Chapter 10: Yehu Completes His Revolution
In the previous chapter Yehu was anointed king and took out the leaders: he killed Yehoram king of Israel, Achazyahu king of Yehuda, and Izevel. But a king without a nation is no king, and he still lacked the essential thing: acceptance by the people. Chapter 10 deals with the next stage: how Yehu recruits the officers of Israel to his side, completes the destruction of the house of Achav as God's decree through Eliyahu, and roots his kingship firmly in place.
Achav's Seventy Sons and the First Letter
וּלְאַחְאָב שִׁבְעִים בָּנִים בְּשֹׁמְרוֹן, וַיִּכְתֹּב יֵהוּא סְפָרִים וַיִּשְׁלַח שֹׁמְרוֹן אֶל־שָׂרֵי יִזְרְעֶאל הַזְּקֵנִים וְאֶל־הָאֹמְנִים אַחְאָב לֵאמֹר. - And Achav had seventy sons in Shomron, and Yehu wrote letters and sent them to Shomron, to the officers of Yizreel, the elders, and to the guardians of Achav's children, saying.
Achav had seventy sons, and not only from Izevel. Izevel was the central 'garbage,' but besides her he had additional wives and concubines, and from all of them he had seventy sons. 'Sefarim,' as we have explained several times, means letters. Yehu sends his letters to the officers of Yizreel and to the elders, for whoever wishes to seize the kingdom begins with the important people: if the officers and the elders accept his kingship, the rest of the nation will follow automatically.
'Ha'omnim' is from the word 'omenet,' a woman who raises children. The Radak explains it plainly: 'the guardians of Achav' are those who raised Achav's sons, for Achav did not raise seventy children in his own home, but rather there were foster families who raised the king's sons. The Malbim explains a little differently: 'Achav lemor' means that Yehu writes these words to them as though Achav himself were commanding and speaking, as if this were Achav's will to them.
וְעַתָּה כְּבֹא הַסֵּפֶר הַזֶּה אֲלֵיכֶם, וְאִתְּכֶם בְּנֵי אֲדֹנֵיכֶם, וְאִתְּכֶם הָרֶכֶב וְהַסּוּסִים וְעִיר מִבְצָר וְהַנָּשֶׁק. - And now, when this letter reaches you, and with you are the sons of your master, and with you are the chariots and the horses and a fortified city and the weapons.
וּרְאִיתֶם הַטּוֹב וְהַיָּשָׁר מִבְּנֵי אֲדֹנֵיכֶם, וְשַׂמְתֶּם עַל־כִּסֵּא אָבִיו, וְהִלָּחֲמוּ עַל־בֵּית אֲדֹנֵיכֶם. - See who is the best and the most fitting of your master's sons, and set him upon his father's throne, and fight for the house of your master.
According to the Malbim, Yehu presents before them what Achav would have expected of them: my sons are with you, I have left you chariots and horses, a fortified city to entrench yourselves in, and weapons. Take the finest of my sons, crown him upon my throne, and fight for my house. This is the will, this is what your master would have demanded of you.
Double Edged Language: Challenge and Mockery Together
The Malbim emphasizes that Yehu spoke here in language that could be understood in two ways. On the one hand it is an open challenge: you have chariots, you have weapons - do you want to fight me? Please, come out and fight. On the other hand it is cynical mockery. This resembles Sancheriv, who mocked Chizkiyahu regarding his army and said to him: I will bring you the horses, just find yourself men who know how to ride them. In other words, you have no chariots, and even if I supply you with weapons, you have no one to wield them.
So too here: with you are the sons of your master - you are not short of heirs to the throne, out of seventy there are more than enough. The chariots - you are not short of tanks. The horses - those too you do not lack. A fortified city that they cannot penetrate - that as well you have. And the weapons - arrows, shields, swords and spears, all in your hands. If so, what are you missing? Take the best and most fitting of your master's sons and crown him. And here too there is a sting: what 'best and most fitting' is there among Achav's sons? They are all wicked and corrupt like their father. 'And fight for the house of your master' - if there is anyone among you capable of going out to war, let him please step forward.
They were greatly afraid
וַיִּרְאוּ מְאֹד מְאֹד, וַיֹּאמְרוּ הִנֵּה שְׁנֵי הַמְּלָכִים לֹא עָמְדוּ לְפָנָיו, וְאֵיךְ נַעֲמֹד אֲנָחְנוּ. - And they were greatly afraid, and said: Behold, two kings did not stand before him, so how shall we stand?
