Font Size
1 Kings 21-22
GOD’S WORD Translation
1 Kings 21-22
GOD’S WORD Translation
Ahab Takes Naboth’s Vineyard
21 This is what happened next. Naboth from Jezreel had a vineyard in Jezreel next to the palace of King Ahab of Samaria.
2 Ahab told Naboth, “Give me your vineyard. It will become my vegetable garden because it is near my house. I will give you a better vineyard for it. Or if you prefer, I will pay you a fair price for it.”
3 Naboth told Ahab, “The Lord has forbidden me to give you what I inherited from my ancestors.”
4 Resentful and upset, Ahab went home because of what Naboth from Jezreel had told him. (⌞Naboth had said,⌟ “I will not give you what I inherited from my ancestors.”) So Ahab lay on the couch, turned his face ⌞from everyone⌟, and refused to eat.
5 His wife Jezebel came to him and asked, “Why are you so resentful of everything? Why don’t you eat?”
6 He told her, “I talked to Naboth from Jezreel. I said to him, ‘Sell me your vineyard. Or, if you like, I’ll give you another vineyard for it.’ But he said, ‘I won’t give you my vineyard.’ ”
7 His wife Jezebel said to him, “Aren’t you king of Israel? Get up, eat, and cheer up. I’ll give you the vineyard belonging to Naboth from Jezreel.”
8 So Jezebel wrote letters, signed them with Ahab’s name, and sealed them with his seal. She sent them to the respected leaders and nobles living in Naboth’s city. 9 In these letters she wrote: “Announce a fast. Seat Naboth as leader of the people. 10 Have two good-for-nothing men sit opposite him and accuse him of cursing God and the king. Then stone him to death outside the city.”
11 The men in Naboth’s city—the respected leaders and nobles who lived there—did what Jezebel asked them to do. They did just as she had written in the letters she sent. 12 They announced a fast and had Naboth seated as the leader of the people. 13 The two good-for-nothing men came in and sat opposite him. In front of the people, these men accused Naboth of cursing God and the king. So the people stoned him to death outside the city. 14 Then the leaders sent ⌞this message⌟ to Jezebel: “Naboth has been stoned to death.”
15 Jezebel received the message and said to Ahab, “Get up! Confiscate the vineyard which Naboth from Jezreel refused to sell you. He’s dead now.”
16 When he heard about Naboth’s death, Ahab went to confiscate the vineyard.
17 Then the Lord spoke his word to Elijah from Tishbe: 18 “Go, meet King Ahab of Israel, who lives in Samaria. He went to confiscate Naboth’s vineyard. 19 Tell him, ‘This is what the Lord asks: Have you murdered someone just to confiscate ⌞a vineyard⌟?’ Then tell him, ‘This is what the Lord says: At the place where the dogs licked up Naboth’s blood, the dogs will lick up your blood.’ ”
20 Ahab asked Elijah, “So you’ve found me, my enemy?”
Elijah answered, “I found you. Because you sold yourself to do what the Lord considers evil. 21 So I am going to bring evil on you. I will destroy your descendants. I will destroy every male [a] in Ahab’s ⌞house⌟, whether slave or freeman in Israel. 22 I will make your family like the family of Jeroboam (Nebat’s son) and like the house of Baasha, son of Ahijah, because you made me furious. You led Israel to sin.”
23 Then the Lord also spoke ⌞through Elijah⌟ about Jezebel: “The dogs will eat Jezebel inside the walls of Jezreel. 24 If anyone from Ahab’s ⌞house⌟ dies in the city, dogs will eat him. If anyone dies in the country, birds will eat him.”
25 There was no one else like Ahab. At the urging of his wife, he sold himself to do what the Lord considered evil. 26 He did many disgusting things as a result of worshiping idols as the Amorites had done. (The Lord confiscated their land for Israel.)
