1 Kings 21

1 And it came to pass after these events, that Naboth the Yizre'elite had a vineyard, which was in Yizre'el, near the palace of Achab the king of Samaria.

And Achaab numbered the young men the heads of the districts, and they were two hundred and thirty: and afterwards he numbered the people, [even] every man fit for war, seven thousand.

2 And Achab spoke unto Naboth, saying, Give me thy vineyard, that it may serve me for a herb-garden, because it is near unto my house; and I will give thee in its stead a vineyard better than it; [or, ] if it seem good in thy eyes, I will give thee the money, the value of the same.

And he went forth at noon, an the son of Ader was drinking [and] getting drunk in Socchoth, he and the kings, [even] thirty and two kings, his allies.

3 And Naboth said to Achab, Far be it from me before the Lord, that I should give the inheritance of my fathers unto thee.

And the young men the heads of the districts went forth first; and they send and report to the king of Syria, saying, There are men come forth out of Samaria.

4 And Achab came into his house low-spirited and displeased because of the word which Naboth the Yizre'elite had spoken to him, when he said, I will not give unto thee the inheritance of my fathers. And he laid himself down upon his bed, and turned away his face, and would eat no food.

And he said to them, If they come forth peaceably, take them alive; and if they come forth to war, take them alive:

5 But Izebel his wife came to him, and spoke unto him, Why is thy spirit so sad! and why eatest thou no food?

and let not the young men the heads of the districts go forth of the city. And the force that was behind them

6 And he said unto her, Because I spoke unto Naboth the Yizre'elite, and said unto him, Give me thy vineyard for money; or else, if it please thee, I will give thee a vineyard in its stead; but he hath said, I will not give unto thee my vineyard.

struck each one the man next to him; and each one a second time struck the man next to him: and Syria fled, and Israel pursued them; and the son of Ader, [even] the king of Syria, escapes on the horse of a horseman.

7 Then said unto him Izebel his wife, Dost thou now govern the kingdom of Israel? arise, eat bread, and let thy heart be merry: I will myself give thee the vineyard of Naboth the Yizre'elite.

And the king of Israel went forth, and took all the horses and the chariots, and struck [the enemy] with a great slaughter in Syria.

8 So she wrote letters in Achab's name, and sealed them with his seal; and she sent the letters unto the elders and unto the nobles who were in his city, and who dwelt near Naboth.

And the prophet came to the king of Israel, and said, Strengthen yourself, and observe, and see what you shall do; for at the return of the year the son of Ader king of Syria comes up against you.

9 And she wrote in the letters, saying, Proclaim a fast, and cause Naboth to sit at the head of the people;

And the servants of the king of Syria, even they said, The God of Israel [is] a God of mountains, and not a God of valleys; therefore has he prevailed against us: but if we should fight against them in the plain, verily we shall prevail against them.

10 And seat two men, worthless fellows, opposite to him, and let them bear witness against him, saying, Thou hast blasphemed God and the king; and then lead him forth, and stone him, that he may die.

And do you this thing: Send away the kings, each one to his place, and set princes in their stead.

11 And the men of his city, the elders and the nobles, those who dwelt in his city, did as Izebel had sent unto them, as was written in the letters which she had sent unto them.

And we will give you [another] army according to the army that was destroyed, and cavalry according to the cavalry, and chariots according to the chariots, and we will fight against them in the plain, and we shall prevail against them. And he listened to their voice, and did so.

12 They proclaimed a fast, and caused Naboth to sit at the head of the people.

And it came to pass at the return of the year, that the son of Ader reviewed Syria, and went up to Apheca to war against Israel.

13 And there came in two men, worthless fellows, and seated themselves opposite to him; and these worthless men testified against him, against Naboth, in the presence of the people, saying, Naboth hath blasphemed God and the king. Then they led him forth out of the city, and stoned him with stones, that he died.

And the children of Israel were numbered, and came to meet them: and Israel encamped before them as two little flocks of goats, but Syria filled the land.

14 And they sent to Izebel, saying, Naboth hath been stoned, and is dead.

And there came the man of God, and said to the king of Israel, Thus says the Lord, Because Syria has said, The Lord God of Israel [is] a God of the hills, and he [is] not a God of the valleys, therefore will I give this great army into your hand, and you shall know that I [am] the Lord.

