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| image = John Liston Byam Shaw 003.jpg
| caption = 19th-century painting of Jezebel by [[John Liston Byam Shaw]]
| death_date = {{circa}} 852 BCE
| death_place = [[Tel Jezreel]]
| spouse = King [[Ahab]]
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'''Jezebel''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|dʒ|ɛ|z|ə|b|əl|,_|-|b|ɛ|l}};<ref name=ipa_en>{{cite book|title=Oxford English Dictionary|edition=Second|year=1989}} [https://web.archive.org/web/20190505122805/https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/us/Jezebel "Jezebel"] (US) and {{Cite encyclopedia |url=http://www.lexico.com/definition/Jezebel |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190505000000/http://www.lexico.com/definition/Jezebel |url-status=dead |archive-date=2019-05-05 |title=Jezebel |dictionary=[[Lexico|Oxford Dictionaries]] UK English Dictionary |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/jezebel |title= Jezebel |work=[[Collins English Dictionary]] |publisher=[[HarperCollins]] |access-date=5 May 2019}}</ref><ref name=":5">{{Cite Merriam-Webster |Jezebel |access-date=5 May 2019}}</ref> {{Hebrew Name|אִיזֶבֶל|ʾĪzével|ʾĪzeḇel}}) was the daughter of [[Ithobaal I]] of [[Tyre, Lebanon|Tyre]] and the wife of [[Ahab]], [[Kingdom of Israel (Samaria)|King of Israel]], according to the [[Books of Kings|Book of Kings]] of the [[Hebrew Bible]] ([[1 Kings 16]], {{bibleverse|1 Kings|16:31}}).<ref>Elizabeth Knowles, [http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-Jezebel.html "Jezebel"], ''The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable'', OUP 2006</ref>
According to the biblical narrative, Jezebel replaced [[Yahwism]] with [[Baal]] and [[Asherah]] worship and was responsible for [[Naboth]]’s death. This caused irreversible damage to the reputation of the [[Omrides|Omride dynasty]], who were already
Later, in the [[Book of Revelation]], the name Jezebel is contemptuously attributed to a prophetic woman of [[Thyatira]], whom the author, through the voice of the risen Christ, accuses of leading her followers into fornication (idolatry). For refusing to repent, she is threatened with sexual domination, humiliation, and the death of her children.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Dunning |first=Benjamin H. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bZOzDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA513 |title=The Oxford Handbook of New Testament, Gender, and Sexuality |date=2019-10-10 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-021340-4 |pages=513 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Streete |first=Gail Corrington |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MoXi1cWbSPMC |title=The Strange Woman: Power and Sex in the Bible |date=1997-01-01 |publisher=Westminster John Knox Press |isbn=978-0-664-25622-7 |pages=154–55 |language=en}}</ref>
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==Biblical account==
[[File:Leighton, Frederic - Jezabel and Ahab - c.1863.jpg|thumb
Jezebel is introduced into the biblical narrative as a [[Phoenicia]]n princess, the daughter of [[Ithobaal I]], king of [[Tyre, Lebanon|Tyre]] ({{bibleverse|1 Kings|16:31}} says she was "Sidonian", which is a biblical term for Phoenicians in general).<ref name="Metzger">{{cite book |last=Hackett |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=amlXOOaSuLMC&q=The+Oxford+Guide+to+People+%26+Places+of+the+Bible.|first=Jo Ann |editor1-first=Bruce M |editor1-last=Metzger |editor2-last=Coogan|editor2-first=Michael D |title= The Oxford Guide to People & Places of the Bible |publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2004 |pages=150–151 |isbn=978-0-19-517610-0}}</ref>
According to genealogies given in [[Josephus]] and other classical sources, she was the great-aunt of [[Dido]], Queen of [[Carthage]].<ref name="Metzger"/> As the daughter of Ithobaal I, she was also the sister of [[Baal-Eser II]]. Jezebel eventually married King [[Ahab]] of [[Samaria (ancient city)|Samaria]], the [[Kingdom of Israel (Samaria)|northern kingdom of Israel]].
