11/16/25 “Ahab & Jezebel”
Growing up in the late 70’s and early 80’s, one of my favorite television shows was The Muppet Show.
There was the Pragmatic Kermit the Frog
….The emotional Miss Piggy….the insecure Fozzie Bear….the eccentric Gonzo the Great…the loyal stagehand Scooter….the easygoing pianist Rowlf the Dog….the crazed drummer Animal....the unique lab assistant Beaker….the non-sensical Swedish Chef…and – of course…my personal favorites – Statler and Waldorf…..the two grumpy old hecklers in the audience.
Well, there was one thing that all of these Muppets had in common…they were all just extravagant puppets.
None of them could move, speak, sing, or throw pots and pans around the kitchen all by themselves….they were only doing what their human puppeteers were making them do…
They were being manipulated by an external force….
The Muppets had no free will to change their behavior – because…well, they weren’t really alive.
Muppets were just polyfoam shaped animals or humans covered with fake skin, fur or feathers.
They each had no choice but to do what their puppeteer wanted them to do
Well, our passage for today describes something similar…
But this time, it involves a real human being…with actual free will
Even though Ahab is a king…an evil king at that - he is also …in many ways…a puppet.
…And the one who seems to be pulling the strings of his life is none other than his own wife – the domineering…and even more wicked…Queen Jezebel.
Unfortunately, this duo may get the award for being the Bible’s worst married couple…
Everything that represents God’s nature….goodness, kindness, love, justice, fairness, compassion, truth….
These two people seem to exemplify the exact opposite of all of these qualities.
Their marriage was full of immorality, wickedness, and disobedience….
…not to mention they completely rejected God’s design for domestic roles and responsibilities within a marriage.
Hey….If you want to feel good about your own marriage…no matter what you might be struggling with….just think of Ahab and Jezebel….
…suddenly that little spat you had last night about what temperature to set the thermostat in the house doesn’t seem so bad, right?
So, Before we look at today’s passage of scripture….let’s take a moment to remind ourselves who Ahab and Jezebel were.
Ahab was born around 918 BC in the Northern kingdom of what – at the time - was a divided nation….
….you had the kingdom of Israel to the North….and the kingdom of Judah to the South.
This was a time when royalty of both kingdoms was continually getting more and more disobedient to God’s commands and…typically…– as the King went morally– so went the entire nation as a whole…
Ahab reigned as king for 22 years in the Northern Kingdom, and, according to 1 Kings 16:30, he “…Did more evil in the eyes of the Lord than any of those before him.”…..Not a glowing legacy.
A big part of the evil referenced in verse 30 had to do with how Ahab – heavily influenced by his wife, Jezebel, - began to worship Baal….the Canaanite god of fertility and rain…
1 Kings 16:33 also tells us that Ahab made for himself an Ashera pole….
This was basically a tree or pole in one’s house meant to honor the pagan Canaanite goddess of fertility named Ashera…
It’s difficult to even fathom an Israelite king stooping to the level of worshipping false gods, rather than the one true God….
Especially when we consider all of the miraculous things Yahweh God did for the Israelites throughout their history….
One of the reasons Ahab began worshipping false gods is because of his wife, Jezebel, who had been raised in a pagan culture where these false deities were highly revered…
…and this brings us to the puppet portion of Ahab’s personality.
Even though Ahab was a king…he was also a timid, fearful, apprehensive, childish, individual….
….He lived in a sort of fearful submission to his extremely dominant, determined, and overbearing wife.
These days, we would say that Jezebel ‘wore the pants’ in the family….without a doubt.
Jezebel held the strings that moved the words and actions of her puppet husband…king Ahab…
One might say that during those 22 years when Ahab was on the throne… it was actually queen Jezebel who was really on the throne calling the shots
Some history on Jezebel: We read in 1 Kings 16:31 that Jezebel was the daughter of Ethbaal, the king of Sidon.
During this period of time…Sidon was a major city located on the coast of the Mediterranean sea….Modern day Lebanon.
Sidon was a cosmopolitan port with most of its inhabitants bowing down to the false gods Baal and Ashera…as well as numerous other ‘lesser gods’
It was in this pagan cultural environment that Jezebel was raised and – as a king’s daughter – she was used to getting everything she wanted…when she wanted it.
When she and Ahab become united in marriage – mostly a marriage of political strategy – it amounted to the evil gasoline of Jezebel being poured onto the wicked fire of Ahab….
…and together, they would produce one of the most ungodly, corrupt, wildfire marriages in all of history.
