Athaliah, daughter of Jezebel
novel by
Mordechai Landsberg
Copyright © 2012 Mordechai Landsberg
All Rights Reserved.
PART ONE
CHAPTER 1
Ahab, the greatest king of northern ten tribes of Israel, was seated in his chariot, leading a small royal caravan of four vehicles and ten horseriders. The galloping horses caused the chariots to dangle on the mountenous Royal Way, leading from Samaria toward Jerusalem. It was a colorful spring in the country. The fields blossomed by dotted red anemones and poppys and stains of yellow grounsel flowers. In each chariot there was at least one armed guard, and the escorting horseriders had swords in their scabbards, as well as bows and arrows loaded on their horsebacks. Though it was a peaceful time, the king was suspicious and cautious along the way.
The eyes of his daughter, Athaliah, a daring seventeen teenager, were searching for some action. She hoped that first time in her life she would see sideways’ robbers, that she had heard about. But those villains had seemingly disappeared. Her mother Jezebel, sitting beside her in the carriage, argued that they all were having now better businesses.
“Your father Ahab had enriched the people,” she told her, “So all the past outlaws have found less dangerous jobs. Attacking armed guards of honorable traders – may have brought their death …”
Athaliah was dressed in a white wedding dress. A garland of white narcissus scented the air and ornamented her black smooth long hair. She was sitting with her mother in the rear seat of the second chariot - drawn by two brown Egyptian born horses. She was now maditating how her new life in Jerusalem would look like. She was going to be married to the crown prince of Judea, Jehoram, who was about twenty at that time. ‘How could I have a feeling of love for him?’ she asked herself, ‘having seen him only once... Nor did I have a sense of enjoyment to imagine the soon coming rich wedding ceremony. I just feel that my duty is to marry prince Jehoram, the future king of Jerusalem. Well, Mom tells me I am lucky...’
Her father Ahab had planned all that. He had called her to his room, and ordered her to accept the marriage. It had happened about half a year before. Of course, her mother Jezebel was present in that meeting. She had her own experience in such deals. Her father, Phoenician king Eth-Baal of Tsydon, had brought a similar message to her years before. She became to love her husband, and had never complained of that deal.
King Ahab would use the opportunity of attending the wedding in Jerusalem – for political talks with king Jehoshafat, the bridegroom’s father. They had agreed to sign a contract about ‘strengthening Alliance by a wedding deal.’ It was quite a common phenomenon in the ancient royal world of the middle east at that time:
Judea had existed like a hidden territory in the southern part of Israel. Ahab had one clear purpose in bringing his only daughter there: That King David’s offspring would be under his control, as a ruler of Norhtern Israel bigger kingdom. The Judean little king and his dynasty should not dream about bringing back king David’s era - of Grand Israel. They should not try to conquer any of Ahab’s northern Israeli territories, and by that extend Judea’s kingdom. Both kings will vow in that marriage deal – not to collborate with the Egyptians nor the Adomites nor the Arameans against each other. They should come to each other’s help when one is endangered by vicious enemies...
Athaliah’s future husband was called Jehoram. That name was quite similar to her youngr brother’s name: Joram. Both names had the Hebrew meaning of: God is the super power, highest over all, the sublime… (But God hurt both at the end, as their ‘belief in Him had not been full hearted’ - according to the Bible).
Jehoram was in bed with Athaliah - late at night after the wedding ceremony, which was led by God’s priests. Jehoram soon discerned that she had not been a virgin. He was an experienced male, and restrained his fury. He tried to seem like talking nonchallantly, in a mature manner:
“I really don’t mind who had been your first lover,” he said, but then added rudely: “or your monkey face fucker. I only hope you’ve not told somebody about that. If people know that I’ve married an experienced lady - it would smirch mud on my name and fame. It would bring a shame on my dignified family! So, I’ll stab you - if a tail of the tale leaks to the public. Understand? My dignity is the core of my life!”
