65And at that time
Solomon and all Israel with him held a feast, a great congregation, from the entering in of
Hamath to the river of Egypt, before the LORD our God, seven days and seven days, even
fourteen days. 66On the eighth day he sent the people away and they blessed the king and went
to their tents joyful and glad of heart for all the goodness that the LORD had done for David his
servant and for Israel his people.
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Chapter 9
1And when Solomon had finished the building of the house of the LORD and the
king's house and all Solomon's desire which he was pleased to do, 2The LORD appeared to
Solomon the second time, as he had appeared to him at Gibeon. 3And the LORD said to him, I
have heard your prayer and your supplication that you have made before me. I have hallowed
this house, which you have built, to put my name there for ever and my eyes and my heart shall
be there perpetually, 4And if you will walk before me, as your father David walked, in integrity of
heart and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded you and will keep my
statutes and my judgments, 5Then I will establish the throne of your kingdom on Israel for ever,
as I promised to David your father, saying, There will not lack a man of you on the throne of
Israel, 6But if you shall at all turn from following me, you or your children and will not keep my
commandments and my statutes which I have set before you, but go and serve other gods and
worship them, 7Then I will cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them and this house,
which I have hallowed for my name, I will cast out of my sight and Israel shall be a proverb and
a byword among all people. 8And at this house, which is high, every one who passes by it shall be
astonished and shall hiss and they shall say, Why has the LORD done thus to this land and to
this house? 9And they shall answer, Because they forsook the LORD their God, who brought
forth their fathers out of the land of Egypt and have taken hold on other gods and have
worshiped them and served them, therefore the LORD has brought on them all this evil.
10And at the end of twenty years, when Solomon had built the two houses, the
house of the LORD and the king's house, 11(Now Hiram the king of Tyre had furnished Solomon
with cedar trees and fir trees and with gold, according to all his desire,) that then king Solomon
gave Hiram twenty cities in the land of Galilee. 12And Hiram came out from Tyre to see the cities
which Solomon had given him, but they did not please him. 13And he said, What cities are these
which you have given me, my brother? And he called them the land of Cabul to this day. 14And
Hiram sent to the king one hundred twenty talents of gold.
15And this is the reason for the levy which king Solomon raised, to build the house of the LORD
and his own house and Millo and the wall of Jerusalem and Hazor and Megiddo and
Gezer, 16For Pharaoh king of Egypt had gone up and taken Gezer and burned it with fire and
killed the Canaanites who dwelled in the city and given it for a present to his daughter,
Solomon's wife, 17And Solomon built Gezer and the lower Bethhoron, 18And Baalath and
Tadmor in the wilderness, in the land, 19And all the cities of store that Solomon had and cities
for his chariots and cities for his horsemen and that which Solomon desired to build in
Jerusalem and in Lebanon and in all the land of his dominion. 20And all the people who were
left of the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites, who were not of the children of
Israel, 21Their children who were left after them in the land, whom the children of Israel also
were not able to utterly destroy, on those Solomon levied a tribute of bond service to this day.
22But Solomon made no bondmen of the children of Israel but they were men of war and his
servants and his princes and his captains and rulers of his chariots and his horsemen. 23These
were the chief of the officers who were over Solomon's work, five hundred fifty, who bore rule
over the people who worked in the work. 24But Pharaoh's daughter came up out of the city of
David to her house which Solomon had built for her, then he built Millo. 25And three times in a
year Solomon offered burnt offerings and peace offerings on the altar which he built to the
LORD and he burnt incense on the altar that was before the LORD. So he finished the house.
26And king Solomon made a navy of ships in Eziongeber, which is beside Eilath, on the shore of
the Red Sea, in the land of Edom. 27And Hiram sent his servants to the navy, shipmen who had
knowledge of the sea, with the servants of Solomon. 28And they came to Ophir and brought gold
from there, four hundred and twenty talents and brought it to king Solomon.
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Chapter 10
1And when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the LORD,
she came to prove him with hard questions. 2And she came to Jerusalem with a very great train,
with camels that bore spices and very much gold and precious stones and when she had come
to Solomon, she communed with him of all that was in her heart. 3And Solomon told her all her
questions. There was not any thing hid from the king, which he did not tell her. 4And when the
queen of Sheba had seen all Solomon's wisdom and the house that he had built, 5And the meat of
his table and the sitting of his servants and the attendance of his ministers and their apparel
and his cupbearers and his ascent by which he went up to the house of the LORD, there was no
more spirit in her. 6And she said to the king, It was a true report that I heard in my own land of
your acts and of your wisdom. 7But I did not believe the words, until I came and my eyes had
seen it and, behold, the half was not told to me. Your wisdom and prosperity exceeds the fame
which I heard. 8Happy are your men, happy are these your servants, who stand continually
before you and that hear your wisdom, 9Blessed be the LORD your God, who delighted in you, to
set you on the throne of Israel. Because the LORD loved Israel for ever, therefore he made you
king, to do judgment and justice. 10And she gave the king one hundred twenty talents of gold and
of spices very great store and precious stones. No more such abundance came of spices as
these which the queen of Sheba gave to king Solomon. 11And the navy also of Hiram that
brought gold from Ophir, also brought in from Ophir great amounts of almug trees and precious
stones. 12And the king made pillars of the almug trees for the house of the LORD and for the
king's house, also harps and psalteries for singers. No almug trees like these came nor were seen
again to this day. 13And king Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all her desire, what ever she
asked, beside that which Solomon gave her of his royal bounty. So she and her servants turned and went to her
own country.
14Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred sixty six talents
of gold, 15Beside that which he had of the merchantmen and of the traffic of the spice
merchants and of all the kings of Arabia and of the governors of the country. 16And king
Solomon made two hundred targets of beaten gold, six hundred shekels of gold went to one
target 17And he made three hundred shields of beaten gold, three pounds of gold went to one
shield and the king put them in the house of the forest of Lebanon. 18Also the king made a great
throne of ivory and overlaid it with the best gold. 19The throne had six steps and the top of the
throne was round behind and there were stays on either side on the place of the seat and two
lions stood beside the stays. 20And twelve lions stood there on one side and on the other on the
six steps. There was nothing made like it in any kingdom. 21And all king Solomon's drinking
vessels were of gold and all the vessels of the house of the forest of Lebanon were of pure gold,
none were of silver, it was nothing accounted of in the days of Solomon. 22For the king had a
navy of Carthage at sea with the navy of Hiram. Once in three years the navy of
Carthage came, bringing gold and silver, ivory and apes and peacocks. 23So king Solomon
exceeded all the kings of the earth for riches and for wisdom, 24And all the earth sought to
Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart. 25And every man brought present,
vessels of silver and vessels of gold and garments and armor and spices, horses and mules, a
rate year by year. 26And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen and he had a
thousand four hundred chariots and twelve thousand horsemen, whom he bestowed in the cities
for chariots and with the king at Jerusalem. 27And the king made silver to be as stones in
Jerusalem and he made cedars to be as the sycamore trees that are in the vale, for abundance.
28And Solomon had horses brought out of Egypt and linen yarn, the king's merchants received
the linen yarn at a price. 29And a chariot came up and went out of Egypt for six hundred shekels
of silver and a horse for one hundred fifty and so for all the kings of the Hittites and for the
kings of Syria, they brought them out by their means.
