Old/New Testament
Chapter 21
Naboth’s Vineyard. 1 After these things, it happened that Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard in Jezreel near the palace of Ahab, the king of Samaria. 2 Ahab said to Naboth, “Give me your vineyard so that I can use it as a vegetable garden since it is next to my palace. I will give you a better vineyard in its place, or if you prefer, I will pay you its worth in money.” 3 But Naboth said to Ahab, “The Lord forbid that I should give you the inheritance of my fathers.”
4 [a]So Ahab entered his palace furious that Naboth, the Jezreelite, had said to him, “I will not give you the inheritance of my fathers.” He laid down upon his bed and turned his face away, refusing to eat anything.
5 Jezebel his wife entered and said to him, “Why is your spirit so depressed that you refuse to eat anything?” 6 He said to her, “It is because I spoke to Naboth the Jezreelite and I said to him, ‘Give me your vineyard in exchange for money, or, if you like, I will give you another vineyard for it.’ But he answered, ‘I will not give you my vineyard.’ ”
7 Jezebel, his wife, said to him, “Do you not reign over the kingdom of Israel? Get up and eat something. Cheer up, and I will give you the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.”
8 So she wrote some letters in Ahab’s name and sealed them with his seal and sent the letters to the elders and the nobles who lived in Naboth’s city. 9 In the letters she wrote, “Proclaim a fast, and have Naboth sit in a prominent place among the people. 10 But place two sons of Belial opposite him to bear false witness, saying, ‘You blasphemed God and the king.’ Then carry him out and stone him to death.”
11 So the men in his city, the elders, and the nobles who lived in his city did what had been written in the letters that had been sent to them. 12 They proclaimed a fast and had Naboth sit in a prominent place among the people. 13 Two men then came in, sons of Belial, and they sat opposite him. The sons of Belial bore witness before the people saying, “Naboth blasphemed God and the king.” They carried him out of the city and they stoned him to death.
14 They then sent word to Jezebel, saying, “Naboth has been stoned to death.” 15 As soon as Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned to death, Jezebel said to Ahab, “Get up, and take possession of the vineyard that Naboth the Jezreelite refused to sell you. Naboth is no longer alive; he is dead.” 16 When Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, Ahab got up and went down to the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite to take possession of it.
17 The word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, 18 “Get up, and go down to meet Ahab, the king of Israel, who is in Samaria. He is now in the vineyard of Naboth. He had gone down there to take possession of it. 19 Then say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Have you killed someone to take possession of his property?” ’ Say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord: “In the place where the dogs licked up the blood of Naboth, the dogs will lick up your blood as well.” ’ ”
20 Ahab said to Elijah, “So you have found me, my enemy.” He answered, “I have found you because you have sold yourself to do what was evil in the sight of the Lord: 21 ‘Behold, I will bring disaster down upon you. I will consume your descendants and I will cut off from Ahab all of those who pee against the wall, whether slave or free. 22 I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha, the son of Ahijah, because you have provoked me to anger and have caused Israel to sin.’ 23 And of Jezebel the Lord says, ‘The dogs will devour Jezebel by the walls of Jezreel.’ 24 Those who belong to Ahab and who die in the city will be eaten by dogs, and those who die in the field will be eaten by the birds of the air.”
25 There was no one like Ahab who sold himself to do what was evil in the sight of the Lord, urged on by Jezebel, his wife. 26 He was detestable in the way that he followed after idols, just as the Amorites had whom the Lord had cast out from before the Israelites.
27 When Ahab heard these things, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth, and fasted. He lay in sackcloth, and went around in mourning. 28 The word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, 29 “Have you seen how Ahab has humbled himself before me? Because he has humbled himself before me, I will not bring the disaster during his days. I will bring disaster upon his house during the days of his son.”
Chapter 22
Jehoshaphat Allies with Ahab. 1 For three years there was no war between Aram and Israel. 2 But in the third year, Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, came down to the king of Israel. 3 The king of Israel said to his servants, “Do you know that Ramoth in Gilead belongs to us? We have kept quiet and have not taken it out of the hands of the king of Aram.” 4 He said to Jehoshaphat, “Will you go to Ramoth-gilead to fight with me?” Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “I am yours, and my people are your people, and my horses are your horses.”
5 Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “Inquire today concerning the word of the Lord.” 6 [b]The king of Israel gathered together the prophets, four hundred of them, and he said to them, “Shall I go up to fight at Ramoth-gilead or shall I desist?” They answered, “Go up, for the Lord will deliver it into your hands.”
