Ahab and Jezebel

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Ahab and Jezebel
Jezebel and Ahab by Frederick Leighton, 1863
PeriodThe Divided Kingdom era (circa 9th century BC)
FamilyAhab’s father: Omri

Jezebel’s father: Ethbaal
Sons: Ahaziah, Joram

Daughter: Athaliah
Occupation(Features)The 7th king of the northern kingdom of Israel and his queen
Activity areaSamaria
Reign22 years
Major achievementsPromotion of Baal worship and training of Baal prophets
Killing of God’s prophets
Seizure of Naboth’s vineyard

Ahab and Jezebel were the seventh king and queen of northern kingdom of Israel, infamous for leading the nation into idolatry. Ahab married Jezebel, the daughter of King Ethbaal of Sidon, and zealously promoted Baal worship. Jezebel persecuted and killed the prophets of God. Moreover, the couple conspired to seize Naboth’s vineyard by orchestrating his death through deceitful schemes. The Bible records that Ahab was more evil than all the kings before him.[1] They had two sons, Ahaziah and Joram, and a daughter, Athaliah. As a result of their numerous wicked deeds, both met a gruesome death, and all of Ahab’s household was destroyed, leading to the downfall of his house.

Historical Background

Unlike the Israelites, who believed only in God Jehovah, many nations in Canaan and its vicinity worshiped multiple gods. The most representative idols were Baal and Asherah. Baal was the god who governed the harvest and the growth of grains, fruits, and livestock, while Asherah was known as the mother goddess of over seventy gods, including Baal, and the wife of El, the supreme god in Canaan.

God was concerned that the Israelites, after entering the land of Canaan, might participate in the polytheistic beliefs of the inhabitants, and He commanded them to be cautious about the various forms of idol worship practiced in that land.[2][3][4] Despite God’s admonitions, idolatry began in earnest with Jeroboam, the first king of the northern kingdom of Israel, following the division of the kingdom. The era of King Ahab marked the peak of the evil deeds associated with idolatry.

Main Events

Baal and Asherah Worship

Jezebel’s father, Ethbaal, was the king of Sidon (Phoenicia) and also a priest of the Baal religion. As the princess of Sidon, Jezebel became the queen of the northern Israel and instilled Baal worship in Israel. While persecuting and killing the prophets of God,[5] she actively supported and nurtured the priests of Baal and Asherah.[6] Ahab led the way in Baal worship by building a temple and an altar for Baal in the capital city of Samaria, and he also made an Asherah pole to worship. As a result, the entire nation added to the sin of worshiping the golden calf made by Jeroboam the sin of worshiping foreign idols.[7]

Elijah’s Rebuke and the Confrontation at Mount Carmel

The Sacrifice of Elijah Before the Priests of Baal by Domenico Fetti.

As Israel fell into idolatry under the influence of Ahab and Jezebel, the prophet Elijah confronted Ahab, rebuking him and prophesying, “There will be neither dew nor rain in the next few years except at my word.”[8] Following this prophecy, northern Israel suffered from famine and drought.[9]

For over three years, the entire nation endured severe famine until God sent Elijah to Ahab to end the drought. Elijah instructed Ahab to summon 450 prophets of Baal and 400 prophets of Asherah to Mount Carmel.[6] He proposed that they each prepare a sacrifice and call upon their respective gods—the name of the LORD and the name of Baal—to determine which god would answer by sending fire, thereby revealing the true God.

The prophets of Baal went first; following their rituals, they called out loudly to Baal and even slashed themselves with swords and spears until their blood flowed. However, there was no response at all. In contrast, Elijah poured water on the burnt sacrifice and on the wood and even filled the trench around the altar with water, making it impossible for fire to ignite. However, when he prayed in the name of the LORD, fire descended from heaven, consuming the burnt offering and even evaporating the water in the trench.[10] Witnessing this, all the people acknowledged the LORD as the true God,[11] and Elijah ordered the false prophets to be seized and executed.[12] Afterward, he prayed again, and finally, after being dry for three and a half years, rain fell upon Israel.[13][14]

Upon hearing this news, Jezebel ordered that Elijah be killed, instead of repenting.[15] In response, Elijah fled to Mount Horeb, traveling for 40 days. Jezebel was unable to kill him because God was protecting him.

