“When Joram saw Jehu he asked, “‘Have you come in peace, Jehu?”’ “‘How can there be peace,”’ Jehu replied, “‘as long as all the idolatry and witchcraft of your mother Jezebel abound?”
~ 2 Kings 9:22
Hi James and Ellen,
What to you would make a guy or gal a bad guy or gal? What to you would make a guy or gal a good guy or gal. Is there someone who you know who would be able to tell you who is a bad guy or gal and who is a good guy or gal? It is hard to tell through the lenses of today’s societies’ ethical and/or morality norms and mores who is a bad guy or gal and who is a good guy or gal. By looking through your Heavenly Father’s scriptural lenses, a guy or gal who is a Christ-follower is able to recognize who is a bad guy or gal and who is a good guy or gal. Countries and people groups that are on planet Earth have had a history of despotic, tyrannical guys and gals ending up being their leaders. Countries and people groups that are on planet Earth are inundated with guys and gals who are living their lives doing bad things because they are being affirmed with what they are doing by having guys and gals as their leaders who are doing even worse things than what they are doing. Ask your dad and/or ma what he, she or they would say about what it means to be bad. Ask your dad and/or ma what he, she or they would say being bad means to your Heavenly Father. Ask your dad and/or ma what he, she or they would say about what it means to be good. Ask your dad and/or ma what he, she or they would say being good means to your Heavenly Father. Jezebel was a really bad gal. Jezebel was the wife of a king who ruled over God’s specially chosen guys and gals – the Israelite people groups guys and gals. Jezebel’s husband – Ahab, was a really bad guy. Ahab – for over 20 years, ruled as king over the Israelite people group’s guys and gals – who were His specially chosen guys and gals, who lived in the northern part of the land area that God gave them to always to have to live in as their very own land if . . . Ahab defied your Heavenly Father by living a life that was filled with doing bad things. Jezebel – instead of trying to stop Ahab from doing bad things, was an even worse bad gal than Ahab was a bad guy. Do you know a kid who really likes to be bad? Do you know a kid who screams and yells because he or she does not get his or her way? Do you know a kid who does not do what his or her dad and/or ma asks him or her to do? Do you know a kid who says words that he or she has been told by his or her dad and/or ma never to say?
The Kings Book historian in 2 Kings 9 recounts the final demise of Jezebel. Jezebel was physically thrown out of a window by a couple of eunuchs, trampled by passing horses and eaten by dogs. Jezebel was living in Jezreel at this time. Ahab had been dead for over 10 years. Joram had been ruling as king over God’s specially chosen guys and gals who lived in the northern part of the land area that God had given to His specially chosen guys and gals to always have to live in as their very own land if . . . since Ahab died. Joram was one of Ahab’s kids. Elisha was a prophet spokesman for God who lived in the land area that was ruled over by Joram. Jehu was an army commander. God chose Jehu to be anointed by a prophet from a company of prophets who was sent by Elisha to do the anointing to overthrow Joram by killing him and then to take on being king over God’s specially chosen guys and gals who lived in the northern part of the land area which God gave to His specially chosen guys and gals to always to have to live in as their very own land if . . . which had become known as Israel. Jehu scripted a plan that would have him and his troops surprise Joram in Jezreel. Jehu did not want to end up fighting against God’s specially chosen guys who lived in the land area of Israel but . . . when Joram found out who the guy was who was heading in his chariot towards Jezreel like a mad guy, Joram opted to go out in his chariot to find out what Jehu was doing heading his way. Verse 22 is the dialog between Joram and Jehu when they met in their chariots outside Jezreel, “When Joram saw Jehu he asked, “‘Have you come in peace, Jehu?”’ “‘How can there be peace,”’ Jehu replied, “‘as long as all the idolatry and witchcraft of your mother Jezebel abound?”’ Jehu then shot an arrow through Joram’s back into the guy’s heart. Ahaziah – the king who was ruling over the guys and gals who lived in Judah’s land area had been visiting with Joram when Jehu showed up to . . . Ahaziah was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Ahaziah ended up getting wounded by an arrow which ultimately resulted in him dying. The next thing to happen was the eunuchs throwing Jezebel out of a window to die in a very ignominious, humiliating, disgraceful way. The evil queen did not have enough body parts left to be buried properly. Jezebel’s dishonorable death had been a part of Elisha’s prophecy package years earlier. A life that is lived by a guy or gal to only serve himself or herself is guaranteed to end in a very sad, hideous way.
During the first years that your grandmaa and grandpaa lived in Bolivia, they had the experience of what it is like to go through coups where Bolivian Presidents were involuntarily removed and replaced by guys who thought that they could do better as Bolivian Presidents than the guys who they were replacing. A bad guy or gal can be any guy or gal. A bad guy or gal can be found anyplace. Your grandmaa and grandpaa have known bad guys and gals. A good guy or gal can be any guy or gal. A good guy or gal can be found anyplace. Your grandmaa and grandpaa have known good guys and gals. Bad guys and gals are guys and gals who live their lives only for themselves. Bad guys and gals are guys and gals who have never been led by God – as God the Spirit, past a blood covered cross, through the faith/grace door and into the Christ-follower family. Good guys or gals are guys and gals who have been led by God – as God the Spirit, past a blood covered cross, through the faith/grace door and into the Christ-follower family.
2 Kings 9 (558)