' And this common holy place to which they all come together on the seventh day is a twofold circuit, being separated partly into the apartment of the men, and partly into a chamber for the women ; for women also, in accordance with the usual fashion there, form a part of the audience, having the same feelings of admiration as the men, and having adopted the same sect with equal deliberation and decision ; and the wall which is between the houses rises from the ground three or four cubits upwards, like a battlement, and the upper portion rises upwards to the roof without any opening, on two accounts : first of all, in orxler that the modesty which is so becoming to the female sex may be preserved; and, st-condly, that the women may be easily able to comprehend what is said, being seated within earshot, since there is then nothing which can possibly intercept the voice of him who is spealcing' {De Vit, Conteinp. 3).
The phrase ' in accordance with the usual custom tliere ' shows that this participation in the Sabbath worship of men and women, but with some degree of ecparateness, was the common Jewish form of pro- cedure. The illustration of a battlement, the ujiper portion of which reached the coiling, indicated a wall perforated near the top with square holes. We cannot infer from this descrijition that the sepa- ration was by the same means and to the same extent in the synagogues of ordinary Jews. All that is implied is that the sexes did not mingle in public worship, though tliey joined in the same acts of worship. In the simple room known as a irpofffvxn (Ac IG'^) there could have been no elaborate barriers of separation. Paul and Sil.as seem to have entered freely into the society of Lydia and the other devout women at Philippi. No olBce in the synagogue appears to have been open to women. The limited education commonly enjoyed by all women but those of the weaUhy and leisured class would necessarily deljar them from much influence in intellectual regions. The Jews paid great attention to the education of children ; but whenever we meet with an explicit statement on the subject we read only of boys. Thus Josephus says that Moses ' commanded to instruct children ' (c. Apion. ii. 25), and ' we take most pains of all with the instruction of children ' {ib. i. 12) ; but when he is more explicrit he states that Moses prescribed ' that boys should learn the most im- portant laws ' {Ant. IV. viii. 12). Philo and the Talmud follow on similar lines (see Schiirer, IIJP II. ii. 27). The inference is that all young children were taught the elements of religion by their parents, but that when it came to the question of more exact instruction about the Law, in the sj-nagogue schools, this was conlined to boys.
1. The Prominence of Women in the NT. — Women come to the front with reference to the life of our Lord. This is esiiecially the case in the Third Gospel, St. Luke delightiii;^ in gathering information concerning women and in showing their part in the Gospel story. It cannot bo maintained that the ^lagnificat, though ascribed
to the Virgin Mary, was actually composed by her. It is more consonant with ancient literary custom to suppose tliat the evangelist sujiplies hymns of the .lewish or Christian Church to ex- press the sentiments of the persons whom he represents as uttering tliem. But, while we may not venture to designate the mother of Jesus as a poetess, .\nna is distinctly represented as a pro- phetess who spent all her time in worsliip in the precincts of the temple (Lk 2*"). Our Lord's teaching and healing ministry was carried on among women as freely as among men. The means for the support of Christ ami His apostles appears to have been cliieHy derived from the jon- tiibutions of women : this was in accordance with custom, women sometimes contributing largely towards the support of Rabbis (see Plummer, Intern. Com. on Lk 8''^). Women were prepared to perform the last oflices for the dead on the body of Jesus. In the early apostolic age it was to the hotise of a woman that St. Peter went, after his liberation from prison during the persecution by Herod, to meet a considerable group of discijiles ('where manj/vrere gathered together,' etc.,. \c 12'-). We cannot infer that the whole Church was accus- tomed to mL'i't in this house, as lias been often .issumed, for the majority were not present on this occasion, nor was St. James, since St. Peter says, 'Tell these things unto .James, and to the brethren ' (v."). At Jojipa, Tabitlia was a woman disciple liighly honoured for her 'good works and alms deeds' (Ac 9™). St. Paul's lirst convert in Europe was a woman, and he and his companions stayed at her house (16"-''). At Philippi, where this occurred, there were other women who laboured with the apostle (Pli 4^-'). Priscilla is mentioned before her husband in regard to their teaching of Apollos, as though she took the lead (Ac 18™). Timothy's faith is to be encouraged with memories of his mother's and gr.andmotlier's earlier faith (2 Ti 1»). One NT Epi-stle (viz. 2 John) appears to have been written to a wom.an, thoui;h this is doubtful (see JoHN, EPISTLE.S or). Women hgure largely in the symbolism of the .-Vpocalypse, e.g. 'the woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a pro- phetess' (Kev 2-", see Jezebel, n.), the 'woman arrayed with the sun ' (12'"), the woman represent- ing ' Babylon the Great ' (I7'"-).