For details, refer to: Elijah

Naboth’s Vineyard Incident

Elijah Meets Ahab in Naboth’s Vineyard by Caspar Luiken, 1712

In Jezreel, there lived a man named Naboth. He owned a vineyard near the palace of King Ahab, who desired to turn it into a vegetable garden. When Ahab proposed to buy the vineyard, Naboth refused, citing God’s commandment that forbids the sale of ancestral inheritance. This refusal greatly distressed Ahab, leading him to lie down on his bed and refuse to eat.[16] Upon learning of this situation, Jezebel devised a plot to forcibly take Naboth’s vineyard.[17]

She first bribed the elders of the city where Naboth lived to seat him in a prominent place. Then, she had two scoundrels give false testimony, claiming that he had cursed God and the king. This constituted an abuse of Israel’s law, which required the testimony of two or three witnesses to condemn someone.[18] Falsely accused of cursing God and the king, Naboth was taken outside the city and stoned to death by the people.[19]

When Ahab heard the news that Naboth was dead, he went down to take possession of his vineyard.[20] There, the prophet Elijah was waiting for Ahab to deliver God’s message to him. Elijah prophesied the horrific deaths of Ahab and his wife, Jezebel. He declared that dogs would lick Ahab’s blood and consume Jezebel.[21]

The Death of Ahab

The Death of Ahab by Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld

Ahab and Jezebel arranged the marriage of their daughter Athaliah to Jehoram, the son of King Jehoshaphat of Judah. Ahab welcomed Jehoshaphat warmly when he visited the northern kingdom of Israel, hosting a grand feast with many sheep and oxen. During this visit, Ahab urged Jehoshaphat to join him in reclaiming Ramoth Gilead, a territory that had been taken by the Arameans.[22] In response to his proposal, Jehoshaphat sought the will of God,[23] prompting Ahab to summon the prophets. The 400 false prophets prophesied that Ahab would be victorious.[24] However, the prophet Micaiah, who conveyed God’s true message, warned that Ahab would die in this battle.[25] Displeased by his warning, Ahab imprisoned him and proceeded with the campaign.[26]

Ahab disguised himself by removing his royal robes and wearing the attire of a common soldier to avoid being recognized by the enemy. Instead, he had Jehoshaphat wear his royal garments into battle.[27] As the battle commenced, the king of Aram ordered his men to attack only the king of Israel.[28] As a result, the enemy’s attacks were focused on Jehoshaphat, who was wearing the royal robes. However, Jehoshaphat was protected by God, and the Aramean commanders quickly realized that he was not Ahab and abandoned their pursuit.[29]

Meanwhile, Ahab, who had disguised himself as a common soldier to avoid danger, was struck by an arrow shot by someone at random. The intensity of the battle was fierce, and Ahab’s chariot was unable to move. Ultimately, Ahab bled profusely and succumbed to his injuries.[30] His servants washed the chariot, which was drenched in his blood, at a pool in Samaria, and at that moment, dogs came and licked up his blood. This was the fulfillment of God’s prophecy delivered through Elijah.[31]

The Demise of Jezebel and the House of Ahab

Jezebel dies after being thrown out of a window in Jezreel.

After Ahab’s death, his eldest son, Ahaziah, ascended to the throne of northern Israel. However, he reigned for only two years before succumbing to a terminal illness, leaving no offspring. His younger brother, Joram, succeeded him as king. During this time, Jehu, who had been the commander of Ahab’s army and was serving under Joram, was anointed by Elisha to carry out a mission: the complete destruction of the house of Ahab.[32] Jehu became king of northern Israel and executed Joram, Judah’s king Ahaziah (Athaliah’s son), Jezebel, Ahab’s seventy sons, and all who belonged to Ahab’s household. Jezebel met a gruesome end in Jezreel, where she was thrown from a window and died. Dogs devoured her body to such an extent that no trace of her corpse remained.[33]

After the death of her son Ahaziah, who was killed in Jehu’s rebellion, Athaliah, the daughter of Ahab and Jezebel, sought to rule the southern kingdom of Judah. In her quest for power, she eliminated all potential rivals by murdering the royal family members of Judah.[34] At this time, Ahaziah’s son Joash was the sole survivor, saved through the intervention of his aunt Jehosheba.[35] For six years, Athaliah ruled over Judah. However, in the seventh year of her reign, the priest Jehoiada orchestrated a coup, rallying the people to slay her by the sword.[36] With her death, the house of Ahab, notorious for its idolatry and wickedness, was completely eradicated.

Prophetic Meaning of Ahab and Jezebel

Ahab was the king of a nation that served the LORD God, while Jezebel was a princess from a land that worshiped Baal, a foreign deity. After Ahab married Jezebel, Israel fell into the worship of Baal. This event serves as a prophetic foreshadowing of the future, where the church, which believes in God, would adopt the beliefs of Baal worship, that is, the sun-god[37] worship. The Bible describes this situation as the church having “tolerated Jezebel.”


Nevertheless, I have this against you: You tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophet. By her teaching she misleads my servants into sexual immorality and the eating of food sacrificed to idols.

