Two widows. Two prophets. Both have lost their sons to death. Both prophets are focused on the women, and on their plight as widows in a culture where only males have rights. It’s the women who are important enough to comfort and to save from grief, yes, but also from destitution, cultural invisibility and social oblivion in the long run.
The widow in Jesus’ day had no family to care for her if there was no other man willing or able to take on the role of protector in her life. She was completely at the mercy of a value system that saw no value in HER. The traditions and attitudes of the time allowed her no voice, gave her no rights, placed her in the invisible margins of society where she could be easily exploited when not utterly discounted as a human being. Still she had basic human needs—the need to eat, the need for clothing and shelter, the primal need for care and affection.
Jesus saw all this and his heart was stirred. He knew, beyond her grief, what losing her son would mean. It placed her in the margins of society, took her to the very gate of death’s door by annihilating her value and turning a blind eye to her intrinsic dignity. In restoring the life of her son, Jesus brought HER out of the margins where she would likely have remained invisible and heartlessly neglected. He returned her to a position of worth and underscored her invaluable significance in the eyes of God. She was seen again as having a rightful place in society. Once again, she had value.