Moms in the Bible (Short Study)

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What are the good mothers in the Bible? What makes them great?

If there was one area of my life I didn’t anticipate would cause my faith to be rocked, it would be motherhood. I had a lot to learn from moms in the Bible.

From the time I was in kindergarten I had already decided I wanted a big family and that being a mom was going to be a prominent part of my life. Yet when I finally dived into this world of motherhood, I felt like I was in way over my head. Can you relate?

I had all the questions.

What is the role of a mother according to the Bible?
What are the qualities of a godly mother?

In this article, I’m sharing lessons from moms in the Bible and exploring what the Bible has to say about the biblical role of a mother. Just for kicks, there is a fun (and free) moms in the Bible quiz for you too! Scroll down to enjoy!

How Much Do You Know About the Incredible Moms In the Bible?

There are so many stories of incredible moms in the Bible. Consider this section a tribute to mother in the Bible. I’m curious how familiar you are with them. Ready for a quick, mothers in the Bible quiz?!

• This mom was the first mother in the Bible.
• These 4 mothers are known as the 4 mothers of the Bible.
• This mama cried, grieved, and fasted until God gave her a child.
• This mom in Bible was kicked out of her home and left to raise her son alone in the desert.
• This mother unfortunately has become one of the few examples of bad mothers in the Bible.

Print the mothers in the Bible quiz pdf and answer key here! Or keep reading. Use this quiz to add some flare to your next Mothers in the Bible Sunday School lesson. Scroll down to print and save this Mother in the Bible lesson for later!

Who Are Some Godly Mothers In the Bible?

Who was the first mother in the Bible? Eve was the first woman, wife, and mom on Earth. She is known as the “Mother of all the living.” Eve often gets a bad rap for being the first person to fall into sin, but based on what we know through the Bible after leaving the garden Adam and Eve did what they could to raise kids who feared God. Their children knew the Lord. That’s a pretty good model of repentance if you ask me. One thing you’ll note of godly mothers in the Bible is they know how to bounce back when they step out of godly character.

Who are the 4 mothers of the Bible? Sarah (wife to Abraham), Rachel (wife to Isaac), Leah and Rachel (wives to Jacob). These are the four matriarchs (mothers) who brought forth the Hebrew nation.

There were lots of praying moms in the Bible but the story of Hannah always stands out to me. Hannah is the mom who prayed, cried, and fasted until God answered her prayer for a child. Her son became the prophet Samuel (see 2 Samuel chapter 2). There’s just something special about the persistence of mothers prayers in the Bible. 

The single mom who was exiled into the wilderness? That was Hagar, the maidservant of Sara. She conceived Abraham’s first son. She’s not alone though. Here are two more names of single moms in the Bible: the widow at Zarepeth and Naomi (more about her in a moment). You won’t find Hagars love for her son expressed in any of the popular Mothers Day verses in the Bible but I’m convinced her love for Ishmael was abundant. We do after-all see Scripture of her pleading to God on his behalf.

Faithful Mothers In the Bible

Motherhood weighed heavy on the hearts of women in the Bible, but it also weighed heavy on the heart of God. This is why it’s important that we take the time to learn from faithful mothers in the Bible. Let’s start with this list of moms in the Bible.

• Jochebed – Hers is the strongest example of a mothers love in the Bible.

• Naomi – Of Ruth and Naomi

• Bathsheba – Mother to the wisest king to sit on the throne of Judah.

Explore more stories in Mothers and Daughters of the Bible Speak.

Jochebed: The Mother Who Set A Foundation of Faith

This is one of my favorite stories about mothers’ love. Jochebed is the mother of Moses. She is one of the more unknown mothers in the Bible. People know her story, but most don’t know her name. Her son Moses was born during the time that the Pharaoh of Egypt, who was wicked at heart, had required the death of every newborn baby boy (see Exodus 1:22). Can you imagine?

