1 Kings, chapter 1
1: Now king
David was old and stricken in years; and they covered him with
clothes, but he gat no heat.
2: Wherefore his servants said unto him, Let there be
sought for my lord the king a young virgin: and let her stand
before the king, and let her cherish him, and let her lie in thy
bosom, that my lord the king may get heat.
3: So they sought for a fair damsel throughout all the
coasts of Israel, and found Abishag a Shunammite, and brought
her to the king.
4: And the damsel was very fair, and cherished the king,
and ministered to him: but the king knew her not.
5: Then Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself,
saying, I will be king: and he prepared him chariots and
horsemen, and fifty men to run before him.
6: And his father had not displeased him at any time in
saying, Why hast thou done so? and he also was a very goodly
man; and his mother bare him after Absalom.
7: And he conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah, and
with Abiathar the priest: and they following Adonijah helped
him.
8: But Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada,
and Nathan the prophet, and Shimei, and Rei, and the mighty men
which belonged to David, were not with Adonijah.
9: And Adonijah slew sheep and oxen and fat cattle by the
stone of Zoheleth, which is by En-rogel, and called all his
brethren the king's sons, and all the men of Judah the king's
servants:
10: But Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah, and the mighty
men, and Solomon his brother, he called not.
11: Wherefore Nathan spake unto Bath-sheba the mother of
Solomon, saying, Hast thou not heard that Adonijah the son of
Haggith doth reign, and David our lord knoweth it not?
12: Now therefore come, let me, I pray thee, give thee
counsel, that thou mayest save thine own life, and the life of
thy son Solomon.
13: Go and get thee in unto king David, and say unto him,
Didst not thou, my lord, O king, swear unto thine handmaid,
saying, Assuredly Solomon thy son shall reign after me, and he
shall sit upon my throne? why then doth Adonijah reign?
14: Behold, while thou yet talkest there with the king, I
also will come in after thee, and confirm thy words.
15: And Bath-sheba went in unto the king into the
chamber: and the king was very old; and Abishag the Shunammite
ministered unto the king.
16: And Bath-sheba bowed, and did obeisance unto the
king. And the king said, What wouldest thou?
17: And she said unto him, My lord, thou swarest by the
LORD thy God unto thine handmaid, saying, Assuredly Solomon thy
son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne.
18: And now, behold, Adonijah reigneth; and now, my lord
the king, thou knowest it not:
19: And he hath slain oxen and fat cattle and sheep in
abundance, and hath called all the sons of the king, and
Abiathar the priest, and Joab the captain of the host: but
Solomon thy servant hath he not called.
20: And thou, my lord, O king, the eyes of all Israel are
upon thee, that thou shouldest tell them who shall sit on the
throne of my lord the king after him.
21: Otherwise it shall come to pass, when my lord the
king shall sleep with his fathers, that I and my son Solomon
shall be counted offenders.
22: And, lo, while she yet talked with the king, Nathan
the prophet also came in.
23: And they told the king, saying, Behold Nathan the
prophet. And when he was come in before the king, he bowed
himself before the king with his face to the ground.
24: And Nathan said, My lord, O king, hast thou said,
Adonijah shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne?
25: For he is gone down this day, and hath slain oxen and
fat cattle and sheep in abundance, and hath called all the
king's sons, and the captains of the host, and Abiathar the
priest; and, behold, they eat and drink before him, and say, God
save king Adonijah.
26: But me, even me thy servant, and Zadok the priest,
and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and thy servant Solomon, hath
he not called.
27: Is this thing done by my lord the king, and thou hast
not shewed it unto thy servant, who should sit on the throne of
my lord the king after him?
28: Then king David answered and said, Call me
Bath-sheba. And she came into the king's presence, and stood
before the king.
29: And the king sware, and said, As the LORD liveth,
that hath redeemed my soul out of all distress,
30: Even as I sware unto thee by the LORD God of Israel,
saying, Assuredly Solomon thy son shall reign after me, and he
shall sit upon my throne in my stead; even so will I certainly
do this day.
31: Then Bath-sheba bowed with her face to the earth, and
did reverence to the king, and said, Let my lord king David live
for ever.
32: And king David said, Call me Zadok the priest, and
Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada. And they
came before the king.
33: The king also said unto them, Take with you the
servants of your lord, and cause Solomon my son to ride upon
mine own mule, and bring him down to Gihon:
34: And let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet
anoint him there king over Israel: and blow ye with the trumpet,
and say, God save king Solomon.
35: Then ye shall come up after him, that he may come and
sit upon my throne; for he shall be king in my stead: and I have
appointed him to be ruler over Israel and over Judah.
36: And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada answered the king,
and said, Amen: the LORD God of my lord the king say so too.
37: As the LORD hath been with my lord the king, even so
be he with Solomon, and make his throne greater than the throne
of my lord king David.
38: So Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and
Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites, and the
Pelethites, went down, and caused Solomon to ride upon king
David's mule, and brought him to Gihon.
39: And Zadok the priest took an horn of oil out of the
tabernacle, and anointed Solomon. And they blew the trumpet; and
all the people said, God save king Solomon.
40: And all the people came up after him, and the people
piped with pipes, and rejoiced with great joy, so that the earth
rent with the sound of them.
41: And Adonijah and all the guests that were with him
heard it as they had made an end of eating. And when Joab heard
the sound of the trumpet, he said, Wherefore is this noise of
the city being in an uproar?
42: And while he yet spake, behold, Jonathan the son of
Abiathar the priest came: and Adonijah said unto him, Come in;
for thou art a valiant man, and bringest good tidings.
43: And Jonathan answered and said to Adonijah, Verily
our lord king David hath made Solomon king.
44: And the king hath sent with him Zadok the priest, and
Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the
Cherethites, and the Pelethites, and they have caused him to
ride upon the king's mule:
45: And Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have
anointed him king in Gihon: and they are come up from thence
rejoicing, so that the city rang again. This is the noise that
ye have heard.
46: And also Solomon sitteth on the throne of the
kingdom.
47: And moreover the king's servants came to bless our
lord king David, saying, God make the name of Solomon better
than thy name, and make his throne greater than thy throne. And
the king bowed himself upon the bed.
48: And also thus said the king, Blessed be the LORD God
of Israel, which hath given one to sit on my throne this day,
mine eyes even seeing it.
49: And all the guests that were with Adonijah were
afraid, and rose up, and went every man his way.
50: And Adonijah feared because of Solomon, and arose,
and went, and caught hold on the horns of the altar.
51: And it was told Solomon, saying, Behold, Adonijah
feareth king Solomon: for, lo, he hath caught hold on the horns
of the altar, saying, Let king Solomon swear unto me to day that
he will not slay his servant with the sword.
52: And Solomon said, If he will shew himself a worthy
man, there shall not an hair of him fall to the earth: but if
wickedness shall be found in him, he shall die.
53: So king Solomon sent, and they brought him down from
the altar. And he came and bowed himself to king Solomon: and
Solomon said unto him, Go to thine house.
1 Kings, chapter 2
1: Now the
days of David drew nigh that he should die; and he charged
Solomon his son, saying,
2: I go the way of all the earth: be thou strong
therefore, and shew thyself a man;
3: And keep the charge of the LORD thy God, to walk in
his ways, to keep his statutes, and his commandments, and his
judgments, and his testimonies, as it is written in the law of
Moses, that thou mayest prosper in all that thou doest, and
whithersoever thou turnest thyself:
4: That the LORD may continue his word which he spake
concerning me, saying, If thy children take heed to their way,
to walk before me in truth with all their heart and with all
their soul, there shall not fail thee (said he) a man on the
throne of Israel.
5: Moreover thou knowest also what Joab the son of
Zeruiah did to me, and what he did to the two captains of the
hosts of Israel, unto Abner the son of Ner, and unto Amasa the
son of Jether, whom he slew, and shed the blood of war in peace,
and put the blood of war upon his girdle that was about his
loins, and in his shoes that were on his feet.
6: Do therefore according to thy wisdom, and let not his
hoar head go down to the grave in peace.
7: But shew kindness unto the sons of Barzillai the
Gileadite, and let them be of those that eat at thy table: for
so they came to me when I fled because of Absalom thy brother.
8: And, behold, thou hast with thee Shimei the son of
Gera, a Benjamite of Bahurim, which cursed me with a grievous
curse in the day when I went to Mahanaim: but he came down to
meet me at Jordan, and I sware to him by the LORD, saying, I
will not put thee to death with the sword.
9: Now therefore hold him not guiltless: for thou art a
wise man, and knowest what thou oughtest to do unto him; but his
hoar head bring thou down to the grave with blood.
10: So David slept with his fathers, and was buried in
the city of David.
11: And the days that David reigned over Israel were
forty years: seven years reigned he in Hebron, and thirty and
three years reigned he in Jerusalem.
12: Then sat Solomon upon the throne of David his father;
and his kingdom was established greatly.
13: And Adonijah the son of Haggith came to Bath-sheba
the mother of Solomon. And she said, Comest thou peaceably? And
he said, Peaceably.
14: He said moreover, I have somewhat to say unto thee.
And she said, Say on.
15: And he said, Thou knowest that the kingdom was mine,
and that all Israel set their faces on me, that I should reign:
howbeit the kingdom is turned about, and is become my brother's:
for it was his from the LORD.
16: And now I ask one petition of thee, deny me not. And
she said unto him, Say on.
17: And he said, Speak, I pray thee, unto Solomon the
king, (for he will not say thee nay,) that he give me Abishag
the Shunammite to wife.
18: And Bath-sheba said, Well; I will speak for thee unto
the king.
19: Bath-sheba therefore went unto king Solomon, to speak
unto him for Adonijah. And the king rose up to meet her, and
bowed himself unto her, and sat down on his throne, and caused a
seat to be set for the king's mother; and she sat on his right
hand.
20: Then she said, I desire one small petition of thee; I
pray thee, say me not nay. And the king said unto her, Ask on,
my mother: for I will not say thee nay.
21: And she said, Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to
Adonijah thy brother to wife.
22: And king Solomon answered and said unto his mother,
And why dost thou ask Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? ask
for him the kingdom also; for he is mine elder brother; even for
him, and for Abiathar the priest, and for Joab the son of
Zeruiah.
23: Then king Solomon sware by the LORD, saying, God do
so to me, and more also, if Adonijah have not spoken this word
against his own life.
24: Now therefore, as the LORD liveth, which hath
established me, and set me on the throne of David my father, and
who hath made me an house, as he promised, Adonijah shall be put
to death this day.
25: And king Solomon sent by the hand of Benaiah the son
of Jehoiada; and he fell upon him that he died.
26: And unto Abiathar the priest said the king, Get thee
to Anathoth, unto thine own fields; for thou art worthy of
death: but I will not at this time put thee to death, because
thou barest the ark of the Lord GOD before David my father, and
because thou hast been afflicted in all wherein my father was
afflicted.
27: So Solomon thrust out Abiathar from being priest unto
the LORD; that he might fulfil the word of the LORD, which he
spake concerning the house of Eli in Shiloh.
28: Then tidings came to Joab: for Joab had turned after
Adonijah, though he turned not after Absalom. And Joab fled unto
the tabernacle of the LORD, and caught hold on the horns of the
altar.
29: And it was told king Solomon that Joab was fled unto
the tabernacle of the LORD; and, behold, he is by the altar.
Then Solomon sent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, saying, Go, fall
upon him.
30: And Benaiah came to the tabernacle of the LORD, and
said unto him, Thus saith the king, Come forth. And he said,
Nay; but I will die here. And Benaiah brought the king word
again, saying, Thus said Joab, and thus he answered me.
31: And the king said unto him, Do as he hath said, and
fall upon him, and bury him; that thou mayest take away the
innocent blood, which Joab shed, from me, and from the house of
my father.
32: And the LORD shall return his blood upon his own
head, who fell upon two men more righteous and better than he,
and slew them with the sword, my father David not knowing
thereof, to wit, Abner the son of Ner, captain of the host of
Israel, and Amasa the son of Jether, captain of the host of
Judah.
33: Their blood shall therefore return upon the head of
Joab, and upon the head of his seed for ever: but upon David,
and upon his seed, and upon his house, and upon his throne,
shall there be peace for ever from the LORD.
34: So Benaiah the son of Jehoiada went up, and fell upon
him, and slew him: and he was buried in his own house in the
wilderness.
35: And the king put Benaiah the son of Jehoiada in his
room over the host: and Zadok the priest did the king put in the
room of Abiathar.
36: And the king sent and called for Shimei, and said
unto him, Build thee an house in Jerusalem, and dwell there, and
go not forth thence any whither.
37: For it shall be, that on the day thou goest out, and
passest over the brook Kidron, thou shalt know for certain that
thou shalt surely die: thy blood shall be upon thine own head.
38: And Shimei said unto the king, The saying is good: as
my lord the king hath said, so will thy servant do. And Shimei
dwelt in Jerusalem many days.
39: And it came to pass at the end of three years, that
two of the servants of Shimei ran away unto Achish son of
Maachah king of Gath. And they told Shimei, saying, Behold, thy
servants be in Gath.
40: And Shimei arose, and saddled his ass, and went to
Gath to Achish to seek his servants: and Shimei went, and
brought his servants from Gath.
41: And it was told Solomon that Shimei had gone from
Jerusalem to Gath, and was come again.
42: And the king sent and called for Shimei, and said
unto him, Did I not make thee to swear by the LORD, and
protested unto thee, saying, Know for a certain, on the day thou
goest out, and walkest abroad any wither, that thou shalt surely
die? and thou saidst unto me, The word that I have heard is
good.
