ABSTRACT
Yhwh is the ideal male of the Hebrew Bible, a womanless warrior whose essential relationships are with other (mortal) men. Yhwh shares women with the men he chooses, he selects them for the men he chooses, and he distributes them to the men he chooses. He is a formidable friend for the men he selects as partners and friends. In the so-called “sister-wife” stories of Genesis 12, 20, and 26, male characters will apportion women's bodies, manipulating them, directing and disposing of them, as they compete for honor and reputation. Once again the biblical reader is made a voyeur. Yhwh and his friends win all the contests, humiliating their opponents and gaining land, status, and control through the use of women's bodies. Yhwh embodies the ethic of biblical hegemonic masculinity: women are the raw material for creating and sustaining male power, male bonds, and male friendships even (or especially) when it comes to the Israelite deity.
