Good Girls, Bad Girls: The Enduring Lessons of Twelve Women of the Old Testament

by T.J. Wray

The few popular Bible stories about women are often presented in black and white-the women were good or bad, Ruth or Jezebel. But most of us fall somewhere in between these two extremes. Good Girls, Bad Girls invites readers to take a more nuanced look at twelve women in the Old Testament, to explore their lives more deeply in the historical context, and to grasp what these stories can mean to women today.

Genres: Nonfiction, Christianity, Feminism, Theology, Christian, Religion, Womens

216 pages, Hardcover

First published October 23, 2008

Reviews

[Dan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was allowed to download an "Advance Reader Copy" of this book. It will be released on March 2, 2016.

T.J. Wray takes us into the New Testament and non-biblical historical works to give short bio’s of twelve women of influence from the time around Christ’s life on earth and the times of the early church in the Middle East.

Each chapter will delve into the history of one or two women and give details about their lives as well as dialogue about the Scriptural texts that they are a part of. The work is not to heavily academic for the average lay person, it is well written and interesting for those wanting more detail about the women of Christ time.

Unfortunately for me I do not think that T. J. Wray gives the Biblical text the credit that it is due and that she does not take it as scared scripture of God’s word. Why, do you ask? Because I think that she makes some assumptions that the text does not always give.

There are details that are not supported by Biblical text. Such as her claim that Simon the Leper is the father of Martha, Mary and Lazarus. No where in Scripture is that fact given, nor is it a fact given by the Jewish historian Josephus. So, this leads me to believe that Ms. Wray takes some liberties with her interpretation of scripture.

Scripture should speak for itself and not be made an assumptive process.

So, with that said, I did enjoy reading her detailed script of the lives of the women, but I did not allow her discussions of non-Biblical facts interrupt my enjoyment. I have studied scripture and historians and thus have formed my own opinions. Thus they are mine. Thus I must allow Ms. Wray her opinions. But for my loyal readers I will just give this disclaimer to not accept assumptions that Ms. Wray makes to take the weight of fact without your own research into the historical texts of the time.

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ta książka już od dawna czekała na lekturę i pomyślałam, że okres Wielkanocny będzie idealny, by wreszcie po nią sięgnąć. Tina Wray wykłada na Uniwersytecie Salve Regina w USA i specjalizuje się w religioznawstwie i studiach nad Biblią. Bardzo podoba mi się taki punkt wyjścia, dość obiektywny, nie zabarwiony żadną doktryną religijną.

Wray opisuje w swojej książce kilkanaście występujących w Starym Testamencie kobiet, dzieląc je na powszechnie uważane za dobre oraz na złe. Każdy rozdział rozpoczyna się cytatem z Biblii, opisującym rolę danej kobiety, a także analizą przekazu biblijnego. Wray zwraca tu uwagę na wiele aspektów ówczesnego życia, zwyczajów, uzusu, a także na nieścisłości związane z przekładem. Trzecia część każdego rozdziału to ponadczasowa nauka płynąca z danej historii.

Ciąg dalszy: http://przeczytalamksiazke.blogspot.p...

[Mandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a thought-provoking and illuminating exploration of 12 of the key women in the New Testament and their relevance and importance to both their own times and to contemporary Christianity. It’s a scholarly and well researched work, with much historical and cultural detail explained, and it’s written in an accessible and engaging way – although with rather too many exclamation points for my liking. It’s a book of Christian theology, admittedly, and perhaps aimed more at a Christian audience, but for anyone like myself interested in the bible from an historical and cultural stance rather than a religious one, there’s a lot here to learn and discover. But what I really took away from the book is how much of Christian thinking and belief is based on such flimsy evidence. The historical record is patchy to say the least and so many assumptions and so much guesswork seems a poor basis for all the dogma that Christianity is based upon. Nevertheless, an interesting and informative read, which I recommend to anyone interested in biblical studies.

[Max Van Dyke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Normally I try to steer clear of these kind of books. With the title 'Good Girls, Bad Girl of the New Testament I assumed it would have a 'gender studies' 'third-wave feminist' slant to it. But, as the saying goes "don't judge a book by the cover." As I began to read through it, it was not at all what I expected. I ended up thoroughly enjoying it. T.J. Wray is a great writer and diligently mixed scholarship of the Roman Empire and NT studies to create a very accessible book that anyone who is interested can pick up and read. It can be used for many purposes as well. I used it as a brief window into the study of women in the Roman empire and scholarship on women of the NT. Others may use it as a more 'bible study' kind of deal, and others can simply enjoy a nice historical trade book. If you're at all interested in biblical studies, ancient history, and women in history, I would highly recommend this.

[John Walker · Rating 5 out of 5]

The sequel, I guess, to Good Girls, Bad Girls of the Old Testament. Twelve women include Mary, Mother of Jesus, Mary Magdalene, Mary and Martha, Pilate's wife, The Woman at the Well and Herodias just to name six women in this book.