“You are mistaken - being so angry,” Athaliah answered meekly, “My dear husband, You are right to think I’ve conducted a mischief to you…But - my mother Jezebel should be blamed. She has caused that …”
“What? What d’you mean by these words: she has caused?” roared the future king of Judea.
“When I was twelve,” ‘confessed’ Athaliah, “My Mom hit me in my hidden crack… By…by a bare branch. It’s a well known habit in our family. Its purpose - to prevent a shame from those girls who get willingly lied in teenage.”
“It’s a transparent bluff, you sinful girl!” shouted the crown prince.
“Believe me, I have not lied with any male before you, My king. I swear it.... In the name of God and Baal together.”
A variety of gods was the common belief of the high society in Ahab’s days. Later on it was called ‘syncretistic type of worshipping supernatural powers.’. Athaliah inherited that infusion of religion and belief systems from her powerful parents: The ancient God of Israel, and the overwhelmingly strong Knaanite Baal, god of Nature – were both worthy to be worshipped…
“I’ll investigate the matter with your Mom,” said crown prince Jehoram to Athaliah... He had not believed his new wife’s queer tale, and immediately sent to call a virgin girl from his ‘maids’ collection’- to their room. He lied with his new mistress in Athaliah’s presence. She turned her face from the couple, hiding a cynical smile.
“All my friends and acqaintances,” Jehoram then told Athaliah, who pretended shyness, “all must see tomorrow morning, that our white cotton sheet had been bloodstained. We hang it on the balcony, outside.”
Next morning Jehoram really investigated the matter with Athaliah’s mother, Jezebel. She had been still in the Judean palace, after the wedding celebration. Jezebel had known the truth, of course, about her naughty, free sexed daughter. But she confirmed - as agreed upon by two long before, that Athaliah’s tale had been true. She added her vow regarding that, by raising her right hand and saying: “Baal will cut it, if I lie to you, dear step-son.”
The crown prince of Judea had been sure, that both Athaliah and Jezebel had conspired her purity.‘However, nobility commits me to pretend, that I believe them,’ he said to himself irritatingly.
Jehoram soon seemed to forget the adolescence sins of Athaliah. He just wanted a male heir from her, as his father had promised his neighboring vigorous king Ahab. At first he was disappointed, when Athaliah had born a daughter. She was called Yehosheva (in Hebrew: God’s oath) - or Josabeth. But Athaliah’s second born, a year after, happened to be a son. He would become one day the prince crown, as both royal families had fervently wished that.
Jehoram agreed to Athaliah’s proposal to call this second baby: Ahaziah, which meant: God’s gift or help…
Soon after his son was born - Jehoram began to gather women to his bed, as a pigeons’ raiser would gather eggs from a nest. (There were not yet hens in the country at that time, according to archeologists, so we have to use piegeons as a symbol). He had taken five permanent mistresses-concubines to his princely palace. When he was crowned ten years later, he had taken also three new official wives into his bed. It was according to the well known tradition of the Judean kings - since Victorious King David and Wise King Solomon.
So it came about, that in her private marriage life Athaliah f
elt quite miserable and deserted. She had devoted her time to deal with her children., though she had gotten good maides who took care of them. The crown king was nominated by his ailing father – king Jehoshafat- as deputy commander of the army. So, his new military jobs had left him less time than before for his women and family.
Really, Jehoram should be praised, that despite his busy royal daily matters, he had found some time for Athaliah and her two little children. He used to come and see them one full night in a week. That was according to an ancient tradition: The first wife should be respected and dignified more than the others, and her first born son gets the privilege of birth. Taking into account that the Alliance agreement with Northern Israel was still valid, it committed Jehoram to raise his son Ahaziah as the successor –or ‘Crown-Prince’, when he himself would become king.
