‘But I have this against you, that you tolerate the woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess; and she teaches and seduces my servants to commit sexual immorality, and to eat things sacrificed to idols. And I gave her time to repent but she is not willing to repent of her sexual immorality. Behold, I am throwing her into a bed, and those who commit sexual immorality with her into great tribulation, unless they repent of her works, and I will kill her children with death, and all the churches shall know that I am he who searches the reins and hearts, and I will give to each of you in accordance with your works.'
In this church is a woman who has set herself up as a prophetess, but she is really like the evil Jezebel who was considered the epitome of evil (1 Kings 16:31; 1 Kings 18:4; 1Ki 18:13; 1 Kings 19:1; 1 Kings 21:7-15; 1 Kings 21:25), who painted her face to try to seduce Jehu (2 Kings 9:30). It was Jezebel who encouraged the worship of Baal with its accompanying sexual rites, and had been infamous for it ever since.
Here we have the same sins, sexual immorality and idolatry, which were clearly prevalent in a number of churches, but here exacerbated by the fact that they are encouraged by someone who claims to speak ecstatically in the name of God. And here the sexual immorality is mentioned first. It is clear that it was a major problem in the church, and that ‘Jezebel' and her followers indulged in it to the limit.
Yet God has graciously given her time to repent. This suggests that she has been warned in some way about her behaviour, but she has hardened her heart. It is possible that she had been publicly admonished by the church, although their failure lay in the fact that they failed to take the necessary step of casting her out. So He will now provide her with another kind of bed, a bed of great tribulation and probably even death, possibly a mortal sickbed. ‘I will throw her into a bed'. Vividly in mind here is that the first Jezebel was thrown from a window to her doom (2 Kings 9:33), thus it presumably signifies death. ‘Bed' is, of course, ironic. She spends her time in bed, so she will be cast into one.
And similar ‘great tribulation' will be meted out on those who indulge in immorality with her if they also fail to repent. Here the ‘great tribulation' is God's direct punishment, and it will be inflicted to the full. This is in contrast with the churches' experience later in the book (Revelation 7:14). They will also experience ‘great tribulation', but their suffering will be undeserved. Great tribulation is not only endured by Christians. Others too will suffer.
Alternately the ‘great tribulation' here may have in mind pestilence, especially sexually transmitted disease, which will strike them, but the deliberate use of ‘great tribulation' demands a connection with Revelation 7:14. However disease is undoubtedly one of the tribulations to come.
In the Old Testament the faithful often had to go through the judgments meted out on the wicked, although watched over by God in the process. So while the faithful would endure great tribulation knowing it to be their means of entry into Heaven, these heretics would experience it with little hope. The description of some as her ‘children' probably refers to those who hold fast her teachings and propagate them, as against her lovers who only indulge in them. The former will suffer an even more intense fate, for they will be ‘killed with death'.
Once more we have an advancement in Old Testament history. The effects of Babel, with its introduction of idol worship and accompanying uncleanness, and Balaam, who was considered by the Jews to have introduced Israel to idolatry and sexual extravagance, have resulted in Jezebel who drove Israel even deeper into the same.