1 Kings 21:17-29

Elijah Responds to Ahab

17 The word of Yahweh came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying,
18 "Arise, go down to meet Ahab the king of Israel who is in Samaria. Look in the vineyard of Naboth, where he has gone to take possession of it.
19 You shall say to him, 'Thus says Yahweh: "Have you committed murder and also taken possession?" ' You shall also say to him, 'Thus says Yahweh: "In the place where the dogs licked the blood of Naboth, the dogs will also lick your blood." '"
20 Then Ahab said to Elijah, "Have you found me, my enemy?" He said, "I have found you because you have sold yourself to do evil in the eyes of Yahweh.
21 'Look, I [am] bringing disaster on you, and I will sweep away after you. I will cut off for Ahab {every male} in Israel, bond or free.
22 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 you made me angry} and have caused Israel to sin.'
23 Moreover, concerning Jezebel, Yahweh has said, 'The dogs will eat Jezebel in the outer rampart of Jezreel.'
24 The one who dies for Ahab in the city, the dogs will eat; the one who dies in the open country, the birds of heaven will eat."
25 Truly, there was no one like Ahab who had sold himself by doing evil in the eyes of Yahweh, whose wife Jezebel urged him on.
26 Also, he acted very abominably by going after idols like all the Amorites had done whom Yahweh had driven out from before the {Israelites}."
27 When Ahab heard these words, he tore his clothes and put sackcloth over his flesh, fasted, lay in the sackcloth, and went about dejectedly.
28 Then the word of Yahweh came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying,
29 "Have you seen how Ahab has humbled himself before me? Because he has humbled himself before me, I will not bring disaster in his days. I will bring the disaster on his house in the days of his son."

1 Kings 21:17-29 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO 1 KINGS 21

In this chapter we have an account of Ahab's design to have Naboth's vineyard, for which he offered him another, or the value of that, but Naboth refusing to part with it, Ahab fell sick, 1Ki 21:1-4, the reason of which being found out by Jezebel, she devised means to get Naboth put to death under the colour of justice for blasphemy, 1Ki 21:5-14, and then bid Ahab go and take possession of the vineyard, where he was met by Elijah, who denounced the judgments of God upon him, and Jezebel, and all his family, for his injustice, 1Ki 21:15-26, but he humbling himself, the evil threatened was deferred to the days of his son, 1Ki 21:27-29.

Footnotes 3

  • [a]. "Literally "the one who urinates against the wall"
  • [b]. Literally "for the provocation which you have provoked"
  • [c]. Literally "sons/children of Israel"
Scripture quotations marked (LEB) are from the Lexham English Bible. Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software.