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Chapter 11
1But king Solomon loved many foreign women, together with the daughter of Pharaoh, women
of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians and Hittites, 2Of the nations concerning
which the LORD said to the children of Israel, you shall not go in to them, neither shall they
come in to you for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods. Solomon clung to these
in love. 3And he had seven hundred wives, princesses and three hundred concubines and his
wives turned away his heart. 4For when Solomon was old his wives turned
away his heart after other gods and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the
heart of David his father, 5For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians and
after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. 6And Solomon did evil in the sight of the
LORD and did not fully go after the LORD, as his father David. 7Then Solomon built a high
place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, in the hill that is before Jerusalem and for
Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon. 8And likewise he did for all his foreign
wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods.
9And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned from the LORD God of
Israel, who had appeared to him twice 10And had commanded him concerning this thing that he
should not go after other gods but he did not kept that which the LORD commanded. 11Therefore the
LORD said to Solomon, Forasmuch as you have done this and you have not kept my covenant
and my statutes, which I have commanded you, I will surely rend the kingdom from you and will
give it to your servant. 12But I will not do it in your days for David your father's sake but I will
rend it out of the hand of your son. 13But I will not rend away all the kingdom, but will give one
tribe to your son for David my servant's sake and for Jerusalem's sake which I have chosen.
14And the LORD stirred up an adversary to Solomon, Hadad the Edomite, he was of the king's
seed in Edom. 15For when David was in Edom and Joab the captain of the host
had gone up to bury the slain, after he had struck every male in Edom, 16(For Joab remained
there six months with all Israel, until he had cut off every male in Edom) 17Then Hadad fled to
Egypt, he and certain Edomites of his father's servants with him, Hadad being yet a little
child. 18And they arose out of Midian and came to Paran and they took men with them out of
Paran and they came to Egypt, to Pharaoh king of Egypt, who gave him a house and appointed
him provisions and gave him land. 19And Hadad found great favor in the sight of Pharaoh so
that he gave him the sister of his own wife Tahpenes the queen, as a wife. 20And the sister of
Tahpenes bore him his son Genubath, whom Tahpenes weaned in Pharaoh's house and Genubath
was in Pharaoh's household among the sons of Pharaoh. 21And in Egypt when Hadad heard that
David slept with his fathers and that Joab the captain of the host was dead, Hadad said to
Pharaoh, Let me depart so that I may go to my own country. 22Then Pharaoh said to him, But what
have you lacked with me that, behold, you seek to go to your own country? And he answered,
Nothing but let me go any way. 23And God stirred him up another adversary, Rezon the son of
Eliadah, who fled from his lord Hadadezer king of Zobah 24And he gathered men to him and
became captain over a band, when David killed them of Zobah and they went to Damascus and
dwelled in it and reigned in Damascus. 25And he was a adversary to Israel all the days of
Solomon, beside the mischief that Hadad did and he abhorred Israel and reigned over Syria.
26And Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephrathite of Zereda, Solomon's servant, whose mother's
name was Zeruah, a widow woman, even he lifted up his hand against the king. 27And this was
the cause that he lifted up his hand against the king. Solomon built Millo and repaired the
breaches of the city of David his father. 28And the man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valor
and Solomon seeing the young man that he was industrious, he made him ruler over all the
charge of the house of Joseph. 29And at that time when Jeroboam went out of
Jerusalem the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him in the way and he had clad himself
with a new garment and they two were alone in the field 30And Ahijah caught the new garment
that was on him and tore it in twelve pieces 31And he said to Jeroboam, Take ten pieces, for
thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, Behold, I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of
Solomon and will give ten tribes to you, 32(But he shall have one tribe for my servant David's
sake and for Jerusalem's sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of
Israel) 33Because they have forsaken me and have worshiped Ashtoreth the goddess of the
Zidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites and Milcom the god of the children of Ammon
and have not walked in my ways, to do that which is right in my eyes and to keep my statutes
and my judgments, as his father David. 34But I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand
but I will make him prince all the days of his life for David my servant's sake, whom I chose,
because he kept my commandments and my statutes 35But I will take the kingdom out of his
son's hand and will give it to you, even ten tribes 36And I will give one tribe to his son,
so that David my servant may always have a light before me in Jerusalem, the city in which I have
chosen to put my name. 37And I will take you and you shall reign according to all that your
soul desires and shall be king over Israel. 38And if you will listen to all that I
command you and will walk in my ways and do that which is right in my sight, to keep my
statutes and my commandments, as David my servant did, I will be with you and build you
a sure house, as I built for David and will give Israel to you 39And for this I will afflict
the seed
of David, but not for ever, 40Solomon sought therefore to kill Jeroboam. And Jeroboam arose and
fled into Egypt, to Shishak king of Egypt and was in Egypt until the death of Solomon.
41And the rest of the acts of Solomon and all that he did and his wisdom, are they not written in
the book of the acts of Solomon? 42And the time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all
Israel was forty years. 43And Solomon slept with his fathers and was buried in the city of David
his father and Rehoboam his son reigned in his place.
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Chapter 12
1And Rehoboam went to Shechem for all Israel went to Shechem to make him king.
2And when Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who was yet in Egypt, heard of it, (for he had
fled from the presence of king Solomon and Jeroboam dwelled in Egypt,) 3They sent and
called him. And Jeroboam and all the congregation of Israel came and spoke to Rehoboam,
saying, 4Your father made our yoke grievous. Now therefore make the grievous service of your
father and his heavy yoke which he put on us, lighter and we will serve you. 5And he said to
them, Depart yet for three days, then come again to me. And the people departed. 6And king
Rehoboam consulted with the old men, who stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived
and said, How do you advise that I may answer this people? 7And they spoke to him, saying, If
you will be a servant to this people this day and will serve them and answer them and speak
good words to them, then they will be your servants for ever. 8But he forsook the counsel of the
old men, which they had given him and consulted with the young men who had grown up with
him and who stood before him 9And he said to them, What counsel do you give that we may
answer this people, who have spoken to me, saying, Make the yoke which your father put on us
lighter? 10And the young men who had grown up with him spoke to him, saying, Thus shall you
speak to this people who spoke to you, saying, Your father made our yoke heavy, but you make it
lighter for us, thus shall you say to them, My little finger shall be thicker than my father's
loins, 11And now whereas my father laded you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke. My
father has chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions. 12So Jeroboam and all
the people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the king had appointed, saying, Come to me
again the third day. 13And the king answered the people roughly and forsook the old men's
counsel that they gave him 14And spoke to them after the counsel of the young men, saying, My
father made your yoke heavy and I will add to your yoke, my father also chastised you with
whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions. 15Therefore the king did not listen to the people, for
the cause was from the LORD so that he might perform his saying, which the LORD spoke by
Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat.
16So when all Israel saw that the king did not listen to them, the people answered the king,
saying, What portion have we in David? nor do we have inheritance in the son of Jesse. To your
tents, O Israel. Now see to your own house, David. So Israel departed to their tents. 17But as for
the children of Israel who dwelled in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them, 18Then
king Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was over the tribute and all Israel stoned him with stones so
that he died. Therefore king Rehoboam hurried to get up to his chariot, to flee to
Jerusalem. 19So Israel rebelled against the house of David to this day.
20And when all Israel heard that Jeroboam had come again, they sent and
called him to the congregation and made him king over all Israel. There was no one who followed the
house of
David, but the tribe of Judah only. 21And when Rehoboam had come to Jerusalem, he assembled
all the house of Judah, with the tribe of Benjamin, one hundred eighty thousand chosen men,
who were warriors, to fight against the house of Israel, to return the kingdom again to Rehoboam
the son of Solomon. 22But the word of God came to Shemaiah the man of God, saying, 23Speak to
Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, king of Judah and to all the house of Judah and Benjamin and
to the remnant of the people, saying, 24Thus says the LORD, you shall not go up nor fight against
your brothers the children of Israel. Return every man to his house, for this thing is from me.
