Jehu: His Leadership and Legacy - Part 2

This is the second part on my study of Jehu, king of Israel. This study is divided into two parts. Part one, “Jehu: His Leadership and Legacy,” was an overview of the political and religious crises that prompted the prophetic community of the Northern Kingdom to take action and plan the overthrow of the Omrides. The second part of this study, the present post, deals with Jehu’s anointing and the actions he took in order to eliminate Jezebel and the members of Ahab’s family.

Jehu’s Anointing

The anointing of Jehu took place while he was with the army at Ramoth Gilead in preparation for war with Hazael, king of Syria (2 Kings 9:1-13). At that time Elisha gave orders to one of his servants to anoint Jehu as king. Elisha’s messenger came to where Jehu was meeting with his officers; he took Jehu apart, poured oil on his head and anointed him king over the Lord’s people Israel (2 Kings 9:6). This statement serves to identify Israel as God’s people, in contradistinction to those who worshiped Baal. Then, in the name of Elisha, the messenger gave Jehu the order to utterly destroy the house of Ahab to avenge the innocent blood shed by Ahab and Jezebel. After the prophet left, Jehu declared to his fellow officers what had just happened. The officers hastily spread their garments for Jehu to stand on, blew the trumpets and proclaimed: Jehu is king (9:7).

Jehu began to carry out his mission immediately. He set off, together with a group of his horsemen, to Jezreel, where Joram (also known as Jehoram), a grandson of Ahab, king of Israel, was recovering from a wound that he had received in battle (2 Kings 9:17-24). When Joram was told that Jehu was driving his chariot “furiously,” Joram sent messengers to Jehu, asking, “Is it peace?” When the messengers did not return, Joram, together with his cousin Ahaziah, king of Judah, went to meet Jehu. When Joram asked, “Is it peace?” Jehu responded by denouncing the sins of Jezebel. At this Joram cried: “It is treason, Ahaziah.” When Joram turned to escape, Jehu drew his bow and shot Joram in the back and the arrow pierced his heart and Joram died on his chariot. Jehu commanded his aide Bidkar to take Joram’s body and throw it in the field that belonged to Naboth. This action fulfilled the oracle of Elijah concerning the death of Ahab’s house.

Jehu then proceeded to kill Ahaziah, king of Judah, the son of Athaliah (9:27-29). When Ahaziah saw that Jehu had killed Joram, Ahaziah fled but Jehu’s men caught up with him and wounded him (2 Kings 9:27). Ahaziah once again escaped, but he died in Megiddo of his wounds. Ahaziah’s body was taken to Jerusalem by his aides, where he was buried in the tomb of the kings.

The Death of Ahab’s Family

After having killed Joram and Ahaziah, Jehu went to Jezreel to deal with Jezebel, the queen-mother. Jezebel, when told what had happened, prepared to meet her death with dignity: she painted her eyes, arranged her hair, and put on her royal garments. Her defiance in the face of death is seen in her insulting words to Jehu from the window of the royal residence: “Have you come in peace, you Zimri, murderer of your master?” Jezebel’s words refer to the murderous actions of Zimri who usurped the throne by killing the family of Baasha. Without an answer, Jehu asked some palace officials to throw Jezebel down from the window. When Jezebel’s body hit the ground, her blood splattered on the wall and on the horses. Jehu drove his horses and his chariots over her body, and then, he entered the palace to eat. Later, when his men went to bury Jezebel, they only found her skull, her feet, and her hands. The rest of her body was eaten by dogs. When Jehu was told what had happened, he recollected the words of the Lord to Elijah that dogs would eat the body of Jezebel in Jezreel (2 Kings 9:36-37; see 1 Kings 21:23).

Jehu continued the purge of Ahab’s family by sending letters to guardians of the seventy sons and grandsons of Ahab who lived in Samaria. His asked them to select one of the descendants of Ahab, make him king and be prepared to fight and defend the kingdom. Terrified of the possible outcome of a resistence, the rulers of the cities and the guardians of the royal heirs submitted themselves to Jehu. Jehu then sent a second letter asking for the heads of Ahab’s descendants. The city officials decapitated the descendants of Ahab, put their heads in baskets and sent them to Jehu at Jezreel. The heads were then pilled up in two heaps and placed at the city gate until morning. The next day Jehu began to kill those associated with Ahab: “So Jehu killed everyone in Jezreel who remained of the house of Ahab, as well as all his chief men, his close friends, his priests, leaving him no survivors” (2 Kings 10:11).

