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Jezebel (Bible)
Encyclopedia
Jezebel (fl. 9th century BC) was a princess, identified in the Hebrew Book of Kings
as the daughter of Ethbaal, King of Tyre
(Phoenicia) and the wife of Ahab
, king of north Israel. According to genealogies given in Josephus
and other classical sources, she was the great-aunt of Dido, Queen of Carthage.
The Hebrew text portrays Jezebel as a power behind the throne. Ahab and Jezebel allow temples of Baal
to operate in Israel, and that religion receives royal patronage. After Ahab's death, Ahaziah
and Jehoram
, his sons by Jezebel, accede to the throne. The prophet Elisha
has one of his servants anoint Jehu
as king to overthrow the house of Ahab. Jehu kills Jehoram as he attempts to flee in his war chariot.
Jehu confronts Jezebel in Jezreel
, where he incites her court officials to murder the queen via defenestration
and leave her corpse to be eaten by dogs. Jezebel became associated with false prophets. In some interpretations, her dressing in finery and putting on makeup before her death led to the association of use of cosmetics with "painted women" or prostitutes.
The biblical Hebrew 'Izebel may be rooted in a Hebrew word for "prince/nobility" or "husband" (bul/ba'al) combined with the word for "naught/none" ('iy), "there is no prince/nobility/husband," suggesting a lack of character (i.e. implying lack of royal sensibilities) or of morality (i.e. unmarried, implying adultery or fornication). It may also find its root in a Hebrew word for "dung" (from gbl; note here Ba'al-zebul/Ba'al-zebub, "Lord of dung") combined with the word for either "naught/none" ('iy) or "island" ('iyz), thus "no dung" or "island of dung."
Other sources find meaning from the character's native Syro-Phoenician language. It may be rooted in the word ba'al (lord), referring either to the Syro-Phoenician god, the "King of Heaven," or simply the royal title "lord." Thus, Iz-ba'al may mean "the Lord (Ba'al) exists/exalts" or "where is the prince," a name known from liturgies of the Syro-Phoenician Ba'al cults.
.The story concerns an intense religious-political struggle — the most detailed such account of any period in the history of the Kingdom of Israel. The account portrays the religious side of the events, with the political, economic and social background — highly important to modern historians — given only incidentally.
Jezebel is introduced as a Phoenicia
n princess, the daughter of Ethbaal, king of the Phoenician empire. She marries King Ahab
of the Northern Kingdom (i.e. Israel during the time when ancient Israel was divided into Israel in the north and Judah
in the south). She helps convert Ahab from worship of the Jewish God to worship of the Phoenician god Baal
. After she has many Jewish prophets killed, Elijah
challenges 450 prophets of Baal to a competition (1 Kings 18), exposes the rival god as powerless, and has the prophets of Baal slaughtered (1 Kings 18:40). Jezebel becomes his enemy.
The scholar V. Barzowski interprets Ahab's marriage to Jezebel as a dynastic marriage intended to cement a Phoenicia
n political alliance
. This went back to the times of King Solomon, to give the then-inland Kingdom of Israel access to the Mediterranean Sea
and international trade. The monarchy (and possibly an urban elite connected with it) enjoyed the wealth derived from this trade, which gave it a stronger position vis-a-vis the rural landowners. The monarchy became more centralized with a powerful administration.
Barzowski believes that the story of Naboth
, a landowner killed at the instigation of Jezebel so the King could acquire his land, points to this interpretation. With her foreign religion and cosmopolitan culture, Jezebel represented a hated Phoenician alliance from which the landowners had little to gain and much to lose. Their resentment was expressed in religious terms as related to the difference in religions. Eventually Jehu
's achieved a bloody coup, instigated and supported by the prophets whose actions the Bible preserves.
In The Bloudy Tenent of Persecution for Cause of Conscience
, Roger Williams
, the founder of the American colony of Rhode Island
and the co-founder of the First Baptist Church in America
, wrote of Naboth's story as an example of how God disfavored the use of government force in religious matters. Williams believed using force in the name of religion would lead to political persecution, contrary to the Bible's teachings.
