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Bible Dictionaries
Woman (2)
Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament
or WOMAN.—The relation of Christ to woman is one of the most interesting and one of the most difficult topics in the Gospels. In order to estimate it aright it will be necessary to say something of the position of woman at the time when our Lord was born. In the East generally, the penal code of Babylon well describes her abject humiliation: ‘If a husband say unto his wife, Thou art not my wife, he shall pay half a mina and be free. But if a woman repudiate her husband, she shall be drowned in the river.’ And her position was not much better in Judaea, where any, even the most frivolous, pretext could be given for divorce. ‘The Jewish Law unquestionably allowed divorce on almost any ground’ (Edersheim, Life and Times, ii. 333). The school of Hillel declared it a sufficient ground for divorce if a woman had spoiled her husband’s dinner. In Greece the dignity of married life was very inadequately appreciated; even Socrates invites the courtesan Aspasia to talk with him ‘as to how she might ply her occupation with most profit.’ In Rome there were signs of better things. There was always a halo over the old Roman matron, and though time dissipated this, and divorce was so common that Seneca tells us that ladies reckoned their ages not by the consuls, but by the number of their husbands,* [Note: Dill, Roman Society from Nero to Marcus Aurelius. pp. 77–80.] yet women were gradually acquiring more and more influence and being more widely educated. In parts of the Roman Empire, especially in Macedonia, ‘her social position was higher than in most parts of the civilized world. At Philippi, at Thessalonica and Berœa, the women—in some cases certainly, in all probably, ladies of birth and rank—take an active part with the Apostle (Paul).… The extant Macedonian inscriptions seem to assign to the sex a higher social influence than is common among the civilized nations of antiquity.’† [Note: Lightfoot, Ep. to the Philippians, pp. 55–56.] But however this position might vary in different parts of the Empire, it was clearly exceptional for the relation of woman to man to be other than a degrading one. The many exceptions only draw attention to the prevailing feeling.
This relation was necessarily profoundly modified by our Lord’s birth of the virgin Mother. This fact, though it could have been known to only a very few during His lifetime, had nevertheless its own particular bearing. It brought Mary into a prominence which otherwise would have been unaccountable. It is true that Joseph may have died when our Lord was a child or before He began His ministry, but even this does not fully account for the position the mother occupies in the Gospels. It is not much we learn, for we know it was her habit to ponder over and keep to herself the secrets connected with His early life (Luke 2:19; Luke 2:51), but that one scene at the village wedding (John 2) is sufficient to give us a clear conception of her importance. She alone knew how great He was, and how wonderful the destiny that was promised Him. And yet she was not so overwhelmed by its greatness as to lose her own personality. The ordinary Oriental mother would not have presumed to guide or direct the life of one so mysteriously born and whose future was so infinitely great. But she has so long been accustomed to suggest, if not to direct, that it is natural for her, when she sees an opportunity for the display of His power and the satisfaction of a need, to point it out. The reply, seemingly so harsh to us, only marks out her position the more clearly. The words, ‘Woman, what have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come,’ could not have been said to one who had occupied but a subservient position in the home; on the contrary, they suggest that for many years she had been accustomed to speak freely as to her wishes for Him, and that this time was now over. From this it may be inferred that our Lord rejoiced in the true development of womanhood, was glad that the mother should not be a mere drudge or slave, but one occupying a definite position with definite duties and responsibilities. Further, it is clear from her question that He had not checked her interest in the wider events of the world and the Kingdom of God. A veil will always rest over the frequent communings between the Mother and the Son, but it is quite clear from the use of the expression ‘mine hour,’ that she had been led to think of and desire that time of manifestation when His Personality should be revealed. From the beginning, even before His birth, her mind had often been occupied with that revelation from the spiritual world in which the angel had spoken of a ‘throne’ and a ‘kingdom’ (Luke 1:32-33). Her mind, then, was not to be confined to the limited sphere of the household duties of the peasant’s home. At the same time, it is clear that the natural desire, even in one so humble and lowly as she was, to have some share in the events which would lead to the bringing in of the Kingdom, was not to be gratified. Her part lay in the careful training, educating, and helping of that great Life which was entrusted to her.
It is singular, and some have thought that it was designed with a view to checking the Mariolatry which in the years to come was to dominate a large section of the Church, that Jesus refuses to allow the unique distinction which Mary certainly had in being the mother of the world’s Redeemer to weigh against the worth of religious character. It was natural that one who recognized the beauty of His character and the power of His words should say, ‘Blessed be the womb that bare thee, and the breasts that thou didst suck’ (Luke 11:27); but the answer, whilst admitting the blessing, pointed to a higher one within the reach of all. ‘Yea rather, blessed are they that hear the word of God and keep it’ (v. 28). This teaching is akin to that He gave when some one directed His attention to the fact that His mother and brethren were waiting to see Him. ‘Who is my mother, and who are my brethren?’—He cried—and then stretching forth His hand towards His disciples, He said, ‘Behold my mother and my brethren! For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, he is my brother, and sister, and mother’ (Matthew 12:47 ff.). From this it is clear that whilst He gave her, who was blessed indeed amongst women in being His mother, full opportunities for the development of her mind and spirit, never checking during those thirty years those natural desires to know all that He would tell her of the Kingdom of which the angel had spoken to her, yet He chiefly valued in her the growth of those spiritual graces which had led to her being selected for the high position she held. And nothing is more remarkable than the response she gave. During those three years she almost disappears from sight; and when at the very last she is seen beside the cross, her attitude expresses that dignity, reserve, and self-control which she had learned of Him. When the great tragedy is being enacted, and the greatest possible excitement prevails, she, like her Divine Son, maintains an attitude of quiet self-restraint. The Oriental, even the Jewish, mother would have been prostrate, with dishevelled hair and garments; Mary is found ‘standing’ (John 19:25). There is no mention of words, not even of tears. Silently and quietly at the direction of her Son she leaves the cross, though we know that a sword was at the time piercing her through and through.
