Fighting as a Woman

Something amazing happened yesterday. When these things happen in my life, I know that God is especially highlighting what He is speaking to me. I am assured this was not a coincidence, which makes the message that much more powerful!

I have not (yet) read the Lord of the Rings book series. It was months ago that I was first introduced to Eowyn, a beautiful and courageous heroine in the story. Yesterday my mind went back to what I had read in my book Captivating many months earlier: "In the mythic story The Return of the King, Eowyn, battle maiden...disguises herself as a man and rides to war...she rides beautifully, and she handles a sword with deadly skill...her uncle the king is attacked by the leader of the enemy's army, and as he swoops down to finish the king off, Eowyn steps in to block his path...in the battle that follows, the wraith...boasts of an ancient prophecy, proclaiming, 'No living man may hinder me!' And it is here that Eowyn is finally and fully victorious...'But no living man am I! You look upon a woman'...Eowyn removes her helmet and lets her hair fall free. She declares herself 'no man' and fighting as a woman, slays her enemy."

So I re-read this section in my book yesterday, followed by a youtube search for the dramatized scene from the movie based on this Lord of the Rings book. This is what I found; notice that the words were changed a bit but it was still interesting to watch:



So last night I sat down to read one of my current books, and as I read, I had to say to myself "wait a minute...this sounds familiar".

I read: "Envision a cold, gray dawn on a battlefield, bloody and desolate. The ground is littered with the dead and dying. In the midst of this hopeless chaos, there stands a royal daughter. She does not immediately appear out of place, for she has slipped into battle disguised in the armor of a knight. She hoped to somehow make some small contribution, even if it meant only comforting any fallen loved ones. She watched helplessly as her royal guardian was struck down and mortally wounded. She moves toward him, hoping to hold him in her arms as he slips from this earthly life. But before she can reach him, she discovers herself in the midst of an unavoidable confrontation. Positioned in her path is an enemy so terrifying , both he and the wretched beast he rides defy human description."

As I read these words, I knew that I was reading a familiar story. Yes, it sounded just like the one I had just read about and watched earlier that day! Coincidence? No way! God? For sure! Knowing this is God gets our attention that much more doesn't it?

I continued to read, "The beast has come to devour her wounded father. Bravely, she commands the specter and his foul dragon to leave. In response, the evil lord threatens her with endless torment if she does not yield. She refuses to give ground and draws her sword, vowing to do all within her power to hinder the fiends before her. The lord of darkness laughs, mocking her bold stance: 'Thou fool. No living man may hinder me!'

'But no living man am I! You look upon a woman...'

So he might see that what she speaks is true, she removes the cover of her helmet and allows her golden hair to fall free...'Her eyes...were hard...yet tears were on her cheek...suddenly the great beast...leaped into the air. Still she did not blench: a maiden of the Rohirrim, child of kings, slender but as a steel-blade, fair yet terrible. A swift stroke she dealt, skilled and deadly.

This royal daughter defeated the wretched enemy no living man could destroy...this dark lord was caught unaware...he did not know what had been prophesied so many ages ago...that evil would be at odds with the woman. 'And I will put enmity between you and the woman.' (Genesis 3:15)...I find it amazing that though she slipped into battle disguised as a man, a victory for all came when she revealed herself a woman...

When all seemed lost, something dormant in her soul was awakened, and strength was quickened within. I loved this woman who was willing to stand her ground in the face of unspeakable terror and there reveal her womanhood...I loved the imagery of eyes that were fixed, though tears streaked her face...I found a daughter who had disguised herself as a man only to find her victory as a woman...in that moment I was there with her. I began to weep, and my hands trembled as I laid the book aside. I sensed God's holy presence as it filled my bedroom...It was then I heard the voice of the Holy Spirit speak. I do not believe His words or the commission I received were for my ears alone. I believe it is for every daughter of the Most High with ears to hear.

For you truly are not a man, and there are yet battles in the spirit for the sons to fight, and there are yet battles in the spirit for the daughters to fight. Begin to call forth the daughters...to wage the wars only they can win, and to fight the battles as only my daughters can, because truly the enemy fears this revelation more than he fears any woman who fights like a man...

I believe this scene somehow captured the imagery and protocol of royal daughters in battle...on the battlefield they do not come to fight as men but as women."