43: Why then hast thou not kept the oath of the LORD, and
the commandment that I have charged thee with?
44: The king said moreover to Shimei, Thou knowest all
the wickedness which thine heart is privy to, that thou didst to
David my father: therefore the LORD shall return thy wickedness
upon thine own head;
45: And king Solomon shall be blessed, and the throne of
David shall be established before the LORD for ever.
46: So the king commanded Benaiah the son of Jehoiada;
which went out, and fell upon him, that he died. And the kingdom
was established in the hand of Solomon.
1 Kings, chapter 3
1: And Solomon
made affinity with Pharaoh king of Egypt, and took Pharaoh's
daughter, and brought her into the city of David, until he had
made an end of building his own house, and the house of the
LORD, and the wall of Jerusalem round about.
2: Only the people sacrificed in high places, because
there was no house built unto the name of the LORD, until those
days.
3: And Solomon loved the LORD, walking in the statutes of
David his father: only he sacrificed and burnt incense in high
places.
4: And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there; for
that was the great high place: a thousand burnt offerings did
Solomon offer upon that altar.
5: In Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by
night: and God said, Ask what I shall give thee.
6: And Solomon said, Thou hast shewed unto thy servant
David my father great mercy, according as he walked before thee
in truth, and in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with
thee; and thou hast kept for him this great kindness, that thou
hast given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day.
7: And now, O LORD my God, thou hast made thy servant
king instead of David my father: and I am but a little child: I
know not how to go out or come in.
8: And thy servant is in the midst of thy people which
thou hast chosen, a great people, that cannot be numbered nor
counted for multitude.
9: Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to
judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad: for
who is able to judge this thy so great a people?
10: And the speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had
asked this thing.
11: And God said unto him, Because thou hast asked this
thing, and hast not asked for thyself long life; neither hast
asked riches for thyself, nor hast asked the life of thine
enemies; but hast asked for thyself understanding to discern
judgment;
12: Behold, I have done according to thy words: lo, I
have given thee a wise and an understanding heart; so that there
was none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any
arise like unto thee.
13: And I have also given thee that which thou hast not
asked, both riches, and honour: so that there shall not be any
among the kings like unto thee all thy days.
14: And if thou wilt walk in my ways, to keep my statutes
and my commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will
lengthen thy days.
15: And Solomon awoke; and, behold, it was a dream. And
he came to Jerusalem, and stood before the ark of the covenant
of the LORD, and offered up burnt offerings, and offered peace
offerings, and made a feast to all his servants.
16: Then came there two women, that were harlots, unto
the king, and stood before him.
17: And the one woman said, O my lord, I and this woman
dwell in one house; and I was delivered of a child with her in
the house.
18: And it came to pass the third day after that I was
delivered, that this woman was delivered also: and we were
together; there was no stranger with us in the house, save we
two in the house.
19: And this woman's child died in the night; because she
overlaid it.
20: And she arose at midnight, and took my son from
beside me, while thine handmaid slept, and laid it in her bosom,
and laid her dead child in my bosom.
21: And when I rose in the morning to give my child suck,
behold, it was dead: but when I had considered it in the
morning, behold, it was not my son, which I did bear.
22: And the other woman said, Nay; but the living is my
son, and the dead is thy son. And this said, No; but the dead is
thy son, and the living is my son. Thus they spake before the
king.
23: Then said the king, The one saith, This is my son
that liveth, and thy son is the dead: and the other saith, Nay;
but thy son is the dead, and my son is the living.
24: And the king said, Bring me a sword. And they brought
a sword before the king.
25: And the king said, Divide the living child in two,
and give half to the one, and half to the other.
26: Then spake the woman whose the living child was unto
the king, for her bowels yearned upon her son, and she said, O
my lord, give her the living child, and in no wise slay it. But
the other said, Let it be neither mine nor thine, but divide it.
27: Then the king answered and said, Give her the living
child, and in no wise slay it: she is the mother thereof.
28: And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king
had judged; and they feared the king: for they saw that the
wisdom of God was in him, to do judgment.
1 Kings, chapter 4
1: So king
Solomon was king over all Israel.
2: And these were the princes which he had; Azariah the
son of Zadok the priest,
3: Elihoreph and Ahiah, the sons of Shisha, scribes;
Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud, the recorder.
4: And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the host: and
Zadok and Abiathar were the priests:
5: And Azariah the son of Nathan was over the officers:
and Zabud the son of Nathan was principal officer, and the
king's friend:
6: And Ahishar was over the household: and Adoniram the
son of Abda was over the tribute.
7: And Solomon had twelve officers over all Israel, which
provided victuals for the king and his household: each man his
month in a year made provision.
8: And these are their names: The son of Hur, in mount
Ephraim:
9: The son of Dekar, in Makaz, and in Shaalbim, and
Beth-shemesh, and Elon-beth-hanan:
10: The son of Hesed, in Aruboth; to him pertained
Sochoh, and all the land of Hepher:
11: The son of Abinadab, in all the region of Dor; which
had Taphath the daughter of Solomon to wife:
12: Baana the son of Ahilud; to him pertained Taanach and
Megiddo, and all Beth-shean, which is by Zartanah beneath
Jezreel, from Beth-shean to Abel-meholah, even unto the place
that is beyond Jokneam:
13: The son of Geber, in Ramoth-gilead; to him pertained
the towns of Jair the son of Manasseh, which are in Gilead; to
him also pertained the region of Argob, which is in Bashan,
threescore great cities with walls and brasen bars:
14: Ahinadab the son of Iddo had Mahanaim:
15: Ahimaaz was in Naphtali; he also took Basmath the
daughter of Solomon to wife:
16: Baanah the son of Hushai was in Asher and in Aloth:
17: Jehoshaphat the son of Paruah, in Issachar:
18: Shimei the son of Elah, in Benjamin:
19: Geber the son of Uri was in the country of Gilead, in
the country of Sihon king of the Amorites, and of Og king of
Bashan; and he was the only officer which was in the land.
20: Judah and Israel were many, as the sand which is by
the sea in multitude, eating and drinking, and making merry.
21: And Solomon reigned over all kingdoms from the river
unto the land of the Philistines, and unto the border of Egypt:
they brought presents, and served Solomon all the days of his
life.
22: And Solomon's provision for one day was thirty
measures of fine flour, and threescore measures of meal,
23: Ten fat oxen, and twenty oxen out of the pastures,
and an hundred sheep, beside harts, and roebucks, and
fallowdeer, and fatted fowl.
24: For he had dominion over all the region on this side
the river, from Tiphsah even to Azzah, over all the kings on
this side the river: and he had peace on all sides round about
him.
25: And Judah and Israel dwelt safely, every man under
his vine and under his fig tree, from Dan even to Beer-sheba,
all the days of Solomon.
26: And Solomon had forty thousand stalls of horses for
his chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen.
27: And those officers provided victual for king Solomon,
and for all that came unto king Solomon's table, every man in
his month: they lacked nothing.
28: Barley also and straw for the horses and dromedaries
brought they unto the place where the officers were, every man
according to his charge.
29: And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding
exceeding much, and largeness of heart, even as the sand that is
on the sea shore.
30: And Solomon's wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the
children of the east country, and all the wisdom of Egypt.
31: For he was wiser than all men; than Ethan the
Ezrahite, and Heman, and Chalcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol:
and his fame was in all nations round about.
32: And he spake three thousand proverbs: and his songs
were a thousand and five.
33: And he spake of trees, from the cedar tree that is in
Lebanon even unto the hyssop that springeth out of the wall: he
spake also of beasts, and of fowl, and of creeping things, and
of fishes.
34: And there came of all people to hear the wisdom of
Solomon, from all kings of the earth, which had heard of his
wisdom.
1 Kings, chapter 5
1: And Hiram
king of Tyre sent his servants unto Solomon; for he had heard
that they had anointed him king in the room of his father: for
Hiram was ever a lover of David.
2: And Solomon sent to Hiram, saying,
3: Thou knowest how that David my father could not build
an house unto the name of the LORD his God for the wars which
were about him on every side, until the LORD put them under the
soles of his feet.
4: But now the LORD my God hath given me rest on every
side, so that there is neither adversary nor evil occurrent.
5: And, behold, I purpose to build an house unto the name
of the LORD my God, as the LORD spake unto David my father,
saying, Thy son, whom I will set upon thy throne in thy room, he
shall build an house unto my name.
6: Now therefore command thou that they hew me cedar
trees out of Lebanon; and my servants shall be with thy
servants: and unto thee will I give hire for thy servants
according to all that thou shalt appoint: for thou knowest that
there is not among us any that can skill to hew timber like unto
the Sidonians.
7: And it came to pass, when Hiram heard the words of
Solomon, that he rejoiced greatly, and said, Blessed be the LORD
this day, which hath given unto David a wise son over this great
people.
8: And Hiram sent to Solomon, saying, I have considered
the things which thou sentest to me for: and I will do all thy
desire concerning timber of cedar, and concerning timber of fir.
9: My servants shall bring them down from Lebanon unto
the sea: and I will convey them by sea in floats unto the place
that thou shalt appoint me, and will cause them to be discharged
there, and thou shalt receive them: and thou shalt accomplish my
desire, in giving food for my household.
10: So Hiram gave Solomon cedar trees and fir trees
according to all his desire.
11: And Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand measures of
wheat for food to his household, and twenty measures of pure
oil: thus gave Solomon to Hiram year by year.
12: And the LORD gave Solomon wisdom, as he promised him:
and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon; and they two made
a league together.
13: And king Solomon raised a levy out of all Israel; and
the levy was thirty thousand men.
14: And he sent them to Lebanon ten thousand a month by
courses: a month they were in Lebanon, and two months at home:
and Adoniram was over the levy.
15: And Solomon had threescore and ten thousand that bare
burdens, and fourscore thousand hewers in the mountains;
16: Beside the chief of Solomon's officers which were
over the work, three thousand and three hundred, which ruled
over the people that wrought in the work.
17: And the king commanded, and they brought great
stones, costly stones, and hewed stones, to lay the foundation
of the house.
18: And Solomon's builders and Hiram's builders did hew
them, and the stonesquarers: so they prepared timber and stones
to build the house.
1 Kings, chapter 6
1: And it came
to pass in the four hundred and eightieth year after the
children of Israel were come out of the land of Egypt, in the
fourth year of Solomon's reign over Israel, in the month Zif,
which is the second month, that he began to build the house of
the LORD.
2: And the house which king Solomon built for the LORD,
the length thereof was threescore cubits, and the breadth
thereof twenty cubits, and the height thereof thirty cubits.
3: And the porch before the temple of the house, twenty
cubits was the length thereof, according to the breadth of the
house; and ten cubits was the breadth thereof before the house.
4: And for the house he made windows of narrow lights.
5: And against the wall of the house he built chambers
round about, against the walls of the house round about, both of
the temple and of the oracle: and he made chambers round about:
6: The nethermost chamber was five cubits broad, and the
middle was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits
broad: for without in the wall of the house he made narrowed
rests round about, that the beams should not be fastened in the
walls of the house.
7: And the house, when it was in building, was built of
stone made ready before it was brought thither: so that there
was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in the
house, while it was in building.
8: The door for the middle chamber was in the right side
of the house: and they went up with winding stairs into the
middle chamber, and out of the middle into the third.
9: So he built the house, and finished it; and covered
the house with beams and boards of cedar.
10: And then he built chambers against all the house,
five cubits high: and they rested on the house with timber of
cedar.
11: And the word of the LORD came to Solomon, saying,
12: Concerning this house which thou art in building, if
thou wilt walk in my statutes, and execute my judgments, and
keep all my commandments to walk in them; then will I perform my
word with thee, which I spake unto David thy father:
13: And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and
will not forsake my people Israel.
14: So Solomon built the house, and finished it.
15: And he built the walls of the house within with
boards of cedar, both the floor of the house, and the walls of
the cieling: and he covered them on the inside with wood, and
covered the floor of the house with planks of fir.
16: And he built twenty cubits on the sides of the house,
both the floor and the walls with boards of cedar: he even built
them for it within, even for the oracle, even for the most holy
place.
17: And the house, that is, the temple before it, was
forty cubits long.
18: And the cedar of the house within was carved with
knops and open flowers: all was cedar; there was no stone seen.
19: And the oracle he prepared in the house within, to
set there the ark of the covenant of the LORD.
20: And the oracle in the forepart was twenty cubits in
length, and twenty cubits in breadth, and twenty cubits in the
height thereof: and he overlaid it with pure gold; and so
covered the altar which was of cedar.
21: So Solomon overlaid the house within with pure gold:
and he made a partition by the chains of gold before the oracle;
and he overlaid it with gold.
22: And the whole house he overlaid with gold, until he
had finished all the house: also the whole altar that was by the
oracle he overlaid with gold.
23: And within the oracle he made two cherubims of olive
tree, each ten cubits high.
24: And five cubits was the one wing of the cherub, and
five cubits the other wing of the cherub: from the uttermost
part of the one wing unto the uttermost part of the other were
ten cubits.
25: And the other cherub was ten cubits: both the
cherubims were of one measure and one size.
26: The height of the one cherub was ten cubits, and so
was it of the other cherub.
27: And he set the cherubims within the inner house: and
they stretched forth the wings of the cherubims, so that the
wing of the one touched the one wall, and the wing of the other
cherub touched the other wall; and their wings touched one
another in the midst of the house.
28: And he overlaid the cherubims with gold.
