qal wahomer / qal vahomer Hebrew phrase referring to a Jewish principle of interpretation utilized by the rabbis. It means “light to heavy” and indicates that what applies in a less important case certainly applies to a more important one. An example from the Mishnah reads: “Jose ben Johanan of Jerusalem used to say, ‘. . . Talk not much with womankind.’ They said this of a man’s own wife; how much more of his fellow’s wife!” (m. ’Abot 1.5). There are examples of this literary device in Jesus’s teachings. Matthew 6:30 reads, “If that’s how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, won’t he do much more for you—you of little faith?”
Qere See Kethib and Qere.
Qingu (Kingu) A demon god that plays a significant role in the Enuma Elish. After Ea kills Tiamat’s consort, Apsu, Tiamat takes Qingu as a new consort and battles the hero of the gods, namely Marduk. After defeating Tiamat, Marduk executes Qingu and then mixes his blood with clay in order to create humanity. See also Enuma Elish; Marduk; Tiamat.
Qoheleth Hebrew name given the main speaker of the book of Ecclesiastes (see 1:12–12:7). His words spoken in the first person (“I, Qoheleth”) are framed by those of a second wise man who is speaking about Qoheleth (“he, Qoheleth”; 1:1–11 and 12:8–14) to his son (12:12). Qoheleth is often translated either “the Preacher” or “the Teacher” but actually means “the one who assembles a group” and may be a way of associating, but not necessarily identifying, this figure with King Solomon, who is said to have “assembled” people at the dedication of the temple (1 Kings 8:1–5).
Q source See Synoptic problem.
queer interpretation A form of ideological criticism, growing out of the approach of deconstruction and also feminist interpretation, that approaches the text to disrupt and critique from the perspective of gay interpreters and their sympathizers. Queer interpreters pay particular attention to passages that bear on sexuality. They offer “queer readings” that often dispute traditional interpretations of passages. See also deconstruction; feminist interpretation.
quest for the historical Jesus Designation given by Albert Schweitzer to the nineteenth-century “life of Jesus” movement he surveyed in his book The Quest of the Historical Jesus (1906). Covering the period from Hermann Reimarus (1694–1768) to William Wrede (1859–1906), Schweitzer concluded that the great majority of these biographers created a Jesus in their own image, turning him into a philanthropic nineteenth-century liberal instead of the wild-eyed apocalyptic prophet that he actually was. See also new (second) quest for the historical Jesus; Schweitzer, Albert; third quest for the historical Jesus.
Qumran See Dead Sea Scrolls.