Old/New Testament
Ahab Takes Naboth’s Vineyard
21 After these things had happened, this is what followed. A man named Naboth owned a vineyard in Jezreel, near the palace of Ahab king of Israel. 2 One day Ahab said to Naboth, “Give me your vineyard. It is near my palace, and I want to make it into a vegetable garden. I will give you a better vineyard in its place, or, if you prefer, I will pay you what it is worth.”
3 Naboth answered, “·May the Lord keep me from ever giving my land to you. It belongs to my family [L The Lord forbid that I should give you the inheritance of my fathers/ancestors].”
4 Ahab went home ·angry and upset [resentful and sullen], because he did not like what Naboth from Jezreel had said. (Naboth had said, “I will not give you ·my family’s land [L the inheritance of my fathers/ancestors].”) Ahab lay down on his bed, turned his face to the wall, and refused to eat.
5 His wife, Jezebel, came in and asked him, “Why are you so ·upset [sullen; depressed] that you refuse to eat?”
6 Ahab answered, “I talked to Naboth, the man from Jezreel. I said, ‘Sell me your vineyard, or, if you prefer, I will give you another vineyard for it.’ But Naboth refused.”
7 Jezebel answered, “Is this how you ·rule as king [reign] over Israel? Get up, eat something, and cheer up. I will get Naboth’s vineyard for you.”
8 So Jezebel wrote some letters, signed Ahab’s name to them, and used his own seal to seal them. Then she sent them to the elders and ·important men [nobles] who lived in Naboth’s town. 9 The letter she wrote said: “Declare a day during which the people are to fast. Call the people together, and give Naboth a place of honor among them. 10 Seat two ·troublemakers [scoundrels] across from him, and have them say ·they heard Naboth speak against [“You cursed…”] God and the king. Then take Naboth out of the city and ·kill him with stones [stone him to death].”
11 The elders and important men of Jezreel obeyed Jezebel’s command, just as she wrote in the letters. 12 They declared a ·special day on which the people were to fast [fast]. And they put Naboth in a place of honor before the people. 13 Two ·troublemakers [scoundrels] sat across from Naboth and said in front of everybody ·that they had heard him speak against [“You cursed…”] God and the king. So the people carried Naboth out of the city and ·killed him with stones [stoned him to death]. 14 Then the leaders sent a message to Jezebel, saying, “Naboth has been ·killed [L stoned and is dead].”
15 When Jezebel heard that Naboth had been ·killed [L stoned and was dead], she told Ahab, “Naboth of Jezreel is no longer alive; he’s dead. Now you may go and take for yourself the vineyard he would not sell to you.” 16 When Ahab heard that Naboth of Jezreel was dead, he got up and went to the vineyard to take ·it for his own [possession of it].
17 At this time the ·Lord spoke his word [L word of the Lord came] to the prophet Elijah the Tishbite. The Lord said, 18 “Go to Ahab king of Israel in Samaria. He is at Naboth’s vineyard, where he has gone to take ·it as his own [possession of it]. 19 Tell Ahab that I, the Lord, say to him, ‘·You have [L Have you not…?] murdered Naboth and taken his land. So I tell you this: In the same place the dogs licked up Naboth’s blood, they will also lick up your blood [1 Kin. 22:37–38]!’”
20 When Ahab saw Elijah, he said, “So you have found me, my enemy!”
Elijah answered, “Yes, I have found you. You ·have always chosen to do what the Lord says is wrong [L sold yourself to do evil in the eyes/sight of the Lord]. 21 So the Lord says to you, ‘I will ·soon destroy you [bring evil/disaster on you]. I will ·kill you [sweep you away] and ·every [L cut off every] ·male [L one who urinates against the wall] in your ·family [L house], both slave and free. 22 Your ·family [L house] will be like the ·family [L house] of King Jeroboam son of Nebat and like the ·family [L house] of King Baasha son of Ahijah. I will destroy you, because you have ·made me angry [provoked/aroused me to anger] and have led the people of Israel to sin.’
