From our lesson of Jebezel, 1 Kings 16:29-33, 18:1-19:2, 21:1-25, 2 Kings 9, here are some important points. The points do not directly answer the questions on pages 119-122 of the text, but may help you in our discussion of the Saturday Bible Study 10/11/2014
1. Her name means: “Where is the Prince (Baal)?”or “The Prince (Baal) Exists” (3, pg. 119).
2. Her character: A religious woman, she spread idolatry throughout Israel. Powerful, cunning, and arrogant, she actively opposed God, even in the face of indisputable proofs of His sovereignty. (3, pg. 119)
3. She promoted Baal Worship: . . . Jezebel’s ardent worship was directed not to the God of Israel but to the pagan god Baal, thought to control the rain and hence the harvest. (2, pg. 213).
4. She was the Sidonian Wife of Ahab: . . . he also married Jezebel daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, and began to serve Baal and worship him. (1 Kings 16:31)
5. She killed Prophets of the Lord: So determined was she to convert Israel to her own religion that she hunted down and killed all the prophets she could lay hands on, replacing them with 850 of her own. (2, pg. 213)
6. She opposed Elijah: Elijah Flees to Horeb: Now Ahab told Jezebel everything Elijah had done and how he killed all the prophets with the sword. So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah to say, ” May the gods deal with me, be it ever so severely, if by this time tmorrow I do not make your life like that of one of them.” (1 Kings 19:1-2 and ft. note)
7. She had Naboth Killed: Ahab said to Naboth, “Let me have your vineyard to use for a vegetable garden . . . (21:2). But Nabath replied, “The Lord forbid that I should give you the inheritance of my fathers.”(21:3). 1 Kings 21: 7-16 gives a detailed account of how Jezebel used her power to have Naboth killed so that she could satisfy her husband’s desire to have Naboth’s vineyard to use for his vegetable garden. (1 Kings 21:7-19.)
8. Her death was prophesied: “And also concerning Jezebel the Lord says: ‘Dogs will devour Jezebel by the wall of Jezreel.’ (1 Kings 21:23)
9. She confronts Jehu: Tough as nails, Jezebel stood proudly at the window of her palace. Never one to back away from a challenge, Jezebel, seized the initiative, shouting at Jehu: ” Have you come in peace, Zimri (the name of a traitor), you murderer of your master?” But Jehu simply ignored her challenging those who stood near her. “Who is on my side? Throw her down!” Quickly Jezebel’s servants shoved her through the window. The palace walls were spattered a bloody red as horses trampled her body and the palace dogs finished the job. (2, pg. 215)
10. She becomes a symbol of wickedness: Nevertheless, I have this against you. You tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess. By her teaching she misleads my servants into sexual immorality and the eating of food sacrificed to idols. I have given her time to repent of her immorality, but she is unwilling. (Revelation 2:20-21)
1. The NIV Study Bible, Zondervan, 1995. (All Scriptures) 2. Women of the Bible, One Year Devotional Study of Women in Scripture, Ann Spangler and Jean E. Syswerda, Zondervan, 2007. 3. Women of the Bible, 52 Bible Studies for Individuals and Groups, Jean E Syswerda, Zondervan, 1999.
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