Jump to: Smith's • ISBE • Easton's • Webster's • Concordance • Thesaurus • Greek • Hebrew • Library • Subtopics • Terms Topical Encyclopedia In the biblical context, the term "queen" refers to a female monarch or the wife of a king. The role and influence of queens in the Bible vary significantly, with some being portrayed as virtuous and others as wicked. The Bible provides several examples of queens, each with distinct narratives and contributions to biblical history.Queen of Sheba One of the most notable queens mentioned in the Bible is the Queen of Sheba. Her account is found in 1 Kings 10:1-13 and 2 Chronicles 9:1-12. The Queen of Sheba visited King Solomon to test his wisdom with hard questions. Impressed by Solomon's wisdom and the prosperity of his kingdom, she praised the God of Israel: "Blessed be the LORD your God, who has delighted in you and set you on the throne of Israel" (1 Kings 10:9). Her visit highlights the far-reaching reputation of Solomon's wisdom and the splendor of his reign. Queen Esther Esther, a Jewish queen of Persia, is another prominent figure. Her account is detailed in the Book of Esther. Esther became queen after being chosen by King Ahasuerus (Xerxes I) to replace Queen Vashti. Her courage and faith are evident when she risks her life to save her people from a plot to annihilate the Jews, orchestrated by Haman, the king's advisor. Esther's famous declaration, "If I perish, I perish" (Esther 4:16), underscores her bravery and commitment to her people. Her actions led to the Jewish festival of Purim, celebrating their deliverance. Queen Jezebel In contrast, Queen Jezebel is depicted as a negative figure. She was the wife of King Ahab of Israel and is known for her idolatry and persecution of the prophets of Yahweh. Jezebel promoted the worship of Baal and Asherah, leading Israel into sin. Her account is recounted in 1 Kings 16:31-33 and 2 Kings 9:30-37. Jezebel's influence over Ahab and her opposition to the prophet Elijah highlight the dangers of idolatry and moral corruption. Queen Athaliah Athaliah, the daughter of Ahab and Jezebel, became queen of Judah through marriage to King Jehoram. After the death of her son, King Ahaziah, she seized the throne and attempted to exterminate the royal line of David. Her reign is marked by violence and idolatry, as described in 2 Kings 11:1-3. Athaliah's rule ended when she was overthrown and executed, allowing the rightful heir, Joash, to become king. Queen Vashti Queen Vashti, the predecessor of Esther, is mentioned in the Book of Esther. She was deposed by King Ahasuerus for refusing to appear before him and his guests during a banquet (Esther 1:10-12). Vashti's refusal is often interpreted as an act of dignity and self-respect, though it led to her removal as queen. Role and Influence Queens in the Bible often wielded significant influence, whether for good or ill. Their accounts reflect the complexities of power, faith, and morality. While some queens, like Esther, are celebrated for their faithfulness and courage, others, like Jezebel, serve as warnings against idolatry and moral decay. The narratives of these queens provide valuable insights into the cultural and spiritual dynamics of their times, illustrating the impact of female leadership in biblical history. Smith's Bible Dictionary QueenThis title is properly applied to the queen-mother, since in an Oriental household it is not the wife but the mother of the master who exercises the highest authority. Strange as such an arrangement at sight appears, it is one of the inevitable results of polygamy. An illustration of the queen-mother's influence is given in (1 Kings 2:19) ff. The term is applied to Maachah, (1 Kings 15:13; 2 Chronicles 16:16) and to Jezetiel, (2 Kings 10:13) and to the mother of Jehoiachin or Jeconiah, (Jeremiah 13:18) compare 2Kin 24:12; Jere 29:2 Easton's Bible Dictionary No explicit mention of queens is made till we read of the "queen of Sheba." The wives of the kings of Israel are not so designated. In Psalm 45:9, the Hebrew for "queen" is not malkah, one actually ruling like the Queen of Sheba, but shegal, which simply means the king's wife. In 1 Kings 11:19, Pharaoh's wife is called "the queen," but the Hebrew word so rendered (g'birah) is simply a title of honour, denoting a royal lady, used sometimes for "queen-mother" (1 Kings 15:13; 2 Chronicles 15:16). In Cant. 6:8, 9, the king's wives are styled "queens" (Hebrews melakhoth).In the New Testament we read of the "queen of the south", i.e., Southern Arabia, Sheba (Matthew 12:42; Luke 11:31) and the "queen of the Ethiopians" (Acts 8:27), Candace. Queen of heaven (Jeremiah 7:18; 44:17, 25), the moon, worshipped by the Assyrians as the receptive power in nature. Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary 1. (n.) The wife of a king.2. (n.) A woman who is the sovereign of a kingdom; a female monarch; as, Elizabeth, queen of England; Mary, queen of Scots. 3. (n.) A woman eminent in power or attractions; the highest of her kind; as, a queen in society; -- also used figuratively of cities, countries, etc. 4. (n.) The fertile, or fully developed, female of social bees, ants, and termites. 5. (n.) The most powerful, and except the king the most important, piece in a set of chessmen. 6. (n.) A playing card bearing the picture of a queen; as, the queen of spades. 7. (n.) A male homosexual, esp. one who is effeminate or dresses in women's clothing. 8. (v. i.) To act the part of a queen. 9. (v. i.) To make a queen (or other piece, at the player's discretion) of by moving it to the eighth row; as, to queen a pawn. International Standard Bible Encyclopedia QUEENkwen: The Bible applies this term: QUEEN MOTHER (gebhirah, literally, "mistress," then a female ruler, and sometimes simply the wife of a king ("queen," 1 Kings 11:19); in Daniel 5:10 the term malketha' "queen," really means the mother of the king): It stands to reason that among a people whose rulers are polygamists the mother of the new king or chief at once becomes a person of great consequence. The records of the Books of Kings prove it. The gebhirah, or queen mother, occupied a position of high social and political importance; she took rank almost with the king. When Bath-sheba, the mother of Solomon, desired "to speak unto him for Adonijah," her son "rose up to meet her, and bowed himself unto her, and sat down on his throne, and caused a throne to be set for the king's mother; and she sat on his right hand" (1 Kings 2:19). And again, in 2 Kings 24:15, it is expressly stated that Nebuchadnezzar carried away the king's mother into captivity; Jeremiah calls her gebhirah (29:2). The king was Jehoiachin (Jeconiah, Jeremiah 29:2), and his mother's name was Nehushta (2 Kings 24:8). This was the royal pair whose impending doom the prophet was told to forecast (Jeremiah 13:18). Here again the queen mother is mentioned with the king, thus emphasizing her exalted position. Now we understand why Asa removed Maacah his (grand?)mother from being queen (queen mother), as we are told in 1 Kings 15:13 (compare 2 Chronicles 15:16). She had used her powerful influence to further the cause of idolatry. In this connection Athaliah's coup d'etat may be briefly mentioned. After the violent death of her son Ahaziah (2 Kings 9:27), she usurped the royal power and reigned for some time in her own name (2 Kings 11:3; compare 2 Chronicles 22:12). This was, of course, a revolutionary undertaking, being a radical departure from the usual traditions. QUEEN OF HEAVEN (melekheth ha-shamayim, although there is another reading, mele'kheth, "worship" or "goddess"): Occurs only in two passages: Jeremiah 7:18; Jeremiah 44:17-19, 25, where the prophet denounces the wrath of God upon the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem who have given themselves up to the worship of the host of heaven. This is no doubt a part of the astral worship which is found largely developed among the Jews in the later period of their history in Canaan. It is first mentioned in 2 Kings 17:16 as practiced by the men of the Northern Kingdom when Samaria had fallen and the ten tribes were being carried away into captivity. Moses is represented as warning the Israelites against the worship of the sun and moon and stars and all the host of heaven, practiced by the people of Canaan (Deuteronomy 4:19; Deuteronomy 17:3) and the existence of such worship among the Canaanites and neighboring nations is attested from an early period (compare Job 31:26-28). The worship of the heavenly bodies was widely spread in the East and in Arabia; and the Babylonian pantheon was full of astral deities, where each divinity corresponded either to an astral phenomenon or to some circumstance or occurrence in Nature which is connected with the course of the stars (Jeremias, The Old Testament in the Light of the