UNMASKING THE JEZEBEL SPIRIT
By Ezekiel Kimosop
INTRODUCTION
Jezebel is first introduced to the Bible reader in 1 Kings 16:31. She was the daughter of Ethbaal, king of the Sidonians. Ahab son of Omri married her in violation of Genesis 34:27 (also cf. Ezra 9:2) and knowingly permitted her to entrench the worship of Baal in the Northern Kingdom of Israel.
The Sidonians were known for their worship of Baal, one of the famous Canaanite gods that, together with Chemosh, the Moabite god, were classified as the most detestable deities in the eyes of the God of Israel (2 Kings 23:13). It is instructive that the Hebrew meaning of the name Jezebel is "Baal exalts" while her father's name Ethbaal means "with Baal". Interestingly, Chemosh means "subduer", a concept that we shall encounter in this article in relation to the covert actions of Jezebel, who is perhaps reckoned as the most wicked queen that ever set foot in the royal courts of Israel.
How did the union between Ahab and Jezebel come about?
It was a common practice among ancient Middle Eastern kings to exchange daughters as a show of friendship and goodwill. The Jews were however forbidden from intermarrying or engaging in political or military alliances with Canaanite kings (Ezra 9:12). There was a godly reason for this prohibition. The idolatrous Canaanites would desecrate the monotheistic worship of the God of Israel and the intermarriage would ultimately pollute the holy seed (Ezra 9:2).
This phenomenon is identified in Solomon's reign as well. The Bible says in 1 Kings 11:1 "But King Solomon loved many foreign women, as well as the daughter of Pharaoh: women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites."
One does not require to be a Bible scholar to discover the theological dissonance and incongruence in these heathen women. They were all from idol worshipping Canaanite groups and nations whose association with God's covenant people had been forbidden in Scripture. This foreign influence is perhaps illustrative of the moral decline among sections of God's people who choose to mingle and intermarry with unbelieving people today. They end up in ridicule and moral ruin. Samson's marriage to a philistine woman is perhaps a classic example of the tragedy of the dalliance with heathen women. The rest, as the say, is history (Judges 14-16).
THE RISE OF JEZEBEL
In 1 Kings 18:4, the Bible records that Jezebel cut off the prophets of the LORD. This was in reference to her vicious and systematic persecution of God's prophets in an effort to entrench Baalism in Israel. She first destroyed the covenant worship of the God of Israel and establish her idolatry. She later fought off the prophetic voices that condemned her wickedness. Ahab never condemned or restrained Jezebel. He was possibly a victim of her systemic manipulation and coercion.
Jezebel drew great fear among the remnant of God's true worshippers who had to escape for their lives or hide in caves (1 Kings 18:13,19:1-4). After Elijah killed the 450 prophets of Baal in his spirited moral reformation, Jezebel sent him a threatening message, swearing by her gods to take his life in revenge. Elijah was utterly shaken. He was forced to flee Israel for his life but God preserved him along with 7,000 others who had never bowed down to Baal or kissed him in worship (1 Kings 19:18). We learn from Elijah's experience that God always preserves His remnant of faithful people in every generation of human civilization, even under the worst scale of persecutions.
Are you a remnant of God in your generation?
JEZEBEL'S MANIPULATION
One of the most pronounced attributes of Jezebel was perhaps her manipulative power by which she fraudulently seized Naboth's vineyard after falsely accusing him of blaspheming God and the king and having him stoned to death with his sons (1 Kings 21:1-16). Naboth, a godly man, had refused to sell to Ahab his parcel of land situated in Jezreel, next to the palace, citing Jewish custom on generational land inheritance (1 Kings 21:3). Jezebel usurped the instruments of royal authority and wrote letters in the name of the king. She constituted a kangaroo court to hear false accusations against Naboth.
JEZEBEL'S MANIPULATION
One of the most pronounced attributes of Jezebel was perhaps her manipulative power by which she fraudulently seized Naboth's vineyard after falsely accusing him of blaspheming God and the king and having him stoned to death with his sons (1 Kings 21:1-16). Naboth, a godly man, had refused to sell to Ahab his parcel of land situated in Jezreel, next to the palace, citing Jewish custom on generational land inheritance (1 Kings 21:3). Jezebel usurped the instruments of royal authority and wrote letters in the name of the king. She constituted a kangaroo court to hear false accusations against Naboth.
