1 Kings
1
1 Now when King David was old and advanced in years, they covered him with clothing, but he could not get warm.
2 So his servants said to him, Let a young virgin be sought for my lord the king, and let her wait on the king and serve him; and let her lie in your bosom so that my lord the king may get warm.
3 Thus they sought for a beautiful young woman throughout all the territory of Israel, and they found Abishag the Shunammite and brought her to the king.
4 And the young woman was very beautiful, and she served the king and ministered to him; but the king did not know her.
5 Then Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying, I will be king. And he prepared a chariot and horsemen for himself and fifty men to run before him.
6 And his father had never displeased him by saying, Why have you done thus and thus? And he also was very handsome, and his mother bore him after Absalom.
7 And he conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah and with Abiathar the priest; and following Adonijah, they helped him.
8 But Zadok the priest and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada and Nathan the prophet and Shimei and Rei and the mighty men who belonged to David were not with Adonijah.
9 And Adonijah sacrificed sheep and oxen and fatlings by the stone of Zoheleth, which is beside En-rogel; and he called all his brothers, the sons of the king, and all the men of Judah, the servants of the king.
10 But he did not call Nathan the prophet and Benaiah and the mighty men and Solomon his brother.
11 Then Nathan spoke to Bath-sheba, Solomon’s mother, saying, Have you not heard that Adonijah the son of Haggith reigns and our lord David does not know it?
12 Now therefore come and let me give you counsel to save your life and the life of your son Solomon.
13 Go in at once to King David and say to him, Did you not, O my lord the king, swear to your female servant, saying, Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne? Then why does Adonijah reign?
14 Just when you are there and still speaking with the king, I will come in after you and confirm your words.
15 So Bath-sheba went in to the king in the chamber. And the king was very old, and Abishag the Shunammite was ministering to the king.
16 And Bath-sheba bowed and paid homage to the king. And the king said, What do you wish?
17 And she said to him, My lord, you swore by Jehovah your God to your female servant, saying, Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne.
18 But now, at this moment Adonijah reigns, and you, my lord the king, know nothing of it.
19 And he has sacrificed oxen and fatlings and sheep abundantly and has called for all the king’s sons and for Abiathar the priest and for Joab the captain of the army, but he has not called for Solomon your servant.
20 And you, my lord the king, the eyes of all Israel are upon you, that you would declare to them who will sit upon the throne of my lord the king after him.
21 Otherwise when my lord the king sleeps with his fathers, I and my son Solomon will be counted as offenders.
22 And just while she was still speaking with the king, Nathan the prophet came in.
23 And they told the king, saying, Nathan the prophet is here. And he came in before the king and paid homage to the king with his face to the ground.
24 And Nathan said, O my lord the king, have you said, Adonijah shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne?
25 For he has gone down today and sacrificed oxen and fatlings and sheep abundantly and has called for all the king’s sons and for the captains of the army and for Abiathar the priest; and now they are eating and drinking before him, and they say, May King Adonijah live!
26 But he has not called for me, me your servant, and for Zadok the priest and for Benaiah the son of Jehoiada and for Solomon your servant.
27 Has this thing been done by my lord the king, and you have not made known to your servants who shall sit upon the throne of my lord the king after him?
28 Then King David answered and said, Call Bath-sheba to me. And she came in before the king and stood before the king.
29 And the king swore and said, As Jehovah lives, who has redeemed my soul out of all adversity,
30 Indeed as I have sworn to you by Jehovah the God of Israel, saying, Solomon your son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne in my place; so indeed will I do this day.
31 Then Bath-sheba bowed her face to the ground and paid homage to the king, and she said, May my lord King David live forever.
32 And King David said, Call Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada to me. And they came in before the king.
33 And the king said to them, Take the servants of your lord with you, and cause Solomon my son to ride upon my own mule, and bring him down to Gihon.
34 And let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet anoint him there as king over Israel; and blow the trumpet and say, May King Solomon live!
35 Then come up after him; and he shall come and sit upon my throne, and he shall reign in my place; for I have appointed him as ruler over Israel and over Judah.
36 And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada answered the king and said, Amen! May Jehovah, the God of my lord the king, so ordain!
37 As Jehovah has been with my lord the king, so may He be with Solomon; and may He make his throne greater than the throne of my lord King David.
38 So Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada and the Cherethites and the Pelethites went down and caused Solomon to ride upon King David’s mule, and they brought him to Gihon.
39 And Zadok the priest took the horn of oil from the Tent of Jehovah and anointed Solomon; and they blew the trumpet, and all the people said, May King Solomon live!
40 And all the people went up after him; and the people were playing on pipes and rejoicing with great joy, and the land shook with the sound of them.
41 And Adonijah and all the invited guests with him heard it as they finished eating. And Joab heard the sound of the trumpet and said, Why is there the sound of the city in an uproar?
42 Just as he was still speaking, Jonathan the son of Abiathar the priest came. And Adonijah said, Come in; for you are a worthy man and bring good news.
43 And Jonathan answered and said to Adonijah, Alas! Our lord King David has made Solomon king!
44 And the king has sent with him Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada and the Cherethites and the Pelethites, and they have caused him to ride upon the king’s mule.
45 And Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have anointed him as king in Gihon; and they have gone up from there rejoicing, so that the city is in an uproar. This is the sound that you heard.
46 And Solomon is also sitting upon the throne of the kingdom.
47 Moreover the king’s servants came to bless our lord King David, saying, May your God make the name of Solomon better than your name, and may He make his throne greater than your throne; and the king bowed himself upon his bed.
48 And thus also did the king say, Blessed be Jehovah the God of Israel, who has given me today one to sit on my throne while my eyes may see it.
49 And all the invited guests who were with Adonijah became frightened and rose up; and they went away, each on his own way.
50 And Adonijah was afraid because of Solomon; and he rose up and went away, and he took hold of the horns of the altar.
51 And it was told Solomon, saying, Now Adonijah is afraid of King Solomon; for he has just now taken hold of the horns of the altar, saying, Let King Solomon swear to me today that he will not kill his servant with the sword.
52 And Solomon said, If he is a worthy man, not a hair of his will fall to the ground; but if wickedness is found in him, he shall die.
53 So King Solomon sent men and had him brought down from the altar. And he came and paid homage to King Solomon. And Solomon said to him, Go to your house.
2
1 When David’s time to die drew near, he commanded Solomon his son, saying,
2 I am going the way of all the earth. Be strong therefore and be a man;
3 And keep the commandment of Jehovah your God by walking in His ways, by keeping His statutes, His commandments, and His ordinances and His testimonies as they are written in the law of Moses, that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn;
4 That Jehovah may establish His word which He spoke concerning me, saying, If your children take heed to their way by walking before Me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul, there shall not fail — He said — to be a man upon the throne of Israel for you.
5 Furthermore you know what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me, by that which he did to the two captains of the armies of Israel, to Abner the son of Ner and to Amasa the son of Jether, whom he slew; and he shed the blood of war in peace and put the blood of war upon his girdle around his loins and upon his sandals that are on his feet.
6 Do therefore according to your wisdom, and do not let his gray-haired head go down into Sheol in peace.
7 And show mercy to the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and let them be among those who eat at your table; for so they drew near to me when I fled from Absalom your brother.
8 And now there is with you Shimei the son of Gera, the Benjaminite of Bahurim, who cursed me with a terrible curse on the day I went to Mahanaim; but he came down to meet me at the Jordan, and I swore to him by Jehovah, saying, I shall not kill you with the sword.
9 Now therefore do not hold him guiltless; for you are a wise man, and you will know what to do to him. And you shall bring his gray-haired head down into Sheol with blood.
10 And David slept with his fathers, and he was buried in the city of David.
11 And the time that David reigned over Israel was forty years: in Hebron he reigned seven years, and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty-three years.
12 And Solomon sat upon the throne of David his father, and his kingdom was firmly established.
13 Then Adonijah the son of Haggith came to Bath-sheba the mother of Solomon. And she said, Do you come peaceably? And he said, Peaceably.
14 Then he said, I have something to say to you. And she said, Speak.
15 And he said, You know that the kingdom was mine and that all Israel looked to me to reign; but the kingdom has turned and has become my brother’s, for it was of Jehovah to be his.
16 Now therefore I ask one thing of you; do not refuse me. And she said to him, Speak.
17 And he said, Please tell Solomon the king — for he will not refuse you — to give me Abishag the Shunammite as my wife.
18 And Bath-sheba said, Fine; I will speak to the king for you.
19 So Bath-sheba went to King Solomon to speak to him for Adonijah. And the king rose up to meet her and bowed himself before her; and he sat on his throne and had a throne set for the king’s mother, and she sat at his right hand.
20 And she said, Let me ask one small thing of you; do not refuse me. And the king said to her, Ask, my mother, for I will not refuse you.
21 And she said, Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to Adonijah your brother as his wife.
22 And King Solomon answered and said to his mother, And why do you ask Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? Ask for him the kingdom also, since he is my older brother, indeed for him and for Abiathar the priest and for Joab the son of Zeruiah.
23 Then King Solomon swore by Jehovah saying, God do so to me, and even more, if Adonijah has not spoken this word against his own life.
24 Now therefore as Jehovah lives, who has established me and seated me on the throne of David my father, and who has made me a house as He has promised, surely Adonijah shall be put to death today.
25 So King Solomon sent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and he struck him down so that he died.
26 And to Abiathar the priest, the king said, Go to Anathoth, to your own fields, for you are worthy of death; but I will not kill you at this time, for you bore the Ark of the Lord Jehovah before David my father and you suffered affliction in all that my father suffered.
27 So Solomon thrust Abiathar out from being a priest to Jehovah, fulfilling the word of Jehovah which He had spoken concerning the house of Eli in Shiloh.
28 And the report came to Joab, for Joab had followed after Adonijah, though he had not followed after Absalom. And Joab fled into the Tent of Jehovah, and he took hold of the horns of the altar.
29 And when it was told King Solomon that Joab had fled into the Tent of Jehovah and that he was just then beside the altar, Solomon sent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, saying, Go and strike him down.
30 And Benaiah came to the Tent of Jehovah and said to him, Thus says the king, Come out. And he said, No; rather I will die here. Then Benaiah brought word to the king again, saying, Thus has Joab said, and thus has he answered me.
31 And the king said to him, Do as he has spoken, and strike him down and bury him, that you may remove the blood which Joab has shed without cause from me and from my father’s house.
32 And Jehovah will return his blood upon his head because he struck down two men more righteous and better than himself and slew them with the sword, though my father David did not know of it, that is, Abner the son of Ner, the captain of the army of Israel, and Amasa the son of Jether, the captain of the army of Judah.
33 So their blood shall return upon Joab’s head and upon his seed’s head forever, but to David and to his seed and to his house and to his throne there shall be peace forever from Jehovah.
34 And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada went up and struck him down and killed him, and he was buried at his own house in the wilderness.
35 And the king put Benaiah the son of Jehoiada in his place over the army, and the king put Zadok the priest in Abiathar’s place.
36 Then the king sent word and called for Shimei. And he said to him, Build yourself a house in Jerusalem, and dwell there; and you shall not go forth from there to any place whatever.
37 For on the day that you go forth and cross over the brook Kidron, know for certain that you shall surely die; your blood will be upon your own head.
38 And Shimei said to the king, This word is good; as my lord the king has said, so will your servant do. So Shimei dwelt in Jerusalem many days.
39 Then at the end of three years two of Shimei’s servants ran off to Achish the son of Maacah, the king of Gath; and they told Shimei, saying, Your servants are now in Gath.
40 So Shimei rose up and saddled his donkey and went to Gath, unto Achish, to seek his servants. And Shimei went and brought his servants from Gath.
41 And it was told Solomon that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath and had returned.
42 So the king sent word and called for Shimei; and he said to him, Did I not make you swear by Jehovah and solemnly warn you, saying, On the day that you go forth and travel to any place whatever, know for certain that you shall surely die? And you said to me, This word that I have heard is good.
43 Why then have you not kept the oath of Jehovah and the commandment that I charged you with?
44 And the king said to Shimei, You yourself know all the evil, which your heart is conscious of, that you did to David my father; and Jehovah will return your evil upon your own head.
45 But King Solomon will be blessed, and the throne of David will be established before Jehovah forever.
46 So the king gave commands to Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and he went out and struck him down so that he died. And the kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon.