After eliminating the family of Ahab, Jehu set out to go to Samaria. On his way to Samaria he met forty-two relatives of Ahaziah, all members of the royal house of Judah who were going to Jezreel to visit Jezebel and the members of her family. Jehu ordered his men to kill them and place their bodies in a cistern near Beth Eked (2 Kings 10:12-14).

Before Jehu reached Samaria, he met Jehonadab, the son of Rechab. Jehonadab was the leader of the Rechabites, a group of people who remained faithful to the old traditions of the religion of Yahweh. Because of the Rechabites’s commitment of loyalty to Yahweh, Jehu invited Jehonadab to join him in his quest to purify the religion of Yahweh. Jehonadab accepted the invitation and together they went to Samaria to confront the worshipers of Baal. When Jehu arrived in Samaria, he killed all the relatives of Ahab who were living in Samaria.

Once in Samaria, Jehu proceeded to eliminate the worshipers of Baal. Pretending to be a follower of Baal, Jehu organized a great celebration for Baal. Jehu invited the priests, prophets, and worshipers of Baal from throughout the land of Israel. When all the worshipers were inside the temple of Baal, Jehu gave orders to his soldiers, eighty of them, to kill all those related to the worship of Baal. The worshipers of Baal were slaughtered, the temple of Baal was torn down, the sacred objects were destroyed, and Jehu desecrated the holy place by making the temple a latrine for common use.

God’s Judgment on Jehu

God honored the work of Jehu by promising him that his dynasty would last four generations: “Because you have done well in accomplishing what is right in my eyes and have done to the house of Ahab all I had in mind to do, your descendants will sit on the throne of Israel to the fourth generation” (2 Kings 10:30). Yet, because of Jehu’s excessive shedding of blood, and the excessive violence in accomplishing his mission, Yahweh began to bring his judgment upon the house of Jehu and upon the kingdom of Israel (10:32). The rest of Jehu’s reign is occupied with his wars against Syria. He also had to deal with the loss of territory on the east side of the Jordan. In addition, Jehu became a vassal of Assyria, and had to present himself before Shalmaneser III, king of Assyria, with his tribute. The indignity of this submission is that Shalmaneser calls Jehu “the son of Omri.” However, the most profound word of judgment upon Jehu’s selfish ambition and violent nature comes from God himself: “I will soon punish the house of Jehu for the massacre at Jezreel” (Hosea 1:4). The indignity of Jehu paying a tribute to the king of Assyria to secure the throne that God had given to him demonstrates that in doing the work of God, one is responsible and accountable for the work done.

Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

Tags: Elisha, Jehu, Jezebel,

Jehu: His Leadership and Legacy

Today, I begin a study of Jehu, king of Israel. This study will be divided into two parts. Part one will study the political and religious crises that prompted the prophetic community of the Northern Kingdom to take action and plan the overthrow of the Omrides. The second part of this study will deal with Jehu’s anointing and the actions he took in order to eliminate Jezebel and the members of Ahab’s family.

Jehu, the son of Nimshi, was the tenth king of Israel and he reigned twenty-eight years (843-815 B.C.). He came to the throne of the Northern Kingdom with prophetic approval in order to overthrow the dynasty of Omri. Jehu appears as the son of Nimshi in 1 Kings 19:16 and 2 Kings 9:20 and as the son of Jehoshaphat in 2 Kings 9:2, 14. It has been suggested that Nimshi was Jehu’s grandfather. In his youth Jehu served as a chariot officer in Ahab’s army. He was one of the two witnesses that heard the prophetic sentence against Ahab and his house (2 Kings 9:25-26; see 1 Kings 21:17-19, 28-29).

The selection of Jehu to be king of Israel was made by God himself. God’s will was revealed to Elijah and fulfilled by Elisha. Jehu became king of Israel at a crucial time in the life of the nation. The events that preceded his accession to the throne provide the proper background for understanding his anointing and the bloodshed that followed his coronation.

Political Confusion in Israel

When the United Kingdom divided after the death of Solomon, both Judah and Israel went their different ways. The Northern Kingdom (Israel) was plagued by internal instability. The Southern Kingdom (Judah) remained somewhat stable because the Davidic dynasty survived throughout its history. However, Israel's throne changed occupants many times, often by violence, in the first fifty years of its history. The accession of Omri to the throne brought stability and prosperity to Israel.

Omri's rise to power was preceded by much political unrest in Israel (see 1 Kings 16:8-22). Elah, the son of Baasha reigned two years in Israel (877-876 B.C.). Elah was an incompetent king who did not have the support of his people. While the army of Israel was fighting against the Philistines (16:16), Elah, "while drinking himself drunk" (16:9), was killed by Zimri in the house of one of his officers. The death of Elah was seen as a judgment upon the house of Baasha, in accordance with the words of the prophet Jehu, the son of Hanani (16:12-13).