Powerful! I know that God spoke to me yesterday, and I believe that He wants me to share what He spoke with His other daughters.

How do we fight as women?

Something to ponder, and please share your thoughts with me:)

Iran and Womens' End Time Role

Last week, I read some very interesting thoughts in the book Women: God's Secret Weapon by Ed Silvoso. Just days after reading his revelations, I became aware of the role women are playing in the current protests in Iran. In fact, the role of women is so profound that many are calling what is happening in Iran the "Lipstick Revolution". I don't think that this was a coincidence. In his book, Ed Silvoso shared a couple of "prophetic words" that God had given him which came to pass, and I believe much, or all, of what he shared about the future role of Middle Eastern women may just be true. Friends, this is so worth reading. Take a few moments and get a fresh revelation of Psalm 68! The following is quoted exactly from the book mentioned above.

Where Satan's head will be crushed: the showdown is fast approaching, and it will take place inside the 10/40 Window. I see three reasons for this. 1) Location: The Garden, the place where Satan scored first, was inside the 10/40 Window. Most scholars place the garden in the region where Iraq and Iran are today. This is one of the least receptive regions to the gospel. Being one of the places where Satan is most firmly entrenched, it will most likely also be where he will make his last stand. 2) The condition of women: The place on earth where they are most degraded, disgraced, debased and deprived is inside the 10/40 Window...3) Scriptural evidence: Psalm 68 describes a decisive encounter between God and evil forces, in which women play a key role. The internal evidence in this Psalm points to the 10/40 Window as the battleground.

Psalm 68:11-12 says, "The Lord gives the command; the women who proclaim the good tidings are a great host: Kings of armies flee, they flee", and as a result, God "scattered the peoples who delight in war." (v.30)... The mention of Judah, Zebulun and Naphtali places it in modern-day land of Israel. Mention of Sinai, Egypt and Ethiopia expand the theater to the entire Middle East...

The idea of women who proclaim glad tidings defeating evil kings is so extraordinary that to make sure this novel point is not lost the next verse reiterates, "She who remains at home will divide the spoil!" (v.12) Spoils always belong to the victor...



"When you lie down among the sheepfolds, you are like the wings of a dove covered with silver, and its pinions with glistening gold" (v13)...this verse compares the warring women to doves lying down on sheepfolds, their wings covered with silver and their pinions adorned with gold...sheepfolds are sheepskins used to cover the floor inside a tent...even if they came from white sheep, after a period of use their color turns to gray. If silver-colored doves are placed on gray sheepfolds, they become inconspicuous for lack of contrast. Even the gold rings on their pinions do not attract attention becasue the doves lie on them. What we have here is women camouflaged as doves lying low with a treasure hidden underneath. The story of the doves reflects perfectly the reality of Muslim women today inside the 10/40 Window. The question is not will God release them as his mighty army, but how soon will they be released?




The next verse states, "When the Almighty scattered the kings there, it was snowing in Zalmon" (v.14) What is the meaning of the snow, and why is Zalmon mentioned? If multitudes of doves...descend on an area, the place will look as if it is covered with snow. This happened in a location identified as Zalmon. This little known elevation holds an important key...




Abimelech, the son of Gideon through one of his concubines, made Zalmon infamous. This evil character...killed...in order to rule (see Judges 8:32-9:6). Abimelech...defeated its army (the people of Shechem) and murdered most of its inhabitants (Judges 9:43-45). However, a thousand men and women fled to a fortified tower. At that moment Abimelech climbed Mount Zalmon to show his army how to cut branches from trees. Once they had enough firewood they transported it to the lower chamber of the tower. They set it on fire and burnt alive one thousand men and women (Judges 9:49).

Next, Abimelech went to Thebez, a nearby town, and captured it, but some of the people also took refuge in another tower. He decided to burn them alive, just as he had done to the people in Shechem. However, as Abimelech approached the tower, a woman threw a millstone that landed on his head, "crushing his skull" (Judges 9:53).