Ilana Fine sees Jezebel as an assertive woman, who was attacked and finally murdered by the fanatic representatives of a male-dominated religion. She interprets her memory as vilified for thousands of years for the same reason — i.e. "because she was an independent woman who did not let men dominate her, and who continued to defy the aggressives males to her last breath."
The name Jezebel came to be associated with false prophets, and further associated by the early 20th century with fallen or abandoned women. In Christian lore, a comparison to Jezebel suggested that a person was a pagan or an apostate masquerading as a servant of God. By manipulation and/or seduction, she misled the saints of God into sins of idolatry and sexual immorality. In particular, Jezebel has come to be associated with promiscuity
. In modern usage, the name of Jezebel is sometimes used as a synonym for sexually promiscuous and sometimes controlling women, In his two-volume Guide to the Bible
(1967 and 1969), Isaac Asimov describes Jezebel's last act: dressing in all her finery, make-up and jewelry, as deliberately symbolic, indicating her dignity, royal status and determination to go out of this life as a Queen.
Books of Kings
The Book of Kings presents a narrative history of ancient Israel and Judah from the death of David to the release of his successor Jehoiachin from imprisonment in Babylon, a period of some 400 years...
as the daughter of Ethbaal, King of Tyre
Ithobaal I
Ithobaal I was a king of Tyre who founded a new dynasty. During his reign, Tyre expanded its power on the mainland, making all of Phoenicia its territory as far north as Beirut, including Sidon, and even a part of the island of Cyprus...
(Phoenicia) and the wife of Ahab
Ahab
Ahab or Ach'av or Achab in Douay-Rheims was king of Israel and the son and successor of Omri according to the Hebrew Bible. His wife was Jezebel....
, king of north Israel. According to genealogies given in Josephus
Josephus
Titus Flavius Josephus , also called Joseph ben Matityahu , was a 1st-century Romano-Jewish historian and hagiographer of priestly and royal ancestry who recorded Jewish history, with special emphasis on the 1st century AD and the First Jewish–Roman War, which resulted in the Destruction of...
and other classical sources, she was the great-aunt of Dido, Queen of Carthage.
The Hebrew text portrays Jezebel as a power behind the throne. Ahab and Jezebel allow temples of Baal
Baal
Baʿal is a Northwest Semitic title and honorific meaning "master" or "lord" that is used for various gods who were patrons of cities in the Levant and Asia Minor, cognate to Akkadian Bēlu...
to operate in Israel, and that religion receives royal patronage. After Ahab's death, Ahaziah
Ahaziah of Israel
Ahaziah or Ochozias was king of Israel and the son of Ahab and Jezebel.William F. Albright has dated his reign to 850-849 BC, while E. R. Thiele offers the dates 853-852 BC...
and Jehoram
Jehoram of Israel
Jehoram was a king of the northern Kingdom of Israel. He was the son of Ahab and Jezebel.According to , in the fifth year of Joram of Israel, Jehoram became king of Judah, when his father Jehoshaphat was king of Judah, indicating a co-regency...
, his sons by Jezebel, accede to the throne. The prophet Elisha
Elisha
Elisha is a prophet mentioned in the Hebrew Bible and the Qur'an. His name is commonly transliterated into English as Elisha via Hebrew, Eliseus via Greek and Latin, or Alyasa via Arabic.-Biblical biography:...
has one of his servants anoint Jehu
Jehu
Jehu was a king of Israel. He was the son of Jehoshaphat, and grandson of Nimshi.William F. Albright has dated his reign to 842-815 BC, while E. R. Thiele offers the dates 841-814 BC...
as king to overthrow the house of Ahab. Jehu kills Jehoram as he attempts to flee in his war chariot.
Jehu confronts Jezebel in Jezreel
Jezreel (city)
Jezreel was an ancient Israelite city and fortress originally within the boundaries of the Tribe of Issachar, and later within the northern Kingdom of Israel. According to the Book of Kings, the royal palace of King Ahab in Jezreel was adjacent to the vineyard of Naboth...