Israel’s next king, Zimri (876 B.C.), was king of Israel for seven days. Zimri was the commander of half of the chariots of the army of Elah. Zimri killed the royal family and assumed the throne of Israel (16:11-12). When the news of the death of the royal family reached the Israelite army, the troops on the field proclaimed their commander, Omri, as king of Israel. After the death of Zimri, Israel was divided between two pretenders to the throne, Omri and Tibni, the son of Ginath (16:21-22). Nothing is known about Omri's family. The fact that Omri's family is not mentioned may indicate that he probably was a non-Israelite, who was serving the king as commander of the army.

The Reign of Omri

After he became king of Israel, Omri’s first priority was the consolidation of his kingdom. One of Omri’s major political decisions was to establish an alliance with Ittobaal, king of Tyre. This alliance was sealed by the marriage of Ahab, Omri's son, to Jezebel, the daughter of the king of Tyre (1 Kings 16:31). The treaty with Tyre brought economic prosperity to Israel. The royal treasury enjoyed considerable prosperity because of its trade with Tyre. Many people in Israel benefitted from the active commerce between Israel and Phoenicia. Omri also made an alliance with Judah. This alliance was sealed by the marriage of Athaliah, the daughter of Ahab and Jezebel, to Jehoram, the son of Jehoshaphat (2 Kings 8:18).

Internally, Omri established a new capital for Israel (1 Kings 16:24). Omri bought a site from Shemer to build his capital and named it Samaria (16:24). Omri paid two talents of silver for Samaria. Thus Samaria became royal property and Omri had total control over the city.

Omri introduced a system of taxation to maintain the government. The economic condition in Israel created a class of rich people who controlled the means of production and the wealth of the nation. The situation of the poor became worse. In the days of the prophet Elisha, many poor people had to mortgage their land and sell their children and themselves to pay their debt and the taxes owed to the state and to creditors (see 2 Kings 4:1). This economic hardship upon the poor people of Israel was caused by the system of taxation which became necessary in order to maintain a large military complex and to fund royal projects in Samaria and throughout the nation. The oppressive economic policies of the Omrides brought much dissatisfaction with the policies of Omri and Ahab and created a desire for change.

The Religious Crisis in Israel

The issue that forced the community to conspire against the house of Omri and Ahab was the religious crisis in Israel brought about by the missionary program established by Jezebel. Jezebel was a worshiper of Baal Melqart and Asherah, the god and goddess of fertility. When Jezebel came to live in Samaria, she brought her religious beliefs with her. Working together as husband and wife, Ahab and Jezebel built a temple for Baal in Samaria (1 Kings 18:32). They also built an asherah (18:33). The asherah was a wooden pole which was a symbol of the fertility goddess Asherah, the consort of Baal. In addition, Jezebel brought in 450 prophets of Baal and 400 prophets of Asherah, all paid by the court (1 Kings 18:19). As part of her effort to establish Baal as the official religion of the land, Jezebel persecuted and killed many of the prophets and followers of Yahweh (1 Kings 18:4).

Elijah the prophet was commissioned by God to oppose the religious aspirations of Jezebel. Elijah began his ministry proclaiming a drought. Baal was held by his worshipers to be the god who controlled the rain (1 Kings 17:1). The announcement of the drought intended to show that Yahweh was the true God and the one who controlled the rain.

In order to promote the religion of Israel, Elijah challenged the prophets of Baal to a contest on Mt. Carmel (1 Kings 18). The purpose of this contest was twofold. First, Elijah wanted to demonstrate who the true God was. Second, Elijah called on the people to follow either Yahweh or Baal When Yahweh powerfully demonstrated that he was able to answer the prayer of his prophet, the people recognized that Yahweh was the true God, (18:39), and as a result Elijah killed the prophets of Baal (18: 40).

When Jezebel heard what Elijah had done to the prophets of Baal, Jezebel threatened to kill Elijah, who for safety, fled to hide himself on Mt. Horeb (or Sinai). On Horeb God revealed himself to Elijah and gave him a plan to overthrow the dynasty of Omri (19:15-18): Elijah was to anoint Hazael as king of Syria, Jehu as king over Israel, and Elisha to be his successor. Elijah returned to Israel to carry out God’s wishes; he was only able to carry out the third of God’s commands; it was left to Elisha to carry out the other two.

Next Post: Jehu and His Legacy

Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

Tags: Elijah, Elisha, Jehu, Jezebel, Omri

A Jezebel’s Slide Show

The Biblical Archaeology Review is offering “A Jezebel’s Slide Show.”

Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

Tags: Archaeology, Jezebel

Jezebel’s Wedding Song - Part 2

In my previous post, I identified Psalm 45 as a wedding song. In that post, I identified the groom as Ahab, king of Israel, and the bride as Jezebel, the daughter of the King of Tyre.

In the present post, I use the language of Psalm 45 to describe the splendor of the king and the queen. Psalm 45, as quoted in this post, is a compilation of several translations of the Psalm.

The Splendor of the King

1. His appearance: “You are the most handsome of men.”

2. His gracious words: “Grace flows from your lips.”

3. His courage in battle: “Mighty warrior, strap your sword at your side.”

4. His administration of justice: “Ride on in majesty to victory for the defense of truth and justice.”

5. His victory in wars: “May your right hand win you great victories. May your arrows pierce the hearts of the king’s enemies; may the nations fall under your feet.”

6. The stability of his kingdom: “Your throne, God, is forever and ever.”

7. The righteousness of his kingdom: “The scepter of your kingdom is a scepter of justice. You love righteousness and hate what is evil.”

8. His divine gifts: “God, your God, has anointed you, more than any other king.”

9. The splendor of his reign: “Myrrh, aloes, and cassia perfume all your garments; from ivory palaces harps bring you joy.”

The Glories of the Queen

1. Her attendants: “Kings’ daughters and honorable women.”

2. Her dignity: “A king’s daughter.”

3. Her title: “The Queen.”

4. Her honor: “The bride of the king.”

5. Her place of honor: “She stands on the right hand of the king.”

6. Her Wardrobe: “Dressed with gold of Ophir.”

7. Her appearance: “Glorious in her golden gown.”

8. Her sacrifice: “Forget your people and your father’s house.”

9. Her reward: “Your royal husband delights in your beauty.”

The Wedding Song

(Dedication)

My heart is moved by a noble theme
as I compose my song for the king;
my tongue is the pen of a skillful writer.

(To the King)

You are the most handsome of men; grace flows from your lips.
Therefore God has blessed you forever.
Mighty warrior, strap your sword at your side.
You are so glorious, so majestic.

Ride on in majesty to victory for the defense of truth and justice.
May your right hand win you great victories.
May your arrows pierce the hearts of the king's enemies;
may the nations fall under your feet.

Your throne, God, is forever and ever;
the scepter of your kingdom is a scepter of justice.
You love righteousness and hate what is evil;
therefore God, your God, has anointed you,
more than any other king, with the oil of joy.
Myrrh, aloes, and cassia perfume all your garments;
from ivory palaces harps bring you joy.

Kings’ daughters are among your honored women;
the queen stands at your right hand, adorned with gold from Ophir.

(To the Bride)

Bride of the king, listen to me,
forget your people and your father’s house,
for your royal husband delights in your beauty.
Honor him, for he is your lord.
The people of Tyre will bring you gifts,
rich people will try to win your favor.
In her palace the queen looks glorious in her golden gown.
In her colorful gown she is led to the king,
followed by her bridesmaids,
and they also are brought to the king.
They enter the king's palace with gladness and rejoicing.

(To the King)

You, my king, will have many sons
to succeed your ancestors as kings,
and you will make them rulers over the whole earth.
My song will keep your name alive forever,
and everyone will praise you for all time to come.

References

Delitzsch, Franz. Biblical Commentary on the Psalms. Edinburgh: T & T Clark, 1871.

Ewald, H. Commentary on the Psalms. Edinburgh: Williams and Norgate, 1880.

Schmidt, H. Die Psalmen. Tubingen: Mohr, 1934.

Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

Tags: Ahab, Jezebel, Psalm 45, Wedding Song

Jezebel’s Wedding Song - Part 1

Psalm 45 is an epithalamium, a wedding song.

Long before scholars began classifying the Psalms according to form, scholars had already concluded that Psalm 45 was a wedding song composed to celebrate a royal wedding. Psalm 45 is a love song (v. 1) composed for a special event, which, according to the text, was an event that occurred in the days of the writer. This love song was probably sung during the marriage ceremony of one of the kings of Judah or Israel.

Psalm 45 is divided into four sections:

a. The introduction: In the introduction, the poet describes the purpose of his song (v. 1).

b. An address to the groom: This section praises the king and describes the noble character of the king as a ruler whose kingship has been approved by God (vv. 2-9).

c. An address to the bride: This section exhorts the bride to accept the king, describes her wardrobe, the wedding procession, and introduces the queen’s companions (vv. 10-15).

d. An address to the groom: This section speaks of the king’s heirs and their glorious future (vv. 16-17).

