Never judge a book by its cover, the saying goes. Well, with Eishet Chayil: Woman of Valor, published earlier this year by Kehot Publication Society, you actually can.
Pick up the beautiful hardcover, encased in a lavender slipcase, and you know you are holding something exquisite. The book feels less like a volume and more like an object meant to be treasured. Its linen-bound cover invites you to open the pages with thoughtful intention.
What becomes clear almost immediately is that the book’s external beauty is proportional to the depth contained within.
Written by Rabbi Yossi Marcus, Eishet Chayil focuses in its entirety on the hymn from King Solomon’s Proverbs of the same name honoring the woman of valor, which is traditionally sung at the Shabbat table on Friday nights, through the lens of 24 Jewish heroines.
“When we first started on the idea, it was an adaptation of the shortest biblical text we’ve ever worked on,” said Rabbi Yosef B. Friedman, executive director of Kehot Publication Society. “But as Rabbi Marcus continued his research, drawing from all levels of study, it grew into this extensive and profound and extensive book. What we have now is a reading in which everyone, including those with vast Torah knowledge, will learn something new.”
Marcus builds the book on a striking Midrashic tradition: that each verse of Eishet Chayil refers to a different woman in Jewish history. Walking through the Midrash, he brings the reader on a journey, not only to understand the linguistic meaning of each line of the hymn but the full world of the woman it describes.
Readers will discover more about the lives of well-known figures like Sarah our Matriarch and Queen Esther to those lesser-known, like Michal and Tzlelponit. There’s Naamah, the musician who transcends the corruption of her day; Yocheved and Miriam, the midwives who defy the all-powerful Pharaoh; Chana, who shakes heaven and earth to have a child; Serach, who stands up to the powerful general Joab and saves a town from destruction; Bruriah, the Talmudic scholar whose words of consolation are cited to this day.
Yet taking the reader even further, layered beneath the 24 heroines is an even deeper unifying thread: the figure of Sarah. Here, the Midrash interprets the entire Eishet Chayil as Avraham our Patriarch’s eulogy to his beloved wife, Sarah. Every verse sings about another profound event from her lifetime. Marcus again pulls every source available to bring this story alive and pulls the mosaic of individual women together through the archetype of Jewish womanhood, as established by the first matriarch.
Each section circles back to Sarah; her courage, her discernment, her willingness to stand firm when others wavered—revealing how her spiritual DNA echoes through Miriam, Bruriah, Yael, Naomi, Ruth and beyond. Over the course of the book, Sarah emerges not as a distant biblical figure, but as the model of strength that quietly shapes them all.
The resulting work is rigorous, immersive scholarship, drawing from Mishnah, Talmud, Midrash and centuries of classical commentary.
“It wasn’t just about finding what the commentaries were saying on each phrase,” says Marcus. “I had to go and look up everything I could find about each heroine. Sometimes, there’s a passage in the Talmud and it’s brief and cryptic. But once you start delving into the commentaries, their stories come to life.”
Through this careful weaving of sources, Marcus does more than just explain the texts—he animates them. Each woman’s story emerges vividly, her choices, struggles and courage rendered tangible, allowing readers to connect deeply with the human experience behind the ancient words. And for the text-inclined, footnotes on every page mark sources and share even more fascinating insights to be explored.
Shifts in Direction
This reframing upends many comfortable assumptions. Familiar stories tilt on their axis, revealing women not as supporting characters, but as decisive historical agents.
As Marcus puts it, “Every point, every major point in Jewish history, there’s a woman. Particularly, a woman that of moves us in the right direction. There will be a fork in the road, and then a woman comes and sends us in the right direction.”
One striking example comes in the story of the widow of Ovadia, who cries out to the prophet Elisha for help paying creditors, so that her sons won’t be taken to serve the evil king, Achav.
As Marcus himself acknowledges, “I always thought the story about Elisha was that he was such a great miracle worker, which, of course, he was. But when you look in the Midrash, actually the hero of the story is not Elisha. The hero of the story is this woman. She refused to hand her sons over to an idolatrous ruler, even at the cost of her own security and comfort. Ultimately, the Midrash determines that her self-sacrifice and righteousness saved the Jewish people, by redirecting them to repentance and salvation. So it flips the whole story.”
Marcus also highlights Naomi, whose story illustrates how courage and influence can take many forms. “What’s striking about her is how decisive she can be in moments of challenge. She doesn’t rely on miracles; she relies on judgment and integrity,” he notes. Naomi ultimately brought about the Kingdom of David through her intentional actions.
“Every time I look at Naomi,” the author muses, “I see how a single woman’s choices can have a ripple effect, shaping outcomes in ways that aren’t flashy, but are essential.”
What defines these women is not softness or silence, but courage. “The common theme over here of all of the women is that they’re fighters,” Marcus notes. “That they have courage. It’s almost the opposite of the docile Eishet Chayil that you might think of.” Strength, in this telling, is not performative or loud. It is unwavering, principled, and often costly.
A Timely Dedication
Before the book even begins, the reader is stopped short by two dedications that shift the entire weight of the book away from history, and into the stark and powerful present.
“In memory of the women of the Gaza Division, stationed at the Nachal Oz outpost on the Gaza border, who were murdered on Shabbat, Shemini Atzeret 5784, al kiddush Hashem [sanctifying G‑d’s name, on that day.”
And on the next page:
“In gratitude to the Almighty for the safe return of the five courageous female field observers of the 414th Field Intelligence Battalion of the Gaza Division’s Northern Brigade, stationed at the Nahal Oz observation outpost on the Gaza border, who were taken hostage on Shabbat, Shemini Atzeret 5784.”
These two dedications weren’t imagined when the book was first initiated in 2020. Howard Glowinsky had approached Kehot with the idea, wishing to dedicate the book in honor of his own wife, Claire Glowinsky.
![In praise of the Jewish woman, King Solomon writes "Her flame is not extinguished at night".](https://w2.chabad.org/media/images/1356/QCxj13565835.jpg?_i=_n504BC99DD0473598AAE3BCDC5D75568D "In praise of the Jewish woman, King Solomon writes "Her flame is not extinguished at night".")
After the tragic events of Oct. 7, the Glowinskys returned to the publishers to request a meaningful pivot: that the primary dedication be in memory of the female field observers murdered at the Nahal Oz outpost, along with an additional dedication expressing the hope that their colleagues held in captivity be released. While the book was en route to New York, those women were freed, and the second printing was updated to reflect gratitude to Hashem for their release.
The Glowinskys invested significant time and effort into tracking down the names and parent’s names of each of the fallen heroes, so that each one could be written in full honor. Later, they traveled to Israel with the printed books and dedications in hand, and in emotional visits, presented it to the families of the heroes.
With these dedications, the Glowinskys create a bridge between past and present, linking the valor of women in Jewish history with the courage of those living today. Just as the book traces Sarah’s spiritual DNA through Leah, Rahab, Chana and Elisheva, it reminds the reader that strength, wisdom and leadership are not confined to the past. They continue to shape the world around us.
Driving this home, Bobby and Fran Lent add an additional dedication to the Eishet Chayil of their family, and add: “As in the days of Yetziat Mitzrayim, may the merit of this generation’s neshei chayil (women of valor) lead us to the true and complete redemption.”
A New Staple of the Jewish Bookshelf
With its depth, beauty and timeless message, Eishet Chayil: Woman of Valor has established itself as a must-have in every Jewish home—the perfect gift to a host, celebrant, for Mother’s Day, and for girls reaching bat mitzvah age.
The author’s approach, rooted in centuries-old sources, builds a foundation beyond political barriers, giving the book a unique authority.
“These are old, old midrashim and Gemaras,” Marcus notes, “long before the feminist movement, they talked about these ideas. It’s not like in the advent of modern feminism, when people came up with new interpretations or new ideas to placate women. These are old sources, authentic sources, and yet, they emphasize the centrality, the courage, the leadership of the women. It’s really striking when you see it laid out, how the women are not secondary; they’re pivotal.”
This effect resonates with every kind of reader. Women and men from the right and left of the social spectrum, and readers who are new to Jewish knowledge, as well as advanced scholars, all find a deeper appreciation and respect for the centrality of women in Jewish history, and the courage, wisdom and leadership modeled by the figures of King Solomon’s song.
Combined with the meaningful artwork by Lia Baratz, the book can also be read by the men in their lives who wish to gain a deeper appreciation and respect for the strength of the righteous women.
“It gives men an understanding of what Eishet Chayil is all about,” Marcus says, “and it empowers women to see themselves as vital participants in the story of the Jewish people.”
The author drew deep inspiration from the Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson, of righteous memory.
“It’s really the Rebbe’s message, who emphasized the role of the Jewish woman on many occasions,” he says. “You can see it everywhere — in how he spoke about women’s role in Jewish life, in education, in the home, in the community. He always wanted people to understand that women are not secondary. They are central to everything, and that message really guided me as I worked on this book.”
Marcus continues, “When I wrote this, I kept thinking about that. How do I make it clear, without being polemical or modernist, just through the sources, that women are essential? That courage, leadership, wisdom—these are not just masculine traits in Jewish history. They are everywhere, and the Rebbe wanted us to see that clearly.
“I wanted the reader to finish this book and really feel it — women are not peripheral. From Sarah through all the women in the Eishet Chayil, their choices and strength have shaped the course of Jewish history. That’s the Rebbe’s message, and that’s what I hope everyone takes away.”
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