1 Kings 21
1599 Geneva Bible
21 8 Jezebel commandeth to kill Naboth, for the vineyard that he refused to sell to Ahab. 19 Elijah reproveth Ahab, and he repenteth.
1 After [a]these things, Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard in Jezreel, hard by the palace of Ahab king of Samaria.
2 And Ahab spake unto Naboth, saying, [b]Give me thy vineyard, that I may make me a garden of herbs thereof, because it is nearby mine house: and I will give thee for it a better vineyard than it is: or if it please thee, I will give thee the worth of it in money.
3 And Naboth said to Ahab, The Lord keep me from giving the inheritance of my father unto thee.
4 Then Ahab came into his house heavy and in displeasure, because of the word which Naboth the Jezreelite had spoken unto him. For he had said, I will not give thee the inheritance of my fathers, and he lay [c]upon his bed, and turned his face and would eat no bread.
5 Then Jezebel his wife came unto him, and said unto him, Why is thy spirit so sad that thou eatest no bread?
6 And he said unto her, Because I spake unto Naboth the Jezreelite, and said unto him, Give me thy vineyard for money, or if it please thee, I will give thee another vineyard for it: but he answered, I will not give thee my vineyard.
7 Then Jezebel his wife said unto him, [d]Dost thou now govern the kingdom of Israel? Up, eat bread, and [e]be of good cheer, I will give thee the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.
8 ¶ So she wrote letters in Ahab’s name, and sealed them with his seal, and sent the letters unto the Elders, and to the nobles that were in his city dwelling with Naboth.
9 And she wrote in the letters, saying, Proclaim a [f]fast, and set Naboth among the chief of the people,
10 And set two wicked men before him, and let them witness against him, saying, Thou didst blaspheme God and the king: then carry him out, and stone him that he may die.
11 And the [g]men of the city, even the Elders and governors which dwelt in his city, did as Jezebel had sent unto them: as it was written in the letters, which she had sent unto them.
12 They proclaimed a fast, and set Naboth among the chief of the people,
13 And there came two wicked men, and sat before him: and the wicked men witnessed against Naboth in the presence of the people saying, Naboth did [h]blaspheme God and the King. Then they carried him away out of the city, and stoned him with stones, that he died.
14 Then they sent to Jezebel, saying, Naboth is stoned and is dead.
15 ¶ And when Jezebel heard that Naboth was stoned and was dead, Jezebel said to Ahab, [i]Up, and take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, which he refused to give thee for money: for Naboth is not alive, but is dead.
16 And when Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, he rose to go down to the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, to take possession of it.
17 ¶ And the word of the Lord came unto Elijah the Tishbite, saying,
18 Arise, go down to meet Ahab King of Israel, which is in Samaria: lo, he is in the vineyard of Naboth, whither he is gone down to take possession of it.
19 Therefore shalt thou say unto him, Thus saith the Lord, [j]Hast thou killed, and also gotten possession? And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith the Lord, [k]In the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth, shall dogs lick even thy blood also.
20 And Ahab said to Elijah, Hast thou found me, O mine enemy? And he answered, I have found thee: for thou hast sold thyself to work wickedness in the sight of the Lord.
21 (A)Behold, I will bring evil upon thee, and will take away thy posterity, and will cut off from Ahab him that (B)pisseth against the wall, as well him that is (C)shut up, as him that is left in Israel,
22 And I will make thine house like the house of (D)Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like the house of (E)Baasha the son of Ahijah, for the provocation wherewith thou hast provoked and made Israel to sin.
23 And also of Jezebel spake the Lord, saying, (F) The dogs shall eat Jezebel, [l]by the wall of Jezreel.
24 The dogs shall eat him of Ahab’s stock, that dieth in the city: and him that dieth in the fields, shall the fowls of the air eat.
25 (But there was none like Ahab, who did [m]sell himself to work wickedness, in the sight of the Lord, whom Jezebel his wife provoked.
26 For he did exceeding abominably in following idols, according to all that the Amorites did, whom the Lord cast out before the children of Israel.)
27 Now when Ahab heard those words, he rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon [n]him, and fasted, and lay in sackcloth, and went [o]softly.
28 And the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying,
29 Seest thou how Ahab is humbled before me? because he submitteth himself before me, I will not bring that evil in his days, but in his [p]sons’ days will I bring evil upon his house.
Footnotes
- 1 Kings 21:1 Or, at this time.
- 1 Kings 21:2 Though Ahab’s tyranny be condemned by the holy Spirit, yet he was not so rigorous that he would take from another man his right without full recompense.
- 1 Kings 21:4 Thus the wicked consider not what is just and lawful, but fret inwardly, when they cannot have their inordinate appetites satisfied.
- 1 Kings 21:7 As though she said, Thou knowest not what it is to reign. Command and entreat not.
- 1 Kings 21:7 Hebrew, let thine heart be merry.