27 When Ahab heard these things, he tore his clothes ⌞in distress⌟ and dressed in sackcloth. He fasted, lay in sackcloth, and walked around depressed.
28 Then the Lord spoke his word to Elijah from Tishbe: 29 “Do you see how Ahab is humbling himself in my presence? Because he’s humbling himself in my presence, I will not let any evil happen to his family while he is alive. I will bring evil on it during his son’s lifetime.”
Micaiah Prophesies against King Ahab(A)
22 For three years there was no war between Aram and Israel. 2 In the third year King Jehoshaphat of Judah went to visit the king of Israel.
3 The king of Israel asked his staff, “Do you know that Ramoth in Gilead belongs to us, and we are doing nothing to take it back from the king of Aram?” 4 Then he asked Jehoshaphat, “Will you go with me to fight at Ramoth in Gilead?”
Jehoshaphat told the king of Israel, “I will do what you do. My troops will do what your troops do. My horses will do what your horses do.” 5 Then Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “But first, find out what the Lord’s word is ⌞in this matter⌟.”
6 So the king of Israel called 400 prophets together. He asked them, “Should I go to war against Ramoth in Gilead or not?”
“Go,” they said. “The Lord [b] will hand over Ramoth to you.”
7 But Jehoshaphat asked, “Isn’t there a prophet of the Lord whom we could ask?”
8 The king of Israel told Jehoshaphat, “We can ask the Lord through Micaiah, son of Imlah, but I hate him. He doesn’t prophesy anything good about me, only evil.”
Jehoshaphat answered, “The king must not say that.”
9 The king of Israel called for an officer and said, “Quick! ⌞Get⌟ Micaiah, son of Imlah!”
10 The king of Israel and King Jehoshaphat of Judah were dressed in royal robes and seated on thrones. They were on the threshing floor [c] at the entrance to the gate of Samaria. All the prophets were prophesying in front of them. 11 Zedekiah, son of Chenaanah, made iron horns and said, “This is what the Lord says: With these horns you will push the Arameans to their destruction.” 12 All the other prophets made the same prophecy. They said, “Attack Ramoth in Gilead, and you will win. The Lord will hand it over to you.”
13 The messenger who went to call Micaiah told him, “The prophets have all told the king the same good message. Make your message agree with their message. Say something good.”
14 Micaiah answered, “I solemnly swear, as the Lord lives, I will tell him whatever the Lord tells me.”
15 When he came to the king, the king asked him, “Micaiah, should we go to war against Ramoth in Gilead or not?”
Micaiah said to him, “Attack and you will win. The Lord will hand it over to you.”
16 The king asked him, “How many times must I make you take an oath in the Lord’s name to tell me nothing but the truth?”
17 So Micaiah said, “I saw Israel’s troops scattered in the hills like sheep without a shepherd. The Lord said, ‘These ⌞sheep⌟ have no master. Let each one go home in peace.’ ”
18 The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “Didn’t I tell you he wouldn’t prophesy anything good about me, only evil?”
19 Micaiah added, “Then hear the Lord’s word. I saw the Lord sitting on his throne, and the entire army of heaven was standing near him on his right and his left. 20 The Lord asked, ‘Who will deceive Ahab so that he will attack and be killed at Ramoth in Gilead?’ Some answered one way, while others said something else.
21 “Then the Spirit stepped forward, stood in front of the Lord, and said, ‘I will deceive him.’
“ ‘How?’ the Lord asked.
22 “The Spirit answered, ‘I will go out and be a spirit that tells lies through the mouths of all of Ahab’s prophets.’
“The Lord said, ‘You will succeed in deceiving him. Go and do it.’
23 “So, the Lord has put into the mouths of all these prophets of yours a spirit that makes them tell lies. The Lord has spoken evil about you.”
24 Then Zedekiah, son of Chenaanah, went to Micaiah and struck him on the cheek. “How did the Lord’s Spirit leave me to talk to you?” he asked.
