1 Kings 16

1 And the word of the Lord came by the hand of Jehu son of Hanani to Baasha: 2 “Because I lifted you up from the ground and made you leader over my people Israel, and you have walked in the way of Jeroboam and made my people Israel sin, provoking me to anger with their empty things — 3 look, I am raising up enemies after Baasha and after his house, and I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam son of Nebat. [a] 4 The one of Baasha’s who dies in the city, the dogs will eat him; and the one of his who dies in the field, the birds of the sky will eat him.”

5 And the rest of the acts of Baasha, and everything he did, and his mighty deeds — look, are they not written in the book of the daily record of the kings of Israel? [b] 6 And Baasha slept with his fathers, and he was buried in Tirzah; and Elah his son reigned in his place, in the twentieth year of King Asa. [c] 7 And it was by the hand of Jehu son of Hanani that the Lord had spoken against Baasha and against his house — for all the evil he did before the Lord, provoking him to anger by the works of his hands, so as to be like the house of Jeroboam, and because he struck him down. [d]

8 And Elah son of Baasha reigned over Israel two years in Tirzah. 9 And Zimri, the commander of half the cavalry, conspired against him while he was in Tirzah, drinking himself drunk in the house of Osa, the manager of the household, in Tirzah. [e] 10 And Zimri came in and struck him down and killed him, and reigned in his place.

11 And when he became king, when he sat on his throne, he struck down the whole house of Baasha, [f] 12 according to the word that the Lord spoke against the house of Baasha to Jehu the prophet, 13 because of all the sins of Baasha and of Elah his son, with which he made Israel sin, provoking the Lord, the God of Israel, to anger with their empty things. 14 And the rest of the acts of Elah, and everything he did — look, are they not written in the book of the daily record of the kings of Israel?

15 And Zimri reigned seven days in Tirzah. And the camp of Israel was at Gibbethon of the Philistines, 16 and the people in the camp heard it said, “Zimri has conspired, and he has struck the king down.” And that same day, in the camp, they made Omri, the leader of the army, king over Israel.

17 And Omri went up from Gibbethon, and all Israel with him, and they laid siege to Tirzah. 18 And when Zimri saw that his city had been taken first, he went into the inner room of the king’s house and burned the king’s house down over himself with fire, and died — [g] 19 for his sins that he committed, doing what was evil before the Lord, walking in the way of Jeroboam son of Nebat, and in his sins, with which he made Israel sin. 20 And the rest of the acts of Zimri, and the conspiracies he joined — look, are they not written in the book of the daily record of the kings of Israel?

21 Then the people of Israel divided: half the people went after Tibni son of Ginath, to make him king, and half the people went after Omri. 22 The people who were behind Omri overpowered the people who were behind Tibni son of Ginath; and Tibni died, and Joram his brother, at that time, and Omri reigned after Tibni. [h]

23 In the thirty-first year of King Asa, Omri began to reign over Israel, twelve years; six years he reigned in Tirzah. 24 And Omri bought the hill of Samaria from Shemer, the lord of the hill, for about a hundred and fifty pounds of silver; and he built on the hill, and he called the name of the hill he had built on after the name of Shemer, the lord of the hill: Samaria. [i]

25 And Omri did what was evil before the Lord, and he did more evil than all who were before him. 26 And he walked in all the way of Jeroboam son of Nebat, and in his sins, with which he made Israel sin, provoking the Lord, the God of Israel, to anger with their empty things. 27 And the rest of the acts of Omri, and everything he did, and his might that he showed — look, are they not written in the book of the daily record of the kings of Israel? 28 And Omri slept with his fathers, and he was buried in Samaria; and Ahab his son reigned in his place. [j]

And in the eleventh year of Omri, Jehoshaphat son of Asa began to reign. He was thirty-five years old when he came into his kingdom, and he reigned twenty-five years in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was Azubah daughter of Shilhi. And he walked in the way of Asa his father, and did not turn aside from it, from doing what was right before the Lord. Only, the high places were not taken away; they sacrificed and burned incense on the high places. And what Jehoshaphat agreed on, and all his might that he showed, and those he made war against — look, are they not written in the book of the daily record of the kings of Judah? And the rest of the couplings that had been taken up in the days of Asa his father, he removed out of the land. And there was no king in Aram, but a deputy.

And King Jehoshaphat made a ship for Tarshish, to go to Ophir for the gold; but it did not go, because the ship was broken up at Ezion-geber. Then the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “I will send out your servants and my young men in the ship.” But Jehoshaphat would not. And Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers, and he was buried with his fathers in the city of David; and Joram his son reigned in his place.

29 In the second year of Jehoshaphat, Ahab son of Omri became king; he reigned over Israel in Samaria twenty-two years. 30 And Ahab did what was evil before the Lord; he did more evil than all who were before him.

31 And it was not enough for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat: he took as his wife Jezebel daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, and he went and served Baal and bowed down to him. 32 And he set up an altar to Baal in the house of his loathsome things, which he built in Samaria. [l] 33 And Ahab made a sacred grove; and Ahab went on doing things that provoke to anger, provoking his own soul, so that it should be destroyed. He did evil beyond all the kings of Israel who were before him. [m]

34 In his days Hiel the man of Bethel built Jericho. At the cost of Abiram his firstborn he laid its foundation, and at the cost of Segub his younger son he set up its gates — according to the word of the Lord that he spoke by the hand of Joshua son of Nun. [n]