Pt1 The Seven Prophetesses of Israel (Megillah 14a-b)

This is the first part of a two-part series. The outline for the series appears below.¹

The Talmud (Megillah 14a–15a) identifies seven biblical women as prophetesses (all dates are in BCE): Sarah (c. 18th century), Miriam (c. 13th century), Deborah (c. 12th century), Hannah (c. 11th century), Abigail (c. 11th century), Huldah (c. 7th century), and Esther (c. 5th century).

This sugya not only establishes their prophetic status but also discusses their individual contributions, textual justifications, and the broader implications of their lineage and actions.

Through exegetical readings, the Talmud reveals layers of meaning behind their names, their roles in biblical narratives, and the nature of their prophecies. Some are explicitly called prophetesses in the biblical text, while others are granted this status based on their visions or divine insight. Their stories intertwine with discussions on kingship, divine inspiration, and lineage.

Outline

1. The Seven Prophetesses

2. Sarah (Genesis 11:29)

3. Miriam (Exodus 15:20): Her Early Prophecy and Its Testing (Exodus 2:4)

   1. Part 1

   2. Part 2

4. Deborah (Judges 4:4)

   1. Deborah judged under a palm tree (Judges 4:5)

5. Hannah (I Samuel 2:1)

   1. God’s Eternal Existence (I Samuel 2:2)

   2. God as the Ultimate Artist (I Samuel 2:1)

6. Abigail (I Samuel 25:20)

   1. Abigail's Legal Argument Against David's Nighttime Judgment (I Samuel 25:20): Allusion to Menstrual Blood

   2. David’s Justification and Abigail’s Rebuttal

   3. Abigail’s Prophecy and David’s Temptation (I Samuel 25:31)

   4. Abigail’s Strategic Proposal (I Samuel 25:29-31)

7. Huldah (II Kings 22:14)

   1. The Question of Jeremiah’s Presence

   2. Josiah’s Choice to Consult Huldah Over Jeremiah: Seeking a Compassionate Response

   3. Josiah’s Choice to Consult Huldah Over Jeremiah: Jeremiah’s Absence due to mission to Return of the Ten Tribes; Josiah’s Rule Over the Ten Tribes (II Kings 23:17; Hosea 6:11)

8. Esther (Esther 5:1; I Chronicles 12:19)

The Passage

Megillah.14a.13-14b.9

The Seven Prophetesses

The Talmud identifies seven prophetesses: Sarah, Miriam, Deborah, Hannah, Abigail, Huldah, and Esther.²

שבע נביאות מאן נינהו?

1. שרה,

2. מרים,

3. דבורה,

4. חנה,

5. אביגיל,

6. חולדה

7. ואסתר.

The Talmud asks with regard to the prophetesses recorded in the baraita: Who were the seven prophetesses?

The Talmud answers:

1. Sarah,

2. Miriam,

3. Deborah,

4. Hannah,

5. Abigail,

6. Huldah,

7. and Esther.

Sarah (Genesis 11:29)

Sarah is identified with Iscah from Genesis 11:29.

R' Yitzḥak explains that she was called Iscah because she saw (סכתה) through the Holy Spirit (רוח הקדש), as indicated by God’s command to Abraham to heed her words.

Alternatively, the name relates to her beauty, as all gazed (סוכין) upon her.

שרה --

דכתיב: ״אבי מלכה ואבי יסכה״,

ואמר רבי יצחק:

״יסכה״ זו שרה,

ולמה נקרא שמה יסכה?

שסכתה ברוח הקדש,

שנאמר: ״כל אשר תאמר אליך שרה, שמע בקולה״.

דבר אחר: ״יסכה״ — שהכל סוכין ביופיה.

The Talmud offers textual support:

Sarah,

as it is written: “Haran, the father of Milcah, and the father of Iscah” (Genesis 11:29).

And R' Yitzḥak said:

Iscah is in fact Sarah.

And why was she called Iscah?

For she saw [sakhta] by means of divine inspiration,

as it is stated: “In all that Sarah has said to you, hearken to her voice” (Genesis 21:12).

Alternatively, Sarah was also called Iscah, for all gazed [sokhin] upon her beauty.

Miriam (Exodus 15:20): Her Early Prophecy and Its Testing (Exodus 2:4)

Part 1

Miriam is explicitly called a prophetess in the Torah, as seen in Exodus 15:20. The Talmud questions why she is identified as the sister of Aaron and not of Moses.