- 1 Kings 21:9 For then they used to inquire of men’s faults: for none could fast truly that were notorious sinners.
- 1 Kings 21:11 Thus the worldlings contrary to God’s commandment, who willeth not to consent to the shedding of innocent blood, obey rather the wicked commandments of princes than the just laws of God.
- 1 Kings 21:13 Hebrew, bless.
- 1 Kings 21:15 This example of monstrous cruelty the holy Ghost leaveth to us, to the intent that we should abhor all tyranny, and specially in them whom nature and kind should move to be pitiful and inclined to mercy.
- 1 Kings 21:19 Dost thou think to have any advantage by murdering of an innocent?
- 1 Kings 21:19 This was fulfilled in Jehoram his son, as 2 Kings 9:25, 26.
- 1 Kings 21:23 Or, fortress, or possession.
- 1 Kings 21:25 By the wicked counsel of his wife he became a vile idolater, and cruel murderer, as one that gave himself wholly to serve sin.
- 1 Kings 21:27 Hebrew, his flesh.
- 1 Kings 21:27 In token of mourning, or as some read, barefooted.
- 1 Kings 21:29 Meaning, in Jehoram’s time, 2 Kings 9:26.
1 Kings 21
New King James Version
Naboth Is Murdered for His Vineyard
21 And it came to pass after these things that Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard which was in (A)Jezreel, next to the palace of Ahab king of Samaria. 2 So Ahab spoke to Naboth, saying, “Give me your (B)vineyard, that I may have it for a vegetable garden, because it is near, next to my house; and for it I will give you a vineyard better than it. Or, if it seems good to you, I will give you its worth in money.”
3 But Naboth said to Ahab, “The Lord forbid (C)that I should give the inheritance of my fathers to you!”
4 So Ahab went into his house sullen and displeased because of the word which Naboth the Jezreelite had spoken to him; for he had said, “I will not give you the inheritance of my fathers.” And he lay down on his bed, and turned away his face, and would eat no food. 5 But (D)Jezebel his wife came to him, and said to him, “Why is your spirit so sullen that you eat no food?”
6 He said to her, “Because I spoke to Naboth the Jezreelite, and said to him, ‘Give me your vineyard for money; or else, if it pleases you, I will give you another vineyard for it.’ And he answered, ‘I will not give you my vineyard.’ ”
7 Then Jezebel his wife said to him, “You now exercise authority over Israel! Arise, eat food, and let your heart be cheerful; I will give you the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.”
8 And she wrote letters in Ahab’s name, sealed them with his seal, and sent the letters to the elders and the nobles who were dwelling in the city with Naboth. 9 She wrote in the letters, saying,
Proclaim a fast, and seat Naboth [a]with high honor among the people; 10 and seat two men, scoundrels, before him to bear witness against him, saying, “You have (E)blasphemed God and the king.” Then take him out, and (F)stone him, that he may die.
11 So the men of his city, the elders and nobles who were inhabitants of his city, did as Jezebel had sent to them, as it was written in the letters which she had sent to them. 12 (G)They proclaimed a fast, and seated Naboth with high honor among the people. 13 And two men, scoundrels, came in and sat before him; and the scoundrels (H)witnessed against him, against Naboth, in the presence of the people, saying, “Naboth has blasphemed God and the king!” (I)Then they took him outside the city and stoned him with stones, so that he died. 14 Then they sent to Jezebel, saying, “Naboth has been stoned and is dead.”
15 And it came to pass, when Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned and was dead, that Jezebel said to Ahab, “Arise, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, which he refused to give you for money; for Naboth is not alive, but dead.” 16 So it was, when Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, that Ahab got up and went down to take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.
The Lord Condemns Ahab
17 (J)Then the word of the Lord came to (K)Elijah the Tishbite, saying, 18 “Arise, go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, (L)who lives in Samaria. There he is, in the vineyard of Naboth, where he has gone down to take possession of it. 19 You shall speak to him, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Have you murdered and also taken possession?” ’ And you shall speak to him, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord: (M)“In the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth, dogs shall lick your blood, even yours.” ’ ”
20 So Ahab said to Elijah, (N)“Have you found me, O my enemy?”
And he answered, “I have found you, because (O)you have sold yourself to do evil in the sight of the Lord: 21 ‘Behold, (P)I will bring calamity on you. I will take away your (Q)posterity, and will cut off from Ahab (R)every male in Israel, both (S)bond and free. 22 I will make your house like the house of (T)Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like the house of (U)Baasha the son of Ahijah, because of the provocation with which you have provoked Me to anger, and made Israel sin.’ 23 And (V)concerning Jezebel the Lord also spoke, saying, ‘The dogs shall eat Jezebel by the [b]wall of Jezreel.’ 24 The dogs shall eat (W)whoever belongs to Ahab and dies in the city, and the birds of the air shall eat whoever dies in the field.”
