1 Kings 16

CHAPTER TWELVE

THE KINGDOMS IN CONFRONTATION AND COOPERATION

1 Kings 14:21 to 1 Kings 16:34

The material found in 1 Kings 14:21 to 1 Kings 16:34 is perhaps the least interesting in the books of Kings. This is the case because more than half of the seventy-nine verses of this section contain editorial introductions, epilogues, and comments on the reigns of the various kings.

These verses cover the first six decades of the Divided Monarchy, from 931-870 B.C. The contents of this section can be diagrammed as follows:

From the time of the schism in 931 B.C. the two kingdomsIsrael and Judahhad hostile relations one with the other. The state of belligerency lasted until the great diplomat Omri ascended the throne of Israel in 885 B.C. At that point Israel and Judah became closely allied through marriage. During the course of the Omri dynasty, Northern and Southern kings joined together in both commercial and military ventures. In this unit of the text, the sacred historian treats the kings of Judah whose reigns cover the years 931 to 870 B.C. He also treats five complete reigns of the Northern kings covering the years 910-874 B.C. At the conclusion of chapter 16 he introduces the reign of Ahab about whom he will have much more to say in subsequent Chapter s.

REVIEW OF CHAPTER TWELVE

I. FACTS TO MASTER

A. How do each of the following places figure in the events of this section?

1. Brook Kidron

2. Geba

3. Daniel 2. Ramah

4. Mizpah

5. Abel-beth- maachah

6. Damascus

7. Gibbethon

8. Tirzah

9. Samaria

B. Three important women are mentioned in this section. Identify them.

1. Naamah

2. Maachah

3. Jezebel

C. What role did each of the following men play in this section?

1. Hiel

2. Shishak

3. Abiram

4. Arza

5. Benhadad

6. Segub

7. Tibni

8. Shemer

9. Ethbaal

D. Two prophets are mentioned in this section. How were the prophecies of each of these men fulfilled?

1. Ahijah the Shilonite

2. Jehu son of Hanani

E. Memorize the ten kings mentioned in this section and one significant fact about each.

*KINGS OF JUDAH

KINGS OF ISRAEL*

1.Rehoboam

1. Jeroboam

2. Abijam

3. Nadab

Asa

3. Baasha

4. Elah

5. Zimri

6. Omri

7. Ahab

II. QUESTIONS TO PONDER

Suppose you were plotting a graph of spiritual highs and lows during the first sixty years of the Divided Monarchy. How would that graph appear for Israel? For Judah?

Why was Baal worship so attractive to Israel throughout its history?

Describe the history of the relationship between the two kingdoms during the first sixty years of their independent existence.

What were the great contributions of the reign of Omri? Why is so little attention devoted to him by the sacred historian?

What episode from the reign of Abijam illustrates that he was a hypocrite? (This episode is mentioned only in II Chronicles).

Several of the kings are said to have provoked God to anger. How did they do this? How do we provoke God’s anger?

How can you account for the political tumult and turbulence in the Northern Kingdom and the comparative calm in Judah?

Why did Omri make Samaria his capital?

What role does Damascus play in the political affairs of the first half-century of the Divided Monarchy?

Omri has been called the David of the North. What parallels do you see between the reigns of these two great kings?

Lessons in Living

THE MAN FOR WHOM GOD IS LOOKING

Text: 2 Chronicles 16:9

Background: Words of Hanani to Asa I. The Intensity of God’s Search

For the eyes of the LORD rove (continuous action, Hebrew participle) to and fro throughout the world …

A. God’s Search is Continuous B. God’s Search is Universal

II. The Object of God’s Search

… *those whose hearts are completely His.

A.* Like King Asa, Men of Conviction

B. Like King Asa. Men of Courage

III. The Purpose of God’s Search

… that He might show Himself strong on the behalf of those whose hearts are completely His.

IV. The Disappointment of God’s Search

You have acted foolishly in this. From this day forward you shall have wars.

Asa the man who once served God with a perfect heart, failed the Lord in his later years.