Rav Naḥman, citing Rav, explains that Miriam prophesied even before Moses was born, predicting that her mother would give birth to a son who would save the Jewish people.³

מרים —

דכתיב: ״ותקח מרים הנביאה אחות אהרן״,

ולא אחות משה,

אמר רב נחמן, אמר רב:

שהיתה מתנבאה כשהיא אחות אהרן,

ואומרת: עתידה אמי שתלד בן שיושיע את ישראל.

Miriam was a prophetess,

as it is written explicitly: “And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand” (Exodus 15:20).

The Talmud asks: Was she the sister only of Aaron, and not the sister of Moses? Why does the verse mention only one of her brothers?

Rav Naḥman said that Rav said:

For she prophesied when she was the sister of Aaron, i.e., she prophesied since her youth, even before Moses was born,

and she would say: My mother is destined to bear a son who will deliver the Jewish people to salvation.

Part 2

When Moses was born and filled the house with light,⁴ Miriam’s father affirmed her prophecy with a kiss. However, when Moses was placed in the river, he doubted her prediction, “striking her (טפחה) on the head” and asking what had become of her prophecy.

Miriam stood at a distance to see what would happen to Moses, not only out of concern for her brother but also to witness the fate of her prophecy.

ובשעה שנולד, נתמלא כל הבית כולו אורה,

עמד אביה, ונשקה על ראשה,

אמר לה:

בתי!

נתקיימה נבואתיך.

וכיון שהשליכוהו ליאור,

עמד אביה וטפחה על ראשה,

ואמר לה:

בתי!

היכן נבואתיך?!

היינו דכתיב: ״ותתצב אחותו מרחוק לדעה״.

לדעת מה יהא בסוף נבואתה.

And at the time when Moses was born the entire house was filled with light,

and her father stood and kissed her on the head,

and said to her:

My daughter!

your prophecy has been fulfilled.

But once Moses was cast into the river,

her father arose and rapped her on the head,

saying to her:

My daughter!

where is your prophecy now?! as it looked as though the young Moses would soon meet his end.

This is the meaning of that which is written with regard to Miriam’s watching Moses in the river: “And his sister stood at a distance to know what would be done to him” (Exodus 2:4),

i.e., to know what would be with the end of her prophecy, as she had prophesied that her brother was destined to be the savior of the Jewish people.

Deborah (Judges 4:4)

Deborah is called a prophetess in Judges 4:4.

The Talmud explains that “wife of Lappidoth” means she made wicks (פתילות) for the Temple.⁵

דבורה --

דכתיב: ״ודבורה אשה נביאה אשת לפידות״,

מאי ״אשת לפידות״?

שהיתה עושה פתילות למקדש.

Deborah was a prophetess,

as it is written explicitly: “And Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lappidoth” (Judges 4:4).

The Talmud asks: What is the meaning of “the wife of Lappidoth”?

The Talmud answers: For she used to make wicks for the Sanctuary, and due to the flames [lappidot] on these wicks she was called the wife of Lappidoth, literally, a woman of flames.

Deborah judged under a palm tree (Judges 4:5)

She judged Israel under a palm tree (תומר), either to avoid seclusion (יחוד - Yichud) with men or to symbolize Israel’s unity,⁶ as a palm tree has a single heart-like trunk.⁷

״והיא יושבת תחת תומר״.

מאי שנא תחת תומר?

אמר רבי שמעון בן אבשלום: משום יחוד.

דבר אחר:

מה תמר זה אין לו אלא לב אחד —

אף ישראל שבאותו הדור לא היה להם אלא לב אחד לאביהן שבשמים.

With regard to Deborah, it says: “And she sat under a palm tree” (Judges 4:5).

The Talmud asks: What is different and unique with regard to her sitting “under a palm tree” that there is a need for it to be written?

R' Shimon ben Avshalom said: It is due to the prohibition against being alone together with a man. Since men would come before her for judgment, she established for herself a place out in the open and visible to all, in order to avoid a situation in which she would be secluded with a man behind closed doors.

Alternatively, the verse means:

Just as a palm tree has only one heart, as a palm tree does not send out separate branches, but rather has only one main trunk,

so too, the Jewish people in that generation had only one heart, directed to their Father in Heaven.

