1st
KINGS
§ David’s last years¤1 °1 King David was already a very old man who could no
longer keep warm even in very thick clothing. °2 So his servants said to him, “They should get for
my lord king a virgin girl to attend the king and nurse him. She could sleep
with you, my lord king, and make you feel warm.” °3 And so they looked for a beautiful girl throughout
the territory of Israel. They found Abishag the Shunamite, a very beautiful
girl and brought her to the king. °4
She attended to him, but the king had no intimate relations with her. °5 Now Adonijah, son of
Haggith, had in mind that he would be king and so he provided himself with a
chariot and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him. °6 His father had never
interfered by questioning his conduct, “Why have you done this or that?” He
was a very handsome man born of Haggith after Absalom. °7 Adonijah conferred with
Joab, son of Zuriah, and with Abiathar, the priest. These two sided with him;
°8 but Zadok, the priest, and
Benaiah, son of Jehoiada; Nathan, the prophet; Shimei, Rei and David’s
warriors did not join Adonijah. °9 Adonijah sacrificed sheep,
oxen, and fattened calves at the Slipping Stone, beside Engrogel, and invited
his brothers, the king’s sons, and all the royal officials of Judah to join
him; °10 but not Nathan
the prophet or Benaiah, or the warriors, or his brother Solomon. °11 Then Nathan spoke to
Bathsheba, mother of Solomon, “Have you heard that Adonijah, son of Haggith,
acts as a king, unknown to David our lord? °12 Let me then give you advice that could save both
your life and Solomon your son. °13
Go, see King David immediately and tell him this, ‘Did you not, my
lord king, swear to your handmaid that Solomon, my son, would reign after you
and sit on your throne? Why then does Adonijah act as king?’ °14 Then, while you are still
speaking with the king, I will come in and confirm what you say.” °15 So
Bathsheba went to the king, right into his room. (Now the king was very old,
and Abishag the Shunamite was attending to him.) °16 Bathsheba bowed in homage to the
king who asked her, “What do you want?” °17 She answered him, “My lord, you
swore to your handmaid by Yahweh your God that Solomon, my son, would reign
after you and sit on your throne. °18
But now, Adonijah acts as king without your knowing
it, my lord king. °19 He
has sacrificed oxen, fattened calves and plenty of sheep, inviting all the
king’s sons, Abiathar the priest, and Joab, commander of the army; but he did
not invite Solomon your servant. °20
And now, my lord king, all Israel is waiting for
your decision as to who shall reign as your successor. °21 If this
is not known when my lord the king passes away, I and my son Solomon will be
numbered among the criminals.” °22 While she
was still speaking with the king, Nathan the prophet arrived °23 and was
announced to the king, “Here is Nathan the prophet.” When Nathan came in
before the king, he bowed before him with his face to the ground, °24 and said,
“My lord king, have you decided that Adonijah shall reign after you and sit
on your throne? °25 For
indeed, today he has gone down to sacrifice oxen, fattened calves and plenty
of sheep. He has invited all the king’s sons, Joab, the commander of the
army, and Abiathar the priest. They are now eating and drinking with him and
proclaiming, ‘Long live King Adonijah!’ °26 But he has not invited me, your
servant, Zadok the priest, Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, nor your servant
Solomon. °27 Has
my lord king decided this without having told us, your servants, who is to sit
on your throne after you?” § David makes Solomon king
°28 King David then answered,
“Call Bathsheba to me.” So she came to the king. As she stood before him, °29 the king swore an oath and
said, “As Yahweh lives, he who has delivered me from all adversity, °30 so will I fulfill today
the oath I swore to you by Yahweh, the God of Israel, when I said: “Solomon,
your son, shall reign after me; he shall sit on my throne in my place.” °31 Then Bathsheba bowed with
her face to the ground and paid homage to the king as she said, “May my lord
King David live forever!” °32 King David then
said, “Call Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of
Jehoiada.” So they came to the king °33 who said to them, “Take with you the servants of
your lord and make my son Solomon ride on my own mule. Then bring him down to
Gihon °34 and let Zadok
the priest and Nathan the prophet anoint him there as king of Israel. Once
this is done, sound the horn and proclaim, ‘Long live King Solomon!’ °35 Then he shall sit on my
throne in your presence. From now on he will be king in my place for I have
made him ruler of Israel and Judah.” °36 Benaiah, son of Jehoiada,
answered the king, “Amen! May Yahweh, the God of my lord king, confirm this. °37 As Yahweh has been with my
lord king, may he also be with Solomon and make his reign even greater than
that of my lord King David’s.” °38 So Zadok the priest,
Nathan the prophet, Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, together with the
Cherethites and the Pelethites, went down and made Solomon ride on King
David’s mule to Gihon. °39 There Zadok the
priest took the horn of oil that was in the Holy Tent and anointed Solomon. °40 They then sounded the horn
and all the people shouted, “Long live King Solomon!” They all went up after
him playing on pipes; and their shouts were so great that the noise seemed to
rent the earth. °41 Adonijah and all his
guests heard this as they finished feasting. On hearing the sound of the
horn, Joab asked, “What is all this commotion in the city?” °42 While he was still
speaking, Jonathan, the son of Abiathar the priest, arrived and Adonijah
asked, “Come in, for you are a worthy man and bring good news.” °43 Jonathan answered
Adonijah, “Not at all, for our lord King David has made Solomon king. °44 The king sent him with
Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the
Cherethites and Plethites who made him ride on the king’s mule. °45 Then Zadok the priest and
Nathan the prophet anointed him king at Gihon. As they returned, all the city
cheered; this is the noise that you have heard. °46 Solomon already sits on the royal throne °47 and the king’s servants
came to congratulate our lord King David, saying: ‘May your God make the name
of Solomon more famous than yours and his reign greater than yours.’ At this,
the king bowed in worship on his bed and said, °48 “Blessed be Yahweh, the God of Israel, who has
granted one of my offspring to sit on my throne this day when I can still see
it.” °49 All the guests of Adonijah
trembled and left, each going his own way. °50 In his fear of Solomon, Adonijah went and held
onto the horns of the altar. °51 This was
reported to Solomon, “Adonijah is so afraid of King Solomon that he has held
onto the horns of the altar, and he says, ‘Let King Solomon swear to me today
that he will not slay me with the sword’.” °52 Solomon replied, “If he
proves to be a worthy man, not a hair of his head shall perish. But if he
acts like a wicked man, he shall die.” °53 So King Solomon sent for him and they brought him
down from the altar. He came before King Solomon and paid him homage; after
that, Solomon sent him home. § David’s testament¤2 °1 When
David was about to die, he gave his son Solomon this instruction, °2 “I am
about to go the way of all creatures. Be strong and show yourself a man. °3 Keep the
commandments of Yahweh your God and walk in his ways. Keep his statutes, his
commands, his ordinances and declarations written in the law of Moses, that
you may succeed in whatever you do and wherever you go. °4 If you do
so, Yahweh will fulfill the promise he made to me: ‘If your sons take care to
walk before me faithfully with their whole heart and their whole soul, you
shall always have one of your descendants on the throne of Israel.’ °5 Now you
know what Joab, the son of Zeruiah did to me – how he dealt with the two
commanders of Israel’s armies, Abner the son of Ner, and Amasa the son of
Jether. These two he murdered, avenging, in time of peace, blood which had
been shed in time of war. He has thus stained with innocent blood the belt I
wear and the sandals on my feet. °6
Act wisely, therefore, his blood must be shed before
he dies of old age. °7 As
to the sons of Barzillai, the Gileadite, deal kindly with them and let them
be among those who eat at your table, for they themselves treated me with
similar kindness when I fled from your brother Absalom. °8 With you
also is Shimei, son of Gera, the Benjaminite from Bahurim who cursed me
terribly, the day I fled to Mahanaim. When he came down to meet me at the
Jordan, I swore to him by Yahweh, ‘I will not put you to death with the
sword.’ °9 Now
therefore, you, being a wise man, shall not hold him guiltless. You will know
what to do with him: his blood must be shed before he dies of old age.” °10 Then
David rested with his ancestors and was buried in the city of David. °11 David
reigned over Israel for forty years: seven years in Hebron and thirty-three
years in Jerusalem. °12 So
Solomon sat on the throne of David his father and his reign was firmly
established. § Solomon affirms his power°13 Then
Adonijah, son of Haggith, came to Bathsheba, mother of Solomon, who asked
him, “Do you come in peace?” He answered, “In peace,” °14 and
added, “I have something to tell you.” She said, “Speak” °15 and
Adonijah said, “You know that the kingdom was mine and that all Israel fully
expected me to reign. But the kingdom has slipped from my hands and become my
brother’s for it was given him by Yahweh. °16 Now I have one thing to ask of
you and I beg you not to refuse me.” She said, “Speak,” °17 and he
continued, “Please ask King Solomon to give me Abishag the Shunammite for my
wife. I know that he cannot refuse you.” °18 Bathsheba answered, “Very well, I
shall speak to the king on your behalf.” °19 So
Bathsheba went to King Solomon to speak to him on behalf of Adonijah. The
king met her and bowed to her. Then he sat on his throne and had a seat
brought for the king’s mother who sat on his right. °20 She said,
“I have one small request to make of you. Do not refuse me.” And the king
answered her, “Make your request, my mother, for I will not refuse you.” °21 She then
said, “Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to Adonijah your brother as his
wife.” °22 King
Solomon answered his mother, “And why do you not ask for the kingdom to be
given to him! For he is my elder brother, and Abiathar the priest and Joab
the son of Zeruiah are on his side.” °23 Then King
Solomon swore this oath, “Yahweh do so to me and more if this request does
not cause Adonijah his life! °24 Now,
therefore, as Yahweh lives, he who has established me and placed me on the
throne of David my father, and who has established a kingly line as he
promised, Adonijah shall be put to death this day.” °25 So King
Solomon sent Benaiah, son of Jehoiada, who killed him. °26 Then the
king said to Abiathar the priest, “Go to your estate at Anathoth. You deserve
death but I will not put you to death, because you carried the ark of God
before my father David and shared in all his trials.” °27 So
Solomon removed Abiathar as priest of Yahweh, and fulfilled the word spoken
by Yahweh in Shiloh concerning the descendants of Eli. °28 This news
reached Joab, who had supported Adonijah but not Absalom. He fled to the tent
of Yahweh and held onto the horns of the altar. °29 When it was reported to King
Solomon that Joab had fled to the tent of Yahweh and was beside the altar,
the king sent Benaiah, son of Jehoiada, with this command, “Go, strike him
down!” °30 So
Benaiah went to the tent of Yahweh and said to Joab, “The king commands:
‘Come forward.’” But he replied, “No, I will die here.” So Benaiah went back to the king with
this report, “This is what Joab answered.” °31 The king then replied. “Do as he
has said. Strike him down and have him buried. With this, the guilt for the
blood which Joab shed will be lifted from me and from my father’s family. °32 Yahweh
will repay him for the blood he shed because, without my father David’s
knowledge, he attacked and slew with the sword two men more righteous and
better than himself, Abner son of Ner, commander of the Israelite army, and
Amasa son of Jether, commander of Judah’s army. °33 “Their
blood shall be avenged on Joab and his descendants forever; but David and his
descendants, his family and throne shall enjoy peace from Yahweh forever.” °34 Then
Benaiah, son of Jehoiada, went up, struck Joab down and killed him. He was
buried in his own house in the desert. °35 The king put Benaiah, son of
Jehoiada, over the army in place of Joab; and Zadok the priest, in place of
Abiathar. °36 Then the
king sent for Shimei and told him, “Build yourself a house in Jerusalem and
stay there, and do not leave the place to go anywhere. °37 On the
day you leave and cross the brook Kidron, you shall surely die and you shall
be responsible for your own death.” °38 Shimei answered the king, “What
you say is good. Your servant will do as my lord the king has commanded.” So
Shimei stayed in Jerusalem for many days. °39 Three
years later, two of Shimei’s slaves ran away to Achish, son of Maacha, king
of Gath. When it was reported to Shimei that his slaves were in Gath, °40 he