We have given much time to the study of the Virgin Mother because she was the only woman really educated by Christ, in the sense that St. John and St. Peter were, and we see in the little that is told of her what a true woman ought to be. The relation of Christ to the other women of the Gospels is just what we should expect from our knowledge of His relation to His mother. There is a freedom which surprises even His disciples (John 4:27), and a readiness to help which laid His character open to misconception (Luke 7:39). There is also the most delicate sensitiveness to the inner consciousness of shame in the sinner which at once wins confidence. His hatred of the sin never dominates over His love of the sinner. Simon was right in feeling that a prophet who knew the character of the woman who had intruded into his house would never have allowed her such close fellowship as the Saviour allowed. None but He, the sinless, could have done so. Again, none but He would have shown such patience as was seen in His treatment of the woman of Samaria (John 4). When He makes it plain that He knows her sin, and she changes the subject, He does not refuse to follow her, but makes the very controversy she introduces a means of spiritual help. It was this combination of strength and tenderness, of respect for the individuality of the soul and yet desire to disentangle it from its sins, that gave Him just that same pre-eminent place amongst the women as amongst the men of His day. They were glad to be of what assistance they could to His work, and ministered of their substance (Luke 8:3). It is characteristic that whilst they show a courage which surpasses that of the Twelve, they also show a wealth of devotion which is unintelligible to them. The presence of some near the cross, where they would be exposed to insults and rudeness, is as remarkable as St. Mary’s gift of the alabaster cruse of ointment in the last week of His life. They respond more readily and easily to the power of His words and Personality. From Martha our Lord obtains a confession, even fuller and more far-reaching than that of St. Peter (John 11:24-27). And from the heathen Canaanitish woman He received one of the most remarkable illustrations of faith, the woman’s insight penetrating beyond the words to the love which lay underneath them (Matthew 15:22 ff., Mark 7:25 ff.).
The great respect in which Jesus held the position of woman, the high dignity He attached to it, is shown not only by His actions and words, but by the new sanctity which He gave to marriage. The words, ‘The twain shall become one flesh’ (Matthew 19:5 = Mark 10:3), placed the wife at once on a level with the husband, and made the divorces that were so common impossible. Directly this teaching was received, it was impossible that woman should be deprived of her right as wife on the flimsiest excuse, or without any excuse at all. The revolution such a declaration made is realized only when we hear the comment of the spiritually minded disciples, ‘If the case of the man is so with his wife, it is not expedient to marry’ (Matthew 19:10). That woman had a position in life of equal importance with that of man is made plain by the whole story of the Gospels: Anna, Elisabeth, the Virgin Mary, Martha, Mary, and Mary Magdalene rivalling in their own spheres St. Peter, St. John, St. James, St. Andrew. Without the part played by woman, that story would have been altogether incomplete.
One other suggestion as to the influence of woman which St. Matthew gives us is as interesting as it is unexpected. The dream of Pilate’s wife is an evidence of the power that Christ’s life and teaching exercised beyond the narrow circle of Jewish thought. Pilate, governor though he is, neither hears nor sees anything, and even when face to face with Christ is only puzzled not convinced. His wife, on the other hand, is deeply interested in all that she hears. Her mind is full of the doings of the Prophet of Nazareth. Her sleep is disturbed. She wakes frightened, and so convinced of the greatness of the issue her husband is trying, that she dares to interfere, though without success (Matthew 27:19). Not too much can be made of this; but it is an indication, which the Gospel narrative emphasizes, that women are more susceptible to religious impressions than men, and are ready to make larger sacrifices. As women ministered at the Birth, the Presentation in the Temple, and during those early years when His mother was His chief teacher, so they ministered at the Entombment, when they anointed His body; at the Resurrection, when they carried the news to the frightened disciples; and at the Ascension, when they with the Apostles and the rest of His disciples received His blessing. Cf. next article.
Literature.—Edersheim, LT [Note: T Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah [Edersheim].] ; Dill, Roman Society from Nero to Marcus Aurelius; PRE [Note: RE Real-Encyklopädie fur protest. Theologic und Kirche.] 3 [Note: designates the particular edition of the work referred] , art. ‘Familie und Ehe’; Brace, Gesta Christi; Church, Pascal, and other Serm. 264; Moore, God is Love, 184; Lightfoot, Serm. on Special Occasions, 220; Gunsaulus, Paths to the City of God, 232.
G. H. S. Walpole.
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Hastings, James. Entry for 'Woman (2)'. Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament. https://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/eng/hdn/w/woman-2.html. 1906-1918.
