1 Kings 16

1 During the time that Baasha [was king of Israel], [the prophet] Jehu, Hanani’s son, gave Baasha this message that he had received from Yahweh:

Then the word of the Lord came to Iehu the sonne of Hanani against Baasha, saying,

2 “You were very insignificant/unimportant [IDM] when I caused you to become the ruler of my Israeli people. But you have caused me to become very angry by doing [IDM] the kinds of evil things that King Jeroboam did. You have also caused me to become angry by causing my people to sin.

Forasmuch as I exalted thee out of the dust, and made thee captaine ouer my people Israel, and thou hast walked in the way of Ieroboam, and hast made my people Israel to sinne, to prouoke me with their sinnes,

3 So now I will get rid of you and your family [MTY]. I will do to you just like I did to Jeroboam and his family.

Beholde, I will take away the posteritie of Baasha, and the posteritie of his house, and will make thine house like the house of Ieroboam the sonne of Nebat.

4 [The bodies of] those in your family who die in this city [will not be buried; they] will be eaten by dogs; and [the corpses of] those who die in the fields will be eaten by vultures.”

He that dyeth of Baashas stocke in the citie, him shall the dogs eate: and that man of him which dyeth in the fieldes, shall the foules of the ayre eate.

5 The other things that happened during the time that Baasha ruled Israel, and the things that he did, are written [RHQ] in the scroll called ‘The History of the Kings of Israel’.

And the rest of the actes of Baasha and what he did, and his power, are they not written in the booke of the Chronicles of the kings of Israel?

6 When Baasha died, he was buried in Tirzah, [the capital city]. Then his son Elah became king.

So Baasha slept with his fathers, and was buryed in Tirzah, and Elah his sonne reigned in his steade.

7 Yahweh gave that message about Baasha and his family to the prophet Jehu. Baasha had done many things that Yahweh considered to be evil, which caused Yahweh to become angry. Baasha did the same kind of things that King Jeroboam and his family had done previously. Yahweh was also angry with Baasha because he had killed all of Jeroboam’s family.

And also by the hande of Iehu the sonne of Hanani the Prophet, came the worde of the Lord to Baasha, and to his house, that he shoulde be like the house of Ieroboam, euen for all the wickednes that he did in the sight of the Lord, in prouoking him with the worke of his hands, and because he killed him.

8 After Asa had been the king of Judah for almost 26 years, Elah became the king of Israel. Elah ruled in Tirzah for [only] two years.

In the sixe and twentie yeere of Asa king of Iudah began Elah ye sonne of Baasha to reigne ouer Israel in Tirzah, and reigned two yeere.

9 [A man named] Zimri was one of Elah’s army officers. He commanded the drivers of half of Elah’s army’s (chariots/two-wheeled vehicles pulled by horses). He made plans to kill Elah while Elah was in Tirzah, getting drunk at the house of [a man named] Arza. Arza was the man who took care of the things in the king’s palace.

And his seruant Zimri, captaine of halfe his charets, conspired against him, as he was in Tirzah drinking, til he was drunken in the house of Arza steward of his house in Tirzah.

10 Zimri went into Arza’s house and killed Elah. Then Zimri became the king of Israel. That was when Asa had been the king of Judah for 27 years.

And Zimri came and smote him and killed him, in the seuen and twentie yeere of Asa king of Iudah, and reigned in his stead.

11 As soon as Zimri became king [MTY], he killed all of Baasha’s family [MTY]. That included every male [IDM] in Baasha’s family and all of Baasha’s male friends.

And when he was King, and sate on his throne, he slew al the house of Baasha, not leauing thereof one to pisse against a wall, neither of his kinsfolkes nor of his friendes.

12 That was just what Yahweh told the prophet Jehu would happen.

So did Zimri destroy all the house of Baasha, according to the word of the Lord which he spake against Baasha by the hande of Iehu the Prophet,

13 Baasha and his son Elah had sinned and led the Israeli people to sin. They caused Yahweh, the God whom the Israeli people worshiped, to become angry, because they both urged the people [to worship] worthless idols.

For all the sinnes of Baasha, and sinnes of Elah his sonne, which they sinned and made Israel to sinne, and prouoked the Lord God of Israel with their vanities.

14 Everything else that Elah did is written in the scroll called ‘The History of the Kings of Israel’.

And the rest of the actes of Elah, and all that he did, are they not written in the booke of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?

15 So Zimri became the king of Israel after Asa had been king of Judah for 27 years. But Zimri ruled in Tirzah for only seven days. The Israeli army was beseiging/surrounding Gibeah, a town which belonged to the Philistine people-group.

In the seuen and twentie yeere of Asa King of Iudah did Zimri reigne seuen dayes in Tirzah, and the people was then in campe against Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistims.

16 The men in the Israeli army camp heard that Zimri had secretly planned to kill King Elah, and then had killed him. So on that day the soldiers chose Omri, the commander of their army, to become the king of Israel.

And the people of the hoste heard saye, Zimri hath conspired, and hath also slayne the King. Wherefore all Israel made Omri the captaine of the hoste, king ouer Israel that same day, euen in the hoste.

17 The Israeli army was camped near Gibbethon [city]. When they heard what Zimri had done, they left there and went to Tirzah, and surrounded the city.

Then Omri went vp from Gibbethon, and all Israel with him, and they besieged Tirzah.