25 Micaiah answered, “You will find out on the day you go into an inner room to hide.”
26 The king of Israel then said, “Send Micaiah back to Amon, the governor of the city, and to Joash, the prince. 27 Say, ‘This is what the king says: Put this man in prison, and feed him nothing but bread and water until I come home safely.’ ”
28 Micaiah said, “If you really do come back safely, then the Lord wasn’t speaking through me. Pay attention to this, everyone!”
29 So the king of Israel and King Jehoshaphat of Judah went to Ramoth in Gilead. 30 The king of Israel told Jehoshaphat, “I will disguise myself and go into battle, but you should wear your royal robes.” So the king of Israel disguised himself and went into battle.
31 The king of Aram had given orders to the 32 chariot commanders. He said, “Don’t fight anyone except the king of Israel.”
32 When the chariot commanders saw Jehoshaphat, they said, “He must be the king of Israel.” So they turned to fight him. But when Jehoshaphat cried out, 33 the chariot commanders realized that he wasn’t the king of Israel. They turned away from him.
34 One man aimed his bow at random and hit the king of Israel between his scale armor and his breastplate. Ahab told his chariot driver, “Turn around, and get me away from these troops. I’m badly wounded.” 35 But the battle got worse that day, and the king was kept propped up in his chariot facing the Arameans. He died that evening. The blood from the wound had flowed into the chariot. 36 At sundown a cry went through the army, “Every man to his own city! Every man to his own property!”
37 When the king was dead, he was brought to Samaria to be buried. 38 His chariot was washed at the pool of Samaria, where the prostitutes bathed. The dogs licked up his blood, as the Lord had predicted.
39 Isn’t everything else about Ahab—everything he did, the ivory palace he built, and all the cities he fortified—written in the official records of the kings of Israel? 40 Ahab lay down in death with his ancestors. His son Ahaziah succeeded him as king.
King Jehoshaphat of Judah(B)
41 Jehoshaphat, son of Asa, became king of Judah in Ahab’s fourth year as king of Israel. 42 Jehoshaphat was 35 years old when he began to rule, and he ruled for 25 years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Azubah, daughter of Shilhi. 43 Jehoshaphat carefully followed the example his father Asa had set and did what the Lord considered right. 44 But the illegal worship sites were not torn down. The people continued to sacrifice and burn incense at these worship sites.[d] Jehoshaphat made peace with the king of Israel.
45 Isn’t everything else about Jehoshaphat—the heroic acts he did and ⌞the wars⌟ he fought—written in the official records of the kings of Judah? 46 He rid the land of the male temple prostitutes who were left there from the time of his father Asa. 47 There was no king in Edom; instead, a deputy ruled.
48 Jehoshaphat made Tarshish-style ships to go to Ophir for gold. But they didn’t go because the ships were wrecked at Ezion Geber. 49 Then Ahaziah, son of Ahab, said to Jehoshaphat, “Let my servants go with your servants in the ships.” But Jehoshaphat refused.
50 Jehoshaphat lay down in death with his ancestors and was buried with them in the city of his ancestor David. His son Jehoram succeeded him as king.
King Ahaziah of Israel
51 Ahaziah, son of Ahab, became king of Israel in Samaria during Jehoshaphat’s seventeenth year as king of Judah. Ahaziah ruled Israel for two years. 52 He did what the Lord considered evil. He followed the example of his father and mother and of Jeroboam (Nebat’s son) who led Israel to sin. 53 Ahaziah served Baal, worshiped him, and made the Lord God of Israel furious, as his father had done.
1 Kings 21-22
New International Version
1 Kings 21-22
New International Version
Naboth’s Vineyard
21 Some time later there was an incident involving a vineyard belonging to Naboth(A) the Jezreelite. The vineyard was in Jezreel,(B) close to the palace of Ahab king of Samaria. 2 Ahab said to Naboth, “Let me have your vineyard to use for a vegetable garden, since it is close to my palace. In exchange I will give you a better vineyard or, if you prefer, I will pay you whatever it is worth.”