3
1 And Solomon allied himself by marriage with Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, and he took Pharaoh’s daughter and brought her to the city of David until he completed the building of his house and the house of Jehovah and the wall of Jerusalem all around.
2 The people however were sacrificing in the high places, for there had still not been built a house for the name of Jehovah up to those days.
3 And Solomon loved Jehovah, walking in the statutes of David his father; however he sacrificed and burned incense in the high places.
4 And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for that was the great high place; a thousand burnt offerings did Solomon offer on that altar.
5 In Gibeon Jehovah appeared to Solomon in a dream at night; and God said, Ask what I should give you.
6 And Solomon said, You have shown great lovingkindness to Your servant David my father, because he walked before You in truth and righteousness and in uprightness of heart with You; and You have kept for him this great lovingkindness and have given him a son to sit upon his throne, as it is this day.
7 And now, O Jehovah my God, You have made Your servant king in the place of David my father, though I am a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in.
8 And Your servant is in the midst of Your people, whom You have chosen, a vast people that cannot be numbered or counted for multitude.
9 Give therefore to Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people and to discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge this great people of Yours?
10 And this word seemed good in the sight of the Lord, that Solomon had asked for this matter.
11 And God said to him, Because you have asked for this matter and have not asked for long life for yourself and have not asked for riches for yourself and have not asked for the life of your enemies, but have asked for discernment for yourself to understand justice;
12 I now do according to your words. I now give you a heart of wisdom and understanding, so that there has been no one like you before you, nor will one rise up after you like you.
13 And I also give you that for which you did not ask, both riches and glory, so that there will be no one among kings like you all your days.
14 And if you walk in My ways, keeping My statutes and My commandments, as David your father walked, I will extend your days.
15 Then Solomon awoke, and behold, it was a dream. And he went to Jerusalem and stood before the Ark of the Covenant of Jehovah, and he offered up burnt offerings and offered peace offerings and made a feast for all his servants.
16 At that time two harlots came to the king and stood before him.
17 And the one woman said, Oh, my lord, I and this woman dwell in one house, and I gave birth while she was in the house.
18 And on the third day after I gave birth, this woman also gave birth. And we were together; there was no stranger with us in the house; only we two were in the house.
19 And this woman’s son died during the night, because she lay on him.
20 So she rose up in the middle of the night and took my son from beside me while your female servant was sleeping and laid him in her bosom, and her dead son she laid in my bosom.
21 Then when I rose up in the morning to nurse my son, there he was, dead. But when I examined him in the morning, that was not my son whom I had given birth to.
22 And the other woman said, No! The live one is my son, and the dead one is your son. And the first said, No! The dead one is your son, and the live one is my son. And they went on arguing like this before the king.
23 Then the king said, This one says, This is my son, the live one, and the dead one is your son; and that one says, No! The dead one is your son, and the live one is my son.
24 And the king said, Get me a sword. And they brought a sword before the king.
25 And the king said, Divide the live child between the two, and give half to one and half to the other.
26 And the woman whose son was the live one said to the king (for her compassions for her son burned within), Oh, my lord, give the live child to her, and do not by any means kill him! But the other said, He shall neither be mine nor yours; divide him.
27 And the king answered and said, Give her the live child, and do not by any means kill him; she is his mother.
28 And all Israel heard of the judgment that the king had exercised, and they feared the king; for they saw that the wisdom of God was within him to execute justice.
4
1 Now King Solomon was king over all Israel.
2 And these were the officials with him: Azariah the son of Zadok, the priest;
3 Elihoreph and Ahijah, the sons of Shisha, scribes; Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud, the recorder;
4 And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the army; and Zadok and Abiathar were high priests;
5 And Azariah the son of Nathan was over the superintendents; and Zabud the son of Nathan was the principal officer, the king’s friend;
6 And Ahishar was over the household; and Adoniram the son of Abda was over the forced labor.
7 And Solomon had twelve superintendents over all Israel, who provided food for the king and his house; each month of the year one had to provide food.
8 And these are their names: Ben-hur, in the hill country of Ephraim;
9 Ben-deker, in Makaz and in Shaalbim and Beth-shemesh and Elon-beth-hanan;
10 Ben-hesed, in Arubboth (to him pertained Socoh and all the land of Hepher);
11 Ben-abinadab, in all the highland of Dor (he had Taphath the daughter of Solomon as his wife);
12 Baana the son of Ahilud, in Taanach and Megiddo and all Beth-shean, which is beside Zarethan, beneath Jezreel, from Beth-shean to Abel-meholah, as far as beyond Jokmeam;
13 Ben-geber, in Ramoth-gilead (to him pertained the villages of Jair the son of Manasseh, which are in Gilead; and to him pertained the region of Argob, which is in Bashan, sixty great cities with walls and bronze bars);
14 Ahinadab the son of Iddo, in Mahanaim;
15 Ahimaaz, in Naphtali (he also took Basemath the daughter of Solomon as his wife);
16 Baana the son of Hushai, in Asher and Bealoth;
17 Jehoshaphat the son of Paruah, in Issachar;
18 Shimei the son of Ela, in Benjamin;
19 Geber the son of Uri, in the land of Gilead, the land of Sihon the king of the Amorites and Og the king of Bashan (and there was only one superintendent in that land).
20 Judah and Israel were as numerous as the sand that is by the sea in multitude, eating and drinking and rejoicing.
21 And Solomon ruled over all the kingdoms from the River to the land of the Philistines and unto the border of Egypt; they brought tribute and served Solomon all the days of his life.
22 And Solomon’s provisions for one day were thirty cors of fine flour and sixty cors of meal,
23 Ten fattened oxen and twenty pastured oxen and a hundred sheep, besides deer and gazelles and roebucks and fattened fowl.
24 For he had dominion over all the area west of the River, from Tiphsah to Gaza, over all the kings west of the River; and he had peace on all sides around him.
25 And Judah and Israel dwelt securely, every man under his vine and under his fig tree, from Dan to Beer-sheba, throughout all Solomon’s days.
26 And Solomon had forty thousand stalls of horses for his chariots and twelve thousand horsemen.
27 And those superintendents provided food for King Solomon and for all who came to King Solomon’s table, each in his month; they left nothing lacking.
28 And they also brought to the place where it should be, barley and straw for the horses and steeds, each according to his charge.
29 And God gave Solomon wisdom and very much understanding and largeness of heart, even as the sand that is on the seashore.
30 And Solomon’s wisdom was greater than the wisdom of all the children of the east and all the wisdom of Egypt.
31 For he became wiser than all men, wiser than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, and Calcol and Darda, the sons of Mahol. And his fame was among all the surrounding nations.
32 And he spoke three thousand proverbs, and his songs numbered a thousand and five.
33 And he discoursed about trees, from the cedar that is in Lebanon to the hyssop that shoots forth out of the wall; he also discoursed about animals and about birds and about creeping things and about fish.
34 And they came from all the peoples to hear the wisdom of Solomon, from all the kings of the earth who had heard of his wisdom.
5
1 Now Hiram the king of Tyre sent his servants to Solomon when he heard that they had anointed him king in place of his father, for Hiram had always loved David.
2 And Solomon sent word to Hiram, saying,
3 You know about David my father that he was not able to build a house for the name of Jehovah his God because of the warfare that his enemies surrounded him with, until Jehovah put them under the soles of his feet.
4 But now Jehovah my God has given me rest all around; there is no adversary or evil occurrence.
5 And now I intend to build a house for the name of Jehovah my God according to what Jehovah spoke to David my father, saying, Your son, whom I will put on your throne in your place, he will build the house for My name.
6 Now therefore command that they cut for me cedars from Lebanon. And my servants will be with your servants, and I will give you payment for your servants, according to whatever you say; for you know that among us there is no one who knows how to cut timber like the Sidonians.
7 And when Hiram heard Solomon’s words, he rejoiced greatly and said, Blessed be Jehovah this day, who has given David a wise son over this great people.
8 And Hiram sent word to Solomon, saying, I have heard the message which you have sent me. I will do all your desire concerning cedar timber and cypress timber.
9 My servants will bring them down from Lebanon to the sea, and I will make them into rafts to go by sea to the place that you direct me; and I will break them apart there, and you can carry them off. And you can fulfill my desire by giving food to my household.
10 So Hiram gave Solomon cedar timber and cypress timber, all that he desired.
11 And Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand cors of wheat as food for his household and twenty cors of the finest oil; this did Solomon give to Hiram year by year.
12 And Jehovah gave Solomon wisdom, as He had promised him; and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon, and the two of them made a treaty.
13 And King Solomon levied forced labor out of all Israel, and the forced labor amounted to thirty thousand men.
14 And he sent them to Lebanon, ten thousand a month by courses: one month they were in Lebanon, and two months they were at home. And Adoniram was over the forced labor.
15 And Solomon had seventy thousand burden bearers and eighty thousand stonecutters in the mountains,
16 Besides Solomon’s three thousand three hundred chief officers over the work, who directed the people who did the work.
17 And the king commanded, and they quarried great stones, costly stones, in order to lay the foundation of the house with hewn stone.
18 And Solomon’s builders and Hiram’s builders and the Gebalites fashioned the stone and prepared the timber and the stones in order to build the house.
6
1 Then in the four hundred eightieth year after the children of Israel had come forth out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of his reign over Israel, in the month of Ziv (this is the second month), Solomon began to build the house of Jehovah.
2 And the house which King Solomon built to Jehovah was sixty cubits long and twenty cubits wide and thirty cubits high.
3 And the portico that was before the temple of the house was twenty cubits long, across the width of the house, and ten cubits deep, in front of the house.
4 And for the house he made windows with fixed lattices.
5 And against the wall of the house he built a structure with stories all around, next to the walls of the house all around the temple and the innermost sanctuary; and he made side chambers all around.
6 The lowest story was five cubits wide; and the middle, six cubits wide; and the third, seven cubits wide; for he provided for outsets to the house all around the outside, so that the beams would not be inserted into the walls of the house.
7 And the house, when it was being built, was built of finished stone, cut at the quarry, so that neither hammer nor ax nor any iron tool was heard in the house when it was being built.
8 The door of the middle side chamber was on the right side of the house; and they went up by winding stairs into the middle story, and from the middle into the third.
9 So he built the house and finished it, and he covered the house with beams and planks of cedar.
10 And he built the stories against all the house, five cubits high; and the structure was held to the house by cedar timbers.
11 Then the word of Jehovah came to Solomon, saying,
12 As for this house that you are building, if you walk in My statutes and execute My ordinances and keep all My commandments by walking in them, then I will establish My word with you, which I spoke to David your father;
13 And I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel, and I will not forsake My people Israel.
14 So Solomon built the house and finished it.
15 And he built the walls of the house within with cedar boards; from the floor of the house to the wall of the ceiling he covered them on the inside with wood. And he overlaid the floor of the house with boards of cypress.
16 And he built twenty cubits of the rear part of the house with cedar boards from the floor to the walls of the ceiling; and he built it within as an innermost sanctuary, as the Holy of Holies.
17 And the house, that is, the temple before the Holy of Holies, was forty cubits long.
18 And there was cedar on the house within, carved with gourds and open flowers. It was all cedar; there was no stone showing.
19 And he prepared an innermost sanctuary in the midst of the house within, in order to put the Ark of the Covenant of Jehovah there.
20 And the interior of the innermost sanctuary was twenty cubits long and twenty cubits wide and twenty cubits high; and he overlaid it with pure gold, and he overlaid the cedar altar.
21 And Solomon overlaid the house within with pure gold; and he drew gold chains before the innermost sanctuary, and overlaid it with gold.
22 So he overlaid all the house with gold, until all the house was complete; and the whole altar, which belonged to the innermost sanctuary, he overlaid with gold.
23 And in the innermost sanctuary he made two cherubim of olive wood, ten cubits high.
24 And the one wing of the cherub was five cubits, and the second wing of the cherub was five cubits; ten cubits from the end of its one wing to the end of its other wing.
25 And the second cherub was ten cubits; both cherubim had one measure and one shape.
26 The height of the one cherub was ten cubits, and so was that of the second cherub.
27 And he put the cherubim in the midst of the inner house. And the wings of the cherubim were spread out so that the wing of the one cherub was touching the wall and the wing of the second cherub was touching the second wall; and their other wings were touching at the middle of the house, wing to wing.
28 And he overlaid the cherubim with gold.
29 And he carved all the walls of the house all around with engraved carvings of cherubim and palm trees and open flowers, in both the inner chamber and the outer one.