[[Near East]]ern scholar Charles R. Krahmalkov proposed that [[Psalm 45]] records the wedding ceremony of Ahab and Jezebel,<ref>Krahmalkov, Charles R. (2000), ''A Phoenician-Punic Grammar'', page 2 </ref> but other scholars cast doubt on this association.<ref>{{cite book
===Elijah===
[[File:Jezabel-and-Ahab-Meeting-Elijah-in-Naboth-s-Vineyard.jpg|thumb|alt=Coloured illustration of a bearded prophet confronting a luxuriously dressed king and queen|''Jezebel and Ahab meeting Elijah'', print by Sir [[Frank Bernard Dicksee|Francis Dicksee]] (1853–1928)]]
Her coronation as queen upset the balance of power between [[Yahwism]] and [[Baal]]ism.<ref>{{cite journal|first=Frank E.|last=Eakin|title=Yahwism and Baalism before the Exile|journal=Journal of Biblical Literature|volume=84|issue=4|pages=407–414|year=1965|doi=10.2307/3264867|jstor=3264867}}</ref><ref name="MillerAhab">{{cite journal|first=J. M.|last=Miller|title=The Fall of the House of Ahab|url=https://brill.com/view/journals/vt/17/3/article-p307_4.xml|journal=Vetus Testamentum|volume=17|issue=3|pages=307–324|year=1967|doi=10.1163/156853367X00042}}</ref> As queen, Jezebel institutionalized Baalism and killed Yahwist prophets, which most likely included the priests of [[Jeroboam]]'s [[golden calf]] cult,<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024 |title=1 Kings 18 Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges |url=https://biblehub.com/commentaries/cambridge/1_kings/18.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240211024756/https://biblehub.com/commentaries/cambridge/1_kings/18.htm |archive-date=February 11, 2024 |website=Biblehub.com}}</ref> and desecrated their altars.<ref>Mare, Leonard P. "" Twice as much of your Spirit": Elijah, Elisha, and the Spirit of God." Ekklesiastikos Pharos 91.1 (2009): 72-81.</ref><ref name="Kandelmwin">Bayor, Conrad Kandelmwin. "The Alienation of Jezebel: Reading the Deuteronomic Historian's Portrait of Jezebel in the Contemporary Global Context." (2017).</ref> [[Obadiah (1 Kings)|Obadiah]], a pro-Yahwist figure in Ahab's royal court, secretly protected the survivors of these purges in a cave.<ref name="je" /><ref name="Kandelmwin" /> Some commentators observe that Jezebel's desecration of [[Altar (Bible)|Yahwist altars]] would have normally been condoned since they were built outside of [[Jerusalem]], which contravened the [[Deuteronomic Code]]. However, they were overlooked due to Elijah's piety or Jezebel's 'improper' motives. <ref>{{Cite web |date=2023 |title=1 Kings 19:10 Benson Commentary |url=https://biblehub.com/commentaries/benson/1_kings/19.htm |website=Biblehub}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Glatt-Gilad |first=David |date=February 21, 2019 |title=Was Elijah Permitted to Make an Offering on Mount Carmel? |url=https://www.thetorah.com/article/was-elijah-permitted-to-make-an-offering-on-mount-carmel |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240103023709/https://www.thetorah.com/article/was-elijah-permitted-to-make-an-offering-on-mount-carmel |archive-date=January 3, 2024 |website=TheTorah.com}}</ref> Alternatively, scholars argue that the Deuteronomic Code promotes laicization and considers all of Israel to be Yahweh's "sacred space". Theologians likewise argue that the "sacred space" is any place where Yahweh "manifested" to humans, according to {{Bibleverse|Exodus|20:24}}.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Alster |first=Baruch |date=2014 |title=Deuteronomy: Religious Centralization or Decentralization? |url=https://www.thetorah.com/article/deuteronomy-religious-centralization-or-decentralization |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240418042836/https://www.thetorah.com/article/deuteronomy-religious-centralization-or-decentralization |archive-date=April 18, 2024 |website=TheTorah.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2024 |title=Exodus 20:24 Gill's Exposition |url=https://biblehub.com/commentaries/gill/exodus/20.htm |website=Biblehub.com}}</ref>
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===Death===
[[File:097.The Death of Jezebel.jpg|thumb|upright|alt= Engraving of Jezebel being thrown out of a window to waiting mounted troops and dogs|''The Death of Jezebel'' by [[Gustave Doré]]]]
Three years later, Ahab died in battle. Jezebel's son [[Ahaziah of Israel|Ahaziah]] inherited the throne, but died as the result of an accident and was succeeded by his brother, [[Jehoram of Israel|Jehoram]]. [[Jehu]] later usurped the throne<ref name="Metzger"/> and killed Jehoram, and his nephew [[Ahaziah of Judah|Ahaziah]], who was the son of Jehoram's possible sister [[Athaliah]] and her Judahite husband [[Jehoram of Judah|Jehoram]]. He later approached Jezebel at the royal palace in Jezreel.