Jezebel's intention was to eliminate Naboth and take over his land. She temporarily succeeded in her evil scheme. God sent Elijah to proclaim judgement upon Ahab and Jezebel. Notice that Ahab gladly took over the land even after he learned about the death of Naboth, a fact that did not make the land available to anyone except his sons or in their absence, his immediate close relatives [see the illustration in Ruth 4:1-12 concerning Elimelech's inheritance].
It is perhaps instructive that Jezebel was feared above the king. She was the real power behind the throne yet no royal authority was vested in her. She was merely an imposter. This is a common feature among powerful royals and rulers the world over. A few powerful people, usually members of the immediate family or close associates of the leader would exercise undefined powers, often eclipsing the ruler. Some African dictators today are ringfenced by a cabal of power barons who call the shots on critical issues of national importance. Some sit in key state organs courtesy of their influence in the corridors of power. Those who cross their paths will live to regret it.
How did Jezebel manage to accomplish her evil schemes with such boldness?
Jezebel had mastered the art of manipulation, deception, and control which is common with witchcraft and the high occult. She had completely subdued Ahab, rendering him powerless despite the trappings of royal authority. This is the unwritten script of the power and modus operandi of the Jezebel spirit when left unchecked. In her context, it appears that Ahab was weakened by his lack of godly zeal for moral justice. His was perhaps a laid-back monarchy. He ought to have restrained the wicked Sidonian woman but he miserably failed to do so. It was a fait accompli.
THE FALL OF JEZEBEL
God's judgement on Ahab and Jezebel was swift and devastating. He decreed that Ahab will suffer for his evil, saying, "in the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth, shall dogs lick thy blood, even thine" (1 Kings 21:19, KJV). Ahab's offspring would not be spared God's judgment either. God proclaimed that they would be cut off from Israel and those who will die in the city shall be eaten by dogs while those dying in the field shall be eaten by the fowls of the air (1 Kings 19:24). Ahab, like Adam, took the moral responsibility for the excesses of his wife that ultimately brought him down.
A similar judgment was reserved for wicked Jezebel. God decreed that dogs shall eat Jezebel by the wall of Jezreel. This prophecy came to pass with divine precision (1 Kings 21:21-24). Surprisingly, and unlike Jezebel, Ahab expressed remorse for his transgressions. He tore his clothes and put on sackcloth and mourned. On this account, God graciously decreed that the judgment on his house would not come in his lifetime but will definitely fall on his sons after him. It was justice deferred but not waived. The prophecy on Ahab was finally fulfilled when he was killed in war. The death of Ahab is recorded in 1 Kings 22:34-38. It is instructive that dogs licked his blood upon his death. The wages of sin is death.
Amaziah son of Ahab reigned after Ahab but he too was a wicked monarch. He followed the ways of his evil mother Jezebel and worshipped Baal and other Canaanite gods (1 Kings 22:51-53-2:1). Amaziah reigned only two years in Samaria before he lost the throne (1 Kings 22:51-53). Again this is evidence of God's displeasure on Ahab's lineage.
The death of Jezebel is recorded in 2 Kings 9:30-37. This suggests that it may have come shortly after Ahab's death. Jezebel suffered a violent death under the Jehu uprising. This was a well deserved end for her heinous murders and her desecration of the moral foundation of God's covenant people. In fulfilment of God's judgement, Jezebel was thrown from a window facing the Valley of Jezreel and, as was prophesied concerning her, dogs ate her body and only the skull and legs and the palms of her hand were left (2 Kings 9:35). This gruesome death was a royal disgrace by any standards! God's word was ultimately fulfilled.
Ahab's sons were later massacred in fulfillment of God's decree on Ahab's family (2 Kings 10:1-17).