Jochebed kept Moses in hiding for three months. When she could no longer hide him, she did the unthinkable. She took an ark with bulrushes, daubed it with asphalt and pitch, put the baby in it, and laid it in the reeds of the river bank. Part of me wonders if God had told her he would protect the baby. Scripture doesn’t explicitly say. Either way, this mama was brave. Brave beyond anything I can comprehend. And thank goodness she was because from her braveness came the life of Moses, the man that lead Israel out of Egyptian slavery, painting a beautiful picture of the salvation that would soon come to the entire world.

What makes this story even more amazing is the fact that Moses got to spend the next couple of years of his life (until he had weaned from nursing) with his mom. During that time she raised him according to Hebrew beliefs and customs. So when Moses did go back to live with Pharaoh’s daughter, he knew who the true God was and He knew of whom He belonged. He held onto that his entire upbringing (see Hebrews 11:23-29) and God used him mightily because of it. Of all the stories about mothers and sons in the Bible, this one is my favorite. 

Naomi: A Role Model For Spiritual Mothers in the Bible

Naomi is one of the more famous mothers in the Bible. Hers is probably my favorite story of mothers and daughters in the Bible. Ruth was Naomi’s daughter-in-law. They both lived in Moab with Ruth’s husband. Moab was a pagan nation but Naomi as a widow followed her son there where He met and married Ruth. Eventually, Ruth’s husband died and Naomi decided to go back to her homeland.

Usually, in cases like this, the widow (Ruth) would go back to her father’s house and be under his care and protection until she was able to marry again. Out of loyalty to her husband, Ruth refused. She said to Naomi “where you go, I go… your people will be my people and your God will be my God.” (see Ruth 1:16-17).

At that moment Naomi took on the role of being a spiritual mama to Ruth, teaching her who God was, what it meant to live for Him, and how to live set-apart as the Hebrew people were called to be. If you’re looking for Bible verses about mothers and daughters in the Bible, the book of Ruth is your go-to. 

Naomi’s story also gives insight into how important “mom figures” and mentors are to the body of Christ. Not every woman gets the opportunity to bear children of their own, but every woman has the call of God on her life to disciple. So much of where I’m at in my relationship with God is because of the influence of “spiritual mamas” in my life; women who loved me like I was their own child and mentored me as if I was their student for no other reason than the love of God inspired them too. The church needs those kinds of mamas too.

Bathsheba: The Godly Mother Who Passed On Her Wisdom

I’ll be upfront in saying there is some speculation regarding the identity of King Lemuel. Many believe King Lemuel is King Solomon, son of King David. If that is so, His mother would be Bathsheba. And if that is accurate, then wow! Talk about a redemptive story!

Most people know the story of Bathsheba. If not, you can find it in 2 Samuel chapters 11 – 12 and 1 Kings chapters 1 -2. In those days, the news of motherhood was accompanied by celebration. Bathsheba’s story didn’t start that way.

Bathsheba was raped, her husband murdered, and she was forced into the palace, and as a consequence of David’s sin, Bathsheba and David ended up losing the baby as well (see 2 Samuel 12:13-22). Her story is full of trauma.

Bathsheba had every right to be bitter, angry, and resentful – instead, she grew in grace and wisdom of the Lord and passed her knowledge down to her son, and her teachings were recorded in Proverbs 31.

Examples of Bad Moms in the Bible

When it comes to bad moms in the Bible these two take the cake:

Herodias. She was the wife of Herod wife, the one who encouraged her daughter to ask for the head (essentially the death) of John the Baptist (Mark 14:8).

Athaliah; the daughter of King Ahab and Queen Jezebel. Not only did she raise her son to oppose the Lord, she had the entire royal family killed so she could rule over Judah in Israel.

I think we can all agree, that’s some bad parenting!