7 But Jehoshaphat asked, “Is there not another prophet of the Lord from whom we can inquire?” 8 The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “There is still one man by whom we can inquire of the Lord, but I hate him, because he does not prophesy good things for me, only evil. He is Micaiah, the son of Imlah.” Jehoshaphat said, “Let the king not say this.” 9 The king of Israel summoned an officer and said to him, “Rush over to Micaiah, the son of Imlah.”
10 Now the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, were sitting upon their thrones, wearing their robes, at a threshing floor at the entrance to the gate of Samaria. All of the prophets were prophesying before them. 11 Zedekiah, the son of Chenaanah, made some iron horns for himself and said, “Thus says the Lord: ‘You will gore the Arameans[c] with these until they are consumed.’ ” 12 All the prophets prophesied in the same way, saying, “Go to Ramoth-gilead and triumph! The Lord will deliver it into the hands of the king.”
13 Micaiah Prophesies Doom. The messenger who had gone to summon Micaiah said to him, “Behold, the words of the prophets are consistently favorable to the king. Let your pronouncement be like their words and speak favorably.” 14 But Micaiah said, “As the Lord lives, I will only say what the Lord says to me.”
15 When he arrived before the king and the king said to Micaiah, “Shall we go to fight at Ramoth-gilead or shall we desist,” he answered, “Go and triumph, for the Lord will deliver it into the hands of the king.” 16 But the king said to him, “How many times do I have to warn you not to tell me anything in the name of the Lord other than what is true.” 17 So he said, “I saw all of Israel scattered upon the hills, as sheep without a shepherd, and the Lord said, ‘These have no master, let them return to their homes in peace.’ ”[d]
18 The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “Did I not tell you, he will not prophesy what is good for me, only what is evil?”
19 He said, “Therefore, hear the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting upon his throne, with all of the hosts of heaven standing on his right and his left. 20 The Lord said, ‘Who will convince Ahab to go up to Ramoth-gilead so that he might fall?’ One said one thing, another said another. 21 Then a spirit came forth and stood before the Lord and said, ‘I will convince him.’ 22 The Lord said to him, ‘How?’ He said, ‘I will go out and put a lying spirit in the mouths of all of his prophets.’ He said, ‘You must convince him too, and you will succeed. Go and do it.’ 23 Now therefore, the Lord has put a lying spirit into the mouths of all of these prophets. The Lord has spoken evil concerning you.”
24 Then Zedekiah, the son of Chenaanah, approached Micaiah and struck him on the cheek. He said, “How did the Spirit of the Lord depart from me to speak to you?” 25 Micaiah answered, “Behold, the day will come when you will enter an inner chamber to hide yourself.”
26 The king of Israel said, “Seize Micaiah and take him to Amon, the city leader, and to Joash, the king’s son 27 and say, ‘Thus says the king: Put this man in prison and feed him with punishment rations of bread and give him punishment rations of water to drink until I return in safety.’ ” 28 Micaiah said, “If you return in safety, then the Lord has not spoken through me.” He also added, “Listen, all you people!”
29 Ahab’s Death. So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, went up to Ramoth-gilead. 30 The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “I will go into battle disguised, but you go into battle dressed in your robes.” So the king of Israel went into battle disguised.
31 Now the king of Aram had commanded the captains of his thirty-two chariots, “Do not fight with the small nor the great; save yourselves for the king of Israel.” 32 When the captains of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, they said, “This is certainly the king of Israel.” They turned to attack him, but when Jehoshaphat cried out, 33 the captains of the chariots realized that it was not the king of Israel. They turned away from pursuing him.
34 But someone drew his bow, and by chance he hit the king of Israel in the joints of his armor. He said to his chariot driver, “Turn around and carry me out of the battle, for I am wounded.”[e] 35 As the battle grew more savage that day, they propped the king up in his chariot facing the Arameans. The blood from his wound dripped onto the floor of the chariot, and that evening he died.
36 As the sun was setting, there was a cry that spread through the army: “Everyone to his own city, everyone to his own land.” 37 And so the king died and was brought to Samaria, and they buried the king in Samaria. 38 Someone washed out the chariot at the pool in Samaria, and the dogs licked up his blood while the prostitutes were bathing. This fulfilled what the word of the Lord had said.