The purpose of this study is to identify the groom and the bride and apply the words of the Psalm to the wedding ceremony. The study begins with an identification of the main characters mentioned in the Psalm.

The Scribe

The composer of this psalm describes himself as a sopher mahir, a skilled scribe. In antiquity, kings employed scribes because of their ability to write. Scribes were employed to prepare legal documents and keep records of business transactions. In Israel, kings also had scribes at their service (2 Samuel 8:17). However, since the writer says that his tongue is like the pen of a scribe, it is possible that the writer is a poet who presented his composition orally.

The author of Psalm 45 was employed to compose a song to celebrate the wedding of the king and his bride. The poet used exalted language to describe the king: “My heart is moved by a noble theme as I compose my song for the king.” The singer addresses the king as God (v. 6), as one who possesses all the qualities of the ideal king, as a conqueror who sits on a throne of righteousness, and a groom dressed in splendor.

The Groom

The identity of the king is not revealed in the text. Several kings of Judah and Israel have been identified as the king to whom this wedding song was dedicated.

1. Some commentators identified the king with the Messiah. Those who advocate the Messianic interpretation of Psalm 45 apply the language of the Psalm to describe Christ’s relationship with his church. The quotation of Psalm 45:6-7 by the writer of the book of Hebrews (Hebrews 1:8-9) reinforces the Messianic interpretation of the text. The Messianic interpretation is weakened by the fact that the language of the Psalm does not describe the future glory of the Messiah.

2. Some commentators believe that the groom was Solomon. If the king was Solomon, then the bride was either Pharaoh’s daughter (1 Kings 11:1), the daughter of Hiram, king of Tyre (1 Kings 5:1), or the Sidonian woman mentioned in 1 Kings 11:1. However, the description of the king as a warrior does not fit Solomon, who was known as a man of peace.

3. Franz Delitzsch believed that the king was Joram, the son of Jehoshaphat, and the bride was Athaliah, the daughter of Ahab and granddaughter of Omri. The reason for this identification is because Delitzsch believed that the exalted language used to describe the king could only refer to a descendant of David and be related to God’s promise to David in 2 Samuel 7. The problem with Delitzsch’s interpretation is the fact that Athaliah was born in Israel and not in Tyre, although the mention of Tyre could be a reference to the Tyrian origin of Jezebel, Athaliah’s mother.

4. H. Ewald believed the king mentioned in the Psalm was Jeroboam II because the language of the Psalm refers to a king of the Northern Kingdom, since the Northern Kingdom had a closer relationship with Tyre. The queen was not Jezebel because homage to the queen is to come to her from Tyre.

3. A few commentators believe that the king mentioned in the Psalm was David. However, this interpretation has little merit because of the many wives of David mentioned in 2 Samuel 3:2-5 and 5:13, none of them was from Tyre.

4. H. Schmidt, believed that the mention of the “people of Tyre” in verse 13 points to Jezebel, Ahab’s wife. In addition, the mention of ivory palaces and stringed instruments in verse 8 points to Ahab and not Solomon (see 1 Kings 22:39; Amos 3:15).

Most commentators reject the view that the king mentioned in Psalm 45 was Ahab, the son of Omri, king of Israel. The reason for this rejection is based primarily on the use of the exalted language used to describe the king. Since the king is addressed as God in v. 6 and since the language of the psalm is assumed to be Messianic, commentators say that only a descendant of David could fit the language used by the scribe to describe the king. Thus, scholars lean toward the Messiah (Christ), David, Solomon, and even Joram.

Ahab fits the description of the king mentioned in the Psalm. There are at least three reasons to believe that Ahab was the king whose wedding is being celebrated in Psalm 45:

a. Ahab married Jezebel, the daughter of Ethbaal , king of the Sidonians (1 Kings 16:31).

b. Ahab built an ivory palace (or a place inlaid with ivory, cf. 1 Kings 22:39; Amos 3:15), while Solomon only had a throne of ivory (1 Kings 10:18).

c. Ahab was a warrior whose soldiers and chariots confronted Shalmaneser III and the Assyrian army in the battle of Qarqar on the Orontes.

Next: My next post will present the splendor of the king and queen and will relate the words of Psalm 45 to the king and his bride. Read Part 2 by clicking here.

References

Delitzsch, Franz. Biblical Commentary on the Psalms. Edinburgh: T & T Clark, 1871.

Ewald, H. Commentary on the Psalms. Edinburgh: Williams and Norgate, 1880.

Schmidt, H. Die Psalmen. Tubingen: Mohr, 1934.


Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

Tags: Ahab, Jezebel, Psalm 45, Wedding Song