1 Kings 21

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.

After all that had happened, Naboth of Jezreel owned a vineyard in Jezreel. It was right next to the palace of Ahab, the king of Samaria.

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.

Ahab pleaded with Naboth, "Please, let me have your vineyard. I want to turn it into a herb garden because it's close to my home. I promise to give you a superior vineyard in return, or if you prefer, I'll pay you its full value in cash."

And Naboth said to Ahab, The LORD forbid it me, that I should give the inheritance of my fathers unto thee.

Naboth firmly told Ahab, "God wouldn't allow me to betray my family's legacy by giving it to you."

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.

Ahab returned home, burdened and upset by Naboth's refusal to give up his ancestral land. He threw himself on his bed, turned his face away, and refused to eat, consumed by his disappointment.

But Jezebel his wife came to him, and said unto him, Why is thy spirit so sad, that thou eatest no bread?

Jezebel, his wife, approached him, asking, "Why are you so downcast that you're not even eating?"

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.

He told her, "I asked Naboth the Jezreelite to sell me his vineyard, even offering to exchange it with another one. But he refused, saying, 'I won't sell you my vineyard.'"

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.

Jezebel, his wife, gently asked him, "Aren't you the king of Israel? Come, eat and be happy. Don't worry, I'll get you Naboth's vineyard."

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.

In Ahab's name, she penned letters, imbuing them with his authority by sealing them with his seal. These letters, carrying weighty words, were dispatched to the city's elders and nobles, those who shared their home with Naboth.

And she wrote in the letters, saying, Proclaim a fast, and set Naboth on high among the people:

In her letters, she passionately urged, "Declare a time of fasting and honor Naboth, making him stand out among the people."

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.

Place two wicked men before him to falsely accuse him, saying, "You cursed God and the king." Then, lead him out and execute him by stoning.

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.

The influential men of his city, including the elders and nobles, followed Jezebel's orders as conveyed in her letters, with a sense of obedience and fear.

They proclaimed a fast, and set Naboth on high among the people.

They declared a period of fasting, elevating Naboth to a revered position among the community.

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.

Two wicked men entered, sitting before him. They falsely accused Naboth in front of everyone, claiming he had cursed God and the king. Then, they dragged him out of the city and brutally stoned him to death.

Then they sent to Jezebel, saying, Naboth is stoned, and is dead.

Then they sent word to Jezebel, "Naboth has been stoned. He is no more."

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.

When Jezebel learned of Naboth's tragic death by stoning, she coldly told Ahab, "Get up and claim Naboth's vineyard. He denied you its purchase, but now he's gone."

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.

Upon hearing of Naboth's death, Ahab got up and went down to claim the Jezreelite's vineyard as his own.

And the word of the LORD came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying,

Elijah the Tishbite felt a profound message from the LORD resonate within his heart.

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.

Get up, hurry to meet Ahab, the king of Israel in Samaria. He's in Naboth's vineyard, where he's gone to claim it as his own.

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.

Speak to him and ask, "Did you murder and then seize what was not yours?" Tell him, "Just as dogs lapped up Naboth's blood, they will lap up yours too." This is what the Lord says.

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.

Ahab confronted Elijah, "Have you tracked me down, my adversary?" Elijah responded, "Yes, I've found you. You've traded your soul to commit atrocities under God's watchful eyes."

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,

Watch out, I'm about to unleash disaster on you. I'll end your lineage, and from Ahab, I'll remove every male, both free and enslaved in Israel.

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.

I will bring your household to ruin, just like the households of Jeroboam and Baasha, because you've angered me and led Israel into sin.

And of Jezebel also spake the LORD, saying, The dogs shall eat Jezebel by the wall of Jezreel.

God expressed His wrath towards Jezebel, declaring, "Jezebel will meet her end at Jezreel's wall, devoured by dogs."

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.

Whoever from Ahab's line dies in the city, dogs will feast on them; those who die in the fields will be devoured by birds.

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.

No one was quite like Ahab, who willingly chose to do evil, especially in God's eyes. His wife, Jezebel, was the one who constantly provoked him.

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.

He deeply sinned by passionately pursuing idols, just like the Amorites, whom God had expelled before Israel's children.

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.

When Ahab heard those words, he was so devastated that he tore his clothes in despair. He wore a sackcloth, fasted, and moved around quietly, consumed by his sorrow.

And the word of the LORD came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying,

The LORD's message reached Elijah the Tishbite, whispering,

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.

Do you see how Ahab has humbled himself before me? Because he has humbled himself, I won't bring this disaster in his lifetime. But in his son's days I will bring it on his house.