1 Kings 21:1-16

New English Translation

Ahab Murders Naboth

21 After this the following episode took place.^[a] Naboth the Jezreelite owned a vineyard in Jezreel adjacent to the palace of King Ahab of Samaria.^{[b] 2} Ahab 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,^[c] I will pay you silver for it.”^{[d] 3} But Naboth replied to Ahab, “The Lord forbid that I should sell you my ancestral inheritance.”^[e]

⁴ So Ahab went into his palace, bitter and angry that Naboth the Jezreelite had said,^[f] “I will not sell to you my ancestral inheritance.”^[g] He lay down on his bed, pouted,^[h] and would not eat. ⁵ Then his wife Jezebel came in and said to him, “Why do you have a bitter attitude and refuse to eat?” ⁶ He 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.’”^{[i] 7} His wife Jezebel said to him, “You are the king of Israel!^[j] Get up, eat some food, and have a good time.^[k] I will get the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite for you.”

⁸ She wrote out orders,^[l] signed Ahab’s name to them,^[m] and sealed them with his seal. She then sent the orders^[n] to the leaders^[o] and to the nobles who lived in Naboth’s city.^{[p] 9} This is what she wrote:^[q] “Observe a time of fasting and seat Naboth in front of the people. ¹⁰ Also seat two villains opposite him and have them testify, ‘You cursed God and the king.’ Then take him out and stone him to death.”

¹¹ The men of the^[r] city, the leaders,^[s] and the nobles who lived there^[t] followed the written orders Jezebel had sent them.^{[u] 12} They observed a time of fasting and put Naboth in front of the people. ¹³ The 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^[v] outside the city and stoned him to death.^{[w] 14} Then they reported to Jezebel, “Naboth has been stoned to death.”^[x]

¹⁵ When Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned to death, she^[y] 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.” ¹⁶ When Ahab heard that Naboth was dead,^[z] he got up and went down to take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.