15 And it came to pass, when Izebel heard that Naboth had been stoned, and was dead, that Izebel said to Achab, Arise, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Yizre'elite, which he refused to give thee for money; for Naboth is not alive, but dead.

And they encamp one over against the other before them seven days. And it came to pass on the seventh day that the battle drew on, and Israel struck Syria, [even] a hundred thousand footmen in one day.

16 And it came to pass, when Achab heard that Naboth was dead, that Achab rose up to go down to the vineyard of Naboth the Yizre'elite, to take possession of it.

And the rest fled to Apheca, into the city; and the wall fell upon twenty-seven thousand men that were left: and the son of Ader fled, and entered into an inner chamber, into a closet.

17 And the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying,

And he said to his servants, I know that the kings of Israel are merciful kings: let us now put sackcloth upon our loins, and ropes upon our heads, and let us go forth to the king of Israel, if by any means he will save our souls alive.

18 Arise, go down to meet Achab the king of Israel, who is in Samaria; behold he is in the vineyard of Naboth, whither he is gone down to take possession of it.

So they girded sackcloth upon their loins, and put ropes upon their heads, and said to the king of Israel, Your servant the son of Ader says, Let our souls live, I pray you. And he said, Does he yet live? He is my brother.

19 And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus hath said the Lord, Hast thou murdered, and also taken possession? And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus hath said the Lord, In the place where the dogs licked the blood of Naboth shall the dogs lick thy blood, yes, thine also.

And the men divined, and offered drink-offerings; and they caught the word out of his mouth, and said, Your brother the son of Ader. And he said, Go you in and fetch him. And the son of Ader went out to him, and they cause him to go up to him into the chariot.

20 And Achab said to Elijah, Hast thou found me, O my enemy? And he answered, I have found thee: because thou hast sold thyself to do what is evil in the eyes of the Lord.

And he said to him, The cities which my father took from your father I will restore to you; and you shall make streets for yourself in Damascus, as my father made streets in Samaria; and I will let you go with a covenant. And he made a covenant with him, and let him go.

21 Behold, I will bring evil upon thee, and I will sweep out after thee, and will cut off from Achab every male, and the guarded and fortified in Israel,

And a certain man of the sons of the prophets said to his neighbour by the word of the Lord, Strike me, I pray, And the man would not strike him.

22 And I will make thy house like the house of Jerobo'am the son of Nebat, and like the house of Ba'sha the son of Achiyah, for the provocation wherewith thou hast provoked [me] to anger, and induced Israel to sin.

And he said to him, Because you have not listened to the voice of the Lord, therefore, behold, as you depart from me, a lion shall strike you: and he departed from him, and a lion found him, and struck him.

23 And also concerning Izebel hath the Lord spoken, saying, The dogs shall eat Izebel in the valley of Yizre'el.

And he finds another man, and says, Strike me, I pray you. And the man struck him, and in striking wounded [him].

24 Him that dieth of Achab in the city shall the dogs eat; and him that dieth in the field shall the fowls of the heavens eat.

And the prophet went and stood before the king of Israel by the way, and bound his eyes with a bandage.

25 But indeed there was none like unto Achab, who sold himself to do what is evil in the eyes of the Lord, to which Izebel his wife incited him.

And it came to pass as the king passed by, that he cried aloud to the king, and said, Your servant went out to war, and, behold, a man brought [another] man to me, and said to me, Keep his man; and if he should by any means escape, then your life shall go for his life, or you shall pay a talent of silver.

26 And he acted very abominably in following the idols, in all things just as had done the Emorites, whom the Lord had driven out from before the children of Israel.

And it came to pass, that your servant looked round this way and that way, and the man was gone. And the king of Israel said to him, Behold, you have also destroyed snares [set] for me.

27 And it came to pass, when Achab heard these words, that he rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his flesh, and fasted, and slept in the sackcloth, and walked about barefooted.

And he hasted, and took away the bandage from his eyes; and the king of Israel recognised him, that he was one of the prophets.

28 And the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying,

And he said to him, Thus says the Lord, Because you have suffered to escape out of your hand a man appointed to destruction, therefore your life shall go for his life, and your people for his people.

29 Hast thou seen how Achab hath humbled himself before me? therefore, because he hath humbled himself before me, will I not bring the evil in his days: in the days of his son will I bring the evil upon his house.

And the king of Israel departed confounded and discouraged, and came to Samaria.