The biblical ‘almanah or “widow” has been understood recently as a woman whose husband has died and who is without a male guardian, such as an adult son. Several texts have complicated this picture: in two cases women are called “widows” in spite of the identification of their sons, while younger women are not designated as “widows” upon the deaths of their husbands. Both of these apparent contradictions are resolved by understanding the ‘almanah as a woman who is past the age of bearing children and who is not part of a male-headed household.
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