Bible – Bible Society of Zimbabwe

Heroes’ Day is an occasion to honor and celebrate the courage, sacrifice, and impact of heroes who have shaped our lives and communities. In the Bible, we find many stories about men and women whose lives reflect profound faith and steadfastness. These biblical heroes serve as timeless examples of virtues we can aspire to in our own lives.

Abraham: The Father of Faith

Abraham, often referred to as the “father of faith,” is a towering figure in the Bible. His story is one of unwavering trust in God. When God called Abraham to leave his homeland and go to a place he would be shown, Abraham obeyed without hesitation (Genesis 12:1-4). His willingness to sacrifice his son Isaac, trusting in God’s promise, is a testament to his profound faith (Genesis 22:1-18).

Moses: The Deliverer

Moses is celebrated as the deliverer of Israel from slavery in Egypt. His life is marked by acts of extraordinary bravery and faith. Despite his initial reluctance, Moses answered God’s call to lead the Israelites out of bondage, facing Pharaoh’s wrath and the perils of the wilderness (Exodus 3-14). His leadership and unwavering reliance on God highlight the importance of faith and perseverance.

Esther: The Courageous Queen

Esther, a Jewish queen in Persia, displayed remarkable courage and wisdom. When her people faced destruction, Esther risked her life by approaching King Xerxes uninvited to plead for their salvation. Her famous declaration, “If I perish, I perish,” (Esther 4:16) shows her bravery and selflessness in the face of great danger.

David: The Shepherd King

David, the shepherd boy who became king, is renowned for his faith and courage. His defeat of the giant Goliath with a sling and a stone is a powerful example of trusting in God’s strength rather than human might (1 Samuel 17). David’s life, though marked by imperfections, is a testament to God’s grace and the power of repentance.

Daniel: The Uncompromising Prophet

Daniel’s story is one of steadfast faith in a foreign land. Despite the threat of death, he refused to give up on his faith, continuing to pray to God even when it was not allowed. His survival in the lions’ den (Daniel 6) is a powerful reminder of God’s protection over those who remain faithful to Him.

Mary: The Obedient Servant

Mary, the mother of Jesus, exemplifies obedience and humility. When the angel Gabriel announced that she would bear the Son of God, Mary’s response was one of submission to God’s will: “I am the Lord’s servant. May your word to me be fulfilled” (Luke 1:38). Her faith and willingness to accept God’s plan played a crucial role in the story of salvation.

Paul: The Zealous Apostle

Paul, once a persecutor of Christians, became one of the most zealous apostles of Christ. His missionary journeys, tireless preaching, and numerous epistles have profoundly shaped Christian theology and practice. Paul’s transformation and dedication to spreading the gospel, despite immense suffering and persecution, are inspiring examples of redemption and commitment (Acts 9, 2 Corinthians 11:23-28).

Conclusion

As we celebrate Heroes’ Day, these biblical figures remind us that true heroism is rooted in faith, obedience, and a willingness to serve God’s purpose, even at great personal cost. Their stories encourage us to cultivate these virtues in our own lives, trusting that God can use ordinary people to accomplish extraordinary things.

How does the Bible view women? At face value, some of its messages and examples can seem oppressive or devaluing. But when you learn more about how Jesus responded to the Bible’s historical and cultural context, you may rethink your first impressions. Christ entered into a specific time and culture that had assumptions very different from ours. How can understanding the biblical context inform our reading? How can the context help us to better understand who Jesus is—what he values, loves, and expects of his followers? Take a look, traveling all the way back to the culture Jesus entered.

How the Greeks Viewed Women

Let’s begin with the philosophers. Writers and thinkers often infuse a culture with certain beliefs—and this was especially so in the Greco-Roman world. When examined closely, some of their ideas may seem surprisingly antiquated to the modern reader.

For example, the revered philosopher Plato believed that women should be confined to the home while men tended to the business of state and commerce. Aristotle went even further, teaching that women were inferior to men, incapable of abstract thought, and emotionally volatile. Thus husbands and fathers were to rule over their wives and daughters. This thinking reflects the basic attitude toward women during the classical period.

How did these attitudes affect a woman’s life? The picture is not a pretty one. A young Greek girl is routinely married off to an older man. Her husband is free to take a concubine, and romantic love is not expected within marriage. Her role is to bear and raise children and run the household. She will rarely leave the house. Her education is limited to learning domestic tasks. She is not permitted to vote or hold property. Why would she be? As Euripides the playwright notes, “A woman is handicapped by intellect.” Thucydides helps him along by writing, “The name of a decent woman, like her person, should be shut up in the house.”