Drawing by Horace Knowles from the British and Foreign Bible Society

1 Kings 16:1-14

B. THE BAASHA DYNASTY 15:32-16:14

The Baasha dynasty receives the most cursory treatment from the author of Kings. Political accomplishments of Baasha are almost totally ignored, as the author has elected to focus on the prophetic curse which ultimately brought destruction to this dynasty. The material may be conveniently discussed under the headings (1) the reign of Baasha and the prophecy of Jehu (1 Kings 15:32 to 1 Kings 16:7); and (2) the reign of Elah and his assassination by Zimri (1 Kings 16:8-14).

1. THE REIGN OF BAASHA AND THE PROPHECY OF JEHU (1 Kings 15:32 to 1 Kings 16:7)

**TRANSLATION

(32) And there was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel all their days. (33) In the third year of Asa king of Judah, Baasha the son of Ahijah reigned over all Israel in Tizrah, twenty-four years. (34) And he did evil in the eyes of the LORD, and went in the way of Jeroboam, and in his sin with which he had made Israel to sin. (1) And the word of the LORD came onto Jehu, the son of Hanani, against Baasha, saying, (2) Because I raised you up from the dust, and made you a prince over My people Israel, but you have walked in the way of Jeroboam, and you have caused My people Israel to sin to provoke Me with their sin, (3) I will burn after Baasha and after his house, and I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam, son of Nebat. (4) The one of Baasha who dies in the city, the dogs shall eat, and the ones of him who die in the field the birds of the heavens shall eat. (5) And the rest of the acts of Baasha, that which he did, and his might, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? (6) So Baasha slept with his fathers, and he was buried in Tirzah; and his son Elah, reigned in his place. (7) And also by the hand of Jehu the son of Hanani, the prophet, the word of the LORD came against Baasha and against his house, even for all the evil which he had done in the eyes of the LORD to provoke Him with the deeds of his hands, to be like the house of Jeroboam; and because he smote him.**

Third King of Israel BAASHA BEN AHIJAH 909-886 B.C. (He who seeks, or lays waste)

1 Kings 15:27 to 1 Kings 16:7; 2 Chronicles 6:1-6

Synchronism Baasha 1 = Asa 3 Contemporary Prophet Jehu son of Hanani

The Lord has made all things for Himself; yea, even the wicked for the day of evil. Proverbs 16:4

COMMENTS

The author has already made mention of the hostilities between Asa and Baasha (cf. 1 Kings 15:16). Why does he again mention this perpetual conflict? Some have argued that the verse is out of place here in the concluding formula of Nadab’s reign, and, therefore, should be omitted.[388] However, the repetition may well be deliberate. Inasmuch as Baasha had exterminated the house of Jeroboam (Nadab and his immediate relatives) with whom Asa had been at war, one might think that Asa’s attitude toward the royal house of the North might have changed. This, however, was not the case and thus the author underscores what he previously has said.

[388] The verse is omitted in the Septuagint version.

No events of Baasha’s reign are recorded at this point in Kings. On the basis of information given earlier in Kings (1 Kings 15:16-22; 1 Kings 15:27 ff.) and in Chronicles (2 Chronicles 13-15; 2 Chronicles 16:1-6) it is possible to draw up a picture of his reign. When he came to the throne, his nation was in bad shape. Israel had been severely defeated by Judah; the Philistines were threatening from the southwest; the Aramean kingdom of Damascus had entered a friendly alliance with Judah and was threatening from the northeast. Baasha was able to persuade the Arameans to shift their alliance to Israel.

Now the invasion of Judah by Zerah, the Ethiopian, forced Asa to devote his attention to fortification of his southern frontier. Baasha seized upon this opportunity by recapturing Bethel and the greater part of Benjamin and extending his boundary as far as Ramah. The fortification of Ramah was a real threat to Judah. Asa sent gifts to Benhadad and persuaded him to break his alliance with Baasha and apply some military pressure on the northern boundary of Israel. Benhadad entered the alliance with Asa, invaded Israel, and captured several towns. Baasha abandoned his efforts to fortify Ramah and retreated to the safety of his capital. It is reasonable to assume that Baasha had been encouraged by the prophets to take the initiative against the house of Jeroboam. When it became apparent, however, that he intended to follow in the same pitiful path as his two Northern predecessors, Baasha lost prophetic support. The Lord immediately dispatched a prophet from Judah,[389] Jehu, the son of the prophet Hanani,[390] to publicly proclaim in the North the doom of Baasha (1 Kings 15:1).