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==Historicity==
[[File:Andrea Celesti - Queen Jezabel Being Punished by Jehu - WGA4622.jpg|alt=painting of Jezebel's dead body being consumed by dogs as Jehu gestures at her body in triumph|thumb|''Queen Jezebel Being Punished by Jehu'', by [[Andrea Celesti]]]]
According to [[Israel Finkelstein]], the marriage of King Ahab to the daughter of the ruler of the Phoenician empire was a sign of the power and prestige of Ahab and the northern Kingdom of Israel. He termed it a "brilliant stroke of international diplomacy".<ref name="Finkelstein">{{Cite book|title=The Bible Unearthed: Archaeology's New Vision of Ancient Israel and the Origin of Its Sacred Texts|last1=Finkelstein|first1=Israel|last2=Silberman|first2=Neil Asher|publisher=Simon and Schuster|year=2001|isbn=978-0-684-86912-4|pages=169–195|author-link1=Israel Finkelstein}}</ref> He says that the inconsistencies and anachronisms in the biblical stories of Jezebel and Ahab mean that they must be considered "more of a historical novel than an accurate historical chronicle".<ref name="Finkelstein" /> Among these inconsistencies, [[1 Kings 20]] states that "[[Hadadezer|Ben-Hadad]] king of [[Aram-Damascus|Aram]]" invaded Samaria during Ahab's reign, but this event did not take place until later in the history of Israel, and "Ben-Hadad" was the title of the ruler of Aram-Damascus.<ref name="FinkelsteinSilberman2002">{{cite book |author1= Israel Finkelstein |author2= Neil Asher Silberman |title= The Bible Unearthed: Archaeology's New Vision of Ancient Israel and the Origin of Sacred Texts |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=lu6ywyJr0CMC&pg=PA176 |date=6 March 2002 |publisher= Simon and Schuster |isbn=978-0-7432-2338-6 |page= 176}}</ref> Finkelstein also states that the biblical accounts are "obviously influenced by the [[Deuteronomic Code|theology]] of the seventh century BCE writers".<ref name="Finkelstein" /> They were hostile to polytheism and viewed Samaria as a rival to Jerusalem.<ref name="Finkelstein" />
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==Cultural symbol==
[[File:Jezabel - Léon Auguste Perrey.jpg|thumb|''Jezabel'' by Léon Auguste Perrey]]
According to [[Geoffrey Bromiley]], the depiction of Jezebel as "the incarnation of Canaanite cultic and political practices, detested by Israelite prophets and loyalists, has given her a literary life far beyond the existence of a ninth-century Tyrian princess."<ref name=Bromiley/>
Through the centuries, the name ''Jezebel'' came to be associated with false prophets. By the early 20th century, it was also associated with fallen or abandoned women.<ref>{{Cite EB1911|first=Stanley Arthur |last=Cook |wstitle=Jezebel |volume=15|page=411}}</ref> In Christian lore, a comparison to Jezebel suggested that a person was a [[paganism|pagan]] or an [[apostasy|apostate]] masquerading as a servant of God. By manipulation and seduction, she misled the saints of God into sins of idolatry and sexual immorality.<ref>{{cite book|title=''The New Testament, Book of Revelation''|url=http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=REV%202:20-23&version=ESV}}, Ch. 2, vs. 20-23.