- E-ISSN 3091-7638
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- E-ISSN3091-7638
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Abimelech, the Failed King: Chaoskampf and Masculinity in Judges 9
Journal of Biblical and Ancient Studies, (E)3091-7638
2025, v.1 no.2, pp.213-237
https://doi.org/10.23364/JBAS.2025.1.2.58099
(M.A. Baylor University)
Bang,
T.
(2025). Abimelech, the Failed King: Chaoskampf and Masculinity in Judges 9, 1(2), 213-237, https://doi.org/10.23364/JBAS.2025.1.2.58099
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Abstract
A literary-theological reading of Judges 9 interprets Abimelech’s failed kingship through the lens of hegemonic masculinity in dialogue with ancient Near Eastern Chaoskampf traditions. Using masculinity studies, “hegemonic masculinity” functions here as a heuristic, etic category to map the traits valorized in the Davidic traditions—physical prowess, persuasive speech, male companionship, fertility, and divine favor—and to outline an idealized masculine profile within certain biblical traditions. Abimelech emerges as a deliberate counter type: his partial military successes, reliance on others for speech, association with “empty” men, lack of heirs, and rejection by YHWH construct him as a parody-king whose attempts to reach hegemonic masculinity collapse. Situated within ancient Near Eastern royal ideology, especially the motif of the king as bringer of order, Judges 9 portrays Abimelech as intensifying disorder, particularly in the volatile, liminal setting of Shechem. A brief engagement with contemporary “chaosmos” theory further illuminates how the narrative frames his inability to transform chaos into order as a test of legitimate masculine and royal authority.
- keywords
- Hegemonic Masculinity, Abimelech, Judges 9, Chaoskampf, Ancient Near Eastern Royal Ideology, Gender and Kingship
- Received
- 2025-12-10
- Revised
- 2025-12-26
- Accepted
- 2025-12-30
- Published
- 2025-12-31
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