[389] About fifty years later, Jehu was still active. He rebuked king Jehoshaphat of Judah, for giving aid to wicked Ahab (2 Chronicles 19:2). This prophet also wrote the history of the reign of Jehoshaphat, which was incorporated into the book of the kings of Israel (2 Chronicles 20:34). This suggests that Jehu was a prophet of Judah (like Amos) who came north for the express purpose of delivering this blast against Baasha and then returned to his native land. Others have suggested that Jehu was a Northern prophet who took refuge in Judah during the Jezebel persecution.

[390] Hanani is mentioned in 2 Chronicles 16:7 as having admonished Asa of Judah and as having been thrown into prison for doing so.

Though Baasha had been used as a tool of divine judgment against the Jeroboam dynasty, and though he had consequently been elevated from lowly ranks to the highest position in the realm, yet Baasha had not proved to be faithful to the Lord (1 Kings 15:2). In words almost identical to those used by Ahijah against Jeroboam, Jehu pronounced the doom of Baasha’s dynasty (1 Kings 15:3). The relatives of Baasha would fall in the city and in the field, and their corpses would be left unburied (1 Kings 15:4).

One example of Baasha’s might (1 Kings 15:5) has already been recorded in chapter 15. The fortification of Ramah, not five miles from the city limits of Jerusalem, is convincing proof that Baasha was a strong king. Furthermore, the reluctance of Asa of Judah to challenge his building operations at Ramah is further evidence that Baasha must have had a formidable force.

Baasha died a natural death and was buried in Tirzah. His son Elah tried to succeed his father on the throne (1 Kings 15:6). But the hand of divine destruction fell swiftly on the family of Baasha, both because of the participation in calf worship, and because Baasha had murdered his predecessor (1 Kings 15:7). Had Baasha been a righteous man, his destruction of the house of Jeroboam would have been regarded as a divine mission; but since he was just as evil as the man he had killed, his act was only motivated by personal ambition and was judged as such.[391]

[391] Slotki, SBB, p. 117.

2. THE REIGN OF ELAH AND HIS ASSASSINATION BY ZIMRI (1 Kings 16:8-14)

**TRANSLATION

(8) In the twenty-sixth year of Asa king of Judah, Elah son of Baasha, reigned over Israel in Tirzah, two years. (9) And his servant, Zimri, the captain of half of his chariots, conspired against him while he was in Tirzah drinking himself drunk in the house of Arza, who was over the house in Tirzah. (10) And Zimri came and smote him, and slew him in the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah; and he ruled in his place. (11) And it came to pass when he reigned, as soon as he was sitting upon the throne, he smote all the house of Baasha. There did not remain to him a male descendant, either of his kinfolks or his friends. (12) And Zimri destroyed all the house of Baasha according to the word of the LORD which He spake against Baasha by the hand of Jehu the prophet, (13) for all the sin of Baasha and the sin of Elah his son, which they had committed, and because they had caused Israel to sin by provoking the LORD of Israel with their vanities. (14) Now the rest of the deeds of Elah, and all which he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?**

Fourth King of Israel FLAM BEN BAASHA 826 B.C. (Am Oak)

1 Kings 16:8-14

Synchronism Elah 1 = Asa 26

Behold, the righteous shall be recompensed in the earth, much more the wicked and the sinner. Proverbs 11:31

COMMENTS

Having affirmed in 1 Kings 15:7 that the prophecy against the house of Baasha was fulfilled, the historian now describes the fulfillment. When Elah had reigned two years (1 Kings 15:8), one of his military officers, Zimri, the commander of half of the Israelite chariotry force, conspired against him. Elah seems to have been a dissolute and drunken incompetent. As king, he should have been with the army, which was engaged in a campaign at Gibbethon (cf. 1 Kings 15:15). But instead, he was in the house of one of his attendants participating in a drunken orgy (1 Kings 15:9). Perhaps Elah remained in Tirzah because he remembered the fate of Nadab, who had been assassinated at Gibbethon (1 Kings 15:27), and perhaps superstitiously avoided this spot. It was a serious breach of monarchical etiquette for the king to ever accept the hospitality of one of his subjects.[392] Arza, the steward or attendant, may have been in on the conspiracy, in which case Elah is made to look all the more naive. At any rate, it was during this drinking party that Zimri assassinated his king[393] (1 Kings 15:10).

