Jezebel was the daughter of Ethbaal, king of Sidon. She was Phoenician. If you look closely at her father's name, you should recognize another. The name of the false idol Baal, who was their god of weather and agriculture. This is who Jezebel grew up worshiping along with the idol Ashtoreth, the fertility goddess. She was raised thinking that it was ok to have sex openly in public with many different partners, and during periods of drought they would go as far as cutting themselves and sacrificing their own children.
She had an arranged marriage (which was common in those days), but hers was an effort at making an alliance with Israel. Her husband's name was Ahab, and the Bible tells us he came from a line of evil. 1 Kings 16:25 describes his father, and a few verses later in verse 30 it describes him. I'll go ahead and let you know that dad was more evil than the king before him. and the son was more evil than his father.
Jezebel's goal as queen was to pull Israel from their god, the one true God. She successfully drew her husband away and many more. She hired 850 "prophets" of Baal and Ashtoreth to spread her beliefs. Ahab was king, so many thought worshiping idols is what they were supposed to do because of his rank and influence he had. Elijah the prophet came through the area and there were only 7000 men who had not strayed. Elijah soon tested the "prophets" and every single one of them was killed. This made Jezebel absolutely furious, and she made it clear that she would be happier with Elijah dead. Even with God on his side, Elijah feared this woman and went on the run. (She had to pretty bad if he was that scared after seeing God send down fire from heaven.) Her true evil motives come out when her husband desires a vineyard in Jezreel owned by a man named Naboth. Ahab and Jezebel had a main palace in Samaria and had a second one built in nearby Jezreel, about 25 miles away.
Before we go any further, you need a brief history lesson. Ahab was the king of Samaria. (This all takes place about 300 years after King David's rule over Israel.) At this time, the Land of Canaan had been divided into the northern and southern kingdoms (10 tribes in the north and 2 in the south making 12 altogether...the 12 tribes of Israel). Ahab was king over the northern kingdom. They were under the Mosaic Law - a collection of rules that were given to Moses by God. There were over 600 of them. It goes much further than the 10 commandments! Several of these laws were broken in the story we're about to go through. One of them was the issue of Naboth's land. According to the law, no land that was originally given when it was considered the Land of Canaan could be sold or bought. It could be rented, but nothing was supposed to happen to the name of who owned it. It was to remain in the original family and be passed on as an inheritance. Ok. I think we have enough now to get started.Naboth was offered a good sum of money from Ahab for this plot of land. Naboth declined his offer, which did not make Ahab a happy man. He goes home and refuses to eat and pouts like a child. Jezebel walks in during the middle of his fit. To sum up her words, she told him to go eat, and not to worry because she would take care of it. She writes a letter (in her husband's name of course) and tells the elders that she needs 2 false witnesses to testify that they heard Naboth blaspheme against God and Ahab. The punishment for this according to Mosaic Law was death by stoning. Naboth was killed, and after it happened, the elders notified Jezebel. They knew she had really written the letter and she was the one with all the power in that husband/wife relationship. Naboth had a son who was supposed to get the land, but they had him killed too. This is how Jezebel gained rights over the land.
A little while later, Elijah comes back and finds Ahab in his new garden. He warned Ahab that God was going to punish him for the actions he had made. Ahab repented briefly, but went back to his old ways. Ahab's death soon comes during battle, when he is shot down in his chariot. He knew he would be recognized as king so he dressed as a normal soldier. An opposing soldier shot an arrow at random and it landed right in the bend of Ahab's armor and killed him. The chariot was then returned to a pool where the harlots bathed in Samaria and the dogs licked up his blood.
14 years later, Jehu, captain of the Israeli army came to Jezebel's window and she taunted him the presence of her two eunuchs. Jehu asked who they belonged with and they sided with him. Jehu ordered them to push Jezebel out the window - which they did quickly and effectively. The dogs disposed of her just as Elijah had prophesied. All that remained was her skull, hands, and feet.
The moral of the story - (which is completely true and accurate)...
Elijah warned Ahab and Jezebel several times about the consequences for the decisions they had made. They refused to listen and Elijah's prophesies were fulfilled. We are given multiple warnings in the Bible about the consequences for the choices we make in life. Some are good, some are bad, but the wages of sin is death - our ultimate consequence for turning away from God. Have you ignored any of God's warnings in your life? Are there any of those that you are ready to listen to?
Think of Jezebel's characteristics. She was strong-willed, stubborn, independent, quick to criticize, sharp-tongued, impatient, unwilling to admit her faults, and the list goes on and on. Do you see any of those qualities in your life? If you really think about it, we could ALL be considered a "Jezebel". These traits are not necessarily bad if you know how to use them. Think of what Jezebel could have accomplished as queen if her energy had been focused in the opposite direction. Instead of turning most of Israel away from God, she could have turned many other nations to God. How are you using your characteristics? Can you focus your energy on something more productive for God?
I hope you gained something from this lesson. I thoroughly enjoyed studying this one. This 3 part post could have easily been 10 parts. You're lucky I gave you the condensed version :)
God bless you all and I hope you have a wonderful week!
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