, where he incites her court officials to murder the queen via defenestration
Defenestration
Defenestration is the act of throwing someone or something out of a window.The term "defenestration" was coined around the time of an incident in Prague Castle in the year 1618. The word comes from the Latin de- and fenestra...
and leave her corpse to be eaten by dogs. Jezebel became associated with false prophets. In some interpretations, her dressing in finery and putting on makeup before her death led to the association of use of cosmetics with "painted women" or prostitutes.
Meaning of name
Jezebel is the Anglicized transliteration of the Hebrew אִיזָבֶל ('Izevel/'Izavel). Attempts to trace the meaning of the name are speculative, since its origin can only be conjectured.The biblical Hebrew 'Izebel may be rooted in a Hebrew word for "prince/nobility" or "husband" (bul/ba'al) combined with the word for "naught/none" ('iy), "there is no prince/nobility/husband," suggesting a lack of character (i.e. implying lack of royal sensibilities) or of morality (i.e. unmarried, implying adultery or fornication). It may also find its root in a Hebrew word for "dung" (from gbl; note here Ba'al-zebul/Ba'al-zebub, "Lord of dung") combined with the word for either "naught/none" ('iy) or "island" ('iyz), thus "no dung" or "island of dung."
Other sources find meaning from the character's native Syro-Phoenician language. It may be rooted in the word ba'al (lord), referring either to the Syro-Phoenician god, the "King of Heaven," or simply the royal title "lord." Thus, Iz-ba'al may mean "the Lord (Ba'al) exists/exalts" or "where is the prince," a name known from liturgies of the Syro-Phoenician Ba'al cults.
Scripture and history
Jezebel's story is told in 1st and 2nd KingsBooks of Kings
The Book of Kings presents a narrative history of ancient Israel and Judah from the death of David to the release of his successor Jehoiachin from imprisonment in Babylon, a period of some 400 years...
.The story concerns an intense religious-political struggle — the most detailed such account of any period in the history of the Kingdom of Israel. The account portrays the religious side of the events, with the political, economic and social background — highly important to modern historians — given only incidentally.
Jezebel is introduced as a Phoenicia
Phoenicia
Phoenicia , was an ancient civilization in Canaan which covered most of the western, coastal part of the Fertile Crescent. Several major Phoenician cities were built on the coastline of the Mediterranean. It was an enterprising maritime trading culture that spread across the Mediterranean from 1550...
n princess, the daughter of Ethbaal, king of the Phoenician empire. She marries King Ahab
Ahab
Ahab or Ach'av or Achab in Douay-Rheims was king of Israel and the son and successor of Omri according to the Hebrew Bible. His wife was Jezebel....
of the Northern Kingdom (i.e. Israel during the time when ancient Israel was divided into Israel in the north and Judah
Kingdom of Judah
The Kingdom of Judah was a Jewish state established in the Southern Levant during the Iron Age. It is often referred to as the "Southern Kingdom" to distinguish it from the northern Kingdom of Israel....
in the south). She helps convert Ahab from worship of the Jewish God to worship of the Phoenician god Baal
Baal
Baʿal is a Northwest Semitic title and honorific meaning "master" or "lord" that is used for various gods who were patrons of cities in the Levant and Asia Minor, cognate to Akkadian Bēlu...
. After she has many Jewish prophets killed, Elijah
Elijah (prophet)
Elijah also Elias ; , meaning "Yahweh is my God";Arabic:إلياس, Ilyās), was a prophet in the Kingdom of Samaria during the reign of Ahab , according to the Books of Kings....
challenges 450 prophets of Baal to a competition (1 Kings 18), exposes the rival god as powerless, and has the prophets of Baal slaughtered (1 Kings 18:40). Jezebel becomes his enemy.