3 But Naboth replied, “The Lord forbid that I should give you the inheritance(C) of my ancestors.”
4 So Ahab went home, sullen and angry(D) because Naboth the Jezreelite had said, “I will not give you the inheritance of my ancestors.” He lay on his bed sulking and refused(E) to eat.
5 His wife Jezebel came in and asked him, “Why are you so sullen? Why won’t you eat?”
6 He answered her, “Because I said to Naboth the Jezreelite, ‘Sell me your vineyard; or if you prefer, I will give you another vineyard in its place.’ But he said, ‘I will not give you my vineyard.’”
7 Jezebel his wife said, “Is this how you act as king over Israel? Get up and eat! Cheer up. I’ll get you the vineyard(F) of Naboth the Jezreelite.”
8 So she wrote letters(G) in Ahab’s name, placed his seal(H) on them, and sent them to the elders and nobles who lived in Naboth’s city with him. 9 In those letters she wrote:
“Proclaim a day of fasting and seat Naboth in a prominent place among the people. 10 But seat two scoundrels(I) opposite him and have them bring charges that he has cursed(J) both God and the king. Then take him out and stone him to death.”
11 So the elders and nobles who lived in Naboth’s city did as Jezebel directed in the letters she had written to them. 12 They proclaimed a fast(K) and seated Naboth in a prominent place among the people. 13 Then two scoundrels came and sat opposite him and brought charges against Naboth before the people, saying, “Naboth has cursed both God and the king.” So they took him outside the city and stoned him to death.(L) 14 Then they sent word to Jezebel: “Naboth has been stoned to death.”
15 As soon as Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned to death, she said to Ahab, “Get up and take possession of the vineyard(M) of Naboth the Jezreelite that he refused to sell you. He is no longer alive, but dead.” 16 When Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, he got up and went down to take possession of Naboth’s vineyard.
17 Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite: 18 “Go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, who rules in Samaria. He is now in Naboth’s vineyard, where he has gone to take possession of it. 19 Say to him, ‘This is what the Lord says: Have you not murdered a man and seized his property?’(N) Then say to him, ‘This is what the Lord says: In the place where dogs licked up Naboth’s blood,(O) dogs(P) will lick up your blood—yes, yours!’”
20 Ahab said to Elijah, “So you have found me, my enemy!”(Q)
“I have found you,” he answered, “because you have sold(R) yourself to do evil in the eyes of the Lord. 21 He says, ‘I am going to bring disaster on you. I will wipe out your descendants and cut off from Ahab every last male(S) in Israel—slave or free.[a](T) 22 I will make your house(U) like that of Jeroboam son of Nebat and that of Baasha son of Ahijah, because you have aroused my anger and have caused Israel to sin.’(V)
23 “And also concerning Jezebel the Lord says: ‘Dogs(W) will devour Jezebel by the wall of[b] Jezreel.’
24 “Dogs(X) will eat those belonging to Ahab who die in the city, and the birds(Y) will feed on those who die in the country.”
25 (There was never(Z) anyone like Ahab, who sold himself to do evil in the eyes of the Lord, urged on by Jezebel his wife. 26 He behaved in the vilest manner by going after idols, like the Amorites(AA) the Lord drove out before Israel.)
27 When Ahab heard these words, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth(AB) and fasted. He lay in sackcloth and went around meekly.(AC)
28 Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite: 29 “Have you noticed how Ahab has humbled himself before me? Because he has humbled(AD) himself, I will not bring this disaster in his day,(AE) but I will bring it on his house in the days of his son.”(AF)
Micaiah Prophesies Against Ahab(AG)
22 For three years there was no war between Aram and Israel. 2 But in the third year Jehoshaphat king of Judah went down to see the king of Israel. 3 The king of Israel had said to his officials, “Don’t you know that Ramoth Gilead(AH) belongs to us and yet we are doing nothing to retake it from the king of Aram?”
