Women of the Bible from A to Z series
“Pharaoh grew very fond of Hadad, and he gave him his
wife’s sister in marriage—the sister of Queen Tahpenes. She bore him a son named Genubath. Tahpenes raised him
in Pharaoh’s palace among Pharaoh’s own sons.” 1 Kings 11:19-20 nlt
Another “no women of the Bible names begin with this
letter” piece, so, lets talk about queens in the Bible. There are three woman
called by the name of queen—Sheba, Tahpenes, and Candace.
I featured Ethiopian Queen Candace for the letter “C;”
so she’s covered.
The Queen of Sheba came from her kingdom in southern
Arabia to Jerusalem to test the King Solomon’s wisdom. But I don’t want to talk
about her. [If you want to read about her, go to 1 Kings 10 or 2 Chronicles 9]
I want to focus on Queen Tahpenes, an Egyptian Pharaoh’s
wife, mentioned in 1 Kings 11:19-20. The Hebrew word used to denote queen here
is a title of honor as the king’s wife, not as having any
power or authority.
Tahpenes means flight temptation, which congers up someone
who runs away from difficulties; however we read how she accepted a great
responsibility. This queen stepped up to the challenge. She opened her heart and her
palace home to raise her sister’s son along with the Pharaoh’s other children.
She didn’t run and hide.
I know many women who have opened their hearts and homes
to accept children of other women.
One woman along with her husband and two young
children resigned from lucrative careers, sold their comfortable house, and
accepted the full-time call to serve the Lord at Cookson Hills Christian Ministry.
Several others, including my in-laws, became foster
parents. Some of those have adopted these children entrusted to their care. It
is an emotional calling as some children fit into the family perfectly, while
some fight the love and care of the foster home.
And then there’s Melissa who flung open the doors of
her heart and home to welcome the baby of her husband’s unwed teenage sister.
This is couple already had four young children of their own. This could bring
about interesting events in the future, so I pray for them all.
Today, I applaud Queen Tahpenes and those who have
unlocked the doors of their hearts and home to another’s children.
While you're here:
- Check the What’s Up page for the latest goings on with my writing (1st of month)
- Read an excerpt from my Fiction W.I.P. (15th of month)
- Sign up from the side bar to be a
- Fellow Sojourner (aka Join this Site)
- Facebook follower (aka Join me on Facebook)
- Or receive Email notifications (aka Follow LOL4J)
- Mark the Reaction box(s) below you each blog
- Better yet, Leave a Comment; I love hearing from you
Taking on children other than your own is a noble sacrifice. I couldn't do it in my current circumstances, but I can see how doing something like this would have great rewards for the foster parent as well as the child.
ReplyDeleteInteresting take on a Bible character I don't recall reading about before.
Lee
Places I Remember
Wrote By Rote
An A to Z Co-host blog
Thanks, Lee. Not all of are called to such a noble life, but I pray for those who do. As for my choice of Biblical women, I've been trying to select the lesser know ones...I didn't know her either until this challenge. :)
DeleteSuch mommies have been on my heart and in my prayer a lot today, and here you are writing a post about it! Blessings!
ReplyDeleteGod fills these women (and their families) with that special kind of love...and our prayers strengthen and encourage them to press through the tough days.
ReplyDeleteI didn't know about Queen Tahpenes so learned something new today--and found a great blog on the A to Z Challenge. Just signed up to receive your updates. My Christian blogs are at www.nebraskafamilytimes.blogspot.com and www.achristianmomsguide.blogspot.com.
ReplyDeleteI've found so many neat Christian blogs through the challenge!
Well thanks, Shelly for popping into my little site, and for adding me to the blogs you follow. I'm humbled. I see by your website you're from my part of the world. God bless.
Delete