Have you ever read about the popular story of Jezebel in the Bible? She is a very popular and influential character and there have been many sermons about her. The story of her life is such an interesting one because of her questionable lifestyle and the moral lessons drawn from her narrative.
In this post, we try to answer some questions such as who is Jezebel? What did she do? How did she die? And other relevant questions. These revelations promise to be insightful and didactic. Therefore, you should not take this article for granted.
So, let’s dive straight into it.
Who was Jezebel in the Bible?
According to her story in 1 Kings chapter 16, Jezebel was a very powerful and influential queen in Israel. She was the wife of King Ahab and was notorious for contesting the supremacy of God and the prophets and promoting the worship of Baal.
But that’s just an introduction into the story of her life and time in the land of Israel. As we progress in this Jezebel Bible study, we will find out more about her unlikeable character and her atrocities that had a great impact on Israel.
What Did Jezebel Do in the Bible?
Jezebel was notorious for sponsoring many evil deeds in Israel. Below, we will list a few and try to explain them in detail.
1. Introduction of False gods — Baal and Asherah
Understand that Jezebel was not originally from Israel. She was a Phoenician and belonged to Sidon, where she was a princess and daughter to King Ethbaal. However, her marriage to Ahab, king of Israel, resulted in the introduction of false gods in Israel.
When Jezebel relocated to the land of Israel after her marriage with Ahab, she prevailed upon her husband to enforce the worship of two strange gods named Baal and Asherah among the Israelites. She went further to persuade him to build temples for the false gods in Samaria.
As expected, the introduction of Baal and Asherah by queen Jezebel did not go down well with the people. There was a great division among the people over the worship of the deities and the Almighty God. Interestingly too, this occasion gave rise to false prophets among the Israelites.
2. Sponsoring 450 False Prophets
Another thing that Jezebel did in the Bible after introducing false religion was raise and sponsor false prophets of baal up to 450.
Recall that all of these were happening during the dispensation of Elijah the prophet of the living God. Note also that there were other 100 true prophets that were being taken care of by Obadiah, another God-fearing man in Israel. Soon, Jezebel questioned the supremacy of God by putting up a contest between Elijah and the 450 prophets of Baal at Mount Carmel.
Do you wish to know what happened after this confrontation? The audacity of Jezebel and the 450 prophets of Baal is quite admirable, but who dares God and goes scot-free? In the end, the name of the living God was glorified, and they executed the 450 prophets of Baal.
3. The Murder of Naboth
The murder of Naboth as organized by Jezebel is another act of wickedness that shows how notorious the queen was.
Naboth had inherited a vineyard from his forefathers, which was sited close to King Ahab’s palace. As we find out in the story, the king summoned Naboth and asked that he should give up his vineyard for a price or a green vegetation, which he refused.
This made the countenance of Ahab very sad that Jezebel noticed it. She then schemed a plan and ordered that Naboth be murdered on the King’s order. Consequently, this angered God and grievous consequences followed suit.
How Did Jezebel Die in the Bible?
As noted earlier, the story of Jezebel confirms that there is no one that dares God and goes scot-free. For the records, she died a very shameful death as a result of her pride, greed and the unquestionable power she demonstrated.
According to the Bible, Jezebel was thrown out of the window and left to die as her blood and body were feasted on by dogs. She was not given a befitting burial, either. Her sin was great, and it angered God. Even her evil deeds brought about God’s judgement upon the entire house of Ahab.
You just read about the story of Jezebel in the Bible. We talked about her personality, what she did and her shameful death in the end. In all, this story highlights the immediate consequences of greed, pride and uncautioned ego.
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