Characteristics of A Good Mother In the Bible

What does the Bible say about a godly mother? The character of a godly mother is illustrated for us all throughout Scripture. The most common ones you’ve probably heard in the sermons on Mothers in the Bible. If not, no worries, I’ll recap those Mothers in the Bible verses here!

How does the Bible describe a good mother?

Godly mamas steward their skills, talents, and possessions. (see Proverbs 31).

To a godly mom, character and truth are more important than appearances (see 1 Peter 3:4).

Godly moms are welcoming and practice biblical modesty (see 1 Timothy 2:9-10).

A godly mom speaks with wisdom and kindness (see Proverbs 31:26).

A godly mom submits herself to God’s teachings and teaches her family to do the same (see Deuteronomy 6:6-7).

The characteristics of a good mother will mirror the characteristics of a fruitful disciple and be built upon the fruits of the spirit; love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

Godly mamas model contentment in Christ.

What makes a mother is her heart for her children. What makes a godly mother is the combination of that and her heart for the Lord.

Go back to our mothers in the Bible list at the beginning of this article. What character traits did the good mothers in the Bible model? How did they hold up to these verses about moms in the Bible? How did they fulfill the biblical role of a mother?

What is the Role of A Mother According to the Bible?

The biblical role of a mother revolves around preparing our children for an eternity with God and a lifetime of discipleship here on this Earth. Scripture hints at this in two places: when God says, “Be fruitful and multiply…” (Genesis 2:28) and when Jesus says, “go therefore and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19-20).

The Oxford dictionary defines fruitful as producing good or helpful results; productive. In terms of people fruitful is defined as producing many offspring. In short God’s instruction to be fruitful and multiply means create more people who do good as He defines good.

Motherhood is discipleship. When we build disciples we build God’s kingdom. Great mothers in the Bible are always the ones who prioritized God’s will for their children above the societal norms.

All of the Mothers in the Bible verses that I’ve come across follow this theme. Discipleship is the assignment of every mother; adoptive mamas, spiritual moms, biological moms; every mom figure carries this responsibility. That, along with the lessons from moms in the Bible, should show us how important raising God-fearing, Jesus-loving kids is to God.

Need help finding fun and productive ways for your kids to engage with the Bible and build their faith? The Bible Activities Bucket List provides lists of ideas and resources to help you teach the Bible to children.

Print This Mothers In the Bible Lesson!

Inspiring Books on Christian Motherhood

1. The Lifegiving Parent by Sally Clarkson
2. Famous In Heaven and At Home by Michelle Myers
3. Educating the Whole Hearted Child by Clay and Sally Clarkson – Okay honestly, anything by Sally Clarkson and Clay Clarkson will be a blessing to your life. Yours and your children’s. ALSO, you’ll see in the Amazon description that this book is geared towards homeschool families. I can tell from personal experience, homeschooling or not – there is much wisdom to be gained from Educating the WholeHearted Child. It is so well-rounded and deeply rooted in discipleship, you can only gain from studying it.
4. The Wholebrained Child: 12 Revolutionary Strategies to Nurture Your Child’s Developing Mind by Daniel J Siegel – this one isn’t exactly based on Christian doctrine but it is EXCELLENT for understanding the developmental stages of children, which in my experience has helped so much with cultivating traits like patience and gentleness and consistency with healthy rules and boundaries.
5. Keep Your Love On by Danny Silk – this one is great for handling conflict within your family in a healthy and loving way. I also read and recommend Loving Our Kids on Purpose by Danny Silk.
6. The 5 Love Languages of Children by Gary Chapman – A great guide for demonstrating love through our actions.
7. Mama Bear Apologetics: Empowering Your Kids to Challenge Cultural Lies by Hillary Morgan Ferrer – A MUST READ for anyone aiming to raise their children with a biblical worldview.
8. The Mothers and Daughters of the Bible Speak by Shannon Bream  – This mothers and daughters in the Bible book follows the story of nine different families in the Bible and lessons we can learn from the lives they lived.

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