to the squeaky clean Joseph. Yet in this story, she is an actor - she determines what she wants and goes after it. She is persistent and consistent. She is focused and determined. When her plans are thwarted, she shifts gears and makes another plan. She is not undone by rejection - she keeps on keeping on...she is a strong woman - focused, powerful, sexually liberated. Within patriarchy, she is a dangerous woman." This is utter nonsense. In Genesis 39, Potiphar's wife, a married woman, seduces Joseph, a faithful servant of the Lord who was sold into slavery by his own brothers. When he refuses to be with her, she lies about him, which results in his imprisonment (and would have been his death but for God).
An even better example of her dangerous hermeneutics is the story of Jezebel, a name synonymous with evil, and for good reason. One of Jezebel's first acts as a ruler in Israel was to order the extermination of the prophets of the Lord and set up altars to Baal (1 Kings 18:4, 13). She rejected the God of Israel and sought to kill the prophet Elijah (1 Kings 19:1-2). There was a man named Naboth who owned a vineyard and refused to sell it to King Ahab. While the king was sulking, Jezebel falsely accused and killed the man, then stole his vineyard (1 Kings 21:1-16). While defying the next king of Israel, she was thrown from a window, trampled, and eaten, a death prophesied by Elijah himself (1 Kings 21:2; 2 Kings 9:30-37). Listen to how the author interprets her life (p. 62-63):
"[Jezebel] just could not understand the insecurity of the Israelite God...[who] may have seemed incomplete - there was no female counterpart. Besides, Baal had been around longer - he had seniority. So, Jezebel saw nothing wrong with promoting her god. She was doing the bumbling Israelites a favor by providing a more reliable and less demanding god...Jezebel deserves another look. She was not a harlot or seductress. She was involved in any sexual scenes. She was a woman from another culture and worldview trying to adjust in a new and strange land. She was not a villain to be eternally despised - she was religiously committed, politically savvy, determined, self-assured, bodacious, and clever. She was dedicated to her family and a zealous missionary for Baal. And she died as she lived - royally!"
That rendered me speechless. This is a disgraceful way to treat Scripture. It contradicts the character of God and the exegetical narrative of the passages of Scripture. I will be keeping this book as an example of how not to read, interpret, study, and teach the Bible. Read it if you wish, but at your own risk, and with great discernment.
I'm not a big John MacArthur fan, but I would recommend his book Twelve Extraordinary Women over this. Another great options is They Found the Secret by V. Raymond Edman.
November 19, 2024
**My husband found this book in a box of used stuff and we looked through it, I did not pick it up to actually read**
This is absolute absurdity and heretical. We’re making excuses for people’s sin?? Making them into examples of people we’re supposed to emulate?? Nope.
This is absolute absurdity and heretical. We’re making excuses for people’s sin?? Making them into examples of people we’re supposed to emulate?? Nope.
June 13, 2018
This book offers a perspective not often recognized. Whether you come out in the same place as the author is not the point. Taking the journey is.
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November 21, 2012Loved it!! Her interpretations are incredibly empowering and transformative. I really love to use this commentary when teaching women's bible study and/or preaching one of the female biblical characters.
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March 27, 2009The bad girls of the bible got a bad rap! You can blame the bad men of the bible.
May 10, 2014
The stories are great, although I really get tired of everyone laying all the blame on the women. I personally didn't like the author's style of writing. Too much "girl" and "sister" for me.
January 31, 2017
Take a thoroughly discredited biblical interpretation method. Mix it with anachronisms. Add a pinch of trying too hard to prove your point. The result? A mess.
July 23, 2023
I originally shelved this book as "Christian". However, after reading it, I'm thinking "Not so much." This seems to be a completely humanist effort to make excuses for bad behavior.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews