Summary of what women were in the OT: town representatives, queens with limited authority, one judge for decades, prophets with clear divine approval.

Women were: town representatives (at least in crisis), queens with limited authority under the king, at least one judge (Deborah) who made authoritative rulings for decades from lower courts, and prophets — less often than men but with clear approval, not as a result of crisis or men abandoning responsibilities, but because God called those women to prophesy. Prophecy is clearly approved, confirmed further in the NT.