How the Jews Viewed Women

By Jesus’s time Greek ideas—including these ideas about women—had gradually crept into Jewish culture, despite Old Testament writings to the contrary. In the creation account in Genesis, God creates human beings as both male and female, giving them co-equal stewardship over the earth (Genesis 1:26-30). Throughout the Old Testament, women are given equal access to God’s law and held equally responsible to keep it.

The Old Testament record is replete with women whose great courage often surpasses that of the men around them. The stories of Miriam, Rahab, Ruth, Deborah, Hannah, Abigail, and Esther are prime examples of women whose insight and fortitude greatly influence the biblical narrative and the way God’s people understood themselves.

The Jewish understanding of women was so affected by exile, conquest, and trade that by Jesus’s time women were discouraged from studying Torah, God’s law, and encouraged to stay home to fulfill household duties. They attended synagogue assemblies seated separately from the men. The Greek-educated Jewish philosopher Philo, a contemporary of Jesus, saw women as having weak judgment and considered them unfit to learn the law. Some rabbis even went so far as to encourage men to limit their conversations with their own wives. What was the point of talking to someone with little knowledge of the law?

How Jesus Viewed Women

Into this distortion of God’s original intent for women comes a new teacher, the rabbi called Jesus of Nazareth. What do we know about Jesus’s relationships with women? Did he hold the same opinions as his culture? Let’s take a look at a few of his encounters with women.

Jesus speaks to a Samaritan woman in public (John 4:4-30)

Jesus shocks the woman at the well by asking her for a drink. Thus he steamrolls over cultural taboos against men speaking to women as well as Jewish prejudice against Samaritans. “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?”

Jesus then reveals himself to her as the Messiah and the giver of the living water for which she longs.

Jesus teaches a woman one-on-one (Luke 10:38-42)

Women were not expected to study Torah, yet this renegade rabbi singles out one woman and opens Scripture to her. Mary “sat down at the feet of the Lord and listened to his teaching.” This position was that of the traditional rabbinic student.

When her sister complains about needing help, Jesus tells her that “Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

Jesus comforts a widow and confronts death (Luke 7:11-17)

“Don’t cry,” Jesus says to a grieving widow whose son lies dead in his coffin. He touches the coffin, defying ceremonial law. Jaws drop in amazement as the young man sits up and begins to speak. Jesus gives the widow’s son back to her, alive and well.

Jesus touches an “unclean” woman (Luke 8:43-48)

Ceremonially unclean due to a chronic hemorrhage, a woman touches the hem of Jesus’ cloak. “Daughter,” Jesus speaks tenderly. “Your faith has healed you. Shalom.”

Jesus touches an infirm woman (Luke 13:10-16)

The religious leaders object to Jesus’s laying his healing hands on a crippled woman on the Sabbath.

“You hypocrites!” Jesus does not mince words. “Any one of you would untie your ox or your donkey from the stall and take it out to give it water on the Sabbath.Now here is this descendant of Abraham whom Satan has kept in bonds for eighteen years; should she not be released on the Sabbath?”

Jesus deals with a woman caught in adultery (John 8:1-11)

The woman’s accusers are silenced by Jesus’s words, “Whichever one of you has committed no sin may throw the first stone at her.” But he is gentle in his conversation with her.

Jesus allows Mary to anoint him (John 12:1-8)

When people are horrified at Mary’s extravagant outpouring of love, Jesus silences them all. Rather than rebuking her for touching him in this intimate way, he lavishes high praise on her. “Leave her alone; she’s anointing me for burial. This story will be told wherever the Gospel is preached.”

Jesus appears first to a woman after his Resurrection (John 20:11-18)

Although women were considered to be unreliable witnesses in court, Jesus assigns Mary Magdalene the task of being the first witness to the Resurrection.

Scripture’s Good News for Women

So what did Jesus really think of women? Did he touch them? Did he talk with them? Did he teach them? Did he give equal moral standing with men? Did he value them?

The record speaks for itself. First-century women in Palestine were second-class citizens. Sadly, some church leaders have still viewed and treated women in this way. But Jesus turned the tables on his culture, and his example calls us to do the same. Again and again, Jesus affirmed women’s value and dignity.

As the apostle Paul affirms in Galatians 3:26-28 (NIV): “So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

The Temptation of Jesus

(Matthew 4.1-11Mark 1.12Mark 13)

Lent

The Lenten season stands as a powerful and meaningful period for Christians around the world. Through fasting, prayer, and acts of kindness, believers embark on a spiritual journey, mirroring the transformative process of self-denial and renewal that Jesus experienced in the desert.

1 Jesus returned from the Jordan full of the Holy Spirit and was led by the Spirit into the desert, 2 where he was tempted by the Devil for forty days. In all that time he ate nothing, so that he was hungry when it was over.

