Valley of Jezreel

Biblical Events:

• Place where Jehu slaughtered the son of Ahab, took over Jezreel the city (Jezebel dies), then had 70 descendants of King Ahab killed (2 Kings 9-10).
• In an OT tension, while Elisha anoints Jehu king, Hosea 1:4-5 considers the slaughter of Ahab’s descendants abominable. Also, from a secular perspective, Jehu killed the “best and brightest” (not spiritually but in terms of earthly things) of Israel and in some ways led to a significant diminishment of Israel’s power in the region.

Some Pictures:

Looking into the Valley from the site of the city of Jezreel (Ahab’s southern palace). This is the direction from which Jehu would have approached Joram the son of Ahab. Joram and Ahaziah, king of Judah visiting, went out to meet Jehu, only to be pursued and killed by him.

The Jezreel Valley from the vantage point of Mt. Carmel looking eastward.