The Jezebel Slur

An Old Testament horror story used by Christian Nationalists to attack, vilify, and dehumanize women... especially women of color.

Oct 22, 2024

In the Old Testament, Queen Jezebel challenged the male patriarchy. It didn’t go too well. As a result of her audacity, she was thrown from a window, trampled by horses, and eaten by dogs.

“Jezebel” soon became a sexualized slur used to accuse women of seduction, subterfuge, witchcraft, and worshipping false gods.

During slavery, black women were often condemned as Jezebels, making it easier to justify exploiting, assaulting, raping, and murdering them.

Christian Nationalists are now using this slur to attack women in leadership, especially women of color.

Jurgen Matthesius, the firebrand founder of Awaken Church who goes by the handle “Jurgmeister” on social media, is slinging the Jezebel slur far and wide.

The Jezebel crowd wants women “in their place,” full stop. And that place is one of subservience, deference, submission, and inferiority. To mask their misogynistic and racist tendencies, they claim they are guided by scripture. You might call it the “righteousness defense.”

Self-styled prophet and Christian Nationalist leader Lance Wallnau preaches that Kamala Harris is a Jezebel… even more ominous than Hillary Clinton, he says, because of the color of her skin.

Hiding behind scripture and “doing God’s will” is as old as the hills. Here are some greatest hits:

Torture

During the Spanish Inquisition, torture was extensively used by the Catholic Church to identify heretics and convert Jews and Muslims to Catholicism, or force them to leave the country. Hundreds of thousands were imprisoned and tortured. An estimated 32,000 were executed.

The Burning and Hanging of Witches

Witch hysteria became epidemic in Europe in the 1400s. Over the next three centuries, Christian fanatics were responsible for torturing, hanging, and burning some 40-50,000 women at the stake. The Puritans in Salem followed suit, hunting and hanging “witches” in the name of God.

Slavery

Between 1525 and 1865, more than 12.5 million Africans were enslaved and shipped to the Americas. Their southern slave masters relied heavily on scripture to justify their atrocities, especially Ephesians 6:5:

Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ.

The Holocaust

The Nazis claimed that Jewish people were less human than the Christian majority in Germany. In his book, Mein Kampf, Hitler states:

Hence today I believe that I am acting in accordance with the will of the Almighty Creator: by defending myself against the Jew, I am fighting for the work of the Lord.

Here’s My Take

The Christian Nationalist obsession with “Jezebels” stems from the same cesspool of evil that, throughout history, has sought to mask its stench with the false aroma of Scripture.

“Jezebel,” a shrill dog whistle of prejudice and hate, is antithetical to the word of Christ, who urged us to love our neighbors, be compassionate, and practice forgiveness.