The Lord's Relentless Judgment on Israel

¹⁴ For the love of Christ ^(A)controls us, because we have concluded this: that ^(B)one has died for all, therefore all have died;

Death in Adam, Life in Christ

¹² Therefore, just as ^(A)sin came into the world through one man, and ^(B)death through sin, and ^(C)so death spread to all men^[a] because ^(D)all sinned—

¹¹ For ^(A)everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

¹⁶ And they abandoned all the commandments of the Lord their God, and made for themselves metal images of ^(A)two calves; and they ^(B)made an Asherah and ^(C)worshiped all the host of heaven and served ^(D)Baal. ^17 (E)And they burned their sons and their daughters as offerings^[a] and used ^(F)divination and ^(G)omens and ^(H)sold themselves to do evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking him to anger. ¹⁸ Therefore the Lord was very angry with Israel and removed them out of his sight. None was left but ^(I)the tribe of Judah only.

¹⁸ And he answered, “I have not troubled Israel, but you have, and your father's house, because you have ^(A)abandoned the commandments of the Lord and ^(B)followed the Baals. ¹⁹ Now therefore send and gather all Israel to me at Mount ^(C)Carmel, and the ^(D)450 prophets of Baal and ^(E)the 400 prophets of Asherah, ^(F)who eat at Jezebel's table.”

Ahab Reigns in Israel

²⁹ In the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah, Ahab the son of Omri began to reign over Israel, and Ahab the son of Omri reigned over Israel in Samaria twenty-two years. ³⁰ And Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the Lord, ^(A)more than all who were before him. ³¹ And as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, ^(B)he took for his wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the ^(C)Sidonians, ^(D)and went and served Baal and worshiped him. ³² He erected an altar for Baal in ^(E)the house of Baal, which he built in Samaria. ³³ And Ahab made an ^(F)Asherah. Ahab did more to provoke the Lord, the God of Israel, to anger ^(G)than all the kings of Israel who were before him.