saddled an ass and went to Achish in Gath in search of his slaves. °41 When
Solomon was informed that Shimei had left Jerusalem for Gath and returned, °42 the king
sent for Shimei and said to him, “Did I not make you swear by Yahweh and
warned you severely that, on the day you left to go anywhere you would surely
die? And you answered me: ‘What you say is good; I shall obey!’ °43 Why then
did you not keep your oath to Yahweh and obey the command I gave you?” °44 The king
told Shimei, “Remember the evil you did to David my father. Now Yahweh will
repay you for what you did. °45 But
King Solomon shall be blessed, and the throne of David shall stand firm
before Yahweh forever.” °46 Then
the king commanded Benaiah, son of Jehoiada, who went out and struck Shimei
and killed him. In this manner, Solomon firmly
established his reign. ¤3 °1 Solomon
entered into a marriage alliance with Pharaoh, king of Egypt. He took
Pharaoh’s daughter and brought her to the city of David until he had finished
building his own palace, Yahweh’s House and the wall around Jerusalem. °2 Meantime,
the people were sacrificing at the high places because the house for the Name
of Yahweh had not yet been built. °3 This is
why Solomon also sacrificed and burnt incense at the high place, although he
loved Yahweh and followed the commands of David his father. § Solomon’s dream°4 The king used to sacrifice
at Gibeon, the great high place; on the altar there he had offered a thousand
burnt offerings. °5 It was in Gibeon,
during the night, that Yahweh appeared to Solomon in a dream and said, “Ask
what you want me to give you.” °6 Solomon answered, “You
have shown your servant David my father a great and steadfast love because he
served you faithfully and was righteous and sincere towards you. You have
given him proof of your steadfast love in making a son of his sit on his
throne this day. °7 And now, O
Yahweh my God, you have made your servant king in place of David my father,
although I am but a young boy who does not know how to undertake anything. °8 Meantime, your servant is
in the midst of your people whom you have chosen – a people so great that
they can neither be numbered nor counted. °9 Give me, therefore, an
understanding mind in governing your people that I may discern between good
and evil. For who is able to govern this multitude of people of yours?” °10 Yahweh was pleased that
Solomon had made this request. °11
And he told him, “Because you have requested this rather than long
life or wealth or even vengeance on your enemies; indeed, because you have
asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right, °12 I shall grant you your
request. I now give you a wise and discerning mind such as no one has had
before you nor anyone after you shall ever have. °13 “I will also give you what
you have not asked for, both wealth and fame; and no king shall be your equal
during your lifetime. °14 Moreover, if
you will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and commands, as your father
David did, I shall give you long life.” °15 Solomon awoke and knew
that this was a dream. So he went to Jerusalem and, standing before the ark
of the covenant of Yahweh, he offered up burnt offerings and peace offerings,
and gave a feast for all his servants. § The judgment of Solomon
°16 Then two harlots came to
the king and stood before him. °17
One of the two women said, “Oh, my lord, this woman and I live in the
same house, and I gave birth to a child while she was there with me. °18 Three days after my child
was born, this woman also gave birth. We were alone, and there was no one in
the house but the two of us. °19 Then this
woman’s son died during the night because she lay on him. °20 So during the night, she
got up, took my son from my side while I slept, laid it beside her and her
dead son beside me. °21 When I got up
in the morning to nurse my child, I saw it was dead. But when I looked at it
closely in the morning, I saw that it was not my child.” °22 The other woman said, “No,
the living child is mine; the dead child is yours.” To this, the first
replied, “Not so, the dead child is yours; the living child is mine.” And
they quarreled this way in the king’s presence. °23 Then the king said, “One
says: ‘This is my son who is alive; your son is dead’; the other says: ‘That
is not so, your son is dead; my son is the live one’.” °24 And the king said, “Bring
me a sword.” When they brought the king a sword, °25 he gave this order, “Divide the child in two and
give half to one, half to the other.” °26 Then the woman whose son was alive said to the
king out of pity for her son, “Oh, my lord, give her the living child but
spare its life.” The other woman, however, said, “It shall be neither mine
nor yours. Divide it!” °27 Then the king spoke, “Give
the living child to the first woman and spare its life. She is its mother.” °28 When all Israel heard of
the judgment which the king had given, they revered at him, seeing that God’s
wisdom was in him to render justice. § Solomon’s grandeur
¤4 °1 King
Solomon was king over all Israel °2
and had the following for his high officials:
Azariah, son of Zadok, was the priest; °3 Elihoreph and Ahijah, sons of
Shisha, were secretaries; Jehoshaphat, son of Ahilud, was recorder; °4 Benaiah,
son of Jehoiada, was general of the army; Zadok and Abiathar were priests; °5 Azariah,
son of Nathan, was head of the officers; Zabud, son of Nathan, was priest and
the king’s personal adviser; °6 Abishar
was in charge of the palace; and Adoniram, son of Abda was in charge of
forced labor. °7 Solomon
had twelve governors over all Israel who provided food for the king and his
household; each one of them making provisions for one month during the year. °8 These
were their names: Benhur, in the hill country of Ephraim; °9 Bendeker,
in Makaz; Shaalbim, Beth-Shemesh, and Elonbeth-Hanan; °10 Benhesed,
in Arubboth (to him belonged Socoh and all the land of Hepher); °11 Ben-Abinadab,
in all of Naphath-Dor (he had Taphath, daughter of Solomon, for his wife); °12 Baana,
son of Ahilud, in Taanach; Megiddo and all of Beth-Shean beside Zarethan
below Jezreel, and from Beth-Shean to Abelmeholah, as far as Jokmeam and
beyond; °13 Ben-Geber,
in Ramoth-Gilead (he had the villages of Jair, son of Manasseh, which are in
Gilead, as also the region of Argob in Bashan, sixty big towns, walled and
barred with brazen bars); °14 Ahinadab,
son of Iddo, in Mahanaim; °15 Ahimaaz,
in Naphtali (he had taken Basemath, daughter of Solomon, for his wife); °16 Baana,
son of Hushai, in Asher and Bealoth; °17 Jehoshaphat, son of Paruah, in
Issachar; °18 Shimei,
son of Ela, in Benjamin; °19 Geber,
son of Uri, in the land of Gilead, the country of Sihon king of the Amorites
and of Og king of Bashan. And there was also an attendant in the land of
Judah. °20 Judah and
Israel were as numerous as the sand on the seashore, eating and drinking, and
making merry. °21 Solomon
ruled over all the kingdoms from the Euphrates to the land of the Philistines
and on to the frontiers of Egypt. All these paid tribute and served Solomon
during his lifetime. °22 Solomon’s
provision for one day was thirty cors of fine flour, sixty cors of meal, °23 ten fat
oxen, twenty pasture-fed cattle, a hundred sheep, besides harts, gazelles,
roebucks, and fattened fowl. °24 He
ruled over all the region west of the Euphrates, from Tipshah to Gaza and over
all its kings, and he had peace on all frontiers. °25 Judah and Israel lived in
security, from Dan to Beersheba, and everyone was safe under his vine and
under his fig tree, for as long as Solomon lived. °26 Solomon
had forty thousand stalls of horses for his chariots and twelve thousand
horsemen. °27 All these
governors supplied provisions for King Solomon and for all his guests at
table, each one providing during his assigned month and seeing that nothing
was lacking. °28 They
also brought barley and straw for the horses and swift studs wherever the
king stayed, each one doing this during his appointed month. °29 God gave
Solomon great wisdom and understanding, and knowledge as vast as the sand on
the shore, °30 so
that his wisdom surpassed that of all the people of the east and of the
Egyptians. °31 He
was wiser than any man; wiser than Ethan, the Ezrahite, and Heman, Calcot and
Darda, sons of Mahol; and his fame spread among all the surrounding nations. °32 He
composed three thousand proverbs and knew a thousand and five songs. °33 He took
his examples from all the trees, from the cedar in Lebanon to the hyssop that
grows out of the wall; he spoke also of the beasts and birds, and reptiles
and fish. °34 People
from all nations came to hear the wisdom of Solomon; all the kings of the
earth who had heard of his wisdom sent messengers to listen to him. ¤5 °1 Now,
Hiram King of Tyre sent his servants to Solomon when he heard that he had
been anointed king in place of his father. For David had always been Hiram’s
friend. °2 Solomon
then sent this message to Hiram, °3
“You know that David my father could not build a
temple for Yahweh his God because his enemies were at war with him until the
time when Yahweh gave him victory over them. °4 But now Yahweh my God has given
me peace on all sides and there is no enemy or calamity that afflicts us. °5 And so I
intend to build a temple for Yahweh my God as Yahweh told David my father,
‘Your son, whom I will set upon your throne, shall build the House for my
Name.’ °6 Now,
therefore, give orders to have cedars of Lebanon cut for me. My servants will
join yours and I will pay your servants the wages you set, for you know that
none of us can cut timber like the Sidonians.” °7 When
Hiram heard the answer of Solomon, he was exceedingly glad and said, “Blessed
be Yahweh this day who has given David a wise son to rule over this great
people.” °8 Then
Hiram sent a messenger to Solomon with these words, “I have heard the message
you sent me and I am ready to do whatever you want concerning the cedar and
cypress timber. °9 My
servants shall have it sent down to the sea from Lebanon. I will make it into
rafts and deliver them by sea to the place you choose. I will have the rafts
broken up there and you can take the timber away. You, for your part, will
provide food for my household.” °10
So Hiram supplied Solomon with all the cedar and
cypress timber that he wanted, °11
while Solomon gave Hiram every year twenty thousand
cors of wheat as food for his household, and twenty thousand cors of pure
oil. °12 Yahweh
gave wisdom to Solomon as he had promised him, and there was peace between
Hiram and Solomon who bound themselves by a treaty. °13 King
Solomon conscripted thirty thousand men from all Israel for forced labor. °14 He sent
them to Lebanon in relays of ten thousand a month, so that they would be in
Lebanon for a month and at home for two months. Adoniram was in charge of the
draft of laborers. °15 Solomon
had seventy thousand carriers and eighty thousand stone cutters in the hill
country, °16 in
addition to three thousand three hundred overseers in charge of the people
engaged in the work. °17 By
order of the king, they quarried large and expensive stones to give the
temple a foundation of hewn stones. °18 Solomon’s builders and Hiram’s
builders, along with the Gebalites did the hewing and prepared both timber
and stone to build the temple. § Solomon builds the temple
¤6 °1 In the four hundred and eightieth year after the
Israelites left the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon’s reign over
Israel, in the month of Ziv, which is the second month, Solomon began to
build the temple of Yahweh. °2 The House which
King Solomon built for Yahweh was sixty cubits long, twenty wide, and thirty
high. °3 The vestibule
fronting the Sanctuary was twenty cubits long from side to side, the width of
the temple, and ten cubits deep in front of the House. °4 He made windows with
recessed frames for the House. °5 Solomon
had a structure built adjoining the walls all around the House and enclosing
both Sanctuary and Inner Sanctuary. He also made lateral rooms all around. °6 The
lowest story was five cubits wide; the middle, six cubits wide; and the
third, seven cubits wide. Around the exterior of the temple, he made offsets
on the wall so that the supporting beams need not be inserted into walls of
the temple. °7 The House
was built with stones prepared at the quarry so that no hammer, or axe, or
any iron implement was heard in the temple during the construction. °8 The
entrance to the lowest story was on the right side of the House. A staircase
led up to the middle story; and from the middle story, to the third. °9 So,
Solomon built the House and finished it, making the ceiling of the House from
cedar beams and planks. °10 Each
story of the structure which he built surrounding the House was five cubits
high joined to the House with cedar timber. °11 The word
of Yahweh was directed to Solomon, °12 “If you observe my statutes, obey
my ordinances, keep all my commands and follow them, I will fulfill everything
I said to David your father regarding this House. °13 There I will be in the midst of
the Israelites and not forsake my people Israel.” °14 So, Solomon built the
House and finished it. °15 He covered the
interior walls of the temple with cedar boards; so that in the interior from
the floor of the House to the rafters of the ceiling only wood could be seen.
