- Some facts about Huldah:
- A prophetess
- Related to Jeremiah
- Huldah means “weasel”
- Lived in the Second District of Jerusalem
- Married to Shallum
According to the Bible, Huldah was a prophetess. We know more about her husband than we do about her but, though she appears in only nine verses, it’s clear that she was considered a very important person. King Josiah’s men came to her on his behalf to ask for wisdom. Her response shows her own sense of self: “Tell the man who sent you…”. Her language seems to suggest that she considered the king like any other man.
The date of this event appears to be around 622 BC. It was the 18th year of Josiah’s reign, which began in approximately 640 BC. The Book of the Law, which had been lost, was rediscovered. Josiah, King of Judah (the southern kingdom) wanted to be a good king, and sent his men to ask Huldah if what they found was legitimate. She indicated that it was indeed God’s Word, and that Josiah’s response to its contents gained God’s favor.
As a result, Josiah had everything related to the worship of any other gods (notably Baal, Asherah, Chemosh, Ashtoreth, and Molech) destroyed. He reinstituted the worship of the God of the Bible. The entire life of Josiah can be found in 2 Kings 22 & 23 .
Huldah was related to the Biblical prophet Jeremiah, as they were both descended from Rahab by her marriage to Joshua. According to Jewish Rabbinical literature, Huldah was also a teacher of Jewish oral tradition in the school at Jerusalem. There was a ‘Gate of Huldah’ in the second Temple, but there are questions as to whether the two names are related.
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So this woman bought revival back to Judah praise God .He sowed to the spirit of god by following the instructing of a woman.He aligned his thinking with God words coming from a woman of God and in doing so it transformed the people to become worshipers of God .What we allow to influence us is important to God and thank God he does not look at our gender as some preachers do God uses female just like he uses a male to empower his people and transform them into Christ likeness and characters.—- Minister Barbara Barnes .
Thank you so much for sharing this information. It saddens me that women, in the 21st century still endure misogynistic persecution by men who obviously misinterpret God’s word where it says “women should be silent”. This only pertained to a certain group of women. Also, women should not teach men or be pastors. I guess it would help if they could differentiate a prophet, a preacher, and a messenger it would help. Huldah clearly was used by God to deliver a message that left an impression upon some very distinguished men!
Good information except that Rahab married Salmon, not Joshua.
Bridgett:
Thanks for writing!
It appears that more than one Rahab is listed in the Bible. The most well-known Rahab, found in Joshua 2, lived in Jericho and helped the Israelites. The fall of Jericho was presumed to have been around 1573 BC.
King David lived around 1000 BC. That’s about 500 years later. His father’s father’s father’s mother (his great-great-grandmother) was named Rahab.
The question is whether they’re the same woman. My own great-great-grandmother was born about 100 years before I was born. It seems unlikely that the Rahab from 1573 BC is the same woman as the Rahab from 1100 BC. If the family tree in Matthew 1 skips some people, it’s possible. Perhaps Matthew’s genealogy leaves out a bunch of people, naming only notable people.
What do you think?