Old/New Testament
God’s Judgment on Ba’asha
16 Then this word of the Lord came to Jehu son of Hanani against Ba’asha: 2 “I raised you up from the dust and appointed you leader over my people Israel, but you have walked in the ways of Jeroboam, and you have caused my people Israel to sin, provoking me to anger with their sin. 3 Look! I am about to burn up Ba’asha and his house. I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam son of Nebat. 4 The dogs will eat those who belong to Ba’asha who die in the city, and the birds of the air will eat those who die in the country.”
5 As for the rest of Ba’asha’s acts and everything he did and his mighty deeds, are they not written in the annals of the kings of Israel? 6 Ba’asha rested with his fathers, and he was buried in Tirzah. Then his son Elah became king in his place.
Elah Son of Ba’asha, King of Israel
7 The word of the Lord had come against Ba’asha and his house through the prophet Jehu son of Hanani, because of all the evil which he had done in the eyes of the Lord, provoking him to anger with the work of his hands by becoming like the house of Jeroboam, and also because he had struck down Jeroboam.
8 In the twenty-sixth year of Asa king of Judah, Elah son of Ba’asha became king over Israel in Tirzah for two years. 9 But his officer Zimri, the commander of half his chariots, conspired against him while Elah was in Tirzah getting drunk at the house of Arza, the palace administrator of Tirzah. 10 Zimri came in and struck him down and killed him in the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, and he became king in his place.
11 When Zimri became king, as soon as he was seated on the throne, he struck down the entire house of Ba’asha. He did not leave for him anyone who urinates against the wall,[a] neither relatives nor friends. 12 So Zimri exterminated the entire house of Ba’asha according to the word of the Lord, which he spoke to Ba’asha through the prophet Jehu. 13 He did this because of all the sins which Ba’asha and his son Elah committed and which they caused Israel to commit. They provoked the Lord, the God of Israel, to anger with their useless idols. 14 As for the rest of Elah’s acts and everything he did, are they not written in the annals of the kings of Israel?
Zimri King of Israel
15 In the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, Zimri reigned as king in Tirzah for seven days. The army was laying siege to Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines. 16 The army which was laying siege heard the report that Zimri had conspired against the king and had already struck him down. So in the camp on that day all Israel made Omri, the commander of the army, king over Israel. 17 Then Omri and all Israel went up from Gibbethon and laid siege to Tirzah. 18 When Zimri saw that the city had fallen, he went into the fortified part of the palace, and he burned it down on himself. So he died 19 because of the sin he committed by doing evil in the eyes of the Lord by walking in the ways of Jeroboam and in the sin which he had caused Israel to commit. 20 As for the rest of Zimri’s acts and the conspiracy he led, are they not written in the annals of the kings of Israel?
Omri King of Israel
21 Then the people of Israel were divided. Half of the people supported making Tibni son of Ginath king. Half supported Omri. 22 But the people who were for Omri were stronger than the people who were for Tibni son of Ginath, so Tibni died, and Omri became king.
23 In the thirty-first year of Asa king of Judah, Omri became king over Israel for twelve years. He ruled for six years in Tirzah. 24 Then he bought the hill of Samaria from Shemer for two talents[b] of silver. He built up the hill, and he named the city he built after Shemer, the owner of the hill of Samaria.[c]
25 Omri did evil in the eyes of the Lord. He committed more evil than all those who had gone before him. 26 He walked in all the ways of Jeroboam son of Nebat and in the sin which he caused Israel to commit, provoking the Lord, the God of Israel, to anger with his useless idols. 27 As for the rest of Omri’s acts, the things he did, and the mighty deeds he accomplished, are they not written in the annals of the kings of Israel? 28 Omri rested with his fathers, and he was buried in Samaria. Then his son Ahab became king in his place.
