Daughter Of The Sea.

Chapter 18

The next few months found Jezebel's mind a juxtaposition of thoughts. Thoughts of being a mother and thoughts of murderous intent. Thoughts of giving life and thoughts of taking life.

As the baby grew inside her, she experienced great satisfaction. She had successfully achieved her goal of becoming pregnant again. There was always a chance it might not be a boy but her confidence overpowered any negative thoughts that tried to enter her head.

Except for thoughts concerning the baby she was carrying, Jezebel's mind was filled with malicious schemes against Elijah. She couldn't understand why this vile smelling, unkempt prophet of Yahweh, dressed in animal skins, was even allowed in the palace, much less the influence he had over the king. His demise was constantly on her mind.

One morning, on her way to the Baal temple, to worship and conduct the daily instruction of the young priestesses, her procession was brought to a halt a few metres from the Baal temple gates. She beckoned one of the temple guards who surrounded her and inquired as to the delay.

He informed the High Priestess that prophets of Yahweh were blocking their path. Her anger immediately rose. She forced her way to the front of the procession until she stood face to face with the barricade of men shouting at and arguing with the people trying to enter the temple's gate.

Striding to the nearest bearded figure, standing there shouting and stomping his staff on the ground, Jezebel wasn't quite sure how she would make herself heard above the din.

As she broke free of the procession, as if on cue, the crowd fell silent. The only noise was that of people scuffling to get a better view of the High Priestess, their Queen.
She spat out her words.

"Who are you? What do you want?"

The bearded man looked at Jezebel with unblinking eyes and answered:

"We are prophets of the Most High God. The One and Only God. God of Israel, His chosen people. We have come to warn the people that if they walk through those gates, they enter hell. Unless they repent, their souls will be lost forever!"

Jezebel countered.

"Your God is jealous, jealous because everyday scores of people enter these gates to partake of the pleasures that Baal worship affords them. What do you offer... nothing! Begone with you. All of you, go, before my guards draw their swords."

The prophet lifted up his staff and with his voice booming across the crowds declared,

"Behold the whore of Tyre, the harlot of Sidon who has provoked the Wrath of the Lord!"

The Queen was so shocked at these words she stumbled back. At the same time the temple guard standing closest to the queen leapt forward and slashed the prophet, who had defamed the queen, across the chest with his sword.

The prophet had his water skin strapped over his shoulder. The blow from the sword had cut into the skin bag and now the water leaked out. The prophet slowly sank to his knees. Two prophets rushed to his aid and holding him under his arms, they held him upright.

The wounded prophet looked at Jezebel. For the last time he again raised his voice.

"Just as the blade has cut my waterskin and it has run dry, so your sharp words and evil deeds have cut the clouds in the sky. They have run dry. The wind will scatter the clouds. They are driven away.
No rain will fall on this land until the people repent and return to the Most High God."
The prophet shifted his gaze from the Queen to the people standing nearby.

"Your crops will die, your cattle and sheep will die. Your children will cry with thirst and the small birds will sit on their faces and drink their tears. Run from Baal, return to the God of your fathers."

With those words the prophet slipped from the grip of his friends and sank in a crumpled heap on the ground.

Jezebel, having recovered from her initial shock of being called a whore, became as one possessed. She screamed to her temple guards to put all the prophets to the sword. There was complete pandemonium. People were running and shouting, scared of being mistaken for a prophet. The prophets themselves ran off in all directions, the temple guards in hot pursuit.