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Verse 31
Theosis · English Bible
4 Kingdoms (2 Kings)

4 Kingdoms (2 Kings) 9

Old TestamentTheosis · English Bible

1And Elisaie the prophet called one of the sons of the prophets, and said to him, Gird up thy loins, and take this cruse of oil in thy hand, and go to Remmoth Galaad. 2And thou shalt enter there, and shalt see there Ju the son of Josaphat son of Namessi, and shalt go in and make him rise up from among his brethren, and shalt bring him into a secret chamber. 3And thou shalt take the cruse of oil, and pour it on his head, and say thou, Thus saith the Lord, I have anointed thee king over Israel: and thou shalt open the door, and flee, and not tarry. 4And the young man the prophet went to Remmoth Galaad. 5And he went in, and, behold, the captains of the host were sitting; and he said, I have a message to thee, O captain. And Ju said, To which of all us? And he said, To thee, O captain. 6And he arose, and went into the house: and he poured the oil upon his head, and said to him, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, I have anointed thee to be king over the people of the Lord, even over Israel. 7And thou shalt utterly destroy the house of Achaab thy master from before me, and shalt avenge the blood of my servants the prophets, and the blood of all the servants of the Lord, at the hand of Jezabel, 8and at the hand of the whole house of Achaab: and thou shalt utterly cut off from the house of Achaab every male, and him that is shut up and left in Israel. 9And I will make the house of Achaab like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nabat, and as the house of Baasa the son of Achia. 10And the dogs shall eat Jezabel in the portion of Jezreel, and there shall be none to bury her. And he opened the door, and fled. 11And Ju went forth to the servants of his lord, and they said to him, Is all well? Why came this mad fellow in to thee? And he said to them, Ye know the man, and his communication. 12And they said, It is wrong: tell us now. And Ju said to them, Thus and thus spoke he to me, saying,—and he said, Thus saith the Lord, I have anointed thee to be king over Israel. 13And when they heard it, they hasted, and took every man his garment, and put it under him on the top of the stairs, and blew with the trumpet, and said, Ju is king. 14So Ju the son of Josaphat the son of Namessi conspired against Joram, and Joram was defending Remmoth Galaad, he and all Israel, because of Azael king of Syria. 15And king Joram had returned to be healed in Jezrael of the wounds which the Syrians had given him, in his war with Azael king of Syria. And Ju said, If your heart is with me, let there not go forth out of the city one fugitive to go and report to Jezrael. 16And Ju rode and advanced, and came down to Jezrael; for Joram king of Israel was getting healed in Jezrael of the arrow-wounds wherewith the Syrians had wounded him in Rammath in the war with Azael king of Syria; for he was strong and a mighty man: and Ochozias king of Juda was come down to see Joram. 17And there went up a watchman upon the tower of Jezrael, and saw the dust made by Ju as he approached; and he said, I see dust. And Joram said, Take a horseman, and send to meet them, and let him say, Peace. 18And there went a horseman to meet them, and said, Thus says the king, Peace. And Ju said, What hast thou to do with peace? turn behind me. And the watchman reported, saying, The messenger came up to them, and has not returned. 19And he sent another horseman, and he came to him, and said, Thus says the king, Peace. And Ju said, What hast thou to do with peace? turn behind me. 20And the watchman reported, saying, He came up to them, and has not returned: and the driver drives Ju the son of Namessi, for it is with furious haste. 21And Joram said, Make ready. And one made ready the chariot: and Joram the king of Israel went forth, and Ochozias king of Juda, each in his chariot, and they went to meet Ju, and found him in the portion of Nabuthai the Jezraelite. 22And it came to pass when Joram saw Ju, that he said, Is it peace, Ju? And Ju said, How can it be peace? as yet there are the whoredoms of thy mother Jezabel, and her abundant witchcrafts. 23And Joram turned his hands, and fled, and said to Ochozias, Treachery, Ochozias. 24And Ju bent his bow with his full strength, and smote Joram between his arms, and his arrow went out at his heart, and he bowed upon his knees. 25And Ju said to Badecar his chief officer, Cast him into the portion of ground of Nabuthai the Jezraelite, for I and thou remember, riding as we were on chariots after Achaab his father, that the Lord took up this burden against him, saying, 26Surely, I have seen yesterday the blood of Nabuthai, and the blood of his sons, saith the Lord; and I will recompense him in this portion, saith the Lord. Now then, I pray thee, take him up and cast him into the portion, according to the word of the Lord. 27And Ochozias king of Juda saw it, and fled by the way of Bæthgan. And Ju pursued after him, and said, Slay him also. And one smote him in the chariot at the going up of Gai, which is Jeblaam: and he fled to Mageddo, and died there. 28And his servants put him on a chariot, and brought him to Jerusalem, and they buried him in his sepulchre in the city of David. 29And in the eleventh year of Joram king of Israel, Ochozias began to reign over Juda. 30And Ju came to Jezrael; and Jezabel heard of it, and coloured her eyes, and adorned her head, and looked through the window. 31And Ju entered into the city; and she said, Had Zambri, the murderer of his master, peace? 32And he lifted up his face toward the window, and saw her, and said, Who art thou? Come down with me. And two eunuchs looked down towards him. 33And he said, Throw her down. And they threw her down; and some of her blood was sprinkled on the wall, and on the horses: and they trampled on her. 34And Ju went in and ate and drank, and said, Look now, after this cursed woman, and bury her, for she is a king's daughter. 35And they went to bury her; but they found nothing of her but the skull, and the feet, and the palms of her hands. 36And they returned and told him. And he said, It is the word of the Lord, which he spoke by the hand of Eliu the Thesbite, saying, In the portion of Jezrael shall the dogs eat the flesh of Jezabel. 37And the carcase of Jezabel shall be as dung on the face of the field in the portion of Jezrael, so that they shall not say, This is Jezabel.