Ahab Son of Omri, King of Israel
29 Ahab son of Omri became king over Israel in the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah. Ahab son of Omri ruled over Israel in Samaria for twenty-two years. 30 Ahab son of Omri committed more evil in the eyes of the Lord than all those who had gone before him. 31 He considered it a trivial thing to walk in the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat. He married Jezebel daughter of Ethbaal, king of the Sidonians. He served Baal and bowed down to him. 32 He erected an altar to Baal in the house of Baal which he built in Samaria. 33 Ahab made an Asherah pole and did even more to provoke the Lord God of Israel than all the kings of Israel who had gone before him.
34 In the days of Ahab, Hiel of Bethel built Jericho. At the cost of his firstborn son Abiram, he laid its foundations, and at the cost of his youngest son Segub, he set up its gates. This fulfilled the word of the Lord which he had spoken through Joshua son of Nun.
Elijah Stops the Rain
17 Elijah from Tishbe, one of the settlers in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As surely as the Lord lives, the God of Israel before whom I stand, there will be no dew or rain during the coming years, except at my word.”
2 Then the word of the Lord came to him: 3 “Leave this place and turn east. Hide yourself by the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan. 4 You will drink from the stream, and I will command the ravens to provide for you there.”
5 So Elijah went and did just as the Lord had said. He lived in the Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan. 6 The ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and in the evening, and he drank from the stream.
Elijah and the Widow of Zarephath
7 After some time the stream dried up because there had been no rain in the land. 8 Then the word of the Lord came to him: 9 “Get up! Go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and live there. I have commanded a woman there, a widow, to provide for you.”
10 So he got up and went to Zarephath. He came to the city gate, and there he saw a widow gathering sticks. He called to her and said, “Please give me a little water in a jar, so that I can have something to drink.”
11 When she went to get it, he called to her, “Please bring me a piece of bread.”
12 She said, “As surely as the Lord your God lives, I have no food except a handful of flour in a jar and a little olive oil in a pitcher. See, I am gathering a couple of sticks so that I can go and prepare it for myself and my son, so that we can eat it and then die.”
13 Elijah said to her, “Do not be afraid. Go and do just as you said. But first make a small loaf of bread for me from the flour and bring it out to me. Then go and make another for you and your son. 14 For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says. The jar of flour will not run out and the pitcher of oil will not become empty until the day the Lord sends rain to water the surface of the ground.”
15 So she went and did exactly as Elijah said. He and she, as well as her household, were able to eat for many days. 16 The jar of flour did not run out, and the pitcher of oil did not become empty, just as the Lord had said through Elijah.
The Widow’s Son Dies
17 After these events, the son of the woman who owned the house became ill. The illness became worse until he stopped breathing.
18 Then she said to Elijah, “What is the issue between us, man of God? Have you come to remind me of my sins and to kill my son?”
19 He said to her, “Bring your son to me.” Then he took him and carried him to the upstairs room where he was living, and he laid him on his bed. 20 Then he cried out to the Lord, “O Lord, my God, have you sent tragedy on this woman with whom I am staying by killing her son?”
21 Then he stretched himself out on the boy three times, and he cried out to the Lord, “O Lord, my God, let this boy’s soul[d] return to his body!” 22 The Lord listened to Elijah’s voice, and the boy’s soul returned to his body, and he came to life. 23 Then Elijah took the boy and brought him down to the house from his upstairs room, and he gave him to his mother.
Elijah said, “See, your son is alive!”
24 The woman said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is true.”
Elijah Confronts the Prophets of Baal and Asherah
18 After a long time, the word of the Lord came to Elijah. (It was during the third year.) He said, “Go and present yourself to Ahab, and I will send rain to water the surface of the ground.” 2 So Elijah went to present himself to Ahab.
Now the drought was severe in Samaria. 3 Ahab had summoned his servant Obadiah, the palace administrator. Obadiah was devoted to serving[e] the Lord. 4 When Jezebel was exterminating the prophets of the Lord, Obadiah had taken one hundred prophets and kept them hidden in two caves, fifty in each cave, and he provided food and water for them.