39 Are not the rest of the deeds of Ahab and all that he did, the ivory house and all of the cities that he built, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? 40 Ahab slept with his fathers, and Ahaziah, his son, reigned in his stead.
41 Jehoshaphat’s Reign. Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, began to reign during the fourth year of the reign of Ahab, the king of Israel. 42 Jehoshaphat was thirty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned for twenty-five years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Azubah, the daughter of Shilhi. 43 [f]He walked in the ways of Asa, his father. He did not turn away from them, from doing what was right in the sight of the Lord. Still, he did not do away with the high places, and the people offered sacrifices and burned incense upon the high places. 44 Jehoshaphat made peace with the king of Israel.
45 Are not the rest of the deeds of Jehoshaphat, his achievements, and how he fought, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
46 As to the rest of the sacred prostitutes who remained in the days of Asa his father, he expelled them from the land. 47 There was no king in Edom, only a representative of the king.
48 Jehoshaphat built merchant ships that went to Ophir for gold, but in fact they never sailed, for the ships sank at Ezion-geber. 49 Then Ahaziah, the son of Ahab, said to Jehoshaphat, “Let your servants go with my servants in the ships.” But Jehoshaphat would not allow it.
50 Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers, and he was buried in the City of David, his father, and then Jehoram, his son, reigned in his stead.
51 Ahaziah’s Reign. Ahaziah, the son of Ahab, began to reign over Israel in Samaria during the seventeenth year of the reign of Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah. He reigned over Israel for two years. 52 He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and he walked in the way of his father and in the way of his mother, and in the way of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, who caused Israel to sin. 53 He served Baal and worshiped him, and provoked the Lord, the God of Israel to anger, just as his father had.
26 The Way of the Cross.[a] As they led him away, they seized a man from Cyrene named Simon, who was returning from the country. They put the cross on his back and forced him to carry it behind Jesus. 27 A large number of people followed Jesus, among them many women who were mourning and lamenting over him.
28 But he turned to them and said, “Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me. Weep rather for yourselves and for your children. 29 For behold, the days are coming when people will say, ‘Blessed are the barren, the wombs that never bore children and the breasts that never nursed.’ 30 Then they will begin to say to the mountains, ‘Fall on us!’ and to the hills, ‘Cover us!’ 31 For if they do these things when the wood is green, what will happen when it is dry?”
32 Jesus Is Crucified.[b] There were also two others, both criminals, who were led away to be executed with him. 33 When they came to the place called The Skull, they crucified[c] Jesus there along with the two criminals, one on his right and the other on his left. 34 Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”[d] And they cast lots to divide his garments.
35 The people stood there watching.[e] Meanwhile, the rulers jeered at him and said, “He saved others. Let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One.” 36 Even the soldiers mocked him. As they came forward to offer him sour wine, 37 they said, “If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!” 38 There was also an inscription above his head that said, “This is the King of the Jews.”
39 One of the criminals hanging there taunted Jesus, saying, “Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!” 40 But the other rebuked him, “Have you no fear of God, since you are under the same sentence? 41 In our case, we have been condemned justly, for we are getting what we deserve for our deeds. But this man has committed no wrong.” 42 Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” 43 Jesus said to him, “Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”[f]
44 Jesus Dies on the Cross.[g] It was now about noon, and darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon, 45 for the sun was darkened. Then the veil of the temple was torn in two. 46 He cried out, “Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.” And with these words he breathed his last.[h]
47 On seeing what had taken place, the centurion praised God and said, “Surely, this man was innocent.” 48 When all the people who had gathered there to witness the spectacle saw what had happened, they returned home beating their breasts.[i] 49 However, all his acquaintances, including the women who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance and watched all these events.
50 Jesus Is Buried.[j] Now there was a good and upright man named Joseph[k] who was a member of the council. 51 However, he had not agreed to their plan and the action they had taken. He came from the Jewish town of Arimathea, and he was awaiting the kingdom of God. 52 This man went to Pilate and requested the body of Jesus. 53 Then he took it down, wrapped it in a linen shroud, and laid him in a tomb that had been hewn out of rock in which no one had ever been interred. 54 It was the Day of Preparation, and the Sabbath was about to begin.
55 The women who had accompanied Jesus from Galilee followed Joseph. They saw the tomb and how his body was laid in it. 56 Then they returned and prepared spices and ointments. But on the Sabbath they rested in obedience to the commandment.
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