Grace and Truth
Bible Ministries

After 35 years God brings judgment on those who perpertrated the Satanic attack in the Davidic line

In our continuing study of the enmity between the serpent and his seed and the woman and her seed in Gen 3:15; Last time we were looking at the attack on David's line that occurred when Ahab and Jezebel got their progeny on the throne of both kingdoms.

We then backed up to take a look at Satan's evil attempt to destroy truth as revealed in the ritual plan by forcing Baal worship on those under their rule and killing the prophets of the Lord.

1Kings 18:4; It came about, when Jezebel destroyed the prophets of the Lord, that Obadiah took a hundred prophets and hid them by fifties in a cave, and provided them with bread and water.

In the enforcement phase of satanic evil, persecution, violence, and tyranny are the techniques used by Satan's emissaries to suppress truth. Fear, emotionalism, and a breakdown of moral beliefs set the tone for the proponents of any system that is designed to destroy civic order, establishment truth, and the divine institutions.

People capitulate because of the pressure placed on them for nonconformance. It is very difficult to take a stand against public opinion, especially when those with the power to permit freedom or impose imprisonment; to grant life and or inflict death, manipulate it.

This is exactly what is in the process of happening in the USA today. Those in presently in power are manipulating public opinion against the rule of law, establishment truth, Divine establishment and the constitution. Courageous believers will resist like Obadiah did when he hid the Lord's prophets.

The belief system promoted by orthodox Judaism is designed to restrict the desires of the sinful nature so that the soul can grow in an appreciation for God and develop gratitude for one's salvation provided by the divine sacrifice of Messiah.

The Satanic belief system promoted by heathen cults is designed to encourage the desires of the sin nature so that the soul can be brought into submission to the demons behind the idols and establish a commitment to observe rituals that promote Satan's agenda.

If the priests of the Lord can be eliminated, if the worship of Lord God can be ended, and if the people can be forced to forget the grace of God, then Jezebel will have the power to manipulate the people through fear, emotionalism, and unrestrained sexual expression. All these things were a part of Baal worship.

Fear of not worshiping Baal was assuaged by the emotionalism of participating in the rituals associated with that worship. The liberty to participate in sexual perversions fed the sinful nature's lust pattern as a reward for compliance.

The fear and danger associated with Baal worship was attractive to those who had no doctrine and were also willing to engage in behavior that was favored by the national leadership in Samaria.

The rewards for doing so were worth it and they therefore forgot the Lord God and went "a whoring after the heathen because they were polluted with their idols" Ezek 23:30;KJV

Some of the techniques that may be observed throughout history that were utilized by religions to proselytize devotees of other faiths are actually systems of brainwashing.

In" Battle for the Mind: A Psychology of Conversion and Brain-Washing" by William Sargant, (Cambridge: Malor Books, 1997), pages 81-83, 168:

Fasting, chastening of the flesh by scourging and physical discomfort, regulation of breathing, disclosure of awesome mysteries, drumming, dancing, singing, inducement of panic or fear, weird or glorious lighting, incense, intoxicant drugs.

These are only some of the many methods used to modify normal brain functions for religious purposes. Some sects pay more attention than others to a direct stirring up of emotions as a means of affecting the higher nervous system; but few wholly neglect it. (p. 81)

Those who wish to disperse wrong beliefs and undesirable behavior patterns and afterwards implant saner beliefs and attitudes are more likely to achieve success if they can first induce some degree of nervous tension or stir up sufficient feelings of anger or anxiety to secure the person's undivided attention and possibly increase his suggestibility.

By increasing stresses in various ways, or inducing physical debilitation, a more thorough alteration of the person's thinking processes may be achieved. If the stress or physical debilitation, or both, are carried one stage further, it may happen that patterns of thought and behavior, especially those of recent acquisition, become disrupted.

New patterns can then be substituted, or suppressed patterns allowed to re-assert themselves; or the subject may begin to think and act in ways that precisely contradict his former ones.

Some retain their beliefs, once firmly implanted, with a tenacity that defies the severest psychological and physiological shock treatments…. But such resistance is unusual. (pp. 82-83)

Specialists in political conversion make ordinary people confess to having led lives of Pluto-democratic error, or acted like Fascist beasts, and, by way of atonement, gladly accept whatever severe penalty is imposed on them. (p. 168)

Jezebel was specialist in brainwashing for Baal and took out vengeance on those who defied the severest of her shock treatments. Although Elijah wavered and ultimately committed the crime of killing the priests of Baal, he did take a stand against Jezebel's religious syncretism. (It was the king Ahab's job to kill the prophets of Baal not Elijah's)

1Kings 18:21; And Elijah came near to all the people and said, "How long will you hesitate between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him." But the people did not answer him a word.