30 And the floor of the house he overlaid with gold, in both the inner chamber and the outer one.
31 And for the entrance of the innermost sanctuary he made doors of olive wood; the lintel and doorposts were a fifth of the breadth of the wall.
32 And there were two doors of olive wood. And he carved carvings of cherubim and palm trees and open flowers upon them, and he overlaid them with gold and spread the gold upon the cherubim and the palm trees.
33 So also he made for the entrance of the temple doorposts of olive wood, out of a fourth of the breadth of the wall,
34 And two doors of cypress wood; the two leaves of the one door folded, and the two leaves of the second door folded.
35 And he carved cherubim and palm trees and open flowers on them, and he overlaid them with gold evenly applied over the carved work.
36 And he built the inner court with three courses of hewn stone and a course of cedar beams.
37 In the fourth year the foundation of the house of Jehovah was laid, in the month of Ziv;
38 And in the eleventh year, in the month of Bul (which is the eighth month) the house was completed in all its parts and according to all its specifications. Thus he was seven years building it.
7
1 And Solomon was thirteen years building his own house, and he finished all his house.
2 And he built the Lebanon Forest House, a hundred cubits long and fifty cubits wide and thirty cubits high, upon four rows of cedar pillars, with cedar beams upon the pillars.
3 And it was roofed with cedar above the forty-five beams that were upon the pillars, fifteen in a row.
4 And there were window frames in three rows, and window was next to window in three tiers.
5 And all the doorways and doorposts had square frames, and window was next to window in three tiers.
6 And he made the portico of pillars, fifty cubits long and thirty cubits wide, with a portico before them and with pillars and a threshold before them.
7 And he made the throne portico, where he would execute judgment, the judgment portico; and it was covered with cedar from floor to floor.
8 And his house that he was to dwell in, in the court to the rear of the throne portico, was of the same workmanship. He also made a house for Pharaoh’s daughter, whom Solomon had taken as his wife, like this portico.
9 All these were of costly stones, cut according to measure, sawed with saws, within and without, from the foundation to the coping, and from the outside to the great court.
10 And the foundation was of costly stones, large stones, stones of ten cubits and stones of eight cubits.
11 And above were costly stones, cut according to measure, and cedar.
12 And the great court surrounding had three rows of hewn stone and a row of cedar beams, as did the inner court of the house of Jehovah and the portico of the house.
13 And King Solomon sent for Hiram and brought him from Tyre.
14 He was the son of a widow and of the tribe of Naphtali, and his father was a man of Tyre, a bronze worker; and he was full of wisdom and understanding and skill to do all kinds of work in bronze. And he came to King Solomon and did all his work.
15 And he formed the two bronze pillars; eighteen cubits was the height of each pillar, and a line of twelve cubits encompassed each pillar.
16 And he made two capitals of molten bronze to set upon the tops of the pillars; the height of the one capital was five cubits, and the height of the second capital was five cubits.
17 There were nets of checker work with wreaths of chain work for the capitals that were at the top of the pillars, seven for the one capital, and seven for the second capital.
18 So he made the pillars; and there were two rows of pomegranates around the one network, to cover the capitals that were at the top of the pillars. And he did the same for the second capital.
19 And the capitals that were at the top of the pillars in the portico were of lily work, four cubits in diameter.
20 So then the capitals that were on the two pillars were above and close to the bulge that was beside the network. And there were two hundred pomegranates, in rows around both capitals.
21 And he erected the pillars at the portico of the temple. When he erected the right pillar, he called its name Jachin; and when he erected the left pillar, he called its name Boaz.
22 And at the top of the pillars was lily work. And the work on the pillars was completed.
23 And he made the molten sea, ten cubits from brim to brim, fully round; and it was five cubits high, and a line of thirty cubits encompassed it.
24 And under its brim there were gourds all around, encircling it, ten to a cubit, surrounding the sea all around; the gourds were cast in two rows when they were cast.
25 It stood upon twelve oxen, three facing north and three facing west and three facing south and three facing east; and the sea was upon them, and all their hindquarters were within.
26 And it was a handbreadth thick; and its brim was like the work of a cup’s brim, like the flower of a lily; it held two thousand baths.
27 And he made the ten bases of bronze; one base was four cubits long and four cubits wide, and it was three cubits high.
28 And this was the work of each base: They had panels, and the panels were between frames.
29 And on the panels that were between the frames were lions, oxen, and cherubim. And above the frames was a pedestal, and below the lions and oxen there were wreaths of hanging work.
30 And each base had four bronze wheels with bronze axles. And its four feet had supports; underneath the laver the supports had been cast, with wreaths at the side of each.
31 And the mouth of the laver was within this crown, and it rose above it by one cubit; and its mouth was round like the work of a pedestal; it was a cubit and a half across; and upon its mouth were engravings as well, and its panels were square, not round.
32 And the four wheels were underneath the panels, and the wheel axles were in the base; each wheel was a cubit and a half high.
33 And the work of the wheels was like the work of a chariot wheel: their axles and their rims and their spokes and their hubs were all molten.
34 And there were four supports at the four corners of each base; its supports were part of the base.
35 And at the top of the base there was a round band half a cubit high; and at the top of the base, its stays and its panels were of one piece.
36 And on the surfaces of the stays and on its panels he engraved cherubim, lions, and palm trees, as there was space on each, with wreaths all around.
37 In this manner he made the ten bases; all of them had one casting, one measure, and one form.
38 And he made ten bronze lavers; each laver held forty baths; each laver was four cubits across; there was one laver upon every one of the ten bases.
39 And he set the bases, five on the right side of the house and five on the left side of the house; and the sea he set on the right side of the house, on the east side at the south.
40 And Hiram made the pots and the shovels and the bowls. Thus Hiram finished doing all the work that he was doing for King Solomon in the house of Jehovah:
41 The two pillars, and the two bowls of the capitals that were at the top of the pillars, and the two networks to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were at the top of the pillars;
42 And the four hundred pomegranates for the two networks, two rows of pomegranates for each network, to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the pillars;
43 And the ten bases and the ten lavers upon the bases;
44 And the one sea and the twelve oxen under the sea;
45 And the pots and the shovels and the bowls; all these vessels that Hiram made for King Solomon in the house of Jehovah were of burnished bronze.
46 The king cast them in the plain of the Jordan, in the clay ground between Succoth and Zarethan.
47 And Solomon left all the vessels unweighed because of the very great number; the weight of bronze could not be ascertained.
48 And Solomon made all the vessels that were in the house of Jehovah: the golden altar; and the golden table upon which the bread of the Presence was put;
49 And the lampstands of pure gold, five on the right and five on the left, before the innermost sanctuary; and the flowers and the lamps and the tongs, of gold;
50 And the large cups and the snuffers and the bowls and the small cups and the firepans, of pure gold; and the hinges, for the doors of the inner house, the Holy of Holies, and for the doors of the house of the temple, of gold.
51 Thus all the work that King Solomon did in the house of Jehovah was finished. And Solomon brought in the things that David his father had sanctified, the silver and the gold and the vessels, and he put them in the treasuries of the house of Jehovah.
8
1 Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel and all the heads of the tribes, the leaders of the fathers’ houses of the children of Israel, before King Solomon in Jerusalem in order to bring up the Ark of the Covenant of Jehovah from the city of David, which is Zion.
2 And all the men of Israel assembled themselves before King Solomon at the feast in the month of Ethanim, which is the seventh month.
3 And when all the elders of Israel came, the priests took up the Ark;
4 And they brought up the Ark of Jehovah and the Tent of Meeting and all the holy vessels that were in the tent; and the priests and Levites brought them up.
5 And King Solomon and all the assembly of Israel, who had assembled before him and were with him before the Ark, were sacrificing sheep and oxen which could not be counted or numbered for multitude.
6 And the priests brought the Ark of the Covenant of Jehovah to its place, into the innermost sanctuary of the house, into the Holy of Holies under the wings of the cherubim.
7 For the cherubim had their wings spread out over the place of the Ark, and the cherubim covered the Ark and its poles overhead.
8 And the poles extended out so that the ends of the poles could be seen from the Holy Place before the innermost sanctuary, but they were not seen outside; and they are there to this day.
9 There was nothing in the Ark except the two stone tablets, which Moses placed there at Horeb when Jehovah made a covenant with the children of Israel when they came out of the land of Egypt.
10 And when the priests came out of the Holy Place, the cloud filled the house of Jehovah;
11 And the priests were not able to stand and minister because of the cloud, for the glory of Jehovah filled the house of Jehovah.
12 Then Solomon said, Jehovah has said that He would dwell in deep darkness.
13 I have surely built You a lofty house, a place for You to dwell in forever.
14 And the king turned about and blessed all the congregation of Israel while all the congregation of Israel stood.
15 And he said, Blessed be Jehovah the God of Israel, who spoke with His mouth to David my father and fulfilled it with His hand, saying,
16 Since the day when I brought My people Israel out from Egypt, I have not chosen a city out of all the tribes of Israel to build a house for My name that it might be there; but I chose David to be over My people Israel.
17 And it was on David my father’s heart to build a house for the name of Jehovah the God of Israel;
18 But Jehovah said to David my father, Because it was on your heart to build a house for My name, you have done well that it was on your heart;
19 However you will not build the house, but your son, who will come forth from your loins, he will build the house for My name.
20 And Jehovah has established His word which He spoke; for I have risen up in the place of David my father, and I sit upon the throne of Israel, as Jehovah promised, and I have built the house for the name of Jehovah the God of Israel.
21 And there I have set a place for the Ark, in which is the covenant of Jehovah, which He made with our fathers when He brought them out from the land of Egypt.
22 Then Solomon stood before the altar of Jehovah in front of all the congregation of Israel and spread his hands toward heaven.
23 And he said, O Jehovah, God of Israel, there is no god like You, in heaven above or on the earth below, who keeps covenant and lovingkindness with Your servants who walk before You with all their heart;
24 You who have kept with Your servant David my father that which You have promised him; indeed You have spoken with Your mouth and have fulfilled with Your hand this day.
25 And now, O Jehovah, God of Israel, keep with Your servant David my father that which You promised him, saying, There shall not fail you a man in My sight to sit upon the throne of Israel, if only your children keep their way by walking before Me as you have walked before Me.
26 Now therefore, O God of Israel, may Your word that You spoke to Your servant David my father be confirmed.
27 But will God indeed dwell on the earth? Behold, the heavens and the heaven of heavens are not able to contain You; how much less this house which I have built.
28 Yet have regard to the prayer of Your servant and to his supplication, O Jehovah my God, and listen to the cry and to the prayer which Your servant is praying before You today;
29 That Your eyes may be open toward this house night and day, toward the place of which You have said, My name will be there, to listen to the prayer which Your servant will pray toward this place.
30 And listen to the supplication of Your servant and of Your people Israel when they pray toward this place. Hear then in Your dwelling place in the heavens; and when You hear, forgive.
31 If a man sins against his neighbor and is made to take an oath, and he comes and takes an oath before Your altar in this house;
32 Then hear in the heavens and act and judge Your servants, condemning the wicked by bringing his way on his head and justifying the righteous by giving to him according to his righteousness.
33 When Your people Israel are defeated before an enemy because they have sinned against You, and they turn to You and confess Your name and pray and make supplication to You in this house;
34 Then hear in the heavens, and forgive the sin of Your people Israel, and bring them back to the land which You gave to their fathers.
35 When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain because they have sinned against You, and they pray toward this place and confess Your name and turn from their sin when You afflict them;
36 Then hear in the heavens and forgive the sin of Your servants and of Your people Israel; indeed teach them the good way in which they should walk, and bring rain upon Your land, which You have given to Your people for an inheritance.
37 If there is famine in the land, if there is pestilence, if there is blight or mildew, swarming locust or consuming locust, if their enemy besieges them in the land of their cities, whatever plague, whatever sickness there is;
38 Whatever prayer, whatever supplication, which will be made by any man of all Your people Israel, each knowing the plague of his own heart, when he spreads out his hands toward this house;
39 Then hear in the heavens Your dwelling place, and forgive and act and render to each man according to all his ways, whose heart You know; for You, You alone know the hearts of all the children of men;
40 That they may fear You all the days that they live in the land which You have given to our fathers.
41 And also concerning the foreigner, who is not of Your people Israel but comes from a distant country for the sake of Your name
42 (For they will hear about Your great name and Your strong hand and Your outstretched arm), when he comes and prays toward this house;
43 Then hear in the heavens Your dwelling place, and act according to all that the foreigner calls upon You for, that all the peoples of the earth may know Your name and that they may fear You, as do Your people Israel, and that they may know that this house which I have built is called by Your name.