29: And he carved all the walls of the house round about
with carved figures of cherubims and palm trees and open
flowers, within and without.
30: And the floor of the house he overlaid with gold,
within and without.
31: And for the entering of the oracle he made doors of
olive tree: the lintel and side posts were a fifth part of the
wall.
32: The two doors also were of olive tree; and he carved
upon them carvings of cherubims and palm trees and open flowers,
and overlaid them with gold, and spread gold upon the cherubims,
and upon the palm trees.
33: So also made he for the door of the temple posts of
olive tree, a fourth part of the wall.
34: And the two doors were of fir tree: the two leaves of
the one door were folding, and the two leaves of the other door
were folding.
35: And he carved thereon cherubims and palm trees and
open flowers: and covered them with gold fitted upon the carved
work.
36: And he built the inner court with three rows of hewed
stone, and a row of cedar beams.
37: In the fourth year was the foundation of the house of
the LORD laid, in the month Zif:
38: And in the eleventh year, in the month Bul, which is
the eighth month, was the house finished throughout all the
parts thereof, and according to all the fashion of it. So was he
seven years in building it.
1 Kings, chapter 7
1: But Solomon
was building his own house thirteen years, and he finished all
his house.
2: He built also the house of the forest of Lebanon; the
length thereof was an hundred cubits, and the breadth thereof
fifty cubits, and the height thereof thirty cubits, upon four
rows of cedar pillars, with cedar beams upon the pillars.
3: And it was covered with cedar above upon the beams,
that lay on forty five pillars, fifteen in a row.
4: And there were windows in three rows, and light was
against light in three ranks.
5: And all the doors and posts were square, with the
windows: and light was against light in three ranks.
6: And he made a porch of pillars; the length thereof was
fifty cubits, and the breadth thereof thirty cubits: and the
porch was before them: and the other pillars and the thick beam
were before them.
7: Then he made a porch for the throne where he might
judge, even the porch of judgment: and it was covered with cedar
from one side of the floor to the other.
8: And his house where he dwelt had another court within
the porch, which was of the like work. Solomon made also an
house for Pharaoh's daughter, whom he had taken to wife, like
unto this porch.
9: All these were of costly stones, according to the
measures of hewed stones, sawed with saws, within and without,
even from the foundation unto the coping, and so on the outside
toward the great court.
10: And the foundation was of costly stones, even great
stones, stones of ten cubits, and stones of eight cubits.
11: And above were costly stones, after the measures of
hewed stones, and cedars.
12: And the great court round about was with three rows
of hewed stones, and a row of cedar beams, both for the inner
court of the house of the LORD, and for the porch of the house.
13: And king Solomon sent and fetched Hiram out of Tyre.
14: He was a widow's son of the tribe of Naphtali, and
his father was a man of Tyre, a worker in brass: and he was
filled with wisdom, and understanding, and cunning to work all
works in brass. And he came to king Solomon, and wrought all his
work.
15: For he cast two pillars of brass, of eighteen cubits
high apiece: and a line of twelve cubits did compass either of
them about.
16: And he made two chapiters of molten brass, to set
upon the tops of the pillars: the height of the one chapiter was
five cubits, and the height of the other chapiter was five
cubits:
17: And nets of checker work, and wreaths of chain work,
for the chapiters which were upon the top of the pillars; seven
for the one chapiter, and seven for the other chapiter.
18: And he made the pillars, and two rows round about
upon the one network, to cover the chapiters that were upon the
top, with pomegranates: and so did he for the other chapiter.
19: And the chapiters that were upon the top of the
pillars were of lily work in the porch, four cubits.
20: And the chapiters upon the two pillars had
pomegranates also above, over against the belly which was by the
network: and the pomegranates were two hundred in rows round
about upon the other chapiter.
21: And he set up the pillars in the porch of the temple:
and he set up the right pillar, and called the name thereof
Jachin: and he set up the left pillar, and he called the name
thereof Boaz.
22: And upon the top of the pillars was lily work: so was
the work of the pillars finished.
23: And he made a molten sea, ten cubits from the one
brim to the other: it was round all about, and his height was
five cubits: and a line of thirty cubits did compass it round
about.
24: And under the brim of it round about there were knops
compassing it, ten in a cubit, compassing the sea round about:
the knops were cast in two rows, when it was cast.
25: It stood upon twelve oxen, three looking toward the
north, and three looking toward the west, and three looking
toward the south, and three looking toward the east: and the sea
was set above upon them, and all their hinder parts were inward.
26: And it was an hand breadth thick, and the brim
thereof was wrought like the brim of a cup, with flowers of
lilies: it contained two thousand baths.
27: And he made ten bases of brass; four cubits was the
length of one base, and four cubits the breadth thereof, and
three cubits the height of it.
28: And the work of the bases was on this manner: they
had borders, and the borders were between the ledges:
29: And on the borders that were between the ledges were
lions, oxen, and cherubims: and upon the ledges there was a base
above: and beneath the lions and oxen were certain additions
made of thin work.
30: And every base had four brasen wheels, and plates of
brass: and the four corners thereof had undersetters: under the
laver were undersetters molten, at the side of every addition.
31: And the mouth of it within the chapiter and above was
a cubit: but the mouth thereof was round after the work of the
base, a cubit and an half: and also upon the mouth of it were
gravings with their borders, foursquare, not round.
32: And under the borders were four wheels; and the
axletrees of the wheels were joined to the base: and the height
of a wheel was a cubit and a half a cubit.
33: And the work of the wheels was like the work of a
chariot wheel: their axletrees, and their naves, and their
felloes, and their spokes, were all molten.
34: And there were four undersetters to the four corners
of one base: and the undersetters were of the very base itself.
35: And in the top of the base was there a round compass
of half a cubit high: and on the top of the base the ledges
thereof and the borders thereof were of the same.
36: For on the plates of the ledges thereof, and on the
borders thereof, he graved cherubims, lions, and palm trees,
according to the proportion of every one, and additions round
about.
37: After this manner he made the ten bases: all of them
had one casting, one measure, and one size.
38: Then made he ten lavers of brass: one laver contained
forty baths: and every laver was four cubits: and upon every one
of the ten bases one laver.
39: And he put five bases on the right side of the house,
and five on the left side of the house: and he set the sea on
the right side of the house eastward over against the south.
40: And Hiram made the lavers, and the shovels, and the
basons. So Hiram made an end of doing all the work that he made
king Solomon for the house of the LORD:
41: The two pillars, and the two bowls of the chapiters
that were on the top of the two pillars; and the two networks,
to cover the two bowls of the chapiters which were upon the top
of the pillars;
42: And four hundred pomegranates for the two networks,
even two rows of pomegranates for one network, to cover the two
bowls of the chapiters that were upon the pillars;
43: And the ten bases, and ten lavers on the bases;
44: And one sea, and twelve oxen under the sea;
45: And the pots, and the shovels, and the basons: and
all these vessels, which Hiram made to king Solomon for the
house of the LORD, were of bright brass.
46: In the plain of Jordan did the king cast them, in the
clay ground between Succoth and Zarthan.
47: And Solomon left all the vessels unweighed, because
they were exceeding many: neither was the weight of the brass
found out.
48: And Solomon made all the vessels that pertained unto
the house of the LORD: the altar of gold, and the table of gold,
whereupon the shewbread was,
49: And the candlesticks of pure gold, five on the right
side, and five on the left, before the oracle, with the flowers,
and the lamps, and the tongs of gold,
50: And the bowls, and the snuffers, and the basons, and
the spoons, and the censers of pure gold; and the hinges of
gold, both for the doors of the inner house, the most holy
place, and for the doors of the house, to wit, of the temple.
51: So was ended all the work that king Solomon made for
the house of the LORD. And Solomon brought in the things which
David his father had dedicated; even the silver, and the gold,
and the vessels, did he put among the treasures of the house of
the LORD.
1 Kings, chapter 8
1: Then
Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the
tribes, the chief of the fathers of the children of Israel, unto
king Solomon in Jerusalem, that they might bring up the ark of
the covenant of the LORD out of the city of David, which is
Zion.
2: And all the men of Israel assembled themselves unto
king Solomon at the feast in the month Ethanim, which is the
seventh month.
3: And all the elders of Israel came, and the priests
took up the ark.
4: And they brought up the ark of the LORD, and the
tabernacle of the congregation, and all the holy vessels that
were in the tabernacle, even those did the priests and the
Levites bring up.
5: And king Solomon, and all the congregation of Israel,
that were assembled unto him, were with him before the ark,
sacrificing sheep and oxen, that could not be told nor numbered
for multitude.
6: And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of
the LORD unto his place, into the oracle of the house, to the
most holy place, even under the wings of the cherubims.
7: For the cherubims spread forth their two wings over
the place of the ark, and the cherubims covered the ark and the
staves thereof above.
8: And they drew out the staves, that the ends of the
staves were seen out in the holy place before the oracle, and
they were not seen without: and there they are unto this day.
9: There was nothing in the ark save the two tables of
stone, which Moses put there at Horeb, when the LORD made a
covenant with the children of Israel, when they came out of the
land of Egypt.
10: And it came to pass, when the priests were come out
of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the LORD,
11: So that the priests could not stand to minister
because of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the
house of the LORD.
12: Then spake Solomon, The LORD said that he would dwell
in thick darkness.
13: I have surely built thee an house to dwell in, a
settled place for thee to abide in for ever.
14: And the king turned his face about, and blessed all
the congregation of Israel: (and all the congregation of Israel
stood;)
15: And he said, Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, which
spake with his mouth unto David my father, and hath with his
hand fulfilled it, saying,
16: Since the day that I brought forth my people Israel
out of Egypt, I chose no city out of all the tribes of Israel to
build an house, that my name might be therein; but I chose David
to be over my people Israel.
17: And it was in the heart of David my father to build
an house for the name of the LORD God of Israel.
18: And the LORD said unto David my father, Whereas it
was in thine heart to build an house unto my name, thou didst
well that it was in thine heart.
19: Nevertheless thou shalt not build the house; but thy
son that shall come forth out of thy loins, he shall build the
house unto my name.
20: And the LORD hath performed his word that he spake,
and I am risen up in the room of David my father, and sit on the
throne of Israel, as the LORD promised, and have built an house
for the name of the LORD God of Israel.
21: And I have set there a place for the ark, wherein is
the covenant of the LORD, which he made with our fathers, when
he brought them out of the land of Egypt.
22: And Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in the
presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread forth his
hands toward heaven:
23: And he said, LORD God of Israel, there is no God like
thee, in heaven above, or on earth beneath, who keepest covenant
and mercy with thy servants that walk before thee with all their
heart:
24: Who hast kept with thy servant David my father that
thou promisedst him: thou spakest also with thy mouth, and hast
fulfilled it with thine hand, as it is this day.
25: Therefore now, LORD God of Israel, keep with thy
servant David my father that thou promisedst him, saying, There
shall not fail thee a man in my sight to sit on the throne of
Israel; so that thy children take heed to their way, that they
walk before me as thou hast walked before me.
26: And now, O God of Israel, let thy word, I pray thee,
be verified, which thou spakest unto thy servant David my
father.
27: But will God indeed dwell on the earth? behold, the
heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain thee; how much less
this house that I have builded?
28: Yet have thou respect unto the prayer of thy servant,
and to his supplication, O LORD my God, to hearken unto the cry
and to the prayer, which thy servant prayeth before thee to day:
29: That thine eyes may be open toward this house night
and day, even toward the place of which thou hast said, My name
shall be there: that thou mayest hearken unto the prayer which
thy servant shall make toward this place.
30: And hearken thou to the supplication of thy servant,
and of thy people Israel, when they shall pray toward this
place: and hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place: and when thou
hearest, forgive.
31: If any man trespass against his neighbour, and an
oath be laid upon him to cause him to swear, and the oath come
before thine altar in this house:
32: Then hear thou in heaven, and do, and judge thy
servants, condemning the wicked, to bring his way upon his head;
and justifying the righteous, to give him according to his
righteousness.
33: When thy people Israel be smitten down before the
enemy, because they have sinned against thee, and shall turn
again to thee, and confess thy name, and pray, and make
supplication unto thee in this house:
34: Then hear thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of thy
people Israel, and bring them again unto the land which thou
gavest unto their fathers.
35: When heaven is shut up, and there is no rain, because
they have sinned against thee; if they pray toward this place,
and confess thy name, and turn from their sin, when thou
afflictest them:
36: Then hear thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of thy
servants, and of thy people Israel, that thou teach them the
good way wherein they should walk, and give rain upon thy land,
which thou hast given to thy people for an inheritance.
37: If there be in the land famine, if there be
pestilence, blasting, mildew, locust, or if there be
caterpiller; if their enemy besiege them in the land of their
cities; whatsoever plague, whatsoever sickness there be;
38: What prayer and supplication soever be made by any
man, or by all thy people Israel, which shall know every man the
plague of his own heart, and spread forth his hands toward this
house:
39: Then hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place, and
forgive, and do, and give to every man according to his ways,
whose heart thou knowest; (for thou, even thou only, knowest the
hearts of all the children of men;)
40: That they may fear thee all the days that they live
in the land which thou gavest unto our fathers.
41: Moreover concerning a stranger, that is not of thy
people Israel, but cometh out of a far country for thy name's
sake;
42: (For they shall hear of thy great name, and of thy
strong hand, and of thy stretched out arm;) when he shall come
and pray toward this house;
43: Hear thou in heaven thy dwelling place, and do
according to all that the stranger calleth to thee for: that all
people of the earth may know thy name, to fear thee, as do thy
people Israel; and that they may know that this house, which I
have builded, is called by thy name.
