If you’re reading this at the time it is published, we just finished celebrating Mother’s Day. In honor of the celebration, I decided to dive deeper into some mothers in the Bible, including some ignored or forgotten mothers. As I read about these women, I realized there are some truly valuable lessons we can learn from mothers in the Bible. Let’s look at these twelve biblical women whose lives illustrate beautiful messages for all of us to cling to, no matter what time of year it is. 

It’s been almost ten years since my own mother received her eternal crown, but I still celebrate and give thanks by telling stories about her with my children and grandchildren, looking at old photos, and remembering her wise words and servant heart. 

My mom taught me all kinds of practical life skills like how to make a creamy tuna casserole (I still love, for the record), shopping the sale rack (I’m proficient), and ironing a cotton pillowcase (I love cotton but it wrinkles).  Like my mom, I taught practical life skills to my kiddos: clean their rooms, eat broccoli, and say please and thank you. Sometimes I used words. More often, I showed them. But sometimes I just used my eyes. The mom-glare. The eyes that said quite clearly, “Don’t you dare…” 

In addition to all the practical things, my mom also taught me beautiful life lessons about spending time in the Word, serving, trusting, and loving (often demonstrating Proverbs 31 traits). These messages are clearly illustrated by mothers in the Bible as well, and you’d be surprised by the variety. Because motherhood is complicated. Mother’s Day is complicated. We have all kinds of brokenness, and we see that in the Bible. We also see redemption, and that’s what ultimately matters. 

Let’s dive into what these twelve mothers in the Bible teach us about God’s faithfulness.

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What Mothers in the Bible Teach Us About God’s Faithfulness 

God’s timing is always good

Even if we don’t see it, God’s timing is always good. “Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord.” Psalm 27: 14. We are impatient. We want to control things and move things along – the way we want things to go. But oftentimes God’s plans don’t match ours. Consider these miraculous stories of biblical women who longed for children but lived for years with empty arms. Their prayers were answered. 

Sarah

Sarah laughed when she heard she would be pregnant at her old age. She had waited so long and this seemed ridiculous! 

 “Now the Lord was gracious to Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah what he had promised. Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised him. Abraham gave the name Isaac to the son Sarah bore him.” 

Genesis 21:1-3 ESV 

Rebekah

Rebekah’s story is similar to Sarah’s. She had been barren for some years, and then in God’s time, she conceived. 

“Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah, the daughter of Bethuel the Aramean of Paddan-aram, the sister of Laban the Aramean, to be his wife. And Isaac prayed to the Lord for his wife, because she was barren. And the Lord granted his prayer, and Rebekah his wife conceived.” 

Genesis 25:19-21 ESV

Rachel

The tale of Jacob and Rachel and her sister Leah fills much of Genesis 29-31. If you’ve never read this, or if it’s been a long time, look at it again. It’s a messy story filled with jealousy, mandrakes, wives giving husbands to servants, and anger. But from Jacob come the twelve tribes of Israel. 

Rachel was unable to bear children for years while her sister Leah and their two maidservants brought forth many children.

“Then God remembered Rachel, and God listened to her and opened her womb. She conceived and bore a son and said, ‘God has taken away my reproach.’ And she called his name Joseph.” 

Genesis 30:22 ESV

I sometimes think that God had forgotten Rachel in her barrenness. Like he said, “Oops! Sorry that I forgot about you until now!” But no, that’s not what that means and that’s not how God works. The word “remember” is zakar in Hebrew which means “to recall” or “to keep in mind.” The note in my Lutheran Study Bible reads, “When He ‘remembers’ them, He actively works to keep His promise to protect and save them.”  

That’s a beautiful remembering. 

Hannah, the mother of Samuel

Once again, we have a woman who is barren, and in Hannah’s case, her husband has another wife who is busy having lots of babies. She prayed to Yahweh, “Lord of armies, if You will indeed look on the affliction of Your bond-servant and remember me, and not forget Your bond-servant, but will give Your bond-servant a son, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life, and a razor shall never come on his head.” (1 Samuel 1:11 ESV). 

