What is it about?
According to the narrative of the transport of the ark of the covenant to Jerusalem in 2 Samuel 6, King David is so scantily dressed that he publicly exposes himself while dancing before G*d. Davidʼs wild, gay and possibly sexual conduct can evoke associations with the behaviour of gay persons of today.
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Why is it important?
Queer interpretations contribute to the goal of enabling more queer lifestyles today in order to support lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgenders, intersexuals and others who question their sexual orientation or their identification with the sociocultural gender assigned to them. The application of queer studies to biblical studies, Jewish studies, and art history is an innovative undertaking that is unfortunately necessary due to the long and, to a certain extent, still existing homophobic and transphobic traditions associated with biblical texts.
Perspectives
Queer readers may identify with David and like him turn their backs on dominant rulers – like the members of Saulʼs dynasty – if they are not respected because of their queer way of life but persecuted instead – as David was persecuted by King Saul. Such an interpretation implies that G*d is on the side of persons like David, who – from the point of view of other people as well as of Davidʼs wife Michal – behave in a strange fashion, thus act queerly.
Dr. phil. Mag. theol. Karin Hügel
research fellow University of Vienna
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This page is a summary of: Eine queere Lesart von 2 Samuel 6. König Davids Entblößung beim Tanz, December 2025, De Gruyter,
DOI: 10.1163/9789004746039_011.
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