Topical Bible: Women: Wicked: Full of Deceit and Licentiousness

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In the biblical narrative, women who embody wickedness, deceit, and licentiousness serve as cautionary figures, illustrating the moral and spiritual dangers of straying from God's commandments. These women are often depicted as using their influence to lead others into sin, highlighting the destructive power of deceit and immorality.

Jezebel: The Archetype of Wickedness

Jezebel, the wife of King Ahab of Israel, is perhaps the most infamous example of a wicked woman in the Bible. Her account is recounted in 1 Kings and 2 Kings, where she is portrayed as a manipulative and idolatrous queen who led Israel astray. Jezebel's introduction of Baal worship into Israel and her persecution of the prophets of Yahweh exemplify her deceitful and licentious nature. In 1 Kings 21:25 , it is written, "There was never anyone like Ahab, who sold himself to do evil in the sight of the LORD, incited by his wife Jezebel."

Delilah: The Betrayer

Delilah, another prominent figure, is known for her role in the downfall of Samson, one of Israel's judges. Her account is found in Judges 16, where she is depicted as a Philistine woman who uses her charm and deceit to discover the secret of Samson's strength. Her betrayal for monetary gain underscores the theme of licentiousness and treachery. Judges 16:19 states, "After putting him to sleep on her lap, she called a man to shave off the seven braids of his hair, and in this way she began to subdue him, and his strength left him."

Herodias: The Manipulator

Herodias, the wife of Herod Antipas, is another example of a woman whose actions are marked by wickedness and deceit. Herodias harbored a grudge against John the Baptist for condemning her unlawful marriage to Herod. Her manipulation of her daughter, Salome, to request John's beheading is a testament to her immoral character. Mark 6:24-25 recounts, "Then she went out and said to her mother, 'What should I ask for?' And Herodias answered, 'The head of John the Baptist.' At once the girl hurried back to the king with her request: 'I want you to give me the head of John the Baptist on a platter immediately.'"

The Adulterous Woman: A Symbol of Licentiousness

In the New Testament, the account of the adulterous woman in John 8 serves as a narrative of sin and redemption. While the focus is often on Jesus' response to her accusers, the woman's initial portrayal highlights the theme of licentiousness. Her actions, though not detailed, are enough to bring her before Jesus for judgment. John 8:4 records the accusation: "Teacher, they said, 'this woman was caught in the act of adultery.'"

The Prostitute of Babylon: A Symbolic Representation

In the apocalyptic vision of Revelation, the "Prostitute of Babylon" is a symbolic figure representing ultimate deceit and immorality. She is described as leading nations into spiritual adultery and is adorned with luxury and excess. Revelation 17:4 describes her: "The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls. She held in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her sexual immorality."

These biblical accounts serve as stark reminders of the consequences of wickedness, deceit, and licentiousness. They illustrate the potential for moral decay when individuals, particularly women in these narratives, use their influence to lead others away from righteousness and into sin.

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Proverbs 2:16-19
To deliver you from the strange woman, even from the stranger which flatters with her words;
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Proverbs 5:3-20
For the lips of a strange woman drop as an honeycomb, and her mouth is smoother than oil:
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Proverbs 6:24-29,32-35
To keep you from the evil woman, from the flattery of the tongue of a strange woman.
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Proverbs 7:6-27
For at the window of my house I looked through my casement,
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Ecclesiastes 7:26
And I find more bitter than death the woman, whose heart is snares and nets, and her hands as bands: whoever pleases God shall escape from her; but the sinner shall be taken by her.
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Ezekiel 16:32
But as a wife that commits adultery, which takes strangers instead of her husband!
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Library

That the Demons Gave in Secret Certain Obscure Instructions in ...
... Some, indeed, of the more prudent women turned their ... them to adultery, and feeds
on the full-fledged iniquity ... to gain possession of the millions who are wicked? ...
/.../augustine/city of god/chapter 26 that the demons gave.htm

On Clothes.
... Lazarus was laid at the rich man's gate, full of sores ... married me." But I do not
wish chaste women to afford ... and the face covered; for it is a wicked thing for ...
/.../clement/the instructor paedagogus/chapter xi name clothes.htm

The Seventh Book
... What part of the state was not full of indecency ... satisfy their lust with fornication
of fallen women only ... Their fault was still more serious and wicked than this ...
//christianbookshelf.org/salvian/on the government of god/the seventh book.htm

The True Gnostic Exercises Patience and Self-Restraint.
... destroyed many of our beautiful and good women." And he ... is undivided, and that the
passions of the wicked are occasioned ... For it was full of idolatry, and was a ...
/.../clement/the stromata or miscellanies/chapter xx the true gnostic exercises.htm

On the Ten Points of Doctrine.
... souls are alike both of men and women; for only ... what in its structure is not full
of skill? ... Witchcraft, and enchantment, and the wicked practices of necromancy ...
/.../cyril/lectures of s cyril of jerusalem/lecture iv on the ten.htm

A Treatise to Prove that no one Can Harm the Man who Does not ...
... no man if he be infinitely wicked could attack ... to moralize about these things said
"the full soul mocketh ... discloses the real countenances of those women whom I ...
/.../chrysostom/on the priesthood/a treatise to prove that.htm

The Life and Death of Mr. Badman,
... to Mr. Bunyan's sweeping rule; nor do our women in any ... upon his hearse the badges
of a dishonourable and wicked life; since 'his bones are full of the ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/the life and death of.htm

A Few Sighs from Hell;
... misery is ended; thy happiness begins, where wicked men's end ... And he 'was laid at
his gate, full of sores.'. ... meaning when it is said that men, women, or children ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/a few sighs from hell.htm

Memoir of John Bunyan
... babe, then the young man; at length the full stature, and ... nor the deceitfulness and
treachery of my own wicked heart ... of the converse of these poor women led to ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/memoir of john bunyan.htm

Mr. Bunyan's Last Sermon:
... Women will dress their children, that every one may see ... and from the way thereto,
hath this wicked man turned ... into a very large parlour that was full of dust ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/mr bunyans last sermon .htm