They listened therefore to the word of the LORD and returned to depart, according to the word
of the LORD.
25Then Jeroboam built Shechem in Mount Ephraim and dwelled in it and went out from there
and built Penuel. 26And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now shall the kingdom return to the house of
David 27If this people goes up to sacrifice in the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, then the
heart of this people shall turn again to their lord, even to Rehoboam king of Judah and they shall kill
me and go again to Rehoboam king of Judah. 28Therefore the king took counsel and made two
calves of gold and said to them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem, behold your gods,
O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt. 29And he set the one in Bethel and the
other put he in Dan. 30And this thing became a sin, for the people went to worship before the one,
even to Dan. 31And he made a house of high places and made priests of the lowest of the people,
who were not of the sons of Levi. 32And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the
fifteenth day of the month, like to the feast that is in Judah and he offered on the altar. So he did
in Bethel, sacrificing to the calves that he had made and he placed in Bethel the priests of the
high places which he had made. 33So he offered on the altar which he had made in Bethel the
fifteenth day of the eighth month, even in the month which he had devised in his own heart and
ordained a feast to the children of Israel and he offered on the altar and burned incense.
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Chapter 13
1And, behold, a man of God came out of Judah by the word of the LORD to Bethel and
Jeroboam stood by the altar to burn incense. 2And he cried against the altar in the word of the
LORD and said, O altar, altar, thus says the LORD, Behold, a child shall be born to the house of
David, Josiah by name and on you shall he offer the priests of the high places who burn incense
on you and men's bones shall be burned on you. 3And he gave a sign the same day, saying, This
is the sign which the LORD has spoken, Behold, the altar shall be torn and the ashes that are on
it shall be poured out. 4And when king Jeroboam heard the saying of the man of
God, who had cried against the altar in Bethel he put forth his hand from the altar, saying,
Lay hold on him. And his hand, which he put forth against him, dried up, so that he could not
pull it in again to him. 5The altar also was torn and the ashes poured out from the altar,
according to the sign which the man of God had given by the word of the LORD. 6And the king
answered and said to the man of God, Entreat now the face of the LORD your God and pray for
me so that my hand may be restored to me again. And the man of God besought the LORD and the
king's hand was restored to him again and became as it was before. 7And the king said to the
man of God, Come home with me and refresh yourself and I will give you a reward. 8And the
man of God said to the king, If you will give me half your house, I will not go in with you,
nor will I eat bread nor drink water in this place, 9For so was it charged me by the word of the
LORD, saying, Eat no bread nor drink water nor turn again by the same way that you came. 10So
he went another way and did not return by the way that he came to Bethel.
11Now there dwelled an old prophet in Bethel and his sons came and told him all the works that
the man of God had done that day in Bethel, the words which he had spoken to the king, those
they also told to their father. 12And their father said to them, What way did he go? For his sons
had seen what way the man of God who came from Judah went. 13And he said to his sons,
Saddle me the ass. So they saddled him the ass and he rode on it, 14And went after the man of
God and found him sitting under an oak and he said to him, are you the man of God who came
from Judah? And he said, I am. 15Then he said to him, Come home with me and eat bread. 16And
he said, I may not return with you nor go in with you nor will I eat bread nor drink water
with you in this place 17For it was said to me by the word of the LORD, You shall eat no bread
nor drink water there nor turn again to go by the way that you came. 18He said to him, I am a
prophet also as you are and an angel spoke to me by the word of the LORD, saying, Bring him
back with you into your house so that he may eat bread and drink water. But he lied to him. 19So he
went back with him and ate bread in his house and drank water. 20And as they
sat at the table the word of the LORD came to the prophet that brought him back. 21And he
cried to the man of God that came from Judah, saying, Thus says the LORD, Forasmuch as you
have disobeyed the mouth of the LORD and have not kept the commandment which the LORD
your God commanded you, 22But came back and have eaten bread and drunk water in the place,
which the LORD said to you, Eat no bread and drink no water, your carcase shall not come to
the sepulcher of your fathers. 23And after he had eaten bread and after he had
drunk, he saddled the ass for the prophet whom he had brought back. 24And when he was
gone, a lion met him by the way and killed him and his carcase was cast in the way and the ass
stood by it, the lion also stood by the carcase. 25And, behold, men passed by and saw the carcase
cast in the way and the lion standing by the carcase and they came and told it in the city where
the old prophet dwelled. 26And when the prophet that brought him back from the way heard of it,
he said, It is the man of God that was disobedient to the word of the LORD. Therefore the LORD
has delivered him to the lion, which has torn him and killed him, according to the word of the
LORD, which he spoke to him. 27And he spoke to his sons, saying, Saddle me the ass. And they
saddled him. 28And he went and found his carcase cast in the way and the ass and the lion
standing by the carcase. The lion had not eaten the carcase nor torn the ass. 29And the prophet
took up the carcase of the man of God and laid it on the ass and brought it back and the old
prophet came to the city, to mourn and to bury him. 30And he laid his carcase in his own grave
and they mourned over him, saying, Alas, my brother! 31And after he had buried
him, he spoke to his sons, saying, When I am dead, then bury me in the sepulcher in which
the man of God is buried, lay my bones beside his bones 32For the saying which he cried by the
word of the LORD against the altar in Bethel and against all the houses of the high places which
are in the cities of Samaria, shall surely come to pass. 33After this thing Jeroboam did not return
from his evil way, but made of the lowest of the people priests of the high places again. Whoever
would, he consecrated him and he became one of the priests of the high places. 34And this thing
became sin to the house of Jeroboam, even to cut it off and to destroy it from off the face of the
earth.
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Chapter 14
1At that time Abijah the son of Jeroboam fell sick. 2And Jeroboam said to his wife, Arise, I
beseech you and disguise yourself, so that you will not be known to be the wife of Jeroboam
and go to Shiloh. Behold, there is Ahijah the prophet, who told me that I should be king over this
people. 3And take with you ten loaves and cracknels and a cruse of honey and go to him. He
shall tell you what shall become of the child. 4And Jeroboam's wife did so and arose and went
to Shiloh and came to the house of Ahijah. But Ahijah could not see, for his eyes were set by
reason of his age. 5And the LORD said to Ahijah, Behold, the wife of Jeroboam comes to ask a
thing of you for her son for he is sick. Thus and thus shall you say to her for when she
comes in she shall feign herself to be another woman. 6And when Ahijah heard
the sound of her feet, as she came in at the door, he said, Come in, you wife of Jeroboam,
why do you feign yourself to be another? for I am sent to you with heavy news.