The scholar V. Barzowski interprets Ahab's marriage to Jezebel as a dynastic marriage intended to cement a Phoenicia
Phoenicia
Phoenicia , was an ancient civilization in Canaan which covered most of the western, coastal part of the Fertile Crescent. Several major Phoenician cities were built on the coastline of the Mediterranean. It was an enterprising maritime trading culture that spread across the Mediterranean from 1550...
n political alliance
Alliance
An alliance is an agreement or friendship between two or more parties, made in order to advance common goals and to secure common interests.See also military alliance and business alliance.-International relations:...
. This went back to the times of King Solomon, to give the then-inland Kingdom of Israel access to the Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
and international trade. The monarchy (and possibly an urban elite connected with it) enjoyed the wealth derived from this trade, which gave it a stronger position vis-a-vis the rural landowners. The monarchy became more centralized with a powerful administration.
Barzowski believes that the story of Naboth
Naboth
Naboth "the Jezreelite," is the central figure of a story from the Old Testament. According to the story, Naboth was the owner of a plot on the eastern slope of the hill of Jezreel...
, a landowner killed at the instigation of Jezebel so the King could acquire his land, points to this interpretation. With her foreign religion and cosmopolitan culture, Jezebel represented a hated Phoenician alliance from which the landowners had little to gain and much to lose. Their resentment was expressed in religious terms as related to the difference in religions. Eventually Jehu
Jehu
Jehu was a king of Israel. He was the son of Jehoshaphat, and grandson of Nimshi.William F. Albright has dated his reign to 842-815 BC, while E. R. Thiele offers the dates 841-814 BC...
's achieved a bloody coup, instigated and supported by the prophets whose actions the Bible preserves.
Interpretations
The Bloudy Tenent of Persecution for Cause of Conscience
The Bloudy Tenent of Persecution, for Cause of Conscience, Discussed in a Conference between Truth and Peace is a 1644 book about government force written by Roger Williams, the founder of the American colony of Rhode Island and the co-founder of the First Baptist Church in America...
, Roger Williams
Roger Williams (theologian)
Roger Williams was an English Protestant theologian who was an early proponent of religious freedom and the separation of church and state. In 1636, he began the colony of Providence Plantation, which provided a refuge for religious minorities. Williams started the first Baptist church in America,...
, the founder of the American colony of Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
and the co-founder of the First Baptist Church in America
First Baptist Church in America
The First Baptist Church in America is the First Baptist Church of Providence, Rhode Island, also known as First Baptist Meetinghouse. The oldest Baptist church congregation in the United States, it was founded by Roger Williams in Providence, Rhode Island in 1638...
, wrote of Naboth's story as an example of how God disfavored the use of government force in religious matters. Williams believed using force in the name of religion would lead to political persecution, contrary to the Bible's teachings.
Ilana Fine sees Jezebel as an assertive woman, who was attacked and finally murdered by the fanatic representatives of a male-dominated religion. She interprets her memory as vilified for thousands of years for the same reason — i.e. "because she was an independent woman who did not let men dominate her, and who continued to defy the aggressives males to her last breath."
Cultural symbol
Promiscuity
In humans, promiscuity refers to less discriminating casual sex with many sexual partners. The term carries a moral or religious judgement and is viewed in the context of the mainstream social ideal for sexual activity to take place within exclusive committed relationships...
. In modern usage, the name of Jezebel is sometimes used as a synonym for sexually promiscuous and sometimes controlling women, In his two-volume Guide to the Bible
Asimov's Guide to the Bible
Asimov's Guide to the Bible is a work by Isaac Asimov that was first published in two volumes, covering the Old Testament in 1967 and the New Testament in 1969. He combined them into a single 1296-page volume in 1981...
(1967 and 1969), Isaac Asimov describes Jezebel's last act: dressing in all her finery, make-up and jewelry, as deliberately symbolic, indicating her dignity, royal status and determination to go out of this life as a Queen.
In popular culture
- The film Jezebel (1938) starred Bette DavisBette DavisRuth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis was an American actress of film, television and theater. Noted for her willingness to play unsympathetic characters, she was highly regarded for her performances in a range of film genres, from contemporary crime melodramas to historical and period films and occasional...
