1 Kings 21

1After these things, Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard in Jezreel, beside the palace of Ahab king of Samaria.

2And Ahab spoke to Naboth, saying, “Give me your vineyard, so that it may become a vegetable garden for me, because it is near my house; and in its place I will give you a better vineyard than it. Or, if it seems good in your eyes, I will give you its price in silver.”

3But Naboth said to Ahab, “Far be it from me by Yahweh to give you the inheritance of my fathers.”

4So Ahab went into his house sullen and angry because of the word that Naboth the Jezreelite had spoken to him, saying, “I will not give you the inheritance of my fathers.” And he lay down on his bed and turned his face away, and he would not eat bread.

5Then Jezebel his wife came to him and said to him, “Why is your spirit so sullen that you are not eating bread?”

6And he spoke to her, because I spoke to Naboth the Jezreelite and said to him, ‘Give me your vineyard for silver, or, if you prefer, I will give you a vineyard in place of it,’ but he said, ‘I will not give you my vineyard.’

7Then Jezebel his wife said to him, “Do you now govern Israel as king? Get up, eat bread, and let your heart be cheerful; I will give you the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.”

8So she wrote letters in Ahab’s name, sealed them with his seal, and sent the letters to the elders and to the nobles who were in his city, who were living with Naboth.

9She wrote in the letters, saying, “Proclaim a fast, and seat Naboth at the head of the people.”

10And seat two worthless men opposite him, and let them testify against him, saying, ‘You have cursed God and the king.’ Then bring him out and stone him, so that he dies.

11So the men of his city—the elders and the nobles who lived in his city—did as Jezebel had sent to them, as it was written in the letters that she had sent to them.

12They proclaimed a fast and seated Naboth at the head of the people.

13Then the two worthless men came in and sat opposite him, and the worthless men testified against Naboth before the people, saying, “Naboth cursed God and the king.” So they brought him outside the city and stoned him with stones, and he died.

14Then they sent word to Jezebel, saying, “Naboth has been stoned and is dead.”

15When Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned and had died, Jezebel said to Ahab, “Get up, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, which he refused to give you for silver, because Naboth is not alive; he is dead.”

16And when Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, Ahab arose to go down to the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, to take possession of it.

17Then the word of Yahweh came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying,

18Arise, go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, who is in Samaria. Look, he is in the vineyard of Naboth, where he has gone down to take possession of it.

19And you shall speak to him, saying, ‘Thus says Yahweh: Have you murdered and also taken possession?’ And you shall speak to him, saying, ‘Thus says Yahweh: In the place where the dogs licked the blood of Naboth, the dogs shall lick your blood—you also.’

20Ahab said to Elijah, “Have you found me, O my enemy?” And he said, “I have found you, because you have sold yourself to do what is evil in the eyes of Yahweh.”

21Behold, I am bringing disaster upon you, and I will sweep away after you, and I will cut off from Ahab every male, both bond and free in Israel.

22And I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam son of Nebat and like the house of Baasha son of Ahijah, because of the provocation with which you have provoked me and caused Israel to sin.

23And also concerning Jezebel, Yahweh spoke, saying, ‘The dogs will eat Jezebel in the territory of Jezreel.’

24Anyone belonging to Ahab who dies in the city the dogs will eat, and anyone who dies in the field the birds of the sky will eat.

25Surely there was no one like Ahab, who sold himself to do what was evil in the sight of Yahweh, because Jezebel his wife incited him.

26He acted very abominably by going after idols, according to all that the Amorites had done, whom Yahweh drove out before the sons of Israel.

27And it happened, when Ahab heard these words, that he tore his clothes and put sackcloth on his flesh and fasted and lay in sackcloth and went about softly.

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

29Have you seen that Ahab has humbled himself before me? Because he has humbled himself before me, I will not bring the disaster in his days; in his son's days I will bring the disaster on his house.