Within the Bible, it was not solely males who dominated as kings, but in addition some girls dominated as queens in their very own proper. That is their story…
Forms of Queens within the Outdated Testomony
There are 5 several types of queens within the Bible. In English we have now one phrase for “queen” that covers the roles of what the phrases are typically in Hebrew. The Hebrew phrase for reigning queen was “malkah,” which is the female type of “milk” for king, which is used to explain the Queen of Sheba. “Shegal” was the queen consort and “gebirah” was the queen mom.
There are examples within the Outdated Testomony of some ruling queens who dominated in their very own proper as queens or royal wives. Most queens had been queen consorts who had been married to kings. Some kings had multiple spouse, however not all had been known as queen. Queen moms had been the mom of the reigning king, who was normally the earlier queen consort.
A queen consort may grow to be queen dowager when she was widowed and retain the title of queen when a brand new king arrived, who could or might not be her son. Queen moms could possibly be queen regents who had been the precise ruler, ruling on behalf of their younger son, or sometimes a grandson who was the official king in identify solely however not sufficiently old to rule. A few of these roles overlapped, and the Dowager Queen could possibly be Queen Mom and Queen Regent.
The Queen's Consorts
Queens had been girls married to a king, emperor or pharaoh. Bathsheba was married to King David (2 Samuel 11 and 12; 1 Kings 1 and a pair of) and was the mom of King Solomon. Some kings had many wives of their harem and never all of those girls had been thought of queens, equivalent to King Solomon's harem in 1 Kings 11:3. There are some well-known queens within the Bible, equivalent to Queen Jezebel, the spouse of King Ahab of Israel, who was well-known for introducing pagan worship (1 Kings 16 – 2 Kings 9).
Esther
Probably the most well-known queen consort within the Bible is Queen Esther, who was married to a Persian emperor who changed Queen Vashti in his affections. The biblical ebook of Esther tells her story, which is commemorated yearly through the Jewish vacation of Purim.
Queen Moms within the Bible
Many queen moms are particularly named within the Outdated Testomony. When the textual content in 1 Kings, 2 Kings, and a pair of Chronicles introduces a brand new king of Judah, it virtually all the time offers the identify of the king's mom, who was the queen mom. She was usually essentially the most highly effective lady at courtroom. The Queen Mom typically interceded for others. In 1 Kings 2:13-21 we examine Adonijah going to the queen mom, Queen Bathsheba, to intercede with King Solomon for his request.
The function of the Queen Mom could possibly be eliminated. In 1 Kings 15:9-13 we learn that King Jeroboam of Israel eliminated Maacah from the place of queen mom as a result of she had made an Asherah idol. In Proverbs we learn in regards to the mom of King Lemuel who was most likely the queen mom. Her identify is just not recorded, though in Proverbs 31:1–9 she offers glorious recommendation and knowledge to her son in his management function.
Queen Regents
When kings had been very younger, the queen mom was usually the precise ruler, ruling as regent in her son's identify till he was sufficiently old to rule. In 2 Kings 21:1 it says that Manasseh was 12 years outdated when he turned king and his mom was Hephzibah. In 2 Kings 22:1 we learn that King Josiah was 8 years outdated when he turned king and his mom was Jedidah. In 2 Chronicles 24:1 we learn that King Joash (additionally known as Joash) of Judah was 7 years outdated when he turned king, and his mom was Zibiah.
The queen regent was not all the time the mom, however typically the grandmother. In 1 Kings 15:9-15 we learn of a queen regent, Queen Maacah, who was truly the grandmother of King Asa of Judah.
Queens rule
In addition to queen consorts and queen moms, the Bible data various queens ruling in their very own proper. These are the Queen of Sheba and Queen Athaliah of Judah.
Queen of Sheba
The Queen of Sheba is the primary reigning queen talked about within the Bible. The story of her go to to King Solomon of Israel will be learn in 1 Kings 10:1-13 and a pair of Chronicles 9:1-12. She is unnamed, however the narrative means that she was a ruler in her personal proper.
Within the New Testomony in Matthew 12:42 and Luke 11:31 she is known as the Queen of the South, which most students consider was southern Arabia, round present-day Yemen and maybe throughout the Pink Sea into present-day Ethiopia. As is commonly the case, the shortage of detailed info within the Bible is stuffed in by custom. The Queen of Sheba performs a distinguished function within the Ethiopian historic “Kebra Nagast” narratives. In response to this custom, the Queen of Sheba was named Makeda and had a son by King Solomon who turned King Menilek I, the founding father of the royal home of Ethiopia.
Queen Athaliah
Individuals typically suppose that Judah and Israel solely had kings, however this isn’t fairly true. The Outdated Testomony describes one queen of Judah. Queen Athaliah dominated Judah independently for six years. Her story is recorded in 2 Kings 8:16-11:16 and a pair of Chronicles 22:10 to 23:1. It was a lot better identified and was made well-known by an oratorio known as “Athalia” written by Handel in 1733.
Queen Alexandra
Queen Athaliah was not the final queen to rule Judea, however the final one is just not talked about within the Bible however is value mentioning. Queen Alexandra got here from the Hasmonean dynasty. It’s described by Josephus and talked about within the Talmud and the Lifeless Sea Scrolls. She supported the Pharisees over the Sadducees. She was the ruler of Judea and died 4 years earlier than the Roman conquest and several other a long time earlier than the delivery of Jesus.
Queen Candace
In Acts 8:27-39 we learn the story of Philip the Evangelist who met the treasurer within the courtroom of Queen Candace. Candace was truly a title, like Pharaoh or Caesar, relatively than the identify of a selected particular person and referred to a queen. The Candaces had been a line of queens who dominated in Cush, which is in present-day Sudan, within the space then generally known as Ethiopia in Greek. It isn’t clear what class of queen she was, however she could have been the Queen Mom.
Books of Kings
The Bible has no particular regulation that solely males can rule or be rulers. Earlier than the monarchy, Israel was dominated by judges, and probably the most well-known of them was Deborah. Within the Septuagint translation of the Bible, from which our title of the books of Kings comes, the title of the books is best translated as “Reigns.” Once we name them the ebook of kings, we will be misled into forgetting that these books additionally inform the tales of queens.
Conclusion
Some queens had been good and a few are portrayed as unhealthy. Others are listed solely by identify and a few will not be named in any respect. The Queen of Sheba, who acts as the great queen, is rarely named. The one reigning queen of Judah was Queen Athaliah, who is just not an excellent queen. Some folks argued that as a result of she wasn't an excellent queen, that's why girls shouldn't be rulers, however since there are extra examples of unhealthy kings, by that logic, males shouldn't be rulers both.
The monarch was normally male, however typically feminine, and the monarch had the best authority. Nevertheless, the Queen Mom appears to have been second in authority, and if she was regent, she held the true authority till her son was sufficiently old. There’s nothing within the Bible that claims girls can not assume the function of king, and evidently many do.