The floor also was covered with cypress boards. °16 Solomon covered twenty cubits of the rear of the
House with cedar boards from floor to rafter to serve as an inner sanctuary –
the Most Holy Place. °17 The front of
the house, that is the Sanctuary, was forty cubits long. °18 In all the interior of the
House, the cedar was carved in the form of gourds and open flowers; all was
of cedar and no stone was to be seen. °19 The inner sanctuary in the
innermost part of the building had been destined to house the ark of the
covenant of Yahweh. °20 It was twenty
cubits long, twenty cubits wide, and twenty cubits high, overlaid with pure
gold. He also made an altar of cedar. °21 Solomon overlaid the interior of the House with
pure gold. He closed the inner sanctuary with golden chains and overlaid it
with gold. °22 Solomon
overlaid the entire House with gold. He also overlaid with gold the whole
altar in the inner sanctuary. °23 In the
inner sanctuary, Solomon made two cherubim of olive wood, each ten cubits
high. °24 The
length of the wings of each cherub was five cubits each, hence, ten cubits
from tip to tip. °25 Both
cherubim had the same measurement and the same form, °26 both
being ten cubits high. °27 When
the cherubim were put in the innermost part of the House their wings were so
spread out that a wing of one touched one wall, while a wing of the other
touched the other wall. Their other wings touched each other at the center of
the House. °28 The
cherubim were also overlaid with gold. °29 Solomon
had all the surrounding walls of the House carved with figures of cherubim,
palm trees and open flowers both in the interior and exterior rooms. °30 He also
had the floor of the House, in both the interior and exterior rooms, overlaid
with gold. °31 Solomon
had doors made of olive wood for the entrance to the inner sanctuary of which
the lintel and doorposts formed the fifth part. °32 He covered the two olive wood
doors with carvings of cherubim, palm trees and open flowers. He then
overlaid them with gold and spread gold on the cherubim and the palm trees. °33 He did
the same for the olive wood doorposts at the entrance to the sanctuary, which
formed the fourth part of the door. °34 Both the right and left side of
the door had two folding panels of cypress wood. °35 He had cherubim, palm trees and
open flowers carved on them and overlaid the carvings with gold evenly
applied. °36 As for
the interior court, Solomon had it built with three courses of hewn stone and
one course of cedar beams. °37 In the
month of Ziv of the fourth year, the foundation of Yahweh’s House was laid. °38 In the
month of Bul, the eighth month of the eleventh year, the House was finished,
complete and according to all specifications. It took Solomon seven years to
build it. § The palace and the temple¤7 °1 Solomon
took thirteen years to build his own palace. °2 He built the House of the Forest
of Lebanon which measured one hundred cubits long, fifty cubits wide, and
thirty cubits high. It was built on three rows of cedar pillars with cedar
beams on the pillars. °3 It
had a cedar ceiling above the beams that were on the forty-five pillars,
fifteen in each row. °4 There
were three window frames at either end, each window corresponding to another
opposite it. °5 All
the doorways and windows had square frames and each window corresponded to
the one opposite it. °6 The Hall
of Pillars measured fifty cubits long and thirty cubits wide. It had a porch
in front with pillars and a canopy over them. °7 The Hall of the Throne where
Solomon was to pronounce judgment, that is, the Hall of Judgment, was
finished with cedar from floor to rafters. °8 His own
house, where he was to live, and which was in the other court behind the
hall, was built in like manner. Solomon also made a house similar to this for
Pharaoh’s daughter whom he had taken in marriage. °9 All these
were made of costly stones, hewn according to measure, sawn on their inner
and outer faces even from the foundation to the coping, and from the court of
Yahweh’s House to the big court. °10 The
foundation was of huge, costly stones of eighty and ten cubits. °11 Above
were costly stones, hewn according to measure, and cedar wood. °12 The great
court was surrounded by a wall of hewn stones and a course of cedar beams,
like the interior court of Yahweh’s House and its vestibule. °13 King
Solomon sent for and brought from Tyre, Hiram, °14 who was the son of a widow of
Naphtali’s tribe. His father was from Tyre and an artisan in bronze-work, and
he himself was very knowledgeable and skilled in all kinds of bronze-work.
Hiram came and did all the work that Solomon asked of him. °15 He cast
two brazen pillars, both of which measured eighteen cubits high and had a
circumference of twelve cubits. Both were hollow and measured four fingers in
thickness. °16 He
also made two capitals of molten bronze to set on the tops of the pillars,
both measuring five cubits high. °17
He also made two pieces of network with a chainlike
mesh for each of the capitals on top of the pillars. °18 Likewise,
he made pomegranates arranged in two rows encircling each piece of network to
cover each capital on top of the pillars. °19 The capitals on top of the
pillars in the vestibule had a lotus design measuring four cubits. °20 They were
on the two pillars above the nodes and beside the network, encircled by two
hundred pomegranates arranged in two rows. °21 Hiram set
up the pillars at the vestibule of the temple; one to the right called Yakin,
and one to the left called Boaz. °22
In this way the work on the pillars was completed. °23 Hiram
then cast the great round bowl called the “Sea,” measuring ten cubits from
one brim to the opposite; it was five cubits high and had a circumference of
thirty cubits. °24 Under
its brim, it was encircled with gourds, ten for each cubit, arranged in two
rows and cast along with the Sea. °25
This rested on twelve oxen, three facing north,
three facing west, three facing south, and three facing east, with their
haunches towards the center. °26 It
was a handbreadth in thickness, its brim resembling a cup or a lily flower,
and had a capacity of two thousand baths. °27 Hiram
also made ten brazen stands, each measuring four cubits long, four cubits
wide and three cubits high; °28 and
this was how the stands were constructed: they had framed panels °29 on which
were lions, oxen and cherubim. On the frames above and below the lions and
oxen were wreaths in relief. °30 Each
stand had four brazen wheels and axles; its four feet had shoulderings under
the basin. °31 Its
mouth measured one and a half cubits from where the shoulderings met the top;
its mouth was round like a rest for a vessel; and on the mouth there were
engravings, too. The crosspieces, however, were rectangular, not round. °32 The four
wheels were below the panels; their axles being one piece with the stands.
Each wheel was a cubit and a half high. °33 The wheels were made like chariot
wheels; their axles, rims, spokes and hubs were all of cast metal. The four legs of each stand had cast
braces supporting a basin and had wreaths on each side. °34 These
four braces, extending to the corners of each stand, were of one piece with
the stand. °35 On top of
the stand was a round band half a cubit high, with supports and panels which
were of one piece with the stand. This was topped by a crown one cubit high
within which was a rounded opening, the way a pedestal is made, a cubit and a
half deep. Its opening had carvings and its panels were square and not round.
°36 On
the surface of its supports, as also on its panels, and wherever there was
space, were carvings of cherubim, lions and palm trees, with wreaths all
around. °37 This
was how the ten stands were made – all of them with the same cast, same
measurement, and same form. °38 Hiram
also made ten brazen basins, each holding forty baths and measuring four
cubits. There was a basin for each of the ten stands. °39 He placed
five of the stands on the south side of the House, and five on the north
side. The Sea he placed at the southeast corner of the temple. °40 Hiram
also made the bowls, shovels and basins, and thereby finished all the work
that he had undertaken for King Solomon on Yahweh’s House. °41 Hence,
two pillars, two bowls on the capitals at the top of the pillars, °42 four
hundred pomegranates for two networks, two rows of pomegranates for each
network to cover the two bowls of the capitals at the top of the pillars, °43 ten
stands, ten basins on the stands, °44
the Sea, and twelve oxen underneath the Sea. °45 Now the
bowls, shovels and basins – all these vessels which Hiram made in Yahweh’s
House for King Solomon – were of burnished bronze. °46 The king had them cast in the
plain of Jordan, in the clay ground between Succoth and Zarethan. °47 Solomon left
all the vessels unweighed since there were so many of them. And so the weight
of the bronze was not known. °48 So
Solomon made all the vessels that were in Yahweh’s House: the golden altar,
the golden table for the bread of Presence, °49 the lampstands of pure gold, five
on the right side and five on the left in front of the inner sanctuary; the
flowers, lamps and tongs of gold; °50
the cups, snuffers, basins, dishes for incense, and
firepans of pure gold; and the golden hinges for both the doors of the
innermost part of the House, the Most Holy Place, and the doors of the
Sanctuary of the House. °51 When all
the work that King Solomon did on Yahweh’s House was completed, he brought in
the things which David his father had dedicated – the silver, the gold, and
the vessels – and stored them in the treasures of Yahweh’s House. ¤8 °1 Then
Solomon assembled before him in Jerusalem the elders of Israel and all the
heads of the tribes, as well as the leaders of the ancestral houses of the
Israelites, to bring up the ark of the covenant of Yahweh from the city of
David, which is Zion. § The ark assembled near King
Solomon
°2 All the Israelites
assembled near King Solomon in the month of Ethanim, the seventh month. °3 When all the elders of
Israel arrived, the priests carried the ark of Yahweh °4 and brought it up together
with the Tent of Meeting and all the holy vessels that were in the tent.
After the priests and Levites had brought them up, °5 King Solomon with the entire congregation of
Israel that had assembled before him and were with him before the Ark,
sacrificed so many sheep and oxen that they could neither be counted nor
numbered. °6 Then the
priests laid the ark of the covenant of Yahweh in its place in the inner
sanctuary of the House – the Most Holy Place – underneath the wings of the
cherubim. °7 The cherubim
had their wings spread out over the place of the ark, providing a covering
above the ark and its poles. °8 The poles were
so long that their ends were seen from the Holy Place in front of the inner
sanctuary but not from the outside; and they remain there to this day. °9 There was nothing in the
ark except the two tables of stone which Moses placed there at Horeb, where
Yahweh made a covenant with the Israelites when they came out of the land of
Egypt. °10 And when the
priests came out of the Holy Place, such a cloud filled Yahweh’s House °11 that the priests could not
continue to minister. Indeed, the glory of Yahweh filled his House. °12 Then Solomon said, “Yahweh
has said that he would dwell in thick darkness. °13 So the House I have built you will be your House,
a place for you to dwell in forever.” °14 The king
turned and blessed the entire assembly of Israel, as they stood, °15 saying,
“Blessed be Yahweh, the God of Israel, who has fulfilled by his hand what he
promised personally to David my father when he said, °16 ‘Since
the day I brought my people Israel out of Egypt, I chose no city in all the
tribes of Israel in which to build a resting place for my Name, but now I
have chosen Jerusalem for my Name to be there, as I chose David to be the
king of my people Israel.’ °17 Now
David my father wanted to build a House for the Name of Yahweh, the God of
Israel; °18 but
Yahweh told David my father, ‘You meant well to build a House for my Name. °19 Nevertheless,
not you but your son who shall be born to you shall build this House for my
Name’.” °20 Yahweh
has fulfilled his promise, for I have succeeded David my father and am
sitting on the throne of Israel; and, as Yahweh promised, I have built this House
for the Name of Yahweh, the God of Israel. °21 There I have provided a place for
the ark with the covenant which Yahweh made with our fathers when he brought
them out of the land of Egypt.” § Solomon’s prayer
°22 Then
Solomon stood before the altar of Yahweh in the presence of all the assembly
of Israel. He raised his hands towards heaven °23 and said, “O Yahweh, God of
Israel, there is no God like you either in heaven or on earth! You keep your
covenant and show loving-kindness to your servants who walk before you
wholeheartedly. °24 You
have foretold this day to your servant David, my father, and this day you
have fulfilled your promise. °25 Now,
O Yahweh, God of Israel, keep this other promise you made to David when you
said, ‘You shall always have someone from your family on the throne of
Israel, provided that your sons are careful to serve me as you have done.’ °26 Now,
therefore, O God of Israel, confirm the promise you have given to David my
father. °27 But will
God really live among people on earth? If neither heavens nor the highest
heavens can contain you, how much less can this House which I have built! °28 Yet,
listen to the prayer and supplication of your servant, O Yahweh my God;
hearken to the cries and pleas which your servant directs to you this day. °29 Watch
over this House of which you have said, ‘My name shall rest there.’ Hear the
prayer of your servant in this place. °30 Listen to the supplication
of your servant and your people Israel when they pray in this direction;
listen from your dwelling place in heaven and, on listening, forgive. °31 When people charged with a
crime against their neighbor come and take their oath before your altar in
this temple, °32 then hear from
heaven and do justice. Condemn the guilty and let his evildoing fall upon
him, but vindicate the righteous and reward him according to his
righteousness. °33 When your people Israel
are defeated by the enemy for having sinned against you, and when they turn
back to you and acknowledge their sins, praying and making supplications to
you in this House; °34 then listen
from heaven and forgive your people Israel. Bring them back to the land which
you gave to their fathers. °35 When the
heavens are shut and no rain falls because they have sinned against you, and
they pray in this place, acknowledging and repenting of their sin because you
have afflicted them, °36 then listen
from heaven and forgive your servants, your people Israel, and teach them the
way to live; and send rain on your land which you have given to your people
as an inheritance. °37 If there is famine in the
land, or pestilence such as blight or mildew, locust or caterpillar; if their
enemy attacks them in any of their cities; if they suffer from any plague or
sickness; °38 whatever be the
prayer or supplication of anyone showing repentance and raising his hands in
the direction of this House, °39 then listen
from heaven, your dwelling place, and forgive. Do to each, whose heart you
know, according to his conduct (for you alone know the hearts of all) °40 so that they may fear you
as long as they live in the land which you gave our fathers. °41 Likewise, when
a foreigner who is not from your people Israel, comes from a far country
because of your Name °42 (for they shall
hear of your great Name, your mighty hand and outstretched arm), and prays in
this House, °43 listen from the
heavens, your dwelling place, and do for the foreigner whatever he asks of
you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know your Name and fear you, as
do your people Israel, and may know that your name rests on this House which
I have built. °44 If your
people go to war wherever you send them, and they pray to Yahweh in the
direction of the city which you have chosen and the House which I have built
