CHAPTER 21
1 Forsooth after these words, in that time, the vinery [or vine] of Naboth of Jezreel, that was in Jezreel, was beside the palace of Ahab, king of Samaria.
2 Therefore Ahab spake to Naboth, and said, Give thou to me thy vineyard, that I make to me thereof a garden of worts, for it is nigh to me, and nigh mine house; and I shall give to thee a better vinery [or vineyard] for it; either if thou guessest it more profitable to thee, I shall give thee the price of silver, as much as it is worth.
3 To whom Naboth answered, The Lord be merciful to me, that I give not to thee the heritage of my fathers.
4 Therefore Ahab came into his house, having indignation, and gnashing on the word which Naboth of Jezreel had spoken to him, and said, I shall not give to thee the heritage of my fathers. And Ahab casted down himself into his bed, and turned away his face to the wall, and ate not bread.
5 And Jezebel, his wife, entered to him, and said to him, What is this thing, whereof thy soul is made sorry? and why eatest thou not bread?
6 Which answered to her, I spake to Naboth of Jezreel, and I said to him, Give thy vineyard to me for money taken, either if it pleaseth thee, I shall give to thee a better vinery [or vineyard] for it. And he said, I shall not give to thee my vineyard.
7 Therefore Jezebel, his wife, said to him, Thou art of great authority, and thou governest well [the realm of] Israel; rise thou, and eat bread, and be thou patient, either comforted; I shall give to thee the vinery [or vineyard] of Naboth of Jezreel.
8 Therefore she wrote letters in the name of Ahab, and sealed those [or them] with the ring of him; and she sent to the greater men in birth, and to the best men, that were in the city of Naboth, and dwelled with him.
9 And this was the sentence of the letters; Preach ye fasting, and make ye Naboth to sit among the first men of the people;
10 and send ye privily two men, the sons of Belial, against him, and say they false witnessing, Naboth hath blessed God, and the king*, that is, hath cursed; and lead ye out him, and stone ye him, and die he so.
11 Therefore his citizens, the greater men in birth, and the best men that dwelled with him in the city, did as Jezebel had commanded [to them], and as it was written in the letters, which she had sent to them.
12 They preached fasting, and made Naboth to sit among the first men of the people;
13 and when two men, sons of the devil, were brought, they made them to sit against him, and they, that is, as men of the devil, said false witnessing against him before all the multitude, Naboth blessed God, and the king, that is, Naboth hath cursed God, and the king; for which thing they led him without the city, and killed him with stones.
14 And they sent to Jezebel, and said, Naboth is stoned, and is dead.
15 Forsooth it was done, when Jezebel had heard Naboth stoned and dead, she spake to Ahab, Rise thou, take in possession the vinery [or vineyard] of Naboth of Jezreel, which would not assent to thee, and give it for [the] money taken; for Naboth liveth not, but is dead.
16 And when Ahab had heard this, that is, Naboth to be dead, he rose, and went down into the vinery [or vineyard] of Naboth of Jezreel, to have it into possession.
17 Therefore the word of the Lord was made to Elijah of Tishbe, and said,
18 Rise thou, go down into the coming of Ahab, king of Israel, which is in Samaria; lo! he goeth down to the vinery [or vineyard] of Naboth, that he have it in possession.
19 And thou shalt speak to him, and say, The Lord saith these things, Thou hast slain Naboth, furthermore and thou hast taken his vineyard in possession; and after these things thou shalt add, [These things saith the Lord], In this place, wherein dogs licked the blood of Naboth, they shall lick also thy blood.
20 And Ahab said to Elijah, Whether thou hast found me thine enemy? And Elijah said, I have found thee so, for thou art sold to the devil that thou shouldest do evil in the sight of the Lord.
21 Therefore the Lord saith these things, Lo! I shall bring in upon thee evil, and I shall cut away thine hinder things, and I shall slay of Ahab a pisser to the wall, and the imprisoned, and the last in Israel;
22 and I shall give thine house to be as the house of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, and as the house of Baasha, the son of Ahijah; for thou didest evil to excite [or stir] me to wrathfulness, and madest Israel to do sin.
23 But also the Lord spake of Jezebel, and said, Dogs shall eat Jezebel in the field of Jezreel;
24 if Ahab shall die in the city, dogs shall eat him; soothly if he shall die in the field, birds of the air shall eat him.
25 Therefore none other was such as Ahab, that was sold to do evil in the sight of the Lord; for Jezebel his wife excited [or stirred] him thereto;
26 and he was made abominable, in so much that he followed the idols that Amorites made, which men the Lord wasted from before the face of the sons of Israel.
27 Therefore when Ahab had heard these words, he rent his cloth, and covered his flesh with an hair-shirt, and he fasted, and slept in a sackcloth, and went with the head cast down.
28 And the word of the Lord was made to Elijah of Tishbe, and said,
29 Whether thou hast not seen Ahab made low before me? Therefore for he is made low for the cause of me, I shall not bring in evil in his days, but in the days of his son I shall bring in evil to his house.
* CHAPTER 21:10 That is, ‘cursed’, as in the 2nd Chapter ofJob, ‘Bless thou God, and die thou’; for the horror of cursing, Jews signified it by the contrary name.