As he lay moribund, he was more distressed by the fact that a woman had brought him down than he was concerned about his impending death. Consequently, he commanded his armor bearer to "draw your sword and kill me, lest it be said of me: 'A woman slew him'." (Judges 9:54)

The reference to Mount Zalmon ties the events in Psalm 68 to the final crushing of Satan's head and the role women will play in it. The parrallels are significant. Abimelech, the personification of evil, had his head crushed by a woman...By showing his army how to cut branches that could then be used as firewood to turn an otherwise impregnable tower into a human pyre, he transformed a common tree into a devastating new weapon. This is similar to how Satan turned the tree in the Garden into a lethal weapon. Undoubtedly, his victory at Shechem gave him great confidence. Yet when he tried the same ploy a second time, a woman crushed his head before he had a chance to repeat it.

Likewise, Satan appears to be ahead of the game right now because Eve's transgression has resulted in a significant oppression of women. Consequently, he does not feel threatened by their lowly state, especially inside the 10/40 Window...Satan succeeded once and...he believes he can do it again, except that his head will be soon crushed...

When half the people in a movement...are in a hopeless position due to something immutable such as their gender, they become a loose thread to its social fabric. This is a thread that if pulled will unravel the whole tapestry of that society...(many believe) that at any time God will pull the female thread, and the social fabric of Islam will unravel.




Why would God use women for such a decisive battle? It is simple: the opening round of the fight involved the devil and a woman, not a man. Consequently, it is logical to conclude that the last round of the final face-off should also include women.

I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed: he shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel. (Genesis 3:15)


This is the victorious outcome God has in store for the culmination of the rematch between the serpent and the woman and her seed. Centuries of oppression will come to an end, and the beauty and the power of women will be on display just like the gold on the pinions of doves in flight.

A Woman of Valor

There is a traditional view of women- that they were made as the weaker sex, created to be helpers and exemplify virtuous characteristics. But is that what God intended when He created woman?

In the very beginning, before the Fall of Man, Adam was alone and God said that was not good. So God made woman, whom He called an "ezer kenegdo". This term is often translated as something along the lines of "a helper comparable to him". Using the word "helper" is not necessarily a wrong description of woman, but what kind of help are we speaking of? What do you think of when you think of a helper? Do you think of someone inferior, someone weaker...perhaps an assistant? Well, that is NOT what woman was created to be!

The term for helper here (Genesis 2:18) is "Ezer", which is actually the word used to describe the kind of help God gives! Here are just a few examples of His help in scripture:

"I lift up my eyes to the hills- where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth." (Ps. 121:1-2)

"He is your shield and helper and your glorious sword." (Deut. 33:29b)

"But I am afflicted and needy; Hasten to me, O God! You are my help and my deliverer, O Lord, do not delay." (Psalm 40:5)

"Hear, O Lord, the voice of Judah, And bring him to his people; Let his hands be sufficient for him, And may you be a help against his enemies." (Deut. 33:7)

Wow! This sort of help is not that of an assistant, not that of someone inferior at all as God is surely not inferior to those He helps! This sort of help is VITAL help! Recently R. David Freedman has pointed out that the Hebrew word ezer is a combination of two roots: `-z-r, meaning "to rescue, to save," and g-z-r, meaning "to be strong."

The word "ezer" is used to describe woman twice in the book of Genesis, and in all other cases it refers to either God or military allies. In all other cases the one giving the help is superior to the one receiving the help. So it is obvious the term "helper" is not one of inferiority, but before any try to use it as one of superiority, we must consider the next word in what God called woman: kenegdo. She was an ezer kenegdo.

"Kenegdo" means "corresponding to, counterpart to, equal to matching." So adding "kenegdo" after "ezer" modifies the meaning to that of equal rather than superior status. So woman was made to be equal to man, but she was also made to help him with the kind of warrior help as that of God and military allies. This help is STRONG.

How was woman to help man? Genesis 1 says,

1:26
And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

1:27
And God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

1:28
And God blessed them: and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the heavens, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.

God said "let THEM have dominion (rule)". God told both man and woman to be fruitful and multiply, and He told both man and woman to subdue, rule and have dominion. There were no differences in status, role, spheres, or authority given here. Man was not told to rule the earth and woman to be fruitful. They were both told to multiply and they were both told to rule. This was God's intention for men and women and this is the way it was before the Fall.

There are other scriptures speaking of a woman's strength, but they are easy to miss, for many translations use the word "virtuous" in place of the real meaning.