The once-a-week meeting arrangement had not satisfied Athaliah. She had her own ideas about how should a ‘would-be-king’s senior-wife’ dignity look like. She had known what a different attitude her father Ahab had had to her mother. Jezebel was a real Queen and collaborator in the rule of the Northern Israeli Kingdom. Athaliah wanted that the father of her children would dedicate more time to them, at least, if not to her. Only in that way, she had known, Jehoram would become to love them, if at all…She spoke with Jehoram about that, but in vain. So, already in early time of her marriage life - Athaliah refused lying any more with Jehoram, even when he had tried to break her obstinacy. But even she felt so insulted and sexually frustrated, she had refrained from a loud protest against her husband’s rough behavior. She had known, that either in pretiness or in wisdom – she had been well above all his other women. But he had persisted in his quite scornful attitude to her. She suffered from that behavior, felt humiliated, and began to get drunk. But her children were demanding her presence, and she had then enough will of power to stop pouring all types of wines into her stomach.
Athaliah was twenty three - when she heard that her father was killed in a battle against the Arameans. She had participated in the funeral - together with King Jehoshafat, her husband’s father. Jehoram himself remained in the small kingdom of Judea, in case that some unexpected events would rise…
Young Jerusalemite princess Athaliah was received very warmly by the people of her native town, Samaria. Most of them had not met her since her wedding. Jeaebel, her broken heart mother– requested her to stay a month with her, more than she had planned. Athaliah was really glad in trying to help her mother in her deep bereavemnet, and also renew acquaintances from her happy past. She sent a message to Judean King’s palace, that she must extend her stay in Samaria. So, despite the morbid atmosphere in Ahab’s palace - it was good for Athaliah’s spirit to revive her past views, noises and colors.
Athaliah’s both children became pupils at that time, and got teachers for writing, reading and arithmetics. On her way back home, Athaliah was thinking how in other circumstances she could have more spare time – for entertainment. Even gloomy bereaved Samaria had not caused her to forget how open and fresh and healthy her past had been there. Being so much sexually frustrated, she began to dream about developing a love affair with a young man. ‘But not here, in Judea’ –she reflected. She was afraid to have a lover from her husband’s kingdom: The tradition in Judea had always been, that only males of the royal family had the right and actually allowed to be profane.
For the time being Athaliah restrained herself. She refrained from being exposed to slander and gossip. However, she decided that once a year, preferably in springtime and summer beginning season, she should visit her family in Samaria. The vacation-like stay thre would take a month or two, and she would enjoy herself as much as possible. She expected that her sexual life would renewe in Goddess Ashera Days: The celebrations of these Idols worship- in spring and summer nights, were based on an ancient tradition: It had ecstasy dancing and music, that would bring people, quite strange to each other- to become close friends and lovers, and consume their desires together, in couples or groups. Athaliah remembered her sweet free teenage, celebrating with hundreds of other youths in the woods festivities. In one of these events - her first full intercourse had taken place. It was with a handsome fellow called Gera . She had known him before, as one of her mothers’ personal guards. His good manners, nice muscled shape and smart eyes - had enflamed her since the day she had become to know him. Their desires united under a cedar thick tree. They were standing naked, leaning on the wide trunk, and ‘mixing each other’s natural juices’, as Gera whispered to Athaliah. Both laughed while carressing each other with enormous tenderness. What a real joy it was. Her mother Jezebel had sent her there, to behave like the local common youths. Experience is a must, she said, for everyone, including the royal children…
‘A good dream is sometime better than a mere monotonous crossing of time through your life’- such thought passed in Athaliah’s mind not only once, ‘But you should know to store your patience, till some unexpected good opportunity would be brought by the Idols.’ She really felt responsibility for the continuation of the regime’s tight connections in the ‘two sisters kingdoms’. In that way of thinking she has been educated since younghood.
But now– her father was no longer living. She reflected that she should - at least partly- release herself from the cables of a severe and indifferent husband, who dislikes her.
CHAPTER 2
Athaliah, Daughter Of Jezebel Page 1