. - Frankie LaineFrankie LaineFrankie Laine, born Francesco Paolo LoVecchio , was a successful American singer, songwriter, and actor whose career spanned 75 years, from his first concerts in 1930 with a marathon dance company to his final performance of "That's My Desire" in 2005...
recorded "JezebelJezebel (song)"Jezebel" is a 1951 popular song written by Wayne Shanklin. It was recorded by Frankie Laine with the Norman Luboff Choir and Mitch Miller and his orchestra on April 4, 1951 and released by Columbia Records as catalog number 39367...
" (1951), written by Wayne ShanklinWayne ShanklinWayne Shanklin was an American music performer, composer, arranger, and producer....
, which became a hit song. - In the film Sins of JezebelSins of JezebelSins of Jezebel is a 1953 film based on the Biblical story of Jezebel, the Phoenician princess whose influence corrupted King Ahab of Israel in the mid 9th century BC.-Cast:*Paulette Goddard as Jezebel*George Nader as Jehu*Eduard Franz as Ahab...
(1953), Jezebel was played by Paulette GoddardPaulette GoddardPaulette Goddard was an American film and theatre actress. A former child fashion model and in several Broadway productions as Ziegfeld Girl, she was a major star of the Paramount Studio in the 1940s. She was married to several notable men, including Charlie Chaplin, Burgess Meredith, and Erich...
. - In his novel The Caves of SteelThe Caves of SteelThe Caves of Steel is a novel by Isaac Asimov. It is essentially a detective story, and illustrates an idea Asimov advocated, that science fiction is a flavor that can be applied to any literary genre, rather than a limited genre itself. Specifically, in the book Asimov's Mysteries, he states that...
(1953, 1954), Isaac AsimovIsaac AsimovIsaac Asimov was an American author and professor of biochemistry at Boston University, best known for his works of science fiction and for his popular science books. Asimov was one of the most prolific writers of all time, having written or edited more than 500 books and an estimated 90,000...
portrayed Jezebel as an ideal wife and woman who, in full compliance with the mores of the time, conscientiously promoted her own religion. - The Song Jezebel (1985), by SadeSade AduHelen Folasade Adu OBE , is a British singer-songwriter, composer, and record producer. She first achieved success in the 1980s as the frontwoman and lead vocalist of the Brit and Grammy Award winning English group Sade.-Biography:Sade was born in Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria...
( = Helen Folasade Adu ) and Gordon Matthewman, on Sade's album PromisePromiseA promise is a commitment by someone to do or not do something.In the law of contract, an exchange of promises is usually held to be legally enforceable, according to the Latin maxim pacta sunt servanda.- Types :...
. - The Song Jezebel (1992), by 10,000 Maniacs10,000 Maniacs10,000 Maniacs is a United States-based alternative rock band, which formed in 1981 and continues to be active with various line-ups.-1981–1993:...
on the album Our Time In EdenOur Time in EdenOur Time in Eden is a 1992 album by 10,000 Maniacs, the last studio album featuring original lead singer Natalie Merchant. The album featured her future replacement Mary Ramsey on viola on such tracks as "Stockton Gala Days," "Jezebel," and "How You've Grown." Singles from the album were "These Are...
about the guilt felt by a woman who has fallen out of love, or was never in love, with her husband. - Lesley HazletonLesley HazletonLesley Hazleton is an award-winning British-American writer whose work focuses on the intersection of politics, religion, and history, especially in the Middle East...
wrote a revisionist historical non-fiction account, Jezebel, The Untold Story of the Bible's Harlot Queen (2004), that presents Jezebel as a sophisticated queen engaged in mortal combat with the fundamentalist prophet Elijah. Hazleton is also the author of several non-fictionNon-fictionNon-fiction is the form of any narrative, account, or other communicative work whose assertions and descriptions are understood to be fact...
books about the Middle EastMiddle EastThe Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
.
External links
- Scholars Debate Jezebel Seal Biblical Archaeology Review, 2008