7Go, tell Jeroboam, Thus says the LORD God of Israel, Forasmuch as I exalted you from among
the people and made you prince over my people Israel 8And tore the kingdom away from the
house of David and gave it to you and yet you have not been as my servant David who kept my
commandments and that followed me with all his heart, to do that only which was right in my
eyes, 9But have done evil above all that were before you for you have gone and made other
gods and molten images, to provoke me to anger and have cast me behind your
back, 10Therefore, behold, I will bring evil on the house of Jeroboam and will cut off from
Jeroboam every male and him that is shut up and left in Israel and will take
away the remnant of the house of Jeroboam, as a man takes away dung, till it is all gone. 11He
who dies of Jeroboam in the city shall the dogs eat and he who dies in the field shall the fowls
of the air eat for the LORD has spoken it. 12Arise therefore, go to your own house and when
your feet enter into the city, the child shall die. 13And all Israel shall mourn for him and bury
him, for he only of Jeroboam shall come to the grave, because in him there is found some good
thing toward the LORD God of Israel in the house of Jeroboam. 14Also the LORD shall raise up a
king for himself over Israel who shall cut off the house of Jeroboam that day, but what? even
now. 15For the LORD shall strike Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water and he shall root up
Israel out of this good land, which he gave to their fathers and shall scatter them beyond the
river because they have made their groves, provoking the LORD to anger. 16And he shall give
Israel up because of the sins of Jeroboam, who sinned and who made Israel to sin. 17And
Jeroboam's wife arose and departed and came to Tirzah and when she came to the threshold of
the door, the child died, 18And they buried him and all Israel mourned for him, according to the
word of the LORD, which he spoke by the hand of his servant Ahijah the prophet, 19And the rest
of the acts of Jeroboam, how he warred and how he reigned, behold, they are written in the book
of the chronicles of the kings of Israel. 20And the days which Jeroboam reigned were twenty two
years and he slept with his fathers and Nadab his son reigned in his place.
21And Rehoboam the son of Solomon reigned in Judah. Rehoboam was forty one years old when
he began to reign and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, in the city which the LORD chose
out of all the tribes of Israel to put his name. And his mother's name was Naamah an
Ammonitess. 22And Judah did evil in the sight of the LORD and they provoked him to jealousy
with their sins which they had committed, above all that their fathers had done. 23For they also
built high places and images and groves, on every high hill and under every green tree.
24And there were also sodomites in the land and they did according to all the abominations of the
nations which the LORD cast out before the children of Israel. 25And in the fifth
year of king Rehoboam, Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem 26And he took
away the treasures of the house of the LORD and he even took away all the treasures of the king's house
and he took away all the shields of gold which Solomon had made. 27And king
Rehoboam made brazen shields in their place and committed them to the hands of the chief of
the guard, who kept the door of the king's house. 28And when the king went into the
house of the LORD, the guard bore them and brought them back into the guard
chamber. 29Now the rest of the acts of Rehoboam and all that he did, are they not written in the
book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 30And there was war between Rehoboam and
Jeroboam all their days. 31And Rehoboam slept with his fathers and was buried with his fathers
in the city of David. And his mother's name was Naamah an Ammonitess. And Abijam his son
reigned in his place.
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Chapter 15
1Now in the eighteenth year of king Jeroboam the son of Nebat Abijam reigned over Judah.
2He
reigned three years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Maachah, the daughter of
Abishalom. 3And he walked in all the sins of his father, which he had done before him and his
heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as the heart of David his father. 4But for David's
sake the LORD his God gave him a lamp in Jerusalem, to set up his son after him and to
establish Jerusalem 5Because David did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD and
turned not aside from any thing that he commanded him all the days of his life, save only in the
matter of Uriah the Hittite. 6And there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all the days of
his life. 7Now the rest of the acts of Abijam and all that he did, are they not written in the book
of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? And there was war between Abijam and Jeroboam. 8And
Abijam slept with his fathers and they buried him in the city of David and Asa his son reigned
in his place.
9And in the twentieth year of Jeroboam king of Israel Asa reigned over Judah.
10And he reigned forty one
years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Maachah, the daughter of Abishalom.
11And Asa did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD, as David his father.
12And he took
away the sodomites out of the land and removed all the idols that his fathers had made. 13And
also Maachah his mother, even her he removed from being queen, because she had made an idol
in a grove and Asa destroyed her idol and burned it by the brook Kidron. 14But the high places
were not removed but Asa's heart was perfect with the LORD all his days. 15And he brought in
the things which his father had dedicated and the things which he himself had dedicated, into the
house of the LORD, silver and gold and vessels. 16And there was war between Asa and Baasha
king of Israel all their days. 17And Baasha king of Israel went up against Judah and built Ramah,
so that he might not allow any to go out or come in to Asa king of Judah. 18Then Asa took all the
silver and the gold that were left in the treasures of the house of the LORD and the treasures of
the king's house and delivered them into the hand of his servants and king Asa sent them to
Benhadad, the son of Tabrimon, the son of Hezion, king of Syria, who dwelled at Damascus,
saying, 19There is a league between me and you and between my father and your father, behold, I
have sent a present to you of silver and gold. Come and break your league with Baasha king of
Israel so that he may depart from me. 20So Benhadad listened to king Asa and sent the captains of
the hosts who he had against the cities of Israel and struck Ijon and Dan and Abelbethmaachah
and all Cinneroth, with all the land of Naphtali. 21And when Baasha heard of it,
he left off building of Ramah and dwelled in Tirzah. 22Then king Asa made a proclamation
throughout all Judah, no one was exempted and they took away the stones of Ramah and its timber,
with which Baasha had built and king Asa built Geba of Benjamin and Mizpah with them.
23The rest of all the acts of Asa and all his might and all that he did and the cities
which he built, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? But in
the time of his old age he was diseased in his feet. 24And Asa slept with his fathers and was
buried with his fathers in the city of David his father and Jehoshaphat his son reigned in his
place.
25And Nadab the son of Jeroboam began to reign over Israel in the second year of Asa king of
Judah and he reigned over Israel two years. 26And he did evil in the sight of the LORD and walked
in the way of his father and in his sin with which he made Israel to sin. 27And Baasha the son of
Ahijah, of the house of Issachar, conspired against him and Baasha struck him at Gibbethon,
which belonged to the Philistines, for Nadab and all Israel laid siege to Gibbethon. 28Even in the
third year of Asa king of Judah Baasha killed him and reigned in his place. 29And when
he reigned, he struck all the house of Jeroboam, he did not leave any one that
breathed to Jeroboam, until he had destroyed him, according to the saying of the LORD, which he spoke by
his servant Ahijah the Shilonite. 30Because of the sins of Jeroboam which he sinned and which
he made Israel sin, by his provocation with which he provoked the LORD God of Israel to
anger, 31Now the rest of the acts of Nadab and all that he did, are they not written in the book of
the chronicles of the kings of Israel? 32And there was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel
all their days. 33In the third year of Asa king of Judah Baasha the son of Ahijah began to reign
for twenty four years
over all Israel in Tirzah,. 34And he did evil in the sight of the LORD and
walked in the way of Jeroboam and in his sin with which he made Israel to sin.