for your Name, °45 then
from heaven listen to their prayers and supplications and defend their cause. °46 If they
sin against you (and there is no one who does not sin), and, in your anger,
you deliver them to an enemy who takes them captive into enemy territory,
whether near or far off; °47 and
if, in the land where they have been carried captive, they sincerely repent
and plead with you and say, ‘We have sinned and have acted wrongly and
wickedly’; °48 if
they do repent with sincerity while in the land of their captors and pray to
you, turning towards the land which you gave to their ancestors, the city
which you have chosen, and the House which I have built for your Name; °49 then
listen from heaven, your dwelling place, their prayer and supplication and
defend their cause. °50 Forgive
your people who have sinned against you; forgive all their offenses, and make
their captors have compassion on them. °51 (For they are your people – your
heritage which you brought out of Egypt from the heart of the iron furnace). °52 Open your
eyes to the pleadings of your servant and to those of your people Israel, and
listen to them whenever they call on you. °53 For you took them from among all
the peoples of the earth to be your heritage, as you declared through Moses
your servant when you brought our ancestors out of Egypt, O Yahweh God.” °54 When
Solomon finished offering all this prayer and entreaty to Yahweh, he rose
from before the altar of Yahweh where he had knelt with hands raised towards
heaven and, °55 standing,
blessed all the assembly of Israel with a loud voice, °56 “Blessed
be Yahweh who has given rest to his people Israel as he promised; for not one
of his promises, given to Moses his servant, has been broken. °57 May
Yahweh our God be with us as he was with our fathers. May he not leave or forsake
us; °58 may
he incline our hearts towards him and make us walk in all his ways keeping
his commands, his statutes and regulations which he commanded our fathers. °59 Let my
prayer to Yahweh be with our God day and night. May he defend my cause and the
cause of his people Israel in their daily life; °60 in this way all the peoples of
the earth may know that Yahweh is God and there is no other. °61 As for
you, let your heart be wholly true to Yahweh our God, following his laws and
keeping his commands as at this time.” °62 Then the
king and all the Israelites with him offered sacrifices before Yahweh. °63 Solomon
offered twenty-two thousand oxen and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep as
peace offerings to Yahweh. So the king and all the Israelites dedicated
Yahweh’s House. °64 That
same day, the king consecrated the middle of the court in front of Yahweh’s
House, for it was there that he offered the burnt offerings, the cereal
offerings and the fat of the peace offerings since the bronze altar that was
before Yahweh was too small to receive the burnt offering, the cereal
offering and the fat of the peace offerings. °65 So at
this time Solomon, together with a large assembly of Israelites that gathered
from the entrance of Hamath to the Brook of Egypt, celebrated the festival
before Yahweh for seven days. °66 On
the eighth day, Solomon dismissed the people. After bidding farewell to the king,
they went home rejoicing and happy because of all the kindness that Yahweh
had shown to his servant David and to his people Israel. § Solomon’s activities
¤9 °1 After
Solomon had finished building Yahweh’s House, the royal palace, and
everything he wanted to build, °2 Yahweh
appeared to him a second time, as he had appeared to him at Gibeon. °3 Yahweh
said to him, “I have heard the prayer and supplication you made before me. I
have consecrated this House you have built, that my Name may be there
forever. My eyes and my heart will be there forever. °4 As for
you, if you will live in my presence, the way your father David did, with
sincerity and uprightness, doing all that I have commanded you and keeping my
decrees and laws, °5 I
will affirm your kingship in Israel forever, as I promised your father David
when I said, ‘You shall always have someone from your family on the throne of
Israel.’ °6 But if
you or your children refuse to follow me, and disobey my commands and laws
which I have set before you; if they serve and worship other gods, °7 then I
will cut off Israel from the land which I have given them and I will remove
from my sight this House I have consecrated for my Name. Israel will become a
proverb and a byword among all peoples. °8 This House will be reduced to a
heap of stones and everyone passing by will be astonished and jeer: ‘Why has
Yahweh done such a thing to this land and to this House?’ °9 Then
people will answer: ‘Because they abandoned Yahweh their God who brought
their ancestors out of the land of Egypt, and they followed other gods,
worshiping and serving them. That is why Yahweh has brought all this evil on
them’.” °10 During
these twenty years, in which Solomon had built the two houses – Yahweh’s
House and the royal house – °11 Hiram
king of Tyre had supplied Solomon with as much cedar, cypress, timber and
gold as he wanted. Then King Solomon gave Hiram twenty cities in the land of
Galilee. °12 But
when Hiram left Tyre to visit the cities which Solomon had given him, he was
displeased °13 and
said, “What kind of cities have you given me, my brother?” And that is why,
to this day, they are called the land of Cabul. °14 Hiram, however, had sent the king
one hundred and twenty talents of gold. °15 This is
the account of the forced labor imposed by King Solomon for the building of
Yahweh’s House and his own palace, the Millo as well as the wall of Jerusalem;
the cities of Hazor, Megiddo and Gezer. °16 (Pharaoh king of Egypt had
captured and burned Gezer, putting to death the Canaanites who dwelt there.
Then he had given the city as dowry to his daughter, Solomon’s wife.) °17 So
Solomon rebuilt Gezer, Lower Beth-Horon, °18 Baalath and Tamar in the desert,
in the land of Judah, °19 all
the store-cities that Solomon had, the cities for his chariots and those for
his horsemen, and whatever Solomon wanted to build in Jerusalem, in Lebanon
and in all the land of his dominion. °20 On all
the people who were left of the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the
Hivites and the Jebusites, who were not of the people of Israel – °21 their
descendants who were left in the land and whom the Israelites were unable to
completely destroy – on all of these Solomon imposed forced labor and it
remains so to this day. °22 Of
the people of Israel, however, Solomon made no slaves. They were the
soldiers, his officials, his commanders, his captains, his chariot commanders
and horsemen. °23 The
overseers of Solomon’s work, in charge of those who were working, were five
hundred and fifty. °24 When
Pharaoh’s daughter went up from the city of David to her own house that
Solomon had built for her, he began building the Millo. °25 After Solomon
had finished the House, he came three times a year to offer up burnt
offerings and peace offerings on the altar which he had built to Yahweh,
burning incense before Yahweh. °26
King Solomon built a fleet of ships at Ezion-Geber,
near Elath on the shore of the Red Sea, in the land of Edom. °27 Hiram
sent his servants, seamen who were familiar with the sea, to serve in the
fleet together with the servants of Solomon. °28 They sailed for Ophir and brought
back to King Solomon gold amounting to four hundred and twenty talents. § The queen of Sheba visits Solomon¤10 °1 The queen of Sheba heard about Solomon’s fame, and
came to test him with difficult questions. °2 She arrived in Jerusalem with a vast retinue and
with camels loaded with spices, an abundance of gold and precious stones.
When she came to Solomon, she told him all that she had on her mind °3 and Solomon answered all
her questions. There was nothing that the king could not explain to her. °4 And when the queen of
Sheba had seen all the wisdom of Solomon, the palace he had built, °5 the food on his table, the
residence of his officials, the attendance of his servants and their
clothing, his cupbearers, and the burnt offerings which he offered at
Yahweh’s House, it left her breathless. °6 Then she said to the king,
“All that I heard in my own land concerning you and your wisdom was true. °7 But I did not believe the
reports until I came and saw with my own eyes. And what did I see! I was told
only half the story; for your wisdom and wealth surpass the report I heard. °8 Fortunate are your wives!
Fortunate are your servants who are ever in your presence and hear your
wisdom! °9 Blessed be
Yahweh your God, who has looked kindly on you and has put you on the throne
of Israel! Because of Yahweh’s eternal love for Israel, he has made you king
so that you may dispense justice and righteousness.” °10 Then she gave the king a
hundred and twenty talents of gold, spices in abundance, and precious stones.
Such an abundance of spices as those which the queen of Sheba gave to King
Solomon was never again seen. °11 Moreover, the fleet of
Hiram, which brought gold from Ophir, also brought from Ophir a huge amount
of almug wood and precious stones. °12 The king used the almug wood to make supports for
Yahweh’s House and the royal palace, and also to make lyres and harps for the
singers. Such almug wood has never again been brought or seen to the present
day. °13 King Solomon, in turn,
gave the queen of Sheba all that she desired and all that he in his
generosity wanted to give her. Then she went back to her own land together
with her servants. °14 Now the
weight of gold that Solomon received in one year was six hundred and
sixty-six gold talents, °15 not
counting that brought by traders, merchants, the kings of Arabia and the
governors of the land. °16 King
Solomon made two hundred large shields of beaten gold, six hundred shekels of
gold going into each shield. °17 And
he made three hundred shields of beaten gold with three minas of gold in each
shield. And the king put them in the House of the Forest of Lebanon. °18 The king
also made a huge ivory throne and overlaid it with the finest gold. °19 The
throne had six steps, a rounded back, and on each side of the seat were arm
rests with two lions standing beside the arm rests. °20 The six
steps had twelve lions, one on each end of a step. Nothing like this was ever
made in any kingdom. °21 All
of King Solomon’s drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the
House of the Forest of Lebanon were of pure gold and none of silver, for
silver was not considered of much value in the days of Solomon. °22 The king
had a fleet of Tarshish ships at sea with Hiram’s fleet, and once every three
years the fleet of Tarshish ships would bring gold, silver, ivory, apes and
peacocks. °23 King Solomon surpassed all
the kings of the earth in wealth and wisdom. °24 And the whole world sought audience with Solomon
to hear the wisdom which God had put into his mind. °25 Everyone who came brought
a present: articles of silver and gold, garments, myrrh, spices, horses and
mules, so much every year. °26 Solomon gathered together
chariots and horses – fourteen hundred chariots and twelve thousand horses
which he stationed in the chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem. °27 The king made silver as
common as stone in Jerusalem, and cedar as plentiful as sycamore in the
lowland. °28 Solomon
imported his horses from Musri and Kue and the king’s traders got them from
Kue for a fixed price. °29 A chariot could
be imported from Musri for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for a
hundred and fifty. They were exported in the same way to all the kings of the
Hittites and the kings of Syria. § Solomon’s wives¤11 °1 King Solomon loved many foreign women besides the
daughter of Pharaoh. There were Moabite, Ammonite, Edomite, Sidonian and
Hittite women °2 from nations
about which Yahweh had commanded the Israelites, “You shall not marry them;
nor shall they marry you, lest they win over your heart to their gods.”
Solomon, however, imitated these peoples because of his love. °3 He had seven hundred wives
of royal birth, and three hundred concubines, and they won his heart. °4 In Solomon’s old age, his
wives led him astray to serve other gods and, unlike his father David, his
heart was no longer wholly given to Yahweh his God. °5 For he served Astarte the
goddess of the Sidonians, and Milcom, the idol of the Ammonites. °6 He did what displeased
Yahweh and, unlike his father David, was unfaithful to him. °7 Solomon even built a high
place for Chemosh, the idol of Moab, on the mountain east of Jerusalem and
also for Molech, the idol of the Ammonites. °8 He did the same for all his foreign wives who
burned incense and sacrificed to their gods. °9 Yahweh became angry with
Solomon because his heart had turned away from Yahweh, the God of Israel. °10 Yahweh appeared to him
twice and commanded him not to follow other gods. But he did not obey
Yahweh’s command. °11 Therefore,
Yahweh said to Solomon, “Since this has been your choice and you have kept
neither my Covenant nor the statutes I commanded you, I will take the kingdom
from you and give it to your servant. °12 Nevertheless, I will not do this during your
lifetime for the sake of your father David; I will take it from your son. °13 But I will not take it
all; I will reserve one tribe for your son for the sake of David my servant,
and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen.” § Solomon’s enemies
°14 And
Yahweh raised up an adversary against Solomon. This was Hadad, the Edomite of
the royal house in Edom. °15 Indeed,
when David had defeated Edom, and Joab the commander of the army went up to
bury the slain, he slew every male in Edom. °16 Joab and the Israelites remained
in the place for six months until he had destroyed every male in Edom. °17 However
Hadad, then still only a boy, fled to Egypt together with some Edomites, his
father’s servants. °18 They
left Midian for Paran and, taking along with them some of the men from Paran,
they went on to Egypt to Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who gave Hadad a house,
promised him food and gave him land. °19 Hadad pleased Pharaoh, who gave
him as wife the sister of Queen Tahpenes, his own wife. °20 The
sister of Tahpenes bore him a son, Genubath, whom Tahpenes weaned in
Pharaoh’s house, and who lived there together with Pharaoh’s sons. °21 And so
when Hadad heard in Egypt that David had slept with his fathers, and that
Joab the commander of the army was also dead, he said to Pharaoh, “Let me go
back to my own country.” °22 Pharaoh
asked him, “What have I not done that you want to leave for your own
country?” But he answered him, “Please, let me go.” And he came back to his
land. He ruled over Edom and hated Israel. °23 God
raised up another adversary in the person of Rezon son of Eliada, who had
fled from his master Hadadezer king of Zobah. °24 Rezon gathered men around him and
became the leader of a marauding band. After David fought them and killed
some of them, they went to live in Damascus where they made him king. °25 He was an
adversary of Israel during Solomon’s lifetime. § Ahijah foretells the division of the kingdom°26 Jeroboam also rebelled
against the king. He was the son of Nebat, an Ephraimite of Zeredah; his
mother, Zeruah, had been left a widow. He was one of Solomon’s officials. °27 This was the reason for
his rebellion. Solomon was building the Millo and was closing up the breach
of the City of David his father; °28
when he noticed that Jeroboam was a man of great personal worth and
an able worker, he put him in charge of all the forced labor of the tribes of
Joseph. °29 Once, when Jeroboam went
out of Jerusalem, the prophet Ahijah of Shiloh found him on the road. The two
of them were alone in the open country °30 when Ahijah, who had a new garment on, clutched
and tore it into twelve pieces. °31
He then said to Jeroboam, “Take ten pieces for yourself for this is
the word of Yahweh, the God of Israel: ‘I am about to tear the kingdom from Solomon’s hands °32 to give you ten tribes.