They picked up on the cynicism and the sting in his words, and understood that they had no power to stand. Yehoram was a king, Achazyahu was a king, and neither stood before him: he killed them both. And if so, how shall we stand? Especially since his proposal is to crown a new king, inexperienced, who had never reigned, and with him to go out and topple Yehu who managed to kill two reigning kings.
וַיִּשְׁלַח אֲשֶׁר־עַל־הַבַּיִת וַאֲשֶׁר עַל־הָעִיר וְהַזְּקֵנִים וְהָאֹמְנִים אֶל־יֵהוּא לֵאמֹר: עֲבָדֶיךָ אֲנַחְנוּ, וְכֹל אֲשֶׁר־תֹּאמַר אֵלֵינוּ נַעֲשֶׂה, לֹא־נַמְלִךְ אִישׁ, הַטּוֹב בְּעֵינֶיךָ עֲשֵׂה. - And he who was over the house, and he who was over the city, and the elders, and the guardians, sent to Yehu, saying: We are your servants, and all that you say to us we will do; we will not make anyone king; do what is good in your eyes.
This is complete surrender. 'We are your servants' - and since we are servants to the king, we will not crown anyone else, and therefore 'we will not make anyone king.' And corresponding to 'all that you say to us we will do' they add 'do what is good in your eyes.' That is: we are not willing to accept anyone over ourselves but you, and we are ready to fulfill all your words.
The second letter: the test of deeds
וַיִּכְתֹּב אֲלֵיהֶם סֵפֶר שֵׁנִית לֵאמֹר: אִם־לִי אַתֶּם וּלְקֹלִי אַתֶּם שֹׁמְעִים, קְחוּ אֶת־רָאשֵׁי אַנְשֵׁי בְנֵי־אֲדֹנֵיכֶם וּבֹאוּ אֵלַי כָּעֵת מָחָר יִזְרְעֶאלָה, וּבְנֵי הַמֶּלֶךְ שִׁבְעִים אִישׁ אֶת־גְּדֹלֵי הָעִיר מְגַדְּלִים אוֹתָם. - And he wrote to them a letter a second time, saying: If you are for me, and you listen to my voice, take the heads of the men who are the sons of your master and come to me tomorrow at this time to Yizrael; and the king's sons were seventy men, being raised by the great men of the city.
Yehu says to them: I am not satisfied with a declaration of intentions, I want deeds. Bring me the heads of the seventy sons of your master. And as we explained earlier, every king who arose to reign would first do a 'cleaning of the stables.' It is so even today: a minister who enters a ministry removes all the loyalists of the previous minister, since he wants a clean ministry and is not interested in leaks to the media from people loyal to the previous administration. Only in the past it was less diplomatic: they would remove a person's head from his body, and thus they knew that no rebellion would grow from there. A son of a previous king always carries in his blood the aspiration to return to power, seeking to form a conspiracy and rebel, and therefore they would kill the sons of the previous king and secure quiet for themselves.
And especially here, according to Yehu's view they could be killed without any sentiments: the Holy One, blessed be He, decreed that not one who urinates against a wall would remain to the house of Achav, and there is a decree that no trace of him would remain. Moreover, Achav's sons from his foreign wives were presumably gentiles, for we know Izevel, and it is quite likely that his other wives were not Jewish. And even had they been Jews, there was a decree upon them, just as there was a decree upon the house of Yerovam and the house of Basha that not one who urinates against a wall would remain to them, and they were all wiped out.
And what is the addition 'and the king's sons were seventy men, being raised by the great men of the city' - is it part of the letter or the words of the writer of the book? Rashi explains that this is part of the letter, and Yehu writes it in order to tell them: Do not think that I do not know who they are, how many they are, and where they are located; I have all the details, and therefore do not try to smuggle anyone away. The Radak, in contrast, explains that this was not written in the letter, but rather the writer of the book tells us whom Yehu requested: the seventy sons of the king who were at that time with the great men of the city who were raising them.