23 “And the Lord also says, ‘Dogs will eat the body of Jezebel in the ·city [fields; boundaries] of Jezreel [2 Kin. 9:30–37].’
24 “Anyone in Ahab’s ·family [L house] who dies in the city will be eaten by dogs, and anyone who dies in the ·fields [country] will be eaten by ·birds [vultures; L birds of the air/sky; 16:4].”
25 There was no one like Ahab who ·had chosen so often [L sold himself] to do ·what the Lord said was wrong [L evil in the eyes/sight of the Lord], ·because his wife Jezebel influenced him to do evil [urged on by his wife Jezebel]. 26 Ahab ·sinned terribly [acted most detestably/abominably] by ·worshiping [following; going after] idols, just as the Amorites did. And the Lord had ·taken away their land and given it to [driven them out before] the people of Israel.
27 After Elijah finished speaking, Ahab tore his clothes. He put on ·rough cloth [sackcloth; burlap; C indicating sorrow and contrition] and fasted, and even slept in ·the rough cloth [sackcloth; burlap] and walked about ·dejectedly [despondently; with slow steps].
28 The ·Lord spoke his word [L word of the Lord came] to Elijah the Tishbite: 29 “·I see that [L Have you seen how…?] Ahab ·is now sorry for what he has done [has now humbled himself before me]. So I will not ·cause the trouble to come to him during his life [L bring this evil/disaster on him during his days], but I will wait until his son is king. Then I will bring this ·trouble [evil; disaster] to Ahab’s ·family [L house].”
The Death of Ahab(A)
22 For three years there was ·peace [L no war] between Israel and Aram. 2 During the third year Jehoshaphat king of Judah went to visit Ahab king of Israel.
3 At that time Ahab asked his ·officers [officials; L servants], “Do you ·remember [realize; know] that the king of Aram took Ramoth in Gilead from us? Why have we done nothing to get it back?” 4 So Ahab asked King Jehoshaphat, “Will you go with me to fight at Ramoth in Gilead [C Jehoshaphat was a subordinate treaty partner with Ahab]?”
“I will go with you,” Jehoshaphat answered. “My ·soldiers are yours [L people are your people], and my horses are ·yours [L your horses].” 5 Jehoshaphat also said to Ahab, “But first we should ·ask if this is the Lord’s will [L inquire for the word of the Lord].”
6 Ahab called about four hundred prophets together and asked them, “Should I go to war against Ramoth in Gilead or ·not [hold back]?”
They answered, “Go, because the Lord will hand them over to you.”
7 But Jehoshaphat asked, “Isn’t there a prophet of the Lord here [C indicating skepticism about their reliability]? Let’s ask him what we should do.”
8 Then King Ahab said to Jehoshaphat, “There is one other prophet. We could ask the Lord through him, but I hate him. He never prophesies anything good about me, ·but something bad [only evil]. He is Micaiah son of Imlah.”
Jehoshaphat said, “King Ahab, you shouldn’t say that!”
9 So Ahab king of Israel told one of his officers to bring Micaiah son of Imlah to him at once.
10 Ahab king of Israel and Jehoshaphat king of Judah had on their royal robes and were sitting on their thrones at the threshing floor, near the entrance to the gate of Samaria. All the prophets were standing before them, ·speaking their messages [prophesying]. 11 Zedekiah son of Kenaanah had made some iron horns. He said to Ahab, “·This is what the Lord says [T Thus says the Lord], ‘You will use these horns to ·fight [gore] the Arameans until they are destroyed.’”
12 All the other prophets said the same thing. “Attack Ramoth in Gilead and ·win [triumph; prosper], because the Lord will hand the Arameans over to you.”