Only one tribe shall be left to him for the sake of my servant David and
Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel. °33 For Solomon has forsaken
me and worshiped Astarte, the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of
Moab, and Milcom the god of the Ammonites. Unlike his father David, he has
not walked in my ways to do what is right before me and to keep my
commandments and decisions. °34 Nevertheless,
it is not from him that I will take the kingdom. I will let him reign during
his lifetime for the sake of David my servant, whom I chose and who kept my
commandments and statutes. °35 But
I will take the kingship from his son’s hand and make you king over ten
tribes. °36 One
tribe will be left for his son so that my servant David may always have a
lamp before me in Jerusalem, the city where I have chosen to put my Name. °37 I will
let you reign over all you wish; you shall be king of Israel. °38 Now, if
you obey all that I command you, follow me and do what is right in my eyes,
if you keep my commandments and my statutes, as my servant David did, I will
be with you and establish your family for a long time, as I did for David. I
will entrust Israel to you. °39 In
this way I will humble the family of David for a time’.” °40 Solomon
wanted to kill Jeroboam, but Jeroboam took refuge in Egypt with Shishak king
of Egypt, where he remained until the death of Solomon. °41 Now the
rest of the events of Solomon’s reign, his deeds and his wisdom, are written
in the book of the acts of Solomon. °42 Solomon reigned over all Israel
in Jerusalem for forty years. °43 Then
he rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of David; Rehoboam his
son reigned in his place. § The political schism¤12 °1 Rehoboam went to Shechem because all Israel had
gathered there to make him king. °2
When Jeroboam, son of Nebat, heard of this in Egypt where he had fled
from King Solomon and where he still remained, he returned from Egypt. °3 They called for him, and
he came with all the assembly of Israel. The people of Israel went to Rehoboam with this demand, °4 “Your father made our yoke
heavy. So now lighten the heavy yoke and the hard labor your father imposed
on us and we will serve you.” °5 Rehoboam
answered them, “Leave now but come back on the third day.” And so the people
went their way. °6 King Rehoboam sought
advice from the elderly counselors who served his father Solomon while he was
still alive, and he asked them, “How would you advise me to answer this
people?” °7 To this they
replied, “If you attend to this people today making yourself their servant
and speak to them with good words, they will serve you forever.” °8 But Rehoboam disregarded
the advice of the old counselors and asked the opinion of the greenhorns who
had grown up with him and were in his service. °9 He asked them, “What do you say we should answer
this people who tell me: ‘Lighten the yoke which your father imposed on us’?”
°10 The greenhorns
who had grown up with him answered, “Since these people said to you, ‘Your
father made our yoke heavy, but you should now lighten it for us,’ tell them
this: ‘My little finger is thicker than my father’s waist. °11 My father laid a heavy
yoke on you, but I will make it heavier yet. My father chastised you with
whips, but I will fix iron points to the lashes.” °12 On the third day, Jeroboam
together with the people went back to Rehoboam just as the king said, for he
had said to them, “Come back on the third day.” °13 Ignoring the advice given him by the elderly
counselors, °14 the king
answered the people harshly in the way the greenhorns had advised him. He
said, “My father made your yoke heavy, but I will make it even heavier. My
father chastised you with whips, but I will fix iron points to the lashes.” °15 The king did not listen to
the people. It was, indeed, Yahweh who brought about this fateful event,
fulfilling the word he had spoken to Jeroboam, son of Nebat, through Ahijah
the Shilonite. °16 All Israel realized that
the king refused to listen to them, and they answered the same way, “What
have we to do with David? Is the son of Jesse from our tribes? Let the son of
David deal with his own and you, people of Israel, go back to your homes!”
And so the Israelites left for their homes. °17 Only the Israelites who dwelt in the cities of
Judah let Rehoboam reign over them. °18 Rehoboam sent Adoram,
task-master of the forced labor, but the Israelites stoned him to death and
King Rehoboam had to mount his chariot and flee to Jerusalem. °19 So Israel has been in
rebellion against the house of David to the present time. °20 As
Jeroboam had returned and was with them at the assembly, having been called
by them, they made him king of Israel. And so, with the exception of the
tribe of Judah, no one followed the house of David. °21 When
Rehoboam came to Jerusalem, he called together all the people of Judah and
the tribe of Benjamin, numbering a hundred and eighty thousand select
warriors, to fight against the people of Israel in a bid to restore the
kingship of Rehoboam, son of Solomon. °22 But the word of God was directed
to Shemaiah, the man of God, °23 “Give
Rehoboam, son of Solomon, king of Judah, and all the people of Judah and
Benjamin, and the rest of the people, this message from Yahweh: °24 You shall
not go up to fight against your kinsmen, the Israelites. Let everyone return
to his home for I am the author of this.” When they heard this word they went
back home according to what Yahweh had ordered. °25 Jeroboam
fortified Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim and lived there. Then, he
set out to fortify Penuel. § The religious division°26 Jeroboam
thought, “The kingdom could return to the house of David. °27 Should this people go up
to offer sacrifices in Yahweh’s House in Jerusalem, their heart would turn
again to their master, Rehoboam king of Judah. They would kill me and go back
to him.” °28 And so the king sought
advice and made two golden calves. Then he said to the people, “You have been
going up to Jerusalem long enough. Here are your gods, O Israel, who brought
you up out of the land of Egypt.” °29
He put one of these in Bethel, the other in Dan. °30 And so Jeroboam made the
people sin; the people went as far as Dan to accompany one of them. °31 Jeroboam also built
temples on high places, appointing priests who were not from the Levites. °32 Jeroboam also appointed a
feast on the fifteenth day of the eighth month in imitation of the feast in
Judah, and he himself offered sacrifices on the altar. This he did in Bethel
and sacrificed to the calves that he had made; there he placed priests for
the high places he had made. °33 On the
fifteenth day of the eighth month, the month which he had arbitrarily chosen,
he ordained a feast for the Israelites and went up to the altar to burn
incense. § The story of Judah’s man of God¤13 °1 A man of God came out of Judah following a command
of Yahweh, and he arrived at Bethel while Jeroboam was standing by the altar
to burn incense. °2 The man
shouted, cursing the altar, “O altar, altar, thus says Yahweh: There shall be
born to the family of David a son by the name of Josiah. He shall sacrifice
on you the priests of the high places who burn incense on you; and human
bones shall be burned on you.” °3 And at once the man gave a
sign. He said, “This is the proof that Yahweh has spoken. The altar shall be
torn down and the ashes on it shall be scattered.” °4 When the king heard the
man of God shouting and cursing the altar of Bethel, he stretched out his
hand from the altar and said, “Arrest him!” °5 Immediately the hand which he pointed out against
the man dried up and he could not draw it back. The altar itself crumbled and
the ashes on it were scattered, according to the sign that had been given. °6 And so the king said to
the man of God, “Entreat the favor of Yahweh your God and pray for me so that
my hand may be restored.” The man of God entreated Yahweh and the king’s hand
was restored as it had been before. °7 The king then said to the
man of God, “Come home with me and refresh yourself. I will give you a
reward.” °8 But the man of
God answered the king, “Even if you give me half your house, I will not go in
with you; nor will I eat or drink in this place, for this was commanded me by
Yahweh. °9 He precisely
said to me: You shall neither eat bread nor drink water, nor return by the
way you came.” °10 And the man did
not return by the way he had come to Bethel, but he went another way. °11 Now there was an old
prophet living in Bethel, and his sons came to tell him what the man of God
had done on that day in Bethel, and everything he had said to the king. °12 Their father then asked
them, “Which way did he go?” and they told him which way the man of God from
Judah had taken. °13 He then said to
his sons, “Saddle the ass for me”, and they did so. °14 He mounted the ass and
went after the man of God whom he found sitting under the Oak. He asked him, “Are you the man of God who came from Judah? °15 Come home with me and eat
bread.” °16 The prophet
from Judah answered, “I may neither return nor go in with you; nor will I eat
or drink with you, °17 for this was
the command of Yahweh: You shall neither eat bread nor drink water there, nor
shall you return by the way you came.” °18 But the old prophet from Bethel said to him: “I am
also a prophet as you are; and an angel told me on behalf of Yahweh: Bring
him back with you into your house that he may eat bread and drink water.” °19 The old prophet in fact,
was lying. And so the man of God went back with him and ate and drank in his
house. °20 As they sat at table, the
word of Yahweh came to the prophet who had brought him back. °21 And he said in a loud
voice to the man of God who came from Judah, “Thus says Yahweh: You have
disobeyed me and have not observed the command I gave you. °22 Instead, you have come back and eaten and drunk
although I told you not to eat bread or drink water. Because of this, your
body shall not be laid in the tomb of your ancestors.” °23 After he had eaten and
drunk, the old prophet who had brought him back saddled the ass for him and
the prophet from Judah went away. °24
But a lion met him on the road and killed him. His body was thrown on
the road with the lion beside it. °25
People who passed by saw the body thrown on the road with the lion
standing by; and they reported this in the city where the old prophet lived. °26 When the prophet heard of
this, he said, “It is the man of God who disobeyed the word of Yahweh. Yahweh
has delivered him to the lion which has torn and slain him just as Yahweh had
told him.” °27 Then he said to
his sons, “Saddle the ass for me.” °28 They saddled it and he went and found the body
thrown on the road with the ass and the lion standing beside it. °29 The lion had neither eaten
the body nor torn the ass. And so the prophet took up the body of the man of
God, laid it on the ass and brought it back to the city to mourn and to bury
him. °30 He laid the
body in his own grave and they mourned over him with the lament, “Alas, my
brother!” °31 After that the old prophet
said to his sons, “When I die, bury me in the grave where the man of God is
buried and lay my bones beside his bones. °32 For everything he said at Yahweh’s command,
cursing the altar in Bethel and all the sanctuaries of the high places in the
cities of Samaria, will be fulfilled.” °33 After this, however,
Jeroboam did not abstain from doing evil. Instead he made priests for the
high places from among the people; he consecrated anyone who wanted to be a
priest for the high places. °34 And this became
the sin of the family of Jeroboam for which it was to be cut off and
destroyed from the face of the earth. § Ahijah’s prophecy against Jeroboam¤14 °1 At that time, Abijah, son of Jeroboam, fell ill. °2 So the king told his wife.
“Go, disguise yourself so that no one may recognize you as Jeroboam’s wife.
Go to Shiloh where you will find Ahijah the prophet who foretold that I would
be king over this people. °3 Take with you
ten loaves, a few cakes, and a jar of honey. Enter his house and he will tell
you what shall happen to the child.” °4 Jeroboam’s wife did as she
was told and left for Shiloh. She entered the house of Ahijah who was now so
old that he could not see. °5 But Yahweh had told
Ahijah, “Jeroboam’s wife is coming to consult you about her sick son, and
this is what you must tell her. She will be coming in disguise.” °6 And so when Ahijah heard
the sound of her footsteps, as she entered the door, he said, “Come in, wife
of Jeroboam. Why have you disguised yourself? I have been told to give you
unpleasant news. °7 Go, therefore;
bring Jeroboam this message of Yahweh, the God of Israel: °8 I made you rise from the
midst of the people and established you as the leader of Israel. I took the
kingdom from David’s family to give it to you. Yet you have not been like my
servant David, who kept my commands and followed me with his whole heart,
doing only what was pleasing to me. °9 You have done worse than anyone before you. You
have made me angry with your strange gods and the images you have made; and
you have forsaken me. °10 Now, I shall bring
disaster on the family of Jeroboam. I will cut off every male in Jeroboam’s
line, whether slave or freeman in Israel, and I will wipe out the descendants
of Jeroboam just as they wipe out the dung till all is gone. °11 He who dies in the city
will be devoured by dogs; he who dies in the field, by the birds of the sky.
So Yahweh has spoken! °12 Leave now, and
go back home! As soon as you enter the city, the child will die. °13 All Israel will mourn for
him and bury him. He alone of Jeroboam’s line will be buried, for in him
alone has Yahweh, the God of Israel, found something good. °14 Yahweh himself will raise
up for himself a king of Israel; it is he who will destroy Jeroboam’s family. °15 Yahweh
will strike Israel like a reed tossed about in the water and root them out
from this good land which he gave to their ancestors. He will scatter them
beyond the river Euphrates because they made him angry with the sacred poles
they set up. °16 Yahweh
will scatter Israel because of the sins Jeroboam has committed and by which
he dragged Israel into sin.” °17 So Jeroboam’s wife went
home. On her arrival at Tirzah, and as soon as she crossed the threshold of her
house, the child died. °18 The child was
buried and all Israel mourned over him just as Yahweh had prophesied through
his servant the prophet Ahijah. § Rehoboam, king of Judah
°19 The rest
of the acts of Jeroboam, his achievements in war and his reign, are recorded
in the Book of Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. °20 Jeroboam reigned for twenty-two
years. When he rested with his fathers, his son Nadab succeeded him as king. °21 As for
Rehoboam, son of Solomon, he was forty-one when he began to reign over Judah.
