Beginning
15 ¶ Now in the eighteenth year of King Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, Abijam began to reign over Judah.
2 He reigned three years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Maachah, the daughter of Abishalom.
3 And he walked in all the sins of his father, which he had done before him; and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as the heart of David his father.
4 Nevertheless for David’s sake, the LORD his God gave him a lamp in Jerusalem, to set up his son after him and to establish Jerusalem.
5 Because David had done that which was right in the eyes of the LORD and had not turned aside from any thing that he had commanded him all the days of his life, except in the matter of Uriah, the Hittite.
6 And there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all the days of his life.
7 Now the rest of the acts of Abijam and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? And there was war between Abijam and Jeroboam.
8 And Abijam slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David, and Asa, his son, reigned in his stead.
9 ¶ In the twentieth year of Jeroboam, king of Israel, Asa began to reign over Judah.
10 And he reigned forty-one years in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Maachah, the daughter of Abishalom.
11 And Asa did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD, as did David his father.
12 For he took away the male cult prostitutes out of the land and removed all the idols that his fathers had made.
13 And he also removed Maachah, his mother, from being queen because she had made an idol in a grove; and Asa destroyed her idol and burnt it by the brook Kidron.
14 But the high places were not removed; nevertheless, Asa’s heart was perfect with the LORD all his days.
15 And he brought in the things which his father had dedicated and the things which he himself had dedicated, into the house of the LORD, silver and gold and vessels.
16 And there was war between Asa and Baasha, king of Israel, all their days.
17 And Baasha, king of Israel, went up against Judah and built Ramah, that he might not allow any to go out or come in to Asa, king of Judah.
18 Then Asa took all the silver and the gold that were left in the treasures of the house of the LORD and the treasures of the king’s house and delivered them into the hand of his slaves, and King Asa sent them to Benhadad, the son of Tabrimon, the son of Hezion, king of Syria, that dwelt at Damascus, saying,
19 There is a covenant between me and thee and between my father and thy father; behold, I have sent unto thee a bribe of silver and gold; come and break thy covenant with Baasha, king of Israel, that he may depart from me.
20 So Benhadad hearkened unto King Asa and sent the princes of the hosts, which he had against the cities of Israel, and smote Ijon and Dan and Abelbethmaachah and all Cinneroth, with all the land of Naphtali.
21 And when Baasha heard this, he left off building of Ramah and dwelt in Tirzah.
22 Then King Asa made a proclamation throughout all Judah; no one was exempted; and they took away the stones and timber of Ramah, with which Baasha had been building; and King Asa built with them Geba of Benjamin, and Mizpah.
23 The rest of all the acts of Asa and all his might and all that he did and the cities which he built, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? Nevertheless, in the time of his old age he was diseased in his feet.
24 And Asa slept with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of David, his father; and Jehoshaphat, his son, reigned in his stead.
25 ¶ And Nadab, the son of Jeroboam, began to reign over Israel in the second year of Asa, king of Judah, and reigned over Israel two years.
26 And he did evil in the sight of the LORD and walked in the way of his father and in his sins with which he made Israel sin.
27 And Baasha, the son of Ahijah, of the house of Issachar, conspired against him; and Baasha smote him at Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines, for Nadab and all Israel had laid siege to Gibbethon.
28 Even in the third year of Asa, king of Judah, did Baasha slay him and reigned in his stead.
29 And when he came into the kingdom, he smote all the house of Jeroboam; he left not a living soul of those of Jeroboam, until he had destroyed him, according unto the word of the LORD, which he spoke by his slave Ahijah, the Shilonite,
30 because of the sins of Jeroboam with which he sinned and with which he made Israel sin and because of his provocation with which he provoked the LORD God of Israel to anger.
31 Now the rest of the acts of Nadab and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
32 And there was war between Asa and Baasha, king of Israel, all their days.
33 In the third year of Asa, king of Judah, Baasha, the son of Ahijah, began to reign over all Israel in Tirzah; and he reigned twenty-four years.
34 And he did evil in the sight of the LORD and walked in the way of Jeroboam and in his sin with which he caused Israel to sin.
16 ¶ Then the word of the LORD came to Jehu, the son of Hanani, against Baasha, saying,
2 Forasmuch as I exalted thee out of the dust and made thee prince over my people Israel, and thou hast walked in the way of Jeroboam and hast made my people Israel sin, to provoke me to anger with their sins;
3 behold, I will burn up the posterity of Baasha and the posterity of his house and will make thy house like the house of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat.
4 He that dies of Baasha in the city, the dogs shall eat; and he that dies of his in the fields, the fowls of the air shall eat.
5 Now the rest of the acts of Baasha and what he did and his might, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
6 So Baasha slept with his fathers and was buried in Tirzah, and Elah, his son, reigned in his stead.
7 And likewise by the hand of the prophet Jehu, the son of Hanani, had come the word of the LORD upon Baasha and upon his house and upon all the evil that he did in the sight of the LORD, provoking him to anger with the work of his hands, so that he would be made like the house of Jeroboam and because of having smitten him.
8 In the year twenty-six of Asa, king of Judah, Elah, the son of Baasha, began to reign over Israel in Tirzah, and he reigned two years.
9 And his slave Zimri, captain of half his chariots, conspired against him, as he was in Tirzah, drinking himself drunk in the house of Arza, steward of his house in Tirzah.
10 And Zimri went in and smote him and killed him, in the year twenty-seven of Asa, king of Judah, and reigned in his stead.
