The heroes of Judges and 1 and 2 Samuel are comparable to traditional definitions of epic heroes in the largeness and charisma of their characters and deeds, the divine favor they enjoy, at least for a time, in their roles in national founding myths, and, above all, in their battle prowess. The Israelite version of the hero, however, is culturally framed by another international type, studied so brilliantly in sociopolitical contexts by Eric Hobsbawm: the ‘‘social bandit.’’ Hobsbawm locates social banditry ‘‘in all types of human society which lie between the evolutionary phase of tribal and kinship organization, and modern capitalist society’’ (1969: 14). While the rise of capitalism is not an issue in biblical material, nevertheless the tales of the judges and early kings do mark a significant transition between a socio-structural group identity that is based upon kinship and one that is based upon allegiance to a state, such as the monarchies of the ancient Near East. Admired by their communities, social bandits are ‘‘champions, fighters for justice, perhaps even leaders of liberation’’ (Hobsbawm 1969: 13). Bandits arise during periods of transition and flux and are young men of rural origins. They are often marginal figures in their own societies, sometimes victims of injustice, and are rebels in personality. They kill in just vengeance or self-defense and in Israelite versions are tricksters who often succeed through deception. A run-down of the judges and early kings, Saul and David, reveals such a list of criteria beautifully, although Moses as well might be seen to qualify as a social bandit in the narratives of Exodus. Gideon, Saul, and David all have agrarian or pastoral roots. Jephthah is an illegitimate son of a prostitute, denied rights by his brothers, Deborah a female leader, an unusual role in this literature about men. Ehud is a left-handed man in a symbolic world in which the ‘‘normal’’ preferred side is the right, and David, a youngest son, is an enemy of the Saulide establishment. All of these heroes qualify in ancient Israel for the designation ‘‘marginal.’’ Samson is an explosive hero, a type ofbandit Hobsbawm calls ‘‘the avenger’’ because his warring boils over into uncontrolled manifestations of violence.
He takes shelter in caves, kills with his bare hands, and is Israel’s weapon against the powerful and oppressive Philistines. All the judges, Saul, and David confront Israel’s political and cultural enemies in war and save their people. Tales of the heroes are war tales par excellence, and if there is an Israelite epic material to be found in Judges and 2 Samuel, its central component, as in so many other traditions deemed by scholars to be ‘‘epic,’’ is battle.
World History
