| New Living Translation | NET Bible |
| 1Now there was a man named Naboth, from Jezreel, who owned a vineyard in Jezreel beside the palace of King Ahab of Samaria. | 1After this the following episode took place. Naboth the Jezreelite owned a vineyard in Jezreel adjacent to the palace of King Ahab of Samaria. |
| 2One day Ahab said to Naboth, “Since your vineyard is so convenient to my palace, I would like to buy it to use as a vegetable garden. I will give you a better vineyard in exchange, or if you prefer, I will pay you for it.” | 2Ahab said to Naboth, "Give me your vineyard so I can make a vegetable garden out of it, for it is adjacent to my palace. I will give you an even better vineyard in its place, or if you prefer, I will pay you silver for it." |
| 3But Naboth replied, “The LORD forbid that I should give you the inheritance that was passed down by my ancestors.” | 3But Naboth replied to Ahab, "The LORD forbid that I should sell you my ancestral inheritance." |
| 4So Ahab went home angry and sullen because of Naboth’s answer. The king went to bed with his face to the wall and refused to eat! | 4So Ahab went into his palace, bitter and angry that Naboth the Jezreelite had said, "I will not sell to you my ancestral inheritance." He lay down on his bed, pouted, and would not eat. |
| 5“What’s the matter?” his wife Jezebel asked him. “What’s made you so upset that you’re not eating?” | 5Then his wife Jezebel came in and said to him, "Why do you have a bitter attitude and refuse to eat?" |
| 6“I asked Naboth to sell me his vineyard or trade it, but he refused!” Ahab told her. | 6He answered her, "While I was talking to Naboth the Jezreelite, I said to him, 'Sell me your vineyard for silver, or if you prefer, I will give you another vineyard in its place.' But he said, 'I will not sell you my vineyard.'" |
| 7“Are you the king of Israel or not?” Jezebel demanded. “Get up and eat something, and don’t worry about it. I’ll get you Naboth’s vineyard!” | 7His wife Jezebel said to him, "You are the king of Israel! Get up, eat some food, and have a good time. I will get the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite for you." |
| 8So she wrote letters in Ahab’s name, sealed them with his seal, and sent them to the elders and other leaders of the town where Naboth lived. | 8She wrote out orders, signed Ahab's name to them, and sealed them with his seal. She then sent the orders to the leaders and to the nobles who lived in Naboth's city. |
| 9In her letters she commanded: “Call the citizens together for a time of fasting, and give Naboth a place of honor. | 9This is what she wrote: "Observe a time of fasting and seat Naboth in front of the people. |
| 10And then seat two scoundrels across from him who will accuse him of cursing God and the king. Then take him out and stone him to death.” | 10Also seat two villains opposite him and have them testify, 'You cursed God and the king.' Then take him out and stone him to death." |
| 11So the elders and other town leaders followed the instructions Jezebel had written in the letters. | 11The men of the city, the leaders and the nobles who lived there, followed the written orders Jezebel had sent them. |
| 12They called for a fast and put Naboth at a prominent place before the people. | 12They observed a time of fasting and put Naboth in front of the people. |
| 13Then the two scoundrels came and sat down across from him. And they accused Naboth before all the people, saying, “He cursed God and the king.” So he was dragged outside the town and stoned to death. | 13The two villains arrived and sat opposite him. Then the villains testified against Naboth right before the people, saying, "Naboth cursed God and the king." So they dragged him outside the city and stoned him to death. |
| 14The town leaders then sent word to Jezebel, “Naboth has been stoned to death.” | 14Then they reported to Jezebel, "Naboth has been stoned to death." |
| 15When Jezebel heard the news, she said to Ahab, “You know the vineyard Naboth wouldn’t sell you? Well, you can have it now! He’s dead!” | 15When Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned to death, she said to Ahab, "Get up, take possession of the vineyard Naboth the Jezreelite refused to sell you for silver, for Naboth is no longer alive; he's dead." |
| 16So Ahab immediately went down to the vineyard of Naboth to claim it. | 16When Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, he got up and went down to take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite. |
| 17But the LORD said to Elijah, | 17The LORD told Elijah the Tishbite: |
| 18“Go down to meet King Ahab of Israel, who rules in Samaria. He will be at Naboth’s vineyard in Jezreel, claiming it for himself. | 18"Get up, go down and meet King Ahab of Israel who lives in Samaria. He is at the vineyard of Naboth; he has gone down there to take possession of it. |
| 19Give him this message: ‘This is what the LORD says: Wasn’t it enough that you killed Naboth? Must you rob him, too? Because you have done this, dogs will lick your blood at the very place where they licked the blood of Naboth!’” | 19Say to him, 'This is what the LORD says: "Haven't you committed murder and taken possession of the property of the deceased?"' Then say to him, 'This is what the LORD says: "In the spot where dogs licked up Naboth's blood they will also lick up your blood--yes, yours!"'" |
| 20“So, my enemy, you have found me!” Ahab exclaimed to Elijah. “Yes,” Elijah answered, “I have come because you have sold yourself to what is evil in the LORD’s sight. | 20When Elijah arrived, Ahab said to him, "So, you have found me, my enemy!" Elijah replied, "I have found you, because you are committed to doing evil in the sight of the LORD. |
| 21So now the LORD says, ‘I will bring disaster on you and consume you. I will destroy every one of your male descendants, slave and free alike, anywhere in Israel! | 21The LORD says, 'Look, I am ready to bring disaster on you. I will destroy you and cut off every last male belonging to Ahab in Israel, including even the weak and incapacitated. |
| 22I am going to destroy your family as I did the family of Jeroboam son of Nebat and the family of Baasha son of Ahijah, for you have made me very angry and have led Israel into sin.’ | 22I will make your dynasty like those of Jeroboam son of Nebat and Baasha son of Ahijah because you angered me and made Israel sin.' |
| 23“And regarding Jezebel, the LORD says, ‘Dogs will eat Jezebel’s body at the plot of land in Jezreel. ’ | 23The LORD says this about Jezebel, 'Dogs will devour Jezebel by the outer wall of Jezreel.' |
| 24“The members of Ahab’s family who die in the city will be eaten by dogs, and those who die in the field will be eaten by vultures.” | 24As for Ahab's family, dogs will eat the ones who die in the city, and the birds of the sky will eat the ones who die in the country." |
| 25(No one else so completely sold himself to what was evil in the LORD’s sight as Ahab did under the influence of his wife Jezebel. | 25(There had never been anyone like Ahab, who was firmly committed to doing evil in the sight of the LORD, urged on by his wife Jezebel. |
| 26His worst outrage was worshiping idols just as the Amorites had done—the people whom the LORD had driven out from the land ahead of the Israelites.) | 26He was so wicked he worshiped the disgusting idols, just like the Amorites whom the LORD had driven out from before the Israelites.) |
| 27But when Ahab heard this message, he tore his clothing, dressed in burlap, and fasted. He even slept in burlap and went about in deep mourning. | 27When Ahab heard these words, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth, and fasted. He slept in sackcloth and walked around dejected. |
| 28Then another message from the LORD came to Elijah: | 28The LORD said to Elijah the Tishbite, |
| 29“Do you see how Ahab has humbled himself before me? Because he has done this, I will not do what I promised during his lifetime. It will happen to his sons; I will destroy his dynasty.” | 29"Have you noticed how Ahab shows remorse before me? Because he shows remorse before me, I will not bring disaster on his dynasty during his lifetime, but during the reign of his son." |
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