Old/New Testament
16 Then Jehu son of Hanani spoke the word of the Lord against King Baasha. 2 The Lord said, “You were nothing. Then I took you and made you a leader over my people Israel. But you have followed the ways of Jeroboam. You have caused my people Israel to sin. Their sins have made me angry. 3 So, Baasha, I will destroy you and your family. I will do to you what I did to the family of Jeroboam son of Nebat. 4 Anyone from your family who dies in the city will be eaten by dogs. And anyone from your family who dies in the fields will be eaten by birds.”
5 Everything else Baasha did and all his victories are written down. They are in the book of the history of the kings of Israel. 6 So Baasha died and was buried in Tirzah. His son Elah became king in his place.
7 The Lord spoke his word through the prophet Jehu son of Hanani. The Lord’s message was against Baasha and his family. Baasha had done many things the Lord said were wrong. This made the Lord very angry. Baasha did the same things that Jeroboam’s family had done before him. The Lord was also angry because Baasha killed all of Jeroboam’s family.
Elah King of Israel
8 Elah son of Baasha became king of Israel. This was during Asa’s twenty-sixth year as king of Judah. And Elah ruled in Tirzah for two years.
9 Zimri was one of Elah’s officers. He commanded half of Elah’s chariots. But Zimri made plans against Elah.
Elah was in Tirzah, getting drunk at Arza’s home. (Arza was the man in charge of the palace at Tirzah.) 10 So Zimri went into Arza’s house and killed Elah. This was during Asa’s twenty-seventh year as king of Judah. Then Zimri became king of Israel in Elah’s place.
Zimri King of Israel
11 As soon as Zimri became king, he killed all of Baasha’s family. He did not let any man of Baasha’s family or friends live. 12 So Zimri destroyed all of Baasha’s family. This happened as the Lord had said it would. The Lord had spoken this against Baasha through the prophet Jehu. 13 This happened because of all the sins of Baasha and his son Elah. They sinned and caused the people of Israel to sin. They also made the Lord, the God of Israel, angry because they had made worthless idols.
14 Everything else Elah did is written down. It is in the book of the history of the kings of Israel.
15 So Zimri became king of Israel. This was during Asa’s twenty-seventh year as king of Judah. Zimri ruled in Tirzah seven days. This is what happened:
The army of Israel was camped near Gibbethon, a Philistine town. 16 The men in the camp heard that Zimri had made secret plans against the king. And they heard that Zimri had killed him. So that day in the camp they made Omri king over Israel. (Omri was commander of the army.) 17 So Omri and all the Israelites left Gibbethon and attacked Tirzah. 18 Zimri saw that the city had been captured. So he went into the palace and set it on fire. He burned the palace and himself with it. 19 So Zimri died because he had sinned. He did what the Lord said was wrong. Jeroboam had caused the people of Israel to sin. And Zimri sinned in the same way Jeroboam had sinned.
20 Everything else Zimri did is written down. It is in the book of the history of the kings of Israel. The story of how Zimri turned against King Elah is also written there.
Omri King of Israel
21 The people of Israel were divided into two groups. Half of the people wanted Tibni to be king. He was the son of Ginath. The other half of the people wanted Omri. 22 But Omri’s followers were stronger than the followers of Tibni son of Ginath. So Tibni died, and Omri became king.
23 Omri became king of Israel. This was during the thirty-first year Asa was king of Judah. And Omri ruled Israel for 12 years. Six of those years he ruled in the town of Tirzah. 24 Omri bought the hill of Samaria from Shemer. He paid about 150 pounds of silver for it. Omri built a city on that hill. And he called it Samaria after the name of its earlier owner, Shemer.
25 But Omri did what the Lord said was wrong. He did more evil than all the kings who were before him. 26 Jeroboam son of Nebat had caused the people of Israel to sin. And Omri sinned in the same way Jeroboam had sinned. So the Israelites made the Lord, the God of Israel, very angry. He was angry because they worshiped worthless idols.
27 Everything else Omri did and all his successes are written down. They are all in the book of the history of the kings of Israel. 28 So Omri died and was buried in Samaria. His son Ahab became king in his place.