13 The messenger who had gone to get Micaiah said to him, “All the ·other prophets are saying King Ahab will succeed [words of the prophets are favorable to the king]. ·You should agree with them and give the king a good answer [Let your word be like theirs and speak favorably].”
14 But Micaiah answered, “As surely as the Lord lives, I ·can tell him [will say] only what the Lord tells me.”
15 When Micaiah came to Ahab, the king asked him, “Micaiah, should we attack Ramoth in Gilead or ·not [hold back]?”
Micaiah answered, “Attack and ·win [triumph; prosper]! The Lord will hand them over to you [C Micaiah must have spoken sarcastically].”
16 But Ahab said to Micaiah, “How many times ·do I have to tell you [must I make you swear] to speak only the truth to me in the name of the Lord?”
17 So Micaiah answered, “I saw ·the army of [all] Israel scattered over the ·hills [mountains] like sheep without a shepherd. The Lord said, ‘They have no ·leaders [master; C foreshadowing Ahab’s death]. They should go home ·and not fight [L in peace].’”
18 Then Ahab king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “I told you! He never prophesies anything good about me, but only ·bad [evil].”
19 But Micaiah said, “Hear the ·message from [L word of] the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on his throne with his heavenly ·army [hosts] standing near him on his right and on his left. 20 The Lord said, ‘Who will ·trick [entice; deceive] Ahab into attacking Ramoth in Gilead where he will ·be killed [fall]?’
“Some ·said [suggested; answered] one thing; some ·said [suggested; answered] another. 21 Then one spirit came and stood before the Lord and said, ‘I will ·trick [entice; deceive] him.’
22 “The Lord asked, ‘How will you do it?’
“The spirit answered, ‘I will go to Ahab’s prophets and ·make them tell lies [L be a lying/deceiving spirit in their mouths].’
“So the Lord said, ‘You will succeed in ·tricking [enticing; deceiving] him. Go and do it.’”
23 Micaiah said, “Ahab, the Lord has ·made your prophets lie to you [L put a deceiving/lying spirit in the mouth of your prophets], and the Lord has ·decided [pronounced; proclaimed; decreed] that disaster ·should come to [for; on] you.”
24 Then Zedekiah son of Kenaanah went up to Micaiah and slapped him in the ·face [cheek]. Zedekiah said, “·Has [How did] the Lord’s spirit ·left [pass from] me to speak through you?”
25 Micaiah answered, “You will find out on the day you go to hide in an ·inside [secret] room [C when the prophesied disaster strikes].”
26 Then Ahab king of Israel ordered, “Take Micaiah and ·send [return] him to Amon, the governor of the city, and to Joash, the king’s son. 27 Tell them I said to put this man in prison and ·give [feed] him only bread and water until I return safely [C from the upcoming battle].”
28 Micaiah said, “Ahab, if you come back safely, the Lord has not spoken through me. ·Remember [Mark; Listen to] my words, all you people!”
29 So Ahab king of Israel and Jehoshaphat king of Judah ·went to [marched on] Ramoth in Gilead. 30 King Ahab said to Jehoshaphat, “When I go into battle, I will ·wear other clothes [disguise myself] so no one will recognize me. But you wear your royal clothes.” So Ahab ·wore other clothes [disguised himself] and went into battle [22:15].
31 The king of Aram had ordered his thirty-two chariot commanders, “Don’t fight with anyone—·important or unimportant [L small or great]—except the king of Israel.” 32 When these chariot commanders saw Jehoshaphat, they thought he was certainly the king of Israel, so they turned to attack him. But when Jehoshaphat began shouting, 33 they saw he was not King Ahab, and they stopped chasing him.
34 By chance, a soldier shot an arrow and hit Ahab king of Israel ·between the pieces [in a gap/joint] of his armor. King Ahab said to his chariot driver, “Turn around and get me out of the battle, because I am ·hurt [badly wounded]!” 35 The battle ·continued [raged] all day. King Ahab was ·held [propped] up in his chariot and faced the Arameans. His blood from the wound flowed down to the bottom of the chariot. That evening he died. 36 Near sunset a cry went out through the army of Israel: “Each man go back to his own city and land [C an indication of panic and defeat].”