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4 Kingdoms (2 Kings) 9:31

Ephraem the Syrian

Ephraem the Syrian4th century

The populace expected Jezebel to mourn for her deceased son; however, upon learning of the king’s arrival, she appeared with a facade of decorum, donning a headdress and positioning herself at the window to be noticed. She likely believed that her appearance might entice Jehu, allowing her to secure her place beside him as his wife. Perhaps she recalled the tale of Adonijah, who sought the hand of Abisag the Shunammite during Solomon's reign in order to elevate his status (cf. 1 Kings 2:17). Jezebel might have thought Jehu, in his efforts to stabilize and unite his newly established kingdom, would follow in the footsteps of Adonijah. These were the thoughts that occupied her mind while she still had control over her emotions. However, upon seeing Jehu enter the gate, the memory of her son’s brutal murder returned to her, and she could no longer contain her fury nor endure the presence of her son's slayer. She hurled insults and curses at him, declaring, “Is it peace to Zimri, killer of his master?” Her unrestrained wrath was undeterred by hopes of marriage, fears of death, or worries about a rival brandishing a weapon against her. Jezebel, who had inflicted suffering upon many, found herself unable to save her own life and instead escalated the king's ire with her provocations, only intensifying his indignation against her.

When Jehu recognized her as Jezebel, he commanded the attendants near her to cast her from the window. They obeyed, hurling her down, and her blood splashed against the wall. The horses trampled her body as they passed, and eventually, dogs devoured her flesh, leaving no trace to identify her (see 2 Kings 9:33-37). This account bears profound symbolic significance. Ahab suffered defeat on the battlefield and met his end, after which his servants mourned, wept, and laid him to rest with honor in a royal tomb (see 1 Kings 22:34-37). In stark contrast, Jezebel received no such burial rites. After being thrown down, her bones crushed upon impact, horses trampled her lifeless form, and dogs feasted on her remains. The reason behind this disparity lies in Ahab's occasional repentance despite his many transgressions (see 1 Kings 21:27). Conversely, Jezebel not only defied justice and drew wrath with her heinous actions but also incited her husband towards wrongdoing and persistently encouraged him in evil, showing no signs of repentance in prosperity or adversity, remaining steadfast in her depravity. Even when faced with the sentence of death, she lashed out in madness. Thus, there were ample grounds for justice to act particularly severely against her.