The Bible In Paintings >>> Women in the Bible Series ✝️ WIDOWS SERVING GOD — Feeding, Giving, Prophesying, Persisting ✝️

[Hebrews 11:6]

The Bible
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~ Encouragement for Applying
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WOMEN IN THE BIBLE
WIDOWS
SERVING GOD

		A STARVING WIDOW FEEDS ELIJAH IN FAITH

1 KINGS 17:
The word of the LORD came to Elijah: “Go at once to Zarephath of Sidon and stay there. I have commanded a widow in that place to supply you with food.” So he went to Zarephath. When he came to the town gate, a widow was there gathering sticks. He called to her and asked, “Would you bring me a little water in a jar so I may have a drink?” As she was going to get it, he called, “And bring me, please, a piece of bread.”

“As surely as the LORD your God lives,” she replied, “I don’t have any bread—only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. I am gathering a few sticks to take home and make a meal for myself and my son, that we may eat it—and die.”

Elijah said to her, “Don’t be afraid. Go home and do as you have said. But first make a small cake of bread for me from what you have and bring it to me, and then make something for yourself and your son. For this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the LORD gives rain on the land.’ ”

She went away and did as Elijah had told her. So there was food every day for Elijah and for the woman and her family. For the jar of flour was not used up and the jug of oil did not run dry, in keeping with the word of the LORD spoken by Elijah.

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"Elijah and the Widow"

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JAN VICTORS
"Elijah and the Widow of Zarephath"

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JAN PYNAS
"Elijah and the Widow of Zarephath"

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BERNARDO STROZZI
"Prophet Elijah and the Widow of Sarepta"

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GIOVANNI LANFRANCO
"Elijah Receiving Bread from the Widow of Zarephath"

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ABRAHAM VAN DIJCK
"The Prophet Elijah with the Widow of Zarephath and Her Son"

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"The Widow's Charity"

		A POOR WIDOW GIVES GENEROUSLY

MARK 12:
Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a fraction of a penny.

Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.”

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SIEGFRIED DETLER BENDIXEN
"The Widow's Mites"

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JAMES TISSOT
"Widow's Mite"

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JAMES CHRISTENSEN
"The Widow's Mite"

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IGNAZ DULLINGER
"The Widow's Mite"

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		AN AGED WIDOW SEES THE FUTURE

LUKE 2:
On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise him, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he had been conceived.

When the time of their purification according to the Law of Moses had been completed, Joseph and Mary took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord.

There was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was very old; she had lived with her husband seven years after her marriage, and then was a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying. Coming up to them, she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem.

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"Simeon and Anna"

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REMBRANDT
"Anna"

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REMBRANDT
"The Prophetess Anna"

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TODD L THOMAS
"Prophetess Anna in the Temple"

		THE PERSISTENT WIDOW

LUKE 18:
Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared about men. And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’

“For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care about men, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually wear me out with her coming!’ ”

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→ a n d   f i n a l l y ←

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New International Version ©1984, Abrgd, EMPHASES added
Masthead Painting: “GUEST” by Andrey Mironov

[Hebrews 11:6]

A R C H I V E S
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[Hebrews 11:6]

Feel free to comment below.

No expertise is needed,
either in Scripture or in art—
so please jump right in!

A FRIENDLY FORUM

[Red Badger]

“Go at once to Zarephath of Sidon....”

Sidon was a Phoenician city, so it was pagan.

Notice that the widow says:

“As surely as the LORD YOUR God lives,” so she did recognize that the God of Israel was separate and apart from whatever gods she had................

[Hebrews 11:6]

Valid observations. But I have great confidence that, along with Elijah’s visit, and God’s, she received saving faith and will welcome us into heaven.

How say you?

[InkStone]

Good Morning Dan, and good mid-week to all.

Wonderful examples of service to God. #23 Thomas is a beauty.

Thank You Dan!

[Red Badger]

Yes, I believe so.

Ever notice that there are a LOT OF WIDOWS in the Bible?.................

[Hebrews 11:6]

Wonderful examples of service to God.

God has so very many servants.

[Hebrews 11:6]

Yes. Lots of dead soldiers...................

[No name given]

Pretty and beautiful.

[Hebrews 11:6]

Precious widows.

[Red Badger]

I think it was because of the marriage practices of that time.

Men were not usually allowed to marry until about 30 years of age, when they had a skill and could earn a living for themselves and a family.

Women, on the other hand, were married practically as soon as puberty started, so as to maximize their child-bearing years.

SO you then have situations where a woman could be 30 and her husband would be middle aged or worse, dead.

Paul even speaks about ‘young widows’ in his letter to the Corinthians, IIRC...............

[M. Thatcher]

Luke 4:

22) All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his lips. “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?” they asked.

23) Jesus said to them, “Surely you will quote this proverb to me: ‘Physician, heal yourself!’ And you will tell me, ‘Do here in your hometown what we have heard that you did in Capernaum.’ ”

24) “Truly I tell you,” he continued, “no prophet is accepted in his hometown.

25) I assure you that there were many widows in Israel in Elijah’s time, when the sky was shut for three and a half years and there was a severe famine throughout the land.

26) Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them, but to a widow in Zarephath in the region of Sidon.

27) And there were many in Israel with leprosy in the time of Elisha the prophet, yet not one of them was cleansed—only Naaman the Syrian.”

28) All the people in the synagogue were furious when they heard this.

29) They got up, drove him out of the town, and took him to the brow of the hill on which the town was built, in order to throw him off the cliff.

30) But he walked right through the crowd and went on his way.

[Red Badger]

Excellent!......................

[SisterK]

yes #23 stands out
it is a powerful composition

[SisterK]

#11
the widow is looking directly into the eyes of the people who are admiring the painting

like she is petitioning us for honest living
asking us to examine ourselves - would we would give all?

and she boldly gets away with this intrusion into our hearts and minds because she is so young and very beautiful

[Hebrews 11:6]

Generally, I enjoy the rare occasions when an actor “breaks the fourth wall” and looks directly at the audience—as here.