Ruth 3:11, Boaz tells Ruth that all the city knows she is a "virtuous" woman. The Hebrew word used to describe Ruth here is "chayil" and it means "strength, might, ability, force, army, wealth." In the King James bible, "chayil" is translated as army 56 times, man of valor 37 times, host 29 times, forces 14 times, valiant 13 times, strength 12 times, riches 11 times, wealth 10 times, power 9 times, substance 8 times, might 6 times, strong 5 times...and virtuous 3 times. And every time "chayil" is translated virtuous, it is referring to a woman. Odd? I noticed this myself, and then later read the following which confirmed my own discovery:

"Virtuous does not represent the teaching of the original text. It should be noted that the only time the word is translated virtuous is when it refers to women. This appears to be a deliberate move by translators to impose their concept of what a woman should be upon the text." (quote from God's Word to Women website)

Boaz told Ruth that she was a "chayil" woman. There is no reason to translate this a "virtuous" woman. Ruth was, instead, a strong woman, a "woman" of valor! She was strong in character, strong spiritually, and strong physically (a hard worker with great ability).

The other times this word is translated "virtuous" is in Proverbs 12:4 and Proverbs 31:10- both referring again to women. Proverbs 12:4 says that "a chayil woman is the crown of her husband." So, a strong woman, a woman of might and power, a woman of valor is she who is the crown of her husband. Saying a "virtuous" woman is incorrect and not fitting to the true meanings of "chayil".

Proverbs 31:10 says "Who can find a chayil woman? For her price is far above rubies." Who is this woman that is so worthy? Not just a woman who is virtuous, no. We could translate this sentence, "Who can find a strong woman?" or "Who can find a woman of valor?" THAT woman is worth more than rubies!

The definition of "strong" would also fit with the rest of Proverbs 31. Verse 13 says that this woman "works willingly with her hands", so she is physically strong. Verse 16 says that she considers a field and buys it, so this woman is intellectually strong. Then look at verse 17: "She girds her loins with strength, and strengthens her arms." There is that key word again: strength.

This worthy woman girds her loins with strength. The Hebrew word for strength here is "`oz" and it means:
1. might, strength
a. material or physical
b. personal or social or political

This same scripture says that she strengthens her arms. Here the word for strengthen is "'amats", which means "to be strong, alert, courageous, brave, stout, bold." Interesting. So, to strengthen one's arms does not necessarily mean to make your physical arms stronger. This word carries with it ideas of courage, boldness and bravery. In fact, if you look up the word for arms, it can mean "forces (political and military)", along with the meaning of one's physical arms.

The woman in Proverbs 31 also does have strength in character, as she "stretches out her hands to the poor and needy", and "opens her mouth with wisdom and on her tongue is the law of kindness". Lastly, she is strong spiritually in that she "fears the Lord" (v. 30). In fact, verse 25 says that "strength and honor are her clothing".

The Amplified Bible gets much closer to the meaning of "chayil": a "capable, intelligent, and virtuous woman" (Proverb 31:10 AMP) Yes, her body is strong, her mind is strong, her character is strong and her faith is strong.

Hebrews have a song they sing about the Proverbs 31 woman, or the "Woman of Valor" as it is called in English! (ESHET CHAYIL in Hebrew) The word is translated "man of valor" 37 times, so why not go along with the Hebrews here and translate this verse: Who can find a woman of valor, for her price is far above rubies.

Here is what the Wikipedia says about the word "chayill": "The word חיל (chayil) appears in verse 10 and 29 of the passage, thought as the summary of the good woman's character. Traditionally it has been translated "virtuous" or "noble." Some scholars have suggested that it rather means "forceful," "mighty," or "valiant" because the use of the word in the Tanakh is almost exclusively used regarding warfare."

Ruth was a strong and mighty woman. A wife whose price is far above rubies and who is a crown to her husband, is a wife who is strong physically, intellectually, spiritually and in her character. She is an Ezer Kenegdo, created to bring vital help to her husband and to all other men and women on earth, as equals...working together with her husband, and with other men, and with other women to fulfill God's mandate to rule and have dominion. She fights in a uniquely feminine way, but stands alongside men as fellow warriors in this battle on earth, with all the strength and might God has given her feminine soul.

"The Lord gives instructions. The women who announce the good news are a large army." (Psalm 68:11 GWT)