1 Kings 16
New English Translation
16 The Lord’s message against Baasha came to[a] Jehu son of Hanani: 2 “I raised you up[b] from the dust and made you ruler over my people Israel. Yet you followed in Jeroboam’s footsteps[c] and encouraged my people Israel to sin; their sins have made me angry.[d] 3 So I am ready to burn up[e] Baasha and his family, and make your family[f] like the family of Jeroboam son of Nebat. 4 Dogs will eat the members of Baasha’s family[g] who die in the city, and the birds of the sky will eat the ones who die in the country.”
5 The rest of the events of Baasha’s reign, including his accomplishments and successes, are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Israel.[h] 6 Baasha passed away[i] and was buried in Tirzah. His son Elah replaced him as king. 7 And so it was the Lord’s message came through the prophet Jehu son of Hanani against Baasha and his family.[j] This was because of all the evil he had done in the Lord’s view, by angering him with his deeds and becoming like Jeroboam’s dynasty,[k] and because of how he had destroyed Jeroboam’s dynasty.[l]
Elah’s Reign over Israel
8 In the twenty-sixth year of Asa’s reign over Judah, Baasha’s son Elah became king over Israel; he ruled in Tirzah for two years. 9 His servant Zimri, a commander of half of his chariot force, conspired against him. While Elah was in Tirzah drinking heavily[m] at the house of Arza, who supervised the palace in Tirzah, 10 Zimri came in and struck him dead. (This happened in the twenty-seventh year of Asa’s reign over Judah.) Zimri replaced Elah as king.[n] 11 When he became king and occupied the throne, he killed Baasha’s entire family. He did not spare any male belonging to him; he killed his relatives and his friends.[o] 12 Zimri destroyed Baasha’s entire family, in keeping with the Lord’s message which he had spoken against Baasha through Jehu the prophet. 13 This happened because of all the sins which Baasha and his son Elah committed and which they made Israel commit. They angered the Lord God of Israel with their worthless idols.[p]
14 The rest of the events of Elah’s reign, including all his accomplishments, are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Israel.[q]
Zimri’s Reign over Israel
15 In the twenty-seventh year of Asa’s reign over Judah, Zimri became king over Israel; he ruled for seven days in Tirzah. Zimri’s revolt took place while the army was deployed[r] in Gibbethon, which was in Philistine territory. 16 While deployed there, the army received this report:[s] “Zimri has conspired against the king and assassinated him.”[t] So all Israel made Omri, the commander of the army, king over Israel that very day in the camp. 17 Omri and all Israel went up from Gibbethon and besieged Tirzah. 18 When Zimri saw that the city was captured, he went into the fortified area of the royal palace. He set the palace on fire and died in the flames.[u] 19 This happened because of the sins he committed. He did evil in the sight of[v] the Lord and followed in Jeroboam’s footsteps and encouraged Israel to continue sinning.[w]
20 The rest of the events of Zimri’s reign, including the details of his revolt, are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Israel.[x]
Omri’s Reign over Israel
21 At that time the people of Israel were divided in their loyalties. Half the people supported Tibni son of Ginath and wanted to make him king; the other half supported Omri. 22 Omri’s supporters were stronger than those who supported Tibni son of Ginath. Tibni died; Omri became king.
23 In the thirty-first year of Asa’s reign over Judah, Omri became king over Israel. He ruled for twelve years, six of them in Tirzah. 24 He purchased the hill of Samaria from Shemer for two talents[y] of silver. He launched a construction project there[z] and named the city he built after Shemer, the former owner of the hill of Samaria. 25 Omri did more evil in the sight of[aa] the Lord than all who were before him. 26 He followed in the footsteps of Jeroboam son of Nebat and encouraged Israel to sin;[ab] they angered the Lord God of Israel with their worthless idols.[ac]
27 The rest of the events of Omri’s reign, including his accomplishments and successes, are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Israel.[ad] 28 Omri passed away[ae] and was buried in Samaria. His son Ahab replaced him as king.[af]
Ahab Promotes Idolatry
29 In the thirty-eighth year of Asa’s reign over Judah, Omri’s son Ahab became king over Israel. Ahab son of Omri ruled over Israel for twenty-two years in Samaria. 30 Ahab son of Omri did more evil in the sight of[ag] the Lord than all who were before him. 31 As if following in the sinful footsteps of Jeroboam son of Nebat were not bad enough, he married Jezebel the daughter of King Ethbaal of the Sidonians. Then he worshiped and bowed to Baal.[ah] 32 He set up an altar for Baal in the temple of Baal he had built in Samaria. 33 Ahab also made an Asherah pole; he[ai] did more to anger the Lord God of Israel than all the kings of Israel who were before him.
