1 Kings 15:27

27 Ba'asha the son of Ahi'jah, of the house of Is'sachar, conspired against him; and Ba'asha struck him down at Gib'bethon, which belonged to the Philistines; for Nadab and all Israel were laying siege to Gib'bethon.

1 Kings 15:27 Meaning and Commentary

1 Kings 15:27

And Baasha the son of Ahijah, of the house of Issachar
A man of that tribe; but who he was, or his father, is nowhere else said, very probably an officer in Nadab's army:

conspired against him;
laid a scheme to take away his life, and seize the kingdom:

and Baasha smote him at Gibbethon;
a city in the tribe of Dan, ( Joshua 19:44 )

which belongeth to the Philistines;
it was a city given to the Levites, ( Joshua 21:23 ) and they being driven from it by Jeroboam, the Philistines seized on it, or had heretofore made a conquest of it; and Nadab was desirous of getting it out of their hands, and therefore besieged it, as follows:

for Nadab and all Israel laid siege to Gibbethon;
and while he was besieging it, Baasha took the opportunity to slay him, where his carcass lay exposed to dogs, or fowls of the air, and had no burial, as Ahijah predicted, ( 1 Kings 14:11 1 Kings 14:13 ) .

1 Kings 15:27 In-Context

25 Nadab the son of Jerobo'am began to reign over Israel in the second year of Asa king of Judah; and he reigned over Israel two years.
26 He did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, and walked in the way of his father, and in his sin which he made Israel to sin.
27 Ba'asha the son of Ahi'jah, of the house of Is'sachar, conspired against him; and Ba'asha struck him down at Gib'bethon, which belonged to the Philistines; for Nadab and all Israel were laying siege to Gib'bethon.
28 So Ba'asha killed him in the third year of Asa king of Judah, and reigned in his stead.
29 And as soon as he was king, he killed all the house of Jerobo'am; he left to the house of Jerobo'am not one that breathed, until he had destroyed it, according to the word of the LORD which he spoke by his servant Ahi'jah the Shi'lonite;
Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1952 [2nd edition, 1971] by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.