He reigned for seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which Yahweh chose out
of all the tribes of Israel to put his Name there. His mother Naamah was an
Ammonite. °22 The
people of Judah did what displeased Yahweh and, by their sins, angered him even
more than their ancestors had done. °23 They also built for themselves
high places, pillars and sacred poles on every high hill and under every
green tree. °24 They
even had male cult prostitutes in their land. Judah followed all the
abominable practices of the nations whom Yahweh had driven out before the
Israelites. °25 In the
fifth year of King Rehoboam, Shishak, king of Egypt, attacked Jerusalem °26 and
looted everything, including the treasures of Yahweh’s house and of the royal
palace. As he had taken the golden shields made under Solomon, °27 Rehoboam
replaced them with brazen shields and entrusted them to the officers of the
guard who watched at the door of the king’s palace. °28 Every
time the king went into Yahweh’s House, the guards took them out and then
brought them back to the guardroom. °29 The rest
of the events of Rehoboam’s reign, including his deeds, are all written in
the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah. °30 There was incessant war between
Rehoboam and Jeroboam. °31 Then
Rehoboam rested with his fathers and was buried with his ancestors in the
City of David. His mother Naamah was an Ammonite. His son Abijam succeeded
him as king. § Abijam, king of Judah
¤15 °1
In the eighteenth year of King Jeroboam, son of
Nebat, Abijam became king of Judah °2 and reigned for three years in
Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Maacah, daughter of Abishalom. °3 He
imitated all the sins his father had committed before him and, unlike his
ancestor David, was not wholly faithful to Yahweh, his God. °4 Yet
Yahweh had promised David that he would keep his lamp burning in Jerusalem;
he would raise his descendants after him and establish Jerusalem. °5 This was
because David had pleased Yahweh and did not disobey any of his commands as
long as he lived, except in the case of Uriah the Hittite. °6–°7 The rest of the events of
Abijam’s reign and everything he did are written in the Book of the
Chronicles of the Kings of Judah. There was war between Abijam and Jeroboam. °8 When
Abijam rested with his fathers, he was buried in the city of David, and his
son Asa reigned in his place. § Asa, king of Judah
°9 In the
twentieth year of Jeroboam, king of Israel, Asa, king of Judah, began to
reign and °10 was
king for forty-one years, ruling in Jerusalem. His grandmother was Maacah,
daughter of Abishalom. °11 Asa
did what was right before Yahweh, just as his ancestor David had done. °12 He rid
the land of male cult prostitutes and removed all the idols his ancestors had
made. °13 He
also deposed his grandmother Maacah as queen mother, for having made an
abominable image for Asherah. Asa destroyed Asherah’s image and burned it at
the brook Kidron; °14 he
did not, however, close down the high places. Nevertheless, Asa remained
faithful to Yahweh for the rest of his life. °15 He brought into Yahweh’s house
both the votive gifts of his father and his own: silver, gold and vessels. °16 Asa and
Baasha, king of Israel, were at war during their reigns. °17 Baasha,
king of Israel, attacked Judah and fortified Ramah to cut off all
communication with Asa, king of Judah. °18 Asa, in the meantime, collecting
all the silver and gold remaining in the treasuries of the temple of Yahweh
and the royal palace, entrusted them to his servants whom he sent to
Ben-Hadad, son of Tabrimmon, son of Hezion, king of Syria who reigned in
Damascus. °19 He
sent him this message, “Let us together make a treaty just as my father and
yours did. I am sending you silver and gold, so please break your treaty with
Baasha, king of Israel that he may withdraw from my territory.” °20 Ben-Hadad
acceded to King Asa’s request and sent his officers to harass the cities of
Israel, capturing Ijon, Dan, Abel-Beth-Maacah, all the land of Chinneroth and
the region of Naphtali. °21 On
hearing this, Baasha stopped the fortification of Ramah and moved to Tirzah
where he lived. °22 Then
King Asa issued an order to all of Judah, excluding no one, to take away the
stones and timber which Baasha had been using to fortify Ramah. With these
materials, King Asa built Geba of Benjamin and Mizpah. °23 The rest
of Asa’s reign, his bravery, his deeds and the cities which he built are
written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah. In his old age,
Asa suffered from a foot disease. °24
Asa then rested with his fathers and was buried in
the City of David his ancestor. His son Jehoshaphat reigned in his place. § Nadab and Baasha, kings of Israel°25 Nadab,
son of Jeroboam, began to reign over Israel in the second year of Asa, king
of Judah. °26 He
reigned over Israel for two years, doing what displeased Yahweh and dragging
Israel into sin as his father had done. °27 Baasha,
son of Ahijah of the family of Issachar, plotted against him and struck him
down at Gibbethon of the Philistines when Nadab and the Israelites were
laying siege to this city. °28 Baasha
killed Nadab in the third year of Asa king of Judah and reigned in his place.
°29 As
soon as he was king, he killed off the entire family of Jeroboam, leaving him
no one alive but wiping them out according to the word which Yahweh had
spoken through his servant Ahijah, the Shilonite. °30 This happened because of Jeroboam
who aroused the anger of Yahweh, the God of Israel, by sinning and dragging
Israel into sin. °31 The rest
of the events of Nadab’s reign and his achievements are written in the Book
of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. °32 Asa and Baasha were at war during
their reigns. °33 In the
third year of Asa king of Judah, Baasha, son of Ahijah, began to reign over
all Israel at Tirzah where he reigned for twenty-four years. °34 He did
what displeased Yahweh and sinned just as Jeroboam, who dragged Israel into
sin, had done. ¤16 °1
Yahweh spoke to Jehu, son of Hanani, to condemn
Baasha. He said, °2 “I
have raised you from the dust to make you rule over my people Israel, but you
have made me angry by going the way of Jeroboam and dragging my people Israel
into sin. °3 I
will therefore sweep away Baasha and his family and deal with them as I did
with Jeroboam, son of Nebat. °4 Dogs
will devour those of Baasha’s line who die in the City, the birds of the air
will feed on those who die in the country.” °5 The rest
of the events of Baasha’s reign, his deeds and achievements are written in
the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. °6 Baasha rested with his fathers
and was buried at Tirzah, while Elah his son reigned in his place. °7 Yahweh
indeed spoke through the prophet Jehu, son of Hanani, to condemn Baasha and
his family, not only for doing what displeased Yahweh, making him angry as
Jeroboam had done, but also because he murdered the family of Jeroboam. § Elah, king of Israel°8 In the
twenty-sixth year of Asa king of Judah, Elah, son of Baasha, began to reign
over Israel in Tirzah and was king for two years. °9 But his servant Zimri, commander
of half his chariots, plotted against him. While Elah was getting himself
drunk in the house of Arza, governor of Tirzah, °10 Zimri came in, struck him down
and killed him. This happened in the twenty-seventh year of Asa, king of
Judah. Then Zimri reigned in his place. °11 As soon
as Zimri began to reign, he had the entire family of Baasha killed, leaving
him not a single male relative or friend. °12 Zimri wiped out the entire house
of Baasha according to Yahweh’s pronouncement against him as spoken by Jehu,
the prophet. °13 And
this happened because of the sins which Baasha and his son had committed,
dragging Israel into sin and making Yahweh angry with their idols. °14 Now the
rest of the events of Elah’s reign and all his deeds are written in the Book
of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. § Omri, king of Israel°15 It
happened in the twenty-seventh year of Asa, king of Judah, that Zimri reigned
seven days in Tirzah. °16 For
the army was besieging Gibbethon of the Philistines when Zimri plotted
against Elah, and, on hearing that he had killed the king, they proclaimed
Omri, commander of the army, king of Israel. °17 Omri went up with the Israelites
from Gibbethon and attacked Tirzah. °18 When Zimri saw that the city was
to be captured, he went into the citadel of the royal palace; he set the
royal palace on fire, and he died. °19 He died thus because of the sins
he had committed, doing what displeased Yahweh and going the way of Jeroboam
by dragging Israel into sin. °20 The
rest of the acts of Zimri and his plot are written in the Book of the
Chronicles of the Kings of Israel. °21 The
Israelites were then divided; half of them followed Tibni, son of Ginath to
make him king; the other half followed Omri. °22 Those who followed Omri overcame
those who followed Tibni, son of Ginath. And so, Tibni died and Omri became
king. °23 In
the thirty-first year of Asa, king of Judah, Omri began to reign over Israel.
He reigned for twelve years, six years of which he reigned in Tirzah. °24 Then he
bought the hill of Samaria from Shemer for two talents of silver. He built a
city on the hill and called it Samaria, after Shemer, the owner of the hill. °25 Omri did
what displeased Yahweh, even more than all those who preceded him. °26 He went
the way of Jeroboam, son of Nebat, and dragged Israel into sin, thereby
provoking the anger of Yahweh, the God of Israel, by their idols. °27 The rest
of the acts of Omri and his bravery are written in the Book of the Chronicles
of the Kings of Israel. °28 Then
Omri rested with his fathers and was buried in Samaria while Ahab, his son,
reigned in his place. § Ahab, king of Israel°29 Ahab, son of Omri became
king in the thirty-eighth year of Asa, king of Judah, and he reigned over
Israel in Samaria for twenty-two years. °30 Ahab, son of Omri did what displeased Yahweh, even
more than all those who preceded him. °31 Apparently the example and the sins of Jeroboam
son of Nebat were not enough for him; he even married Jezebel, daughter of
Ethbaal, king of the Sidonians. So he served Baal and worshiped him. °32 He set up an altar for
Baal in the temple of Baal which he built in Samaria °33 and proceeded to make an
Asherah. So Ahab did everything that could make Yahweh angry, even more than
any of the kings of Israel who ruled before him. °34 During his reign, Hiel of
Bethel rebuilt Jericho. On laying its foundation he sacrificed Abirma, his
firstborn. And when he set up the gates of the city, he sacrificed his
youngest son, Segub, in accordance with the word of Yahweh spoken through
Joshua, son of Nun. § The prophet Elijah¤17 °1 Now Elijah, the prophet from Tishbe in Gilead,
said to Ahab, “As Yahweh, the God of Israel whom I serve lives, neither dew
shall drop nor rain fall except at my command.” °2 Then the word of Yahweh
came to Elijah, °3 “Leave this
place and go eastward. Hide yourself by the brook Cherith, east of the
Jordan. °4 You shall drink
from the brook and, for your food, I have commanded the ravens to feed you
there.” °5 So Elijah
obeyed the word of Yahweh and went to live by the brook Cherith, east of the
Jordan. °6 There the
ravens brought him bread in the morning and meat in the evening; and he drank
from the brook. § The widow of Zarephath°7 After a while, the brook
dried up because no rain had fallen in the land. °8 Then Yahweh spoke to Elijah, °9 “Go to Zarephath of the
Sidonites and stay there. I have given word to a widow there to give you
food.” °10 So Elijah went
to Zarephath. On reaching the gate of the town, he saw a widow gathering
sticks. He called to her and said, “Bring me a little water in a vessel that
I may drink.” °11 As she was going to bring
it, he called after her and said, “Bring me also a piece of bread.” °12 But she answered, “As
Yahweh your God lives, I have no bread left but only a handful of flour in a
jar and a little oil in a jug. I am just now gathering some sticks so that I
may go in and prepare something for myself and my son to eat – and die.” °13 Elijah then said to her,
“Do not be afraid. Go and do as you have said, but first make me a little
cake of it and bring it to me; then make some for yourself and your son. °14 For this is the word of
Yahweh, the God of Israel, ‘The jar of meal shall not be emptied nor shall
the jug of oil fail, until the day when Yahweh sends rain to the earth.” °15 So she went and did as
Elijah told her; and she had food for herself, Elijah and her son from that
day on. °16 The jar of
flour was not emptied nor did the jug of oil fail, in accordance with what
Yahweh had said through Elijah. § The widow’s son raised to life°17 After this, the son of
this housewife became ill. And such was his illness that he stopped
breathing. °18 She then said
to Elijah, “What did you do, O man of God? Have you come to uncover past sins
and cause my son’s death?” °19 He answered,
“Give me your son.” Taking him from her lap, he carried him up to the upper room
where he was staying and laid him on his own bed. °20 Then he called on Yahweh, “O Yahweh, my God, will
you afflict even the widow with whom I am residing by letting her son die?” °21 Then he stretched himself on
the child three times and called on Yahweh, “O Yahweh, my God, let this
child’s breath return to him.” °22
Yahweh listened to the pleading of Elijah and the child’s breath
returned to him, and he lived. °23
Elijah then took the child and brought him down from the upper room.