The heads in the baskets
וַיְהִי כְּבֹא הַסֵּפֶר אֲלֵיהֶם, וַיִּקְחוּ אֶת־בְּנֵי הַמֶּלֶךְ וַיִּשְׁחֲטוּ שִׁבְעִים אִישׁ, וַיָּשִׂימוּ אֶת־רָאשֵׁיהֶם בַּדּוּדִים וַיִּשְׁלְחוּ אֵלָיו יִזְרְעֶאלָה. - And it came to pass, when the letter came to them, that they took the king's sons and slaughtered seventy men, and put their heads in the baskets, and sent them to him at Yizrael.
They carry out his command and slaughter seventy men. We have already seen a case where a man's head was handed over to save the people of a city: the incident of Sheva ben Bichri, where the wise woman asked Yoav why he was besieging the city. She was Serach bat Asher, who as is known did not die but entered Gan Eden alive. Here too, by handing over the heads they purchase quiet for themselves from the king. 'Bedudim' means baskets; they placed the heads in baskets and did not hide them, so that it would be evident to all that these were the heads of the sons of Achav, and that the rebellion was over: all the potential rebels were already dead.
וַיָּבֹא הַמַּלְאָךְ וַיַּגֶּד־לוֹ לֵאמֹר: הֵבִיאוּ רָאשֵׁי בְנֵי־הַמֶּלֶךְ. וַיֹּאמֶר: שִׂימוּ אֹתָם שְׁנֵי צִבֻּרִים פֶּתַח הַשַּׁעַר עַד־הַבֹּקֶר. - And the messenger came and told him, saying: They have brought the heads of the king's sons. And he said: Lay them in two heaps at the entrance of the gate until morning.
'Two heaps' means two piles. And let them be placed at the entrance of the gate until morning, so that all the people would see, that they may see and fear. The Ralbag explains that they arrived at night in order to conceal the matter from the people, but Yehu told them the opposite: I specifically wish to publicize the matter, so make them into two heaps that will remain until morning.
You Are Righteous
וַיְהִי בַבֹּקֶר וַיֵּצֵא וַיַּעֲמֹד וַיֹּאמֶר אֶל־כָּל־הָעָם: צַדִּקִים אַתֶּם, הִנֵּה אֲנִי קָשַׁרְתִּי עַל־אֲדֹנִי וָאֶהְרְגֵהוּ, וּמִי הִכָּה אֶת־כָּל־אֵלֶּה. - And it came to pass in the morning that he went out and stood, and said to all the people: You are righteous. Behold, I conspired against my master and slew him, but who struck down all these?
Yehu says to them: You consider yourselves righteous and look upon me as wicked, for having gone and killed the king. Indeed, I conspired against my master and slew him: I conspired against Yehoram and killed him. But all these, who struck them down? I did not kill them. And if they died nonetheless, it is a sign that this was a royal decree, a decree from Hashem that the house of Achav be destroyed and that nothing remain of it. Since this is so, just as you fulfilled a mitzvah in killing the sons of Achav, for it is the will of Hashem that the house of Achav be destroyed, and therefore they anointed me king through a prophet, so too were my own deeds in killing Yehoram. Do not come to me with complaints and do not treat me as a murderer who arose and seized the kingdom by force and by rebellion: just as your deeds are from Hashem, so too are mine.
A Halachic Principle: Handing Over an Individual to Save the Many
The Malbim adds here a profound principle, and through it we return to Sheva ben Bichri. We have a halacha, and so the Rambam rules, that if they say to a group: Hand over so and so to us and we will kill him, and if not we will kill all of you, they should all be killed and not hand over a single soul of Israel. And likewise if they said: Hand over such and such a woman and we will defile her, and if not we will defile all of you, they should all be defiled and not hand her over. If so, how did they hand over Sheva ben Bichri? The Rambam himself senses this and answers: unless he was wicked like Sheva ben Bichri. If the person is wicked and liable to death, why should everyone be killed on account of his sins? They hand him over and save the many. But if it is a proper person, in whom there is no sin, and the authorities merely suspect him or seek him for what in their eyes is a crime, for example that he gathered assemblies in public and taught Torah, in such a case they should all be killed and not hand him over, for he is not liable to death.
Accordingly, this is what Yehu says to the people: Behold, I asked you to hand over the king's sons to me, and if not, I would have come to fight against you and kill you all. Seemingly it was forbidden for you to hand them over! You must therefore admit that you handed them over because they were truly liable to death like Sheva ben Bichri: they were wicked, and because of their wicked father it was decreed upon them that they would have no continuation. If so, in this deed you are not wicked but righteous. This is the meaning of 'you are righteous': in what you did in killing the king's sons, you are righteous, for the sons of Achav were wicked, and not only that, but a decree of death rested upon them because of their father, that the house of Achav be utterly destroyed. It emerges that there is no sin in you for handing them over and killing them.
