1 Kings 21
1 And it came to pass after these things, that Naboth the Jezreelite had a
vineyard, which was in Jezreel, hard by the palace of Ahab king of Samaria.
2 And Ahab spake unto Naboth, saying, Give me thy vineyard, that I may have it
for a garden of herbs, because it is near unto my house; and I will give thee
for it a better vineyard than it: or, if it seem good to thee, I will give thee
the worth of it in money.
3 And Naboth said to Ahab, Jehovah forbid it me, that I should give the
inheritance of my fathers unto thee.
4 And Ahab came into his house heavy and displeased because of the word which
Naboth the Jezreelite had spoken to him; for he had said, I will not give thee
the inheritance of my fathers. And he laid him down upon his bed, and turned
away his face, and would eat no bread.
5 But Jezebel his wife came to him, and said unto him, Why is thy spirit so sad,
that thou eatest no bread?
6 And he said unto her, Because I spake unto Naboth the Jezreelite, and said
unto him, Give me thy vineyard for money; or else, if it please thee, I will
give thee [another] vineyard for it: and he answered, I will not give thee my
vineyard.
7 And Jezebel his wife said unto him, Dost thou now govern the kingdom of
Israel? arise, and eat bread, and let thy heart be merry: I will give thee the
vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.
8 So she wrote letters in Ahab's name, and sealed them with his seal, and sent
the letters unto the elders and to the nobles that were in his city, [and] that
dwelt with Naboth.
9 And she wrote in the letters, saying, Proclaim a fast, and set Naboth on high
among the people:
10 and set two men, base fellows, before him, and let them bear witness against
him, saying, Thou didst curse God and the king. And then carry him out, and
stone him to death.
11 And the men of his city, even the elders and the nobles who dwelt in his
city, did as Jezebel had sent unto them, according as it was written in the
letters which she had sent unto them.
12 They proclaimed a fast, and set Naboth on high among the people.
13 And the two men, the base fellows, came in and sat before him: and the base
fellows bare witness against him, even against Naboth, in the presence of the
people, saying, Naboth did curse God and the king. Then they carried him forth
out of the city, and stoned him to death with stones.
14 Then they sent to Jezebel, saying, Naboth is stoned, and is dead.
15 And it came to pass, when Jezebel heard that Naboth was stoned, and was dead,
that Jezebel said to Ahab, Arise, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the
Jezreelite, which he refused to give thee for money; for Naboth is not alive,
but dead.
16 And it came to pass, when Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, that Ahab rose up
to go down to the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, to take possession of it.
17 And the word of Jehovah came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying,
18 Arise, go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, who dwelleth in Samaria: behold,
he is in the vineyard of Naboth, whither he is gone down to take possession of
it.
19 And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith Jehovah, Hast thou killed
and also taken possession? And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith
Jehovah, In the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick thy
blood, even thine.
20 And Ahab said to Elijah, Hast thou found me, O mine enemy? And he answered, I
have found thee, because thou hast sold thyself to do that which is evil in the
sight of Jehovah.
21 Behold, I will bring evil upon thee, and will utterly sweep thee away and
will cut off from Ahab every man-child, and him that is shut up and him that is
left at large in Israel:
22 and I will make thy house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and
like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah for the provocation wherewith thou
hast provoked me to anger, and hast made Israel to sin.
23 And of Jezebel also spake Jehovah, saying, The dogs shall eat Jezebel by the
rampart of Jezreel.
24 Him that dieth of Ahab in the city the dogs shall eat; and him that dieth in
the field shall the birds of the heavens eat.
25 (But there was none like unto Ahab, who did sell himself to do that which was
evil in the sight of Jehovah, whom Jezebel his wife stirred up.
26 And he did very abominably in following idols, according to all that the
Amorites did, whom Jehovah cast out before the children of Israel.)
27 And it came to pass, when Ahab heard those words, that he rent his clothes,
and put sackcloth upon his flesh, and fasted, and lay in sackcloth, and went
softly.
28 And the word of Jehovah came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying,
29 Seest thou how Ahab humbleth himself before me? because he humbleth himself
before me, I will not bring the evil in his days; but in his son's days will I
bring the evil upon his house.