44 If Your people go out to battle against their enemy by the way which You have sent them, and they pray to Jehovah toward the city which You have chosen and the house which I have built for Your name;
45 Then hear their prayer and their supplication in the heavens and maintain their cause.
46 If they have sinned against You (for there is no man who does not sin) and You are angry with them and deliver them up to the enemy, so that they are carried away captive unto the land of the enemy, far away or nearby;
47 But if they take it to heart in the land where they were carried captive, and they repent and make supplication to You in the land of those who carried them away captive, saying, We have sinned and committed iniquity and acted wickedly;
48 And if they return to You with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their enemies, who have carried them captive, and they pray to You toward their land that You have given to their fathers, the city that You have chosen, and the house that I have built for Your name;
49 Then hear their prayer and their supplication in the heavens Your dwelling place and maintain their cause,
50 And forgive Your people who have sinned against You and all their transgressions which they have transgressed against You, and grant them compassion in the sight of those who lead them captive, that they might have compassion on them
51 (For they are Your people and Your inheritance, whom You brought out from Egypt, from the midst of an iron furnace);
52 That Your eyes may be open to the supplication of Your servant and to the supplication of Your people Israel to listen to them whenever they call upon You.
53 For You have separated them from all the peoples of the earth to be Your inheritance, as You spoke through Moses Your servant, when You brought our fathers out from Egypt, O Lord Jehovah.
54 And when Solomon had finished praying all this prayer and supplication to Jehovah, he rose up from before the altar of Jehovah, from kneeling on his knees with his hands spread toward the heavens.
55 And he stood and blessed the whole congregation of Israel with a loud voice, saying,
56 Blessed be Jehovah, who has given rest to His people Israel, according to all that He promised. Not one word of all His good promises which He spoke through Moses His servant has failed.
57 May Jehovah our God be with us, as He was with our fathers; let Him not forsake us nor abandon us,
58 That He may incline our hearts to Himself, to walk in all His ways and to keep His commandments and His statutes and His ordinances, which He commanded our fathers.
59 And let these words of mine, with which I made supplication to Jehovah, be near to Jehovah our God day and night to maintain the cause of His servant and the cause of His people Israel as each day requires;
60 That all the peoples of the earth may know that Jehovah is God; there is none else.
61 Let your heart therefore be perfect with Jehovah our God, to walk in His statutes and to keep His commandments as on this day.
62 And the king and all Israel with him offered sacrifices before Jehovah.
63 And Solomon offered a sacrifice of peace offerings, which he offered to Jehovah: twenty-two thousand oxen and one hundred and twenty thousand sheep. Thus the king and all the children of Israel dedicated the house of Jehovah.
64 On that day the king sanctified the middle of the court that was before the house of Jehovah, for there he offered the burnt offering and the meal offering and the fat of peace offerings because the bronze altar which was before Jehovah was too small to receive the burnt offering and the meal offering and the fat of peace offerings.
65 And Solomon held a feast at that time and all Israel with him, a great congregation, from the entrance of Hamath to the brook of Egypt, before Jehovah our God, seven days and seven more days, fourteen days in all.
66 On the eighth day he sent the people away, and they blessed the king and went to their tents joyful and happy in heart for all the goodness which Jehovah had shown to David His servant and to Israel His people.
9
1 And when Solomon had finished building the house of Jehovah and the king’s house and everything that Solomon desired to make,
2 Jehovah appeared to Solomon a second time, as He had appeared to him at Gibeon.
3 And Jehovah said to him, I have heard your prayer and your supplication which you have made before Me; I have sanctified this house which you have built by putting My name there forever, and My eyes and My heart will be there continually.
4 And as for you, if you walk before Me, as David your father walked, with a perfect and upright heart by doing according to all that I have commanded you and keep My statutes and My ordinances,
5 Then I will establish the throne of your kingdom over Israel forever, as I promised to David your father, saying, You will not lack a man on the throne of Israel.
6 But if you or your sons indeed turn away from following Me and do not keep My commandments and My statutes, which I have put before you, and go and serve other gods and worship them,
7 Then I will cut Israel off from the face of the land which I have given them, and the house which I have sanctified for My name I will cast out of My sight, and Israel will be a proverb and a byword among all the peoples.
8 And this house will become heaps, and everyone who passes by it will be astonished and hiss and say, Why has Jehovah done this to this land and to this house?
9 And they will say, Because they forsook Jehovah their God, who brought their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and laid hold of other gods and worshipped them and served them; therefore Jehovah brought all this evil upon them.
10 And at the end of the twenty years in which Solomon had built the two houses, the house of Jehovah and the king’s house,
11 Since Hiram the king of Tyre had supplied Solomon with cedar wood and with cypress wood and with gold, according to all that he desired, King Solomon gave Hiram twenty cities in the land of Galilee.
12 And Hiram came out from Tyre to see the cities which Solomon had given him, and they did not please him.
13 And he said, What are these cities which you have given me, my brother? And he called them the land of Cabul, as it is unto this day.
14 And Hiram sent to the king one hundred and twenty talents of gold.
15 Now this is the account of the forced labor which King Solomon levied to build the house of Jehovah and his own house and the Millo and the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor and Megiddo and Gezer.
16 (Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, had gone up and captured Gezer and burned it with fire and had slain the Canaanites who lived in the city and given it as a dowry to his daughter, the wife of Solomon.)
17 And Solomon rebuilt Gezer and lower Beth-Horon,
18 And Baalath and Tamar in the wilderness, in the land of Judah,
19 And all the storage cities that Solomon had, even the cities for chariots, and the cities for horsemen and what Solomon desired to build in Jerusalem and in Lebanon and in all the land of his dominion.
20 All of the people that were left of the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, who were not of the children of Israel,
21 Their children who were left after them in the land whom the children of Israel were not able to destroy utterly, Solomon levied as forced labor, as they are unto this day.
22 But Solomon did not make slaves of the children of Israel; for they were the men of war and his servants and his officers and his captains and the officers over his chariots and his horsemen.
23 These were the chief of the officers over Solomon’s work, five hundred and fifty, who ruled over the people doing the work.
24 As soon as Pharaoh’s daughter came up from the city of David into her house which Solomon had built for her, he built the Millo.
25 And three times a year Solomon offered up burnt offerings and peace offerings on the altar which he had built to Jehovah, and he burned incense with them on the altar which was before Jehovah. Thus he finished the house.
26 King Solomon also built ships in Ezion-geber, which is near Eloth on the shore of the Red Sea, in the land of Edom.
27 And Hiram sent his servants in the ships, sailors who knew the sea, with the servants of Solomon.
28 And they went to Ophir and took four hundred and twenty talents of gold from there and brought it to King Solomon.
10
1 And the queen of Sheba had heard of Solomon’s fame in connection with the name of Jehovah, and she came to test him with hard questions.
2 And she came to Jerusalem with a very large retinue, with camels bearing spices and with very much gold and precious stones. And when she came to Solomon, she spoke all that was on her heart to him.
3 And Solomon answered every matter of hers; there was nothing hidden from the king that he did not answer her.
4 And when the queen of Sheba saw all the wisdom of Solomon and the house that he had built
5 And the food of his table and the seating of his servants and the service and apparel of his ministers and his cupbearers and his burnt offerings that he offered up at the house of Jehovah, there was no more spirit in her.
6 And she said to the king, The word that I heard in my land concerning your deeds and your wisdom is true,
7 But I did not believe the words until I came and my own eyes saw. And indeed the half was not told to me; your wisdom and prosperity far exceed the report that I heard.
8 Happy are your men! Happy are these your servants, who attend you continually and hear your wisdom!
9 Blessed be Jehovah your God, who has delighted in you and set you upon the throne of Israel. Because Jehovah loves Israel forever, He has made you king to execute justice and righteousness.
10 And she gave the king a hundred and twenty talents of gold and a very great store of spices and some precious stones; never again did so great an abundance of spices come as that which the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.
11 Moreover Hiram’s fleet, which carried gold from Ophir, brought a great many almug trees and precious stones.
12 And the king made of the almug trees a banister for the house of Jehovah and for the king’s house, and lyres and harps for the singers; such almug trees have not come nor have been seen again to this day.
13 And King Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all that she desired, whatever she asked for, besides that which King Solomon gave her from his bounty. And she returned and went to her own land, she and her servants.
14 Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred sixty-six talents of gold,
15 Besides that which came through the traders and through the traffic of the merchants and through all the kings of Arabia and the governors of the land.
16 And King Solomon made two hundred large shields of beaten gold; he put six hundred shekels of gold upon each large shield.
17 And he made three hundred smaller shields of beaten gold; he put three minas of gold upon each smaller shield. And the king put them in the Lebanon Forest House.
18 And the king made a large ivory throne and overlaid it with the finest gold.
19 The throne had six steps, and the top of the throne was rounded at its back; and there were armrests on either side next to the place of the seat, and two lions stood next to the armrests.
20 And twelve lions stood there upon the six steps on either side. Nothing like it had ever been made in any kingdom.
21 And all King Solomon’s drinking vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the Lebanon Forest House were of pure gold; none were of silver, which was not considered as anything in the days of Solomon.
22 For the king had at sea a fleet from Tarshish as well as Hiram’s fleet. Once every three years the fleet from Tarshish came bearing gold and silver and ivory and apes and peacocks.
23 And King Solomon excelled all the kings of the earth in wealth and in wisdom.
24 And all the earth sought the presence of Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart.
25 And they each brought their tribute, vessels of silver and vessels of gold, and robes and weapons and spices, horses and mules, so much year by year.
26 And Solomon gathered chariots and horsemen together; and he had a thousand four hundred chariots and twelve thousand horsemen, which he stationed in the chariot cities and with the king at Jerusalem.
27 And the king caused silver to be as plentiful as stones in Jerusalem; and cedars, like the sycamores that are in the lowlands.
28 And the horses that Solomon had came from Egypt and from Kue; the king’s traders bought them from Kue at a fixed price.
29 A chariot could be imported from Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver and a horse for a hundred and fifty shekels, and thus they brought them out to all the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Syria by their own means.
11
1 But King Solomon loved many foreign women in addition to Pharaoh’s daughter — Moabite, Ammonite, Edomite, Sidonian, and Hittite women,
2 From among the nations concerning which Jehovah had said to the children of Israel, You shall not go among them, nor shall they come among you, for they will surely turn your heart after their gods. Solomon clung to these in love.
3 And he had seven hundred princess wives and three hundred concubines, and his wives turned his heart away.
4 And when Solomon was old, his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not perfect toward Jehovah his God like the heart of David his father.
5 And Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians and after Milcom the detestable thing of the Ammonites.
6 And Solomon did what was evil in the sight of Jehovah and did not fully follow Jehovah as David his father had done.
7 Then Solomon built a high place to Chemosh the detestable thing of Moab in the mountain that is before Jerusalem and to Molech the detestable thing of the children of Ammon.
8 And so he did for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and offered sacrifices to their gods.
9 So Jehovah became angry with Solomon because his heart turned away from Jehovah the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice,
10 And who had commanded him concerning this very matter, not to go after other gods; but he did not keep that which Jehovah had commanded.
11 And Jehovah said to Solomon, Because you have done this and have not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your servant.
12 However I will not do it in your days, because of David your father; I will tear it out of your son’s hand.
13 But I will not tear the whole kingdom away from you; I will give one tribe to your son because of David My servant and because of Jerusalem, which I have chosen.
14 And Jehovah raised up an adversary to Solomon, Hadad the Edomite; he was of the king’s seed in Edom.
15 Now when David was in Edom and Joab the captain of the army went up to bury the slain, he struck down all the males in Edom;
16 For Joab and all Israel remained there for six months, until he had cut down every male in Edom.
17 But Hadad fled, he and some Edomite men from among his father’s servants with him, and went into Egypt; and Hadad was a young boy then.
18 Thus they arose from Midian and went to Paran, and they took men from Paran with them and went to Egypt, to Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, who gave him a house and appointed him a portion of food and gave him land.
19 And Hadad found so much favor in the sight of Pharaoh that Pharaoh gave him the sister of his wife, the sister of Tahpenes the queen, as his wife.