3 The Devil said to him, “If you are God's Son, order this stone to turn into bread.”

4 But Jesus answered, “The scripture says, ‘Human beings cannot live on bread alone.’”

5 Then the Devil took him up and showed him in a second all the kingdoms of the world. 6 “I will give you all this power and all this wealth,” the Devil told him. “It has all been handed over to me, and I can give it to anyone I choose. 7 All this will be yours, then, if you worship me.”

8 Jesus answered, “The scripture says, ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve only him!’”

9 Then the Devil took him to Jerusalem and set him on the highest point of the Temple, and said to him, “If you are God's Son, throw yourself down from here. 10 For the scripture says, ‘God will order his angels to take good care of you.’ 11 It also says, ‘They will hold you up with their hands so that not even your feet will be hurt on the stones.’”

12 But Jesus answered, “The scripture says, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

13 When the Devil finished tempting Jesus in every way, he left him for a while.

Jesus Begins His Work in Galilee

(Matthew 4.12-17Mark 1.14Mark 15)

14 Then Jesus returned to Galilee, and the power of the Holy Spirit was with him. The news about him spread throughout all that territory. 15 He taught in the synagogues and was praised by everyone.

Jesus Is Rejected at Nazareth

(Matthew 13.53-58Mark 6.1-6)

16 Then Jesus went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath he went as usual to the synagogue. He stood up to read the Scriptures 17 and was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it is written,

18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,

because he has chosen me to bring good news to the poor.

He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives

and recovery of sight to the blind,

to set free the oppressed

19 and announce that the time has come

when the Lord will save his people.”

20 Jesus rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. All the people in the synagogue had their eyes fixed on him, 21 as he said to them, “This passage of scripture has come true today, as you heard it being read.”

22 They were all well impressed with him and marveled at the eloquent words that he spoke. They said, “Isn't he the son of Joseph?”

23 He said to them, “I am sure that you will quote this proverb to me, ‘Doctor, heal yourself.’ You will also tell me to do here in my hometown the same things you heard were done in Capernaum. 24 I tell you this,” Jesus added, “prophets are never welcomed in their hometown. 25 Listen to me: it is true that there were many widows in Israel during the time of Elijah, when there was no rain for three and a half years and a severe famine spread throughout the whole land. 26 Yet Elijah was not sent to anyone in Israel, but only to a widow living in Zarephath in the territory of Sidon. 27 And there were many people suffering from a dreaded skin disease who lived in Israel during the time of the prophet Elisha; yet not one of them was healed, but only Naaman the Syrian.”

28 When the people in the synagogue heard this, they were filled with anger. 29 They rose up, dragged Jesus out of town, and took him to the top of the hill on which their town was built. They meant to throw him over the cliff, 30 but he walked through the middle of the crowd and went his way.

A Man with an Evil Spirit

(Mark 1.21-28)

31 Then Jesus went to Capernaum, a town in Galilee, where he taught the people on the Sabbath. 32 They were all amazed at the way he taught, because he spoke with authority. 33 In the synagogue was a man who had the spirit of an evil demon in him; he screamed out in a loud voice, 34 “Ah! What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Are you here to destroy us? I know who you are: you are God's holy messenger!”

35 Jesus ordered the spirit, “Be quiet and come out of the man!” The demon threw the man down in front of them and went out of him without doing him any harm.

36 The people were all amazed and said to one another, “What kind of words are these? With authority and power this man gives orders to the evil spirits, and they come out!” 37 And the report about Jesus spread everywhere in that region.

Jesus Heals Many People

(Matthew 8.14-17Mark 1.29-34)

38 Jesus left the synagogue and went to Simon's home. Simon's mother-in-law was sick with a high fever, and they spoke to Jesus about her. 39 He went and stood at her bedside and ordered the fever to leave her. The fever left her, and she got up at once and began to wait on them.

40 After sunset all who had friends who were sick with various diseases brought them to Jesus; he placed his hands on every one of them and healed them all. 41 Demons also went out from many people, screaming, “You are the Son of God!”

Jesus gave the demons an order and would not let them speak, because they knew he was the Messiah.

Jesus Preaches in the Synagogues

(Mark 1.35-39)

42 At daybreak Jesus left the town and went off to a lonely place. The people started looking for him, and when they found him, they tried to keep him from leaving. 43 But he said to them, “I must preach the Good News about the Kingdom of God in other towns also, because that is what God sent me to do.”

