So was King Ahab a magnificent or monstrous monarch?
While the chapters in Kings depict him as a religious renegade and the Talmud describes him as one of the worse villains ever, it’s important to remember that those biased perspectives are politically problematic to say the least.
Today’s chapter, depicting this second of four kings of the dynasty of Omri as a perfect gentlemen and shrewd politician offers a glimpse into who he may have actually been - beyond the propaganda. And there’s some extra-biblical evidence to prove it.
In his book The Forgotten Kingdom , Prof. Israel Finkelstein brings hard evidence to back up the theory that what we’re reading in the Bible is, at best, a biased later version of events:
“The Judahite author of Kings takes a negative approach to the northern kingdom in general and to the Omride kings and specially Ahab in particular. This is a result of the Judahite pan-Israelite ideology, which developed in the late eighth and more so in the late seventh century BCE.”
But why is Ahab still described with some positive attributes? Finkelstein suggests, as others do, that this is due to “Strong positive memories about the prosperity and power of Israel in the time of the Omride dynasty, including supremacy over Judah, which could have been carried to Judah by Israelites after the fall of the northern kingdom, many have stimulated much animosity in Judahite circles.”
And while the Bible will consistently downplay the importance of the Northern kingdom, archeology tells another story:
“In the time of the Omrides, the northern kingdom featured the first monumental building operation and reached its first period of economic prosperity and territorial power. Its military achievements are recorded in three extra biblical texts…
The strongest and most prosperous territorial kingdoms are Israel and Damascus. In the ninth and eighth centuries BCE they struggled for hegemony in the region under the influence of a third player: the Assyrian Empire.”
This geo-political reality is reflected in today’s chapter, featuring two major battles between King Ben Hadad of Damascus and King Ahab of Israel. Echoes of these battles can be found in archeological remains that describe a bitter dispute. But in our chapter, despite the bloodshed between the two nations, there is a surprising moment in which King Ahab not only spares the life of his opponent king but goes as far as naming him as family.
This scene is at the of the second major battle between the two nations, following brags by King Ben Hadad that he will subjugate all of Israel and make Ahab his slave. And while his army is much bigger and equipped, Ahab’s army wins the day, again. King Ben Hadad and his close circle are defeated, surrounded and plea for help. They are told that the Kings of Israel are merciful, and so they approach the winner of the war with humility:
וַיַּחְגְּרוּ֩ שַׂקִּ֨ים בְּמׇתְנֵיהֶ֜ם וַֽחֲבָלִ֣ים בְּרָאשֵׁיהֶ֗ם וַיָּבֹ֙אוּ֙ אֶל־מֶ֣לֶךְ יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל וַיֹּ֣אמְר֔וּ עַבְדְּךָ֧ בֶן־הֲדַ֛ד אָמַ֖ר תְּחִי־נָ֣א נַפְשִׁ֑י וַיֹּ֛אמֶר הַעוֹדֶ֥נּוּ חַ֖י אָחִ֥י הֽוּא׃
“They girded sackcloth on their loins and wound ropes around their heads, and came to the king of Israel and said, “Your servant Ben-hadad says, ‘I beg you, spare my life.’” He replied, “Is he still alive? He is my brother.”
Ahab doesn’t kill Ben Hadad despite the two battles and his enemy’s consistent threats. Instead they sign a truce which includes land return and financial benefits for Israel, as Ben Hadad rides safely home.
Ahab’s diplomacy and kindness may be seen as benevolent but the prophets of the day and the author of the chapter sees this act as treason and a big mistake. Ahab should have killed the other king, a prophet rails before him - and for this transgression he will pay with his own life and lose the kingdom.
Why the wrath against Ahab’s noble war time pardon? And why did he let the other king go free? This is the same king who will return, a third time, in the next chapter - to wage another war and this time - make sure Ahab is killed.
In Kings, Torn in Two, Alex Israel suggests a few options for Ahab’s choice:
“The Bible is highly critical of Ahab’s failure to kill Ben-Hadad. What is motivating Ahab? Upon an initial reading, we may well propose that Ahab simply spots a good business opportunity. He is aware that a generation earlier, during the reign of Baasha, Aram captured vast tracts of the Galilee. Rather than executing Ben-Hadad, here is a chance to leverage the situation and recoup lost territories. In addition, Israel is being offered unrestricted export access to Damascus, a rare opportunity to penetrate a foreign market. The revenues from such a move could be enormous. Ahab maximizes his military advantage, accruing huge benefits for the nation at large and its treasury.
Some have deemed Ahab’s motives political-military rather than economic. Archaeological evidence points in this direction. The Kurkh Monolith, an Assyrian document describing the wars of the Assyrian king Shalmanesser III, details a military alliance between the king of Aram and Ahab (who is described as unusually powerful). Historians have speculated that, aware of the looming Assyrian threat, Ahab sought a military alliance with Ben-Hadad against Assyria, as his forces alone were insufficient.
These theories regarding Ahab’s motives are certainly plausible, but when we study the text, we are jarred by the wistful lilt of his speech, his abject sentimentalism: “Is he still alive? He is my brother!” This response is alarming. Why does Ahab perceive this man as a brother? Here is a rival king who has attacked him twice, who humiliated him in Samaria, and about whom he has said, “See! This man is bent on destruction”
It may be answered that he was loath to slay a king. Class solidarity overlooks all other considerations. In other words, we are talking about a VIP club, a royal fraternity. Ahab spares Ben-Hadad simply because he shares his rank. Even between warring kings, it would appear that a royal, as a royal, deserves special treatment! Ahab has not made a calculated administrative decision after discerning that the economic benefits exceed the effectiveness of war; this is unadulterated favoritism! In this light, Ahab’s act of “mercy” becomes morally reprehensible.”
Perhaps the prophets’ attack against King Ahab for not killing his enemy stems from the ideology we are already familiar with from previous battles and wars. King Saul was likewise chastised by the prophet Samual for sparing the life of King Agag of Amalek - a crime for which he too would lose his crown. The sentiments here reflect the different between Ahab’s cosmopolitan approach, political perspective and commercial wisdom - as opposed to more narrow minded ideologues that are fearful and suspicious of the other nations, preferring fierce justice to more complex diplomacy and negotiation?
Ahab goes home in a sullen mood, having survived the war but dealing with domestic opposition. The next chapter brings up the worse claims against him and his queen, hinting once again at the potential problems of too much royal power - and also reminding us to stay alert to the storyteller’s perspective, with its own agenda and moral attitudes.
We may never know who Ahab really was, but at least from this chapter we can value his valor, military might and gentleman’s qualities. Would it be that every rival would name his other ‘brother’ and prefer peace over war. He deserves more dignified remembrance.
Image: Egyptian President Anwar Sadat shakes hands with Israel’s Prime Minister Menachem Begin, at the Camp David Peace Talks, 1977. Standing in the middle is my late father, Naphtali Lau-Lavie, who was one of our Begin’s advisors to take the road for peace. I honor my father’s memory today, along with these two peacemakers, and along with King Ahab. April 11th is the day on which my father was liberated by the American Army from Buchenwald. His second birth forged his path to be a peacemaker.
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What a perfect and touching photo to illustrate this complex tale ♥️