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Chapter 16
1Then the word of the LORD came to Jehu the son of Hanani against Baasha, saying,
2Forasmuch
as I exalted you out of the dust and made you prince over my people Israel and you have walked
in the way of Jeroboam and have made my people Israel to sin, to provoke me to anger with
their sins, 3Behold, I will take away the posterity of Baasha and the posterity of his house and
will make your house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat. 4The dogs shall eat him who
dies of Baasha in the city and of him who dies in the fields the fowls of the air shall
eat. 5Now the 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? 6So Baasha slept with his fathers and was
buried in Tirzah and Elah his son reigned in his place. 7And also the word of the LORD came
against Baasha and against his house, by the hand of the prophet Jehu
the son of Hanani even for all the evil that he did in the sight of the LORD, in provoking him to anger
with the work of his
hands, in being like the house of Jeroboam and because he killed him. 8In the twenty sixth year
of Asa king of Judah Elah the son of Baasha began to reign over Israel two years in Tirzah. 9And
his servant Zimri, captain of half his chariots, conspired against him, as he was in Tirzah,
drinking himself drunk in the house of Arza steward of his house in Tirzah. 10And Zimri went in
and struck him and killed him, in the twenty and seventh year of Asa king of Judah and reigned
in his place. 11And when he began to reign, as soon as he sat on his throne,
he killed all the house of Baasha. He did not leave him one that breathed neither of his
kinsfolk nor of his friends. 12Thus Zimri destroyed all the house of Baasha, according to the
word of the LORD, which he spoke against Baasha by Jehu the prophet, 13For all the sins of
Baasha and the sins of Elah his son, by which they sinned and by which they made Israel to sin,
in provoking the LORD God of Israel to anger with their vanities. 14Now the 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 reigned seven days in Tirzah. And the
people were camped against Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines. 16And the people that
were camped heard it said, Zimri has conspired and has also killed the king. Wherefore all Israel
made Omri, the captain of the host, king over Israel that day in the camp. 17And Omri and all
Israel with him, went up
from Gibbethon and they besieged Tirzah. 18And when
Zimri saw that the city was taken, he went into the palace of the king's house and burned the
king's house with fire over himself and died, 19For his sins which he sinned in doing evil in the sight
of the LORD, in walking in the way of Jeroboam and in his sin which he did, to make Israel to
sin. 20Now the rest of the acts of Zimri and his treason that he worked, 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 the son of Ginath, to make him king and half followed
Omri, 22But the people who followed Omri prevailed against the people who followed Tibni the
son of Ginath, so Tibni died and Omri reigned. 23In the thirty first year of Asa king of Judah
Omri began to reign over Israel,
for twelve years, six years he reigned in Tirzah. 24And he bought the
hill of Samaria from Shemer for two talents of silver and built on the hill and called the name
of the city which he built, after the name of Shemer, owner of the hill, Samaria. 25But Omri
worked evil in the eyes of the LORD and did worse than all that were before him. 26For he
walked in all the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat and in his sin with which he made Israel to
sin, to provoke the LORD God of Israel to anger with their vanities. 27Now the rest of the acts of
Omri which he did and his might that he showed, are they not written in the book of the
chronicles of the kings of Israel? 28So Omri slept with his fathers and was buried in Samaria and
Ahab his son reigned in his place.
29And in the thirty and eighth year of Asa king of Judah Ahab the son of Omri began to reign
over Israel and Ahab the son of Omri reigned over Israel in Samaria twenty two years. 30And
Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the LORD above all that were before him. 31And as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of
Nebat he took as a wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Zidonians and went and
served Baal and worshiped him. 32And he reared up an altar for Baal in the house of Baal,
which he had built in Samaria. 33And Ahab made a grove and Ahab did more to provoke the
LORD God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel that were before him.
34In his days Hiel
the Bethelite built Jericho. He laid the foundation of it in Abiram his firstborn and set up the
gates of it in his youngest son Segub, according to the word of the LORD, which he spoke by
Joshua the son of Nun. (Joshua 6:26)
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Chapter 17
1And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said to Ahab, As the LORD God
of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to
my word. 2And the word of the LORD came to him, saying, 3Go from here and turn eastward
and hide yourself by the brook Cherith that is before the Jordan. 4And you shall
drink of the brook and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there. 5So he went and did
according to the word of the LORD for he went and dwelled by the brook Cherith that is before
the Jordan. 6And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning and bread and flesh in
the evening and he drank of the brook. 7And after a while, the brook dried
up, because there had been no rain in the land.
8And the word of the LORD came to him, saying, 9Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to
Zidon and dwell there. Behold, I have commanded a widow woman there to sustain you. 10So he
arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, behold, the widow
woman was there gathering sticks and he called to her and said, Bring me, I beseech you, a little
water in a vessel so that I may drink. 11And as she was going to bring it, he called to her and said,
Bring me, I beseech you, a morsel of bread in your hand. 12And she said, As the LORD your God
lives, I have not a cake, but a handful of meal in a barrel and a little oil in a cruse and, behold, I
am gathering two sticks so that I may go in and dress it for me and my son so that we may eat it and
die. 13And Elijah said to her, Fear not, go and do as you have said but make me a little cake of it
first and bring it to me and after make for you and for your son. 14For thus says the LORD God
of Israel, The barrel of meal shall not waste, neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that
the LORD sends rain on the earth. 15And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah and
she and he and her house, ate many days. 16And the barrel of meal did not waste, neither did the
cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD, which he spoke by Elijah.
17And after these things, the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, fell
sick and his sickness was so sore that there was no breath left in him. 18And she said to Elijah,
What have I to do with you, O man of God? Are you come to me to call my sin to
remembrance and to kill my son? 19And he said to her, Give me your son. And he took him out of
her bosom and carried him up into a loft, where he abode and laid him on his own bed. 20And
he cried to the LORD and said, O LORD my God, have you also brought evil on the widow with
whom I sojourn, by killing her son? 21And he stretched himself on the child three times and
cried to the LORD and said, O LORD my God, I beseech you, let this child's soul come into him
again. 22And the LORD heard the voice of Elijah and the soul of the child came into him again
and he revived. 23And Elijah took the child and brought him down out of the chamber into the
house and delivered him to his mother and Elijah said, See, your son lives. 24And the woman
said to Elijah, Now by this I know that you are a man of God and that the word of the LORD in
your mouth is truth.
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Chapter 18
1And after many days, the word of the LORD came to Elijah in the third year,
saying, Go, show yourself to Ahab and I will send rain on the earth. 2And Elijah went to show
himself to Ahab. And there was a sore famine in Samaria. 3And Ahab called Obadiah, who was
the governor of his house. (Now Obadiah feared the LORD greatly, 4For when Jezebel
cut off the prophets of the LORD, Obadiah took one hundred prophets and hid them by fifty
in a cave and fed them with bread and water.) 5And Ahab said to Obadiah, Go into the land, to
all fountains of water and to all brooks. Perhaps we may find grass to save the horses and mules
alive so that we do not lose all the animals. 6So they divided the land between them to pass
through it.
Ahab went one way by himself and Obadiah went another way by himself. 7And as Obadiah was
in the way, behold, Elijah met him and he knew him and fell on his face and said, are you my
lord Elijah? 8And he answered him, I am. Go, tell your lord, Behold, Elijah is here.
9And he said,
What have I sinned that you would deliver your servant into the hand of Ahab, to kill me? 10As
the LORD your God lives, there is no nation or kingdom, where my lord has not sent to seek you
and when they said, He is not there, he took an oath of the kingdom and nation that they had not
found you. 11And now you say, Go, tell your lord, Behold, Elijah is here.
12And as soon as I have gone from you the Spirit of the LORD shall carry you
where I will not know and so when I come and tell Ahab and he cannot find you, he shall kill me but I your
servant fear the LORD from my youth. 13Was it not told my lord what I did when Jezebel killed
the prophets of the LORD, how I hid a hundred men of the LORD'S prophets by fifty in a cave
and fed them with bread and water? 14And now you say, Go, tell your lord, Behold, Elijah is here
and he shall kill me. 15And Elijah said, As the LORD of hosts lives, before whom I stand, I will
surely show myself to him today. 16So Obadiah went to meet Ahab and told him and Ahab went
to meet Elijah.