44 So he preached in the synagogues throughout the country.

1 And Iesus full of the holy Ghost returned from Iordan, and was led by that Spirit into the wildernes, 2 And was there fourtie dayes tempted of the deuil, and in those dayes he did eate nothing: but when they were ended, he afterward was hungry. 3 Then the deuil saide vnto him, If thou be the Sonne of God, commaund this stone that it be made bread. 4 But Iesus answered him, saying, It is written, That man shall not liue by bread only, but by euery word of God. 5 Then the deuill tooke him vp into an high mountaine, and shewed him all the kingdomes of the world, in the twinkeling of an eye. 6 And the deuill saide vnto him, All this power will I giue thee, and the glory of those kingdomes: for that is deliuered to mee: and to whomsoeuer I will, I giue it. 7 If thou therefore wilt worship mee, they shalbe all thine. 8 But Iesus answered him, and saide, Hence from mee, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him alone thou shalt serue. 9 Then hee brought him to Hierusalem, and set him on a pinacle of the Temple, and said vnto him, If thou be the Sonne of God, cast thy selfe downe from hence, 10 For it is written, That hee will giue his Angels charge ouer thee to keepe thee: 11 And with their handes they shall lift thee vp, least at any time thou shouldest dash thy foote against a stone. 12 And Iesus answered, and said vnto him, It is said, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. 13 And when the deuil had ended all the tentation, he departed from him for a litle season. 14 And Iesus returned by the power of the spirite into Galile: and there went a fame of him throughout all the region round about. 15 For he taught in their Synagogues, and was honoured of all men. 16 And hee came to Nazareth where hee had bene brought vp, and (as his custome was) went into the Synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stoode vp to reade. 17 And there was deliuered vnto him the booke of the Prophet Esaias: and when hee had opened the booke, hee founde the place, where it was written, 18 The Spirit of the Lord is vpon mee, because he hath anoynted me, that I should preach the Gospel to the poore: he hath sent mee, that I should heale the broken hearted, that I should preach deliuerance to the captiues, and recouering of sight to the blinde, that I should set at libertie them that are bruised: 19 And that I should preache the acceptable yeere of the Lord. 20 And hee closed the booke, and gaue it againe to the minister, and sate downe: and the eyes of all that were in the Synagogue were fastened on him. 21 Then he began to say vnto them, This day is the Scripture fulfilled in your eares. 22 And all bare him witnes, and wondered at the gracious wordes, which proceeded out of his mouth, and said, Is not this Iosephs sonne? 23 Then he said vnto them, Ye will surely say vnto mee this prouerbe, Physician, heale thy selfe: whatsoeuer we haue heard done in Capernaum, doe it here likewise in thine owne countrey. 24 And he saide, Verely I say vnto you, No Prophet is accepted in his owne countrey. 25 But I tell you of a trueth, many widowes were in Israel in the dayes of Elias, when heauen was shut three yeres and sixe moneths, when great famine was throughout all the land: 26 But vnto none of them was Elias sent, saue into Sarepta, a citie of Sidon, vnto a certaine widowe. 27 Also many lepers were in Israel, in the time of Eliseus the Prophet: yet none of them was made cleane, sauing Naaman the Syrian. 28 Then all that were in the Synagogue, when they heard it, were filled with wrath, 29 And rose vp, and thrust him out of the citie, and led him vnto the edge of the hil, whereon their citie was built, to cast him downe headlong. 30 But he passed through the middes of them, and went his way, 31 And came downe into Capernaum a citie of Galile, and there taught them on the Sabbath dayes. 32 And they were astonied at his doctrine: for his worde was with authoritie. 33 And in the Synagogue there was a man which had a spirit of an vncleane deuill, which cryed with a loude voyce, 34 Saying, Oh, what haue we to doe with thee, thou Iesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy vs? I know who thou art, euen the holy one of God. 35 And Iesus rebuked him, saying, Holde thy peace, and come out of him. Then the deuill throwing him in the middes of them, came out of him, and hurt him nothing at all. 36 So feare came on them all, and they spake among themselues, saying, What thing is this: for with authoritie and power he commaundeth the foule spirits, and they come out? 37 And ye fame of him spred abroad throughout all the places of the countrey round about. 38 And he rose vp, and came out of the Synagogue, and entred into Simons house. And Simons wiues mother was taken with a great feuer, and they required him for her. 39 Then he stoode ouer her, and rebuked the feuer, and it left her, and immediatly she arose, and ministred vnto them. 40 Now at the sunne setting, all they that had sicke folkes of diuers diseases, brought them vnto him, and he layd his hands on euery one of them, and healed them. 41 And deuils also came out of many, crying, and saying, Thou art that Christ that Sonne of God: but he rebuked them, and suffered them not to say that they knewe him to be that Christ. 42 And when it was day, he departed, and went foorth into a desart place, and the people sought him, and came to him, and kept him that he should not depart from them. 43 But he sayd vnto them, Surely I must also preach the kingdome of God to other cities: for therefore am I sent. 44 And hee preached in the Synagogues of Galile.

Luke 4