Ahab King of Israel
29 So Ahab son of Omri became king of Israel. This was during Asa’s thirty-eighth year as king of Judah. Ahab ruled Israel in the town of Samaria for 22 years. 30 Ahab did many things that the Lord said were wrong. He did more evil than any of the kings before him. 31 He sinned in the same ways that Jeroboam son of Nebat had sinned. But he did even worse things. He married Jezebel daughter of Ethbaal. (Ethbaal was king of the city of Sidon.) Then Ahab began to serve Baal and worship him. 32 He built a temple in Samaria for worshiping Baal. And he put an altar there for Baal. 33 Ahab also made an idol for worshiping Asherah. He did more things to make the Lord, the God of Israel, angry than all the other kings before him.
34 During the time of Ahab, Hiel from Bethel rebuilt the town of Jericho. It cost Hiel the life of Abiram, his oldest son, to begin work on the city. And it cost the life of Segub, his youngest son, to build the city gates. The Lord had said, through Joshua, that this would happen.[a] (Joshua was the son of Nun.)
Elijah Stops the Rain
17 Now Elijah was a prophet from the town of Tishbe in Gilead. Elijah said to King Ahab, “I serve the Lord, the God of Israel. As surely as the Lord lives, I tell you the truth. No rain or dew will fall during the next few years unless I command it.”
2 Then the Lord spoke his word to Elijah: 3 “Leave this place. Go east and hide near Kerith Ravine. It is east of the Jordan River. 4 You may drink from the brook. And I have commanded ravens to bring you food there.” 5 So Elijah did what the Lord told him to do. He went to Kerith Ravine, east of the Jordan, and lived there. 6 The birds brought Elijah bread and meat every morning and every evening. And he drank water from the brook.
7 After a while the brook dried up because there was no rain. 8 Then the Lord spoke his word to Elijah, 9 “Go to Zarephath in Sidon. Live there. I have commanded a widow there to take care of you.”
10 So Elijah went to Zarephath. When he reached the town gate, he saw a widow there. She was gathering wood for a fire. Elijah asked her, “Would you bring me a little water in a cup? I would like to have a drink.” 11 As she was going to get his water, Elijah said, “Please bring me a piece of bread, too.”
12 The woman answered, “As surely as the Lord your God lives, I tell you the truth. I have no bread. I have only a handful of flour in a jar. And I have only a little olive oil in a jug. I came here to gather some wood. I will take it home and cook our last meal. My son and I will eat it and then die from hunger.”
13 Elijah said to her, “Don’t worry. Go home and cook your food as you have said. But first make a small loaf of bread from the flour you have. Bring it to me. Then cook something for yourself and your son. 14 The Lord, the God of Israel, says, ‘That jar of flour will never become empty. The jug will always have oil in it. This will continue until the day the Lord sends rain to the land.’”
15 So the woman went home. And she did what Elijah told her to do. So Elijah, the woman and her son had enough food every day. 16 The jar of flour and the jug of oil were never empty. This happened just as the Lord, through Elijah, said it would.
Elijah Brings a Boy Back to Life
17 Some time later the son of the woman who owned the house became sick. He grew worse and worse. Finally he stopped breathing. 18 So the woman said to Elijah, “You are a man of God. What have you done to me? Did you come here to remind me of my sin? Did you come here to kill my son?”
19 Elijah said to her, “Give me your son.” So Elijah took the boy from her and carried him upstairs. Elijah laid the boy on the bed in the room where he was staying. 20 Then he prayed to the Lord. He said, “Lord my God, this widow is letting me stay in her house. Why have you done this terrible thing to her? Why have you caused her son to die?” 21 Then Elijah lay on top of the boy three times. Elijah prayed to the Lord, “Lord my God, let this boy live again!”
22 The Lord answered Elijah’s prayer. The boy began breathing again, and he was alive. 23 Elijah carried the boy downstairs. He gave the boy to his mother and said, “See! Your son is alive!”
24 The woman said to Elijah, “Now I know you really are a man from God. I know that the Lord truly speaks through you!”
Elijah and the Prophets of Baal
18 During the third year without rain, the Lord spoke his word to Elijah. The Lord said, “Go and meet King Ahab. I will soon send rain.” 2 So Elijah went to meet Ahab.
By this time there was no food in Samaria. 3 So King Ahab sent for Obadiah. Obadiah was in charge of the king’s palace. (Obadiah was a true follower of the Lord. 4 One time Jezebel was killing all the Lord’s prophets. So Obadiah took 100 of them and hid them in two caves. He put 50 in one cave and 50 in another cave. And he brought them food and water.) 5 King Ahab said to Obadiah, “Let’s look at every spring and valley in the land. Maybe we can find enough grass to keep our horses and mules alive. Then we will not have to kill our animals.” 6 So each one chose a part of the country to search. Ahab went in one direction. Obadiah went in another direction.
