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Share(יז) וַֽיְהִי֙ דְּבַר־ה׳ אֶל־אֵלִיָּ֥הוּ הַתִּשְׁבִּ֖י לֵאמֹֽר׃ (יח) ק֣וּם רֵ֗ד לִקְרַ֛את אַחְאָ֥ב מֶלֶךְ־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל אֲשֶׁ֣ר בְּשֹׁמְר֑וֹן הִנֵּה֙ בְּכֶ֣רֶם נָב֔וֹת אֲשֶׁר־יָ֥רַד שָׁ֖ם לְרִשְׁתּֽוֹ׃ (יט) וְדִבַּרְתָּ֨ אֵלָ֜יו לֵאמֹ֗ר כֹּ֚ה אָמַ֣ר ה׳ הֲרָצַ֖חְתָּ וְגַם־יָרָ֑שְׁתָּ וְדִבַּרְתָּ֨ אֵלָ֜יו לֵאמֹ֗ר כֹּ֚ה אָמַ֣ר ה׳ בִּמְק֗וֹם אֲשֶׁ֨ר לָקְק֤וּ הַכְּלָבִים֙ אֶת־דַּ֣ם נָב֔וֹת יָלֹ֧קּוּ הַכְּלָבִ֛ים אֶת־דָּמְךָ֖ גַּם־אָֽתָּה׃
(21) Joram ordered, “Hitch up [the chariot]!” They hitched up his chariot; and King Joram of Israel and King Ahaziah of Judah went out, each in his own chariot, to meet Jehu. They met him at the field of Naboth the Jezreelite. (22) When Joram saw Jehu, he asked, “Is all well, Jehu?” But Jehu replied, “How can all be well as long as your mother Jezebel carries on her countless whoredoms and sorceries?” (23) Thereupon Joram turned his horsese around and fled, crying out to Ahaziah, “Treason, Ahaziah!” (24) But Jehu drew his bow and hit Joram between the shoulders, so that the arrow pierced his heart; and he collapsed in his chariot.
(30) Jehu went on to Jezreel. When Jezebel heard of it, she painted her eyes with kohl and dressed her hair, and she looked out of the window. (31) As Jehu entered the gate, she called out, “Is all well, Zimri, murderer of your master?” (32) He looked up toward the window and said, “Who is on my side, who?” And two or three eunuchs leaned out toward him. (33) “Throw her down,” he said. They threw her down; and her blood spattered on the wall and on the horses, and they trampled her. (34) Then he went inside and ate and drank. And he said, “Attend to that cursed woman and bury her, for she was a king’s daughter.” (35) So they went to bury her; but all they found of her were the skull, the feet, and the hands. (36) They came back and reported to him; and he said, “It is just as GOD spoke through Elijah the Tishbite—God’s servant: The dogs shall devour the flesh of Jezebel in the field of Jezreel; (37) and the carcass of Jezebel shall be like dung on the ground, in the field of Jezreel, so that none will be able to say: ‘This was Jezebel.’”
(19) Whoever sacrifices to a god other than the LORD alone shall be proscribed. (20) You shall not wrong or oppress a stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt. (21) You [communal leaders] shall not ill-treat any widow or orphan. (22) If you do mistreat them, I will heed their outcry as soon as they cry out to Me, (23) and My anger shall blaze forth and I will put you to the sword, and your own wives shall become widows and your children orphans.
(2) You shall neither side with the mighty to do wrong—you shall not give perverse testimony in a dispute so as to pervert it in favor of the mighty— (3) nor shall you show deference to a poor person in a dispute.
Unlike the metaphors of God as king and father, the metaphors of God as a loving husband and the devoted teacher do not require reward and punishment to play a significant role in the covenantal relationship. They are not frameworks of absolute power of one covenantal partner over the other, but frameworks in which the integrity of both partners is recognized and the human partner is enabled to feel personal dignity and to develop the capabilities of responsibility. These are the metaphors that illustrate my understanding of the Sinai covenant as mediated by the talmudic tradition.
What distinguishes this law code, first of all, is its ethical bent. While other Near Eastern codes differentiate between nobles and freemen, the Covenant Code makes no such distinction. Even slaves are treated as persons, though there is some differentiation between their status in the law and that of freemen. The exhortations at the end of the code affirm the ethical behavior demanded of each individual, even when there can be no judicial enforcement. A distinction is made between the Israelite and the foreigner, especially in the slave law, but even one’s “enemy” deserves kind behavior. Even the stranger—that is, the nonnative, or noncitizen—should not be oppressed. Secondly, the code is not simply a civil code regulating judicial processes and everyday behaviors of people: it is a code that demands the exclusive worship of the God of Israel. Civil and religious law are intertwined ...
The [Covenant] [C]ode reflects the religious and ethical principles fought for by the prophets Elijah and Elisha. Thus, the very revolution instigated by these two prophets in Northern Israel resulted in the first law code recorded in the Bible. And central to its authoritative role is the very idea of covenant, a critical political concept of Northern Israel ...
What triumphed with the revolution of Jehu was a prophetic vision: Israel stood in relation to Israel’s God, Adonai; the two were attached to each other, covenanted with each other. Israel’s God demanded exclusive worship, the exercise of uncorrupted justice, and the formation of a society in which the least among them was cared for. In return, the people Israel would receive God’s protective care. God will be “an enemy to your enemies” (23:22) and “God will bless your bread and your water and will remove sickness from your midst” (23:25). The code is a fusion of the culture of the Near East, the new reality of an increasingly wealthy Northern Israelite confederation, and prophetic ideals. This fusion creates a new national consciousness, a covenanted relation between Israel and its God. If the people Israel remain loyal to this covenant, God will protect them. God and Israel are related to each other, covenanted with each other. Indeed, the latter prophets in Northern Israel, Amos and Hosea, would describe the covenantal relationship as that of husband and wife, or parent and child, metaphors for the most intimate of relationships.