44: If thy people go out to battle against their enemy,
whithersoever thou shalt send them, and shall pray unto the LORD
toward the city which thou hast chosen, and toward the house
that I have built for thy name:
45: Then hear thou in heaven their prayer and their
supplication, and maintain their cause.
46: If they sin against thee, (for there is no man that
sinneth not,) and thou be angry with them, and deliver them to
the enemy, so that they carry them away captives unto the land
of the enemy, far or near;
47: Yet if they shall bethink themselves in the land
whither they were carried captives, and repent, and make
supplication unto thee in the land of them that carried them
captives, saying, We have sinned, and have done perversely, we
have committed wickedness;
48: And so return unto thee with all their heart, and
with all their soul, in the land of their enemies, which led
them away captive, and pray unto thee toward their land, which
thou gavest unto their fathers, the city which thou hast chosen,
and the house which I have built for thy name:
49: Then hear thou their prayer and their supplication in
heaven thy dwelling place, and maintain their cause,
50: And forgive thy people that have sinned against thee
and all their transgressions wherein they have transgressed
against thee, and give them compassion before them who carried
them captive, that they may have compassion on them:
51: For they be thy people, and thine inheritance, which
thou broughtest forth out of Egypt, from the midst of the
furnace of iron:
52: That thine eyes may be open unto the supplication of
thy servant, and unto the supplication of thy people Israel, to
hearken unto them in all that they call for unto thee.
53: For thou didst separate them from among all the
people of the earth, to be thine inheritance, as thou spakest by
the hand of Moses thy servant, when thou broughtest our fathers
out of Egypt, O Lord GOD.
54: And it was so, that when Solomon had made an end of
praying all this prayer and supplication unto the LORD, he arose
from before the altar of the LORD, from kneeling on his knees
with his hands spread up to heaven.
55: And he stood, and blessed all the congregation of
Israel with a loud voice, saying,
56: Blessed be the LORD, that hath given rest unto his
people Israel, according to all that he promised: there hath not
failed one word of all his good promise, which he promised by
the hand of Moses his servant.
57: The LORD our God be with us, as he was with our
fathers: let him not leave us, nor forsake us:
58: That he may incline our hearts unto him, to walk in
all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and his statutes,
and his judgments, which he commanded our fathers.
59: And let these my words, wherewith I have made
supplication before the LORD, be nigh unto the LORD our God day
and night, that he maintain the cause of his servant, and the
cause of his people Israel at all times, as the matter shall
require:
60: That all the people of the earth may know that the
LORD is God, and that there is none else.
61: Let your heart therefore be perfect with the LORD our
God, to walk in his statutes, and to keep his commandments, as
at this day.
62: And the king, and all Israel with him, offered
sacrifice before the LORD.
63: And Solomon offered a sacrifice of peace offerings,
which he offered unto the LORD, two and twenty thousand oxen,
and an hundred and twenty thousand sheep. So the king and all
the children of Israel dedicated the house of the LORD.
64: The same day did the king hallow the middle of the
court that was before the house of the LORD: for there he
offered burnt offerings, and meat offerings, and the fat of the
peace offerings: because the brasen altar that was before the
LORD was too little to receive the burnt offerings, and meat
offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings.
65: And at that time Solomon held a feast, and all Israel
with him, a great congregation, from the entering in of Hamath
unto the river of Egypt, before the LORD our God, seven days and
seven days, even fourteen days.
66: On the eighth day he sent the people away: and they
blessed the king, and went unto their tents joyful and glad of
heart for all the goodness that the LORD had done for David his
servant, and for Israel his people.
1 Kings, chapter 9
1: And it came
to pass, when Solomon had finished the building of the house of
the LORD, and the king's house, and all Solomon's desire which
he was pleased to do,
2: That the LORD appeared to Solomon the second time, as
he had appeared unto him at Gibeon.
3: And the LORD said unto him, I have heard thy prayer
and thy supplication, that thou hast made before me: I have
hallowed this house, which thou hast built, to put my name there
for ever; and mine eyes and mine heart shall be there
perpetually.
4: And if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father
walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do
according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep my
statutes and my judgments:
5: Then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon
Israel for ever, as I promised to David thy father, saying,
There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel.
6: But if ye shall at all turn from following me, ye or
your children, and will not keep my commandments and my statutes
which I have set before you, but go and serve other gods, and
worship them:
7: Then will I cut off Israel out of the land which I
have given them; and this house, which I have hallowed for my
name, will I cast out of my sight; and Israel shall be a proverb
and a byword among all people:
8: And at this house, which is high, every one that
passeth by it shall be astonished, and shall hiss; and they
shall say, Why hath the LORD done thus unto this land, and to
this house?
9: And they shall answer, Because they forsook the LORD
their God, who brought forth their fathers out of the land of
Egypt, and have taken hold upon other gods, and have worshipped
them, and served them: therefore hath the LORD brought upon them
all this evil.
10: And it came to pass at the end of twenty years, when
Solomon had built the two houses, the house of the LORD, and the
king's house,
11: (Now Hiram the king of Tyre had furnished Solomon
with cedar trees and fir trees, and with gold, according to all
his desire,) that then king Solomon gave Hiram twenty cities in
the land of Galilee.
12: And Hiram came out from Tyre to see the cities which
Solomon had given him; and they pleased him not.
13: And he said, What cities are these which thou hast
given me, my brother? And he called them the land of Cabul unto
this day.
14: And Hiram sent to the king sixscore talents of gold.
15: And this is the reason of the levy which king Solomon
raised; for to build the house of the LORD, and his own house,
and Millo, and the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor, and Megiddo,
and Gezer.
16: For Pharaoh king of Egypt had gone up, and taken
Gezer, and burnt it with fire, and slain the Canaanites that
dwelt in the city, and given it for a present unto his daughter,
Solomon's wife.
17: And Solomon built Gezer, and Beth-horon the nether,
18: and Baalath, and Tadmor in the wilderness, in the
land,
19: And all the cities of store that Solomon had, and
cities for his chariots, and cities for his horsemen, and that
which Solomon desired to build in Jerusalem, and in Lebanon, and
in all the land of his dominion.
20: And all the people that were left of the Amorites,
Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites, which were not of
the children of Israel,
21: Their children that were left after them in the land,
whom the children of Israel also were not able utterly to
destroy, upon those did Solomon levy a tribute of bondservice
unto this day.
22: But of the children of Israel did Solomon make no
bondmen: but they were men of war, and his servants, and his
princes, and his captains, and rulers of his chariots, and his
horsemen.
23: These were the chief of the officers that were over
Solomon's work, five hundred and fifty, which bare rule over the
people that wrought in the work.
24: But Pharaoh's daughter came up out of the city of
David unto her house which Solomon had built for her: then did
he build Millo.
25: And three times in a year did Solomon offer burnt
offerings and peace offerings upon the altar which he built unto
the LORD, and he burnt incense upon the altar that was before
the LORD. So he finished the house.
26: And king Solomon made a navy of ships in Ezion-geber,
which is beside Eloth, on the shore of the Red sea, in the land
of Edom.
27: And Hiram sent in the navy his servants, shipmen that
had knowledge of the sea, with the servants of Solomon.
28: And they came to Ophir, and fetched from thence gold,
four hundred and twenty talents, and brought it to king Solomon.
1 Kings, chapter 10
1: And when
the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the
name of the LORD, she came to prove him with hard questions.
2: And she came to Jerusalem with a very great train,
with camels that bare spices, and very much gold, and precious
stones: and when she was come to Solomon, she communed with him
of all that was in her heart.
3: And Solomon told her all her questions: there was not
any thing hid from the king, which he told her not.
4: And when the queen of Sheba had seen all Solomon's
wisdom, and the house that he had built,
5: And the meat of his table, and the sitting of his
servants, and the attendance of his ministers, and their
apparel, and his cupbearers, and his ascent by which he went up
unto the house of the LORD; there was no more spirit in her.
6: And she said to the king, It was a true report that I
heard in mine own land of thy acts and of thy wisdom.
7: Howbeit I believed not the words, until I came, and
mine eyes had seen it: and, behold, the half was not told me:
thy wisdom and prosperity exceedeth the fame which I heard.
8: Happy are thy men, happy are these thy servants, which
stand continually before thee, and that hear thy wisdom.
9: Blessed be the LORD thy God, which delighted in thee,
to set thee on the throne of Israel: because the LORD loved
Israel for ever, therefore made he thee king, to do judgment and
justice.
10: And she gave the king an hundred and twenty talents
of gold, and of spices very great store, and precious stones:
there came no more such abundance of spices as these which the
queen of Sheba gave to king Solomon.
11: And the navy also of Hiram, that brought gold from
Ophir, brought in from Ophir great plenty of almug trees, and
precious stones.
12: And the king made of the almug trees pillars for the
house of the LORD, and for the king's house, harps also and
psalteries for singers: there came no such almug trees, nor were
seen unto this day.
13: And king Solomon gave unto the queen of Sheba all her
desire, whatsoever she asked, beside that which Solomon gave her
of his royal bounty. So she turned and went to her own country,
she and her servants.
14: Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one
year was six hundred threescore and six talents of gold.
15: Beside that he had of the merchantmen, and of the
traffick of the spice merchants, and of all the kings of Arabia,
and of the governors of the country.
16: And king Solomon made two hundred targets of beaten
gold: six hundred shekels of gold went to one target.
17: And he made three hundred shields of beaten gold;
three pound of gold went to one shield: and the king put them in
the house of the forest of Lebanon.
18: Moreover the king made a great throne of ivory, and
overlaid it with the best gold.
19: The throne had six steps, and the top of the throne
was round behind: and there were stays on either side on the
place of the seat, and two lions stood beside the stays.
20: And twelve lions stood there on the one side and on
the other upon the six steps: there was not the like made in any
kingdom.
21: And all king Solomon's drinking vessels were of gold,
and all the vessels of the house of the forest of Lebanon were
of pure gold; none were of silver: it was nothing accounted of
in the days of Solomon.
22: For the king had at sea a navy of Tharshish with the
navy of Hiram: once in three years came the navy of Tharshish,
bringing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks.
23: So king Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth
for riches and for wisdom.
24: And all the earth sought to Solomon, to hear his
wisdom, which God had put in his heart.
25: And they brought every man his present, vessels of
silver, and vessels of gold, and garments, and armour, and
spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year.
26: And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen:
and he had a thousand and four hundred chariots, and twelve
thousand horsemen, whom he bestowed in the cities for chariots,
and with the king at Jerusalem.
27: And the king made silver to be in Jerusalem as
stones, and cedars made he to be as the sycomore trees that are
in the vale, for abundance.
28: And Solomon had horses brought out of Egypt, and
linen yarn: the king's merchants received the linen yarn at a
price.
29: And a chariot came up and went out of Egypt for six
hundred shekels of silver, and an horse for an hundred and
fifty: and so for all the kings of the Hittites, and for the
kings of Syria, did they bring them out by their means.
1 Kings, chapter 11
1: But king
Solomon loved many strange women, together with the daughter of
Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians,
and Hittites;
2: Of the nations concerning which the LORD said unto the
children of Israel, Ye shall not go in to them, neither shall
they come in unto you: for surely they will turn away your heart
after their gods: Solomon clave unto these in love.
3: And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three
hundred concubines: and his wives turned away his heart.
4: For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his
wives turned away his heart after other gods: and his heart was
not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his
father.
5: For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the
Zidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.
6: And Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and
went not fully after the LORD, as did David his father.
7: Then did Solomon build an high place for Chemosh, the
abomination of Moab, in the hill that is before Jerusalem, and
for Molech, the abomination of the children of Ammon.
8: And likewise did he for all his strange wives, which
burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods.
9: And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart
was turned from the LORD God of Israel, which had appeared unto
him twice,
10: And had commanded him concerning this thing, that he
should not go after other gods: but he kept not that which the
LORD commanded.
11: Wherefore the LORD said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as
this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept my covenant and my
statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the
kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant.
12: Notwithstanding in thy days I will not do it for
David thy father's sake: but I will rend it out of the hand of
thy son.
13: Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but
will give one tribe to thy son for David my servant's sake, and
for Jerusalem's sake which I have chosen.
14: And the LORD stirred up an adversary unto Solomon,
Hadad the Edomite: he was of the king's seed in Edom.
15: For it came to pass, when David was in Edom, and Joab
the captain of the host was gone up to bury the slain, after he
had smitten every male in Edom;
16: (For six months did Joab remain there with all
Israel, until he had cut off every male in Edom:)
17: That Hadad fled, he and certain Edomites of his
father's servants with him, to go into Egypt; Hadad being yet a
little child.
18: And they arose out of Midian, and came to Paran: and
they took men with them out of Paran, and they came to Egypt,
unto Pharaoh king of Egypt; which gave him an house, and
appointed him victuals, and gave him land.
19: And Hadad found great favour in the sight of Pharaoh,
so that he gave him to wife the sister of his own wife, the
sister of Tahpenes the queen.
20: And the sister of Tahpenes bare him Genubath his son,
whom Tahpenes weaned in Pharaoh's house: and Genubath was in
Pharaoh's household among the sons of Pharaoh.
21: And when Hadad heard in Egypt that David slept with
his fathers, and that Joab the captain of the host was dead,
Hadad said to Pharaoh, Let me depart, that I may go to mine own
country.
22: Then Pharaoh said unto him, But what hast thou lacked
with me, that, behold, thou seekest to go to thine own country?
