JEZEBEL, the Bible's Painted Woman

Names in the Bible say something about the person:

Jezebel means ‘Where is the prince?’- the ‘prince’ is the god Baal.
When Baal was in the underworld or Land of the Dead, vegetation on the earth’s surface died (winter). Baal's followers chanted ‘Where is the prince?’ as a prayer to encourage the onset of spring and the return of vegetation.
Jezebel was unflinchingly loyal to Baal, and went to her death wearing the ritual make-up and headdress of a priestess of Baal.
Ahab means ‘brother of the father’.
Elijah means ‘My god is Jah’.
Jehu means ‘It is he, Jah’.
Elisha means ‘God has helped’.

What the story is about

The story of Jezebel is set in the turbulent period of the divided kingdoms, as various dynasties struggled for political power.
Jezebel became queen of the northern kingdom of Israel, ruling with her husband, Ahab. It was a rich kingdom, but plagued by religious quarrels.

1. conflict between worshippers of Yahweh and the traditional gods Baal and Asherah

2. the nature of kingship. Jezebel’s beliefs about the power of a monarch differed from the Israelite ideal. She was a princess of Phoenicia, and her father was an absolute monarch. Jezebel believed that might is right, that monarchs can govern as they wish.

1 The conflict between worshippers of Yahweh and Baal (1 Kings 16:29-34, 18:17-40, 19:1-3).
The conflict between the followers of Yahweh and Baal descended into open warfare. Jezebel supported Baal/Anat. Her husband Ahab tried to steer a middle course, encouraging tolerance between the two belief systems. Elijah supported Yahweh.

2 The episode of Naboth’s vineyard (1 Kings 21:1-16).
Ahab, Jezebel’s husband, wanted to own a vineyard near his villa at Jezreel. The owner, Naboth, would not sell. Jezebel arranged the death of Naboth, and ownership of the vineyard passed to Ahab.

3 The death of Jezebel and her family (1 Kings 22:29-40, 2 Kings 9:21-28, 9:30-37).
Jezebel and all the members of her family were killed during a coup d’etat led by Jehu. She died with courage, dressed royally as a queen and a priestess of Baal.

'As far as ordinary people were concerned, the ancient gods were all around, a daily experience. They were not remote or invisible. They were easy to identify with, since they reflected humanity. The gods and goddesses did all the things that people do. They had sex, got angry, fell in love, quarreled with their families, and generally expressed what was best and worst in human nature.' Gods and Goddesses

Jezebel was a Phoenician princess, a daughter of the king and queen of the rich coastal city-state of Sidon. She was brought up in a cultured and luxurious environment. Her people, the Phoenicians, were cosmopolitan and sophisticated, and controlled large areas of the eastern Mediterranean.
See the magnificent jewelry from Nimrud at Bible Archaeology: Jewelry. Jezebel's small kingdom could not have afforded jewelry as opulent as this, but the Nimrud jewels are from roughly the same period, so Jezebel would have aspired to something similar.

Here's something to do: Tell the story from the point of view of each character, one at a time. You'll see how the scenario becomes richer and much more complex.

When Jezebel was old enough, a marriage was arranged for her with Ahab, King of Israel.
‘He (Ahab) took as his wife Jezebel daughter of King Ethbaal of the Sidonians, and went and served Baal, and worshipped him.’
Jezebel’s parents were high priests in the worship of Baal, in Sidon. Jezebel herself was probably a priestess of Baal. She was trained to lead and to command. Brought up as a Phoenician, she saw it as her duty to guard the worship of Baal and Asherah. She believed these gods regulated the fertility of the country she now lived in and ruled.
Bible Archaeology: Ancient Religions describes religion in the ancient world.
(Read 1 Kings 16:29-34.)

Many of the people in the northern province of Israel shared her beliefs. They worshipped a number of gods including Yahweh, Baal and Asherah. But others believed they could give your loyalty to only one god, and that this god was Yahweh. The worshippers of Yahweh were the ones who wrote the story and of course they tell the story to emphasize the power of their own god Yahweh.

At some time during Ahab's reign there was a terrible drought throughout Israel and Judah. It is hard for a modern person to appreciate what drought meant to these people, because none of us are likely to die as a result of famine.