25 But (X)there was no one like Ahab who sold himself to do wickedness in the sight of the Lord, (Y)because Jezebel his wife [c]stirred him up. 26 And he behaved very abominably in following idols, according to all (Z)that the Amorites had done, whom the Lord had cast out before the children of Israel.
27 So it was, when Ahab heard those words, that he tore his clothes and (AA)put sackcloth on his body, and fasted and lay in sackcloth, and went about mourning.
28 And the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, 29 “See how Ahab has humbled himself before Me? Because he (AB)has humbled himself before Me, I will not bring the calamity in his days. (AC)In the days of his son I will bring the calamity on his house.”
Footnotes
- 1 Kings 21:9 Lit. at the head
- 1 Kings 21:23 So with MT, LXX; some Heb. mss., Syr., Tg., Vg. plot of ground instead of wall (cf. 2 Kin. 9:36)
- 1 Kings 21:25 incited him
1 Kings 21
Names of God Bible
Ahab Takes Naboth’s Vineyard
21 This is what happened next. Naboth from Jezreel had a vineyard in Jezreel next to the palace of King Ahab of Samaria.
2 Ahab told Naboth, “Give me your vineyard. It will become my vegetable garden because it is near my house. I will give you a better vineyard for it. Or if you prefer, I will pay you a fair price for it.”
3 Naboth told Ahab, “Yahweh has forbidden me to give you what I inherited from my ancestors.”
4 Resentful and upset, Ahab went home because of what Naboth from Jezreel had told him. (Naboth had said, “I will not give you what I inherited from my ancestors.”) So Ahab lay on the couch, turned his face from everyone, and refused to eat.
5 His wife Jezebel came to him and asked, “Why are you so resentful of everything? Why don’t you eat?”
6 He told her, “I talked to Naboth from Jezreel. I said to him, ‘Sell me your vineyard. Or, if you like, I’ll give you another vineyard for it.’ But he said, ‘I won’t give you my vineyard.’”
7 His wife Jezebel said to him, “Aren’t you king of Israel? Get up, eat, and cheer up. I’ll give you the vineyard belonging to Naboth from Jezreel.”
8 So Jezebel wrote letters, signed them with Ahab’s name, and sealed them with his seal. She sent them to the respected leaders and nobles living in Naboth’s city. 9 In these letters she wrote: “Announce a fast. Seat Naboth as leader of the people. 10 Have two good-for-nothing men sit opposite him and accuse him of cursing Elohim and the king. Then stone him to death outside the city.”
11 The men in Naboth’s city—the respected leaders and nobles who lived there—did what Jezebel asked them to do. They did just as she had written in the letters she sent. 12 They announced a fast and had Naboth seated as the leader of the people. 13 The two good-for-nothing men came in and sat opposite him. In front of the people, these men accused Naboth of cursing Elohim and the king. So the people stoned him to death outside the city. 14 Then the leaders sent this message to Jezebel: “Naboth has been stoned to death.”
15 Jezebel received the message and said to Ahab, “Get up! Confiscate the vineyard which Naboth from Jezreel refused to sell you. He’s dead now.”
16 When he heard about Naboth’s death, Ahab went to confiscate the vineyard.
17 Then Yahweh spoke his word to Elijah from Tishbe: 18 “Go, meet King Ahab of Israel, who lives in Samaria. He went to confiscate Naboth’s vineyard. 19 Tell him, ‘This is what Yahweh asks: Have you murdered someone just to confiscate a vineyard?’ Then tell him, ‘This is what Yahweh says: At the place where the dogs licked up Naboth’s blood, the dogs will lick up your blood.’”
20 Ahab asked Elijah, “So you’ve found me, my enemy?”
Elijah answered, “I found you. Because you sold yourself to do what Yahweh considers evil. 21 So I am going to bring evil on you. I will destroy your descendants. I will destroy every male[a] in Ahab’s house, whether slave or freeman in Israel. 22 I will make your family like the family of Jeroboam (Nebat’s son) and like the house of Baasha, son of Ahijah, because you made me furious. You led Israel to sin.”
23 Then Yahweh also spoke through Elijah about Jezebel: “The dogs will eat Jezebel inside the walls of Jezreel. 24 If anyone from Ahab’s house dies in the city, dogs will eat him. If anyone dies in the country, birds will eat him.”
25 There was no one else like Ahab. At the urging of his wife, he sold himself to do what Yahweh considered evil. 26 He did many disgusting things as a result of worshiping idols as the Amorites had done. (Yahweh confiscated their land for Israel.)
27 When Ahab heard these things, he tore his clothes in distress and dressed in sackcloth. He fasted, lay in sackcloth, and walked around depressed.
28 Then Yahweh spoke his word to Elijah from Tishbe: 29 “Do you see how Ahab is humbling himself in my presence? Because he’s humbling himself in my presence, I will not let any evil happen to his family while he is alive. I will bring evil on it during his son’s lifetime.”
Footnotes
- 1 Kings 21:21 Hebrew uses a coarse term for “male” here.
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Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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