37 In that way King Ahab ·died [L lay down/T slept with his fathers/ancestors]. His body was carried to Samaria and buried there. 38 The men cleaned Ahab’s chariot at a pool in Samaria ·where prostitutes bathed [or and the prostitutes bathed in his blood], and the dogs licked his blood from the chariot. These things happened as the ·Lord had said they would [word of the Lord had spoken].
39 Everything else Ahab did ·is [L is it not…?] written in the book of the ·history [chronicles; annals; 14:19] of the kings of Israel. It tells about the ·palace Ahab built and decorated with ivory [L ivory house] and the cities he built. 40 So Ahab ·died [L lay down/T slept with his fathers/ancestors], and his son Ahaziah became king in his place.
Jehoshaphat King of Judah(B)
41 Jehoshaphat son of Asa became king of Judah during Ahab’s fourth year as king of Israel. 42 Jehoshaphat was thirty-five years old when he became king, and he ·ruled [reigned] in Jerusalem for twenty-five years. His mother’s name was Azubah daughter of Shilhi. 43 Jehoshaphat ·was good, like [L walked/followed in the way/path of] his father Asa, and he did ·what the Lord said was right [L right in the eyes/sight of the Lord]. But Jehoshaphat did not destroy the ·places where gods were worshiped [L high places; 3:2], so the people continued offering sacrifices and burning incense there. 44 Jehoshaphat was at peace with the king of Israel. 45 ·Jehoshaphat fought many wars, and these wars and his successes are [L Concerning the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat and his power and the wars he waged, are they not…?] written in the book of the ·history [chronicles; annals; 14:19] of the kings of Judah. 46 There were male prostitutes still in the places of worship from the days of his father, Asa [14:24]. So Jehoshaphat ·forced them to leave [banished/expelled/or exterminated them].
47 During this time the land of Edom had no king; it was ruled by a ·governor [deputy].
48 King Jehoshaphat built ·trading ships [ships of Tarshish] to sail to Ophir for gold. But the ships were wrecked at Ezion Geber, so they never set sail. 49 Ahaziah son of Ahab went to help Jehoshaphat, offering to give Jehoshaphat some men to sail with his men, but Jehoshaphat refused.
50 Jehoshaphat ·died [L lay down/T slept with his fathers/ancestors] and was buried with his ancestors in the City of David [C Jerusalem], his ·ancestor [father]. Then his son Jehoram became king in his place.
Ahaziah King of Israel
51 Ahaziah son of Ahab became king of Israel in Samaria during Jehoshaphat’s seventeenth year as king over Judah. Ahaziah ·ruled [reigned] Israel for two years, 52 and he did ·what the Lord said was wrong [L evil in the eyes/sight of the Lord]. He ·did the same evil as [L walked in the way/path of his] his father Ahab, his mother Jezebel, and Jeroboam son of Nebat. All these rulers led the people of Israel into more sin. 53 Ahaziah worshiped and served the god Baal, and this ·made the Lord, the God of Israel, very angry [provoked/aroused the Lord, the God of Israel to anger], just as his father had done.
Jesus Is Crucified(A)
26 As they led Jesus away, Simon, a man from Cyrene [C a port city in North Africa (modern Libya)], was coming in from the ·fields [countryside; country; C Simon may be a Jewish pilgrim visiting Jerusalem for Passover or an immigrant living there]. They forced him to carry Jesus’ cross and to walk behind him.
