The reign of David and later Solomon marked Israel's high point. Afterward came years of decline, followed by disaster. After Solomon's death, in about 922 b. c., Israel divided into two kingdoms. To the south was Judah, which consisted of that tribe as well as Benjamin's and part of the Levite priestly tribe. It was ruled by members of David's dynasty. To the north was Israel, which consisted of the remaining ten tribes and was ruled by elected kings. Over the coming years, Judah had a number of wicked rulers, along with some good ones; by contrast, all of Israel's kings, according to the Bible, were evil.
Without a doubt the most notorious (no-TORE-ee-us; unfavorably well-known) rulers over Israel were the royal couple Ahab (AY-hab) and Jezebel (JEZ-uh-bell.) For years, the Israelites' god had been at war with other deities of the region, including the Canaanites' Baal (BAIL); the Phoenicians' Astarte (uh-STAR-tay), a variation on the Mesopotamian love goddess Ishtar; and others. Jezebel attempted to replace worship of Yahweh with that of Baal. Ahab tried to align (associate) Israel with its neighbors, something God had clearly forbidden. They committed various other evil deeds, such as killing a man to steal his vineyard (VIN-yurd.) God, through the prophet Elijah, another major figure of the Old Testament, dealt harshly with them.
World History
