Guide
Prayers of and about Women in Early Jewish Literature
2nd Century BCE–6th Century CE
Restricted
By Carol Bakhos
The hymns, laments, and prayers attributed to and about women in literature from the Hellenistic, Greco-Roman, and Byzantine periods conform in their rhetorical and stylistic characteristics to the genre conventions explored in PRAYER and exhibited in the prayers attributed to other biblical characters. These prayers were likely written by men, who projected them into the mouths of female characters. They are grouped together here to draw attention to the ways their male authors constructed and reflected ideas about women. For more literary texts about women, see LITERARY DEPICTIONS OF WOMEN.
Related Primary Sources
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Deborah’s Hymn of Thanksgiving
Biblical Antiquities 32.1–18
Then Deborah and Barak the son of Abino and all the people together sang a hymn to the Lord on that day, saying (Judges 5:1), “Behold the Lord has shown us his glory from on high, as he did in the…
Primary Source
Hannah’s Hymn of Thanksgiving
Biblical Antiquities 51.2–6
And Hannah placed the boy before Eli and said to him, “This is the desire I have desired, and this is the request I have asked” (1 Samuel 1:25–27). And Eli said to her, “You have not asked alone, but…
Primary Source
Lament for Sitis, Job’s Wife
Testament of Job 25:1–8
Who is not amazed that this is Sitis, the wife of Job?
Who used to have fourteen draperies sheltering her chamber and a door within doors, so that one was considered quite worthy merely to gain…
Primary Source
Lament of Jephthah’s Daughter
Biblical Antiquities 40.5–7
And when the daughter of Jephthah came to Mount Stelac, she began to weep, and this is her lamentation that she lamented and wept over herself before she departed. And she said,
“Hear, you mountains…
Primary Source
Yael’s Prayer before Killing Sisera
Biblical Antiquities 31.5
And when Sisera was sleeping, Jael went out to the flock and got milk from it. And when she was milking, she said, “And now be mindful, Lord, of when you assigned every tribe or race to the earth. Did…
Primary Source
Hannah’s Prayer for a Child
Biblical Antiquities 50.4–5
And Hannah prayed and said, “Did you not, Lord, search out the heart of all generations before you formed the world? Now what womb is born opened or dies closed unless you wish it? And now let my…
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Hannah’s Forceful Prayer for a Child in Rabbinic Literature
b. Berakhot 31b
Hannah said before the Holy One, “Master of the universe, if You will look upon [ra’oh] [me now,] fine, and if not, [in any case] You will see [tir’eh] (1 Samuel 1:11). I will go and seclude myself…
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Esther’s Prayer before Going to the King
Additions to Esther 14:1–19
Then Queen Esther, seized with deadly anxiety, fled to the Lord. She took off her splendid apparel and put on the garments of distress and mourning, and instead of costly perfumes she covered her…
Primary Source
Tamar’s Prayer for Justification
Targum Neofiti on Genesis 38:25
And Tamar went out to be burned by fire and she asked for the three witnesses, but did not find them. She lifted up her eyes on high and said: “I beseech by the mercies from before you, O Lord, you…
Primary Source
Aseneth’s Prayer of Confession
Joseph and Aseneth 21
She then began her confession to the Lord God and gave thanks, praying for all those who were deemed acceptable by the Lord:
I have sinned, O Lord, I have sinned!I have committed many sins in your…
Primary Source
Rebekah Blesses Jacob
Jubilees 25:11–22
Then she lifted her face to heaven, extended her fingers, and opened her mouth. She blessed the Most High God who had created the heavens and the earth and gave him thanks and praise. She said,…