</ref> In particular, Christians associated Jezebel with [[promiscuity]]. The [[cosmetics]] which Jezebel applied before her death also led some Christians to associate makeup with vice, although, as Isaac Asimov points out in his ''Guide to the Bible'', such cosmetics—used on ceremonial occasions by royalty and priestesses—could be interpreted as the desire of a proud woman to meet her last moments in a manner and attire becoming a Queen. In the [[Middle Ages]], the chronicler [[Matthew Paris]] criticised [[Isabella of Angoulême]], the [[queen consort]] of [[John, King of England]], by writing that she was "more Jezebel than Isabel".<ref>Nicholas Vincent 'John's Jezebel' 1999</ref> In modern usage, the name of Jezebel is sometimes used as a synonym for sexually promiscuous or controlling women.<ref>{{cite web |title=Jezebel |url=http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/jezebel |
In feminist interpretations and Bible scholarship, Jezebel is re-examined and, for example, seen as unfairly framed<ref name=":2">{{Cite book |last=Bellis |first=Alice Ogden |url=https://www.pcusastore.com/Content/Site119/FilesSamples/175270Helpmates_00000145967.pdf |title=Helpmates, harlots, and heroes: women's stories in the Hebrew Bible |date=1994 |publisher=Westminster/John Knox Pr |isbn=978-0-664-25430-8 |location=Louisville, Ky |pages=3 |language=en |chapter=Introduction}}</ref> or her story altered,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Beach |first=Eleanor Ferris |url=http://archive.org/details/jezebellettersre0000beac |title=The Jezebel letters
==In popular culture==
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[[Frankie Laine]] recorded "[[Jezebel (Frankie Laine song)|Jezebel]]" (1951), written by [[Wayne Shanklin]], which became a hit song.<ref>[http://www.meantime-jp.com/EditorsPick/Yakame/Data/FrankieLaine.html Frankie Laine's hits in the years 1947-1952].{{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090106022655/http://www.meantime-jp.com/EditorsPick/Yakame/Data/FrankieLaine.html |date=6 January 2009 }}</ref> The song begins:
{{
It was you, Jezebel, it was you
If ever an angel fell
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[[Finland]] sent a song by the name "[[Jezebel (The Rasmus song)|Jezebel]]" to the [[Eurovision Song Contest 2022]].
=== In literature ===
* Barnard, Megan (2023). ''Jezebel''. Penguin Random House.
* Beach, Eleanor Ferris (2005). ''The Jezebel Letters: religion and politics in ninth-century Israel''. Fortress Press * Bellis, Alice Ogden (2007). ''Helpmates, harlots, and heroes: Women's stories in the Hebrew Bible''. Westminster John Knox Press
* Everhart, Janet S. (2010). "Jezebel: Framed by eunuchs?
* Garrett, Ginger (2013).
* Hazleton, Lesley (2009).
* Jackson, Melissa (2015). "Reading Jezebel from the
* Lomax, Tamura (2018). ''Jezebel unhinged: Loosing the Black
* Mokoena, Lerato (2021). "Reclaiming Jezebel and Mrs Job: Challenging Sexist Cultural Stereotypes and the Curse of Invisibility" in ''Transgression and transformation: Feminist, postcolonial and queer Biblical interpretation as creative interventions''
* Moran, Michelle
* Quick, Catherine S. (1993). "Jezebel's last laugh: the rhetoric of wicked women." ''Women and Language'' 16, no. 1
▲* Michelle Moran: ''Die Phönizierin'' (2003), München: Wilhelm Goldmann Verlag (Random House Group). (Original title ''Jezebel''). {{ISBN|3-442-35775-6}}
* Snyder, J. B.
* Wyatt, Stephanie (2012). "Jezebel, Elijah, and the widow of Zarephath: A ménage à trois that estranges the holy and makes the holy the strange
== References ==
{{
==External links==
* {{commons category-inline}}
{{Rulers of Ancient Israel}}
{{Book of Revelation}}
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