Note the final sentence, "the people did not answer him a word." To which Elijah probably thought to himself, "Did they even hear me?" and the answer is no they didn't. The brainwashing job had been done and the people had bought into it with a commitment motivated by fear but sustained by emotion and free sex.

Thus the principle that scripture states that human history confirms that when the restraints of divine establishment and doctrine are ignored or rejected by a client nation, the souls of its leaders quickly turn to evil.

The resultant loss of ethics and morals soon define the disposition of the people and immoral acts betray their loss of establishment and doctrinal thought. What leadership allows, the people will indulge and they all adopt the philosophy of "vox populi, vox Dei" that means that they think "the voice of the people is the voice of God."

It was this kind of rationale that brought the leadership of both the Northern and Southern Kingdoms to a critical point with the justice of God. Divine sovereignty selected Jehu to be the dispenser of His discipline.

Heb 10:30; We know Him who said in Deut 32:35-36;, "Vengeance is Mine, I will repay." And again, "The Lord will judge His people."
v 31 It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

God selected Jehu to execute Divine justice on Jehoram, king of Israel; Ahaziah, king of Judah; Jezebel, the Queen Mother of Israel, the house of Ahab, and the prophets of Baal.

We saw that Jehoram, injured in the Battle of Ramoth-gilead, was convalescing at his palace in Jezreel and was being visited by his nephew, Ahaziah. 2Kings 9:16;

Jehu rode in his chariot to Jezreel and a sentry reported his arrival to the two kings and they both rode out in their own chariots to meet Jehu.

2Kings 9:22; And when Jehoram saw Jehu, that he said, "Is it peace, Jehu (Did we win the battle at Ramoth-gilead)?" And he answered, "What peace, so long as the harlotries of your mother Jezebel and her witchcrafts are so many?"

v23 So Jehoram reined about and fled and said to Ahaziah, "Treachery, O Ahaziah!"
v24 And Jehu drew his bow with his full strength and shot Jehoram between his arms; and the arrow went through his heart and he sank in his chariot.

2Kings 9:27; When Ahaziah the king of Judah saw this ( Jehoram killed ), he fled by the way of the garden house (an outbuilding where equipment for tending the royal gardens were stored).

Jehu pursued him and said, "Shoot him too, in the chariot." So they shot him at the ascent of Gur, which is at Ibleam. But Ahaziah fled to Megiddo and died there.

The parallel account in 2Chronicles presents a slight textual problem that easily resolved.

2Chron 22:9; Jehu also sought Ahaziah, and they caught him while he was hiding in Samaria; they brought him to Jehu, put him to death, and buried him. For they said, "He is the son of Jehoshaphat ( actually his grandson ), who sought the Lord with all his heart." So there was no one of the house of Ahaziah to retain the power of the kingdom ( of Judah: because all of Ahaziah's sons were small children ).

The textual problem that is presented is the comment that Jehu's men caught Ahaziah in Samaria rather than in Megiddo but it was obvious that the city of Samaria was his destination in route back to Jerusalem.

But when he was injured outside Ibleam, Ahaziah altered his course and fled to Megiddo where he was captured and killed. There is no contradiction between the two accounts. Although Samaria is the capital city of the Northern Kingdom the name is also often applied to the entire Northern Kingdom.

Unger's Bible Dictionary. Unger, Merrill F. . (Chicago: Moody Press, 1966), page 958:

SAMARIA: This term includes all the tribes over which Jeroboam made himself king, whether east or west of Jordan. The expression "cities of Samaria" in 1Kings 13:32; is used for the kingdom of the ten tribes. Israel, Ephraim, and Samaria are equivalent terms (for the Northern Kingdom).

So at this point both Jehoram and Azahiah had been executed so the only one left for Jehu to terminate under his Divine mandate was Jezebel. 2Kings 9:10;

As we have seen Jezebel was the daughter of Ethbaal, king of Tyre, the wife of Ahab the king of Israel, the mother of Jehoram and the grandmother of Azahiah.

She was steeped in the worship of Baal and Asherah and brought this cult to the palaces at Samaria and Jezreel. She promoted its practice and moved toward open opposition to the worship of the Lord God even to the extent of executing the priests of the Lord.

One of the more disgusting illustrations of how depraved Jezebel's soul was is the account of how she secured Naboth's vineyard that was located near the royal palace at Jezreel.