To ancient people, it was a different matter. As food grew scarce, the old and the very young began to die, then the adults, until only the young, strong adults were left.

This was the situation in Jezebel's kingdom at that time. As the drought worsened, so did the desperation of the people. Every entreaty was made to the gods - to any god who might listen. A contest developed between the people who worshipped Baal, and those who worshipped Yahweh. It was a contest that would end with the death of many people. ‘Then Elijah said to the people “I, even I only, am left a prophet of the Lord; but Baal’s prophets number four hundred and fifty. Let two bulls be given to us. Let them choose one bull for themselves, cut it in pieces, and lay it on the wood, but put no fire to it. I will prepare the other bull and lay it on the wood, but put no fire to it. Then you call on the name of your god and I will call on the name of the Lord. The god who answers by fire is indeed God.” All the people answered “Well spoken!”’
(Read 1 Kings 18:17-40)

BIBLE WOMEN: JEZEBEL: IVORY PLAQUE, CHERUB AND WOMAN AT WINDOW

Decorative ivory plaques like these
were excavated at the site of the
Palace at Samaria, built during the reign of Jezebel and Ahab

During their 20-year reign, Jezebel and Ahab built a new capital city at Samaria. Among other things, it contained an opulent palace and a temple to Baal and Asherah.

See Bible Archaeology: Palaces for images of the excavations there, and information about the extraordinary building program.

The palace was a two-storey building surrounding a grand, ceremonial courtyard. It was called the Ivory House because of the number of carved ivory decorations on its walls and furniture. Archaeologists have unearthed many of the ivory plaques that decorated the walls and furniture of this palace.

A second royal house was built near Jezreel - there are also images of the archaeological excavations there at Bible Archaeology: Cities.

It was a villa, overlooking rolling hills and lush vineyards - Jezreel stood in a commanding position looking over the lush Valley of Jezreel.
Near the villa at Jezreel was the vineyard of Naboth. Ahab needed to amalgamate this land into the land owned by the royal villa, to grow crops to feed the administrative and military staff living there. He made a fair offer to Naboth, but Naboth did not wish to sell.

'Naboth would not sell, no matter what. This was a major problem. Kings hold power only as long as they are obeyed. If Naboth did not hand over the vineyard, Ahab might be judged unfit to rule. Ahab feared Naboth's defiance was only the tip of the iceberg. There might be more resistance in the future from other sources.' Defiance at the Vineyard

His wife Jezebel said to him “Do you now govern Israel? Get up, eat some food and be cheerful. I will give you the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite”.’

Ahab was an Israelite, and he understood Naboth’s reasoning. He also understood that the Israelite kings did not have unlimited power, as kings in surrounding countries had. Jezebel, on the other hand, came from Sidon, where her royal parents had unlimited power. She was scornful of the way Ahab let his own subjects get the better of him.
(Read 1 Kings 21:1-16.)

The key to Jezebel’s character is that she behaved like a Phoenician princess, not like an Israelite woman. She saw the monarch as having absolute power, and was contemptuous of the limitations that the old Hebrew Law put on her. Like other Middle Eastern monarchs of the time, she believed that the ruler of a kingdom made the law.

Jezebel took matters into her own hands. She had Naboth and his sons accused of treason, on false evidence, and they were duly convicted and executed. The vineyard, being the property of convicted traitors, reverted to state ownership. Ahab had his vineyard.

This story shows royal power being misused. It is similar to the story of David, Uriah and Bathsheba.
It asks the questions: how should power be used, and what limits should there be so that it cannot be abused?

The murder of Jezebel and her family

(1 Kings 22:29-40, 2 Kings 9:21-28, 9:30-37)

Ahab, husband of Jezebel, spent a good part of his reign fighting on the battlefield - for information about Ahab and his father the legendary Omri, see Bible Top Ten Warriors.

Ahab made a military alliance with Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah. Together they warred against the king of Aram, to gain territory that they claimed as their own. In the battle between the two armies, Ahab disguised himself so that the opposing army would not concentrate their attack on him. This story is at Warfare: Armour

Depending on your point of view, Ahab acted in either a cunning or a cowardly way. In any event, he was mortally wounded in the battle.
‘But a certain man drew his bow and unknowingly struck the king of Israel between the scale armor and the breastplate; so he said to the driver of his chariot “Turn around, and carry me out of the battle, for I am wounded”.’
Read 1 Kings 22:29-40.