And he answered, Nothing: howbeit let me go in any wise.
23: And God stirred him up another adversary, Rezon the
son of Eliadah, which fled from his lord Hadadezer king of
Zobah:
24: And he gathered men unto him, and became captain over
a band, when David slew them of Zobah: and they went to
Damascus, and dwelt therein, and reigned in Damascus.
25: And he was an adversary to Israel all the days of
Solomon, beside the mischief that Hadad did: and he abhorred
Israel, and reigned over Syria.
26: And Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephrathite of
Zereda, Solomon's servant, whose mother's name was Zeruah, a
widow woman, even he lifted up his hand against the king.
27: And this was the cause that he lifted up his hand
against the king: Solomon built Millo, and repaired the breaches
of the city of David his father.
28: And the man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valour: and
Solomon seeing the young man that he was industrious, he made
him ruler over all the charge of the house of Joseph.
29: And it came to pass at that time when Jeroboam went
out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found
him in the way; and he had clad himself with a new garment; and
they two were alone in the field:
30: And Ahijah caught the new garment that was on him,
and rent it in twelve pieces:
31: And he said to Jeroboam, Take thee ten pieces: for
thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, Behold, I will rend the
kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to
thee:
32: (But he shall have one tribe for my servant David's
sake, and for Jerusalem's sake, the city which I have chosen out
of all the tribes of Israel:)
33: Because that they have forsaken me, and have
worshipped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, Chemosh the
god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the children of
Ammon, and have not walked in my ways, to do that which is right
in mine eyes, and to keep my statutes and my judgments, as did
David his father.
34: Howbeit I will not take the whole kingdom out of his
hand: but I will make him prince all the days of his life for
David my servant's sake, whom I chose, because he kept my
commandments and my statutes:
35: But I will take the kingdom out of his son's hand,
and will give it unto thee, even ten tribes.
36: And unto his son will I give one tribe, that David my
servant may have a light alway before me in Jerusalem, the city
which I have chosen me to put my name there.
37: And I will take thee, and thou shalt reign according
to all that thy soul desireth, and shalt be king over Israel.
38: And it shall be, if thou wilt hearken unto all that I
command thee, and wilt walk in my ways, and do that is right in
my sight, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as David my
servant did; that I will be with thee, and build thee a sure
house, as I built for David, and will give Israel unto thee.
39: And I will for this afflict the seed of David, but
not for ever.
40: Solomon sought therefore to kill Jeroboam. And
Jeroboam arose, and fled into Egypt, unto Shishak king of Egypt,
and was in Egypt until the death of Solomon.
41: And the rest of the acts of Solomon, and all that he
did, and his wisdom, are they not written in the book of the
acts of Solomon?
42: And the time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over
all Israel was forty years.
43: And Solomon slept with his fathers, and was buried in
the city of David his father: and Rehoboam his son reigned in
his stead.
1 Kings, chapter 12
1: And
Rehoboam went to Shechem: for all Israel were come to Shechem to
make him king.
2: And it came to pass, when Jeroboam the son of Nebat,
who was yet in Egypt, heard of it, (for he was fled from the
presence of king Solomon, and Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt;)
3: That they sent and called him. And Jeroboam and all
the congregation of Israel came, and spake unto Rehoboam,
saying,
4: Thy father made our yoke grievous: now therefore make
thou the grievous service of thy father, and his heavy yoke
which he put upon us, lighter, and we will serve thee.
5: And he said unto them, Depart yet for three days, then
come again to me. And the people departed.
6: And king Rehoboam consulted with the old men, that
stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, and said,
How do ye advise that I may answer this people?
7: And they spake unto him, saying, If thou wilt be a
servant unto this people this day, and wilt serve them, and
answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be thy
servants for ever.
8: But he forsook the counsel of the old men, which they
had given him, and consulted with the young men that were grown
up with him, and which stood before him:
9: And he said unto them, What counsel give ye that we
may answer this people, who have spoken to me, saying, Make the
yoke which thy father did put upon us lighter?
10: And the young men that were grown up with him spake
unto him, saying, Thus shalt thou speak unto this people that
spake unto thee, saying, Thy father made our yoke heavy, but
make thou it lighter unto us; thus shalt thou say unto them, My
little finger shall be thicker than my father's loins.
11: And now whereas my father did lade you with a heavy
yoke, I will add to your yoke: my father hath chastised you with
whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.
12: So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the
third day, as the king had appointed, saying, Come to me again
the third day.
13: And the king answered the people roughly, and forsook
the old men's counsel that they gave him;
14: And spake to them after the counsel of the young men,
saying, My father made your yoke heavy, and I will add to your
yoke: my father also chastised you with whips, but I will
chastise you with scorpions.
15: Wherefore the king hearkened not unto the people; for
the cause was from the LORD, that he might perform his saying,
which the LORD spake by Ahijah the Shilonite unto Jeroboam the
son of Nebat.
16: So when all Israel saw that the king hearkened not
unto them, the people answered the king, saying, What portion
have we in David? neither have we inheritance in the son of
Jesse: to your tents, O Israel: now see to thine own house,
David. So Israel departed unto their tents.
17: But as for the children of Israel which dwelt in the
cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them.
18: Then king Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was over the
tribute; and all Israel stoned him with stones, that he died.
Therefore king Rehoboam made speed to get him up to his chariot,
to flee to Jerusalem.
19: So Israel rebelled against the house of David unto
this day.
20: And it came to pass, when all Israel heard that
Jeroboam was come again, that they sent and called him unto the
congregation, and made him king over all Israel: there was none
that followed the house of David, but the tribe of Judah only.
21: And when Rehoboam was come to Jerusalem, he assembled
all the house of Judah, with the tribe of Benjamin, an hundred
and fourscore thousand chosen men, which were warriors, to fight
against the house of Israel, to bring the kingdom again to
Rehoboam the son of Solomon.
22: But the word of God came unto Shemaiah the man of
God, saying,
23: Speak unto Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, king of
Judah, and unto all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the
remnant of the people, saying,
24: Thus saith the LORD, Ye shall not go up, nor fight
against your brethren the children of Israel: return every man
to his house; for this thing is from me. They hearkened
therefore to the word of the LORD, and returned to depart,
according to the word of the LORD.
25: Then Jeroboam built Shechem in mount Ephraim, and
dwelt therein; and went out from thence, and built Penuel.
26: And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now shall the kingdom
return to the house of David:
27: If this people go up to do sacrifice in the house of
the LORD at Jerusalem, then shall the heart of this people turn
again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and
they shall kill me, and go again to Rehoboam king of Judah.
28: Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves
of gold, and said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to
Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out
of the land of Egypt.
29: And he set the one in Bethel, and the other put he in
Dan.
30: And this thing became a sin: for the people went to
worship before the one, even unto Dan.
31: And he made an house of high places, and made priests
of the lowest of the people, which were not of the sons of Levi.
32: And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on
the fifteenth day of the month, like unto the feast that is in
Judah, and he offered upon the altar. So did he in Bethel,
sacrificing unto the calves that he had made: and he placed in
Bethel the priests of the high places which he had made.
33: So he offered upon the altar which he had made in
Bethel the fifteenth day of the eighth month, even in the month
which he had devised of his own heart; and ordained a feast unto
the children of Israel: and he offered upon the altar, and burnt
incense.
1 Kings, chapter 13
1: And,
behold, there came a man of God out of Judah by the word of the
LORD unto Bethel: and Jeroboam stood by the altar to burn
incense.
2: And he cried against the altar in the word of the
LORD, and said, O altar, altar, thus saith the LORD; Behold, a
child shall be born unto the house of David, Josiah by name; and
upon thee shall he offer the priests of the high places that
burn incense upon thee, and men's bones shall be burnt upon
thee.
3: And he gave a sign the same day, saying, This is the
sign which the LORD hath spoken; Behold, the altar shall be
rent, and the ashes that are upon it shall be poured out.
4: And it came to pass, when king Jeroboam heard the
saying of the man of God, which had cried against the altar in
Bethel, that he put forth his hand from the altar, saying, Lay
hold on him. And his hand, which he put forth against him, dried
up, so that he could not pull it in again to him.
5: The altar also was rent, and the ashes poured out from
the altar, according to the sign which the man of God had given
by the word of the LORD.
6: And the king answered and said unto the man of God,
Intreat now the face of the LORD thy God, and pray for me, that
my hand may be restored me again. And the man of God besought
the LORD, and the king's hand was restored him again, and became
as it was before.
7: And the king said unto the man of God, Come home with
me, and refresh thyself, and I will give thee a reward.
8: And the man of God said unto the king, If thou wilt
give me half thine house, I will not go in with thee, neither
will I eat bread nor drink water in this place:
9: For so was it charged me by the word of the LORD,
saying, Eat no bread, nor drink water, nor turn again by the
same way that thou camest.
10: So he went another way, and returned not by the way
that he came to Bethel.
11: Now there dwelt an old prophet in Bethel; and his
sons came and told him all the works that the man of God had
done that day in Bethel: the words which he had spoken unto the
king, them they told also to their father.
12: And their father said unto them, What way went he?
For his sons had seen what way the man of God went, which came
from Judah.
13: And he said unto his sons, Saddle me the ass. So they
saddled him the ass: and he rode thereon,
14: And went after the man of God, and found him sitting
under an oak: and he said unto him, Art thou the man of God that
camest from Judah? And he said, I am.
15: Then he said unto him, Come home with me, and eat
bread.
16: And he said, I may not return with thee, nor go in
with thee: neither will I eat bread nor drink water with thee in
this place:
17: For it was said to me by the word of the LORD, Thou
shalt eat no bread nor drink water there, nor turn again to go
by the way that thou camest.
18: He said unto him, I am a prophet also as thou art;
and an angel spake unto me by the word of the LORD, saying,
Bring him back with thee into thine house, that he may eat bread
and drink water. But he lied unto him.
19: So he went back with him, and did eat bread in his
house, and drank water.
20: And it came to pass, as they sat at the table, that
the word of the LORD came unto the prophet that brought him
back:
21: And he cried unto the man of God that came from
Judah, saying, Thus saith the LORD, Forasmuch as thou hast
disobeyed the mouth of the LORD, and hast not kept the
commandment which the LORD thy God commanded thee,
22: But camest back, and hast eaten bread and drunk water
in the place, of the which the LORD did say to thee, Eat no
bread, and drink no water; thy carcase shall not come unto the
sepulchre of thy fathers.
23: And it came to pass, after he had eaten bread, and
after he had drunk, that he saddled for him the ass, to wit, for
the prophet whom he had brought back.
24: And when he was gone, a lion met him by the way, and
slew him: and his carcase was cast in the way, and the ass stood
by it, the lion also stood by the carcase.
25: And, behold, men passed by, and saw the carcase cast
in the way, and the lion standing by the carcase: and they came
and told it in the city where the old prophet dwelt.
26: And when the prophet that brought him back from the
way heard thereof, he said, It is the man of God, who was
disobedient unto the word of the LORD: therefore the LORD hath
delivered him unto the lion, which hath torn him, and slain him,
according to the word of the LORD, which he spake unto him.
27: And he spake to his sons, saying, Saddle me the ass.
And they saddled him.
28: And he went and found his carcase cast in the way,
and the ass and the lion standing by the carcase: the lion had
not eaten the carcase, nor torn the ass.
29: And the prophet took up the carcase of the man of
God, and laid it upon the ass, and brought it back: and the old
prophet came to the city, to mourn and to bury him.
30: And he laid his carcase in his own grave; and they
mourned over him, saying, Alas, my brother!
31: And it came to pass, after he had buried him, that he
spake to his sons, saying, When I am dead, then bury me in the
sepulchre wherein the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside
his bones:
32: For the saying which he cried by the word of the LORD
against the altar in Bethel, and against all the houses of the
high places which are in the cities of Samaria, shall surely
come to pass.
33: After this thing Jeroboam returned not from his evil
way, but made again of the lowest of the people priests of the
high places: whosoever would, he consecrated him, and he became
one of the priests of the high places.
34: And this thing became sin unto the house of Jeroboam,
even to cut it off, and to destroy it from off the face of the
earth.
1 Kings, chapter 14
1: At that
time Abijah the son of Jeroboam fell sick.
2: And Jeroboam said to his wife, Arise, I pray thee, and
disguise thyself, that thou be not known to be the wife of
Jeroboam; and get thee to Shiloh: behold, there is Ahijah the
prophet, which told me that I should be king over this people.
3: And take with thee ten loaves, and cracknels, and a
cruse of honey, and go to him: he shall tell thee what shall
become of the child.
4: And Jeroboam's wife did so, and arose, and went to
Shiloh, and came to the house of Ahijah. But Ahijah could not
see; for his eyes were set by reason of his age.
5: And the LORD said unto Ahijah, Behold, the wife of
Jeroboam cometh to ask a thing of thee for her son; for he is
sick: thus and thus shalt thou say unto her: for it shall be,
when she cometh in, that she shall feign herself to be another
woman.
6: And it was so, when Ahijah heard the sound of her feet
as she came in at the door, that he said, Come in, thou wife of
Jeroboam; why feignest thou thyself to be another? for I am sent
to thee with heavy tidings.
7: Go, tell Jeroboam, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel,
Forasmuch as I exalted thee from among the people, and made thee
prince over my people Israel,
8: And rent the kingdom away from the house of David, and
gave it thee: and yet thou hast not been as my servant David,
who kept my commandments, and who followed me with all his
heart, to do that only which was right in mine eyes;
9: But hast done evil above all that were before thee:
for thou hast gone and made thee other gods, and molten images,
to provoke me to anger, and hast cast me behind thy back:
10: Therefore, behold, I will bring evil upon the house
of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam him that pisseth
against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel,
and will take away the remnant of the house of Jeroboam, as a
man taketh away dung, till it be all gone.
