Jehu (name meaning him who exists) was the son of Jehoshaphat often also commonly mentioned as son of Nimshi, his grandfather. Perhaps because Nimshi was more well-known. Ultimately, God chose Jehu to be king because he knew that he could trust this god fearing man to lead the people in true worship. He appears on the Old Testament Timeline during the reign of the Kings of the Divided Kingdom.
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False Worship in Israel
When the kingdom of Israel split in half the northern kingdom of Israel was brought into false worship by a man named King Jeroboam. This king started the Golden Calf cult and turned the hearts of many Israelites from God. Since that time, pagan worship had corrupted many of God’s people for a long period. King Ahab and his Phoenician wife made things worse by introducing Baal worship into the land of Israel. God could no longer tolerate this idolatry, and he authorized Jehu to become king to put an end to this problem.
Jehu is Anointed King
Elisha was a prophet of God who served under Elijah another great prophet of God. Elijah was taken up to heaven, and Elisha became the next leader of the prophets of Israel during the period when King Ahab and Jezebel were alive. After Ahab had died his son, Ahaziah came to power in Israel. Ahaziah was just as corrupt as his father. One day Elisha told one of his prophets to go and find Jehu and privately anoint him king. The prophet who anointed Jehu king wasn’t named in the Bible. While the unnamed prophet was telling Jehu about his newfound position, he also told him that he must eliminate the rest of Ahab’s lineage. Once Jehu completed this task, he would then become the undisputed king of Israel.
Jehu Fulfills God’s Judgment
Jehu gathers some of his soldiers, and they ride off to find King Ahaziah and King Joram to wipe out the rest of Ahab’s lineage. Jehu ends up throwing King Joram’s body onto Naboth’s land. Naboth was a godly man that Jezebel killed to get his land for her husband, King Ahab. So God took his revenge against Ahab and Jezebel by killing their son Joram on the same piece of land. Jehu then continued pursuing Ahaziah whom he wounded. Ahaziah escaped to Megiddo and died there.
The Death of Jezebel
Jehu then goes after Jezebel. He sees her sitting out on a balcony of her palace waiting for him, and he has a few eunuchs throw her body down. She hits the wall before hitting the ground, and she is trampled on by horses. Jehu goes in to eat and tells some of his servants to bury her body but when they go to perform this task they only find her skull, feet, and hands.
The Rest of Jehu’s Reign
King Jehu spent the rest of his reign wiping out the remaining members of Ahab’s lineage and he also wiped out all of the people who were associated with this evil king. King Jehu was able to rid Israel of Baal worship by eliminating all of the prophets of this false god. The only thing that he didn’t do was to get rid of the Golden Calf worship that was started by Jeroboam when the kingdom first split. Jehu ruled the land for 28 years before he passed away.
Biblical References
- 2 Kings 9:1-13 Jehu is anointed king, and God gives him the task of eliminating the rest of Ahab’s family line.
- 2 Kings 9:14-29 King Ahaziah and King Joram are killed by Jehu.
- 2 Kings, 9 Jezebel is killed by Jehu.
- 2 Kings 10 Jehu wiped out Baal worship, but he doesn’t do away with the Golden Calf religion.