If we look at Today’s passage – we see but one example of how this couple’s deadly dysfunctionality would often express itself.
Verse 1 (1 Kings 21:1) tells us about a certain vineyard near king Ahab’s palace owned by a man named Naboth.
It was a nice piece of land….and king Ahab decides that he wants that piece of property to plant a vegetable garden….rumor had it Ahab also loved mushrooms…probably wanted to raise plenty of those as well 😊
So, Ahab goes to Naboth and tells him that he loves his property…and that he wants to buy it….
But – Naboth refuses to sell it to the king.
This would have taken some intestinal fortitude on Naboth’s part to reject the king in this way….especially a wicked, godless king.
So…Ahab – who is used to getting everything he wants – goes home to the palace and throws a temper tantrum.
Like a kid who didn’t get the video game he wanted for Christmas…king Ahab is upset about how unfair life is treating him at the moment…and he lets everyone around him know it.
Verse 4 (1 Kings 21:4) says that he “Lay on his bed sulking and refusing to eat.”
Doesn’t this remind you of what a 4-year-old would do when things don’t go their way….
….”I’m going to my room….and I’m not coming out until I get what I want!”
….Ahab is a spoiled, selfish, child…stuck in a man’s body.
This may have been as far as things would progress concerning Naboth’s vineyard….had the royal queen not been made aware of the whole scenario….
Jezebel sees Ahab acting like Eeyore the donkey….moping around, not eating, feeling sorry for himself.
She asks him what his problem is….and – unfortunately for Naboth – Ahab tells her.
So, the next several verses describe a plan that Jezebel hatches that will remove the one thing that stood in the way between Ahab and his beautiful vegetable garden…
….that one thing was Naboth himself.
Jezebel instructs a few shady local authorities to find some ‘scoundrels’ and have them claim that Naboth cursed both God and King….
…this would have been a capital offense in those days…giving Jezebel legal recourse to have Naboth done away with.
Sadly, her plan works to perfection.
…and Naboth loses his life.
Jezebel has blood on her hands…but it doesn’t seem to bother her a bit.
Verse 15 (1 Kings 21:15) says, “As soon as Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned to death, she said to Ahab, ‘Get up and take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite that he refused to sell you. He is no longer alive, but dead.”
I think it’s safe to say that Jezebel was not losing any sleep over the results of her murderous scheme…
And – sadly – neither is her personal puppet Ahab, it seems.
The very next verse (1 Kings 21:16) tells us “When Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, he got up and went down to take possession of Naboth’s vineyard.”
There is no regard for the man who was wrongfully accused and put to death…
No shock or horror about his wife being a murderer….Ahab is thinking only about himself and his selfish desires…
In verse 17, we meet a fourth character in this saga.
Naboth is the innocent victim
Jezebel is the evil murderer
Ahab is the spineless puppet of his wife
And now we meet - Elijah….the man of God.
Elijah was a prophet…someone who God used to reveal His will and Word of truth to the people of Israel.
Elijah confronts Ahab about the injustice done to Naboth….
…and he delivers a frightening prophecy regarding what will happen to both Ahab and Jezebel because of their evil and wicked lifestyle.
God says through Elijah in verse 20 (1 Kings 21:20-21) “Because you have sold yourself to do evil in the eyes of the Lord. I am going to bring disaster on you.”
Verse 23 (1 Kings 21:23) goes on to say “And also concerning Jezebel, the Lord says: ‘Dogs will devour Jezebel by the wall of Jezreel’”
These verses are good reminders that sin will always have consequences in one’s life…
…maybe those consequences will be immediate…maybe they’ll be delayed…
But there will always be ramifications for acts of disobedience to God.
This morning, maybe some of you are wondering why your marriage is enduring a long season of disharmony and pain…
Why does it seem as though every day is a struggle just to get along?
Why is there a consistent lack of humility and forgiveness?
Why has a root of bitterness grown up between you?
So many times, the cause for these things stems from unaddressed and unrepentant sin within the life of one – or both – partners in the marital union.
When sin goes unresolved….there will always ALWAYS be consequences that will affect all of our relationships…
…and for those of you who are married…the relationship in your life that will experience these consequences with the most force will be the relationship you have with your spouse.
The more intimate the relationship – the more the effects of sin will manifest themselves.
In the case of Ahab and Jezebel, their sins were so egregious before God that it can hardly be said that they had any relationship at all…
…Theirs was a love-less marriage full of self-fulfillment, hatred, and egotistical pride.
But - on the contrary, if we commit ourselves to the Lord....