5 Ahab said to Obadiah, “Go through the land to all the springs and all the streams. Maybe we will find enough grass so that we can keep the horses and mules alive, and we will not have to slaughter the cattle.” 6 In order to cover the whole land, they divided it between the two of them. Ahab went one way by himself, and Obadiah went another way by himself.
7 While Obadiah was on the way, Elijah suddenly met him. Obadiah recognized him and fell on his face and said, “Is that you, my lord Elijah?”
8 Elijah answered him, “Yes, it is. Go and tell your master, ‘Elijah is here.’”
9 But Obadiah said, “How have I sinned that you would hand your servant over to Ahab for him to kill me? 10 As surely as the Lord your God lives, there is no country or kingdom where my master has not sent someone to look for you. When they said, ‘He is not here,’ then he made that kingdom and nation swear that they could not find you. 11 But now you are telling me, ‘Go, tell your master that Elijah is here.’ 12 As soon as I leave you, the Spirit of the Lord will carry you to some place I do not know. When I go to tell Ahab and he then does not find you, he will kill me, even though your servant has been devoted to the Lord since my youth.
13 “Has my lord not been told what I did when Jezebel was killing the prophets of the Lord? I kept one hundred of the prophets of the Lord hidden in two caves, fifty in each, and I provided food and water for them. 14 But now you are saying, ‘Go and tell your master that Elijah is here.’”
15 But Elijah said to him, “As surely as the Lord of Armies lives, before whom I stand, I will present myself to him today.” 16 So Obadiah went to meet Ahab, and he informed him. Then Ahab came to meet Elijah.
17 When Ahab saw Elijah, Ahab said to him, “Is that you, the one who brings trouble on Israel?”
18 Elijah said, “It is not I who have brought trouble on Israel, but rather you and your father’s house, because you abandoned the Lord’s commandments and followed the Baals. 19 But now gather all Israel before me on Mount Carmel, along with the four hundred fifty prophets of Baal and the four hundred prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.” 20 So Ahab sent word to all the people of Israel, and he assembled the prophets on Mount Carmel.
21 Then Elijah said to all the people, “How long will you stagger around on two crutches? If the Lord is God, follow him. If Baal is God, follow him.” But the people did not answer him a single word.
22 Then Elijah said to the people, “I am the only one left of the Lord’s prophets, but the prophets of Baal total four hundred fifty men. 23 Provide two bulls for us. Let them choose one bull for themselves and cut it up and place it on the firewood, but they are not to light the fire. I will prepare the other bull and place it on the firewood, but I will not light the fire. 24 Then you will call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the Lord. The god who answers with fire, he is God.”
All the people said, “This proposal is good.”
25 Then Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose for yourselves one bull, and you go first because there are so many of you. Call on the name of your god. But do not light the fire.”
26 So they took the bull which had been given to them and prepared it. Then they called on the name of Baal from morning until noon, “Baal! Answer us!” But there was not a sound. No one answered. So they staggered[f] around the altar which they had made.
27 When noon came, Elijah mocked them: “Shout louder! He is a god, isn’t he? He may be deep in thought or busy or on a journey. Perhaps he is asleep and will wake up!” 28 So they cried out with a loud voice, and according to their practice they cut themselves with daggers and spears until their blood flowed. 29 After noon, they kept up a prophetic frenzy until the time of the evening sacrifice, but there was no sound. No one answered. There was no response.
30 Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come here to me.” So they came to him, and he repaired the altar of the Lord, which had been torn down. 31 Elijah took twelve stones, one for each of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the Lord had come and had proclaimed, “Your name shall be Israel.” 32 He built the stones into an altar in the name of the Lord. Around it he made a trench big enough to hold about twenty-five pounds[g] of seed. 33 He arranged the wood, cut up the bull, and placed it on the wood.
Then he said, “Fill four jars with water and pour it on the sacrifice and on the wood.” 34 Then he said, “Do it again.” So they did it again. Then he said, “Do it a third time.” So they did it a third time. 35 The water flowed all around the altar. It even filled the trench.
