Jezebel Trivia Quiz

Answer: Kings

The account of Jezebel is included in 1st and 2nd Kings of the Old Testament. The Kings chapters were originally written in Hebrew as part of the Jewish Tanakh, and later included in the Christian version of the Old Testament.

Answer: A King's daughter

She was also the wife and mother of Kings. Her father was King Ethbaal I of Tyre, and she married King Ahab (I Kings 16:31, Tanakh JPS translation). Jezebel's son Ahaziah became King after Ahab died, and then her other son Jehoram succeeded Ahaziah. Jezebel had quite a bit of control over her husband and sons, and in effect ruled through them.

Answer: Baal

Jezebel was a Phoenician, a people who worshipped multiple idols, especially Baal. Her husband, King Ahab, was a monotheist who worshipped Yahweh (God) but he did not oppose to Jezebel's worship of 'false' idols. He, in fact, built her a temple as a place to worship Baal. Jezebel, fiercely loyal to her religion, wanted to banish worship of Yahweh from her kingdom and sanctioned the murder of many prophets. (I Kings 16:31-33, Tanakh JPS translation).

Answer: No

Though the popular modern concept of a 'jezebel' implies sexual immorality, the Old Testament describes Jezebel as a loyal and faithful wife. The misconception is helped by the fact that Jehu asks Jezebel's son: "How can all be well as your mother Jezebel carries on her countless harlotries and sorceries?" (II Kings 9:30, Tanakh JPS translation).

In the Biblical sense, however, a harlot is often meant to describe someone who worships heathen idols. It has nothing to do with chasteness or faithfulness in marriage; worshipping a heathen idol is seen as 'adultery' against God.

Answer: Elijah

Elijah challenged the men of Jezebel's household and others who followed her beliefs in the superiority of Baal to a contest at Mount Carmel (I Kings 18:19, Tanakh JPS translation). Standing alone against hundreds of men, Elijah petitioned God to make an appearance.

While the prophets of Baal also called on their deity, asking him to unleash a fire to prove his power and status. Baal could not be roused, but God answered Elijah's call with a fire. Seeing this, the prophets of Baal were said to have recounted their ways and expressed a belief in Yahweh as the one true God. Elijah had them taken prisoner and killed (I Kings 18: 26,29,36-40).

It is here where a defender of Jezebel might ask how she was branded as wicked for allowing the murder of prophets of another faith, but Elijah was being portrayed in much more positive light for doing the same thing.

Answer: a vineyard

The story goes that Naboth owned a vineyard that was adjacent to Ahab's palace. Ahab decided that he wanted the land to grow a vegetable garden, and offered to buy it from Naboth (I Kings 21:2 Tanakh JPS translation) . Naboth refused, saying that he had inherited the land from his father, and the Israelite custom was to make sure land stayed in the family. Jezebel was not satisfied with this answer, having been raised in the Phoenician tradition in which a townsperson would never dare to refuse a ruler's request. Jezebel had the other townspeople falsely accused Naboth of blasphemy against God and the King, and he was stoned to death (I Kings 21:10).

Answer: put on makeup

This is stated in II Kings 9:30 (Tanakh JPS translation) and it is where the idea of Jezebel as a "painted whore" comes from. The traditional interpretation of this act, Jezebel applying eye makeup and brushing her hair, is that she was attempting to make herself more attractive to seduce Jehu and prevent him from killing her.

Another interpretation, more in favour of Jezebel, is that she was preparing to meet her death. The kohl she applied to her eyes can be seen as a female version of war paint or of putting on armour. Additionally, she may simply have wanted to look her best, as a Queen should, the last time anyone would see her alive.

Answer: her body was eaten by dogs

Jehu has Jezebel thrown out of a window. She splattered the walls and the ground with her blood as she landed, and was then trampled by horses. Jezebel's body was left in the street as Jehu and his men celebrated. When they did go to attend to her body, all they found remaining were her hands, feet and skull.

The rest of her body had been devoured by dogs, a prophecy that had earlier been put forth by Elijah (II Kings 9:35-37, Tanakh JPS translation).

Answer: feminists

A popular interpretation of the story of Jezebel held by many theologically inclined feminists is that Jezebel was disliked for being a strong woman, and because of that, the writing and subsequent translations of the Bible portray her as evil and immoral.

Many people who defend Jezebel believe that the stories of her wickedness were greatly exaggerated and that she was used as a scapegoat to show followers of God the consequences of worshipping another deity.

Answer: Revelation

Revelation 2:20 (King James Version) mentions "that woman Jezebel". In this book, she is accused of corrupting members of the church of Thyatira, by forcing them to fornicate and commit immoral acts.