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Jael is called the most blessed of women in the Song of Deborah, and Uzziah blesses Judith with the same formula after she beheads Holofernes. Both women defeat an enemy commander through cunning in a tent.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
Judges 5:24
Hebrew Bible
23 ‘Call judgment down on Meroz,’ says the angel of the Lord; ‘Be sure to call judgment down on those who live there, because they did not come to help in the Lord’s battle, to help in the Lord’s battle against the warriors.’ 24 The most rewarded of women should be Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite! She should be the most rewarded of women who live in tents. 25 He asked for water, and she gave him milk; in a bowl fit for a king, she served him curds. 26 Her left hand reached for the tent peg, her right hand for the workmen’s hammer. She ‘hammered’ Sisera, she shattered his skull, she smashed his head, she drove the tent peg through his temple.
Judith 13:18
Deuterocanon
17 All the people were greatly astonished. They bowed down and worshiped God, and said with one accord, "Blessed are you our God, who have this day humiliated the enemies of your people." 18 Then Uzziah said to her, "O daughter, you are blessed by the Most High God above all other women on earth; and blessed be the Lord God, who created the heavens and the earth, who has guided you to cut off the head of the leader of our enemies. 19 Your praise will never depart from the hearts of those who remember the power of God. 20 May God grant this to be a perpetual honor to you, and may he reward you with blessings, because you risked your own life when our nation was brought low, and you averted our ruin, walking in the straight path before our God." And all the people said, "Amen. Amen."
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Notes and References
"... One close parallel between Jael and Judith is the way in which the two women are blessed. When first Uzziah and then Achior bless Judith, both make use of phrases used to praise Jael ("blessed of women," "blessed among women in tents" Judges 5:24) and, interestingly, both also incorporate traces of another biblical passage in their benedictions. In his blessing, Uzziah also hints at the words Melchizedek uses to bless Abram (Genesis 14:19), thus comparing Judith both to a woman who kills by stealth in a tent and to a man who wins a great military victory. ..."
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