Die rol van prominente vroue in die boeke Josua, Rigters, Samuel en Konings

English: Women in the Old Testament are usually regarded as inferior to men. Although information in this regard is scarce, the aim of this study was to accentuate the real as well as the untold roles women played in the Old Testament. Women from certain historic periods in Israel and Juda were compared with women from the Umwelt during the same period. The social position of women from Sumer, Akkade, Babylonia, Syria, Assyria, Phoenicia and Egypt was taken into consideration. Queen Ku-Bau of the Sumerian city Kish was a prominent lady. The Akkadian woman Enkheduanna, daughter of Sargan I, was appointed priestess in the city Ur. She was a well-known poet and acquainted with the Sumerian religion. The most famous was queen Naqi'a, the wife of the Assyrian king Sennacherib. Queen Jezebel of Israel being a Phoenician princess was a model for prominent and royal Phoenician women. She promoted her Baal religion in a despotic way; her fanatic convictions even allowed her to murder Jahwe believers. It is believed that women in Egypt were quite emancipated. Men and women were equal and equal in their position before the King. Queen Hatshepsut was a real queen who reigned also as regent for her stepson Thutmoses Ill. During the pre-monarchical period Israelite women were subdivided in prominent and less prominent groups. Prominent women were Rahab, Debora, Jael and Hannah, the mother of Samuel. Less prominent women included the five daughters of Selofgad, Jephta's daughter and the Levite's concubine. During the united monarchy, we had women of exceptional prominence. Particularly influential women that could be typified as a gebira (queen mother) were included. The royal women associated with King David; namely, Michal, Bathsheba, Abishag and Rispah are discussed. During the revolt of Absalom against the king, we find several anonymous women, like the woman of Bahurim who hid David's spies on their way back. After the division of Israel in Juda in the south and Israel in the north, Jezebel the Tyrian princess of Israel was a special representative of the gebira. Jezebel was the daughter of Etbaal, the priest-king of Tyre, who married Ahab of Israel. Her missionary zeal resulted in murder, like in the Naboth case. There were three special prominent women in the kingdom of Juda, namely Athaliah, Maachah and Jehoseba. Athaliah was the only reigning queen In both kingdoms. During this period women suffered from discrimination against them. The real role and function of women was scrutinised in this study. It could be indicated that women could think innovatively and how they took initiative, many times. The aim of this study is to re-evaluate the role and position of women and give a fresh perspective to the view of women in these indicated books in the Old Testament.