17And when Ahab saw Elijah, Ahab said to him, are you he who troubles
Israel? 18And he answered, I have not troubled Israel, but you and your father's house, in that you
have forsaken the commandments of the LORD and you have followed Baalim. 19Now therefore
send and gather to me all Israel to Mount Carmel and the prophets of Baal four hundred and
fifty and the prophets of the groves four hundred, who eat at Jezebel's table. 20So Ahab sent
to all the children of Israel and gathered the prophets together to Mount Carmel.
21And Elijah came to all the people and said, How long do you halt between two opinions? If the
LORD is God, follow him but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a
word. 22Then Elijah said to the people, I, even I only, remain a prophet of the LORD, but Baal's
prophets are four hundred fifty men, 23Let them therefore give us two bullocks and let them
choose one bullock for themselves and cut it in pieces and lay it on wood and put no fire under it
and I will dress the other bullock and lay it on wood and put no fire under it 24And you call on the
name of your gods and I will call on the name of the LORD and the God who answers by fire,
let him be God. And all the people answered and said, It is well spoken. 25And Elijah said to the
prophets of Baal, Choose you one bullock for yourselves and dress it first, for you are many and
call on the name of your gods, but put no fire under it. 26And they took the bullock which was
given to them and they dressed it and called on the name of Baal from morning even until noon,
saying, O Baal, hear us. But there was no voice nor any that answered. And they leaped on the
altar which was made. 27And at noon Elijah mocked them and said, Cry
aloud for he is a god, either he is talking or he is pursuing or he is on a journey or perhaps he is
asleep and must be awakened. 28And they cried aloud and cut themselves after their manner
with knives and lancets, till the blood gushed out on them. 29And when midday
was past and they prophesied until the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, there
was neither voice nor any to answer nor any that regarded. 30And Elijah said to all the people,
Come near to me. And all the people came near to him. And he repaired the altar of the LORD
that was broken down, 31And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of
the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the LORD came, saying, Israel shall be your name 32And
with the stones he built an altar in the name of the LORD and he made a trench about the altar,
as great as would contain two measures of seed, 33And he put the wood in order and cut the
bullock in pieces and laid him on the wood and said, Fill four barrels with water and pour it on
the burnt sacrifice and on the wood. 34And he said, Do it the second time. And they did it the
second time. And he said, Do it the third time. And they did it the third time. 35And the water ran
around the altar and he also filled the trench with water. 36And at the time
of the offering of the evening sacrifice, Elijah the prophet came near and said, LORD God
of Abraham, Isaac and of Israel, let it be known this day that you are God in Israel and that I am
your servant and that I have done all these things at your word. 37Hear me, O LORD, hear me,
that this people may know that you are the LORD God and that you have turned their heart back
again. 38Then the fire of the LORD fell and consumed the burnt sacrifice and the wood and the
stones and the dust and licked up the water that was in the trench. 39And when all the people
saw it, they fell on their faces and they said, The LORD is the God, the LORD is the
God. 40And Elijah said to them, Take the prophets of Baal, do not let one of them escape. And
they took them and Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon and killed them there.
41And Elijah said to Ahab, Go up, eat and drink, for there is a sound of abundance of rain.
42So Ahab went up to eat and to drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel and he cast himself
down on the earth and put his face between his knees, 43And said to his servant, Go up now, look
toward the sea. And he went up and looked and said, There is nothing. And he said, Go again
seven times. 44And at the seventh time, he said, Behold, there arises a little
cloud out of the sea, like a man's hand. And he said, Go up, say to Ahab, Prepare your chariot
and get down so that the rain does not stop you. 45And in the mean while,
the heaven was black with clouds and wind and there was a great rain. And Ahab rode and went
to Jezreel. 46And the hand of the LORD was on Elijah and he girded up his loins and ran before
Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.
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Chapter 19
1And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done and also how he had killed all the prophets with
the sword. 2Then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, So let the gods do to me and more
also, if I do not make your life as the life of one of them by tomorrow about this time. 3And when he
saw that, he arose and went for his life and came to Beersheba, which belongs to Judah and left
his servant there. 4But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness and came and sat
down under a juniper tree and he requested for himself that he might die and said, It is enough,
now, O LORD, take away my life, for I am no better than my fathers. 5And as he lay and slept
under a juniper tree, behold, then an angel touched him and said to him, Arise and eat. 6And he
looked and, behold, there was a cake baked on the coals and a cruse of water at his head. And
he ate and drank and laid down again. 7And the angel of the LORD came again the second time
and touched him and said, Arise and eat, because the journey is too great for you. 8And he arose
and ate and drank and went in the strength of that meat forty days and forty nights to Horeb the
Mount of God.
9And he came there to a cave and lodged there and, behold, the word of the LORD came to him
and he said to him, What do you here, Elijah? 10And he said, I have been very jealous for the
LORD God of hosts, for the children of Israel have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your
altars and killed your prophets with the sword and I, even I only, am left and they seek my life,
to take it away. 11And he said, Go forth and stand on the Mount before the LORD. And, behold,
the LORD passed by and a great and strong wind tore the mountains and broke the rocks in
pieces before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind and after the wind an earthquake,
but the LORD was not in the earthquake 12And after the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was
not in the fire and after the fire a still small voice, 13And when Elijah heard it, he
wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entering in of the cave. And,
behold, a voice came to him that said, What do you here, Elijah? 14And he said, I have
been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts, because the children of Israel have forsaken your
covenant, thrown down your altars and killed your prophets with the sword and I, even I only,
am left and they seek my life, to take it away. 15And the LORD said to him, Go, return on your
way to the wilderness of Damascus and when you come, anoint Hazael to be king over
Syria, 16And you shall anoint Jehu the son of Nimshi to be king over Israel and you shall anoint
Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abelmeholah to be prophet in your place. 17And he who escapes the sword of Hazael shall Jehu kill and he who escapes the
sword of Jehu shall Elisha kill. 18Yet I have left seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which
have not bowed to Baal and every mouth which has not kissed him.
19So he departed and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing with twelve yoke
of oxen before him and he with the twelfth and Elijah passed by him and cast his mantle on
him. 20And he left the oxen and ran after Elijah and said, Let me, I beseech you, kiss my father
and my mother and then I will follow you. And he said to him, Go back again for what have I
done to you? 21And he returned back from him and took a yoke of oxen and killed them and
boiled their flesh with the instruments of the oxen and gave to the people and they ate. Then he
arose and went after Elijah and ministered to him.
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Chapter 20
1And Benhadad the king of Syria gathered all his host together and there were thirty two kings
with him and horses and chariots and he went up and besieged Samaria and warred against
it, 2And he sent messengers to Ahab king of Israel into the city and said to him, Thus says
Benhadad, 3Your silver and your gold is mine, your wives also and your children, even the
best, are mine. 4And the king of Israel answered and said, My lord, O king, according to
your saying, I am yours and all that I have. 5And the messengers came again and said, Thus
speaks Benhadad, saying, Although I have sent to you, saying, You shall deliver me your silver
and your gold and your wives and your children, 6Yet I will send my servants to you tomorrow
about this time and they shall search your house and the houses of your servants and it shall be,
that what ever is pleasant in your eyes, they shall put it in their hand and take it away.
7Then the
king of Israel called all the elders of the land and said, Mark, I beseech you and see how this
man seeks mischief. for he sent to me for my wives and for my children and for my silver and
for my gold and I did not deny him. 8And all the elders and all the people said to him, Do not
listen to him nor consent. 9Therefore he said to the messengers of Benhadad, Tell my lord the
king, All that you sent for to your servant at the first I will do but this thing I may not do. And
the messengers departed and brought him word again. 10And Benhadad sent to him and said,
The gods do so to me and more also, if the dust of Samaria shall suffice for handfuls for all the
people that follow me. 11And the king of Israel answered and said, Tell him, Let not him who
girds on his armor boast himself as he who puts it off.
