1 Kings
Chapter 16
1 God’s message came to Jehu, Hanani’s son, against Baasha, saying,
2 Because I lifted you from the dust and made you leader over my people Israel, but you followed Jeroboam’s ways and caused my people Israel to sin, making me angry with their sins.
3 I will remove Baasha’s descendants and his family; and will make your family like Jeroboam son of Nebat’s family.
4 Dogs will eat those of Baasha who die in the city, and birds will eat those who die in the fields.
5 The other things Baasha did, his actions, and his power are written in the Israel kings’ records, right?
6 Baasha died like his ancestors and was buried in Tirzah. Then his son Elah became king after him.
7 Through the prophet Jehu, son of Hanani, God’s message came against Baasha and his family, for all the bad things he did that made God angry, like what Jeroboam did; and because Baasha killed him.
8 In the twenty-sixth year of Asa’s rule as king of Judah, Elah, Baasha’s son, became king of Israel in Tirzah and ruled for two years.
9 Zimri, who led half the chariots, plotted against his master while he was getting drunk in his official Arza’s house in Tirzah.
10 Zimri went in, attacked him, and killed him in the twenty-seventh year of Asa, king of Judah’s reign, and then took his place as ruler.
11 When he started to rule, as soon as he sat on his throne, he killed all of Baasha’s family; he did not leave any male alive, not among his relatives or friends.
12 So Zimri killed all of Baasha’s family, just as God had said through the prophet Jehu.
13 Because of all the wrongs Baasha and his son Elah did, which caused them and Israel to sin and made God angry with their useless acts.
14 The other things Elah did are written in the history book of Israel’s kings, aren’t they?
15 In the twenty-seventh year of Asa, the king of Judah, Zimri ruled for seven days in Tirzah. Meanwhile, the people camped around Gibbethon, owned by the Philistines.
16 The people camping heard that Zimri plotted against and killed the king, so all Israel made Omri, the army leader, their king that day in the camp.
17 Omri left Gibbethon with all of Israel and they surrounded Tirzah.
18 When Zimri saw the city was captured, he went into the royal palace, set it on fire over himself, and died.
19 Because of the bad things he did, seen by God, following Jeroboam’s bad path, and leading Israel to do wrong.
20 The other things Zimri did and his betrayal are written in the book of the history of Israel’s kings, aren’t they?
21 Then the people of Israel split into two groups: half wanted Tibni, son of Ginath, to be king, and the other half supported Omri.
22 But the people who supported Omri were stronger than the ones who supported Tibni, son of Ginath. So Tibni died, and Omri became king.
23 In the thirty-first year of Asa’s rule as king of Judah, Omri started ruling over Israel for twelve years; he ruled six years in Tirzah.
24 He bought Samaria hill from Shemer for two silver talents, built on it, and named the city he built Samaria after Shemer, the hill’s former owner.
25 Omri did bad things in God’s sight and was even worse than everyone before him.
26 He followed Jeroboam Nebat’s path completely, repeating his sins that led Israel to do wrong, making God angry with their worthless actions.
27 The other things Omri did and how strong he was can be found in the history book of Israel’s kings, right?
28 Omri died and was buried in Samaria; then his son Ahab became king after him.
29 In the thirty-eighth year of Asa’s rule over Judah, Ahab, Omri’s son, started to rule over Israel, and Ahab, Omri’s son, ruled over Israel in Samaria for twenty-two years.
30 Ahab, Omri’s son, did more evil things in front of God than anyone before him.
31 It seemed like a small thing for him to follow Jeroboam Nebat’s son’s sins, so he married Jezebel, King Ethbaal of Zidon’s daughter, and started to serve and worship Baal.
32 He built an altar for Baal in the Baal temple he made in Samaria.
33 Ahab built a shrine; Ahab made God, the God of Israel, angrier than any of the previous kings of Israel.
34 During Hiel the Bethelite’s time, he rebuilt Jericho. He started the work at the cost of his oldest son Abiram’s life, and finished it at the cost of his youngest son Segub’s life. This happened as God had said through Joshua, Nun’s son.