20 And the sister of Tahpenes bore him Genubath his son, and Tahpenes weaned him in Pharaoh’s house, and Genubath was in Pharaoh’s house among Pharaoh’s sons.
21 And when Hadad heard in Egypt that David slept with his fathers and that Joab the captain of the army was dead, Hadad said to Pharaoh, Let me depart that I may go to my own land.
22 But Pharaoh said to him, But what have you lacked while with me that now you are seeking to go to your own land? And he said, Nothing; only let me depart.
23 And God raised up another adversary to him, Rezon the son of Eliada, who had fled from his lord, Hadadezer the king of Zobah.
24 And he gathered men to himself and became the captain of the band when David slew those of Zobah; and they went to Damascus and dwelt there; and they reigned in Damascus.
25 And he was an adversary to Israel all the days of Solomon in addition to the evil that Hadad did; and he abhorred Israel and reigned over Syria.
26 And Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephraimite of Zeredah, a servant of Solomon, whose mother’s name was Zeruah, also a widow, lifted up his hand against the king.
27 And this was the reason he lifted up his hand against the king: Solomon was building the Millo, closing up the breach of the city of David his father.
28 And the man Jeroboam was an able man; and Solomon saw that the young man was industrious, so he set him over all the forced labor of the house of Joseph.
29 And at that time Jeroboam went forth from Jerusalem, and the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him on the way. And Ahijah was wearing a new garment, and the two of them were alone in the field.
30 And Ahijah laid hold of the new garment that was on him and tore it into twelve pieces.
31 And he said to Jeroboam, Take ten pieces for yourself; for thus says Jehovah the God of Israel, I am now tearing the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon and giving the ten tribes to you
32 (But the one tribe will be his because of My servant David and because of Jerusalem, the city that I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel),
33 Because they have forsaken Me and have worshipped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians and Chemosh the god of Moab and Milcom the god of the children of Ammon and have not walked in My ways by doing what is upright in My sight and by keeping My statutes and My ordinances as David his father did.
34 But I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand, but I will make him leader all the days of his life because of David My servant, whom I chose and who kept My commandments and My statutes.
35 Yet I will take the kingdom out of his son’s hand and will give it to you, that is, the ten tribes;
36 And to his son I will give one tribe, that My servant David may have a lamp always before Me in Jerusalem, the city where I have chosen to put My name.
37 And I will take you, and you will reign according to all that your soul desires; and you will be king over Israel.
38 And if you listen to all that I command you and walk in My ways and do what is upright in My sight by keeping My statutes and My commandments, as David My servant did, I will be with you and will build you a sure house, as I built for David; and I will give you Israel.
39 And I will afflict the seed of David because of this, but not forever.
40 Solomon therefore sought to kill Jeroboam, but Jeroboam rose up and fled into Egypt to Shishak the king of Egypt; and he was in Egypt until the death of Solomon.
41 And the rest of the acts of Solomon and all that he did as well as his wisdom, are they not written in the book of the acts of Solomon?
42 And the time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was forty years.
43 And Solomon slept with his fathers and was buried in the city of David his father. And Rehoboam his son reigned in his place.
12
1 Then Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had come to Shechem to make him king.
2 And when Jeroboam the son of Nebat heard of it (for he was still in Egypt, where he had fled from King Solomon; and Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt;
3 And they sent word to him and called him), Jeroboam and all the congregation of Israel came and spoke to Rehoboam, saying,
4 Your father made our yoke hard. Now therefore make the hard service of your father and his heavy yoke that he put upon us lighter, and we will serve you.
5 And he said to them, Go away for another three days, then return to me. And the people went away.
6 Then King Rehoboam took counsel with the elders who attended Solomon his father while he was alive, saying, What counsel do you give me to return as an answer to this people?
7 And they spoke to him, saying, If today you will be a servant to this people and serve them and answer them and speak good words to them, then they will be your servants always.
8 But he forsook the counsel of the elders with which they counseled him and took counsel with the young men who had grown up with him, who attended him.
9 And he said to them, What counsel do you give me that we may return an answer to this people who have spoken to me, saying, Lighten the yoke that your father put upon us?
10 And the young men who grew up with him spoke to him, saying, Thus shall you say to this people who have spoken to you, saying, Your father made our yoke heavy, but you must make it lighter on us; thus shall you speak to them, My little finger is thicker than my father’s loins.
11 And now, whereas my father laid a heavy yoke upon you, I will increase your yoke; my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.
12 And Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam on the third day as the king had spoken, saying, Return to me on the third day.
13 And the king answered the people harshly; and he forsook the counsel of the elders that they had given him
14 And spoke to them according to the counsel of the young men, saying, My father made your yoke heavy, but I will increase your yoke; my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.
15 So the king did not listen to the people, for this turn of events was of Jehovah that He might establish His word which Jehovah had spoken through Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat.
16 And when all Israel saw that the king would not listen to them, the people returned an answer to the king, saying, What portion do we have in David? Neither do we have an inheritance in the son of Jesse. To your tents, O Israel. Now see to your own house, O David. And Israel went to their tents.
17 But as for the children of Israel who dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them.
18 Then King Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was over the forced labor, and all Israel stoned him to death. And King Rehoboam made haste to get up into his chariot and flee to Jerusalem.
19 So Israel has rebelled against the house of David until this day.
20 And when all Israel heard that Jeroboam had returned, they sent word to him and called him to the assembly; and they made him king over all Israel. There was none who followed the house of David except the tribe of Judah alone.
21 And when Rehoboam came to Jerusalem, he gathered all the house of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin, one hundred eighty thousand choice warriors, to wage war with the house of Israel in order to return the kingdom to Rehoboam the son of Solomon.
22 But the word of God came to Shemaiah the man of God, saying,
23 Speak to Rehoboam the son of Solomon, the king of Judah, and to all the house of Judah and Benjamin and to the rest of the people, saying,
24 Thus says Jehovah, You shall not go up and wage war with your brothers the children of Israel. Every man return to his house; for this matter is of Me. So they listened to the word of Jehovah and returned and went their way according to the word of Jehovah.
25 Then Jeroboam built up Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and he dwelt in it; and he went forth from there and built up Penuel.
26 And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now the kingdom will return to the house of David.
27 If this people go up to make sacrifices in the house of Jehovah at Jerusalem, the heart of this people will return to their lord, to Rehoboam the king of Judah; and they will slay me and return to Rehoboam the king of Judah.
28 And the king took counsel and made two calves of gold. And he 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!
29 And he set one in Bethel, and he put the other one in Dan.
30 And this thing became a sin; and the people went to worship the one as far as Dan.
31 And he made a house of high places and appointed priests from among the people who were not from the sons of Levi.
32 And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like the feast that is in Judah, and he went up to the altar; he did likewise at Bethel, sacrificing to the calves that he had made. And he placed in Bethel the priests of the high places that he had made.
33 And he went up to the altar that he had made at Bethel on the fifteenth day, in the eighth month, that is, the month he had devised in his own heart; and he ordained a feast for the children of Israel and went up to the altar to burn incense.
13
1 And at that moment there came a man of God from Judah by the word of Jehovah to Bethel while Jeroboam was standing at the altar to burn incense.
2 And he cried out against the altar by the word of Jehovah and said, Altar, O altar, thus says Jehovah: Behold, a son shall be born to the house of David, Josiah by name; and he will sacrifice upon you the priests of the high places who burn incense upon you, and men’s bones will they burn upon you.
3 And he gave a sign that day, saying, This is the sign that Jehovah has spoken: The altar here will be torn apart, and the ashes that are upon it will be poured out.
4 And when the king heard the word of the man of God that he cried out against the altar in Bethel, Jeroboam stretched out his hand from over the altar, saying, Lay hold of him! And his hand, which he had stretched out against him, withered, and he could not draw it back to himself.
5 And the altar was torn apart, and the ashes were poured forth from the altar, according to the sign that the man of God had given by the word of Jehovah.
6 And the king responded and said to the man of God, Entreat Jehovah your God, I beg you, and intercede for me that my hand may be restored to me. And the man of God entreated Jehovah, and the king’s hand was restored to him as it had been formerly.
7 Then the king said to the man of God, Come home with me, and have something to eat; and I will give you a gift.
8 But the man of God said to the king, If you gave me half your household, I would not go with you; and I will not eat food nor drink water in this place;
9 For thus was I commanded by the word of Jehovah, saying, You shall not eat food nor drink water, nor shall you return by the way that you came.
10 So he went by another way and did not return by the way that he came to Bethel.
11 Now there was a certain old prophet dwelling in Bethel. And his sons came and related to him all the things that the man of God had done that day in Bethel; the words that he had spoken to the king, they also related to their father.
12 And their father said to them, Which way did he go? Now his sons had seen which way the man of God, who came from Judah, had gone.
13 And he said to his sons, Saddle the donkey for me. So they saddled the donkey for him, and he rode on it.
14 And he went after the man of God and found him sitting under a terebinth. And he said to him, Are you the man of God who came from Judah? And he said, I am.
15 And he said to him, Come home with me, and eat some food.
16 But he said, I cannot return with you and go with you; neither will I eat food nor drink water with you in this place.
17 For I was told by the word of Jehovah, You shall not eat food nor drink water there, nor shall you return by going on the way that you came there.
18 And the old man said, I also am a prophet like you, and an angel has spoken to me by the word of Jehovah, saying, Bring him back with you to your house that he may eat food and drink water. He lied to him.
19 So he returned with him and ate food in his house and drank water.
20 And while they were sitting at the table, the word of Jehovah came to the prophet who brought him back;
21 And he cried out to the man of God who came from Judah, saying, Thus says Jehovah, Because you have rebelled against the word of Jehovah and did not keep the command that Jehovah your God commanded you,
22 But returned and ate food and drank water in the place concerning which He said to you, Do not eat food and do not drink water; your corpse shall not come to the grave of your fathers.
23 And after he had eaten food and had drunk water, the old man saddled the donkey for him, that is, for the prophet whom he had brought back.
24 And as he went, a lion met him on the way and killed him. And his corpse was thrown on the road, and the donkey stood beside it; the lion stood beside the corpse also.
25 And some men soon passed by and saw the corpse thrown on the road and the lion standing beside the corpse, and they went and told it in the city where the old prophet dwelt.
26 And when the prophet who had brought him back from the way heard it, he said, It is the man of God, who rebelled against the word of Jehovah; and Jehovah has given him to the lion, which tore him apart and killed him, according to the word of Jehovah which He spoke to him.
27 Then he spoke to his sons, saying, Saddle the donkey for me; and they saddled it.
28 And he went and found his corpse thrown on the road and the donkey and the lion standing beside the corpse; the lion had not eaten the corpse, nor had it torn the donkey apart.
29 And the prophet took up the corpse of the man of God and laid it on the donkey and brought it back; and it was brought to the city of the old prophet for mourning and for burial.
30 And he laid his corpse in his own grave and mourned over him, saying, Alas, my brother!
31 And after he had buried him, he spoke to his sons, saying, When I die, bury me in the grave where the man of God is buried; beside his bones lay my bones.
32 For the word that he cried out by the word of Jehovah against the altar that is in Bethel and against all the houses of the high places that are in the cities of Samaria shall surely come to pass.
33 After this matter Jeroboam did not turn from his evil way, but he again made priests for the high places from among the people; whoever desired it, he consecrated to be priests of the high places.
34 And this matter became a sin to the house of Jeroboam, so as even to cut it off and destroy it from the face of the earth.
14
1 At that time Abijah the son of Jeroboam became ill.
2 And Jeroboam said to his wife, Rise up now, and disguise yourself so that no one will recognize that you are the wife of Jeroboam, and go to Shiloh. Ahijah the prophet is there; it is he who spoke concerning me, that I should be king over this people.
3 And take in your hand ten loaves and some cakes and a cruse of honey, and go to him. He will tell you what will happen to the boy.
4 And Jeroboam’s wife did so; that is, she rose up and went to Shiloh, and she came to the house of Ahijah. Now Ahijah could not see, for his eyes were fixed because of his age.
5 But Jehovah said to Ahijah, The wife of Jeroboam has now come to seek a word from you concerning her son, for he is ill. Thus and thus shall you speak to her. And it will be that when she comes in, she will pretend to be another woman.
6 So when Ahijah heard the sound of her footsteps as she entered through the door, he said, Come in, wife of Jeroboam. Why do you pretend to be another woman? For I have a hard message for you.
