There may not be many, but there are women leaders in the Bible. Miriam is one of them.
As Moses’ sister, one of the defining moments of her young life was watching out for her brother as he floated in the Nile. Her quick thinking when Pharoah’s daughter discovered him meant that her mother was able to not only nurse, but also train Moses up as a Hebrew in his formative years. These lessons stuck with Moses through his entire life and helped shape him as a person.
Miriam was a worship leader for her people. When they safely crossed the Red Sea, Miriam led all the women in worship. As the authors of “Women in the Bible” point out, one could mistakenly conclude from that passage (Exodus 15:20) that Miriam was only a leader of women. “The text portrays women leading the community in worship, and Miriam was the worship leader,” writes husband and wife duo Larry and Sue Richards on page 71. She is an example of a prophetess, a woman, whom God spoke through to speak to the entire community of men and women.
She wasn’t without fault, however.
All the characters in the Bible provide an example of what or what not to do, and Miriam is no different. While she was a fantastic example of a female leader, she was also consumed by jealously at one point in her life. While she was A leader, she wasn’t THE leader of the Hebrews. No, that role belonged to her brother, Moses. Miriam began to undermine Moses, creating an issue out of the race of his wife, an Ethiopian who likely had very dark skin. She appealed to people’s prejudice, and fostered jealousy in her other brother, Aaron, another Hebrew leader. Together they fashioned a Golden Calf for the Israelites. Do you hear the jealousy in these words from Numbers 12:3 when she talks to Aaron: “Has the Lord spoken only through Moses? Has He not spoken through us also?”
God stepped in to put a stop to this. He made his will clear, the Richards point out (page 72). “God had chosen Moses as the leader. Miriam and Aaron had important ministries of their own, but they were not the ones God had chosen to fulfill the tasks assigned to Moses.” Miriam had her own job to do, her own role to fill despite her temporary lapse in judgement, and it was important. She wasn’t regulated to second best because of her sex, but because she was destined for one thing while Moses and Aaron were for another.
This is part of a series that examines women in the Bible to break the negative stereotypes associated with females. Click here to read the first post.
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