7 While Obadiah was walking along, Elijah met him. Obadiah knew who Elijah was. So he bowed down to the ground before Elijah. He said, “Elijah? Is it really you, master?”
8 Elijah answered, “Yes. Go tell your master the king that I am here.”
9 Then Obadiah said, “If I tell Ahab that, he will kill me! I have done nothing wrong that I should be killed! 10 As surely as the Lord your God lives, the king has looked everywhere for you! He has sent people to every country to look for you. If the ruler said you were not there, that was not enough. Ahab then forced the ruler to swear you could not be found in his country. 11 Now you want me to go to my master and tell him, ‘Elijah is here’? 12 The Spirit of the Lord may carry you to some other place after I leave. If I go tell King Ahab you are here, he will come. If he doesn’t find you, he will kill me! I have followed the Lord since I was a boy. 13 Haven’t you heard what I did? When Jezebel was killing the Lord’s prophets, I hid 100 of them. I put 50 prophets in one cave and 50 prophets in another cave. I brought them food and water. 14 Now you want me to go and tell the king you are here. He will kill me!”
15 Elijah answered, “I serve the Lord of heaven’s armies. As surely as the Lord lives, I will stand before Ahab today.”
16 So Obadiah went to Ahab and told him where Elijah was. Then Ahab went to meet Elijah.
17 When he saw Elijah, he said, “Is it you—the biggest troublemaker in Israel?”
18 Elijah answered, “I have not caused trouble in Israel. You and your father’s family have caused all this trouble. You have not obeyed the Lord’s commands. You have followed the Baals. 19 Now tell all Israel to meet me at Mount Carmel. Also bring the 450 prophets of Baal there. And bring the 400 prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.”
20 So Ahab called all the Israelites and those prophets to Mount Carmel. 21 Elijah stood before the people. He said, “How long will you try to serve both Baal and the Lord? If the Lord is the true God, follow him. But if Baal is the true God, follow him!”
But the people said nothing.
22 Elijah said, “I am the only prophet of the Lord here. But there are 450 prophets of Baal. 23 So bring two bulls. Let the prophets of Baal choose one bull. Let them kill it and cut it into pieces. Then let them put the meat on the wood. But they are not to set fire to it. Then I will do the same with the other bull. And I will put it on the wood. But I will not set fire to it. 24 You prophets of Baal, pray to your god. And I will pray to the Lord. The god who answers the prayer will set fire to his wood. He is the true God.”
All the people agreed that this was a good idea.
25 Then Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “There are many of you. So you go first. Choose a bull and prepare it. Pray to your god, but don’t start the fire.”
26 So they took the bull that was given to them and prepared it. They prayed to Baal from morning until noon. They shouted, “Baal, answer us!” But there was no sound. No one answered. They danced around the altar they had built.
27 At noon Elijah began to make fun of them. He said, “Pray louder! If Baal really is a god, maybe he is thinking. Or maybe he is busy or traveling! Maybe he is sleeping so you will have to wake him!” 28 So the prophets prayed louder. They cut themselves with swords and spears until their blood flowed. (This was the way they worshiped.) 29 The afternoon passed, and the prophets continued to act wildly. They continued until it was time for the evening sacrifice. But no voice was heard. Baal did not answer. No one paid attention.
30 Then Elijah said to all the people, “Now come to me.” So they gathered around him. Elijah rebuilt the altar of the Lord because it had been torn down. 31 He took 12 stones. He took 1 stone for each of the 12 tribes. These 12 tribes were named for the 12 sons of Jacob. (Jacob was the man the Lord had called Israel.) 32 Elijah used these stones to rebuild the altar in honor of the Lord. Then he dug a small ditch around it. It was big enough to hold about 13 quarts of seed. 33 Elijah put the wood on the altar. He cut the bull into pieces and laid them on the wood. Then he said, “Fill four jars with water. Put the water on the meat and on the wood.”
34 Then Elijah said, “Do it again.” And they did it again.
Then he said, “Do it a third time.” And they did it the third time. 35 So the water ran off of the altar and filled the ditch.