If we repent of our individual sins…and seek forgiveness for our own disobedient thoughts, attitudes, and actions…
God will heal that marriage…and He will restore the love that’s been missing
Folks, that’s great news!
….and it isn’t just about the marital relationship.
This principle of ensuring that our life is right with God will positively affect every relationship in your life…
Whether it’s with your children….a parent…a sibling…a co-worker…a friend…even an ex-husband or ex-wife…
Every relationship becomes strengthened when we decide to honestly take care of our own mess first.
The final few verses of today’s passage reveal that Ahab apparently felt some sort of regret for his actions after being confronted by Elijah…
…regret to the extent that God did show extended mercy toward him.
However, it appears as though Ahab only repented partially…
Nowhere are we told that he ever restored Naboth’s vineyard back to his family…or tore down his Ashera pole…or ended his worship to Baal…
It almost seems as though Ahab felt bad about what he did - because he got caught…
Don’t allow this to ever be a defining characteristic of your marriage…
Don’t live in continual disobedience to God….to only ask for forgiveness when the walls of your marriage are crashing down.
There’s the old adage: “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”, right?
How true that is within the marital relationship.
As many of you know…a healthy marriage takes work…it takes sacrifice…it takes intentionality…
…we have to be proactive – not reactive – when it comes to all of these things.
When two people share the same square footage day after day…
Two people who – many times - have different personalities, interests, and goals…
This scenario does not naturally default to harmony, grace, and love.
It takes work.
It takes – first and foremost - service to God….then service to your spouse.
If every individual took those words seriously and implemented them in their lives…there would be no divorce.
Did you hear that?
If every married person alive today completely submitted their lives to Jesus Christ….divorce would cease to exist.
I know…That’s a bold statement…but it’s true.
Divorce attorneys would be out of a job….
If all married people understood that it really isn’t about their partner…and their faults….
..and that its actually about themselves…and getting their life in submission to Christ first and foremost.
There have been thousands of books written about how to save one’s marriage….countless seminars and counseling opportunities are available in this world
….but folks, the secret to a healthy, fulfilling, and joy-filled marriage comes down to just 4 words:
Submit. To. Jesus. Christ.
It really is that simple…yet it can be very difficult to put into practice.
We humans have a difficult time with submission…even submission to the savior.
Lastly, part of the issue between Ahab and Jezebel that made their marriage so dysfunctional was how each of them completely disregarded God’s divine design for roles within a marriage.
Ahab was sinfully weak and cowardly…while Jezebel was sinfully overbearing and domineering….both living out the opposite of what God calls for in a marriage.
Paul tells the church in Ephesus that husbands are to be the spiritual leader in the home.
Ephesians 5:23 reads “For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church….”
Ahab neglected his God-given responsibility to lead his wife spiritually…he was completely AWOL when it came to being the protector of the home against demonic oppression…
…rather, he was a spineless coward, who relied upon his unscrupulous wife to make spiritual decisions for them both…
…and, since Jezebel lacked any moral compass whatsoever…their marriage was a sinful train wreck of idolatry, disobedience, and wickedness.
Husbands…don’t make your wives take on a responsibility that God never intended for them to take on….
Wives…encourage your husbands to step up to the plate and really lead…
…husbands – model what a man of God should be to the rest of your family.
…lead them in daily devotions…lead them in prayer…show by your actions – and your words - what it looks like to truly follow Jesus.
When you take the spiritual reigns in this way, you will be happier…your wife will be more fulfilled in your marriage.…and your children will grow up with a proper understanding of what a godly marriage should look like.
Unfortunately – today - there are way too many men who are Ahabs….
Dare I say…even in the church.
Way too many men have apathetically resigned themselves to letting their wives bear the burden of being the spiritual leader of the household.
Men – not only is this lazy and cowardly on your part…but it also shows a lack of concern for your wife…as she is left to take on a role that was designed for you to fill.
Guys…if this sounds like you this morning…it’s time to step up to the plate.
Lead with confidence and strength…and – as you lead - do it with compassion and love.
The kind of compassion and love that Christ has for His church.
And wives….give space for you husbands to be the spiritual leader in your households.
Allow him to fulfill that divinely-ordained role…because someday he will have to give an account before God as to how he fulfilled it.
Allow him to display his love for you through his act of service to his savior.
The incredibly dysfunctional marriage of Ahab and Jezebel teaches us many things about what a healthy marriage ought NOT look like…
Let’s learn from their errors…while keeping our relationships in line with God’s truth.
Let’s Pray.