[392] Rawlinson, BC, II, 550.

[393] Special odium seems to be attached to action of Zimri (cf. 2 Kings 9:31). Probably this was the case because the deed was not committed in open revolt but stealthily after his victim had been reduced to a drunken stupor. In Jewish and even English literature the name of Zimri became a term of opprobrium (Honor, JCBR, p. 228).

Following the example of Baasha who destroyed the Jeroboam dynasty, Zimri no sooner had sat on the throne when he ordered the execution of all the male relatives of Baasha. Not only would this eliminate all potential rivals for the throne, it would also remove all those who might feel obligated to avenge the blood of their relative (cf. Numbers 35:19). Zimri went a step beyond what Baasha had done when he also executed the friends of the royal house, any who might sympathize with Elah (1 Kings 15:11). The bloodshed fulfilled the prediction made against the Baasha dynasty by the prophet Jehu (1 Kings 15:12). This dynasty had incurred the wrath of God because of its commitment to vanities, i.e., the golden calves (1 Kings 15:13). It is hard to imagine what acts of Elah would have been worth recording in the prophetic chronicles, but nonetheless, the author refers his readers to those records for further information about Elah (1 Kings 15:14).

1 Kings 16:15-20

D. THE SEVEN-DAY REIGN OF ZIMRI 16:15-20

**TRANSLATION

(15) In the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, Zimri reigned seven days in Tirzah. Now the people were on an expedi tion against Gibbethon which belonged to the Philistines. (16) And the people who were on the expedition heard, saying, Zimri has conspired, and also he has smitten the king, And all Israel proclaimed Omri, the captain of the host, king over Israel in that day in the camp. (17) And Omri went up and all Israel with him from Gibbethon, and they besieged Tirzah. (18) And it came to pass when Zimri saw that the city was taken, that he went into the palace of the king’s house, and he set fire to the king’s house over him, and he died, (19) because of his sins which he had committed, to do evil in the eyes of the LORD, and to walk in the way of Jeroboam and in his sin with which he made Israel to sin. (20) And the rest of the deeds of Zimri and the conspiracy which he made, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?**

Fifth King of Israel ZIMRI 826 B.C. (Courageous, mighty)

1 Kings 16:9-20

Synchronism Zimri = Asa 26

Whoso walks uprightly shall be saved; but be that is perverse in his ways shall fall at once. Proverbs 28:18

COMMENTS

Zimri was only able to hold the throne of Israel for one week. The army was involved in another campaign to recover Gibbethon[394] at the time Zimri assassinated Elah (1 Kings 16:15). When the army in the field heard the report that Zimri had slain the king, the troops immediately declared their general to be king (1 Kings 16:16). It is not at all surprising that the army refused to recognize Zimri’s authority. First, he was an inferior officer who was not even present on the great campaign at Gibbethon. Furthermore, when Zimri murdered Elah’s friends, he doubtlessly made many enemies throughout the army. It is, therefore, natural that the troops turned to the popular general Omri.[395]

[394] This same city had been besieged by the armies of Israel some twenty-four years earlier (see on 1 Kings 15:27). It is not known whether it had changed hands during this period, or whether the siege was continuous or intermittent.

[395] The fact that the lineage of Omri is omitted has been taken to mean that the general was of Canaanite extraction or that he was a foreign mercenary. See Gray, OTL, pp. 364-65. It is highly unlikely, however, that in either case he could have gained sufficient support to make good his bid for the throne.