11: Him that dieth of Jeroboam in the city shall the dogs
eat; and him that dieth in the field shall the fowls of the air
eat: for the LORD hath spoken it.
12: Arise thou therefore, get thee to thine own house:
and when thy feet enter into the city, the child shall die.
13: And all Israel shall mourn for him, and bury him: for
he only of Jeroboam shall come to the grave, because in him
there is found some good thing toward the LORD God of Israel in
the house of Jeroboam.
14: Moreover the LORD shall raise him up a king over
Israel, who shall cut off the house of Jeroboam that day: but
what? even now.
15: For the LORD shall smite Israel, as a reed is shaken
in the water, and he shall root up Israel out of this good land,
which he gave to their fathers, and shall scatter them beyond
the river, because they have made their groves, provoking the
LORD to anger.
16: And he shall give Israel up because of the sins of
Jeroboam, who did sin, and who made Israel to sin.
17: And Jeroboam's wife arose, and departed, and came to
Tirzah: and when she came to the threshold of the door, the
child died;
18: And they buried him; and all Israel mourned for him,
according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by the hand of
his servant Ahijah the prophet.
19: And the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, how he warred,
and how he reigned, behold, they are written in the book of the
chronicles of the kings of Israel.
20: And the days which Jeroboam reigned were two and
twenty years: and he slept with this fathers, and Nadab his son
reigned in his stead.
21: And Rehoboam the son of Solomon reigned in Judah.
Rehoboam was forty and one years old when he began to reign, and
he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which the LORD
did choose out of all the tribes of Israel, to put his name
there. And his mother's name was Naamah an Ammonitess.
22: And Judah did evil in the sight of the LORD, and they
provoked him to jealousy with their sins which they had
committed, above all that their fathers had done.
23: For they also built them high places, and images, and
groves, on every high hill, and under every green tree.
24: And there were also sodomites in the land: and they
did according to all the abominations of the nations which the
LORD cast out before the children of Israel.
25: And it came to pass in the fifth year of king
Rehoboam, that Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem:
26: And he took away the treasures of the house of the
LORD, and the treasures of the king's house; he even took away
all: and he took away all the shields of gold which Solomon had
made.
27: And king Rehoboam made in their stead brasen shields,
and committed them unto the hands of the chief of the guard,
which kept the door of the king's house.
28: And it was so, when the king went into the house of
the LORD, that the guard bare them, and brought them back into
the guard chamber.
29: Now the rest of the acts of Rehoboam, and all that he
did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the
kings of Judah?
30: And there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all
their days.
31: And Rehoboam slept with his fathers, and was buried
with his fathers in the city of David. And his mother's name was
Naamah an Ammonitess. And Abijam his son reigned in his stead.
1 Kings, chapter 15
1: Now in the
eighteenth year of king Jeroboam the son of Nebat reigned Abijam
over Judah.
2: Three years reigned he in Jerusalem. And his mother's
name was Maachah, the daughter of Abishalom.
3: And he walked in all the sins of his father, which he
had done before him: and his heart was not perfect with the LORD
his God, as the heart of David his father.
4: Nevertheless for David's sake did the LORD his God
give him a lamp in Jerusalem, to set up his son after him, and
to establish Jerusalem:
5: Because David did that which was right in the eyes of
the LORD, and turned not aside from any thing that he commanded
him all the days of his life, save only in the matter of Uriah
the Hittite.
6: And there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all
the days of his life.
7: Now the rest of the acts of Abijam, and all that he
did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the
kings of Judah? And there was war between Abijam and Jeroboam.
8: And Abijam slept with his fathers; and they buried him
in the city of David: and Asa his son reigned in his stead.
9: And in the twentieth year of Jeroboam king of Israel
reigned Asa over Judah.
10: And forty and one years reigned he in Jerusalem. And
his mother's name was Maachah, the daughter of Abishalom.
11: And Asa did that which was right in the eyes of the
LORD, as did David his father.
12: And he took away the sodomites out of the land, and
removed all the idols that his fathers had made.
13: And also Maachah his mother, even her he removed from
being queen, because she had made an idol in a grove; and Asa
destroyed her idol, and burnt it by the brook Kidron.
14: But the high places were not removed: nevertheless
Asa's heart was perfect with the LORD all his days.
15: And he brought in the things which his father had
dedicated, and the things which himself had dedicated, into the
house of the LORD, silver, and gold, and vessels.
16: And there was war between Asa and Baasha king of
Israel all their days.
17: And Baasha king of Israel went up against Judah, and
built Ramah, that he might not suffer any to go out or come in
to Asa king of Judah.
18: Then Asa took all the silver and the gold that were
left in the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the
treasures of the king's house, and delivered them into the hand
of his servants: and king Asa sent them to Ben-hadad, the son of
Tabrimon, the son of Hezion, king of Syria, that dwelt at
Damascus, saying,
19: There is a league between me and thee, and between my
father and thy father: behold, I have sent unto thee a present
of silver and gold; come and break thy league with Baasha king
of Israel, that he may depart from me.
20: So Ben-hadad hearkened unto king Asa, and sent the
captains of the hosts which he had against the cities of Israel,
and smote Ijon, and Dan, and Abel-beth-maachah, and all
Cinneroth, with all the land of Naphtali.
21: And it came to pass, when Baasha heard thereof, that
he left off building of Ramah, and dwelt in Tirzah.
22: Then king Asa made a proclamation throughout all
Judah; none was exempted: and they took away the stones of
Ramah, and the timber thereof, wherewith Baasha had builded; and
king Asa built with them Geba of Benjamin, and Mizpah.
23: The rest of all the acts of Asa, and all his might,
and all that he did, and the cities which he built, are they not
written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
Nevertheless in the time of his old age he was diseased in his
feet.
24: And Asa slept with his fathers, and was buried with
his fathers in the city of David his father: and Jehoshaphat his
son reigned in his stead.
25: And Nadab the son of Jeroboam began to reign over
Israel in the second year of Asa king of Judah, and reigned over
Israel two years.
26: And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, and walked
in the way of his father, and in his sin wherewith he made
Israel to sin.
27: And Baasha the son of Ahijah, of the house of
Issachar, conspired against him; and Baasha smote him at
Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines; for Nadab and all
Israel laid siege to Gibbethon.
28: Even in the third year of Asa king of Judah did
Baasha slay him, and reigned in his stead.
29: And it came to pass, when he reigned, that he smote
all the house of Jeroboam; he left not to Jeroboam any that
breathed, until he had destroyed him, according unto the saying
of the LORD, which he spake by his servant Ahijah the Shilonite:
30: Because of the sins of Jeroboam which he sinned, and
which he made Israel sin, by his provocation wherewith he
provoked the LORD God of Israel to anger.
31: Now the rest of the acts of Nadab, and all that he
did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the
kings of Israel?
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 began Baasha
the son of Ahijah to reign over all Israel in Tirzah, twenty and
four years.
34: And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, and walked
in the way of Jeroboam, and in his sin wherewith he made Israel
to sin.
1 Kings, chapter 16
1: Then the
word of the LORD came to Jehu the son of Hanani against Baasha,
saying,
2: Forasmuch as I exalted thee out of the dust, and made
thee prince over my people Israel; and thou hast walked in the
way of Jeroboam, and hast made my people Israel to sin, to
provoke me to anger with their sins;
3: Behold, I will take away the posterity of Baasha, and
the posterity of his house; and will make thy house like the
house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat.
4: Him that dieth of Baasha in the city shall the dogs
eat; and him that dieth of his in the fields shall the fowls of
the air eat.
5: Now the rest of the acts of Baasha, and what 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 was buried in
Tirzah: and Elah his son reigned in his stead.
7: And also by the hand of the prophet Jehu the son of
Hanani came the word of the LORD against Baasha, and against his
house, even for all the evil that he did in the sight of the
LORD, in provoking him to anger with the work of his hands, in
being like the house of Jeroboam; and because he killed him.
8: In the twenty and sixth year of Asa king of Judah
began Elah the son of Baasha to reign over Israel in Tirzah, two
years.
9: And his servant Zimri, captain of half his chariots,
conspired against him, as he was in Tirzah, drinking himself
drunk in the house of Arza steward of his house in Tirzah.
10: And Zimri went in and smote him, and killed him, in
the twenty and seventh year of Asa king of Judah, and reigned in
his stead.
11: And it came to pass, when he began to reign, as soon
as he sat on his throne, that he slew all the house of Baasha:
he left him not one that pisseth against a wall, neither of his
kinsfolks, nor of his friends.
12: Thus did Zimri destroy all the house of Baasha,
according to the word of the LORD, which he spake against Baasha
by Jehu the prophet,
13: For all the sins of Baasha, and the sins of Elah his
son, by which they sinned, and by which they made Israel to sin,
in provoking the LORD God of Israel to anger with their
vanities.
14: Now the rest of the acts of Elah, and all that he
did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the
kings of Israel?
15: In the twenty and seventh year of Asa king of Judah
did Zimri reign seven days in Tirzah. And the people were
encamped against Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines.
16: And the people that were encamped heard say, Zimri
hath conspired, and hath also slain the king: wherefore all
Israel made Omri, the captain of the host, king over Israel that
day in the camp.
17: And Omri went up from Gibbethon, and all Israel with
him, 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
burnt the king's house over him with fire, and died,
19: For his sins which he sinned in doing evil in the
sight of the LORD, in walking in the way of Jeroboam, and in his
sin which he did, to make Israel to sin.
20: Now the rest of the acts of Zimri, and his treason
that he wrought, are they not written in the book of the
chronicles of the kings of Israel?
21: Then were the people of Israel divided into two
parts: half of the people followed Tibni the son of Ginath, to
make him king; and half followed Omri.
22: But the people that followed Omri prevailed against
the people that followed Tibni the son of Ginath: so Tibni died,
and Omri reigned.
23: In the thirty and first year of Asa king of Judah
began Omri to reign over Israel, twelve years: six years reigned
he in Tirzah.
24: And he bought the hill Samaria of Shemer for two
talents of silver, and built on the hill, and called the name of
the city which he built, after the name of Shemer, owner of the
hill, Samaria.
25: But Omri wrought evil in the eyes of the LORD, and
did worse than all that were before him.
26: For he walked in all the way of Jeroboam the son of
Nebat, and in his sin wherewith he made Israel to sin, to
provoke the LORD God of Israel to anger with their vanities.
27: Now the rest of the acts of Omri which he did, and
his might that he shewed, are they not written in the book of
the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
28: So Omri slept with his fathers, and was buried in
Samaria: and Ahab his son reigned in his stead.
29: And in the thirty and eighth year of Asa king of
Judah began Ahab the son of Omri to reign over Israel: and Ahab
the son of Omri reigned over Israel in Samaria twenty and two
years.
30: And Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the
LORD above all that were before him.
31: And it came to pass, as if it had been a light thing
for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, that
he took to wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the
Zidonians, and went and served Baal, and worshipped him.
32: And he reared up an altar for Baal in the house of
Baal, which he had built in Samaria.
33: And Ahab made a grove; and Ahab did more to provoke
the LORD God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel
that were before him.
34: In his days did Hiel the Bethelite build Jericho: he
laid the foundation thereof in Abiram his firstborn, and set up
the gates thereof in his youngest son Segub, according to the
word of the LORD, which he spake by Joshua the son of Nun.
1 Kings, chapter 17
1: And Elijah
the Tishbite, who was of the inhabitants of Gilead, said unto
Ahab, As the LORD God of Israel liveth, before whom I stand,
there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my
word.
2: And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying,
3: Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide
thyself by the brook Cherith, that is before Jordan.
4: And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook;
and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there.
5: So he went and did according unto the word of the
LORD: for he went and dwelt by the brook Cherith, that is before
Jordan.
6: And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the
morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the
brook.
7: And it came to pass after a while, that the brook
dried up, because there had been no rain in the land.
8: And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying,
9: Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to
Zidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow woman
there to sustain thee.
10: So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came
to the gate of the city, behold, the widow woman was there
gathering of sticks: and he called to her, and said, Fetch me, I
pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.
11: And as she was going to fetch it, he called to her,
and said, Bring me, I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thine
hand.
12: And she said, As the LORD thy God liveth, I have not
a cake, but an handful of meal in a barrel, and a little oil in
a cruse: and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go
in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die.
13: And Elijah said unto her, Fear not; go and do as thou
hast said: but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it
unto me, and after make for thee and for thy son.
14: For thus saith the LORD God of Israel, The barrel of
meal shall not waste, neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until
the day that the LORD sendeth rain upon the earth.
15: And she went and did according to the saying of
Elijah: and she, and he, and her house, did eat many days.
16: And the barrel of meal wasted not, neither did the
cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD, which he
spake by Elijah.
17: And it came to pass after these things, that the son
of the woman, the mistress of the house, fell sick; and his
sickness was so sore, that there was no breath left in him.
18: And she said unto Elijah, What have I to do with
thee, O thou man of God? art thou come unto me to call my sin to
remembrance, and to slay my son?
19: And he said unto her, Give me thy son. And he took
him out of her bosom, and carried him up into a loft, where he
abode, and laid him upon his own bed.
20: And he cried unto the LORD, and said, O LORD my God,
hast thou also brought evil upon the widow with whom I sojourn,
by slaying her son?