Hannah (I Samuel 2:1)

Hannah’s prophecy is found in her prayer in I Samuel 2:1:

She predicts the future of Israel’s monarchy by stating, “My horn is exalted,” distinguishing between kings anointed with oil from a horn--David and Solomon, whose dynasties (מלכותן) endured--and those anointed with oil from a pitcher--Saul and Jehu, whose reigns were short-lived.

חנה —

דכתיב:

״ותתפלל חנה ותאמר

עלץ לבי בה׳

רמה קרני בה׳״.

״רמה קרני״, ולא רמה פכי.

דוד ושלמה שנמשחו בקרן — נמשכה מלכותן,

שאול ויהוא שנמשחו בפך — לא נמשכה מלכותן.

Hannah was a prophetess,

as it is written:

“And Hannah prayed and said,

My heart rejoices in YHWH,

my horn is exalted in YHWH” (I Samuel 2:1),

and her words were prophecy, in that she said: “My horn is exalted,” and not: My pitcher is exalted.

As, with regard to David and Solomon, who were anointed with oil from a horn, their kingship continued,

whereas with regard to Saul and Jehu, who were anointed with oil from a pitcher, their kingship did not continue.

This demonstrates that Hannah was a prophetess, as she prophesied that only those anointed with oil from a horn will merit that their kingships continue.

God’s Eternal Existence (I Samuel 2:2)

The Talmud homiletically interprets Hannah’s words, “There is none beside You (בלתך - biltekha)” (I Samuel 2:2), by reading “biltekha” via wordplay as “le-valotekha (לבלותך)”, meaning “to outlast You”:

Rav Yehuda bar Menashya contrasts God’s eternal nature with that of humans: human creations outlast (מבלין) their makers, but God outlasts all His creations (existing eternally).

״אין קדוש כה׳

כי אין בלתך״,

אמר רב יהודה בר מנשיא:

אל תקרי ״בלתך״, אלא ״לבלותך״.

שלא כמדת הקדוש ברוך הוא מדת בשר ודם:

מדת בשר ודם — מעשה ידיו מבלין אותו,

אבל הקדוש ברוך הוא — מבלה מעשה ידיו.

Apropos the song of Hannah, the Talmud further explains her words: “There is none sacred as YHWH;

for there is none beside You [biltekha]” (I Samuel 2:2).

Rav Yehuda bar Menashya said:

Do not read it as biltekha, “beside You,” but rather read it as levalotekha, to outlast You.

As the attribute of the Holy One, Blessed be He, is unlike the attribute of flesh and blood.

It is an attribute of man that his handiwork outlasts him and continues to exist even after he dies,

but the Holy One, Blessed be He, outlasts His handiwork, as He exists eternally.

God as the Ultimate Artist (I Samuel 2:1)

Hannah’s phrase, “Neither is there any rock (צור - “tzur”) like our God” (I Samuel 2:1), is read via wordplay as “There is no artist (צייר - “tzayyar”) like our God”:

Unlike human artists who create (צר) static images (צורה) on flat surfaces (כותל - “wall”), God forms a living fetus within the womb,⁸ endowing it with spirit (רוח), a soul (נשמה), and functioning organs.⁹

״ואין צור כאלהינו״,

אין צייר כאלהינו.

אדם צר צורה על גבי הכותל,

ואינו יכול להטיל בה

1. רוח ונשמה,

2. קרבים ובני מעים.

אבל הקדוש ברוך הוא צר צורה בתוך צורה,

ומטיל בה

1. רוח ונשמה,

2. קרבים ובני מעים.

Hannah further said: “Neither is there any rock [tzur] like our God” (I Samuel 2:1).

This can be understood as saying that there is no artist [tzayyar] like our God.

How is He better than all other artists? Man fashions a form upon a wall,

but is unable to endow it with

1. breath and a soul,

2. or fill it with innards and intestines,

whereas the Holy One, Blessed be He, fashions a form of a fetus inside the form of its mother, rather than on a flat surface,

and endows it with

1. breath and a soul

2. and fills it with innards and intestines.

1. This Talmudic passage is embedded in the extended aggadic sugya in Tractate Megillah 10b-17a; see all my pieces on that extended sugya listed in my piece here, after the intro.

2. See my intro for hyperlinks and dates. The Talmud in the rest of the sugya provides textual support for their prophetic status.

