1 Kings 16

1 Kings 16:1

16:1-7 A prophet named Jehu announced to Baasha that because he followed Jeroboam’s idolatry, his posterity would suffer a similar fate. They would not be given the customary burial but would be eaten by dogs or birds. Another reason for Baasha’s doom is given at the end of verse 7he killed . . . the house of Jeroboam. Either he was not the one whom God intended to do this or he did it in a cruel and vengeful manner, contrary to God’s will.

1 Kings 16:8

H. King Elah of Israel (16:8-14)Elah the son of Baasha, of the tribe of Issachar, was king of Israel for two years (886/85885/84 B.C.). Elah was a wicked king, given over to idolatry and drunkenness. After he had reigned two years, he was assassinated by Zimri, commander of half his chariots. Also slain were all the rest of Baasha’s family, in fulfillment of Jehu’s prophecy (1Ki_16:3). Elah’s death ended the second dynasty in Israel.

1 Kings 16:15

I. King Zimri of Israel (16:15-20)Zimri was king of Israel for seven days, (885/84 B.C.). Zimri’s wicked reign was the shortest of all the kings, lasting only seven days. When he usurped the throne, the army of Israel was trying to capture the city of Gibbethon from the Philistines. The army proclaimed its commander, Omri, to be king. He promptly marched against Tirzah, the capital, to seize the reins of government. Zimri retreated into the citadel of the royal palace, set it on fire, and perished in the flames.

1 Kings 16:21

J. King Tibni of Israel (16:21, 22)Tibni the son of Ginath was king of Israel for four years (885/84881/80 B.C.) Although Israel made Omri, the commander of the army, king over Israel (v. 16), he had a rival in Tibni, and there was civil war for four or five years (cf. v. 15 with v. 23). Half of the Northern Kingdom followed Tibni until his death.

1 Kings 16:23

K. King Omri of Israel (16:23-28)Omri was king of Israel for twelve years (885/84874/73 B.C.). Omri’s reign began the fourth dynasty in the northern kingdom. Tibni was defeated in 880 B.C., and Omri became the undisputed king. For the first six years he reigned in Tirzah. Then he purchased the hill of Samaria . . . for two talents of silver and moved his capital there. The evil character of his reign is emphasized in verses 25 and 26. Omri’s chronology is somewhat complex. He was proclaimed king in the twenty-seventh year of Asa (with only half of the people behind him), after the death of Zimri (v. 15). After the four years of civil war, he became undisputed king over the northern kingdom in Asa’s thirty-first year (v. 23). He died in the thirty-eighth year of Asa (v. 29). Thus he had about four years of internal strife and about eight years of relative peace. Omri was a progressive king and brought a measure of peace and prosperity to Israel. Extrabiblical sources mention Omri as the conqueror of Moab. So prominent was he in the view of the Assyrians that they called Israel “the House of Omri” or “the Land of Omri.” Archaeologists have found what they believe was Omri’s palace in Samaria.

1 Kings 16:29

L. King Ahab of Israel and the Prophet Elijah (16:2922:40)Ahab the son of Omri was king of Israel for twenty-two years (874/73853 B.C.).

1. The Sins of Ahab (16:29-34)Ahab was an exceedingly evil king, not only because he followed Jeroboam in idolatry, but also because he married Jezebel, a daughter of the king of the Sidonians. This villainous woman was a Baal-worshiper who succeeded in influencing Ahab to promote Baal-worship in Israel by building a temple, an altar, and a wooden image. The godlessness of the times is witnessed by the brazen attempt by Hiel of Bethel to rebuild Jericho in defiance of God’s curse (Jos_6:26). When he laid the foundation, his oldest son, Abiram, died. As the gates were erected, his youngest son, Segub, died.