36 When the time of the evening sacrifice had arrived, Elijah the prophet stood up and said, “O Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that you are God in Israel and that I am your servant and that I have done all these things by your word. 37 Answer me, Lord! Answer me so that this people will know that you, O Lord, are God and that you are turning their hearts back to you.”
38 Fire from the Lord fell on the sacrifice and on the wood, the stones, and the dirt. It even licked up the water in the trench. 39 When all the people saw this, they fell on their knees and said, “The Lord, he is God! The Lord, he is God!”
40 Elijah said to them, “Seize the prophets of Baal! Do not let a single one of them escape!” So they seized them, and Elijah brought them down to the Kishon River and slaughtered them there.
41 Then Elijah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink, for I hear the sound of a heavy rainstorm.” 42 So Ahab went to eat and drink, but Elijah went up to the top of Mount Carmel. He bent down to the ground and put his face between his knees. 43 He said to his servant, “Go up and look toward the sea.”
So his servant went up and looked, and he said, “There is nothing.”
But seven times Elijah told him, “Go again.”
44 On the seventh time the servant said, “There is a cloud as small as a man’s hand rising from the sea.”
Then Elijah said to him, “Go up and tell Ahab, ‘Hitch up your chariot and go down so that the rain does not stop you.’”
45 Meanwhile, the skies got dark with clouds and wind, and there was a heavy rain. So Ahab got into his chariot and went to Jezre’el. 46 But the hand of the Lord was on Elijah, and he hiked up his garments around his waist and ran ahead of Ahab until he came to Jezre’el.
Jesus’ Arrest
47 While he was still speaking, suddenly a crowd appeared, and the man called Judas, one of the Twelve, was leading them. He came near to Jesus to kiss him. 48 But Jesus said to him, “Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?”
49 When those who were around him saw what was about to happen, they said to him, “Lord, should we strike with a sword?” 50 Then one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear.
51 But Jesus responded, “Stop! No more of this!” Then he touched the servant’s ear and healed him. 52 Jesus said to the chief priests, the officers of the temple guard, and the elders, who had come out against him, “Have you come out as you would against a robber, with swords and clubs? 53 Every day I was with you in the temple courts, and you did not lay hands on me. But this is your hour—when darkness rules.”
54 Then they seized him, led him away, and brought him into the high priest’s house.
Peter Denies Jesus
Peter followed at a distance. 55 When they had lit a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat down among them. 56 A servant girl saw him sitting near the light. She looked closely at him and said, “This man also was with him.”
57 But he denied it, saying, “Woman, I do not know him.”
58 After a little while someone else saw him and said, “You also are one of them!”
But Peter answered, “Man, I am not!”
59 After about one hour had passed, someone else was firmly insisting, “Truly this man was with him too, because he is a Galilean!”
60 But Peter said, “Man, I don’t know what you are talking about!” At that very moment, while he was still speaking, the rooster crowed. 61 The Lord turned and looked at Peter. Then Peter remembered the Lord’s word, how he had said to him, “Before the rooster crows today you will deny me three times.” 62 He went outside and wept bitterly.
The Guards Mock Jesus
63 The men who were holding Jesus in custody mocked him while they were beating him. 64 They blindfolded him and kept asking him, “Prophesy! Who hit you?” 65 And they went on saying many other blasphemous things against him.
Jewish Court
66 As soon as it was day, the council of the elders of the people met together, both the chief priests and experts in the law. They brought him into their Sanhedrin and said, 67 “If you are the Christ, tell us.”
But he said to them, “If I tell you, you will not believe, 68 and if I ask you, you will not answer me or release me.[a] 69 But from now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the power of God.”[b]
70 They all said, “Are you then the Son of God?”
He said to them, “I am what you are saying.”
71 Then they said, “Why do we need any more testimony? For we ourselves have heard it from his own mouth!”
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.