Biblical women are widely received in the Jewish tradition. This is first shown by individual female figures such as Sara, Eve, Ester, Judith and the "capable woman" from theBook of Proverbs. Ester or Zion as a woman were also elaborately treated as such, and theology, liturgy, and poetry, came into dialogue. Female figures in the Bible becamemodels for their own ethical-moral and theological orientation.

Carol Bakhos ist Professorin für spätantikes Judentum und Judaistik an der University of California, Los Angeles, und Vorsitzende des interdisziplinären Programms für Religionswissenschaften. Gerhard Langer ist Universitätsprofessor für Judaistik an der Universität Wien.