7 Go and tell Jeroboam, Thus says Jehovah the God of Israel, Because I exalted you from among the people and made you ruler over My people Israel,
8 And I tore away the kingdom from the house of David and gave it to you; and yet you have not been like My servant David, who kept My commandments and who followed Me with all his heart, doing only what was upright in My sight,
9 But you have done more evil than all who were before you and have gone and made for yourself other gods and idols, so as to provoke Me to anger; and you have cast Me behind your back —
10 Because of this then, I am now bringing evil upon the house of Jeroboam, and I will cut off from Jeroboam every male, bond and free, in Israel; and I will sweep up after the house of Jeroboam as a man might sweep up dung until it is all gone.
11 Him of Jeroboam’s who dies in the city, the dogs will eat; and him who dies in the field, the birds of heaven will eat; for Jehovah has spoken it.
12 Rise up then, and go to your house: When your feet enter the city, the child will die.
13 And all Israel will mourn for him and bury him, for he alone of Jeroboam’s will go into the grave, because in him some good thing toward Jehovah the God of Israel was found among the house of Jeroboam.
14 And Jehovah will raise up for Himself a king over Israel who will cut off the house of Jeroboam this day and even now.
15 And Jehovah will strike Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water; and He will uproot Israel out of this good land, which He gave to their fathers, and will scatter them beyond the River, because they made their Asherahs, provoking Jehovah to anger.
16 And He will give Israel up on account of the sins of Jeroboam, by which he sinned and by which he caused Israel to sin.
17 And Jeroboam’s wife rose up and departed, and she came to Tirzah. As she came to the threshold of the house, the boy died.
18 And all Israel buried him and mourned for him according to the word of Jehovah, which He spoke through His servant Ahijah the prophet.
19 And the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, how he waged war and how he reigned, they are there written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.
20 And the time that Jeroboam reigned was twenty-two years; and he slept with his fathers. And Nadab his son reigned in his place.
21 And 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, the city where Jehovah had chosen, out of all the tribes of Israel, to put His name. And his mother’s name was Naamah the Ammonitess.
22 And Judah did what was evil in the sight of Jehovah and provoked Him to jealousy because of the sins which they committed, above all the sins which their fathers had committed.
23 And they also built for themselves high places and pillars and Asherahs on every high hill and under every flourishing tree,
24 And there were also male cult prostitutes in the land. They acted according to all the abominations of the nations that Jehovah had dispossessed before the children of Israel.
25 Then in the fifth year of King Rehoboam, Shishak the king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem.
26 And he took away the treasures of the house of Jehovah and the treasures of the king’s house; indeed he took away all. And he took away all the shields of gold that Solomon had made.
27 And King Rehoboam made shields of bronze in their place and committed them into the hands of the captains of the guard, who kept the door of the king’s house.
28 And whenever the king went into the house of Jehovah, the guards carried them and returned them to the guardroom.
29 And 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?
30 And there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam continually.
31 And Rehoboam slept with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of David. And his mother’s name was Naamah the Ammonitess. And Abijam his son reigned in his place.
15
1 And in the eighteenth year of King Jeroboam the son of Nebat, Abijam began to reign over Judah.
2 He reigned three years in Jerusalem, and his mother’s name was Maacah, the daughter of Abishalom.
3 And he walked in all the sins of his father, which he had done before him; and his heart was not perfect with Jehovah his God like the heart of David his father.
4 Yet for David’s sake Jehovah his God gave him a lamp in Jerusalem, raising up his son after him and establishing Jerusalem;
5 Because David did what was upright in the sight of Jehovah and did not turn aside from anything that He had commanded him all the days of his life, except in the matter of Uriah the Hittite.
6 And there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all the days of his life.
7 And 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.
8 And Abijam slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David. And Asa his son reigned in his place.
9 And in the twentieth year of Jeroboam the king of Israel, Asa began to reign as king in Judah.
10 And he reigned forty-one years in Jerusalem, and his mother’s name was Maacah, the daughter of Abishalom.
11 And Asa did what was upright in the sight of Jehovah, as David his father had done.
12 And he put away the male cult prostitutes out of the land and removed all the idols that his fathers had made.
13 And he also removed Maacah his mother from being queen mother because she had made an abominable image for Asherah. And Asa cut down her abominable image and burned it at the brook Kidron.
14 But the high places were not removed; otherwise the heart of Asa was perfect with Jehovah all his days.
15 And he brought into the house of Jehovah the things his father had sanctified and the things he sanctified, silver and gold and vessels.
16 And there was war between Asa and Baasha the king of Israel all their days.
17 And Baasha the king of Israel went up against Judah; and he built Ramah to prevent anyone from going out or coming in to Asa the king of Judah.
18 And Asa took all the silver and gold that was left among the treasures of the house of Jehovah as well as the treasures of the king’s house, and gave them into the hands of his servants. And King Asa sent them forth to Ben-hadad the son of Tabrimmon, the son of Hezion, the king of Syria, who dwelt in Damascus, saying,
19 There is an alliance between me and you, between my father and your father. I am now sending you a present of silver and gold; go and break your alliance with Baasha the king of Israel, so that he goes away from me.
20 And Ben-hadad listened to King Asa and sent the captains of forces that he had against the cities of Israel, and he struck Ijon and Dan and Abel-beth-maacah and all Chinneroth with all the land of Naphtali.
21 And when Baasha heard this, he stopped building Ramah and dwelt in Tirzah.
22 Then King Asa made a proclamation to all Judah; no one was exempt. And they carried away the stones of Ramah and its timber, with which Baasha had built it; and King Asa built with these Geba of Benjamin and Mizpah.
23 And the rest of all the acts of Asa and all his might and all that he did and the cities that he built, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? Yet in the time of his old age he was diseased in his feet.
24 And 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.
25 And Nadab the son of Jeroboam began to reign over Israel in the second year of Asa the king of Judah, and he reigned over Israel two years.
26 And he did what was evil in the sight of Jehovah and walked in the way of his father and in his sin by which he caused Israel to sin.
27 And Baasha the son of Ahijah, of the house of Issachar, conspired against him; and Baasha struck him down in Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines, while Nadab and all Israel were laying siege to Gibbethon.
28 And Baasha killed him in the third year of Asa the king of Judah, and he reigned in his place.
29 And as soon as he became king, he struck down all the house of Jeroboam; he left to Jeroboam not one who had breath, until he had destroyed them, according to the word of Jehovah, which He spoke through His servant Ahijah the Shilonite,
30 Because of the sins of Jeroboam, which he committed and by which he caused Israel to sin, because of his provocation by which he provoked Jehovah the God of Israel to anger.
31 And 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?
32 And there was war between Asa and Baasha the king of Israel all their days.
33 In the third year of Asa the king of Judah, Baasha the son of Ahijah began to reign over all Israel in Tirzah for twenty-four years.
34 And he did what was evil in the sight of Jehovah and walked in the way of Jeroboam and in his sin by which he caused Israel to sin.
16
1 And the word of Jehovah came to Jehu the son of Hanani against Baasha, saying,
2 Because I exalted you out of the dust and made you a leader over My people Israel, yet you have walked in the way of Jeroboam and have caused My people Israel to sin, thereby provoking Me to anger by their sins;
3 I am now sweeping up after Baasha and after his house, and I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat.
4 Him of Baasha who dies in the city, the dogs will eat; and him who dies in the field, the birds of heaven will eat.
5 And 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?
6 And Baasha slept with his fathers and was buried in Tirzah. And Elah his son reigned in his place.
7 Moreover through the prophet Jehu the son of Hanani the word of Jehovah came against Baasha and against his house, both because of all the evil that he did in the sight of Jehovah, provoking Him to anger with the work of his hands and by being like the house of Jeroboam, and because he struck it down.
8 In the twenty-sixth year of Asa the king of Judah Elah the son of Baasha began to reign over Israel in Tirzah for two years.
9 And his servant Zimri, the captain of half his chariots, conspired against him. While he was in Tirzah, drinking himself drunk in the house of Arza, who was over the household in Tirzah,
10 Zimri came in and struck him down and killed him, in the twenty-seventh year of Asa the king of Judah; and he reigned in his place.
11 And as soon as he began to reign, just as he sat on his throne, he struck down all the house of Baasha; there was not a male left to him, neither kinsman nor friend.
12 Thus Zimri destroyed all the house of Baasha according to the word of Jehovah, which He spoke against Baasha through Jehu the prophet,
13 Because of all the sins of Baasha and the sins of Elah his son, which they committed and by which they caused Israel to sin, thereby provoking Jehovah the God of Israel to anger with their idols.
14 And 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?
15 In the twenty-seventh year of Asa the king of Judah Zimri began to reign for seven days in Tirzah. And the people were encamped against Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines.
16 And when the people who were encamped there heard it said, Zimri has conspired and even struck down the king, all Israel made Omri, the captain of the army, king over Israel that day in the camp.
17 And Omri went up, and all Israel with him, from Gibbethon, and they besieged Tirzah.
18 And when Zimri saw that the city had been taken, he went up to the citadel of the king’s house and burned the king’s house over him with fire and died,
19 Because of his sins that he committed by doing what was evil in the sight of Jehovah, walking in the way of Jeroboam and in his sin which he did, causing Israel to sin.
20 And the rest of the acts of Zimri and his conspiracy that he conspired, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
21 At that time the people of Israel were divided into two: Half of the people went after Tibni the son of Ginath, making him king, and half after Omri.
22 But the people who followed Omri prevailed over the people who followed Tibni the son of Ginath; and Tibni died, and Omri began to reign.
23 In the thirty-first year of Asa the king of Judah Omri began to reign over Israel for twelve years; he reigned six years in Tirzah.
24 And he bought the hill of Samaria from Shemer for two talents of silver; and he built upon the hill and called the name of the city that he built Samaria, after the name of Shemer, the owner of the hill.
25 And Omri did what was evil in the sight of Jehovah and was more evil than all who were before him.
26 And he went in all the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat and in his sin by which he caused Israel to sin, thereby provoking Jehovah the God of Israel to anger with their idols.
27 And the rest of the acts of Omri that he did and his might that he showed, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
28 And Omri slept with his fathers and was buried in Samaria. And Ahab his son reigned in his place.
29 And Ahab the son of Omri began to reign over Israel in the thirty-eighth year of Asa the king of Judah. And Ahab the son of Omri reigned over Israel in Samaria twenty-two years.
30 And Ahab the son of Omri did what was evil in the sight of Jehovah, more than all who were before him.
31 And as if it were a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, he took as his wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal the king of the Sidonians; and he went and served Baal and worshipped him.
32 And he raised up an altar to Baal in the house of Baal, which he had built in Samaria.
33 And Ahab made the Asherah. And Ahab did more to provoke Jehovah the God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel who had been before him.
34 In his days Hiel the Bethelite built Jericho. He laid its foundations at the cost of Abiram his firstborn, and he set up its gates at the cost of Segub his youngest son, according to the word of Jehovah, which He spoke through Joshua the son of Nun.
17
1 And Elijah the Tishbite, from among the inhabitants of Gilead, said to Ahab, As Jehovah the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain during these years, except by my word.
2 And the word of Jehovah came to him, saying,
3 Go from here and turn eastward, and hide yourself by the brook Cherith, which is before the Jordan.
4 And you shall drink from the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.
5 And he went and did according to the word of Jehovah; that is, he went and stayed by the brook Cherith, which is before the Jordan.
6 And the ravens would bring him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening; and he drank from the brook.
7 Then after a while the brook dried up, for there had been no rain in the land.
8 And the word of Jehovah came to him, saying,
9 Rise up and go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and stay there. I have just commanded a widow there to keep you fed.
10 And he rose up and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the entrance of the city, a widow was there gathering sticks. And he called to her and said, I beg you, bring me a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.
11 And she went to get it. Then he called to her and said, I beg you, bring me a piece of bread in your hand.
12 And she said, As Jehovah your God lives, I have nothing baked, but only a handful of meal in a barrel and a little oil in a jar; and I am now gathering a few sticks that I may go and prepare it for me and my son, that we may eat it and die.
13 And Elijah said to her, Do not fear. Go, do as you have said. But make me a little cake out of it first, and bring it out to me; then make something for yourself and for your son afterward.
14 For thus says Jehovah the God of Israel, The barrel of meal will not give out, nor will the jar of oil fail, until the day that Jehovah sends rain upon the face of the earth.