3. This Talmudic passage also appears embedded in the extended aggadic sugya at the beginning of Tractate Sotah, on the Exodus. See my note in my piece “The Righteous Women and the Redemption from Egypt: Talmudic Interpretations of Exodus 1:15 (Sotah 11b)“, on section “The Meanings of Shiphrah and Puah“

4. As stated also in that extended sugya (cited in the previous footnote), see my recent piece “Pharaoh’s Decrees and Amram’s Response: Talmudic Interpretations of Exodus 1:16-2:3 (Sotah 12a)“, section “Interpretations of "Tov" in Moses' Birth (Exodus 2:2): Moses' Name; Fit for Prophecy; Born Circumcised; House Filled with Light (Genesis 1:4)“:

וחכמים אומרים:

בשעה שנולד משה,

נתמלא הבית כולו אור.

And the Rabbis say:

At the time when Moses was born,

the entire house was filled with light,

5. Presumably, for the Temple menorah, or for other secondary lamps, earning her the title “woman of flames/torches (לפידות)”.

Notably, this interpretation does not align with the grammatical gender. See the Hebrew Wiktionary entry for איש לפידות, under the “Etymology” section (translation is mine, with minor stylistic modifications):

The correct plural feminine form of the word “lapid” (“torch”) in Hebrew is “lapidim”, so the phrase should be written as “eshet lapidim” (“woman of torches”) [...]

And see there for a an alternative, speculative etymology of his name from Greek and Latin.

6. לב אחד - literally: “one heart”.

Compare the similar line in the Talmudic sugya on dream interpretation, Berakhot.57a.9:

הרואה לולב בחלום —

אין לו אלא לב אחד לאביו שבשמים.

One who sees a palm branch [lulav] in a dream,

it is a sign that he has but one heart for his Father in heaven.

And see Bava_Batra.12b.7-8, where R' Avdimi of Haifa states that before a person eats or drinks, they possess “two hearts,” meaning their mind is distracted or split due to hunger. After eating, they regain a singular, focused heart.

He supports this with a verse from Job (“a hollow man is two-hearted”) and connects the word nevuv (נבוב) with hunger by citing its use in Exodus to describe the altar as nevuv luḥot—translated as “hollow with planks.” The Talmud interprets this metaphorically: the empty (hollow) person is unstable and double-minded.

Rav Huna bar Rav Yehoshua expands the metaphor: wine can open up even a sealed heart. He states that someone accustomed to drinking wine will find it mentally stimulating—even if his heart is “sealed like a virgin.”

He cites Zechariah 9:17, where yenovev ("opens" or "hollows out") is used to describe new wine’s effect, reading it as mental clarification.

The full passage:

אמר רבי אבדימי דמן חיפה:

קודם שיאכל אדם וישתה,

יש לו שתי לבבות;

לאחר שאוכל ושותה –

אין לו אלא לב אחד.

שנאמר: ״איש נבוב ילבב״ –

וכתיב: ״נבוב לחת״,

ומתרגמינן: חליל לוחין.

R’ Avdimi from Haifa says:

Before a person eats and drinks

he has two hearts, meaning his heart is unsettled because he is distracted by hunger.

But after he eats and drinks

he has only one heart,

as it is stated: “A hollow [nevuv] man is two-hearted” (Job 11:12).

How is it indicated that “nevuv” means hungry? As it is written concerning the altar: “Nevuv luḥot” (Exodus 27:8),

which we translate into Aramaic as: Hollow with planks, meaning that a hollow person, i.e., one who has not yet eaten, is two-hearted.

אמר רב הונא בריה דרב יהושע:

הרגיל ביין,

אפילו לבו אטום כבתולה –

יין מפקחו,

שנאמר: ״ותירוש ינובב בתלות״.

The Gemara continues to discuss the meaning of nevuv, Rav Huna, son of Rav Yehoshua, says:

With regard to one who is accustomed to wine,

although his heart, i.e., his mind, is closed like a virgin,

wine opens it,

as it is stated: “And new wine opens [yenovev] the virgins” (Zechariah 9:17). The word yenovev is used here in the sense of clearing out a space: Even if one’s heart and mind are closed, wine will open them to understanding.

7. Unlike most trees, which grow outward through secondary growth in their trunks, palms grow only from their central growing point - meristem. The apical meristem is commonly referred to as the "heart" of the palm.

8. צורה בתוך צורה - “a form inside a form”.

9. קרבים ובני מעים - “innards and intestines”.