Omri was not hesitant about accepting the office thrust upon him by his troops. He immediately broke off the siege of Gibbethon and led the army back up through the mountain passes to Tirzah the capital. In a show of force he deployed his troops about the capital and no doubt ordered Zimri to surrender (1 Kings 16:17). Seeing that his position was hopeless, Zimri went into the fortress of the palaceone of the innermost roomsand committed suicide by setting the place afire (1 Kings 16:18). Even though Zimri died by his own hand, yet the historian regards his death as being the result of divine retribution. It is obvious that in his brief reign Zimri could not have done much to show his sympathy for the calf worship in the North. Perhaps before he became king he had indicated his zeal for the counterfeit religion introduced by Jeroboam.[396] But it is more likely that the historian in 1 Kings 16:19 is trying to drive home the point that all the anarchy in the North was the bitter fruit of Jeroboam’s apostasy. Further information about the conspiracy of Zimri and other events of his action packed week of rule were recorded in the prophetic annals of the Northern Kingdom (1 Kings 16:20).

[396] It is possible that the condemnation applies also to the period when he was captain of the king’s chariots. On the other hand, the author may mean no more than that there was no correlation between Zimri’s revolt and a desire to repudiate the previous religious policy.

1 Kings 16:21-34

D. THE OMRI DYNASTY 16:21-34

The Omri dynasty ruled Israel for forty-four years. The closing verses of chapter 16 contain brief notices concerning (1) Omri’s rise to power (1 Kings 16:21-22); (2) the reign of Omri (1 Kings 16:23-28); and (3) the early years of Ahab (1 Kings 16:29-34).

Sixth King of Israel OMRI 885-874 B.C. (Heaping)

1 Kings 16:15-28

Synchronism Omri 1 = Asa 27

The curse of the Lord is in the bouse of the wicked; but He blesses the habitation of the just. Proverbs 3:33

1. OMRI’S RISE TO POWER (1 Kings 16:21-22)

**TRANSLATION

(21) Then the people of Israel were divided into two parts. Half of the people followed after Tibni the son of Ginath to make him king, and half followed after Omri. (22) And the people who followed after Omri prevailed over the people who followed after Tibni the son of Ginath; so Tibni died, and Omri reigned.

COMMENTS**

The entire nation did not rally to the standard of Omri’s sovereignty. For some reason unexplained[397] in the text, a rival emerged to challenge Omri’s claim to the throne. Tibni was probably the favorite of that part of the army which was not involved in the encampment at Gibbethon. Once the hereditary principle was overthrown, the crown became a prize to be possessed by the strongest. Tibni determined that Omri would not have the throne uncontested, and a fierce civil war erupted between the two factions (1 Kings 16:21). It appears that the struggle lasted four years. Finally, Omri was able to subdue the forces of Tibni and slay the rival (1 Kings 16:22).

[397] Gray (OTL, p. 366) again indulges in fruitless speculation, suggesting that this countermovement was the protest of the religious community against the power of the army, or perhaps the protest by the more conservative elements against the younger men in the army.

2. THE REIGN OF OMRI (1 Kings 16:23-28)

**TRANSLATION

(23) In the thirty-first year of Asa king of Judah, Omri began to reign over Israel, twelve years; in Tirzah he reigned six years. (24) And he acquired the hill of Samaria from Shemer for two talents of silver, and called the name of the city which he built after the name of Shemer, the owner of the hill of Samaria. (25) And Omri did evil in the eyes of the LORD, and did worse than those who were before him. (26) And he walked in all the ways of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and in his sins which he caused Israel to sin by provoking the LORD the God of Israel with their vanities. (27) And the rest of the acts of Omri which he did, and his might which he displayed, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? (28) And Omri slept with his fathers, and he was buried in Samaria; and Ahab his son ruled in his place.