Revelation 2:20



After the apostles, who received the teachings of Jesus directly, passed away, Emperor Constantine recognized Christianity through the Edict of Milan in AD 313, which led the church to gradually adopt practices of sun worship. In AD 321, a decree was issued to observe Sunday as a day of rest, causing all churches to abandon the Sabbath in favor of Sunday observance.[38] Following the Council of Nicaea in AD 325, the New Covenant Passover was abolished in all churches.[39] By AD 354, the festival of the sun god Mithra was celebrated as the birthday of Jesus.[40] In AD 431, the introduction of the cross in church sanctuaries marked the infiltration of pagan practices into the church.[41] Those who sought to uphold the truth were branded as heretics, and lawlessness spread even further, leading to the eventual disappearance of the new covenant truths established by Jesus.

In the 16th century, reformers like Martin Luther and John Calvin emerged to criticize the corruption of the Roman Catholic Church and sought to initiate reform. As a result, Protestant denominations such as Lutheranism, Presbyterianism, Anglicanism, Methodism, and Baptism emerged. However, they did not recover the truth of salvation taught by Jesus Christ 2,000 years ago. To this day, they continue to observe practices adopted from pagan religions by the Catholic Church, such as Sunday worship and the veneration of the cross.[42] As prophesied in the Bible, the church tolerated Jezebel.

Lesson

The Bible states that Ahab was more wicked than all the kings who preceded him, thereby provoking the wrath of God.[1][7] The reason for such condemnation was that he led all of Israel into idolatry. After King Ahab, many kings of the northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah—such as Jehoram, Ahaziah, and Manasseh—followed his example by engaging in idol worship. The Bible describes these kings as “walking in the ways of Ahab.”[43][44][45] Ahab, Jezebel, and all who followed the path of idolatry ended their lives in misfortune.[46] This serves as a reminder that abandoning God to engage in idolatry leads not to blessings, but to a path of curses.


“Cursed is anyone who makes an idol—a thing detestable to the Lord, the work of skilled hands—and sets it up in secret.” Then all the people shall say, “Amen!”

Deuteronomy 27:15

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "1 Kings 16:30".
  2. ↑ "Exodus 23:20–25".
  3. ↑ "Leviticus 18:3–4".
  4. ↑ "Numbers 33:51–52".
  5. ↑ "1 Kings 18:4".
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "1 Kings 18:19–20".
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 "1 Kings 16:31–33".
  8. ↑ "1 Kings 17:1".
  9. ↑ "1 Kings 17:7".
  10. ↑ "1 Kings 18:23–38".
  11. ↑ "1 Kings 18:39".
  12. ↑ "1 Kings 18:40".
  13. ↑ "1 Kings 18:41–45".
  14. ↑ "Luke 4:25".
  15. ↑ "1 Kings 19:2".
  16. ↑ "1 Kings 21:4".
  17. ↑ "1 Kings 21:7".
  18. ↑ "Deuteronomy 19:15".
  19. ↑ "1 Kings 21:11–14".
  20. ↑ "1 Kings 21:16".
  21. ↑ "1 Kings 21:17–25".
  22. ↑ "2 Chronicles 18:2".
  23. ↑ "2 Chronicles 18:3–4".
  24. ↑ "2 Chronicles 18:5".
  25. ↑ "2 Chronicles 18:18-22".
  26. ↑ "1 Kings 22:29".
  27. ↑ "1 Kings 22:30".
  28. ↑ "1 Kings 22:31".
  29. ↑ "1 Kings 22:32–33".
  30. ↑ "1 Kings 22:34–37".
  31. ↑ "1 Kings 22:38".
  32. ↑ "2 Kings 9:6–8".
  33. ↑ "2 Kings 9:30–37".
  34. ↑ "2 Kings 11:1".
  35. ↑ "2 Kings 11:2".
  36. ↑ "2 Kings 11:12–20".
  37. ↑ Baal, New World Encyclopedia
  38. ↑ A History of the Early Church to A.D. 500, J. W. C. Wand, Routledge, 2006, p. 132
  39. ↑ The Faith of Our Fathers, James Gibbons, Floating Press, 2014
  40. ↑ The History of Christianity (A Lion Handbook), Tim Dowley, Lion Publishing, 1994
  41. ↑ "cross," Joseph H. Willsey, Harper's Book of Facts, Harper & Brothers Publishers, 1895, p. 212
  42. ↑ [Special Feature ● Luther's 500 Years of Religious Reformation—Church of God and Truth in the Bible] What Do They Believe and What Do They Practice?, Monthly JoongAng, November 22, 2017
  43. ↑ "2 Chronicles 21:5–6".
  44. ↑ "2 Chronicles 22:2–4".
  45. ↑ "2 Kings 21:1–3".
  46. ↑ "2 Chronicles 21:12–15".
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