Ahab wanted the vineyard but Naboth refused to sell it to him because it was an inheritance from his fathers. When Naboth refused to sell it to Ahab, he returned to the palace and complained to his wife. 1Kings 21:1-6;

As the daughter of one king and wife of another, Jezebel was used to getting her way and she believed that since she was in power, rules, regulations, laws, and policies did not apply to her and that the end justified the means so she developed a plan to get the vineyard and took it to Ahab.

1Kings 21:7; And Jezebel, Ahab's wife, said to him, "Do you now reign over Israel? Arise, eat bread, and let your heart be joyful; I will give you the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.

v8 So she wrote letters in Ahab's name and sealed them with his seal, and sent letters to the elders and to the nobles who were living with Naboth in the city.

v9 Now she wrote in the letters, saying, "Proclaim a fast ( call an special assembly to deal with a serious crime in the city ), and seat Naboth at the head of the people;

v10 and seat two worthless men before him, and let them testify against him, saying, 'You cursed God and the king.' Then take him out and stone him to death (Lev 24:16;)."

1Kings 21:11; So the men of his city, the elders and the nobles who lived in his city, did as Jezebel had sent word to them, just as it was written in the letters which she had sent them.

v12 They proclaimed a fast and seated Naboth at the head of the people.
v13 Then the two worthless men came in and sat before him; and the worthless men testified against him, even against Naboth, before the people, saying, Naboth cursed God and the king. So they took him the city and stoned him to death with stones.

1Kings 21:14; Then they sent word to Jezebel, saying, Naboth has been stoned and is dead.
v15 When Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned and was dead, Jezebel said to Ahab, Arise, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth, the Jezreelite, which he refused to give you for money; for Naboth is not alive, but dead.

v16 When Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, Ahab arose to go down to the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, to take possession of it.

This is complete misuse of power and perversion of justice. It is murder carried out by a trumped-up charge. It is an abuse of the legal system of Israel and violated the laws of God.

Num 36:9; No inheritance shall be transferred from one tribe to another tribe, for the tribes of the sons of Israel shall each hold to his own inheritance.

Naboth had refused to sell the vineyard to Ahab because they were not of the same tribe and consequently Naboth was forbidden by the Mosaic Law to sell his property to Ahab even if he had wanted to.

But after his murder, Jezebel informed Ahab that Naboth was dead and that he could go claim the property. Ahab immediately cheered up and went and took the vineyard.

Jezebel is a perfect example of the principle that when the restraints of divine establishment and doctrine are ignored or rejected by a client nation, the souls of its leaders quickly turn to evil. For Jezebel there never had been any restraint.

She was an alien, an interloper, and pagan and she did not have any interest in the culture, the ethics, or the faith of her adopted country. As a result she committed immoral acts and after about 35 years Divine justice is finally about to come down upon her at Jezreel.

Elijah had prophesied regarding how she and Ahab would die after they had killed Naboth. 1Kings 21:17-26; But then Ahab rebounded and God delayed the discipline for about 35 years. 1Kings 21:27-29; and now the time was up.

2Kings 9:30; When Jehu came to Jezreel, Jezebel heard of it, and she painted her eyes and adorned her head, and looked out the window.

v31 And as Jehu entered the gate, she said, "Did Zimri have peace, who murdered his master?"

Jezebel's approach to Jehu was to assume the arrogant disposition that had always defined her personality. She put on her queenly attire, fixed her hair and painted her eyes and perched haughtily in the window to rail against her unwelcome guest.

She associated Jehu's execution of Jehoram as being equivalent to that of Zimri's murder of Elah who's reign on Israel's throne only lasted a week and in her arrogance she assumed that her bodyguards would protect her. They did not.

At Jehu's bidding they threw her out of the window onto the courtyard below where Jehu ran over her corpse with his chariot. Jehu dismounted and went inside to eat at the king's table which now belonged to him, leaving Jezebel's remains still lying on the ground.

After his meal he ordered his staff to go and bury Jezebel but when they went to do so they discovered that her body was gone in fulfillment of a prophecy given by Elijah in 1Kings 21:23; "And of Jezebel also has the Lord spoken, saying, 'The dogs shall eat Jezebel in the district of Jezreel.'"

And this was not all that Elijah had to say. Jehu quotes the rest of his prophecy: 2Kings 9:37; "'… and the corpse of Jezebel shall be as dung on the face of the field in the district of Jezreel, so they cannot say, "This is Jezebel."'"

This was the demise of Jezebel who had brought the cult of Baal to prominence in Israel along with the immoral acts and pagan rituals associated with the worship of its idols and tried to kill the all of prophets of the Lord God.

Jesus Christ had had enough of this crap and it was time to clean house.

 

© Copyright 2007, Michael Lemmon Bible Ministries. World Rights Reserved.  This document was created on 1/6/2013