27 A large crowd of people was following Jesus, including some women who were ·sad [mourning] and ·crying [wailing; lamenting] for him. 28 But Jesus turned and said to them, “·Women [L Daughters] of Jerusalem, don’t ·cry [weep] for me. ·Cry [Weep] for yourselves and for your children. 29 [L For look/T behold] The ·time is [days are] coming when people will say, ‘Blessed are ·the women who cannot have children [L the barren women and the wombs that never gave birth] and ·who have no babies to nurse [L the breasts that have never nursed].’ 30 Then people will say to the mountains, ‘Fall on us!’ And they will say to the hills, ‘·Cover [Bury] us [Hos. 10:8]!’ 31 If they act like this now when ·life is good [L the tree is green], what will happen when ·bad times come [L it is dry; C probably an allusion to the siege and destruction of Jerusalem in ad 70]?”
32 There were also two criminals led out with Jesus to be ·put to death [executed]. 33 When they came to a place called the Skull, the soldiers crucified Jesus and the criminals—one on his right and the other on his left. 34 Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, because they don’t know what they are doing.”[a]
The soldiers threw lots [C similar to dice] to decide who would get his clothes [Ps. 22:18]. 35 The people stood there watching. And the leaders ·made fun of [sneered at; mocked] Jesus, saying, “He saved others. Let him save himself if he is ·God’s Chosen One, the Christ [or God’s Messiah, the Chosen One].”
36 The soldiers also ·made fun of [mocked] him, coming to Jesus and offering him some ·vinegar [sour wine]. 37 They said, “If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself!” 38 ·At the top of the cross these words were written [L Above him there was also an inscription]: this is the king of the jews.
39 One of the criminals ·on a cross [L who was hanging there] began to ·shout insults at [slander; blaspheme] Jesus: “Aren’t you the ·Christ [Messiah]? Then save yourself and us.”
40 But the other criminal ·stopped [rebuked] him and said, “·You should [L Don’t you…?] fear God! You are getting the same punishment he is. 41 We are punished justly, getting what we deserve for what we did. But this man has done nothing wrong.” 42 Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
43 Jesus said to him, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise [C heaven or the presence of God].”
Jesus Dies
44 It was about ·noon [L the sixth hour; C hours were counted from dawn, about 6 AM], and the whole land became dark until ·three o’clock in the afternoon [L the ninth hour], 45 because the sun did not shine. The curtain in the Temple [C dividing the Most Holy Place from the rest of the Temple] was torn ·in two [down the middle]. 46 Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Father, ·I give you my life [L into your hands I entrust/commit my spirit; Ps. 31:5].” After Jesus said this, he ·died [expired; T breathed his last].
47 When the ·army officer [L centurion] there saw what happened, he ·praised [glorified] God, saying, “Surely this was a ·good [righteous; or innocent] man!”
48 When all the people who had gathered there to watch saw what happened, they returned home, beating their chests [C a sign of sorrow and remorse]. 49 But those who ·were close friends of Jesus [L knew him], including the women who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance and watched [L these things].
Joseph Takes Jesus’ Body(B)
50 [L And look/T behold] There was a good and ·religious [righteous; just] man named Joseph who was a member of the council. 51 But he had not agreed to the other leaders’ plans and actions against Jesus. He was from the town of Arimathea [in Judea; or a town of the Jews] and was waiting for the kingdom of God to come. 52 Joseph went to Pilate to ask for the body of Jesus. 53 He took the body down from the cross, wrapped it in [linen] cloth, and put it in a tomb that was cut out of a wall of rock. ·This tomb had never been used before [L …where no one had been laid; C family tombs held multiple bodies, but this new one was empty]. 54 This was late on Preparation Day, ·and when the sun went down, the Sabbath day would begin [L and the Sabbath was beginning].
55 The women who had come from Galilee with Jesus followed Joseph and saw the tomb and how Jesus’ body was laid. 56 Then the women left to prepare spices and perfumes [C used to honor the dead and cover the stench of decay].
On the Sabbath day they rested, ·as the law of Moses commanded [L according to the commandment].
The Expanded Bible, Copyright © 2011 Thomas Nelson Inc. All rights reserved.