Indeed, the Lord remembered her, and Hannah conceived and gave birth to Samuel. “I have asked for him from the Lord.” 1 Samuel 1:20. You may want to read this study: “Hannah’s story is the story of God’s great reversal.” 

Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist

Elizabeth’s story is similar to Sarah’s in that she is past child-bearing years when she becomes pregnant after a lifetime of childlessness. 

“In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah, of the division of Abijah. And he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. And they were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in all the commandments and statutes of the Lord.  But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and both were advanced in years.” 

Luke 1: 5-7 ESV

Complicated is redeemed: Tamar

This is an interesting one. Tamar is in Jesus’ genealogy (Matthew 1:3)  which would perhaps make one think that she’s an ideal mother, a Proverbs 31 woman, and of course, she should be on the list of Biblical mothers. 

Her story, however, is so messy that I won’t go into all the R-rated details here. Genesis 38 tells the story of how Tamar was married to Judah’s son – no children – and he was struck dead because he was “wicked in the sight of the LORD.” So she was given to another brother, as was the custom, who was also evil and did some nasty things and was also struck dead. Judah then promised Tamar to his youngest son, Shelah, but years went by and that wedding day never came. 

So Tamar took charge and tricked Judah into thinking she was a prostitute. She became pregnant with twins. Yeah, not Proverbs 31 behavior here. 

Judah is about to put her to death for immoral behavior when the truth comes out that he is the father. “She is more righteous than I, since I did not give her to my son, Shelah.” He confessed his sinfulness and never took her as his wife.

The Lesson 

Such an ugly drama, one that many would say has no place in the Holy Bible. We sure didn’t have a felt board or coloring pages with Tamar and Judah in Sunday school. But it’s there. And it’s God’s Word. 

What do we do with this? Why is Tamar named in the line of Jesus Christ, our Savior? “Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar . . .” (Matthew 1:3). 

First, it’s a reminder that God is always – always – at work. 

And, second, that we are all sinners. In the midst of our sinfulness, He redeems. There is not a single non-sinner in Jesus’ ancestry. Because there is not, never has been, and never will be a non-sinner in this world. 

God was still at work. We are to turn away from immoral behavior, but God never turns away from us when we repent and believe. Complicated situations will be redeemed. Sometimes it isn’t clear this side of eternity, but we can trust. 

God sees you right now: Hagar

Here’s another complicated story. Hagar is the Egyptian slave to Sarai, Abram’s wife. (Yes, that Abram who was later called Abraham. And that Sarai who becomes Sarah.) When Sarai realizes she cannot bear her own children, she does the unthinkable. She forces Hagar to be the surrogate mother, to conceive a child with Abram. Once Hagar is pregnant, Sarai becomes angry, jealous, miserable, and so, of course, she takes it out on Hagar who runs away. Goodness. Hagar did not ask for this. 

But the angel of the LORD visits her and tells her she will bear a son, Ishmael, “because the LORD has listened to your affliction.” (By the way, Ishmael means “God hears.”) 

Hagar calls the LORD “You are a God of seeing,” El Roi, pronounced ‘el ro-ee. This is the only time in Scripture that we hear this name for God. (Genesis 16:13)

Later when Sarai (now Sarah) gives birth to their miracle child in their old age, Isaac, jealous tensions rise once again. By the time Isaac was about three and Ishmael about fourteen, Ishmael laughed at Isaac. We don’t know why he laughed, but he did, and this upset Sarah. Ah, this is an ugly side of Sarah. Not only had she forced Hagar to be the surrogate (and single) mother, but she now forces them out of their community. Banishment. 

Fearful, Hagar departs with her son and wanders the wilderness until her skin of water, the only thing keeping them alive, runs dry. She’s a mother. Perhaps she wouldn’t care about her own life, but she has a child who depends on her.  She didn’t ask for any of this, and she has no idea how to protect her child. She cries to God who hears her cry. “The God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water.” She is saved and her son is saved. 

