Page 35 - No Apologies

Casting Down Jezebel

Yahweh has given to the body of Christ a pattern to follow when Jezebel seeks to assert
herself and to rule in the midst of His people. The solution is to cast her down.

Casting Down Jezebel

Let us look once more at Jehu’s response to Jezebel.

II Kings 9:30-33
And when Jehu was come to Jezreel, Jezebel heard of it; and she painted her face,
and adorned her head, and looked out at a window. And as Jehu entered in at the
gate, she said, “Had Zimri peace, who slew his master?” And he lifted up his face to
the window, and said, “Who is on my side? Who?” And there looked out to him two
or three eunuchs. He said, "Throw her down." So they threw her down, and some of
her blood was sprinkled on the wall and on the horses, and he trampled her under
foot.

One thing that stands out to me in this passage is that Jehu did not speak a single
word to Jezebel. Jezebel tried to engage Jehu in conversation. With her words she described
Jehu as the one who was in rebellion, acting to usurp authority. She compared Jehu to
Zimri. Zimri was a servant of Elah, son of Baasha, an earlier king of Israel. He had
command of half of Elah’s chariots. Zimri conspired against Elah and slew him, an act
which Yahweh gave Zimri no commandment to do. Although Zimri’s actions fulfilled a
prophecy against Baasha’s household, the motive in Zimri’s heart was not the same as
Jehu’s. Zimri sought only to wrest control of the kingdom for himself, while Jehu was
anointed by a prophet sent by Elijah, and he was given commandment by the prophet to
destroy the house of Ahab and Jezebel. Following are Jehu’s words of commissioning.