34 During Ahab’s reign,[aj] Hiel the Bethelite rebuilt Jericho. Abiram, his firstborn son, died when he laid the foundation;[ak] Segub, his youngest son, died when he erected its gates,[al] in keeping with the Lord’s message that he had spoken through Joshua son of Nun.[am]
Footnotes
- 1 Kings 16:1 tc LXX “by the hand of,” meaning “through.”
- 1 Kings 16:2 tn The Hebrew text has “because” at the beginning of the sentence. In the Hebrew text vv. 2-3 are one sentence comprised of a causal clause giving the reason for divine punishment (v. 2) and the main clause announcing the punishment (v. 3). The translation divides this sentence for stylistic reasons.
- 1 Kings 16:2 tn Heb “walked in the way of Jeroboam.”
- 1 Kings 16:2 tn Heb “angering me by their sins.”
- 1 Kings 16:3 tn The traditional view understands the verb בָּעַר (baʿar) to mean “burn.” However, an alternate view takes בָּעַר (baʿar) as a homonym meaning “sweep away” (HALOT 146 s.v. II בער). In this case one might translate, “I am ready to sweep away Baasha and his family.” Either metaphor emphasizes the thorough and destructive nature of the coming judgment.
- 1 Kings 16:3 tc The Old Greek, Syriac Peshitta, and some mss of the Targum have here “his house.”
- 1 Kings 16:4 tn Heb “the ones belonging to Baasha.”
- 1 Kings 16:5 tn Heb “As for the rest of the events of Baasha, and that which he did and his strength, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”
- 1 Kings 16:6 tn Heb “lay down with his fathers.”
- 1 Kings 16:7 tn Heb “house,” by extension meaning the members of one’s household or a dynasty.
- 1 Kings 16:7 tn Heb “house.”
- 1 Kings 16:7 tn Heb “he struck him down” or “…it down.”
- 1 Kings 16:9 tn Heb “while he was in Tirzah drinking and drunken.”
- 1 Kings 16:10 tn Heb “and he became king in his place.”
- 1 Kings 16:11 tn Heb “and he did not spare any belonging to him who urinate against a wall, [including] his kinsmen redeemers and his friends.”
- 1 Kings 16:13 tn Heb “angering the Lord God of Israel with their empty things.”
- 1 Kings 16:14 tn Heb “As for the rest of the events of Elah, and all which he did, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”
- 1 Kings 16:15 tn Heb “Now the people were encamped.
- 1 Kings 16:16 tn Heb “and the people who were encamped heard, saying.”
- 1 Kings 16:16 tn Heb “has conspired against and also has struck down the king.”
- 1 Kings 16:18 tn Heb “and he burned the house of the king over him with fire and he died.”
- 1 Kings 16:19 tn Heb “in the eyes of.”
- 1 Kings 16:19 tn Heb “walking in the way of Jeroboam and in his sin which he did to make Israel sin.”
- 1 Kings 16:20 tn Heb “As for the rest of the events of Zimri, and his conspiracy which he conspired, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”
- 1 Kings 16:24 tn The Hebrew term כִּכָּר (kikkar, “circle”) refers generally to something that is round. When used of metals it can refer to a disk-shaped weight made of the metal or to a standard unit of weight, generally regarded as a talent. Since the accepted weight for a talent of metal is about 75 pounds, this would have amounted to about 150 pounds of silver.
- 1 Kings 16:24 tn Heb “he built up the hill.”
- 1 Kings 16:25 tn Heb “in the eyes of.”
- 1 Kings 16:26 tn Heb “walked in all the way of Jeroboam son of Nebat and in his sin which he made Israel sin.”
- 1 Kings 16:26 tn Heb “angering the Lord God of Israel with their empty things.”
- 1 Kings 16:27 tn Heb “As for the rest of the acts of Omri which he did, and his strength which he demonstrated, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”
- 1 Kings 16:28 tn Heb “lay down with his fathers.”
- 1 Kings 16:28 tc The Old Greek has eight additional verses here. Cf. 1 Kgs 22:41-44.
- 1 Kings 16:30 tn Heb “in the eyes of.”
- 1 Kings 16:31 tn Heb “and he went and served Baal and bowed down to him.”sn The Canaanites worshiped Baal as a storm and fertility god.
- 1 Kings 16:33 tn Heb “Ahab”; the proper name has been replaced by the pronoun (“he”) in the translation for stylistic reasons.
- 1 Kings 16:34 tn Heb “in his days.”
- 1 Kings 16:34 tn Heb “with Abiram, his firstborn, he founded it.”
- 1 Kings 16:34 tn Heb “with Segub, his youngest, he set up its gates.”
- 1 Kings 16:34 sn Warned through Joshua son of Nun. For the background to this statement, see Josh 6:26, where Joshua pronounces a curse on the one who dares to rebuild Jericho. Here that curse is viewed as a prophecy spoken by God through Joshua.