15 And she went and did according to the word of Elijah. And she and he and her house ate for many days.
16 The barrel of meal did not give out, nor did the jar of oil fail, according to the word of Jehovah, which He had spoken through Elijah.
17 Then after these things the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became ill; and his illness was so severe that there was no breath left in him.
18 And she said to Elijah, What have I done to you, O man of God, that you have come to me to recall my iniquity and kill my son?
19 And he said to her, Bring me your son. And he took him out of her bosom and carried him up into the upper chamber where he was staying, and he laid him upon his own bed.
20 And he cried to Jehovah and said, Jehovah, my God, have You also brought evil upon the widow, to whom I am a guest, by slaying her son?
21 And he stretched himself upon the child three times and cried to Jehovah and said, Jehovah, my God, I beg You, let this child’s soul come into him again!
22 And Jehovah listened to the voice of Elijah; and the child’s soul came into him again, and he lived.
23 And Elijah took the child and brought him down from the upper room into the house and gave him to his mother. And Elijah said, See, your son is alive.
24 And the woman said to Elijah, Now by this I know that you are a man of God and that the word of Jehovah in your mouth is truth.
18
1 Then after many days the word of Jehovah came to Elijah in the third year, saying, Go, present yourself to Ahab; and I will send rain upon the face of the earth.
2 And Elijah went to present himself to Ahab. And the famine was severe in Samaria.
3 And Ahab called for Obadiah, who was over his house. (Now Obadiah feared Jehovah greatly.
4 And when Jezebel cut off the prophets of Jehovah, Obadiah took a hundred prophets and hid them by fifties in a cave and kept them fed with bread and water.)
5 And Ahab said to Obadiah, Go through the land, to all the springs of water and to all the brooks; perhaps we will find grass to keep the horses and the mules alive and not lose some of the animals.
6 And they divided the land between them in order to pass through it: Ahab went one way by himself, and Obadiah went another way by himself.
7 And while Obadiah was on the way, Elijah met him at that moment; and he recognized him and fell on his face and said, Is it indeed you, my lord Elijah?
8 And he said to him, It is I. Go and say to your lord, Elijah is here.
9 And he said, What sin have I committed, that you give your servant into the hand of Ahab to put me to death?
10 As Jehovah your God lives, there is no nation or kingdom that my lord has not sent men into in order to seek you; and when they said, He is not here, he had an oath taken from the kingdom or nation that they had not found you there.
11 And now you say, Go and say to your lord, Elijah is here.
12 And it will happen that when I go away from you, the Spirit of Jehovah will carry you off, I know not where; and when I come and tell Ahab, and he cannot find you, he will slay me, although I your servant have feared Jehovah since my youth.
13 Was it not told my lord what I did when Jezebel slew the prophets of Jehovah, that I hid a hundred of Jehovah’s prophets by fifties in a cave and kept them fed with bread and water?
14 And now you say, Go and say to your lord, Elijah is here; and he will slay me.
15 Then Elijah said, As Jehovah of hosts lives, before whom I stand, I will present myself to him today.
16 Then Obadiah went to meet Ahab, and he told him. And Ahab went to meet Elijah.
17 And when Ahab saw Elijah, Ahab said to him, Is that you, the troubler of Israel?
18 And he said, I have not troubled Israel, but you and your father’s house have, in that you have forsaken the commandments of Jehovah and have gone after the Baals.
19 And now send word, and gather all Israel to me at Mount Carmel, as well as the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal and the four hundred prophets of the Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.
20 So Ahab sent word to all the children of Israel and gathered the prophets together unto Mount Carmel.
21 Then Elijah came near to all the people and said, How long will you go hopping between two opinions? If Jehovah is God, follow Him; but if Baal is, follow him. And the people did not answer him a word.
22 And Elijah said to the people, I alone am left as a prophet of Jehovah, but Baal’s prophets are four hundred and fifty men.
23 Let them therefore give us two bulls. And let them choose one bull for themselves and cut it in pieces and put it on the wood, but let them apply no fire; and I will prepare the other bull and put it on the wood, and I will apply no fire.
24 Then call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of Jehovah; and the God who answers by fire, He will be God. And all the people answered and said, The word seems good.
25 And Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, Choose one bull for yourselves, and prepare it first, for there are many of you. And call on the name of your god, but apply no fire.
26 So they took the bull which had been given them and prepared it; and they called on the name of Baal from morning until noon, saying, O Baal, answer us! But there was no voice, and no one answered. And they leaped around the altar that had been made.
27 Then at noon Elijah mocked them and said, Cry out with a loud voice, for he is a god; for he is meditating or has wandered off or is on a journey. Perhaps he is asleep and will awake.
28 And they cried out with a loud voice and cut themselves, according to their custom, with swords and spears until blood gushed out all over them.
29 And when noon had passed, they prophesied until the time of the offering up of the meal offering; but there was no voice nor any that answered nor any attention paid.
30 Then Elijah said to all the people, Come near to me. And all the people came near to him. And he repaired the altar of Jehovah which was broken down.
31 And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob (to whom the word of Jehovah came, saying, Israel shall be your name);
32 And with the stones he built an altar in the name of Jehovah, and he made a trench around the altar, with a capacity of two measures of seed.
33 And he arranged the wood and cut the bull in pieces and laid it on the wood. And he said, Fill four jars with water, and pour the water on the burnt offering and on the wood.
34 And he said, Do it a second time. And they did it a second time. And he said, Do it a third time. And they did it a third time.
35 And the water went around the altar, and he filled the trench also with water.
36 Then at the time of the offering up of the meal offering, Elijah the prophet came near and said, O Jehovah, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known today that You are God in Israel and that I am Your servant and that I have done all these things by Your word.
37 Answer me, O Jehovah; answer me, that this people may know that You, O Jehovah, are God and that You have turned their heart back again.
38 And the fire of Jehovah fell and consumed the burnt offering and the wood and the stones and the dust, and it licked up the water that was in the trench.
39 And when all the people saw this, they fell on their faces and said, Jehovah — He is God! Jehovah — He is God!
40 And Elijah said to them, Seize the prophets of Baal; let not one of them escape! And they seized them, and Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon and slaughtered them there.
41 Then Elijah said to Ahab, Go up; eat and drink, for there is the sound of an abundance of rain.
42 And Ahab went up to eat and drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel, and he bowed down on the earth and put his face between his knees.
43 And he said to his attendant, Go up now; look toward the sea. And he went up and looked and said, There is nothing. And he said seven times, Go back.
44 And at the seventh time the attendant said, Now there is a cloud, small as a man’s hand, coming up out of the sea. And Elijah said, Go up and say to Ahab, Prepare a chariot and go down, so that the rain does not stop you.
45 And in the meantime the heavens became black with clouds, and there was wind and a great rain. And Ahab mounted his chariot and went to Jezreel.
46 And the hand of Jehovah was upon Elijah; and he girded up his loins and ran before Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.
19
1 And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done and all about how he had slain all the prophets with the sword.
2 And Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, The gods do so to me and even more, if by this time tomorrow I do not make your life like the life of one of them!
3 And because he was afraid, he rose up and went away for his life; and he came to Beer-sheba, which belongs to Judah, and left his attendant there.
4 And he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness and came and sat down under a certain broom shrub; and he requested for himself that he might die and said, It is enough; now, O Jehovah, take my life, for I am no better than my fathers.
5 And he lay down and slept under the broom shrub. And suddenly an angel touched him and said to him, Rise up and eat.
6 And he looked, and there at his head was a cake, baked on hot stones, and a jar of water. And he ate and drank, and lay down again.
7 And the angel of Jehovah came again the second time and touched him and said, Rise up and eat; for the journey is too great for you.
8 And he rose up and ate and drank, and he went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb the mount of God.
9 And there he went into a cave and lodged there. And at that time the word of Jehovah came to him; and He said to him, What are you doing here, Elijah?
10 And he said, I have been very jealous for Jehovah the God of hosts; for the children of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, thrown down Your altars, and slain Your prophets with the sword; and I alone am left, and they seek to take my life.
11 And He said, Go out, and stand upon the mountain before Jehovah. And suddenly Jehovah passed by, and a great, strong wind rent the mountains and broke the rocks in pieces before Jehovah — Jehovah was not in the wind. And after the wind, an earthquake — Jehovah was not in the earthquake.
12 And after the earthquake, a fire — Jehovah was not in the fire. And after the fire, a gentle, quiet voice.
13 And when Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And then a voice came to him and said, What are you doing here, Elijah?
14 And he said, I have been very jealous for Jehovah the God of hosts; for the children of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, thrown down Your altars, and slain Your prophets with the sword; and I alone am left, and they seek to take my life.
15 And Jehovah said to him, Go; return on your way to the wilderness of Damascus; and when you come there, anoint Hazael as king over Syria;
16 And Jehu the son of Nimshi you shall anoint as king over Israel; and Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah you shall anoint as prophet in your place.
17 And him who escapes the sword of Hazael, Jehu will kill; and him who escapes the sword of Jehu, Elisha will kill.
18 Yet I have left Myself seven thousand in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed unto Baal and every mouth that has not kissed him.
19 And he went from there and found Elisha the son of Shaphat. And he was plowing with twelve yokes before him, and he was with the twelfth. And Elijah went over to him and threw his mantle upon him.
20 And he left the oxen and ran after Elijah and said, Let me kiss my father and my mother, and I will follow you. And he said to him, Go back again; for what have I done to you?
21 And he returned from him and took the yoke of oxen and slaughtered them; and he boiled their flesh with the implements of the oxen and gave it to the people, and they ate. And he rose up and went after Elijah and ministered to him.
20
1 And Ben-hadad the king of Syria assembled all his army together; and there were thirty-two kings with him, as well as horses and chariots. And he went up and besieged Samaria and fought against it.
2 And he sent messengers to the city to Ahab the king of Israel and said to him, Thus says Ben-hadad,
3 Your silver and your gold are mine; your best wives and children also are mine.
4 And the king of Israel answered and said, As you say, O my lord the king, I and all that I have are yours.
5 And the messengers came again and said, Thus speaks Ben-hadad, saying, I sent word to you, saying, You shall give me your silver and your gold and your wives and your children;
6 But tomorrow at this time I will send my servants to you, and they will search your house and your servants’ houses; and whatever is pleasant in your sight, they will put in their hand and take away.
7 And the king of Israel called all the elders of the land and said, Look now, and see how this man seeks trouble; for he sent word to me for my wives and my children and my silver and my gold; and I did not deny him.
8 And all the elders and all the people said to him, Do not listen to him, nor shall you give consent.
9 And he said to the messengers of Ben-hadad, Tell my lord the king, All that you sent for to your servant at the first I will do; but this thing I cannot do. And the messengers departed and brought word back to him.
10 And Ben-hadad sent word to him and said, The gods do so to me and even more, if the dust of Samaria will provide even a handful for all the people who follow me!
11 And the king of Israel answered and said, Tell him, Let not him who puts on his armor boast like him who takes it off.
12 And when he heard this word, as he and the kings in the tents were drinking, he said to his servants, Set yourselves in position. And they set themselves in position against the city.
13 Then at that moment a certain prophet approached Ahab the king of Israel and said, Thus says Jehovah, Have you seen all this great multitude? I am now delivering it into your hand today, and you will know that I am Jehovah.
14 And Ahab said, Through whom? And he said, Thus says Jehovah, Through the attendants of the leaders of the provinces. Then he said, Who shall begin the battle? And he said, You.
15 And he numbered the attendants of the leaders of the provinces, and they were two hundred and thirty-two; and after them he numbered all the people, all the children of Israel, seven thousand.
16 And they went out at noon; and Ben-hadad was drinking himself drunk in the tents, he and the kings, the thirty-two kings who helped him.
17 And the attendants of the leaders of the provinces went out first. And Ben-hadad sent out men, and they told him, saying, Some men have come forth from Samaria.
18 And he said, If they have come forth for peace, take them alive; or if they have come forth for war, take them alive.
19 But these had come forth from the city, the attendants of the leaders of the provinces and the army that followed them.
20 And each man struck down his opponent; and the Syrians fled, and Israel pursued them. And Ben-hadad the king of Syria escaped on a horse with the horsemen.
21 And the king of Israel went forth and struck down the horses and chariots, and he struck down the Syrians with a great slaughter.
22 And the prophet approached the king of Israel and said to him, Go; strengthen yourself, and consider and see what you should do; for at the return of the year the king of Syria will come up against you.