Always informative T. J. Wray does another wonderful job of explaining women who stepped up and brought Christianity from the beginnings to the largest religion in the world.

I've enjoyed these books so much that I have ordered What the Bible Really Tells Us: Te REssentiall Guide to Bible Literacy.

Highly recommended for both the God Girls, Bad Girls of the Old and New Testaments.

[Lillian LeBlanc · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent overview of several key figures from the New Testament. This book encourages critical thinking and analysis of biblical stories, and dives deep into the characters and culture of Jesus' time.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading Good Girls, Bad Girls of the New Testament and appreciate the way TJ Wray incorporates enduring lessons that we can derive from each of the women presented in the book.

The only negative has nothing to do with the writing. The print is tiny, making the book more challenging to read than it would otherwise be. Nonetheless, it's very much worth reading for anyone who has an interest in learning more about many women mentioned in the New Testament.

[John Walker · Rating 4 out of 5]

What makes these twelve women of the Old Testament good or bad? T.J. Wray makes a case for each, but were all the bad girls really bad? Or is it just where one stands? How good were these good girls.
In those historical times where women had to do what they had to do to push God's plan for humankind, so sometimes they had to go 'outside the box'.

Interesting and though provoking book that makes one look in a different way.

There is a companion book Good Girls, Bad Girls of the New Testament, will be on my list soon.

[Bia Ferreira · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I picked this up at the library I thought I'd be reading a religious book.
I though it would go deeper into the lives of these powerful women from the bible times, but I realized that it wasn't so much a religious book as it was a history book.

This goes deep into the lives of some of the bravest women in history, women worth knowing.
It was amazing to see how their experiences and everyday decisions can compare to the ones we women face everyday.
It was great to learn about their cultural traditions and how women's roles have changed through time.

** for Christian Protestant readers FYI the last story isn't found in the Protestant bible. It's considered an apocryphal text. *** figured this out as I am Christian and have never heard that story, did some homework and learned this. :)

[Monica Fastenau · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read the full review here: http://newberyandbeyond.com/arcs-abou...

*Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book is not quite a devotional. It’s more a scholarly study of Biblical history and characters, focusing on twelve women who are discussed in the New Testament. I loved how knowledgeable the author is about the cultural and historical aspects of these stories, and I found myself being surprised by stories that I’ve known since childhood.

If you’re interested in how Jesus talked to and acted around women and what lessons we can learn from the “good girls” and the “bad girls” (those categories aren’t always as cut and dried as they sound) of the New Testament, this book will not disappoint. It’s chock full of historical information as well as applications for the lessons learned from each of these fascinating women.

[Reba · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this. I especially liked how the author stressed that these women could be viewed in a variety of ways, depending on point-of-view. For example, the story of Sampson and Delilah. Delilah is one of the original bad girls, an instantly recognizable femme fatale. But take another look. Sampson was no prize himself, and committed some heinous acts. Delilah can be seen as a hero to her people, remaining faithful to her land and helping the Philistines. Overall, this was an interesting read that challenged readers to take another look at the Women of the Old Testament.

[Rowena · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a pretty interesting viewpoint about 12 of the Old Testament's most fascinating women, from a Jewish viewpoint. A very easy read with a fresh way of looking at biblical women, such as Tamar, Jezebel and Bathsheba, in a historical context. What I got out of this book was the fact that we can learn lessons from anyone, whether "good" or "bad."

[Nicki · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author, T. Wray, converses these women from a Jewish standpoint. Myself, not being of a Jewish background and thus not being familiar with the whole stories, found this disappointing and repetitive.

[Erin · Rating 2 out of 5]

The only reason I gave this book 2 stars instead of 1 is because I did learn some stories I had never read. But I would not recommend it because the author has an obvious liberal/feminist slant in her writing and conclusions.

[Dianne Sagan · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author discusses lesser known women in the Old Testament and gives an interesting viewpoint that is not necessarily what you would get at first glance. It was very interesting and I got a lot out of it. Includes the Biblical text.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book takes a fresh look at 12 women of the Old Testament. Some are well known like Bathsheba and Delilah. Others we don't even know their name. The author places all of them in the world they lived in and draws lessons from them for readers today.

[Francine Apollo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stories of 12 women of the early days of the Jesus movement that became Christianity. Just a touch scholarly but quite a nice read. Good for solitary study or for groups.

Highly recommended.

[Jesi]

I jumped around from place to place in this book, mainly because I knew I wouldn't have time to finish it before it was due back at the library. I far preferred the chapters about women I'd never heard of (e.g. Drusilla and Bernice) to the ones about familiar characters (e.g. Mary and Martha); I found the discussions of all the characters a little... less meaty than I'd hoped? (I guess I might have taken a hint from the title: who else gets annoyed when book titles refer to women as "girls"?) For instance, while I am totally unconvinced that Drusilla and Bernice are included in Acts as a testament to the perils of gossip (what), I was at least interested in their story, which I'd never heard before.