1 Kings 16

1Then the word of Yahweh came to Jehu son of Hanani against Baasha, saying,

2Because I raised you up from the dust and made you ruler over my people Israel, and you walked in the way of Jeroboam and caused my people Israel to sin, provoking me to anger by their sins,

3Behold, I am sweeping away Baasha and his house, and I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam son of Nebat.

4Whoever belonging to Baasha dies in the city, the dogs will eat; and whoever belonging to him dies in the field, the birds of the heavens will eat.

5The rest of the acts of Baasha, and what he did, and his might—are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?

6Baasha slept with his fathers and was buried in Tirzah, and Elah his son reigned in his place.

7And also through Jehu son of Hanani the prophet, the word of Yahweh came against Baasha and against his house, both because of all the evil that he did in the sight of Yahweh, provoking him to anger by the work of his hands, by becoming like the house of Jeroboam, and because he struck him down.

8In the twenty-sixth year of Asa king of Judah, Elah son of Baasha became king over Israel in Tirzah for two years.

9But his servant Zimri, commander of half the chariots, conspired against him while he was in Tirzah, drinking himself drunk in the house of Arza, who was over the household in Tirzah.

10Then Zimri came in, struck him down, and killed him, in the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah; and he reigned in his place.

11And it happened that when he became king, as soon as he sat on his throne, he struck down all the house of Baasha. He did not leave him a single male, or any of his kinsmen or his friends.

12So Zimri destroyed all the house of Baasha, according to the word of Yahweh that he had spoken against Baasha through Jehu the prophet.

13because of all the sins of Baasha and the sins of Elah his son, which they committed and by which they caused Israel to sin, provoking Yahweh, the God of Israel, with their idols.

14The rest of the acts of Elah, and all that he did—are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?

15In the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, Zimri became king for seven days in Tirzah, while the people were camped against Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines.

16And the people who were camped there heard it said, “Zimri has conspired and has also struck down the king.” So all Israel made Omri, the commander of the army over Israel, king that day in the camp.

17Then Omri and all Israel with him went up from Gibbethon, and they laid siege to Tirzah.

18And when Zimri saw that the city had been captured, he went into the citadel of the king’s house and burned the king’s house over himself with fire, and died.

19because of his sins that he committed, doing what was evil in the eyes of Yahweh, walking in the way of Jeroboam and in the sin that he caused Israel to commit.

20The rest of the acts of Zimri, and his conspiracy that he carried out—are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?

21Then the people of Israel were divided into two parts: half of the people followed Tibni son of Ginath, to make him king, and half followed Omri.

22But the people who followed Omri prevailed over the people who followed Tibni son of Ginath. So Tibni died, and Omri became king.

23In the thirty-first year of Asa king of Judah, Omri became king over Israel for twelve years; he reigned in Tirzah six years.

24He bought the hill of Samaria from Shemer for two talents of silver, built on the hill, and called the name of the city that he built Samaria, after the name of Shemer, the owner of the hill.

25Omri did what was evil in the eyes of Yahweh, and he did more evil than all who were before him.

26For he walked in all the way of Jeroboam son of Nebat, and in his sins by which he caused Israel to sin, provoking Yahweh, the God of Israel, with their idols.

27The rest of the acts of Omri, what he did, and his might that he showed—are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?

28And Omri slept with his fathers and was buried in Samaria, and Ahab his son reigned in his place.

29And Ahab son of Omri became king over Israel in the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah, and Ahab son of Omri reigned over Israel in Samaria twenty-two years.

30Ahab son of Omri did what was evil in the sight of Yahweh, more than all who were before him.

31And as if it were a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, he took Jezebel daughter of Ethbaal, king of the Sidonians, as his wife, and went and served Baal and bowed down to him.

32He set up an altar for Baal in the house of Baal, which he had built in Samaria.

33Ahab also made the Asherah, and Ahab went on to do more to provoke Yahweh, the God of Israel, than all the kings of Israel who were before him.

34In his days Hiel of Bethel rebuilt Jericho. At the cost of Abiram his firstborn he laid its foundation, and at the cost of Segub his youngest he set up its gates, according to the word of Yahweh that he had spoken through Joshua son of Nun.