21Now there was a man named Naboth, from Jezreel, who owned a vineyard in Jezreel beside the palace of King Ahab of Samaria.H310H1697H5022H3158H3754H3157H681H1964H256H4428H81112One day Ahab said to Naboth, "Since your vineyard is so convenient to my palace, I would like to buy it to use as a vegetable garden. I will give you a better vineyard in exchange, or if you prefer, I will pay you for it."H256H1696H5022H559H5414H3754H1588H3419H7138H681H1004H5414H2896H3754H2896H5869H5414H4242H37013But Naboth replied, "The LORD forbid that I should give you the inheritance that was passed down by my ancestors."H5022H559H256H3068H2486H5414H5159H14So Ahab went home angry and sullen because of Naboth's answer. The king went to bed with his face to the wall and refused to eat!H256H935H1004H5620H2198H1697H5022H3158H1696H559H5414H5159H1H7901H4296H5437H6440H398H38995"What's the matter?" his wife Jezebel asked him. "What's made you so upset that you're not eating?"H348H802H935H1696H7307H5620H398H38996"I asked Naboth to sell me his vineyard or trade it, but he refused!" Ahab told her.H1696H1696H5022H3158H559H5414H3754H3701H2655H5414H3754H559H5414H37547"Are you the king of Israel or not?" Jezebel demanded. "Get up and eat something, and don't worry about it. I'll get you Naboth's vineyard!"H348H802H559H6213H4410H3478H6965H398H3899H3820H3190H5414H3754H5022H31588So she wrote letters in Ahab's name, sealed them with his seal, and sent them to the elders and other leaders of the town where Naboth lived.H3789H5612H256H8034H2856H2368H7971H5612H2205H2715H5892H3427H50229In her letters she commanded: "Call the citizens together for fasting and prayer, and give Naboth a place of honor.H3789H5612H559H7121H6685H3427H5022H7218H597110And then seat two scoundrels across from him who will accuse him of cursing God and the king. Then take him out and stone him to death."H3427H8147H582H1121H1100H5749H559H1288H430H4428H3318H5619H419111So the elders and other town leaders followed the instructions Jezebel had written in the letters.H582H5892H2205H2715H3427H5892H6213H348H7971H3789H5612H797112They called for a fast and put Naboth at a prominent place before the people.H7121H6685H3427H5022H7218H597113Then the two scoundrels came and sat down across from him. And they accused Naboth before all the people, saying, "He cursed God and the king." So he was dragged outside the town and stoned to death.H935H8147H582H1121H1100H3427H582H1100H5749H5022H5971H559H5022H1288H430H4428H3318H2351H5892H5619H68H419114The town leaders then sent word to Jezebel, "Naboth has been stoned to death."H7971H348H559H5022H5619H419115When Jezebel heard the news, she said to Ahab, "You know the vineyard Naboth wouldn't sell you? Well, you can have it now! He's dead!"H348H8085H5022H5619H4191H348H559H256H6965H3423H3754H5022H3158H3985H5414H3701H5022H2416H419116So Ahab immediately went down to the vineyard of Naboth to claim it.H256H8085H5022H4191H256H6965H3381H3754H5022H3158H342317But the LORD said to Elijah,H1697H3068H452H8664H55918"Go down to meet King Ahab of Israel, who rules in Samaria. He will be at Naboth's vineyard in Jezreel, claiming it for himself.H6965H3381H7125H256H4428H3478H8111H3754H5022H3381H342319Give him this message: 'This is what the LORD says: Wasn't it enough that you killed Naboth? Must you rob him, too? Because you have done this, dogs will lick your blood at the very place where they licked the blood of Naboth!'"H1696H559H559H3068H7523H3423H1696H559H559H3068H4725H3611H3952H1818H5022H3611H3952H181820"So, my enemy, you have found me!" Ahab exclaimed to Elijah."Yes," Elijah answered, "I have come because you have sold yourself to what is evil in the LORD's sight.H256H559H452H4672H341H559H4672H4376H6213H7451H5869H306821So now the LORD says, 'I will bring disaster on you and consume you. I will destroy every one of your male descendants, slave and free alike, anywhere in Israel!H935H7451H1197H310H3772H256H8366H7023H6113H5800H347822I am going to destroy your family as I did the family of Jeroboam son of Nebat and the family of Baasha son of Ahijah, for you have made me very angry and have led Israel into sin.'H5414H1004H1004H3379H1121H5028H1004H1201H1121H281H3708H3707H3478H239823"And regarding Jezebel, the LORD says, 'Dogs will eat Jezebel's body at the plot of land in Jezreel.'H348H1696H3068H559H3611H398H348H2426H315724"The members of Ahab's family who die in the city will be eaten by dogs, and those who die in the field will be eaten by vultures."H4191H256H5892H3611H398H4191H7704H5775H8064H39825(No one else so completely sold himself to what was evil in the LORD's sight as Ahab did under the influence of his wife Jezebel.H256H4376H6213H7451H5869H3068H348H802H549626His worst outrage was worshiping idols just as the Amorites had done—the people whom the LORD had driven out from the land ahead of the Israelites.)H3966H8581H3212H310H1544H6213H567H3068H3423H6440H1121H347827But when Ahab heard this message, he tore his clothing, dressed in burlap, and fasted. He even slept in burlap and went about in deep mourning.H256H8085H1697H7167H899H7760H8242H1320H6684H7901H8242H1980H32828Then another message from the LORD came to Elijah.H1697H3068H452H8664H55929"Do you see how Ahab has humbled himself before me? Because he has done this, I will not do what I promised during his lifetime. It will happen to his sons; I will destroy his dynasty."H7200H256H3665H6440H3282H3665H6440H935H7451H3117H1121H3117H935H7451H1004
Dublin, OH
,H1697