דְּעוּ אֵפוֹא כִּי לֹא יִפֹּל מִדְּבַר ה' אַרְצָה אֲשֶׁר־דִּבֶּר ה' עַל־בֵּית אַחְאָב, וַה' עָשָׂה אֵת אֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר בְּיַד עַבְדּוֹ אֵלִיָּהוּ. - Know then that nothing shall fall to the ground of the word of Hashem which Hashem spoke concerning the house of Achav, for Hashem has done that which He spoke through His servant Eliyahu.
From here, says Yehu, you shall know that the word of Hashem does not fall to the ground: when the Holy One, blessed be He, issues a decree, the decree is fulfilled. The decree here was the destruction of the house of Achav, and behold you see that 'Hashem has done that which He spoke through His servant Eliyahu.' That is: neither I did it nor did you do it, but the Holy One, blessed be He, fulfilled His decree.
וַיַּךְ יֵהוּא אֵת כָּל־הַנִּשְׁאָרִים לְבֵית־אַחְאָב בְּיִזְרְעֶאל, וְכָל־גְּדֹלָיו וּמְיֻדָּעָיו וְכֹהֲנָיו, עַד־בִּלְתִּי הִשְׁאִיר־לוֹ שָׂרִיד. - And Yehu struck down all who remained of the house of Achav in Yizreel, and all his great men, his close acquaintances, and his priests, until he left him no survivor.
He kills all his relatives, meaning all those who were part of the royal house and all the corrupt men who were with him: his great ones, his acquaintances and his priests, the priests of the Baal. "Until he left him no remnant," just as Hashem had commanded Yehu.
Beit Eked HaRoim and the brothers of Achazyahu
וַיָּקָם וַיָּבֹא וַיֵּלֶךְ שֹׁמְרוֹן, הוּא בֵּית־עֵקֶד הָרֹעִים בַּדָּרֶךְ. - And he arose and came and went to Shomron. He was at Beit Eked HaRoim along the way.
On his way to Shomron he arrives at a place midway, "Beit Eked HaRoim." This was the place where they would shear the flock, and during the shearing they would bind the animal, and this binding is called akeidah. So too the Akeidah of Yitzchak means the binding of Yitzchak, for Yitzchak told his father to bind him well so that he would not move and so that the slaughter would not be blemished. Thus Beit Eked HaRoim is the place where the shepherds would gather, and there Yehu meets the brothers of Achazyahu.
וְיֵהוּא מָצָא אֶת־אֲחֵי אֲחַזְיָהוּ מֶלֶךְ־יְהוּדָה וַיֹּאמֶר: מִי אַתֶּם? וַיֹּאמְרוּ: אֲחֵי אֲחַזְיָהוּ אֲנַחְנוּ, וַנֵּרֶד לִשְׁלוֹם בְּנֵי־הַמֶּלֶךְ וּבְנֵי הַגְּבִירָה. - And Yehu found the brothers of Achazyahu king of Yehudah and said: Who are you? And they said: We are the brothers of Achazyahu, and we have come down to greet the sons of the king and the sons of the queen mother.
They answer innocently: we are the brothers of Achazyahu, and we have come down to inquire after the welfare of the sons of the king and the sons of the queen mother, the sons of Achav and the sons of Izevel. Their downfall was that they had not been updated at all about what had happened, that there was no longer a king nor a queen mother and that there was a rebellion in the land, and they fell like ripe fruit into Yehu's hands. From Heaven they were directed precisely to the right address.
וַיֹּאמֶר תִּפְשׂוּם חַיִּים, וַיִּתְפְּשׂוּם חַיִּים וַיִּשְׁחָטוּם אֶל־בּוֹר בֵּית־עֵקֶד אַרְבָּעִים וּשְׁנַיִם אִישׁ, וְלֹא־הִשְׁאִיר אִישׁ מֵהֶם. - And he said: Seize them alive. And they seized them alive and slaughtered them at the pit of Beit Eked, forty two men, and he left not one of them.