1 Kings 16
New Living Translation
16 This message from the Lord was delivered to King Baasha by the prophet Jehu son of Hanani: 2 “I lifted you out of the dust to make you ruler of my people Israel, but you have followed the evil example of Jeroboam. You have provoked my anger by causing my people Israel to sin. 3 So now I will destroy you and your family, just as I destroyed the descendants of Jeroboam son of Nebat. 4 The members of Baasha’s family who die in the city will be eaten by dogs, and those who die in the field will be eaten by vultures.”
5 The rest of the events in Baasha’s reign and the extent of his power are recorded in The Book of the History of the Kings of Israel. 6 When Baasha died, he was buried in Tirzah. Then his son Elah became the next king.
7 The message from the Lord against Baasha and his family came through the prophet Jehu son of Hanani. It was delivered because Baasha had done what was evil in the Lord’s sight (just as the family of Jeroboam had done), and also because Baasha had destroyed the family of Jeroboam. The Lord’s anger was provoked by Baasha’s sins.
Elah Rules in Israel
8 Elah son of Baasha began to rule over Israel in the twenty-sixth year of King Asa’s reign in Judah. He reigned in the city of Tirzah for two years.
9 Then Zimri, who commanded half of the royal chariots, made plans to kill him. One day in Tirzah, Elah was getting drunk at the home of Arza, the supervisor of the palace. 10 Zimri walked in and struck him down and killed him. This happened in the twenty-seventh year of King Asa’s reign in Judah. Then Zimri became the next king.
11 Zimri immediately killed the entire royal family of Baasha, leaving him not even a single male child. He even destroyed distant relatives and friends. 12 So Zimri destroyed the dynasty of Baasha as the Lord had promised through the prophet Jehu. 13 This happened because of all the sins Baasha and his son Elah had committed, and because of the sins they led Israel to commit. They provoked the anger of the Lord, the God of Israel, with their worthless idols.
14 The rest of the events in Elah’s reign and everything he did are recorded in The Book of the History of the Kings of Israel.
Zimri Rules in Israel
15 Zimri began to rule over Israel in the twenty-seventh year of King Asa’s reign in Judah, but his reign in Tirzah lasted only seven days. The army of Israel was then attacking the Philistine town of Gibbethon. 16 When they heard that Zimri had committed treason and had assassinated the king, that very day they chose Omri, commander of the army, as the new king of Israel. 17 So Omri led the entire army of Israel up from Gibbethon to attack Tirzah, Israel’s capital. 18 When Zimri saw that the city had been taken, he went into the citadel of the palace and burned it down over himself and died in the flames. 19 For he, too, had done what was evil in the Lord’s sight. He followed the example of Jeroboam in all the sins he had committed and led Israel to commit.
20 The rest of the events in Zimri’s reign and his conspiracy are recorded in The Book of the History of the Kings of Israel.
Omri Rules in Israel
21 But now the people of Israel were split into two factions. Half the people tried to make Tibni son of Ginath their king, while the other half supported Omri. 22 But Omri’s supporters defeated the supporters of Tibni. So Tibni was killed, and Omri became the next king.
23 Omri began to rule over Israel in the thirty-first year of King Asa’s reign in Judah. He reigned twelve years in all, six of them in Tirzah. 24 Then Omri bought the hill now known as Samaria from its owner, Shemer, for 150 pounds of silver.[a] He built a city on it and called the city Samaria in honor of Shemer.
25 But Omri did what was evil in the Lord’s sight, even more than any of the kings before him. 26 He followed the example of Jeroboam son of Nebat in all the sins he had committed and led Israel to commit. The people provoked the anger of the Lord, the God of Israel, with their worthless idols.
27 The rest of the events in Omri’s reign, the extent of his power, and everything he did are recorded in The Book of the History of the Kings of Israel. 28 When Omri died, he was buried in Samaria. Then his son Ahab became the next king.
Ahab Rules in Israel
29 Ahab son of Omri began to rule over Israel in the thirty-eighth year of King Asa’s reign in Judah. He reigned in Samaria twenty-two years. 30 But Ahab son of Omri did what was evil in the Lord’s sight, even more than any of the kings before him. 31 And as though it were not enough to follow the sinful example of Jeroboam, he married Jezebel, the daughter of King Ethbaal of the Sidonians, and he began to bow down in worship of Baal. 32 First Ahab built a temple and an altar for Baal in Samaria. 33 Then he set up an Asherah pole. He did more to provoke the anger of the Lord, the God of Israel, than any of the other kings of Israel before him.
34 It was during his reign that Hiel, a man from Bethel, rebuilt Jericho. When he laid its foundations, it cost him the life of his oldest son, Abiram. And when he completed it and set up its gates, it cost him the life of his youngest son, Segub.[b] This all happened according to the message from the Lord concerning Jericho spoken by Joshua son of Nun.
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