COMMENTS**

In the thirty-first year of Asa of Judah, Omri won out over Tibni and became sole king in the North. His reign of twelve years is counted however, from the time he was proclaimed king by the army in the twenty-seventh year of Asa. The first six years of his reign he resided in Tirzah (1 Kings 16:23). But since Tirzah had suffered during the siege against Zimri (1 Kings 16:17-18) and possibly in the civil war with Tibni, Omri determined to build a new capital rather than attempt to repair the old one.[398] He selected as the site for his new capital a large oval or oblong mound with level surface adapted for building and with steep sides which rendered assault most difficult. Before the invention of gunpowder, the city must have been almost impregnable. The site also enjoys a strategic location. On the north the hill commands the main road to Jezreel, on the west it dominates the road to the coast, and on the east the road to the Jordan.

[398] Perhaps the ease with which Omri captured Tirzah (1 Kings 16:17) made him realize the strategic weakness of the spot.

Samaria, as the new city was named, was forty-two miles north of Jerusalem and twenty-five miles inland. Subsequent history proves the wisdom of Omri’s choice of Samaria, for the city remained the capital of Israel until the fall of that kingdom. The site was purchased from its owner, Shemer, for two talents of silver.[399] Probably the sale contract stipulated that the place was to continue to bear the name of the original owner, and hence Omri called the new city Samaria (1 Kings 16:24).

[399] According to the Berkely Version, the two talents of silver would be equivalent to about $4,250.

Omri may also have been moved to purchase this site by dynastic considerations. Samaria became a personal possession of the king just as Jerusalem became a personal possession of David. Omri was free to develop a city-state within a state, and bequeath it to his descendants, so founding a dynasty. Furthermore, the site may have been selected because it was in a Canaanite region and had no Israelite associations. It is significant that the only cult for which provisions were made in Samaria was that of Baal (1 Kings 16:32).

Archaeological excavations confirm the Biblical statement with regard to Omri’s founding the city of Samaria. Remains of three places have been found there, the earliest of which dates to the time of Omri-Ahab. The site shows no signs of occupation earlier than 900 B.C.

The religious situation continued to deteriorate under Omri (1 Kings 16:25). The prophet Micah (1 Kings 6:16) refers judgmentally to the statutes of Omri, which statement may point to a fresh departure during this reign. Perhaps the calf worship was organized into a formal system at this time, or perhaps additional measures were taken to prevent those living in the North from attending the Temple in the South. In any case the practices of this king angered the Lord no less than did those of his predecessors (1 Kings 16:26).

Much more could have been recorded about the reign of Omri. The Moabite stone, discovered in 1868, mentions Omri as the one who conquered the land of Moab, a feat of no small significance. The Mesopotamian monuments attest to the prominence of Omri in that years after the death of this king the Assyrians referred to this region as the land of Omri. On the Black Obelisk of Shamaneser, king Jehu is called the son of Omri even though he was not related to him at all. A further indication of his might can be seen in the fact that his dynasty lasted to the third generation. Thus the chronicles of the kings of Israel must have contained a great deal more information about Omri (1 Kings 16:27). He may have been the most important king of the Northern Kingdom. Two other significant accomplishments by Omri should be noted: He reinaugurated David’s policy of friendly relations with Tyre, and he brought to an end the era of confrontation with Judah. The old general appears to have been a very able diplomat!

3. THE EARLY YEARS OF AHAB (1 Kings 16:29-34)

**TRANSLATION

(29) And Ahab the son of Omri began to role over Israel in the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah; and Ahab the son of Omri ruled over Israel in Samaria twenty-two years. (30) And Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the eyes of the LORD more than all who were before him. (31) And it came to pass if it was a light thing to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat,[400] that he took as a wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal, king of the Sidonians, and went and served Baal, and worshiped him. (32) And he raised up an altar to Baal in the house of Baal which he built in Samaria. (33) And Ahab made an Asherah. And Ahab did more to provoke the LORD God of Israel than all the kings of Israel who were before him. (34) In his days Hiel the Bethelite built Jericho; at the cost of Abiram, his firstborn he laid the foundation, and at the cost of Segub, his youngest he set its gates, according to the word of the LORD which He spoke by the hand of Joshua the son of Nun.**

[400] A more literal rendering: and it came to passwas it a light thing his walking in the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat?that he took. …

COMMENTS

The religious deterioration in the Northern Kingdom continued in the reign of Ahab. The calf cult introduced by Jeroboam was a counterfeit and corrupt version of worshiping Yahweh. Under Ahab, however, positive idolatry was introduced, and thus the evil of the son exceeded that of the father (1 Kings 16:30).

