The women who served at the entrance to the tent of meeting.

"[Bezalel or They] made the basin of bronze, with its stand of bronze, from the mirrors of the women who served at the entrance to the tent of meeting.” Exodus 38v8 (NRSVA)

I have read Exodus many times but today this verse jumped out at me. Why had I never noticed it before? Thereby hangs a tale. Sadly it does reflect well on the "un-fair sex"  and how apposite that adjective is! Unfair in acts, presuppositions and thought.

That women SERVED at the entrance to the tent of meeting aka The Tabernacle is also attested in 1 Samuel 2v22.

However if you have an older translation you will read that the women "assembled" (KJV, Geneva 1599). Much further back and the Septuagint translators were also less than forthcoming. Dr Kaiser Jr. says "“Women who served” at the tabernacle (Exodus 38:8 and 1 Samuel 2:22) offended the Greek translators of the Septuagint, so they rendered the phrase: “women who fast.”" (Kaiser Jr, 2005, "Correcting Caricatures: 
The Biblical Teaching on Women", Priscilla Papers, Vol. 19, No. 2  p.7).

I am relieved to say that RSV, NASB & NIV all correctly say "served"!

Let all serve God according to their calling regardless of gender for clearly God is far more inclusive than we are.