21: And he stretched himself upon the child three times,
and cried unto the LORD, and said, O LORD my God, I pray thee,
let this child's soul come into him again.
22: And the LORD heard the voice of Elijah; and the soul
of the child came into him again, and he revived.
23: And Elijah took the child, and brought him down out
of the chamber into the house, and delivered him unto his
mother: and Elijah said, See, thy son liveth.
24: And the woman said to Elijah, Now by this I know that
thou art a man of God, and that the word of the LORD in thy
mouth is truth.
1 Kings, chapter 18
1: And it came
to pass after many days, that the word of the LORD came to
Elijah in the third year, saying, Go, shew thyself unto Ahab;
and I will send rain upon the earth.
2: And Elijah went to shew himself unto Ahab. And there
was a sore famine in Samaria.
3: And Ahab called Obadiah, which was the governor of his
house. (Now Obadiah feared the LORD greatly:
4: For it was so, when Jezebel cut off the prophets of
the LORD, that Obadiah took an hundred prophets, and hid them by
fifty in a cave, and fed them with bread and water.)
5: And Ahab said unto Obadiah, Go into the land, unto all
fountains of water, and unto all brooks: peradventure we may
find grass to save the horses and mules alive, that we lose not
all the beasts.
6: So they divided the land between them to pass
throughout it: Ahab went one way by himself, and Obadiah went
another way by himself.
7: And as Obadiah was in the way, behold, Elijah met him:
and he knew him, and fell on his face, and said, Art thou that
my lord Elijah?
8: And he answered him, I am: go, tell thy lord, Behold,
Elijah is here.
9: And he said, What have I sinned, that thou wouldest
deliver thy servant into the hand of Ahab, to slay me?
10: As the LORD thy God liveth, there is no nation or
kingdom, whither my lord hath not sent to seek thee: and when
they said, He is not there; he took an oath of the kingdom and
nation, that they found thee not.
11: And now thou sayest, Go, tell thy lord, Behold,
Elijah is here.
12: And it shall come to pass, as soon as I am gone from
thee, that the Spirit of the LORD shall carry thee whither I
know not; and so when I come and tell Ahab, and he cannot find
thee, he shall slay me: but I thy servant fear the LORD from my
youth.
13: Was it not told my lord what I did when Jezebel slew
the prophets of the LORD, how I hid an hundred men of the LORD's
prophets by fifty in a cave, and fed them with bread and water?
14: And now thou sayest, Go, tell thy lord, Behold,
Elijah is here: and he shall slay me.
15: And Elijah said, As the LORD of hosts liveth, before
whom I stand, I will surely shew myself unto him to day.
16: So Obadiah went to meet Ahab, and told him: and Ahab
went to meet Elijah.
17: And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab
said unto him, Art thou he that troubleth Israel?
18: And he answered, I have not troubled Israel; but
thou, and thy father's house, in that ye have forsaken the
commandments of the LORD, and thou hast followed Baalim.
19: Now therefore send, and gather to me all Israel unto
mount Carmel, and the prophets of Baal four hundred and fifty,
and the prophets of the groves four hundred, which eat at
Jezebel's table.
20: So Ahab sent unto all the children of Israel, and
gathered the prophets together unto mount Carmel.
21: And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How
long halt ye between two opinions? if the LORD be God, follow
him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him
not a word.
22: Then said Elijah unto the people, I, even I only,
remain a prophet of the LORD; but Baal's prophets are four
hundred and fifty men.
23: Let them therefore give us two bullocks; and let them
choose one bullock for themselves, and cut it in pieces, and lay
it on wood, and put no fire under: and I will dress the other
bullock, and lay it on wood, and put no fire under:
24: And call ye on the name of your gods, and I will call
on the name of the LORD: and the God that answereth by fire, let
him be God. And all the people answered and said, It is well
spoken.
25: And Elijah said unto the prophets of Baal, Choose you
one bullock for yourselves, and dress it first; for ye are many;
and call on the name of your gods, but put no fire under.
26: And they took the bullock which was given them, and
they dressed it, and called on the name of Baal from morning
even until noon, saying, O Baal, hear us. But there was no
voice, nor any that answered. And they leaped upon the altar
which was made.
27: And it came to pass at noon, that Elijah mocked them,
and said, Cry aloud: for he is a god; either he is talking, or
he is pursuing, or he is in a journey, or peradventure he
sleepeth, and must be awaked.
28: And they cried aloud, and cut themselves after their
manner with knives and lancets, till the blood gushed out upon
them.
29: And it came to pass, when midday was past, and they
prophesied until the time of the offering of the evening
sacrifice, that there was neither voice, nor any to answer, nor
any that regarded.
30: And Elijah said unto all the people, Come near unto
me. And all the people came near unto him. And he repaired the
altar of the LORD that was broken down.
31: And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the
number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, unto whom the word of
the LORD came, saying, Israel shall be thy name:
32: And with the stones he built an altar in the name of
the LORD: and he made a trench about the altar, as great as
would contain two measures of seed.
33: And he put the wood in order, and cut the bullock in
pieces, and laid him on the wood, and said, Fill four barrels
with water, and pour it on the burnt sacrifice, and on the wood.
34: And he said, Do it the second time. And they did it
the second time. And he said, Do it the third time. And they did
it the third time.
35: And the water ran round about the altar; and he
filled the trench also with water.
36: And it came to pass at the time of the offering of
the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near, and
said, LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known
this day that thou art God in Israel, and that I am thy servant,
and that I have done all these things at thy word.
37: Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this people may know
that thou art the LORD God, and that thou hast turned their
heart back again.
38: Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the
burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and
licked up the water that was in the trench.
39: And when all the people saw it, they fell on their
faces: and they said, The LORD, he is the God; the LORD, he is
the God.
40: And Elijah said unto them, Take the prophets of Baal;
let not one of them escape. And they took them: and Elijah
brought them down to the brook Kishon, and slew them there.
41: And Elijah said unto Ahab, Get thee up, eat and
drink; for there is a sound of abundance of rain.
42: So Ahab went up to eat and to drink. And Elijah went
up to the top of Carmel; and he cast himself down upon the
earth, and put his face between his knees,
43: And said to his servant, Go up now, look toward the
sea. And he went up, and looked, and said, There is nothing. And
he said, Go again seven times.
44: And it came to pass at the seventh time, that he
said, Behold, there ariseth a little cloud out of the sea, like
a man's hand. And he said, Go up, say unto Ahab, Prepare thy
chariot, and get thee down, that the rain stop thee not.
45: And it came to pass in the mean while, that the
heaven was black with clouds and wind, and there was a great
rain. And Ahab rode, and went to Jezreel.
46: And the hand of the LORD was on Elijah; and he girded
up his loins, and ran before Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.
1 Kings, chapter 19
1: And Ahab
told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and withal how he had
slain all the prophets with the sword.
2: Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah, saying, So
let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as
the life of one of them by to morrow about this time.
3: And when he saw that, he arose, and went for his life,
and came to Beer-sheba, which belongeth to Judah, and left his
servant there.
4: But he himself went a day's journey into the
wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he
requested for himself that he might die; and said, It is enough;
now, O LORD, take away my life; for I am not better than my
fathers.
5: And as he lay and slept under a juniper tree, behold,
then an angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise and eat.
6: And he looked, and, behold, there was a cake baken on
the coals, and a cruse of water at his head. And he did eat and
drink, and laid him down again.
7: And the angel of the LORD came again the second time,
and touched him, and said, Arise and eat; because the journey is
too great for thee.
8: And he arose, and did eat and drink, and went in the
strength of that meat forty days and forty nights unto Horeb the
mount of God.
9: And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there;
and, behold, the word of the LORD came to him, and he said unto
him, What doest thou here, Elijah?
10: And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD
God of hosts: for the children of Israel have forsaken thy
covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with
the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life,
to take it away.
11: And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount
before the LORD. And, behold, the LORD passed by, and a great
and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the
rocks before the LORD; but the LORD was not in the wind: and
after the wind an earthquake; but the LORD was not in the
earthquake:
12: And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not
in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.
13: And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped
his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entering
in of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and
said, What doest thou here, Elijah?
14: And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD
God of hosts: because the children of Israel have forsaken thy
covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with
the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life,
to take it away.
15: And the LORD said unto him, Go, return on thy way to
the wilderness of Damascus: and when thou comest, anoint Hazael
to be king over Syria:
16: And Jehu the son of Nimshi shalt thou anoint to be
king over Israel: and Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah
shalt thou anoint to be prophet in thy room.
17: And it shall come to pass, that him that escapeth the
sword of Hazael shall Jehu slay: and him that escapeth from the
sword of Jehu shall Elisha slay.
18: Yet I have left me seven thousand in Israel, all the
knees which have not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth which hath
not kissed him.
19: So he departed thence, and found Elisha the son of
Shaphat, who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen before him,
and he with the twelfth: and Elijah passed by him, and cast his
mantle upon him.
20: And he left the oxen, and ran after Elijah, and said,
Let me, I pray thee, kiss my father and my mother, and then I
will follow thee. And he said unto him, Go back again: for what
have I done to thee?
21: And he returned back from him, and took a yoke of
oxen, and slew them, and boiled their flesh with the instruments
of the oxen, and gave unto the people, and they did eat. Then he
arose, and went after Elijah, and ministered unto him.
1 Kings, chapter 20
1: And
Ben-hadad the king of Syria gathered all his host together: and
there were thirty and two kings with him, and horses, and
chariots: and he went up and besieged Samaria, and warred
against it.
2: And he sent messengers to Ahab king of Israel into the
city, and said unto him, Thus saith Ben-hadad,
3: Thy silver and thy gold is mine; thy wives also and
thy children, even the goodliest, are mine.
4: And the king of Israel answered and said, My lord, O
king, according to thy saying, I am thine, and all that I have.
5: And the messengers came again, and said, Thus speaketh
Ben-hadad, saying, Although I have sent unto thee, saying, Thou
shalt deliver me thy silver, and thy gold, and thy wives, and
thy children;
6: Yet I will send my servants unto thee to morrow about
this time, and they shall search thine house, and the houses of
thy servants; and it shall be, that whatsoever is pleasant in
thine eyes, they shall put it in their hand, and take it away.
7: Then the king of Israel called all the elders of the
land, and said, Mark, I pray you, and see how this man seeketh
mischief: for he sent unto me for my wives, and for my children,
and for my silver, and for my gold; and I denied him not.
8: And all the elders and all the people said unto him,
Hearken not unto him, nor consent.
9: Wherefore he said unto the messengers of Ben-hadad,
Tell my lord the king, All that thou didst send for to thy
servant at the first I will do: but this thing I may not do. And
the messengers departed, and brought him word again.
10: And Ben-hadad sent unto him, and said, The gods do so
unto me, and more also, if the dust of Samaria shall suffice for
handfuls for all the people that follow me.
11: And the king of Israel answered and said, Tell him,
Let not him that girdeth on his harness boast himself as he that
putteth it off.
12: And it came to pass, when Ben-hadad heard this
message, as he was drinking, he and the kings in the
pavilions,that he said unto his servants, Set yourselves in
array. And they set themselves in array against the city.
13: And, behold, there came a prophet unto Ahab king of
Israel, saying, Thus saith the LORD, Hast thou seen all this
great multitude? behold, I will deliver it in to thine hand this
day; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD.
14: And Ahab said, By whom? And he said, Thus saith the
LORD, Even by the young men of the princes of the provinces.
Then he said, Who shall order the battle? And he answered, Thou.
15: Then he numbered the young men of the princes of the
provinces, and they were two hundred and thirty two: and after
them he numbered all the people, even all the children of
Israel, being seven thousand.
16: And they went out at noon. But Ben-hadad was drinking
himself drunk in the pavilions, he and the kings, the thirty and
two kings that helped him.
17: And the young men of the princes of the provinces
went out first; and Ben-hadad sent out, and they told him,
saying, There are men come out of Samaria.
18: And he said, Whether they be come out for peace, take
them alive; or whether they be come out for war, take them
alive.
19: So these young men of the princes of the provinces
came out of the city, and the army which followed them.
20: And they slew every one his man: and the Syrians
fled; and Israel pursued them: and Ben-hadad the king of Syria
escaped on an horse with the horsemen.
21: And the king of Israel went out, and smote the horses
and chariots, and slew the Syrians with a great slaughter.
22: And the prophet came to the king of Israel, and said
unto him, Go, strengthen thy self, and mark, and see what thou
doest: for at the return of the year the king of Syria will come
up against thee.
23: And the servants of the king of Syria said unto him,
Their gods are gods of the hills; therefore they were stronger
than we; but let us fight against them in the plain, and surely
we shall be stronger than they.
24: And do this thing, Take the kings away, every man out
of his place, and put captains in their rooms:
25: And number thee an army, like the army that thou hast
lost, horse for horse, and chariot for chariot: and we will
fight against them in the plain, and surely we shall be stronger
than they. And he hearkened unto their voice, and did so.
26: And it came to pass at the return of the year, that
Ben-hadad numbered the Syrians, and went up to Aphek, to fight
against Israel.
27: And the children of Israel were numbered, and were
all present, and went against them: and the children of Israel
pitched before them like two little flocks of kids; but the
Syrians filled the country.
28: And there came a man of God, and spake unto the king
of Israel, and said, Thus saith the LORD, Because the Syrians
have said, The LORD is God of the hills, but he is not God of
the valleys, therefore will I deliver all this great multitude
into thine hand, and ye shall know that I am the LORD.