12And when Benhadad heard this message, as he was drinking, he and the kings
in the pavilions, he said to his servants, Set yourselves in array. And they set themselves in
array against the city. 13And, behold, a prophet came to Ahab king of Israel, saying, Thus
says the LORD, Have you seen all this great multitude? behold, I will deliver it into your hand
this day and you shall know that I am the LORD. 14And Ahab said, By whom? And he said,
Thus says the LORD, Even by the young men of the princes of the provinces. Then he said, Who
shall order the battle? And he answered, You. 15Then he numbered the young men of the
princes of the provinces and they were two hundred thirty two and after them he numbered all
the people, even all the children of Israel, seven thousand, 16And they went out at noon. But
Benhadad was drinking himself drunk in the pavilions, he and the kings, the thirty two kings that
helped him. 17And the young men of the princes of the provinces went out first and Benhadad
sent out and they told him, saying, There are men come out of Samaria. 18And he said, Whether
they are come out for peace, take them alive, or whether they are come out for war, take them
alive. 19So these young men of the princes of the provinces came out of the city and the army
which followed them. 20And they killed every one his man and the Syrians fled and Israel
pursued them and Benhadad the king of Syria escaped on a horse with the horsemen. 21And the
king of Israel went out and struck the horses and chariots and killed the Syrians with a great
slaughter.
22And the prophet came to the king of Israel and said to him, Go, strengthen yourself and mark
and see what you do for at the return of the year the king of Syria will come up against
you, 23And the servants of the king of Syria said to him, Their gods are gods of the hills, therefore
they were stronger than we, but let us fight against them in the plain and surely we shall be
stronger than they. 24And do this thing, Take the kings away, every man out of his place and put
captains in their rooms, 25And number an army, like the army that you have lost, horse for horse
and chariot for chariot and we will fight against them in the plain and surely we shall be
stronger than they. And he listened to their voice and did so. 26And at the return
of the year, Benhadad numbered the Syrians and went up to Aphek, to fight against Israel.
27And the children of Israel were numbered and were all present and went against them and the
children of Israel pitched before them like two little flocks of kids, but the Syrians filled the
country. 28And a man of God came and spoke to the king of Israel and said, Thus says the
LORD, Because the Syrians have said, The LORD is God of the hills, but he is not God of the
valleys, therefore I will deliver all this great multitude into your hand and you shall know that I
am the LORD. 29And they pitched opposite each other seven days. And so in the
seventh day the battle was joined and the children of Israel killed of the Syrians a hundred
thousand footmen in one day, 30But the rest fled to Aphek, into the city and there a wall fell on
twenty seven thousand of the men that were left. And Benhadad fled and came into the city, into
an inner chamber.
31And his servants said to him, Behold now, we have heard that the kings of the house of Israel
are merciful kings, let us, I beseech you, put sackcloth on our loins and ropes on our heads and
go out to the king of Israel. Perhaps he will save your life, 32So they girded sackcloth on their
loins and put ropes on their heads and came to the king of Israel and said, Your servant
Benhadad says, I beseech you, let me live. And he said, Is he yet alive? he is my brother. 33Now
the men diligently observed whether any thing would come from him and caught it and they
said, Your brother Benhadad. Then he said, Go, bring him. Then Benhadad came out to him
and he caused him to come up into the chariot. 34And Benhadad said to him, The cities, which
my father took from your father, I will restore and you shall make streets for you in Damascus,
as my father made in Samaria. Then Ahab said, I will send you away with this covenant. So he
made a covenant with him and sent him away, 35And a certain man of the sons of the prophets
said to his neighbor in the word of the LORD, Strike me, I beseech you. And the man refused to
strike him. 36Then said he to him, Because you have not obeyed the voice of the LORD, behold,
as soon as you are departed from me, a lion shall kill you. And as soon as he was departed from
him, a lion found him and killed him. 37Then he found another man and said, Strike me, I
beseech you. And the man struck him so that in smiting he wounded him. 38So the prophet
departed and waited for the king by the way and disguised himself with ashes on his face, 39And
as the king passed by, he cried to the king and he said, Your servant went out into the midst of
the battle and, behold, a man turned aside and brought a man to me and said, Keep this man. If
by any means he is missing, then shall your life be for his life, or else you shall pay a talent of
silver. 40And as your servant was busy here and there, he was gone. And the king of Israel said to
him, So shall your judgment be, you yourself have decided it. 41And he hurried and took the
ashes away from his face and the king of Israel discerned him that he was of the prophets. 42And
he said to him, Thus says the LORD, Because you have let go out of your hand a man whom I
appointed to utter destruction, therefore your life shall go for his life and your people for his
people. 43And the king of Israel went to his house heavy and displeased and came to Samaria.
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Chapter 21
1And after these things, Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard, which was in
Jezreel, hard by the palace of Ahab king of Samaria. 2And Ahab spoke to Naboth, saying, Give
me your vineyard so that I may have it for a garden of herbs, because it is near to my house and I
will give you a better vineyard than it for it or if it seems good to you, I will give you the worth
of it in money. 3And Naboth said to Ahab, The LORD forbid it to me that I should give the
inheritance of my fathers to you. 4And 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 you
the inheritance of my fathers. And he laid down on his bed and turned away his face and would not
eat bread.
5But Jezebel his wife came to him and said to him, Why is your spirit so sad that you eat no
bread? 6And he said to her, Because I spoke to Naboth the Jezreelite and said to him, Give me
your vineyard for money, or else, if it pleases you, I will give you another vineyard for it and he
answered, I will not give you my vineyard. 7And Jezebel his wife said to him, Do you now
govern the kingdom of Israel? arise and eat bread and let your heart be merry. I will give you
the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite. 8So she wrote letters in Ahab's name and sealed them with
his seal and sent the letters to the elders and to the nobles that were dwelling in his city with
Naboth. 9And she wrote in the letters, saying, Proclaim a fast and set Naboth on high among the
people 10And set two men, sons of Belial, before him, to bear witness against him, saying, You
blasphemed God and the king. And then carry him out and stone him so that he may die, 11And the
men of his city, even the elders and the nobles that were the inhabitants in his city, did as Jezebel
had sent to them. As it was written in the letters which she had sent to them, 12They proclaimed a
fast and set Naboth on high among the people. 13And two men came in, children of Belial
and sat before him and the men of Belial witnessed against him, even against Naboth, in the
presence of the people, saying, Naboth blasphemed God and the king. Then they carried him
out of the city and stoned him with stones so that he died. 14Then they sent to Jezebel,
saying, Naboth is stoned and is dead. 15And when Jezebel heard that Naboth was
stoned and was dead, Jezebel said to Ahab, Arise, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth
the Jezreelite, which he refused to give you for money for Naboth is not alive, but dead. 16And
when Ahab heard that Naboth was dead Ahab rose up to go down to the
vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, to take possession of it.