God finally destroyed Baal worship by the hand of Jehu who unfortunately went into disobedience thereafter. His heart was not fully committed to the LORD and he went after Canaanite gods. God reduced the size of the territory of Israel in Jehu's day. He strengthened the hand of Hazael king of Syria and caused him to strike the coasts of Israel (2 Kings 10:31-32). The moral decline of a people or nation is always evidenced by spiritual and physical ramifications.
A manipulative false teacher or dictator may appear popular and smart and may even enjoy his share of fame for a season. When God finally exposes them for who they truly are, the world will reel back in shock! Adolph Hitler's Third Reich was driven by the Jezebel spirit. It mercilessly massacred millions of Jews simply because they detested their sociocultural and economic influence on German life.
Jezebel excelled in cowering and silencing a whole nation by usurping the instruments of the throne from its legitimate holder. We need to watch out lest the Jezebel spirit creeps into our Christian communities and state institutions and fosters strife, defiance, and rebellion. Notice that the Jezebel spirit is always belligerent and seductive. It lacks the guts to repent of its misdeeds. It is symbolic of spiritual rebellion per excellence! (Rev. 2:21-23).
The Jezebel spirit covertly seeks to be worshipped and exalted. It defies legitimate authority and exalts itself in the place of God. It is an antichrist spirit, utterly ferocious and cruel. It seeks the centre-stage as its altar where it goes for the jackpot. Its ultimate mission is to dethrone the true agents of God and to plant its counterfeit systems in their place.
This is the spirit that Jesus warned the church of Thyatira about saying in Revelation 2:20-21, "Nevertheless, I have a few things against you because you allow that woman Jezebel who calls herself a prophetess, to teach and seduce my servants to commit sexual immorality..."
False teachers driven by the Jezebel spirit may sound mystical and authoritative by their claim to the prophetic investiture and special revelation but these are merely tools of deception. Their objective is to seduce the minds of their subjects into total submission and silence. Those who ultimately fall away from the true faith are perhaps their first-fruit (1 Timothy 4:1). My view is that these false teachers are not part of God's covenant people. They must be unmasked and condemned by right standing people of God for what they truly are - counterfeit forces that seek the downfall of God's people.
There are several moral lessons that can be drawn from the story of the rise and fall of Jezebel. We shall conclude our study with seven lessons outlined below.
1) God's people should always resist the Jezebel spirit and its agents.
God's people will face persecutions in this world on account of their spiritual and moral convictions in Christ. Jesus said in Mark 13:13 "And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake. But he who endures to the end shall be saved." God will finally vanquish all evildoers and consign them to eternal damnation in the lake of 🔥.
6) God is exceedingly merciful and compassionate beyond measure.
The Bible proclaims that God's compassions never fail (Lamentations 3:22). God was touched by Ahab's remorse despite the gravity of his sin and evil. God reached out to us in Christ while we were yet sinners (Romans 5:8). No sin is beyond God's forgiveness. The sinner must genuinely repent and forsake his wicked ways in order to receive God's pardon (2 Chronicles 7:14).
CONCLUSION
Let me conclude by saying that the spirit of Jezebel is an embodiment of evil per excellence. It is a counterfeit religion and system that countermands and defies the worship of the true God. It is the high priesthood of Satan hiding under the cover of religion or state power. It must be unmasked and condemned. Only those who are watchful in the Spirit can discern this demonic force and the works of its agents whenever they arise. This is not to suggest that those who hold opposing views in our churches or institutions are necessarily under the Jezebel spirit. We need wisdom in handling legitimate criticism and to examine and rectify our failings under the fear of the Lord because no person is ever perfect.
It is perhaps instructive that Jezebel was feared above the king. She was the real power behind the throne yet no royal authority was vested in her. She was merely an imposter. This is a common feature among powerful royals and rulers the world over. A few powerful people, usually members of the immediate family or close associates of the leader would exercise undefined powers, often eclipsing the ruler. Some African dictators today are ringfenced by a cabal of power barons who call the shots on critical issues of national importance. Some sit in key state organs courtesy of their influence in the corridors of power. Those who cross their paths will live to regret it.
How did Jezebel manage to accomplish her evil schemes with such boldness?