Ahab married Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal, who ruled over Sidon in those days. Tradition identifies this Ethbaal with the priest of Astarte who assassinated the king and usurped the throne.[401] If Jezebel were the daughter of this ruthless king, it would help to explain her fierce character, and at the same time would account for her great devotion to the gods of her country and for her determined efforts to establish their impure rites throughout the realm of her husband.

[401] Josephus, Antiquities VIII, 13.1.

From the political and commercial standpoint the alliance between Israel and Sidon was wise and necessary. The rising power of Aram made such an alliance desirable from the military standpoint. The Phoenicians needed the agricultural products of Israel, and land-locked Israel needed the markets available to the wide-ranging fleets of the Phoenician. Thus, to the secular historian the marriage of Ahab to Jezebel would be a brilliant diplomatic coup. However, from the religious standpoint, the alliance and marriage were disastrous. Ahab was led into the sin of idolatry, and apparently served and worshiped Baal[402] as well as Yahweh (1 Kings 16:31).

[402] In the Hebrew text, Baal has the definite article. It is, therefore, a proper name and not the generic term of Canaanite gods. The Baal being referred to is Melkart, king of the underworld.

Baal was the supreme male god of the Canaanites, the possessor and generator of all. For this deity Ahab erected a temple, an altar and a pillar or image in the capital city of Samaria (1 Kings 16:32; cf. 2 Kings 3:2; 2 Kings 10:27). In addition, the king made an Asherah,[403] i.e., a wooden pillar symbolizing the goddess Asherah, who in Canaanite theology was the consort of Baal (1 Kings 16:33). In this Ahab was following the dictates of international courtesy which demanded that a foreign queen should have a sanctuary of her own religion in her adopted land. Solomon, it will be recalled, did the same thing for his wives in Jerusalem (1 Kings 11:7).

[403] On Asherah, see comments on 1 Kings 15:13.

A concrete example of the effects of counterfeit calf worship and Phoenician idolatry is cited at the end of chapter 16. Hiel from the city of Bethel, which so long had been the national shrine of Northern religion, undertook what no one had dared to do for five centuries, viz., to rebuild the walls of Jericho.[404] The rebuilding of these fortifications was very likely part of Ahab’s program to provide better protection on his southern border. Hiel may have been superintendent for a royal project. The curse of God pronounced by Joshua rested upon anyone who would undertake this project. The daring impiety of Hiel was punished swiftly and severely. His eldest son died when the foundations of Jericho were laid, and by the time he rebuilt the gates, the last of his sons died[405] (1 Kings 16:34). Even in those dark and troublous times God did not leave Himself without a witness. The swift and exact fulfillment of the prophetic threats made through Joshua was a forceful witness to the fact that the Law of God could not be violated with impunity.

[404] The curse of Joshua seems to have applied only to the walls and fortifications of Jericho. 2 Samuel 10:5 and Judges 3:13 seem to imply that Jericho was an inhabited city prior to the time of Ahab.

[405] The Hebrew could also be taken to mean that Hiel offered his sons as sacrifices during the course of the building operation. This practice is attested by the discovery at ancient Tirzah of two new-born infants in burial jars within the gate-complex. However, the interpretation that the sons died at the hand of God is superior.

The closing verses of chapter 16 which describe the gross degeneracy of the earlier part of Ahab’s reign are an appropriate prelude to the account of the ministry of the great prophet Elijah. The unprecedented corruption of that age necessitated the unprecedented outpouring of divine power.

Seventh King of Israel AHAB BEN OMRI 874-853 B.C. (Brother of a father)

1 Kings 16:29; 1 Kings 17:1; 1 Kings 18:1 to 1 Kings 22:40; 2 Chronicles 18

Synchronism Ahab 1 = Asa 38 Contemporary Prophets Elijah; Micaiah

When the wicked are multiplied, transgression increases; but the righteous shall see their fall Proverbs 29:16