4 So he asked Jehoshaphat, “Will you go with me to fight(AI) against Ramoth Gilead?”
Jehoshaphat replied to the king of Israel, “I am as you are, my people as your people, my horses as your horses.” 5 But Jehoshaphat also said to the king of Israel, “First seek the counsel(AJ) of the Lord.”
6 So the king of Israel brought together the prophets—about four hundred men—and asked them, “Shall I go to war against Ramoth Gilead, or shall I refrain?”
“Go,”(AK) they answered, “for the Lord will give it into the king’s hand.”(AL)
7 But Jehoshaphat asked, “Is there no longer a prophet(AM) of the Lord here whom we can inquire(AN) of?”
8 The king of Israel answered Jehoshaphat, “There is still one prophet through whom we can inquire of the Lord, but I hate(AO) him because he never prophesies anything good(AP) about me, but always bad. He is Micaiah son of Imlah.”
“The king should not say such a thing,” Jehoshaphat replied.
9 So the king of Israel called one of his officials and said, “Bring Micaiah son of Imlah at once.”
10 Dressed in their royal robes, the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat king of Judah were sitting on their thrones at the threshing floor(AQ) by the entrance of the gate of Samaria, with all the prophets prophesying before them. 11 Now Zedekiah(AR) son of Kenaanah had made iron horns(AS) and he declared, “This is what the Lord says: ‘With these you will gore the Arameans until they are destroyed.’”
12 All the other prophets were prophesying the same thing. “Attack Ramoth Gilead and be victorious,” they said, “for the Lord will give it into the king’s hand.”
13 The messenger who had gone to summon Micaiah said to him, “Look, the other prophets without exception are predicting success for the king. Let your word agree with theirs, and speak favorably.”(AT)
14 But Micaiah said, “As surely as the Lord lives, I can tell him only what the Lord tells me.”(AU)
15 When he arrived, the king asked him, “Micaiah, shall we go to war against Ramoth Gilead, or not?”
“Attack and be victorious,” he answered, “for the Lord will give it into the king’s hand.”
16 The king said to him, “How many times must I make you swear to tell me nothing but the truth in the name of the Lord?”
17 Then Micaiah answered, “I saw all Israel scattered(AV) on the hills like sheep without a shepherd,(AW) and the Lord said, ‘These people have no master. Let each one go home in peace.’”
18 The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “Didn’t I tell you that he never prophesies anything good about me, but only bad?”
19 Micaiah continued, “Therefore hear the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on his throne(AX) with all the multitudes(AY) of heaven standing around him on his right and on his left. 20 And the Lord said, ‘Who will entice Ahab into attacking Ramoth Gilead and going to his death there?’
“One suggested this, and another that. 21 Finally, a spirit came forward, stood before the Lord and said, ‘I will entice him.’
22 “‘By what means?’ the Lord asked.
“‘I will go out and be a deceiving(AZ) spirit in the mouths of all his prophets,’ he said.
“‘You will succeed in enticing him,’ said the Lord. ‘Go and do it.’
23 “So now the Lord has put a deceiving(BA) spirit in the mouths of all these prophets(BB) of yours. The Lord has decreed disaster(BC) for you.”
24 Then Zedekiah(BD) son of Kenaanah went up and slapped(BE) Micaiah in the face. “Which way did the spirit from[c] the Lord go when he went from me to speak(BF) to you?” he asked.
25 Micaiah replied, “You will find out on the day you go to hide(BG) in an inner room.”
26 The king of Israel then ordered, “Take Micaiah and send him back to Amon the ruler of the city and to Joash the king’s son 27 and say, ‘This is what the king says: Put this fellow in prison(BH) and give him nothing but bread and water until I return safely.’”
28 Micaiah declared, “If you ever return safely, the Lord has not spoken(BI) through me.” Then he added, “Mark my words, all you people!”
