Jezreel
“God sows or God scatters”
Summary
A significant name in Scripture referring to both a city in Issachar that served as a royal residence of Israel's kings, the extensive valley also known as Esdraelon, a town in Judah, and Hosea's symbolic firstborn son.
☩The City in Issachar
Jezreel was a city in the territory of Issachar that became the royal residence of Ahab and Jezebel. Situated on the brow of a rocky descent into the great plain, it commanded extensive views to the mountains of Gilead eastward and Mount Carmel westward. The palace complex included Jezebel's apartments on the city wall with windows facing east, and a watchtower for observing arrivals from the Jordan valley. Near the palace stood a temple and grove of Astarte, supported by Jezebel's 400 priests. Adjacent to the royal grounds was the vineyard of Naboth, which Ahab coveted and Jezebel obtained through judicial murder. Here Elijah confronted Ahab, and here Jehu executed his bloody commission against the house of Ahab, where Jezebel met her gruesome end.
☩The Valley of Jezreel
The valley of Jezreel (called Esdraelon in the Apocrypha) stretches across central Palestine from the Mediterranean to the Jordan, separating Samaria from Galilee. This irregular triangular plain, drained by the Kishon River, has been called Palestine's battlefield throughout history. Here Barak triumphed over Sisera, Gideon defeated Midian, and Josiah fell to Pharaoh Necho at Megiddo. It is identified with Armageddon, the prophesied site of the final battle.
☩Hosea's Symbolic Son
God commanded Hosea to name his firstborn son Jezreel as a prophetic sign. The name carries dual meaning: 'God scatters' (judgment) and 'God sows' (restoration). Initially, it signified that God would avenge the blood shed at Jezreel upon the house of Jehu and end the kingdom of Israel. But prophetically, 'great shall be the day of Jezreel' when Israel and Judah are reunited and God sows them again in their land.
Related Verses33 mentions
References
- 1.John McClintock and James Strong, "Jezreel," in Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, vol. IV (Harper & Brothers, 1867–1887).
- 2.James Orr (ed.), "Jezreel," in International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, vol. III (Howard-Severance Company, 1915).
- 3.F. N. Peloubet & M. A. Peloubet (ed.), "Jezreel," in Smith's Bible Dictionary (Porter & Coates, 1884).
- 4.Andrew Robert Fausset, "Jezreel (1)," in The Englishman's Critical and Expository Bible Cyclopædia (Hodder & Stoughton, 1878).