Jezebel had mastered the art of manipulation, deception, and control which is common with witchcraft and the high occult. She had completely subdued Ahab, rendering him powerless despite the trappings of royal authority. This is the unwritten script of the power and modus operandi of the Jezebel spirit when left unchecked. In her context, it appears that Ahab was weakened by his lack of godly zeal for moral justice. His was perhaps a laid-back monarchy. He ought to have restrained the wicked Sidonian woman but he miserably failed to do so. It was a fait accompli.
THE FALL OF JEZEBEL
God's judgement on Ahab and Jezebel was swift and devastating. He decreed that Ahab will suffer for his evil, saying, "in the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth, shall dogs lick thy blood, even thine" (1 Kings 21:19, KJV). Ahab's offspring would not be spared God's judgment either. God proclaimed that they would be cut off from Israel and those who will die in the city shall be eaten by dogs while those dying in the field shall be eaten by the fowls of the air (1 Kings 19:24). Ahab, like Adam, took the moral responsibility for the excesses of his wife that ultimately brought him down.
A similar judgment was reserved for wicked Jezebel. God decreed that dogs shall eat Jezebel by the wall of Jezreel. This prophecy came to pass with divine precision (1 Kings 21:21-24). Surprisingly, and unlike Jezebel, Ahab expressed remorse for his transgressions. He tore his clothes and put on sackcloth and mourned. On this account, God graciously decreed that the judgment on his house would not come in his lifetime but will definitely fall on his sons after him. It was justice deferred but not waived. The prophecy on Ahab was finally fulfilled when he was killed in war. The death of Ahab is recorded in 1 Kings 22:34-38. It is instructive that dogs licked his blood upon his death. The wages of sin is death.
Amaziah son of Ahab reigned after Ahab but he too was a wicked monarch. He followed the ways of his evil mother Jezebel and worshipped Baal and other Canaanite gods (1 Kings 22:51-53-2:1). Amaziah reigned only two years in Samaria before he lost the throne (1 Kings 22:51-53). Again this is evidence of God's displeasure on Ahab's lineage.
The death of Jezebel is recorded in 2 Kings 9:30-37. This suggests that it may have come shortly after Ahab's death. Jezebel suffered a violent death under the Jehu uprising. This was a well deserved end for her heinous murders and her desecration of the moral foundation of God's covenant people. In fulfilment of God's judgement, Jezebel was thrown from a window facing the Valley of Jezreel and, as was prophesied concerning her, dogs ate her body and only the skull and legs and the palms of her hand were left (2 Kings 9:35). This gruesome death was a royal disgrace by any standards! God's word was ultimately fulfilled.
Ahab's sons were later massacred in fulfillment of God's decree on Ahab's family (2 Kings 10:1-17).
God finally destroyed Baal worship by the hand of Jehu who unfortunately went into disobedience thereafter. His heart was not fully committed to the LORD and he went after Canaanite gods. God reduced the size of the territory of Israel in Jehu's day. He strengthened the hand of Hazael king of Syria and caused him to strike the coasts of Israel (2 Kings 10:31-32). The moral decline of a people or nation is always evidenced by spiritual and physical ramifications.
THE JEZEBEL SPIRIT UNMASKED
How can we identify the Jezebel spirit?
The spirit of Jezebel is the most dangerous force behind the institutional and religious apostasy that is prevalent today. This spirit is manipulative, coercive, vindictive, and vengeful. It employs fear, threats, and intimidation to have its way at whatever cost. It breaks all moral restraints in its quest for the usurpation of the throne or any platform where power is exercised.
How can we identify the Jezebel spirit?
The spirit of Jezebel is the most dangerous force behind the institutional and religious apostasy that is prevalent today. This spirit is manipulative, coercive, vindictive, and vengeful. It employs fear, threats, and intimidation to have its way at whatever cost. It breaks all moral restraints in its quest for the usurpation of the throne or any platform where power is exercised.
The Jezebel spirit subscribes to the evil notion that the end justifies the means. Make no mistake; this corrupting spirit can manifest itself in men and women and is not unique to the religious community context. It can rear its ugly head in workplaces, political systems, and in any place where power or authority is exercised. It requires a "palace platform" to effectively operate. This spirit is always meticulous, ruthless, and restless. It viciously fights those opposed to its evil schemes in order to preserve its manipulation and control. It seeks to silence the courageous voices that oppose its tactics and tools of trade.