Ahab Killed at Ramoth Gilead(BJ)
29 So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat king of Judah went up to Ramoth Gilead. 30 The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “I will enter the battle in disguise,(BK) but you wear your royal robes.” So the king of Israel disguised himself and went into battle.
31 Now the king of Aram(BL) had ordered his thirty-two chariot commanders, “Do not fight with anyone, small or great, except the king(BM) of Israel.” 32 When the chariot commanders saw Jehoshaphat, they thought, “Surely this is the king of Israel.” So they turned to attack him, but when Jehoshaphat cried out, 33 the chariot commanders saw that he was not the king of Israel and stopped pursuing him.
34 But someone drew his bow(BN) at random and hit the king of Israel between the sections of his armor. The king told his chariot driver, “Wheel around and get me out of the fighting. I’ve been wounded.” 35 All day long the battle raged, and the king was propped up in his chariot facing the Arameans. The blood from his wound ran onto the floor of the chariot, and that evening he died. 36 As the sun was setting, a cry spread through the army: “Every man to his town. Every man to his land!”(BO)
37 So the king died and was brought to Samaria, and they buried him there. 38 They washed the chariot at a pool in Samaria (where the prostitutes bathed),[d] and the dogs(BP) licked up his blood, as the word of the Lord had declared.
39 As for the other events of Ahab’s reign, including all he did, the palace he built and adorned with ivory,(BQ) and the cities he fortified, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Israel? 40 Ahab rested with his ancestors. And Ahaziah his son succeeded him as king.
Jehoshaphat King of Judah(BR)
41 Jehoshaphat son of Asa became king of Judah in the fourth year of Ahab king of Israel. 42 Jehoshaphat was thirty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem twenty-five years. His mother’s name was Azubah daughter of Shilhi. 43 In everything he followed the ways of his father Asa(BS) and did not stray from them; he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord. The high places,(BT) however, were not removed, and the people continued to offer sacrifices and burn incense there.[e] 44 Jehoshaphat was also at peace with the king of Israel.
45 As for the other events of Jehoshaphat’s reign, the things he achieved and his military exploits, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Judah? 46 He rid the land of the rest of the male shrine prostitutes(BU) who remained there even after the reign of his father Asa. 47 There was then no king(BV) in Edom; a provincial governor ruled.
48 Now Jehoshaphat built a fleet of trading ships[f](BW) to go to Ophir for gold, but they never set sail—they were wrecked at Ezion Geber.(BX) 49 At that time Ahaziah son of Ahab said to Jehoshaphat, “Let my men sail with yours,” but Jehoshaphat refused.
50 Then Jehoshaphat rested with his ancestors and was buried with them in the city of David his father. And Jehoram his son succeeded him as king.
Ahaziah King of Israel
51 Ahaziah son of Ahab became king of Israel in Samaria in the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and he reigned over Israel two years. 52 He did evil(BY) in the eyes of the Lord, because he followed the ways of his father and mother and of Jeroboam son of Nebat, who caused Israel to sin. 53 He served and worshiped Baal(BZ) and aroused the anger of the Lord, the God of Israel, just as his father(CA) had done.
Footnotes
- 1 Kings 21:21 Or Israel—every ruler or leader
- 1 Kings 21:23 Most Hebrew manuscripts; a few Hebrew manuscripts, Vulgate and Syriac (see also 2 Kings 9:26) the plot of ground at
- 1 Kings 22:24 Or Spirit of
- 1 Kings 22:38 Or Samaria and cleaned the weapons
- 1 Kings 22:43 In Hebrew texts this sentence (22:43b) is numbered 22:44, and 22:44-53 is numbered 22:45-54.
- 1 Kings 22:48 Hebrew of ships of Tarshish
GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)
Copyright © 1995, 2003, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2020 by God’s Word to the Nations Mission Society. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.