18 When Zimri realized that the city was [about to be] captured, he went into his palace and set it on fire. So the palace burned down, and he died [in the fire].

And when Zimri saw, that the citie was taken, he went into the palace of the Kings house, and burnt himselfe, and the Kings house with fire, and so dyed,

19 He died because he had sinned by doing the things that Yahweh considered to be evil. Jeroboam had led the Israeli people to sin, and Zimri sinned just like Jeroboam had sinned.

For his sinnes which hee sinned, in doing that which is euil in the sight of the Lord, in walking in the way of Ieroboam, and in his sinnes which he did, causing Israel to sinne.

20 All the other things that Zimri did, and the record of how he rebelled [against King Elah], are written in the scroll called ‘The History of the Kings of Israel’.

And the rest of the actes of Zimri, and his treason that hee wrought, are they not written in the booke of the Chronicles of the Kinges of Israel?

21 After Zimri died, the Israeli people were divided. One group wanted Tibni, the son of Ginath, to be their king. The other group wanted Omri [to be the king].

Then were the people of Israel deuided into two partes: for halfe the people followed Tibni the sonne of Ginath to make him King, and the other halfe followed Omri.

22 Those who supported Omri (were stronger than/defeated) those who supported Tibni. So Tibni was killed, and Omri became king.

But the people that folowed Omri, preuayled against the people that followed Tibni the sonne of Ginath: so Tibni dyed, and Omri reigned.

23 Omri became king when Asa had been king of Judah for almost 31 years. Omri ruled Israel for 12 years. For the first six years he ruled in Tirzah.

In the one and thirtie yeere of Asa King of Iudah bega Omri to reigne ouer Israel, and reigned twelue yeere. Sixe yeere reigned he in Tirzah.

24 Then he bought a hill from [a man named] Shemer and paid him about (150 pounds/70 kg.) of silver for it. Then Omri ordered his men to build a city on that hill, and he called it Samaria, to honor Shemer, the man who owned it previously.

And he bought the mountaine Samaria of one Shemer for two talents of siluer, and buylt in the mountaine, and called the name of the citie, which he buylt, after the name of Shemer lord of the mountaine, Samaria.

25 But Omri did many things that Yahweh considered to be evil. He did more evil deeds than any of the kings who ruled Israel before he did.

But Omri did euil in the eyes of the Lord, and did worse then all that were before him.

26 [When] Jeroboam [was previously the king, he] had led the Israeli people to sin, and Omri committed the same kind of sins that Jeroboam did. The Israeli people caused Yahweh, the God the Israeli people had worshiped, to become very angry, because they worshiped worthless idols.

For he walked in all the way of Ieroboam the sonne of Nebat, and in his sinnes wherewith he made Israel to sinne in prouoking the Lord God of Israel with their vanities.

27 Everything that Omri did, and the record of the victories that his [army] won, are written in the scroll called ‘The History of the Kings of Israel’.

And the rest of the actes of Omri, that hee did, and his strength that he shewed, are they not written in the booke of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?

28 After Omri died, he was buried in Samaria, and his son Ahab became king.

And Omri slept with his fathers, and was buryed in Samaria: and Ahab his sonne reigned in his stead.

29 Ahab became king of Israel when Asa had ruled Judah for almost 38 years. Ahab ruled in Samaria [city] for 22 years.

Nowe Ahab the sonne of Omri began to reigne ouer Israel, in the eyght and thirtie yeere of Asa king of Iudah: and Ahab the sonne of Omri reigned ouer Israel in Samaria two and twenty yere.

30 Ahab did many things that Yahweh considered to be evil. He did more evil things than any of the kings who ruled Israel before he did.

And Ahab the sonne of Omri did worse in ye sight of the Lord then al that were before him.

31 He committed the same kind of sins that Jeroboam did, but he did things that were worse than the things that Jeroboam did. He married [a woman named] Jezebel, the daughter of Ethbaal, the king of Sidon [city]. Then Ahab started to worship Baal, [the god that the Canaan people-group worshiped].

For was it a light thing for him to walke in the sinnes of Ieroboam the sonne of Nebat, except hee tooke Iezebel also the daughter of Ethbaal King of the Zidonians to wife, and went and serued Baal, and worshipped him?

32 He built a temple in Samaria in order that the Israeli people could worship Baal there, and he put an altar there for [making sacrifices to] Baal.

Also he reared vp an altar to Baal in the house of Baal, which he had buylt in Samaria.

33 He also made an idol that represented Asherah, [Baal’s wife]. He did many more things that caused Yahweh to become angry. He did more evil things than any of the previous kings of Israel had done.

And Ahab made a groue, and Ahab proceeded, and did prouoke the Lord God of Israel more then all the kings of Israel that were before him.

34 During the years that Ahab [ruled], Hiel, a man from Bethel [city], rebuilt Jericho [city]. But when he started to rebuild the city, his oldest son Abiram died. And [when the city was finished, ] while Hiel was building the city gates, his youngest son Segub died. They died just like Yahweh had told Joshua would happen [to the sons of anyone who would rebuild Jericho].

In his dayes did Hiel the Bethelite buylde Iericho: he layed the foundation thereof in Abiram his eldest sonne, and set vp the gates thereof in his yongest sonne Segub, according to the worde of the Lord which he spake by Ioshua the sonne of Nun.