17And the word of the LORD came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, 18Arise, go down to meet Ahab
king of Israel, who is of Samaria, behold, he is in the vineyard of Naboth, where he has gone down
to possess it. 19And you shall speak to him, saying, Thus says the LORD, Have you killed and
also taken possession? And you shall speak to him, saying, Thus says the LORD, In the place
where dogs licked the blood of Naboth dogs shall lick your blood, even yours. 20And Ahab said
to Elijah, Have you found me, O my enemy? And he answered, I have found you because you
have sold yourself to work evil in the sight of the LORD, 21Behold, I will bring evil on you and
will take away your posterity and will cut off from Ahab him that breathes and
him that is shut up and left in Israel, 22And will make your house like the house of Jeroboam the
son of Nebat and like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah, for the provocation with which you
have provoked me to anger and made Israel to sin, 23The LORD also spoke of Jezebel, saying,
The dogs shall eat Jezebel by the wall of Jezreel. 24Him who dies of Ahab in the city the dogs
shall eat and him who dies in the field shall the fowls of the air eat. 25But there was none like
Ahab, who sold himself to work wickedness in the sight of the LORD, whom Jezebel his wife
stirred up. 26And he did very abominably in following idols, according to all things as the
Amorites did, whom the LORD cast out before the children of Israel. 27And when
Ahab heard those words, he tore his clothes and put sackcloth on his flesh and fasted and
lay in sackcloth and went softly. 28And the word of the LORD came to Elijah the Tishbite,
saying, 29Do you see how Ahab humbles himself before me? because he humbles himself before
me, I will not bring the evil in his days but I will bring the evil on his house in his son's days.
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Chapter 22
1And they continued three years without war between Syria and Israel. 2And in the third year, Jehoshaphat the king of Judah came down to the king of Israel 3And the king
of Israel said to his servants, Know you that Ramoth in Gilead is ours and we are still and do not take
it out of the hand of the king of Syria? 4And he said to Jehoshaphat, will you go with me to
battle to Ramothgilead? And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, I am as you are, my people as
your people, my horses as your horses. 5And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, Enquire, I
beseech you, at the word of the LORD today. 6Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets
together, about four hundred men and said to them, Shall I go against Ramothgilead to battle, or
shall I forbear? And they said, Go up, for the Lord shall deliver it into the hand of the king.
7And
Jehoshaphat said, Is there not here a prophet of the LORD besides that we might enquire of
him? 8And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, There is yet one man, Micaiah the son of
Imlah, by whom we may enquire of the LORD but I hate him, for he does not prophesy good
concerning me, but evil. And Jehoshaphat said, Let not the king say so. 9Then the king of Israel
called an officer and said, Hurry here Micaiah the son of Imlah. 10And the king of Israel and
Jehoshaphat the king of Judah sat each on his throne, having put on their robes, in a void place in
the entrance of the gate of Samaria and all the prophets prophesied before them. 11And
Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah made horns of iron and he said, Thus says the LORD, With
these shall you push the Syrians, until you have consumed them. 12And all the prophets
prophesied so, saying, Go up to Ramothgilead and prosper for the LORD shall deliver it into the
king's hand. 13And the messenger that had gone to call Micaiah spoke to him, saying, Behold
now, the words of the prophets declare good to the king with one mouth. Let your word, I beseech
you, be like the word of one of them and speak that which is good. 14And Micaiah said, As the
LORD lives, what the LORD says to me that will I speak.
15So he came to the king. And the king said to him, Micaiah, shall we go against Ramothgilead to
battle, or shall we forbear? And he answered him, Go and prosper for the LORD shall deliver it
into the hand of the king. 16And the king said to him, How many times shall I adjure you that you
tell me nothing but that which is true in the name of the LORD? 17And he said, I saw all Israel
scattered on the hills, as sheep that have no shepherd and the LORD said, These have no
master. Let them return every man to his house in peace. 18And the king of Israel said to
Jehoshaphat, Did I not tell you that he would prophesy no good concerning me, but evil? 19And
he said, Hear you therefore the word of the LORD, I saw the LORD sitting on his throne and all
the host of heaven standing by him on his right hand and on his left. 20And the LORD said, What
shall persuade Ahab so that he may go up and fall at Ramothgilead? And one said on this manner
and another said on that manner. 21And there came forth a spirit and stood before the LORD
and said, I will persuade him. 22And the LORD said to him, With what? And he said, I will go
forth and I will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And he said, You shall persuade
him and also prevail, go forth and do so. 23Now therefore, behold, the LORD has put a lying
spirit in the mouth of all these prophets of yours and the LORD has spoken evil concerning
you, 24But Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah went near and struck Micaiah on the cheek and said,
Which way went the Spirit of the LORD from me to speak to you? 25And Micaiah said, Behold,
you shall see in that day, when you shall go into an inner chamber to hide yourself. 26And the
king of Israel said, Take Micaiah and carry him back to Amon the governor of the city and to
Joash the king's son, 27And say, Thus says the king, Put this man in the prison and feed him
with bread of affliction and with water of affliction, until I come in peace. 28And Micaiah said, If
you return at all in peace, the LORD has not spoken by me. And he said, Listen, O people, every
one of you.
29So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah went up to Ramothgilead.
30And the
king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, I will disguise myself and enter into the battle, but you put on
your robes. And the king of Israel disguised himself and went into the battle. 31But the king of
Syria commanded his thirty two captains that had rule over his chariots, saying, Fight neither
with small nor great, save only with the king of Israel, 32And when the captains of
the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, they said, Surely it is the king of Israel. And they turned aside
to fight against him and Jehoshaphat cried out. 33And when the captains of the
chariots perceived that it was not the king of Israel, they turned back from pursuing
him, 34And a certain man drew a bow at a venture and struck the king of Israel between the joints
of the harness. Therefore he said to the driver of his chariot, Turn your hand and carry me out of
the host, for I am wounded. 35And the battle increased that day and the king was stayed up in
his chariot against the Syrians and died at evening and the blood ran out of the wound into the
midst of the chariot. 36And a proclamation went throughout the host about the going down
of the sun, saying, Every man to his city and every man to his own country. 37So the king died
and was brought to Samaria and they buried the king in Samaria. 38And one washed the chariot
in the pool of Samaria and the dogs licked up his blood and they washed his armor, according
to the word of the LORD which he spoke. 39Now the rest of the acts of Ahab and all that he did
and the ivory house which he made and all the cities that he built, are they not written in the
book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? 40So Ahab slept with his fathers and Ahaziah his
son reigned in his place.
41And Jehoshaphat the son of Asa began to reign over Judah in the fourth year of Ahab king of
Israel. 42Jehoshaphat was thirty five years old when he began to reign and he reigned twenty five
years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Azubah the daughter of Shilhi. 43And he walked
in all the ways of Asa his father, he turned not aside from it, doing that which was right in the
eyes of the LORD but the high places were not taken away, for the people offered and burned
incense yet in the high places. 44And Jehoshaphat made peace with the king of Israel.
45Now the
rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat and his might that he showed and how he warred, are they not
written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 46And he took out of the land the remnant of the sodomites,
who remained from the days of his father Asa. 47There was then no king in
Edom, a deputy was king. 48Jehoshaphat made ships of Carthage to go to Ophir for gold but they
did not go, for the ships were broken at Eziongeber. 49Then Ahaziah the son of Ahab said to
Jehoshaphat, Let my servants go with your servants in the ships. But Jehoshaphat would
not. 50And Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of David
his father and Jehoram his son reigned in his place. 51Ahaziah the son of Ahab began to reign
over Israel in Samaria the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah and reigned two years
over Israel. 52And he did evil in the sight of the LORD and walked in the way of his father and
in the way of his mother and in the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin,
53For he served Baal and worshiped him and provoked the LORD God of Israel to anger,
according to all that his father had done.
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