36 It was time for the evening sacrifice. So the prophet Elijah went near the altar. He prayed, “Lord, you are the God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel. I ask you now to prove that you are the God of Israel. And prove that I am your servant. Show these people that you commanded me to do all these things. 37 Lord, answer my prayer. Show these people that you, Lord, are God. Then the people will know that you are bringing them back to you.”
38 Then fire from the Lord came down. It burned the sacrifice, the wood, the stones and the ground around the altar. It also dried up the water in the ditch. 39 When all the people saw this, they fell down to the ground. They cried, “The Lord is God! The Lord is God!”
40 Then Elijah said, “Capture the prophets of Baal! Don’t let any of them run away!” So the people captured all the prophets. Then Elijah led them down to Kishon Valley. There he killed all the prophets.
The Rain Comes Again
41 Then Elijah said to Ahab, “Now, go, eat and drink. A heavy rain is coming.” 42 So King Ahab went to eat and drink. At the same time Elijah climbed to the top of Mount Carmel. There he bent down to the ground with his head between his knees.
43 Then Elijah said to his servant, “Go and look toward the sea.”
The servant went and looked. He said, “I see nothing.”
Elijah told him to go and look again. This happened seven times. 44 The seventh time, the servant said, “I see a small cloud. It’s the size of a man’s fist. It’s coming from the sea.”
Elijah told the servant, “Go to Ahab. Tell him to get his chariot ready and to go home now. If he doesn’t leave now, the rain will stop him.”
45 After a short time the sky was covered with dark clouds. The wind began to blow. Then a heavy rain began to fall. Ahab got in his chariot and started back to Jezreel. 46 The Lord gave his power to Elijah. Elijah tightened his clothes around him. Then he ran ahead of King Ahab all the way to Jezreel.
Jesus Is Arrested
47 While Jesus was speaking, a crowd came up. One of the 12 apostles was leading them. He was Judas. He came close to Jesus so that he could kiss him.
48 But Jesus said to him, “Judas, are you using the kiss to give the Son of Man to his enemies?”
49 The followers of Jesus were standing there too. They saw what was happening. They said to Jesus, “Lord, should we use our swords?” 50 And one of them did use his sword. He cut off the right ear of the servant of the high priest.
51 Jesus said, “Stop!” Then he touched the servant’s ear and healed him.
52 Those who came to arrest Jesus were the leading priests, the soldiers who guarded the Temple, and the Jewish elders. Jesus said to them, “Why did you come out here with swords and sticks? Do you think I am a criminal? 53 I was with you every day in the Temple. Why didn’t you try to arrest me there? But this is your time—the time when darkness rules.”
Peter Says He Doesn’t Know Jesus
54 They arrested Jesus and took him away. They brought him into the house of the high priest. Peter followed them, but he did not go near Jesus. 55 The soldiers started a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat together. Peter sat with them. 56 A servant girl saw Peter sitting there near the light. She looked closely at Peter’s face and said, “This man was also with him!”
57 But Peter said this was not true. He said, “Girl, I don’t know him.”
58 A short time later, another person saw Peter and said, “You are also one of them.”
But Peter said, “Man, I am not!”
59 About an hour later, another man insisted, “It is true! This man was with him. He is from Galilee!”
60 But Peter said, “Man, I don’t know what you are talking about!”
Immediately, while Peter was still speaking, a rooster crowed. 61 Then the Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. And Peter remembered what the Lord had said: “Before the rooster crows tonight, you will say three times that you don’t know me.” 62 Then Peter went outside and cried with much pain in his heart.
The People Laugh at Jesus
63-64 Some men were guarding Jesus. They made fun of him like this: They covered his eyes so that he could not see them. Then they hit him and said, “Prove that you are a prophet, and tell us who hit you!” 65 The men said many cruel things to Jesus.
Jesus Before the Leaders
66 When day came, the elders of the people, the leading priests, and the teachers of the law came together. They led Jesus away to their highest court. 67 They said, “If you are the Christ, then tell us that you are!”
Jesus said to them, “If I tell you I am the Christ, you will not believe me. 68 And if I ask you, you will not answer. 69 But beginning now, the Son of Man will sit at the right hand of the powerful God.”
70 They all said, “Then are you the Son of God?”
Jesus said to them, “Yes, you are right when you say that I am.”
71 They said, “Why do we need witnesses now? We ourselves heard him say this!”
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.