Interview with Old Testament Figures – King Ahab: It is our pleasure to have a chat with one of the most controversial kings of ancient Israel, or the Northern Kingdom. He is none other than King Ahab, made famous by the antics of his Sidonian wife, Jezebel.
Shepherd Heart: Good to have you with us, King Ahab.
King Ahab: The pleasure is mine.
Shepherd Heart: Kindly tell our readers what you want them to know about you.
King Ahab: (Laughs) I am an open book. At least, the Holy Bible made sure that the world knows everything about me wart and all!
Shepherd Heart: That is true. However, we still prefer them to hear from the horses’ mouth.
King Ahab: All right then. I was the seventh king of the Northern Kingdom, and I succeeded my father, Omri. Throughout my reign, there was a fierce border war with Syria, in which Israel, in spite of occasional victories, proved the weaker.
This was not my fault though, as I did try my best to keep the kingdom together. My main adversaries were not my hostile neighbours, but prophets like Elijah and Elisha.
Shepherd Heart: Great! At least, you have given us something to work with. When you say that God’s prophets were your adversaries, are you insinuating that the Law of Moses, under which Israel received guidance from God, was unbearable to you?
King Ahab: I am sure that you are familiar with the history of the Northern Kingdom, right from when Jeroboam instituted it. By the time I was born, much of what was known about the God of Israel had faded from the memories of the people of the Northern Kingdom. We were just like the heathen nations around us.
Shepherd Heart: That sounds like a cop out excuse, King Ahab. Granted that your father, Omri served idols, perhaps your grandfather as well, was that enough for you to embrace the same darkness? At this time, God had not sent Israel into exile through the Assyrian King, Sennacherib.
You had Prophet Elijah and later Elisha as guiding lights. You refused to listen to them, and instead portrayed them as your enemies. Did you believe in the existence of a Supreme Being at all?
King Ahab: In ancient times, every nation had its own ‘god’. I grew up in an environment where most people accepted the worship of multiple deities as the norm.
That was why we resisted Elijah and Elisha because they tried to sell the idea of a monolithic religion to us. We had fun participating in the many rituals associated with heathen gods.
Shepherd Heart: From the Scriptural standpoint, you had made up your mind to disobey the God of Israel even before your wife Jezebel came into your life with her own spiritual baggage. God had forbidden the children of Israel from marrying people from the heathen nations. Why did you ignore this charge?
King Ahab: The simple answer is that I did not have any relationship with God. I was not even sure of His existence! On the other hand, the deities of our heathen neighbours revealed themselves through their priests, and honour whatever sacrifices we gave to them by making things happen in our lives.
Almighty God chose to hide Himself. Of course, we could not even get Him to do things for us at will. That is the same reason the occult attractive in your generation. Many people want to be able to control their destinies. Satan and his demons exploit such desires to present themselves as saviours.
Shepherd Heart: Let us move on to your famed relationship with your wife. When I was young in faith, the fellowship I attended had a teaching series on submission. The brother who handled the teachings held up the relationship between you and your wife as something unscriptural.
According, to him, the Biblical standard is for the man to be the head of his home, and for the wife to submit to her husband’s authority. In your own case, Jezebel obviously was in charge. Why did you allow her to wield such powers at home and in state affairs?
King Ahab: (Laughs) Maybe her love and beauty were too intoxicating for me to resist. I cannot now explain to you who live in the 21st century, what it meant to have someone who had your back, in hostile environment where power tussle was intense.
Added to this, she singlehandedly created another religion in the country, the worship of Baal, which was the reigning deity in the region.
Shepherd Heart: Are you saying that you never experienced any uneasiness over Jezebel’s excesses?
King Ahab: I did not see her job at home or in the country through the eyes of Scripture. To me, she was a loving wife trying her best to protect her husband’s interest.
Shepherd Heart: So, you had no qualms when she murdered Naboth and gave you his land to plant vegetables?
King Ahab: Greed is a poison that destroys human conscience. I had lost mine even before Jezebel intervened. I wanted that piece of land at all cost.
Shepherd Heart: With the benefits of hindsight, how would you have related with Jezebel?
King Ahab: Now, I can say with all honesty that a man must or should bear rule in his home. If God had given me another opportunity to return to the earth, with the understanding I now have, I would have been a better king and husband.
Men ought to be the thinking and reasoning part of the home, just as the women folks are stronger emotionally. When a man concedes his role to the woman and becomes subservient to her, God’s eternal order is compromised,
Shepherd Heart: We are glad that you now see things through God’s eyes. What counsel can you give to the men of the 21st century who have allowed their deep affections for their wives to undermine their thinking faculties?
King Ahab: Almighty God charged men to love their wives. That is the basic requirement for a stable marriage and home. However, love for a spouse should not displace our love for God. Humans are required to love God with the totality of their being – heart, soul, strength, mind.
The moment we make our spouses number one, we fall into idolatry. That was what I did with Jezebel. So, dear friends, make every effort to cultivate a deep relationship with God. You cannot love Him when He is not real to you.
The only way He can reveal Himself to you is when you seek Him with your whole heart. God desires to be pursued and courted; just as we do when we fall in love with a woman. Spend time in His presence.
Do not be discouraged if He does not speak to you or answer your prayers. Persevere in the quest to apprehend Him. He is worth every effort and resources you can muster to reach His heart.
Shepherd Heart: Wow! You speak just like Paul the apostle. He said in Philippians chapter 3 verse 8, “Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ.”
Anyone who has genuinely encountered God through His Son knows the meaning of the word bliss. Almighty God is more intoxicating than all human intoxicants put together. Alcohol, drugs, illicit sex, none of these things hold a candle to our Father.
King Ahab: Satan knows that if anyone truly encounters God, he can never thirst for any other thing in this life. That is why he fights so hard to prevent people from yielding their all to Almighty God.
Shepherd Heart: We agree with you dear King. Thank you very much for sharing your thoughts with us. We pray that they would help many people to embrace God fully and escape from the darkness and death that the devil represents.
King Ahab: Thank you for having me. I enjoyed the chat.