29: And they pitched one over against the other seven
days. And so it was, that in the seventh day the battle was
joined: and the children of Israel slew of the Syrians an
hundred thousand footmen in one day.
30: But the rest fled to Aphek, into the city; and there
a wall fell upon twenty and seven thousand of the men that were
left. And Ben-hadad fled, and came into the city, into an inner
chamber.
31: And his servants said unto him, Behold now, we have
heard that the kings of the house of Israel are merciful kings:
let us, I pray thee, put sackcloth on our loins, and ropes upon
our heads, and go out to the king of Israel: peradventure he
will save thy life.
32: So they girded sackcloth on their loins, and put
ropes on their heads, and came to the king of Israel, and said,
Thy servant Ben-hadad saith, I pray thee, let me live. And he
said, Is he yet alive? he is my brother.
33: Now the men did diligently observe whether any thing
would come from him, and did hastily catch it: and they said,
Thy brother Ben-hadad. Then he said, Go ye, bring him. Then
Ben-hadad came forth to him; and he caused him to come up into
the chariot.
34: And Ben-hadad said unto him, The cities, which my
father took from thy father, I will restore; and thou shalt make
streets for thee in Damascus, as my father made in Samaria. Then
said Ahab, I will send thee away with this covenant. So he made
a covenant with him, and sent him away.
35: And a certain man of the sons of the prophets said
unto his neighbour in the word of the LORD, Smite me, I pray
thee. And the man refused to smite him.
36: Then said he unto him, Because thou hast not obeyed
the voice of the LORD, behold, as soon as thou art departed from
me, a lion shall slay thee. And as soon as he was departed from
him, a lion found him, and slew him.
37: Then he found another man, and said, Smite me, I pray
thee. And the man smote him, so that in smiting he wounded him.
38: So the prophet departed, and waited for the king by
the way, and disguised himself with ashes upon his face.
39: And as the king passed by, he cried unto the king:
and he said, Thy servant went out into the midst of the battle;
and, behold, a man turned aside, and brought a man unto me, and
said, Keep this man: if by any means he be missing, then shall
thy life be for his life, or else thou shalt pay a talent of
silver.
40: And as thy servant was busy here and there, he was
gone. And the king of Israel said unto him, So shall thy
judgment be; thyself hast decided it.
41: And he hasted, and took the ashes away from his face;
and the king of Israel discerned him that he was of the
prophets.
42: And he said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Because
thou hast let go out of thy hand a man whom I appointed to utter
destruction, therefore thy life shall go for his life, and thy
people for his people.
43: And the king of Israel went to his house heavy and
displeased, and came to Samaria.
1 Kings, chapter 21
1: And it came
to pass after these things, that Naboth the Jezreelite had a
vineyard, which was in Jezreel, hard by the palace of Ahab king
of Samaria.
2: And Ahab spake unto Naboth, saying, Give me thy
vineyard, that I may have it for a garden of herbs, because it
is near unto my house: and I will give thee for it a better
vineyard than it; or, if it seem good to thee, I will give thee
the worth of it in money.
3: And Naboth said to Ahab, The LORD forbid it me, that I
should give the inheritance of my fathers unto thee.
4: And Ahab came into his house heavy and displeased
because of the word which Naboth the Jezreelite had spoken to
him: for he had said, I will not give thee the inheritance of my
fathers. And he laid him down upon his bed, and turned away his
face, and would eat no bread.
5: But Jezebel his wife came to him, and said unto him,
Why is thy spirit so sad, that thou eatest no bread?
6: And he said unto her, Because I spake unto Naboth the
Jezreelite, and said unto him, Give me thy vineyard for money;
or else, if it please thee, I will give thee another vineyard
for it: and he answered, I will not give thee my vineyard.
7: And Jezebel his wife said unto him, Dost thou now
govern the kingdom of Israel? arise, and eat bread, and let
thine heart be merry: I will give thee the vineyard of Naboth
the Jezreelite.
8: So she wrote letters in Ahab's name, and sealed them
with his seal, and sent the letters unto the elders and to the
nobles that were in his city, dwelling with Naboth.
9: And she wrote in the letters, saying, Proclaim a fast,
and set Naboth on high among the people:
10: And set two men, sons of Belial, before him, to bear
witness against him, saying, Thou didst blaspheme God and the
king. And then carry him out, and stone him, that he may die.
11: And the men of his city, even the elders and the
nobles who were the inhabitants in his city, did as Jezebel had
sent unto them, and as it was written in the letters which she
had sent unto them.
12: They proclaimed a fast, and set Naboth on high among
the people.
13: And there came in two men, children of Belial, and
sat before him: and the men of Belial witnessed against him,
even against Naboth, in the presence of the people, saying,
Naboth did blaspheme God and the king. Then they carried him
forth out of the city, and stoned him with stones, that he died.
14: Then they sent to Jezebel, saying, Naboth is stoned,
and is dead.
15: And it came to pass, when Jezebel heard that Naboth
was stoned, and was dead, that Jezebel said to Ahab, Arise, take
possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, which he
refused to give thee for money: for Naboth is not alive, but
dead.
16: And it came to pass, when Ahab heard that Naboth was
dead, that Ahab rose up to go down to the vineyard of Naboth the
Jezreelite, to take possession of it.
17: And the word of the LORD came to Elijah the Tishbite,
saying,
18: Arise, go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, which is
in Samaria: behold, he is in the vineyard of Naboth, whither he
is gone down to possess it.
19: And thou shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith the
LORD, Hast thou killed, and also taken possession? And thou
shalt speak unto him, saying, Thus saith the LORD, In the place
where dogs licked the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick thy blood,
even thine.
20: And Ahab said to Elijah, Hast thou found me, O mine
enemy? And he answered, I have found thee: because thou hast
sold thyself to work evil in the sight of the LORD.
21: Behold, I will bring evil upon thee, and will take
away thy posterity, and will cut off from Ahab him that pisseth
against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel,
22: And will make thine house like the house of Jeroboam
the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha the son of
Ahijah, for the provocation wherewith thou hast provoked me to
anger, and made Israel to sin.
23: And of Jezebel also spake the LORD, saying, The dogs
shall eat Jezebel by the wall of Jezreel.
24: Him that dieth of Ahab in the city the dogs shall
eat; and him that dieth in the field shall the fowls of the air
eat.
25: But there was none like unto Ahab, which did sell
himself to work wickedness in the sight of the LORD, whom
Jezebel his wife stirred up.
26: And he did very abominably in following idols,
according to all things as did the Amorites, whom the LORD cast
out before the children of Israel.
27: And it came to pass, when Ahab heard those words,
that he rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his flesh, and
fasted, and lay in sackcloth, and went softly.
28: And the word of the LORD came to Elijah the Tishbite,
saying,
29: Seest thou how Ahab humbleth himself before me?
because he humbleth himself before me, I will not bring the evil
in his days: but in his son's days will I bring the evil upon
his house.
1 Kings, chapter 22
1: And they
continued three years without war between Syria and Israel.
2: And it came to pass in the third year, that
Jehoshaphat the king of Judah came down to the king of Israel.
3: And the king of Israel said unto his servants, Know ye
that Ramoth in Gilead is ours, and we be still, and take it not
out of the hand of the king of Syria?
4: And he said unto Jehoshaphat, Wilt thou go with me to
battle to Ramoth-gilead? And Jehoshaphat said to the king of
Israel, I am as thou art, my people as thy people, my horses as
thy horses.
5: And Jehoshaphat said unto the king of Israel, Inquire,
I pray thee, at the word of the LORD to day.
6: Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets
together, about four hundred men, and said unto them, Shall I go
against Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall I forbear? And they
said, Go up; for the Lord shall deliver it into the hand of the
king.
7: And Jehoshaphat said, Is there not here a prophet of
the LORD besides, that we might inquire of him?
8: And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, There is
yet one man, Micaiah the son of Imlah, by whom we may inquire of
the LORD: but I hate him; for he doth not prophesy good
concerning me, but evil. And Jehoshaphat said, Let not the king
say so.
9: Then the king of Israel called an officer, and said,
Hasten hither Micaiah the son of Imlah.
10: And the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of
Judah sat each on his throne, having put on their robes, in a
void place in the entrance of the gate of Samaria; and all the
prophets prophesied before them.
11: And Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah made him horns of
iron: and he said, Thus saith the LORD, With these shalt thou
push the Syrians, until thou have consumed them.
12: And all the prophets prophesied so, saying, Go up to
Ramoth-gilead, and prosper: for the LORD shall deliver it into
the king's hand.
13: And the messenger that was gone to call Micaiah spake
unto him, saying, Behold now, the words of the prophets declare
good unto the king with one mouth: let thy word, I pray thee, be
like the word of one of them, and speak that which is good.
14: And Micaiah said, As the LORD liveth, what the LORD
saith unto me, that will I speak.
15: So he came to the king. And the king said unto him,
Micaiah, shall we go against Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall
we forbear? And he answered him, Go, and prosper: for the LORD
shall deliver it into the hand of the king.
16: And the king said unto him, How many times shall I
adjure thee that thou tell me nothing but that which is true in
the name of the LORD?
17: And he said, I saw all Israel scattered upon the
hills, as sheep that have not a shepherd: and the LORD said,
These have no master: let them return every man to his house in
peace.
18: And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, Did I
not tell thee that he would prophesy no good concerning me, but
evil?
19: And he said, Hear thou therefore the word of the
LORD: I saw the LORD sitting on his throne, and all the host of
heaven standing by him on his right hand and on his left.
20: And the LORD said, Who shall persuade Ahab, that he
may go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead? And one said on this
manner, and another said on that manner.
21: And there came forth a spirit, and stood before the
LORD, and said, I will persuade him.
22: And the LORD said unto him, Wherewith? And he said, I
will go forth, and I will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all
his prophets. And he said, Thou shalt persuade him, and prevail
also: go forth, and do so.
23: Now therefore, behold, the LORD hath put a lying
spirit in the mouth of all these thy prophets, and the LORD hath
spoken evil concerning thee.
24: But Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah went near, and
smote Micaiah on the cheek, and said, Which way went the Spirit
of the LORD from me to speak unto thee?
25: And Micaiah said, Behold, thou shalt see in that day,
when thou shalt go into an inner chamber to hide thyself.
26: And the king of Israel said, Take Micaiah, and carry
him back unto Amon the governor of the city, and to Joash the
king's son;
27: And say, Thus saith the king, Put this fellow in the
prison, and feed him with bread of affliction and with water of
affliction, until I come in peace.
28: And Micaiah said, If thou return at all in peace, the
LORD hath not spoken by me. And he said, Hearken, O people,
every one of you.
29: So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of
Judah went up to Ramoth-gilead.
30: And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat, I will
disguise myself, and enter into the battle; but put thou on thy
robes. And the king of Israel disguised himself, and went into
the battle.
31: But the king of Syria commanded his thirty and two
captains that had rule over his chariots, saying, Fight neither
with small nor great, save only with the king of Israel.
32: And it came to pass, when the captains of the
chariots saw Jehoshaphat, that they said, Surely it is the king
of Israel. And they turned aside to fight against him: and
Jehoshaphat cried out.
33: And it came to pass, when the captains of the
chariots perceived that it was not the king of Israel, that they
turned back from pursuing him.
34: And a certain man drew a bow at a venture, and smote
the king of Israel between the joints of the harness: wherefore
he said unto the driver of his chariot, Turn thine hand, and
carry me out of the host; for I am wounded.
35: And the battle increased that day: and the king was
stayed up in his chariot against the Syrians, and died at even:
and the blood ran out of the wound into the midst of the
chariot.
36: And there went a proclamation throughout the host
about the going down of the sun, saying, Every man to his city,
and every man to his own country.
37: So the king died, and was brought to Samaria; and
they buried the king in Samaria.
38: And one washed the chariot in the pool of Samaria;
and the dogs licked up his blood; and they washed his armour;
according unto the word of the LORD which he spake.
39: Now the rest of the acts of Ahab, and all that he
did, and the ivory house which he made, and all the cities that
he built, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of
the kings of Israel?
40: So Ahab slept with his fathers; and Ahaziah his son
reigned in his stead.
41: And Jehoshaphat the son of Asa began to reign over
Judah in the fourth year of Ahab king of Israel.
42: Jehoshaphat was thirty and five years old when he
began to reign; and he reigned twenty and five years in
Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Azubah the daughter of
Shilhi.
43: And he walked in all the ways of Asa his father; he
turned not aside from it, doing that which was right in the eyes
of the LORD: nevertheless the high places were not taken away;
for the people offered and burnt incense yet in the high places.
44: And Jehoshaphat made peace with the king of Israel.
45: Now the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, and his
might that he shewed, and how he warred, are they not written in
the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?
46: And the remnant of the sodomites, which remained in
the days of his father Asa, he took out of the land.
47: There was then no king in Edom: a deputy was king.
48: Jehoshaphat made ships of Tharshish to go to Ophir
for gold: but they went not; for the ships were broken at
Ezion-geber.
49: Then said Ahaziah the son of Ahab unto Jehoshaphat,
Let my servants go with thy servants in the ships. But
Jehoshaphat would not.
50: And Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers, and was
buried with his fathers in the city of David his father: and
Jehoram his son reigned in his stead.
51: Ahaziah the son of Ahab began to reign over Israel in
Samaria the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and
reigned two years over Israel.
52: And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, and walked
in the way of his father, and in the way of his mother, and in
the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin:
53: For he served Baal, and worshipped him, and provoked
to anger the LORD God of Israel, according to all that his
father had done. |