Why did he command that they be seized alive and only afterward slaughtered, rather than killed at once? The Radak explains: to magnify the vengeance, so that their death would not be in the manner of war. Death in war is a manner of honor, a man fights and is killed in battle. But these were to be killed in a manner of disgrace: seized and slaughtered as one slaughters animals, since they too were of the house of Achav, among his men and those who sought his welfare.
Yehonadav ben Rechav
וַיֵּלֶךְ מִשָּׁם וַיִּמְצָא אֶת־יְהוֹנָדָב בֶּן־רֵכָב לִקְרָאתוֹ וַיְבָרְכֵהוּ, וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלָיו: הֲיֵשׁ אֶת־לְבָבְךָ יָשָׁר כַּאֲשֶׁר לְבָבִי עִם־לְבָבֶךָ? וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוֹנָדָב: יֵשׁ וָיֵשׁ, תְּנָה אֶת־יָדֶךָ. וַיִּתֵּן יָדוֹ וַיַּעֲלֵהוּ אֵלָיו אֶל־הַמֶּרְכָּבָה. - And he went from there and found Yehonadav ben Rechav coming toward him, and he blessed him, and said to him: Is your heart upright, as my heart is with your heart? And Yehonadav said: It is, it is, give your hand. And he gave his hand and brought him up to him onto the chariot.
Yehonadav ben Rechav was a righteous man. Yehu meets him and blesses him, and asks: Is your heart whole with what I am doing, just as my heart is whole with your heart? According to Rashi, it is Yehonadav who says "give your hand": yes, my heart is upright with your heart, give me your hand and I will grasp it and you will bring me up onto the chariot, for Yehonadav is asking to join and to assist him. The Radak explains that it is Yehu who said "give your hand," and it is he who took hold of his hand and pulled him up. And according to this, even "yesh vayesh" is not a repetition: Yehonadav answered "yesh," my heart is with you just as your heart is with me; and "vayesh" is already Yehu's question: Is your heart truly whole with my heart? If so, give me your hand and I will bring you up onto the chariot.
And regarding "give your hand," they tell of a man who fell into a bog and began to sink. People came and called out to him: Give the hand, give the hand and we will save you, and he keeps sinking and refuses in any way. They went and called the wise man of the village. He approached him and said: Take my hand. Immediately the man grabbed his hand and they pulled him out. They asked him: How did you do it? He said to them: I know this man; for him there is no such thing as "give," he understands only "take."
וַיֹּאמֶר לְכָה אִתִּי וּרְאֵה בְּקִנְאָתִי לַה', וַיַּרְכִּבוּ אֹתוֹ בְּרִכְבּוֹ. - And he said, "Come with me and see my zeal for Hashem," and they had him ride in his chariot.
Yehu says to him: come with me and see my zeal for Hashem, how I am about to take vengeance upon the house of Achav, the house of Izevel, and the worshippers of the Baal.
וַיָּבֹא שֹׁמְרוֹן, וַיַּךְ אֶת־כָּל־הַנִּשְׁאָרִים לְאַחְאָב בְּשֹׁמְרוֹן עַד־הִשְׁמִדוֹ, כִּדְבַר ה' אֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר אֶל־אֵלִיָּהוּ. - And he came to Shomron, and he struck down all who remained of Achav in Shomron until he had destroyed them, according to the word of Hashem that He had spoken to Eliyahu.
Shomron was Achav's seat, and so his family, his relatives, and his acquaintances lived there. Yehu comes there to destroy all who remained of the house of Achav, in accordance with the word of Hashem to Eliyahu that nothing would be left of the house of Achav.
Summary:
In this chapter Yehu completes his rise to kingship: first, through a letter of double meaning, one of challenge and mockery, he breaks the spirit of the officials of Yizrael and the guardians, until they surrender to him completely; then he demands of them a test of deeds, the heads of Achav's seventy sons, which are displayed for all to see in two heaps at the entrance of the gate. In the morning he teaches the people that this is no private rebellion but the fulfillment of Hashem's decree through Eliyahu, and from here also comes "you are righteous," that the handing over of Achav's sons was permitted, for they were liable to death like Sheva ben Bichri. From there he goes on to strike down all who remained of the house of Achav in Yizrael, the brothers of Achazyahu at Beit Eked HaRoim, and finally, together with the righteous Yehonadav ben Rechav in his chariot, all who remained of Achav in Shomron. The message that repeatedly emerges throughout the entire chapter is one: "nothing of the word of Hashem shall fall to the ground."