11 And it came to pass, when he began to reign, as soon as he sat on his throne, that he smote all the house of Baasha; he left him not one that pisses against a wall, neither of his kinsfolk, {Heb. redeemers} nor of his friends.
12 Thus did Zimri destroy all the house of Baasha, according to the word of the LORD, which he spoke against Baasha by Jehu, the prophet,
13 for all the sins of Baasha and the sins of Elah, his son, by which they sinned and by which they made Israel sin, provoking the LORD God of Israel to anger with their vanities.
14 Now the rest of the acts of Elah and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
15 ¶ In the year twenty-seven of Asa, king of Judah, Zimri began to reign in Tirzah, and he reigned seven days. And the people were encamped against Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines.
16 And the people that were in the camp heard it said, Zimri has conspired and has killed the king. Therefore, all Israel made Omri, the captain of the host, king over Israel that day in the camp.
17 And Omri went up from Gibbethon and all Israel with him, and they besieged Tirzah.
18 And it came to pass, when Zimri saw that the city was taken, that he went into the palace of the king’s house and burnt the king’s house over him with fire, and died,
19 for his sins which he committed in doing evil in the sight of the LORD, in walking in the way of Jeroboam and in his sin which he did, making Israel sin.
20 Now the rest of the acts of Zimri and his treason that he wrought, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
21 Then the people of Israel were divided into two parts: half of the people followed Tibni, the son of Ginath, to make him king; and half followed Omri.
22 But the people that followed Omri prevailed against the people that followed Tibni, the son of Ginath; so Tibni died, and Omri reigned.
23 In the year thirty-one of Asa, king of Judah, Omri began to reign over Israel, and he reigned twelve years; he reigned six years in Tirzah.
24 And he bought the mountain of Samaria of Shemer for two talents of silver and built on the mount and called the name of the city which he built, after the name of Shemer, lord of the hill, Samaria.
25 And Omri wrought evil in the eyes of the LORD and did worse than all that were before him.
26 For he walked in all the way of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, and in his sin with which he made Israel sin, provoking the LORD God of Israel to anger with their vanities.
27 Now the rest of the acts of Omri which he did and his might that he showed, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
28 So Omri slept with his fathers and was buried in Samaria; and Ahab, his son, reigned in his stead.
29 ¶ And in the year thirty-eight 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 above all that were before him,
31 for it was as a light thing unto him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, and he took to wife Jezebel, the daughter of Ethbaal, king of the Zidonians, and went and served Baal and worshipped him.
32 And he raised up an altar to Baal in the house of Baal, which he had built in Samaria.
33 Ahab also made groves, and Ahab did more to provoke the LORD God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel that were before him.
34 In his time Hiel, the Bethelite, rebuilt Jericho. He laid the foundation thereof in Abiram, his firstborn, and set up the gates thereof in his youngest son Segub, according to the word of the LORD, which he had spoken by Joshua the son of Nun.
17 ¶ Then Elijah, the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto Ahab, As the LORD God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word.
2 And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying,
3 Leave this place and turn to the east and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that is before the Jordan,
4 and thou shalt drink of the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there.
5 So he went and did according unto the word of the LORD; for he went and dwelt by the brook Cherith, that is before the Jordan.
6 And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning and bread and flesh in the evening, and he drank from the brook.
7 And it came to pass after a while that the brook dried up because there had been no rain in the land.
8 ¶ And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying,
9 Arise, go to Zarephath of Zidon, and thou shalt dwell there; behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain thee.
10 So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, the widow woman was there gathering of sticks; and he called to her and said, Bring me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.
11 And as she was going to fetch it, he called to her again and said, Bring me also, I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thy hand.
12 And she said, As the LORD thy God lives, I have no baked bread, but only a handful of meal in a pitcher and a little oil in a cruse; and now I was gathering two sticks that I may go in and prepare it for me and my son, that we may eat it and die.
13 And Elijah said unto her, Fear not; go and do as thou hast said; but first make me a little cake of bread baked under the ashes and bring it unto me, and afterwards thou shalt make for thee and for thy son.
14 For thus hath said the LORD God of Israel, The pitcher of meal shall not be consumed, neither shall the cruse of oil fail until that day when the LORD shall send rain upon the earth.
15 And she went and did as Elijah told her; and he and she and her house ate for many days.
16 And the pitcher of meal was not consumed, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD which he spoke by Elijah.
17 ¶ And it came to pass after these things that the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, fell sick; and his sickness was so severe that there was no breath left in him.
18 And she said unto Elijah, What have I to do with thee, O thou man of God? Art thou come unto me to call my iniquity to remembrance and to cause my son to die?
19 And he said unto her, Give me thy son. And he took him out of her bosom and carried him up into the chamber where he abode and laid him upon his own bed.
20 And he cried unto the LORD and said, O LORD my God, hast thou even brought evil upon the widow, with whom I sojourn, by killing her son?
21 And he stretched himself upon the child three times and cried unto the LORD and said, O LORD my God, I pray thee, let this child’s soul come into him again.
22 And the LORD heard the voice of Elijah, and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived.
23 And Elijah took the child and brought him down out of the chamber into the house and delivered him unto his mother, and Elijah said, See, thy son lives.
24 Then the woman said to Elijah, Now by this I know that thou art a man of God and that the word of the LORD is true in thy mouth.
Copyright © 2013, 2020 by Ransom Press International