He gave him to his mother and said, “See, your son is alive.” °24 Then the woman said to
Elijah, “Now I am certain that you are a man of God, and that your words
really came from Yahweh.” ¤18 °1
After several days (in the third year) Yahweh spoke
to Elijah and said, “Go, show yourself to Ahab that I may let it rain on the
earth.” °2 So
Elijah went to show himself to Ahab. °3 Now the
famine in Samaria was severe. Ahab therefore called Obadiah, who was in
charge of the household. °4 (Obadiah
was a faithful servant of Yahweh and when Jezebel slew the prophets of Yahweh
he himself took a hundred prophets and hid them by fifties in caves, feeding
them with bread and water.) °5 Then
Ahab told Obadiah, “Let’s go and check all the watersprings and the valleys
through the land, looking for grass so that the horses and mules may be kept
alive and not perish.” °6 So
Ahab and Obadiah divided the land between them and each of them went his own
way. °7 As
Obadiah was going his way, Elijah met him. Recognizing Elijah, Obadiah fell
on his face and said, “Is that you, my master Elijah?” °8 He
answered him, “It is I. Go tell your master that I am here.” °9 But
Obadiah replied, “What evil have I done that you expose me to Ahab’s anger?
Surely you want me to die. °10 By
Yahweh, your God, there is no people or nation where my master has not
searched for you and if they said, ‘Elijah is not here,’ he would make them
take an oath that they had not found you. °11 Yet now as soon as I leave to
inform Ahab of your presence, °12 the
Spirit of Yahweh will transport your goodness elsewhere, and when Ahab fails
to find you, he will kill me. But I have served Yahweh from my youth. °13 Do you
not know that when Jezebel had the prophets of Yahweh killed, I hid a hundred
of them in two caves and fed them with bread and water? °14 Now if I
notify Ahab of your presence, as you want me to do, he will surely kill me!” °15 But
Elijah said to him, “By Yahweh of hosts whom I serve, I will show myself to
him today.” °16 So
Obadiah went to give Ahab this message and Ahab came to meet Elijah. § The sacrifice at Carmel
°17 On seeing Elijah, Ahab
said to him, “Is it you, the plague of Israel?” °18 Elijah replied, “Who is troubling Israel? Isn’t it
you and your family who have disobeyed the commands of Yahweh and followed
instead the Baals? °19 Now, therefore,
give an order for the Israelites to gather before me at Mount Carmel,
together with the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal who are sustained
by Jezebel.” °20 So Ahab sent for all the
people of Israel and gathered the prophets at Mount Carmel. °21 Then Elijah addressed the
people and asked, “How long will you follow two ways at the same time? If
Yahweh is God, follow him; but if Baal is God then follow him.” The people
remained silent. °22 So Elijah continued, “I am
the only prophet of Yahweh left here to face Baal’s four hundred and fifty
prophets. °23 Get us two
bulls. Let them choose one bull for themselves, cut it into pieces and lay it
on the wood and I will do the same with the other bull. But we will not set
it on fire. °24 Then you shall
call on the name of your god while I shall call on the name of Yahweh. The
God who answers with fire is the true one.” Then the people answered, “That
is right.” °25 Then Elijah told the prophets
of Baal, “Choose for yourselves one bull and prepare it first, for you are
many. Then call on the name of your god lest you are left without fire!” °26 So they took the bull and
prepared it, and they called on the name of Baal, “Baal, answer us!” But
there was no voice and no one answered them while they went on dancing on one
foot around the altar they had built. °27 By noontime, Elijah began
to mock them, “Shout out louder. Baal is a busy god; or he may have gone out
or perhaps he has gone on a trip, or he is sleeping and must be wakened.” °28 So they shouted louder
gashing their skin with knives, as they are used to doing, until they bled. °29 It was already past noon
and they were still raving on until the time of the evening offering. But
still there was no voice; no one answered or gave a sign of life. °30 Then Elijah said to the
people, “Draw closer to me,” and the people drew closer to him. He then
repaired the altar of Yahweh which had been thrown down. °31 He took twelve stones
corresponding to the number of tribes of the sons of Jacob whom Yahweh had
addressed saying, “Israel shall be your name.” °32 With these stones, he built an altar to the Name
of Yahweh and dug a trench around it that would contain about thirty liters. °33 He then arranged the
firewood, cut the bull in pieces and laid them on the wood. Then, he said,
“Fill four jars with water and pour it on the burnt offering and on the
firewood.” °34 He said, “Do it
again”; and they did it again; “one more time,” and they did it a third time.
°35 The water ran
around the altar and filled the trench. °36 When the time of the
evening offering came, Elijah the prophet came near and said, “O Yahweh, God
of Abraham, Isaac and Israel, let it be known today that you are God in
Israel and that I am your servant, doing all these things at your command. °37 Answer me, O Yahweh,
answer me so that this people may know that you, O Yahweh, are God and that
you are turning back their hearts to you.” °38 Then the fire of Yahweh fell and consumed the burnt
offering, together with the wood, the stones also, and the dust; the water
also dried up in the trench. °39 All the people witnessed
this. Then they fell on their faces and said, “Yahweh is God! Yahweh is God!”
°40 Then Elijah
commanded them, “Seize the prophets of Baal and let none of them escape.” And
so they seized them. Then Elijah brought them down to the brook Kidron and
had them slaughtered there. °41 Elijah then said to Ahab,
“Go up, eat and drink, for the sound of rain is rushing in.” °42 So Ahab went up to eat and
drink. Elijah, in the meantime, went to the top of Carmel, bowed to the
ground and put his face between his knees. °43 Then he said to his servant, “Go up and look in
the direction of the sea.” The man went up, looked, and said, “There is
nothing.” Then Elijah said, “Go again” and seven times he went. °44 At the seventh time, he
perceived a little cloud, the size of a man’s hand, rising out of the sea.
Elijah told him, “Go, tell Ahab: Prepare your chariot and go down before the
rain stops you.” °45 A little later
the sky grew dark with clouds and wind and a strong rain fell. Ahab was
riding on his way to Jezreel; °46 as for Elijah,
the hand of Yahweh was on him, and tucking his cloak in his belt, he ran
before Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel. § Elijah flees to Horeb
¤19 °1 Ahab told Jezebel everything Elijah had done and
how he had slain all the prophets with the sword. °2 Jezebel then sent word to Elijah, “May I be cursed
if by this time tomorrow I have not dealt with you as you dealt with them.” °3 Elijah was scared and fled
for his life. He reached Beer-Sheba of Judah and left his servant there. °4 He himself disappeared
into the desert going on a day’s journey. Then he sat down under a broom tree
and prayed to die, “That is enough, Yahweh, take away my life for I am
dying.” °5 He lay down and went to
sleep under the broom tree. Then an angel touched him and said, “Get up and
eat.” °6 Elijah looked
and saw, at his head, a cake baked on hot stones and a jar of water. He ate
and drank and went back to sleep. °7
The angel of Yahweh came a second time to him, saying, “Get up and
eat, for the journey is too long for you.” °8 He got up, ate and drank, and on the strength of
that food, he traveled for forty days and forty nights to Horeb, the mount of
God. § The encounter with God°9 On reaching the
place, he came to the cave and stayed in it. Then the word of Yahweh came to
him,“What are you doing here, Elijah?” °10 He answered, “I am burning with jealous love for
Yahweh, the God of Hosts, because the Israelites have forsaken your covenant,
thrown down your altars, and slain your prophets with the sword. No one is
left but myself and they are still trying to kill me as well.” °11 Then Yahweh said, “Go up
and stand on the mount, waiting for Yahweh.” And Yahweh passed by. There was first a windstorm, wild wind which rent the
mountains and broke the rocks into pieces before Yahweh, but Yahweh was not
in the wind. After the storm, an earthquake, but Yahweh was not in the
earthquake. °12 After the earthquake,
a fire, but Yahweh was not in the fire. After the fire, the murmur of a
gentle breeze. °13 When Elijah
perceived it, he covered his face with his cloak, went out and stood at the
entrance of the cave. Then he heard a voice addressing him again, “What are you
doing here, Elijah?” °14 He answered, “I
am burning with jealous love for Yahweh, the God of hosts, because the
Israelites have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars and slain
your prophets with the sword. No one is left but myself, yet they still seek
my life to take it away.” °15 Yahweh said to him, “Take
the road back through the desert and go to Damascus for you must anoint
Hazael as king of Syria; °16 you shall also
anoint Jehu, son of Nimshi, as king over Israel; and Elisha, son of Shaphat,
from Abel Meholah, you shall anoint as prophet in your place. °17 Whoever escapes from the
sword of Hazael will be slain by Jehu and whoever escapes from the sword of
Jehu, Elisha will let him die. °18
Yet I will spare seven thousand in Israel who have not knelt before
Baal and whose lips have not kissed him.” °19 So Elijah left. He found
Elisha, son of Shaphat, who was plowing a field of twelve acres and was at
the end of the twelfth acre. Elijah passed by him and cast his cloak over
him. °20 Elisha left the
oxen, ran after Elijah and said, “Let me say goodbye to my father and mother;
then I will follow you.” Elijah said to him, “Return if you want, don’t worry
about what I did.” °21 However, Elisha
turned back, took the yoke of oxen and slew them. He roasted their meat on
the pieces of the yoke and gave it to his people who ate of it. After this,
he followed Elijah and began ministering to him. § The siege of Samaria
¤20 °1
Ben-Hadad, king of Aram, gathered together his
entire army. With him were thirty-two kings. With horses and chariots, he
went to Samaria and besieged it. °2
He then sent messengers into the city to Ahab, king
of Israel, and said to him, “Thus says Ben-Hadad: °3 Your silver and gold are mine and
so are your fairest wives and children.” °4 The king of Israel answered, “As
you say, my master, O king, I am yours with all that I possess.” °5 Again
Ben-Hadad sent messengers to say, “I sent this message to you: ‘Hand over to
me your silver and gold, along with your wives and children,’ °6 but now I
will send my servants to you tomorrow about this time. They shall search your
house and those of your officials and take with them whatever they want to
take.” °7 Then the
king of Israel summoned all the elders of the land and said, “Look now and
see how this man acts with evil intentions. He will send his officers to take
my wives and children, and my silver and gold, although I agreed to deliver
all to him.” °8 The
elders and the people said to him, “Pay no attention to him and do not agree
to what he asks.” °9 So
the king of Israel told Ben-Hadad’s messengers, “Tell my master, the king, I
will do everything you first demanded of me, but now it is too much.” The
messengers left and reported this to °10 Ben-Hadad who then answered, “May
I be cursed if enough dust remains of Samaria to give a handful to all the
people who follow me.” °11 But
the king of Israel answered, “Let not he who puts on his armor boast like one
who takes it off.” °12 Ben-Hadad
was drinking with the kings in the booths when he heard this message. So he
said to his officers, “Take your positions.” And they took their positions
against the city. °13 Then a
prophet approached Ahab king of Israel and said, “Have you seen this immense
crowd? This is the word of Yahweh: I will deliver it into your hands today
and you shall know that I am Yahweh.” °14 Ahab asked, “Who is to win over
him?” The prophet replied, “The guards of the governors of the districts, for
this is Yahweh’s order.” Again the king asked, “Who shall begin the battle?”
He replied, “You!” °15 And so
the king of Israel mustered the guards of the governors of the districts,
numbering two hundred and thirty-two. After that, he mustered all the
Israelites, numbering seven thousand. °16 They set
out at noon while Ben-Hadad was drinking himself drunk in the booths,
together with the thirty-two kings who helped him. °17 The guards of the governors of
the districts went out first. Someone reported to Ben-Hadad, “People are
coming out from Samaria.” °18 He
said, “If they have come out for peace, take them alive; if for war, take
them alive as well.” °19 So the
guards of the governors of the city went out, and the army followed them, °20 and each
one began to kill his man. The Arameans fled, with the Israelites pursuing
them. Ben-Hadad, king of Aram was able to escape on a horse with horsemen, °21 but the
king of Israel captured horses and chariots and utterly defeated the
Arameans. °22 Then the
prophet came again to the king of Israel and said to him,“Courage, be on your
guard and ponder well your next action, for next year the king of Aram will
come up against you.” °23 The
officers of the king of Aram said to him, “Their gods are gods of the hills;
that is why they were stronger than us. °24 Let us fight against them on the
plain and we shall overcome them. But you must also replace the princes with
officers appointed by you. °25 When
you have gathered an army like the one you have lost, with the same amount of
horses and chariots, we will fight on the plain, then we shall see who is
stronger.” Ben-Hadad listened to their advice and did just that. § Victory over the Arameans°26 In the
spring, Ben-Hadad mustered the Arameans and set out for Aphek to fight
against Israel. °27 The
Israelites were also mustered and they set out against the Arameans. As they
encamped, the Israelites looked like two little herds of goats, whereas the
Arameans filled the countryside. °28
A man of God approached the king of Israel and said
to him, “Thus says Yahweh: Because the Arameans have said: ‘Yahweh is a god
of the hills but not of the valleys,’ therefore I will deliver this immense
crowd into your hands and you shall know that I am Yahweh.” °29 And they
encamped facing each other for seven days. On the seventh day, the battle was
engaged and that day the Israelites killed a hundred thousand Aramean foot
soldiers. °30 As
the rest fled into the city of Aphek, the wall fell on the twenty-seven
thousand men that were left. Ben-Hadad himself fled and entered an inner room
in the city. °31 His
officers said to him, “People say that the kings of Israel are merciful
kings. Let us put sackcloth around our waists; perhaps he will spare your
life.” °32 So,
putting sackcloth around their waists and ropes around their necks, they went
to the king of Israel and said, “Your servant, Ben-Hadad, pleads, ‘Please,
let me live.” He then asked, “Is he still alive? He is my brother.” °33 They
quickly took up his word and said, “Yes, Ben-Hadad is your brother.” The king
of Israel then said, “Go, bring him here.” Ben-Hadad came to him and he let
Ben-Hadad get into his chariot. °34
Ben-Hadad then said to him, “I will give back the
cities which my father took from your father, and you may put up business
establishments for yourself in Damascus just as my father did in Samaria.” He
then made an agreement with Ben-Hadad and let him go. °35 Now the
word of Yahweh was directed to one of the fellow prophets, so he said to his
companion, “Strike me, please.” But his companion refused to strike him. °36 So he
said to him, “Since you have not obeyed the voice of Yahweh, once you leave
me, a lion shall kill you.” And, indeed, as soon as he had left, a lion found
him and killed him. °37 Then the
fellow prophet found another man to whom he said, “Please, strike me.” This
man struck him, wounding him. °38 Then
this prophet left, disguising himself with a bandage over his eyes, and
waited for the king along the road. °39 When the king passed, he called
to him and said, “O King! I, your servant, went into the thick of the battle
when a soldier left the line and brought me a man, saying: ‘Guard this man.