Hunting dogs were not the good-natured domesticated dogs we know today. These were dogs who could bring down a lion. Hunting breeds were selected to work independent of human handlers, so they were difficult to keep under control. On the other hands, dogs who were bred to shepherd flocks of animals were selected for their ability to work under direction, so it was easier to teach them restraint.
Dogs in the ancient world

In the aftermath of the battle, the prophecy of Elijah in 1 Kings 21:19 came true. Ahab had fallen and died in his chariot. His blood seeped over the boards of the chariot floor, and when it was taken back to Samaria, some dogs licked at the blood before the chariot could be washed.

Ahab was succeeded by his son Ahaziah, whose reign lasted only two years. He was injured in a fall that may or may not have been a bizarre accident, and died soon after. His brother Joram then became king. Both these young men were sons of Jezebel.

At this stage, Jehu enters the story. He was an ambitious army officer favored by the prophet Elisha, who anointed Jehu as king even while the reigning king Joram of Israel still lived. (9:1-3, 14). Jehu planned a coup d’etat against the dynasty of Ahab.

He saw his chance when King Joram was wounded in a battle against the Arameans. Joram went to the walled villa at Jezreel to recover from his wounds, and there he was visited by King Ahaziah of Judah. Jehu set a trap for both the young kings, luring them out of the safety of the walls of Jezreel, and then he murdered them both.

The slaughter did not stop there. The success of Jehu’s coup depended on the death of every member of the royal family. Jehu continued on to Jezreel, and his soldiers broke through the villa's defences.

'Painting one's face was more than a fashion statement for a queen/priestess like Jezebel. Ritual make-up denoted separation from the ordinary, and elevation to a higher state of being. For a queen, it was a badge of office, showing her rank, and her separation from the common people.'
Women's Make-up in Ancient Times

When Jezebel heard what has happened to her son, she knew immediately what lay in store for her. She did not flinch for a moment. She dressed herself in the full regalia of a queen, with the ornate ritual make-up and head-dress of a priestess of Baal and Asherah.

She went out onto the balcony of the courtyard to face Jehu as he approached. She called him ‘Zimri’, the name of a murderer and usurper of a previous king. She accused him of murdering his anointed king.

‘When Jehu came to Jezreel, Jezebel heard of it. She painted her eyes, and adorned her head, and looked out of the window.

As Jehu entered the gate, she said “Is it peace, Zimri, murderer of your master?” He looked up to the window and said “Who is on my side? Who?” Two or three eunuchs looked out at him. He said “Throw her down.” So they threw her down.

Some of her blood spattered on the wall and on the horses, which trampled on her. Then Jehu went in and ate and drank.

He said “See to that cursed woman and bury her, for she is a king’s daughter.” But when they came to bury her, they found no more of her than the skull and the feet and palms of her hands.’
Read 2 Kings 9:21-37.

Jezebel died as a queen should die: magnificent and defiant, hurling insults at her murderers to the last moment of her life.
Jehu let marauding dogs eat her flesh, so that there was nothing left to bury. (Read about these savage dogs at Dogs in the Bible.)

A stray dog eating a corpse in Iraq.
In the time of Jezebel, as now, this was seen as a shocking desecration of the dead.

Then he murdered every one of the male children of her family, about seventy in all, ordering that their severed heads be sent to him in baskets (2 Kings 10).

Summary
Throughout the centuries, Jezebel has been attacked as a whore, and her name has been used to describe a woman of promiscuous behavior. But there is nothing in Jezebel’s story to suggest that she was ever unfaithful to Ahab. In fact, she seems to have been fiercely loyal to him and her sons, even in adversity.
Jezebel was powerful, a woman and a foreigner. These qualities made her a target for the prophets of Yahweh. In the long run, she backed the wrong gods. She ruled with arbitrary power, which went against the Israelite ideal of kingship. But she was a woman of tremendous ability and intelligence, strong-willed, courageous and loyal.