23 And the servants of the king of Syria said to him, Their gods are gods of the mountains; therefore they were stronger than we. But if we fight against them in the plain, we will surely be stronger than they.
24 So do this: Remove the kings, each from his place, and put governors in their places.
25 And you number an army, like the army that you lost, horse for horse and chariot for chariot; and we will fight against them in the plain. We will surely be stronger than they. And he listened to their voice and did so.
26 And at the return of the year Ben-hadad numbered the Syrians and went up to Aphek to fight with Israel.
27 And the children of Israel were numbered and supplied with food, and they went to meet them. And the children of Israel encamped before them like two little flocks of goats, but the Syrians filled the land.
28 And the man of God approached and spoke to the king of Israel and said, Thus says Jehovah, Because the Syrians have said, Jehovah is a God of the mountains, but He is not a God of the valleys, I will deliver all this great multitude into your hand; and you will know that I am Jehovah.
29 And they camped, one army against the other, for seven days. Then on the seventh day the battle was joined, and the children of Israel struck down a hundred thousand footmen of the Syrians in one day.
30 And the rest fled to Aphek, into the city; and the wall fell on the twenty-seven thousand of them who were left. And Ben-hadad fled and came into the city, hiding from one room to another.
31 And his servants said to him, Look now, we have heard that the kings of the house of Israel are merciful kings. We beg you, let us put sackcloth on our loins and ropes upon our heads, and go out to the king of Israel. Perhaps he will preserve your life.
32 And they girded sackcloth on their loins and ropes on their heads, and came to the king of Israel and said, Your servant Ben-hadad says, I beg you, preserve my life. And he said, Is he still alive? He is my brother.
33 And the men were looking for some sign and quickly caught what came from him; and they said, Ben-hadad is your brother. And he said, Go and bring him. And Ben-hadad came forth to him, and he brought him up into the chariot.
34 And Ben-hadad said to him, The cities that my father took from your father I will restore; and you shall make streets for yourself in Damascus, as my father made in Samaria. And I, said Ahab, will send you away with this treaty. So he made a treaty with him and sent him away.
35 And a certain one of the sons of the prophets said to his companion by the word of Jehovah, Strike me. But the man refused to strike him.
36 Then he said to him, Because you have not listened to the voice of Jehovah, as soon as you depart from me, the lion will strike you down. And when he had departed from him, the lion found him and struck him down.
37 Then he found another man and said, Strike me. And the man struck him violently and wounded him.
38 And the prophet departed and waited for the king by the way, and he disguised himself with a bandage over his eyes.
39 And when the king passed by, he cried out to the king and said, Your servant went out into the midst of the battle; and then a man turned aside and brought another man to me and said, Guard this man; if he is missing at all, your life will be for his life, or you will pay a talent of silver.
40 And because your servant was doing things here and there, he got away. And the king of Israel said to him, So be your judgment; you have determined it yourself.
41 Then he quickly took the bandage away from over his eyes; and the king of Israel recognized that he was one of the prophets.
42 And he said to him, Thus says Jehovah, Because you have released out of your hand the man whom I had devoted to destruction, your life shall be for his life, and your people for his people.
43 And the king of Israel went to his house sullen and vexed, and he came to Samaria.
21
1 And after these things, it so happened that Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard, which was in Jezreel, alongside the palace of Ahab the king of Samaria.
2 And Ahab spoke to Naboth, saying, Give me your vineyard, that I may have it for a vegetable garden; for it is nearby, alongside my house. And I will give you in its place a better vineyard than it; or if it seems good to you, I will give you its value in money.
3 And Naboth said to Ahab, Jehovah forbid that I give the inheritance of my fathers to you!
4 And Ahab came into his house sullen and vexed because of the word that Naboth the Jezreelite had spoken to him; for he had said, I will not give you the inheritance of my fathers. And he lay down on his bed and turned away his face and would eat no food.
5 And Jezebel his wife came to him and said to him, Why is your spirit so sullen that you will not eat any food?
6 And 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 said, I will not give you my vineyard.
7 And Jezebel his wife said to him, Do you now exercise sovereignty over Israel? Rise up, eat some food, and let your heart be glad: I will give you the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.
8 And she wrote letters in Ahab’s name and sealed them with his seal, and she sent the letters to the elders and to the nobles who dwelt with Naboth in his city.
9 And she wrote in the letters, saying, Proclaim a fast, and set Naboth at the head of the people.
10 And put two worthless fellows before him, and they shall testify against him, saying, You cursed God and the king. Then carry him out, and stone him that he may die.
11 And the men of his city, the elders and the nobles who dwelt in his city, did according to the instructions that Jezebel had sent to them, as it was written in the letters that she had sent to them.
12 They proclaimed a fast, and set Naboth at the head of the people.
13 And the two worthless fellows came and sat before him; and the worthless men testified against him, against Naboth, in the presence of the people, saying, Naboth cursed God and the king. And they carried him out of the city and stoned him with stones, and he died.
14 And they sent word to Jezebel, saying, Naboth has been stoned and is dead.
15 And when Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned and was dead, Jezebel said to Ahab, Rise up and take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, which he refused to give you for money; for Naboth is not alive but dead.
16 And 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.
17 And the word of Jehovah came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying,
18 Rise up and go down to meet Ahab the king of Israel, who is in Samaria. He is now in the vineyard of Naboth, where he has gone down to take possession of it.
19 And you shall speak to him, saying, Thus says Jehovah, Have you killed and also taken possession? Then you shall speak to him, saying, Thus says Jehovah, In the place where the dogs licked up the blood of Naboth, the dogs will lick up your blood also.
20 And Ahab said to Elijah, Have you found me, my enemy? And he said, I have found you because you have sold yourself to do what is evil in the sight of Jehovah.
21 I am now bringing evil upon you, and I will take away your posterity and will cut off from Ahab every male, bond and free, in Israel;
22 And I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat and like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah because of the provocation by which you have provoked Me to anger and caused Israel to sin.
23 And concerning Jezebel, Jehovah also spoke, saying, The dogs will eat Jezebel by the rampart of Jezreel.
24 Him of Ahab’s who dies in the city, the dogs will eat; and him who dies in the field, the birds of heaven will eat.
25 (Indeed there was none like Ahab, who sold himself to do what was evil in the sight of Jehovah because Jezebel his wife urged him on.
26 And he acted very abominably in going after idols, according to all that the Amorites did, whom Jehovah had dispossessed before the children of Israel.)
27 And when Ahab heard these words, he tore his clothes and put sackcloth upon his flesh and fasted; and he lay in sackcloth and went about carefully.
28 And the word of Jehovah came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying,
29 Do you see how Ahab humbles himself before Me? Because he humbles himself before Me, I will not bring the evil upon him in his days; in his son’s days I will bring the evil upon his house.
22
1 And they continued three years without war between Syria and Israel.
2 Then in the third year Jehoshaphat the king of Judah came down to the king of Israel.
3 And the king of Israel said to his servants, Do you know that Ramoth-gilead is ours, and yet we keep quiet without taking it out of the hand of the king of Syria?
4 And he said to Jehoshaphat, Will you go with me into battle at Ramoth-gilead? And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, I will be as you are; my people will be as your people; my horses, as your horses.
5 And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, Ask today, I beg you, for the word of Jehovah.
6 And the king of Israel assembled the prophets, about four hundred men, and said to them, Shall I go against Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall I refrain? And they said, Go up, and the Lord will give it into the king’s hand.
7 But Jehoshaphat said, Is there not yet another prophet of Jehovah here, that we might inquire of him?
8 And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, There is yet one man by whom we may inquire of Jehovah; but I hate him, for he prophesies no good concerning me, but evil. It is Micaiah the son of Imlah. And Jehoshaphat said, Let not the king say so.
9 Then the king of Israel called a certain officer and said, Quickly bring Micaiah the son of Imlah.
10 Now the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah were sitting, each on his throne, arrayed in their robes, on the threshing floor at the entrance of the gate of Samaria; and all the prophets were prophesying before them.
11 And Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah made for himself horns of iron; and he said, Thus says Jehovah, With these you will push the Syrians until you have destroyed them.
12 And all the prophets prophesied so, saying, Go up to Ramoth-gilead, and succeed; for Jehovah will deliver it into the king’s hand.
13 And the messenger who went to call Micaiah spoke to him, saying, See, the words of the prophets, being of one accord, seem good to the king. Let your word, I beg you, be like the word of one of them, and speak good.
14 And Micaiah said, As Jehovah lives, that which Jehovah says to me, that will I speak.
15 And when he came to the king, the king said to him, Micaiah, shall we go against Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall we refrain? And he said to him, Go up, and succeed; for Jehovah will deliver it into the hand of the king.
16 And the king said to him, How many times shall I adjure you to tell me nothing but the truth in the name of Jehovah?
17 And he said, I saw all Israel scattered upon the mountains, like sheep that have no shepherd. And Jehovah said, These have no master; let each of them return to his house in peace.
18 And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, Did I not tell you that he prophesies no good concerning me, but evil?
19 And Micaiah said, Hear therefore the word of Jehovah, I saw Jehovah sitting upon His throne, and all the host of heaven standing by Him, on His right hand and on His left.
20 And Jehovah said, Who shall entice Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead? And one said after this manner, and another said after that manner.
21 And there came forth a certain spirit and stood before Jehovah and said, I will entice him.
22 And Jehovah said unto him, How? And he said, I will go forth and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And He said, You shall entice him and surely prevail. Go forth, and do so.
23 So now Jehovah has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these your prophets, and Jehovah has spoken evil concerning you.
24 Then Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah approached and struck Micaiah upon the cheek and said, Which way did the Spirit of Jehovah pass from me to speak to you?
25 And Micaiah said, You will see on that day when you go from room to room to hide yourself.
26 And 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.
27 And you shall say, Thus says the king, Put this man in prison, and feed him with the bread of affliction and with the water of affliction, until I come in peace.
28 And Micaiah said, If you return in peace at all, Jehovah has not spoken by me. And he said, Listen, O peoples, all of you!
29 And the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah went up to Ramoth-gilead.
30 And 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.
31 And the king of Syria commanded the thirty-two captains of his chariots, saying, Fight neither with small nor great, but with the king of Israel only.
32 And when the captains of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, they said, Surely this is the king of Israel. And they turned against him to fight, and Jehoshaphat cried out.
33 And when the captains of the chariots perceived that he was not the king of Israel, they turned back from pursuing him.
34 And a man drew a bow at random and hit the king of Israel between the scale armor and the breastplate. And the king of Israel said to his charioteer, Turn your hand, and drive me out of the camp; for I am wounded.
35 And the battle increased that day; and the king was propped up in his chariot before the Syrians, and he died in the evening; and the blood of the wound ran out into the hollow of the chariot.
36 And the cry went throughout the army at the going down of the sun, saying, Every man to his city, and every man to his own land!
37 And the king died and was brought to Samaria. And they buried the king in Samaria.
38 And someone washed the chariot by the pool of Samaria; and the dogs licked his blood where the harlots bathed, according to the word of Jehovah, which He had spoken.
39 And the rest of the acts of Ahab and all that he did and the ivory house that he built and all the cities that he built, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
40 And Ahab slept with his fathers; and Ahaziah his son reigned in his place.
41 And Jehoshaphat the son of Asa began to reign over Judah in the fourth year of Ahab the king of Israel.
42 Jehoshaphat 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.
43 And he walked in all the way of Asa his father; he turned not aside from it, doing what was right in the sight of Jehovah. Nevertheless the high places were not removed; the people offered sacrifices and burned incense still on the high places.
44 And Jehoshaphat made peace with the king of Israel.
45 And 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?
46 And the remainder of the male cult prostitutes, which were left in the days of his father Asa, he put away from out of the land.
47 And there was no king in Edom; a deputy was king.
48 Jehoshaphat made ships of Tarshish to go to Ophir for gold; but they did not go, for the ships were wrecked at Ezion-geber.
49 Then Ahaziah the son of Ahab said to Jehoshaphat, Let my servants go with your servants in the ships. But Jehoshaphat was not willing.
50 And 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.
51 Ahaziah the son of Ahab began to reign over Israel in Samaria the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah; and he reigned two years over Israel.
52 And he did what was evil in the sight of Jehovah 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 caused Israel to sin.
53 And he served Baal and worshipped him and provoked Jehovah the God of Israel to anger, according to all that his father had done.