Should he escape, your life shall be in exchange for his, or else you shall
pay a talent of silver.’ °40 While
I was busy running around, my prisoner disappeared.” The king of Israel said
to him, “You yourself have said what your sentence shall be.” °41 At once
the man removed the bandage from his eyes and the king of Israel recognized
him as one of the prophets. °42 Then
the prophet told him, “Because you have released the man whom I have decreed
to die, your life shall be in exchange for his and your people for his
people.” °43 And
the king of Israel went back home to Samaria, resentful and sad. § Naboth’s vineyard¤21 °1 Now Naboth, a man from Jezreel, owned a vineyard
just beside the palace of Ahab, king of Samaria. °2 Ahab asked Naboth, “Give me your vineyard which is
near my house that I may use it for a vegetable garden. I will give you a
better vineyard in exchange. Or, if you prefer, I will pay you its price.” °3 But Naboth said to Ahab, “Yahweh
forbid that I should give you the inheritance of my fathers.” °4 So Ahab went home angry
and sad because of what Naboth had told him, that he would not give him the
inheritance of his fathers. So he lay down on his bed with his face turned
toward the wall and refused to eat. °5 His wife Jezebel came to
him and said, “Why are you so angry that you refuse to eat?” °6 He answered, “I spoke to
Naboth the Jezreelite and asked him to sell me his vineyard or to exchange it
for another better one but he answered: I will not give you my vineyard.” °7 His wife Jezebel said to
him, “Are you not king of Israel? Get up and eat and be joyful, for I will
give you the vineyard of Naboth of Jezreel.” °8 So Jezebel wrote letters
using Ahab’s name and sealed them with his seal, and sent the letters to the
elders and important persons living near Naboth. °9 This is what she wrote in the letters, “Declare a
fast and put Naboth on trial. °10 Get two
worthless fellows to accuse him in this way: ‘You have cursed God and the king.’
Then take him out and stone him to death.” °11 The people, the elders and
the important persons who lived in his city did as Jezebel had instructed
them in the letters she sent to them. °12 They declared a fast and put Naboth on trial. °13 The two worthless fellows
came in and sat facing him, accusing Naboth before the people, “Naboth cursed
God and the king!” So the people took him outside the city and stoned him to
death. °14 They then sent
word to Jezebel that Naboth had been stoned and was dead. °15 As soon as Jezebel heard
that Naboth had been stoned and was dead, she told Ahab, “Now take possession
of the vineyard of Naboth, the man of Jezreel who refused to sell it to you,
for Naboth is now dead.” °16 As soon as Ahab
heard that Naboth was dead, he went down to the vineyard of Naboth and took
possession of it. °17 Then Yahweh spoke to
Elijah of Tishbe, °18 “Go down to
meet Ahab, king of Israel, in Samaria. He is taking possession of the
vineyard of Naboth. °19 Say to him:
‘Have you killed and have taken possession at the same time?’ Then give him
this word of mine: ‘Dogs shall lick your blood in the very place where the
dogs licked the blood of Naboth.’” °20 Ahab then said to Elijah,
“Who, better than my enemy, could find me here and now!” Elijah answered, “I
have come to you because you have done what Yahweh abhors. °21 This is Yahweh’s word: I
will bring disgrace on you. I will sweep you away and cut off every male of
your family, from the lowliest to the greatest. °22 Your family will disappear like the families of
Jeroboam and Baasa, because you have offended me and have dragged Israel into
sin. °23 There is
another word of Yahweh to Jezebel: ‘The dogs shall devour Jezebel within the
territory of Jezreel.’ °24 If anyone of
Ahab’s line dies in the city, he shall be devoured by dogs; if in the green
country, the birds of the air shall feed on him.” °25 There was
no one like Ahab, urged by his wife Jezebel, in doing what Yahweh abhorred. °26 He did
horrible things and ran after unclean idols just as the Amorites had done,
from whom Yahweh had taken the land to give it to Israel. °27 On
hearing these words, Ahab tore his clothes and put on sackcloth. He fasted as
he lay in sackcloth and moved around despondently. °28 Then Yahweh said to Elijah the
Tishbite, “Have you seen how Ahab has humbled himself? °29 Because
of this I will not bring about the disaster during his reign; during his
son’s reign disgrace will fall on his family.” ¤22 °1 There was
no war between Aram and Israel for three years. °2 But in the third year,
Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, came down to the king of Israel. °3 The king
of Israel then talked to his officers, “Have you forgotten that Ramoth-Gilead
belongs to us? Yet we do nothing to take it back from the Arameans.” °4 So he
asked Jehoshaphat, “Will you come with me to conquer Ramoth-Gilead?”
Jehoshaphat answered the king of Israel, “I am with you, my people are with
your people, and my horses with yours.” § Micaiah and the false prophets°5 Jehoshaphat, king of
Judah, said to the king of Israel, “Let us consult Yahweh before setting out
for war.” °6 So the king of
Israel gathered all the prophets, numbering about four hundred men, and asked
them, “Shall I go to conquer Ramoth-Gilead, or shall I hold back?” They
replied, “Go, for Yahweh will deliver the city into your hands.” °7 Jehoshaphat asked, “Is
there no other prophet of Yahweh around here whom we might ask?” °8 The king of Israel
answered, “There is still one through whom we may ask for Yahweh’s counsel;
but I hate him, for he never prophesies good about me but only evil. It is
Micaiah, son of Imlah.” Then Jehoshaphat said, “Don’t speak in this manner.” °9 So the king of Israel
called an official and told him, “Bring quickly Micaiah, son of Imlah.” °10 Meantime, the
king of Israel and Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, were seated on their thrones,
fully robed. They were both at the threshing floor by the entrance gate of
Samaria where the prophets continued to prophesy before them. °11 There was Zedekiah, son of
Chenaanah who made for himself horns from iron and said, “Thus says Yahweh:
‘With these horns you shall strike the Arameans until they are destroyed.” °12 All the prophets said the
same, “Go to Ramoth-Gilead and triumph. Yahweh will deliver it into the hands
of the king.” °13 The official who went to
summon Micaiah said to him, “Look here, all the prophets agree to foretell a
happy end to the king. You too agree to speak favorably.” °14 But Micaiah replied, “As
Yahweh lives, I will speak what Yahweh tells me to.” °15 When he had come, the king
asked him, “Micaiah, shall we go to conquer Ramoth-Gilead or shall we hold
back?” Then Micaiah answered, “Go and triumph! Yahweh will give the city into
the hands of the king!” °16 But the king
said to him, “How many times shall I ask you to speak seriously to me and
tell me the truth in the name of Yahweh?” °17 Then Micaiah said, “I saw all Israel scattered on
the mountains like sheep without a shepherd. Then Yahweh said: These have no
master; so let each return to his home in peace.” °18 So the king of Israel said
to Jehoshaphat, “Did I not tell you that he would not prophesy good about me,
but only evil?” °19 Micaiah replied, “Listen
again to this word of Yahweh. I saw Yahweh sitting on his throne with the
entire host of heaven standing beside him on his right and on his left. °20 Then Yahweh asked: ‘Who
will deceive the king of Israel that he may go and fall at Ramoth-Gilead?’
One said one thing and another, another thing. °21 Then a spirit came forward and stood before
Yahweh, saying: ‘I will deceive him.’ °22 Yahweh then asked him, ‘What will you do?’ To this
he replied: ‘I will go and make myself a lying spirit on the lips of all his
prophets.’ Then Yahweh said, ‘You shall succeed. Go and do just that.’ °23 You must know that Yahweh
has put a lying spirit in the mouths of all these prophets of yours because
he willed to bring evil on you.” °24 Then Zedekiah, son of
Chena-Anah, approached Micaiah, struck him, and said, “Has the Spirit of
Yahweh left me to speak to you?” °25
Micaiah replied, “You shall discover for yourself on the day you flee
from house to house to hide.” °26 Then the king of Israel
ordered, “Seize Micaiah and take him back to Amon, governor of the city, and
to Joash, the king’s son. °27 Give them this
order: ‘Throw this man in prison and feed him with scant fare of bread and
water until I come in peace.” °28 Then Micaiah said, “If you
return in peace, then Yahweh has not spoken through me.” § Death of the king of Israel°29 So the king of Israel went
up to Ramoth-Gilead together with the king of Judah. °30 The king of Israel told
Jehoshaphat, “I will disguise myself before the battle, but you wear your
robes.” So the king of Israel disguised himself before the battle. °31 Now the king of Aram had
commanded the thirty-two captains of his chariots, “Attack no one, big or
small, but only the king of Israel.” °32 When the captains of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat,
they thought, “That surely is the king of Israel.” So they turned to attack
him. But when Jehoshaphat shouted his cry of war, °33 the captains of the chariots saw that it was not
the king of Israel and they no longer pursued him. °34 In the meantime one of the
Arameans drew his bow, without knowing at whom he aimed, and hit the king of
Israel between the scale armor and the breastplate. The king then ordered the
driver of his chariot, “Turn around and carry me out of the battle for I am
wounded.” °35 The battle
raged fiercely on that day. Meanwhile, the king was propped up in his
chariot, facing the Arameans, until the evening when he died. The blood from
his wound flowed down into the bottom of the chariot. °36 At about sunset, a cry
went through the camp, “Everyone to his city, and everyone to his country! °37 The king has died!” The king was brought to Samaria and was
buried there. °38 But they washed
the chariot by the pool of Samaria. So the dogs licked up his blood, while
the harlots bathed in it in accordance with the word spoken by Yahweh. °39 The rest
of the acts of Ahab, his deeds, the ivory house he built, and the cities he
restored are all written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of
Israel. °40 So
Ahab rested with his ancestors and his son Ahaziah reigned in his place. °41 Jehoshaphat,
son of Asa, began to reign over Judah in the fourth year of Ahab, king of
Israel. °42 He
was thirty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned for
twenty-five years in Jerusalem. His mother was Azubah, daughter of Shilhi. °43 He
conducted himself like his father Asa, and did what pleased Yahweh without
hesitation. °44 Yet,
he did not remove the high places where the people continued to sacrifice and
burn incense. °45 Jehoshaphat
had peace with the king of Israel. °46 The rest
of the acts of Jehoshaphat, his bravery and his war exploits are written in
the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah. °47 He also removed from the land the
remaining male cult prostitutes, completing the work of his father Asa. °48 There was
no king in Edom but a governor ruled over it. °49 Jehoshaphat had Tarshish ships go
to Ophir for gold, but the venture failed when the ships were wrecked at
Eziongeber. °50 Then
Ahaziah, son of Ahab, said to Jehoshaphat, “Let my servants go in the ships
with your servants.” Jehoshaphat, however, refused. °51 When
Jehoshaphat rested with his fathers, he was buried with them in the city of
his ancestor David and his son Jehoram reigned in his place. °52 Ahaziah, son of Ahab, began to
reign over Israel in Samaria in the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat, king of
Judah. He reigned over Israel for two years. °53 He did what displeased Yahweh,
imitating the conduct of both his father and mother, as well as of Jeroboam,
son of Nebat, who dragged Israel into sin. He served Baal and worshiped him,
offending Yahweh, the God of Israel, in the same way his father had done. The End. |