The World Needs More Huldahs

Scripture: 2 Chronicles 34:22 – “So Hilkiah and those whom the king had sent went to the prophet Huldah, the wife of Shallum son of Tokhath son of Hasrah, keeper of the wardrobe (who lived in Jerusalem in the Second Quarter) and spoke to her to that effect.” (NRSVue)

There are a few stories in the Bible that act as “meta” moments for Biblical scholars. For example, scholars generally date the Book of Deuteronomy, in which Moses gives a lengthy sermon and reiteration of the laws of God in the days before his death, to the 600s BCE. And if you look in the history of Israel as depicted in the Books of Kings and Chronicles, there is a moment where a lost book of the law is discovered at just that time. After necessary repair work in the Temple in Jerusalem, the high priest Hilkiah discovers a scroll, which indicates various commandments of God that King Josiah and the rest of the people of Judah were not obeying. Given that Deuteronomy is full of promises of divine wrath for disobedience, it seems very likely that this is the same document, and that Deuteronomy was written or at least rewritten during the time of Josiah and Hilkiah.

This a fine story for Bible Studies nerds to geek out about, but there is something else in the story that I find fascinating, and that is the person that Hilkiah and Josiah seek out to verify that the book they have found does indeed come from God. Now, you might expect it to be some long-bearded scribe or a priest with a lifetime of ritual leadership, but instead they turn to a woman named Huldah.

Huldah is the wife of Shallum, a court official to King Josiah known as the “keeper of the wardrobe.” But Huldah is important because she is a prophet. In fact, she is one of only three women named as prophets in the Hebrew Bible, the others being Moses’ sister, Miriam, and the judge Deborah. Huldah is a significant enough figure that even the two most powerful men in the kingdom need her wisdom and guidance to learn God’s will. She maintains that authority when she is approached. Hilkiah comes on behalf of the king, but Huldah describes him simply as “the man who sent you to me.” To her, the king is just another guy. But she also knows that the king is willing to ask for forgiveness, and because he wept and humbled himself, God’s full wrath will be averted. In her words she has embodied divine authority with divine mercy.

Huldah is so awesome! We might not have one of the most important books of the Bible if she had not said it was okay. And yet, very few people have ever heard of her. This made me think about how many other people in history who have been confident and indispensable who have been forgotten, often, though not exclusively, because they were women. How much do we owe to them without even realizing it?

This week, I want you to think of someone who did something important that few people know about. It might be a family member, a teacher, or someone else that gets lost in the shuffle of history. I want you to think of a time when you went to them with a problem that only they could solve. And I want you to thank God for their presence in your life. Then I want you to pray about how you might become a similar figure for others, acting not out of desire for recognition but out of a love for God and neighbor. The world needs more Huldahs, and I hope you can be one, too.

Prayer: Loving Lord, make me a channel of your truth and love so that others might know about you through me. Amen.