A manipulative false teacher or dictator may appear popular and smart and may even enjoy his share of fame for a season. When God finally exposes them for who they truly are, the world will reel back in shock! Adolph Hitler's Third Reich was driven by the Jezebel spirit. It mercilessly massacred millions of Jews simply because they detested their sociocultural and economic influence on German life.
Kim Jong, a modern world despot, sits at the helm of the North Korean authoritarian regime that has employed extreme manipulation, brainwashing and state control control on its citizenry since taking over from his father in 2011. He is literally worshipped as a deity by the hapless masses! Any resistance to state authority is swiftly crushed and state defectors are pursued and eliminated.
Jezebel excelled in cowering and silencing a whole nation by usurping the instruments of the throne from its legitimate holder. We need to watch out lest the Jezebel spirit creeps into our Christian communities and state institutions and fosters strife, defiance, and rebellion. Notice that the Jezebel spirit is always belligerent and seductive. It lacks the guts to repent of its misdeeds. It is symbolic of spiritual rebellion per excellence! (Rev. 2:21-23).
The Jezebel spirit covertly seeks to be worshipped and exalted. It defies legitimate authority and exalts itself in the place of God. It is an antichrist spirit, utterly ferocious and cruel. It seeks the centre-stage as its altar where it goes for the jackpot. Its ultimate mission is to dethrone the true agents of God and to plant its counterfeit systems in their place.
This is the spirit that Jesus warned the church of Thyatira about saying in Revelation 2:20-21, "Nevertheless, I have a few things against you because you allow that woman Jezebel who calls herself a prophetess, to teach and seduce my servants to commit sexual immorality..."
The mention of Jezebel in this text is a metaphorical reference to a counterfeit or apostate teacher or group within the Thyatira Christian community and their polluted teachings that misrepresented the Person of Jesus Christ and His finished works of the cross.
False teachers driven by the Jezebel spirit may sound mystical and authoritative by their claim to the prophetic investiture and special revelation but these are merely tools of deception. Their objective is to seduce the minds of their subjects into total submission and silence. Those who ultimately fall away from the true faith are perhaps their first-fruit (1 Timothy 4:1). My view is that these false teachers are not part of God's covenant people. They must be unmasked and condemned by right standing people of God for what they truly are - counterfeit forces that seek the downfall of God's people.
MORAL LESSONS FROM THE LIFE OF JEZEBEL
1) God's people should always resist the Jezebel spirit and its agents.
God's people have no fellowship with apostates whose destiny is sealed (Jude 1:16-19). The Jezebel spirit can aptly be described as an embodiment of spiritual apostasy that is evident in sections of Christian societies that have departed from the revelation and authority of God's word. Jezebel polluted the worship of the true God of Israel through official idolatry that was sanctioned from the highest office in Israel. She was an icon of apostasy among God's covenant people.
Apostates are people or groups whose ultimate objective is to drive God's people away from the worship of the one true God of Scripture. Some apostates surreptitiously creep into unsuspecting Christian congregations or communities and teach heresy using sweet sounding words. They finally gravitate towards full blown apostasy, a point of total departure from all that Scripture stands for.
Apostates are people or groups whose ultimate objective is to drive God's people away from the worship of the one true God of Scripture. Some apostates surreptitiously creep into unsuspecting Christian congregations or communities and teach heresy using sweet sounding words. They finally gravitate towards full blown apostasy, a point of total departure from all that Scripture stands for.
One notable apostate in Scripture is Balaam the son of Beor who led the children of Israel into idolatry. He was killed under God's judgement in Numbers 31:1-11. In 21st century Christianity, several counterfeit groups have wreaked havoc on Biblical Christianity by denying the fundamental truths of God's word, including the divinity and offices of Jesus Christ and His finished works of the cross.
Apostates are agents of Satan that are out to destroy the religious life of God's people through explicit and covert means but God will ultimately expose them for what they truly are.