The Lesson

While fraught with much ugliness, this story is a reminder. It’s a story of a woman who called out to God and a God who heard her, a God who listened, a God who answered. We are all women who face ugliness, and we, like Hagar, can trust in El Roi, the God who sees us and ultimately saves us. (For a beautiful deep dive into El Roi and other names of God, check out Promised Rest, a Bible study by my friend Michelle Diercks.)

Hope in a hopeless situation: Zarephath

This is the story of the widow of Zarephath as told in 1 Kings 17. It’s a beautiful story of Elijah following the Lord’s command and visiting a desperate woman, a widow with a dying boy. 

When Elijah comes upon this woman, she’s gathering sticks to make a fire to prepare a final loaf of bread with the last of her oil and grain. She knows that this will be their last meal because they are in a drought and without any store of food. Yet this stranger tells her not to be afraid. 

“For thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, ‘The jar of flour shall not be spent, and the jug of oil shall not be empty until the day that the LORD sends rain upon the earth.’” Miracle of miracles, “she and her household ate for many days.” 

When the son was close to death and “so severe that there was no breath left in him,” the widow cried to Elijah for help, as any mother with a dying child might do. Help! Elijah raises the boy back to life by the power of God. 

Abundance in food and life! 

She is a beautiful example of a mother who serves many and trusts. She put their needs before her own. “Now I know that you are a man of God and that the word of the LORD in your mouth is truth.” 

Love and serve right where you are: Deborah

It’s important to remember that many women stay single, and many women never have children of their own. But this does not mean they aren’t nurturing and loving and serving others every single day. 

We have a beautiful example in Deborah (Judges 4 and 5) who was described as a “mother in Israel.” She was a wise judge who encouraged Barak to rally 10,000 men to fight the Canaanites. She said to Barak, “Up! For this is the day in which the LORD has given Sisera into your hand. Does not the LORD go out before you?”  

Such was her strength, empowered by the Lord God! Scripture is silent about whether or not she had her own children, but she sings her song of praise to God and gives thanks for many including Jael, the “most blessed of women” who was resourceful. Jael, by the way, is the woman who killed Sisera with a tent peg. A gritty story, indeed, but it’s recorded for us in Judges. 

Teach the next generation: Lois and Eunice

We don’t read very much about Lois and Eunice, but we know they were mothers and we know that they shared their faith with their children. 

St. Paul greets Timothy with these words:

“I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well.” 

2 Timothy 1:5

There’s no greater joy than to teach children. Whether to your own children or other family or friends, women can share their faith in simple ways with little ones. Maybe you think you aren’t gifted to serve as a Sunday school teacher, but that’s only one of many ways you can impact the next generation. Look in your church or community for ways to serve! For example, here’s one ministry, Kid’s Hope, which pairs mentors and elementary school children to make an impact on their lives. 

Let’s be Lois and Eunice to the little ones in our lives. 

Trust even when it doesn’t make sense: Mary, the mother of Jesus

We can’t talk about mothers in the Bible without including Mary, the mother of Jesus. She was young and frightened and worried. She was a virgin betrothed. But still a virgin. “How will this be?” she asked the angel. “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God. And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.”  

And Mary said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” (Luke 1: 35-38 ESV)

Certainly this did not make sense to Mary, yet she trusts and later sings her beautiful Magnificat which begins with these memorable words:  “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior.” (Luke 1:47-48 ESV)

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What I love most about looking at all these mothers in the Bible is that though each of their lives were wildly different, they had one thing in common. The Lord remembered them. Please know this. The Lord remembers you too. Perhaps life doesn’t look exactly like you wanted it to look right now. Maybe your prayers aren’t being answered just as you’d wanted at this moment. Likely, things aren’t perfect. Except for one gift.  He remembers you with the perfect gift of Jesus Christ, His Son, your Redeemer. 

More Mother’s Day posts to explore:

• The Best Mother’s Day Gift
• 5 Ways My Mom Taught Me to Love My Grown-Up Kids
• Are you a Proverbs 31 woman?

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