1 Kings 21
21
Naboth's Vineyard
1Near King Ahab's palace in Jezreel there was a vineyard owned by a man named Naboth. 2One day Ahab said to Naboth, “Let me have your vineyard; it is close to my palace, and I want to use the land for a vegetable garden. I will give you a better vineyard for it, or, if you prefer, I will pay you a fair price.”
3“I inherited this vineyard from my ancestors,” Naboth replied. “The LORD forbid that I should let you have it!”
4Ahab went home, depressed and angry over what Naboth had said to him. He lay down on his bed, facing the wall, and would not eat. 5His wife Jezebel went to him and asked, “Why are you so depressed? Why won't you eat?”
6He answered, “Because of what Naboth said to me. I offered to buy his vineyard, or, if he preferred, to give him another one for it, but he told me that I couldn't have it!”
7“Well, are you the king or aren't you?” Jezebel replied. “Get out of bed, cheer up and eat. I will get you Naboth's vineyard!”
8Then she wrote some letters, signed them with Ahab's name, sealed them with his seal, and sent them to the officials and leading citizens of Jezreel. 9The letters said: “Proclaim a day of fasting, call the people together, and give Naboth the place of honour. 10Get a couple of scoundrels to accuse him to his face of cursing God and the king. Then take him out of the city and stone him to death.”
11The officials and leading citizens of Jezreel did what Jezebel had commanded. 12They proclaimed a day of fasting, called the people together, and gave Naboth the place of honour. 13The two scoundrels publicly accused him of cursing God and the king, and so he was taken outside the city and stoned to death. 14The message was sent to Jezebel: “Naboth has been put to death.”
15As soon as Jezebel received the message, she said to Ahab, “Naboth is dead. Now go and take possession of the vineyard which he refused to sell to you.” 16At once Ahab went to the vineyard to take possession of it.
17Then the LORD said to Elijah, the prophet from Tishbe, 18“Go to King Ahab of Samaria. You will find him in Naboth's vineyard, about to take possession of it. 19#1 Kgs 22.38Tell him that I, the LORD, say to him, ‘After murdering the man, are you taking over his property as well?’ Tell him that this is what I say: ‘In the very place that the dogs licked up Naboth's blood they will lick up your blood!’ ”
20When Ahab saw Elijah, he said, “Have you caught up with me, my enemy?”
“Yes, I have,” Elijah answered. “You have devoted yourself completely to doing what is wrong in the LORD's sight. 21So the LORD says to you, ‘I will bring disaster on you. I will do away with you and get rid of every male in your family, young and old alike. 22Your family will become like the family of King Jeroboam son of Nebat and like the family of King Baasha son of Ahijah, because you have stirred up my anger by leading Israel into sin.’ 23#2 Kgs 9.36And concerning Jezebel, the LORD says that dogs will eat her body in the city of Jezreel. 24Any of your relatives who die in the city will be eaten by dogs, and any who die in the open country will be eaten by vultures.”
25(There was no one else who had devoted himself so completely to doing wrong in the LORD's sight as Ahab — all at the urging of his wife Jezebel. 26He committed the most shameful sins by worshipping idols, as the Amorites had done, whom the LORD had driven out of the land as the people of Israel advanced.)
27When Elijah finished speaking, Ahab tore his clothes, took them off, and put on sackcloth. He refused food, slept in the sackcloth, and went about gloomy and depressed.
28The LORD said to the prophet Elijah, 29“Have you noticed how Ahab has humbled himself before me? Since he has done this, I will not bring disaster on him during his lifetime; it will be during his son's lifetime that I will bring disaster on Ahab's family.”
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Good News Bible. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.
1 Kings 21
21
The Vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite
1It happened after these things that Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard which was in Jezreel beside the palace of Ahab king of Samaria. 2Ahab spoke to Naboth, saying, “Give me your vineyard that it may be mine for a garden of vegetable plants, because it is near, beside my house, and I will give to you a better vineyard in place of it. If it is better in your eyes, I will give you the money of its price.” 3Naboth said to Ahab, “Far be it from me from Yahweh that I should give the inheritance of my ancestors#Or “fathers” to you.” 4Then Ahab went to his house, sullen and angry because of the word that Naboth the Jezreelite had spoken to him when he had said, “I will not give to you the inheritance of my ancestors.”#Or “fathers” So he lay on his bed, turned away his face, and would not eat any food.
5Then Jezebel his wife came to him, and she said to him, “What is this, that your spirit is sullen and you are not eating food?” 6Then he said to her, “When I spoke to Naboth the Jezreelite and asked him, ‘Give me your vineyard for money, or it you prefer, I will give you a vineyard in place of it,’ he said, ‘I will not give you my vineyard.’ ” 7Jezebel his wife said to him, “Now, you rule#Literally “do kingship” over Israel. Get up, eat food, and let your heart be cheerful.#Literally “good” I myself will give you the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.”
8So she wrote letters in the name of Ahab and sealed them with his seal. She sent the letters to the elders and the nobles who were dwelling with Naboth in his city. 9She had written in the letters, saying, “Call a fast and seat Naboth at the head of the people. 10Seat two men, scoundrels,#Literally “sons of wickedness” opposite him. Let them witness against him saying, ‘You cursed God and the king.’ Then you shall bring him out and stone him so that he dies.” 11The men of his city and the elders and nobles who were living in his city did according to what Jezebel had sent to them, as was written in the letters which she had sent to them. 12They called a fast, and they seated Naboth at the head of the people. 13Then the two men, scoundrels,#Literally “sons of wickedness” came, sat opposite him, and the scoundrels#Literally “men of wickedness” witnessed against Naboth before the people, saying, “Naboth cursed God and the king,” so they brought him outside of the city and stoned him with stones, and he died.
14They sent to Jezebel saying, “Naboth has been stoned, and he is dead.” 15It happened at the moment Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned and died, Jezebel said to Ahab, “Get up, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite which he had refused to give to you for money, for Naboth is not alive, but dead.” 16When Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, he got up to go down to the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite to take possession of it.
Elijah Responds to Ahab
17The word of Yahweh came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, 18“Arise, go down to meet Ahab the king of Israel who is in Samaria. Look in the vineyard of Naboth, where he has gone to take possession of it. 19You shall say to him, ‘Thus says Yahweh: “Have you committed murder and also taken possession?” ’ You shall also say to him, ‘Thus says Yahweh: “In the place where the dogs licked the blood of Naboth, the dogs will also lick your blood.” ’ ”
20Then Ahab said to Elijah, “Have you found me, my enemy?” He said, “I have found you because you have sold yourself to do evil in the eyes of Yahweh. 21‘Look, I am bringing disaster on you, and I will sweep away after you. I will cut off for Ahab every male#“Literally “the one who urinates against the wall” in Israel, bond or free. 22I 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 made me angry#Literally “for the provocation which you have provoked” and have caused Israel to sin.’ 23Moreover, concerning Jezebel, Yahweh has said, ‘The dogs will eat Jezebel in the outer rampart of Jezreel.’ 24The one who dies for Ahab in the city, the dogs will eat; the one who dies in the open country, the birds of heaven will eat.”
25Truly, there was no one like Ahab who had sold himself by doing evil in the eyes of Yahweh, whose wife Jezebel urged him on. 26Also, he acted very abominably by going after idols like all the Amorites had done whom Yahweh had driven out from before the Israelites.”#Literally “sons/children of Israel”
27When Ahab heard these words, he tore his clothes and put sackcloth over his flesh, fasted, lay in the sackcloth, and went about dejectedly. 28Then the word of Yahweh 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 disaster in his days. I will bring the disaster on his house in the days of his son.”
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