Apostates are agents of Satan that are out to destroy the religious life of God's people through explicit and covert means but God will ultimately expose them for what they truly are.
2) True followers of Jesus Christ should keep away from the abominations of the Jezebel spirit.
Jezebel's marriage to Ahab was an abomination engineered by Satan. It was the case of holy seed adulterated by wickedness and rebellion. A follower of Jesus must be on guard, praying in the Spirit lest the Jezebel spirit subdues them. The Bible asks in 1 Corinthians 6:14 "...what communion hath light with darkness?" God's people should keep their garments unsoiled by the corruption of this passing evil world. Ecclesiastes 9:8 says "Let your garments always be white..." This is a reference to moral chastity for God's covenant people.
Besides, Scripture cautions us in 1 John 4:1-3, saying "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 By this you know the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is of God, 3 and every spirit that does not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is not of God. And this is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you have heard was coming, and is now already in the world." (NKJV).
Where do you draw your spiritual inspiration from? Who is your prophet?
3) Dereliction of moral responsibility attracts God's wrath.
3) Dereliction of moral responsibility attracts God's wrath.
We should not neglect our moral responsibility that God has assigned to us whether at leadership or personal levels. Ahab was held personally liable for the evil schemes that Jezebel executed in his name and under his watch. People who exercise spiritual authority are personally answerable to God for the excesses that are committed by those under their watch. Eli the priest was punished by God for failing to take action against his wicked sons (1 Samuel 2:27-36). Ahab and other wicked leaders in Israel were destroyed under God's righteous judgment.
Are you exercising full command and diligence over the assignment that God has placed under your stewardship?
4) God will punish evil no matter how high it is committed.
Are you exercising full command and diligence over the assignment that God has placed under your stewardship?
4) God will punish evil no matter how high it is committed.
The trappings of royal authority or high office cannot insulate a person from God's sovereignty and justice. Ahab's case serves as a warning to the high and mighty that the consequences of their evil actions would catch up with them at God's appointed time in this world or in the world to come. The great and the small alike shall ultimately stand before the great white throne in judgment (Revelation 20:11-15). The Bible warns in Galatians 6:7: "Do not be deceived; God is not mocked: whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he reap" (KJV).
5) There will be a price to pay for our Christian convictions.
5) There will be a price to pay for our Christian convictions.
God's people will face persecutions in this world on account of their spiritual and moral convictions in Christ. Jesus said in Mark 13:13 "And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake. But he who endures to the end shall be saved." God will finally vanquish all evildoers and consign them to eternal damnation in the lake of 🔥.
6) God is exceedingly merciful and compassionate beyond measure.
The Bible proclaims that God's compassions never fail (Lamentations 3:22). God was touched by Ahab's remorse despite the gravity of his sin and evil. God reached out to us in Christ while we were yet sinners (Romans 5:8). No sin is beyond God's forgiveness. The sinner must genuinely repent and forsake his wicked ways in order to receive God's pardon (2 Chronicles 7:14).
7) God's word will come to pass no matter how long it takes.
It took a number years and perhaps decades before Ahab and Jezebel were punished for their evil. Elsewhere in Scripture, it took several generations of Eli's lineage before his priesthood was finally terminated when Abiathar the priest was defrocked by Solomon under a royal decree (1 Kings 2:26-27). The Bible says in Numbers 23:19:
"God is not a man, that He should lie,
Nor a son of man, that He should repent.
Has He said, and will He not do?
Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?" (NKJV).
CONCLUSION
Let me conclude by saying that the spirit of Jezebel is an embodiment of evil per excellence. It is a counterfeit religion and system that countermands and defies the worship of the true God. It is the high priesthood of Satan hiding under the cover of religion or state power. It must be unmasked and condemned. Only those who are watchful in the Spirit can discern this demonic force and the works of its agents whenever they arise. This is not to suggest that those who hold opposing views in our churches or institutions are necessarily under the Jezebel spirit. We need wisdom in handling legitimate criticism and to examine and rectify our failings under the fear of the Lord because no person is ever perfect.
Keep it Christ.
© Ezekiel Kimosop 2019
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