At the end of the twelve months that were required for the women, ¹  when the turn of each young woman arrived to go to King Ahasuerus – for in this way they had to fulfill their time of cosmetic treatment: six months with oil of myrrh, and six months with perfume and various ointments used by women –

All the women who are left in the royal palace of Judah will be led out to the officers of the king of Babylon. They will taunt you saying, ¹  ‘Your trusted friends misled you; they have gotten the best of you. Now that your feet are stuck in the mud, they have turned their backs on you.’ ² 

Then two prostitutes came to the king and stood before him.

All these had taken foreign wives, and some of them also had children by these women. ¹ 

The Lord speaks; ¹  many, many women spread the good news. ² 

“Many ¹  daughters ²  have done valiantly, ³  but you surpass them all!”

Likewise also their wives ¹  must be dignified, not slanderous, temperate, faithful in every respect.

Then Rebekah said to Isaac, “I am deeply depressed ¹  because of these daughters of Heth. ²  If Jacob were to marry one of these daughters of Heth who live in this land, I would want to die!” ³ 

you young men and young women, you elderly, along with you children!

Leah said, “How happy I am, ¹  for women ²  will call me happy!” So she named him Asher. ³ 

Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, “Shall I go and get ¹  a nursing woman ²  for you from the Hebrews, so that she may nurse ³  the child for you?”

As for Nob, the city of the priests, he struck down with the sword men and women, children and infants, oxen, donkeys, and sheep – all with the sword.

The Israelites seized from their brothers 200,000 wives, sons, and daughters. They also carried off a huge amount of plunder and took it ¹  back to Samaria. ² 

Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing their babies in those days!

I tell you, among those born of women no one is greater ¹  than John. ²  Yet the one who is least ³  in the kingdom of God ⁴  is greater than he is.”

They came, men and women alike, ¹  all who had willing hearts. They brought brooches, earrings, rings and ornaments, all kinds of gold jewelry, ²  and everyone came who waved ³  a wave offering of gold to the Lord.

However, the women, little children, cattle, and anything else in the city – all its plunder – you may take for yourselves as spoil. You may take from your enemies the plunder that the Lord your God has given you.

Gather the people – men, women, and children, as well as the resident foreigners in your villages – so they may hear and thus learn about and fear the Lord your God and carefully obey all the words of this law.

When the men ¹  arrived after David returned from striking down the Philistine, the women from all the cities of Israel came out singing and dancing to meet King Saul. They were happy as they played their tambourines and three-stringed instruments. ² 

At that time Menahem came from Tirzah and attacked Tiphsah. He struck down all who lived in the city and the surrounding territory, because they would not surrender. ¹  He even ripped open the pregnant women.