Oil unaware

(locking hands with Jehu)

the time of the Lord’s cleaning house had come. The edict had been spoken. All of Ahab’s household, the men — from top to bottom — would be no more as of this day.

Jehu — of whom the oil of the Lord had surprisingly been splashed upon his head — was about to exercise his first acts.

The letter was even now leaving his hand:

“To the rulers of Jezreel in Samaria, to the mentors who have cared for the King’s many many sons, the those who have reared the pups of the dark Mongrel, take your master’s children now and approach the throne of their father to tear him now down to the ground!”

the readers of that letter were told to take their fortified weapons and fortified city and to rise up to challenge the one who had wickedly ruled them.

but the readers of that letter trembled for the task.

“Look, two armies of kings could not knock out our father, how can you now expect us to accomplish this job? Tell us something else to do, for we are at your command.”

So a second letter went out from Jehu:

“If you are indeed for me then, obey my voice and take then the heads of the kings 70 sons from off of their bodies now. Catch them before they flee. If you will not proclaim a new king, then bring your masters seeds, their heads now to me to the entrance of the great gate!”

this they did. When the letter was read and digested, they did round up the king’s sons and slew them with no mercy. And they laid their heads at the gate forementioned.

So it was that Jehu went out and proclaimed them aright, having obeyed the intentions of God. And in doing he confessed his finishing off of Ahab himself and asked them to confess which among them had ended the lives of his sons.

Then, in lieu of letter, he spoke the words of power before them:

“Understand now, that no part of what the Lord has proclaimed shall fall impotent or forgotten to the earth. All he proclaimed which would befall that King who killed his prophets and obedient servants, shall now come to pass.

Behold now, the finishing of Elijah’s foretellings.”

So Jehu ripped out the life of all who were yet of the household of Ahab there. All his great men fell; all of his close acquaintances also. Not a priest of Ahab’s was allowed to continue taking breath.

And as Ahab traveled to Samaria, he met the Shepherds of Beth Eked.

“Who are you,” he asked.

“We are the brothers of Ahazia, and we have come to greet the sons of the king and queen mother.”

“Take them now where they stand, but don’t yet slay them,” said Jehu.

Taking them then to the well of Beth Eked, there they did rob their disobedient blood of them, 42 men of them, none were left to carry out further dreams.

Leaving from there, Jehu met Jehonadab.

“How goes it with your heart,” he asked. “Is your heart right as mine is towards yours? If it is then give me your hand.”

And so Jehonadab allowed their hands to lock.

Taking him up into his chariot, he said:

“come with me then, Jehonadab, and behold the utter devotion I hold to the Lord.”

And so Johonadab witnessed the killing of who remained on the earth to Ahab. All this to show that God’s words were not false, what he had spoken through Elijah about the killers of God’s faithful.

And then a final trap was laid.

Jehu issued a call for all of the followers of Baal to come. He proclaimed that Ahab had served Baal a little, but that Jehu would serve him he even more mightily, this a trick to get every follower of Baal into a place where he could dispatch of them..

Believing with enthusiasm and desiring to worship Baal even more the false-worshipers did turn out in droves, in their entirety.

And therein they found their doom, as surrounded by the guards of Jehu the command went out to not allow a single one of them to escape with their breath and hope.

So severe was the plan and the command, that any guard found allowing an escape of the worshipers of Baal would himself pay with the losing of his own life.

And so it was that Baal worship was cleared from the land.

And in the place the bodies rotted, God ordained it that their cemetery of deception would be place for depositing the refuse and trash of those regions.