Ancient East, I, 100). From the prophets we gather that before the exile the worship of the host of heaven had become established among all classes and in all the towns of Israel (Jeremiah ubi supra; Ezekiel 8:16). In that worship the queen of heaven had a conspicuous place; and if, as seems probable from the cakes which were offered, she is to be identified with the Assyrian Ishtar and the Canaanite Astarte, the worship itself was of a grossly immoral and debasing character. That this Ishtar cult was of great antiquity and widely spread in ancient Babylonia may be seen from the symbols of it found in recent excavations (see Nippur, II, 236). How far the astral theorists like Winckler and Jeremias are entitled to link up with this worship the mourning for Josiah, the lamentations over Tammuz, the story of Jephthah's daughter, and even-the narrative of the misfortunes and the exaltation of Joseph, is questionable. But that the people of Judah in the days before the exile had given themselves over to the worst and vilest forms of heathen worship and incurred the grievous displeasure of Yahweh is made clear by the denunciation of the worship of the queen of heaven by Jeremiah. QUEEN OF SHEBA she'-ba (1 Kings 10:1-13 2 Chronicles 9:1-12, called in Matthew 12:42; Luke 11:31, "the queen of the south" (basilissa notou)): SOUTH, QUEEN OF THE (Matthew 12:42). SHEBA, QUEEN OF See QUEEN OF SHEBA. Greek 938. basilissa -- a queen ... a queen. Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine Transliteration: basilissa Phonetic Spelling: (bas-il'-is-sah) Short Definition: a queen Definition: a queen. ... //strongsnumbers.com/greek2/938.htm - 6k 2582. Kandake -- Candace, a queen of Ethiopia 2403. Iezabel -- Jezebel, the symbolic name of a false prophetess Strong's Hebrew 4436. malkah -- queen... 4435, 4436. malkah. 4437 . queen. Transliteration: malkah Phonetic Spelling: (mal-kaw') Short Definition: Queen. Word Origin fem. ... /hebrew/4436.htm - 6k 7694. shegal -- (queen) consort 4446. meleketh -- queen 4433. malka -- queen 1377. gebirah -- lady, queen 4427a. malak -- to be or become king or queen, to reign 2060. Vashti -- queen of Pers. 4427. malak -- to be or become king or queen, to reign 1404. gebereth -- lady, queen, mistress 8472. Tachpenes -- an Eg. queen Library To Giovanna Queen of Naples Esther, the Queen. How Helena the Queen of Adiabene and Her Son Izates, Embraced the ... Hail, Queen of Heaven Wesley and Mary Queen of Scots Epistle xxxviii. To Queen Theodelinda. Epistle L. To Queen Brunichild. Epistle v. To Queen Brunichild. Epistle iv. To Queen Theodelinda. Of Mavia, Queen of the Saracens, and the Ordination of Moses the ... Thesaurus Queen (59 Occurrences)... Easton's Bible Dictionary No explicit mention of queens is made till we read of the "queen of Sheba." The wives of the kings of Israel are not so designated. ... /q/queen.htm - 44k Queen's (3 Occurrences) Queen-mother (2 Occurrences) Vashti (10 Occurrences) Mother (2641 Occurrences) Ahasu-e'rus (30 Occurrences) Ahasuerus (28 Occurrences) Xerxes (24 Occurrences) Candace (1 Occurrence) Libations (29 Occurrences) Resources What is the Queen James Bible? | GotQuestions.orgWho is the Queen of Heaven? | GotQuestions.org Who was the Queen of Sheba? | GotQuestions.org Queen: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.com Bible Concordance • Bible Dictionary • Bible Encyclopedia • Topical Bible • Bible Thesuarus Concordance Queen (59 Occurrences)Matthew 12:42 Luke 11:31 Acts 8:27 Revelation 18:7 Judges 5:30 1 Kings 10:1 1 Kings 10:4 1 Kings 10:10 1 Kings 10:13 1 Kings 11:19 1 Kings 15:13 2 Kings 10:13 2 Chronicles 9:1 2 Chronicles 9:3 2 Chronicles 9:9 2 Chronicles 9:12 2 Chronicles 15:16 Nehemiah 2:6 Esther 1:9 Esther 1:11 Esther 1:12 Esther 1:15 Esther 1:16 Esther 1:17 Esther 1:18 Esther 2:4 Esther 2:17 Esther 2:22 Esther 4:4 Esther 5:2 Esther 5:3 Esther 5:12 Esther 7:1 Esther 7:2 Esther 7:3 Esther 7:5 Esther 7:6 Esther 7:7 Esther 7:8 Esther 8:1 Esther 8:7 Esther 9:12 Esther 9:29 Esther 9:31 Esther 9:32 Psalms 45:9 Isaiah 47:5 Isaiah 47:7 Jeremiah 7:18 Jeremiah 13:18 Jeremiah 29:2 Jeremiah 44:17 Jeremiah 44:18 Jeremiah 44:19 Jeremiah 44:25 Lamentations 1:1 Ezekiel 16:13 Daniel 5:10 Nahum 2:7 Subtopics Queen of Sheba, Visits Solomon Queen: Makes Feasts for the Women of the Royal Household Queen: Sits on the Throne With the King Queen: The Moon Was Called "The Queen of Heaven" Related Terms |