1 Kings

Chapter 1

¹ Now the king David was old, coming in the days, and they covered him with the garments, but it was not warm for him. ² And his servants said to him, “They are seeking for my lord the king a young woman, a virgin, and she will stand before the face of the king. And she may be one who is useful for him, and she will lie in your bosom and it will be warm for my master the king.” ³ And they sought a beautiful young woman in all the territory of Israel. And they found Abishag the Shunammite and they brought her to the king. ⁴ (Now the girl was beautiful as far as abundance. And she became one who is useful for the king and she attended to him, but the king did not know her.)

⁵ And Adonijah the son of Haggith lifted himself up, saying, “I, myself, will reign.” And he made for himself a chariot and horsemen and 50 men who ran before his face. ⁶ And his father did not pain him from his days, saying, “Why have you done so?” And also, he was very good of form and she had borne him after Absalom. ⁷ And his words were with Joab the son of Zeruiah and with Abiathar the priest. And they helped behind Adonijah. ⁸ But Zadok the priest and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada and Nathan the prophet and Shimei and Rei and the mighty men who were for David were not with Adonijah. ⁹ And Adonijah sacrificed sheep and cattle and fatling near the stone of Zoheleth, which is beside En Rogel. And he called all of his brothers, the sons of the king, and to all the men of Judah, the servants of the king. ¹⁰ But he did not call Nathan the prophet and Benaiah and the mighty men and his brother Solomon.

¹¹ And Nathan said to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon, saying, “Have you not heard that Adonijah the son of Haggith reigns, and our master David does not know? ¹² And now, come, please let me advise you with advice, and slip away with your life and with the life of your son Solomon. ¹³ Go and come to the king David, and you shall say to him, ‘Have you not, my master the king, sworn to your female servant, saying, “Surely Solomon your son will reign after me, and he will sit on my throne?” And why does Adonijah reign?’ ¹⁴ Behold, while you are still speaking there with the king, then I myself will come in behind you and will fill your words.”

¹⁵ And Bathsheba came to the king at the room. (Now the king was very old and Abishag the Shunammite was attending the king.) ¹⁶ And Bathsheba bowed and prostrated herself to the king. And the king said, “What is for you?” ¹⁷ And she said to him, “My master, you yourself have sworn to your female servant by Yahweh your God, ‘Surely Solomon your son will reign after me, and he will sit on my throne.’ ¹⁸ And now, behold, Adonijah reigns, and now, my master the king, you do not know. ¹⁹ And he has sacrificed ox and fatling and sheep to abundance, and he has called to all the sons of the king and to Abiathar the priest and to Joab the commander of the army, but he has not called to Solomon your servant. ²⁰ And you, my master the king, the eyes of all Israel are on you, to tell them who will sit on the throne of my master the king after him. ²¹ And it will happen, as soon as my master the king lies down with his fathers, that I myself and my son Solomon will be sinners.”

²² And behold, while she was still speaking with the king, then Nathan the prophet came. ²³ And they told the king, saying, “Behold, Nathan the prophet.” And he came before the face of the king, and he prostrated himself to the king with his nostrils to the ground. ²⁴ And Nathan said, “My master the king, have you yourself said, ‘Adonijah will reign after me, and he will sit on my throne?’ ²⁵ For he has gone down today and sacrificed ox and fatling and sheep to abundance, and he has called to all of the sons of the king and to the commanders of the army and to Abiathar the priest. And behold, they are eating and drinking before his face. And they say, ‘Let the king Adonijah live!’ ²⁶ But as for me, I am your servant, and he has not called to Zadok the priest and to Benaiah the son of Jehoiada and to Solomon your servant. ²⁷ Has this matter happened from with my master the king and you have not caused your servants to know who will sit on the throne of my master the king after him?”

²⁸ And the king David answered and said, “Call to Bathsheba for me.” And she came before the face of the king and she stood before the face of the king. ²⁹ And the king swore and said, “As Yahweh is alive, who has ransomed my life from every distress. ³⁰ For just as I have sworn to you by Yahweh the God of Israel, saying, ‘Surely Solomon your son will reign after me, and he will sit on my throne in my place,’ surely thus I will do this day.” ³¹ And Bathsheba bowed with nostrils to the ground and she prostrated herself before the king and she said, “May my master the king David live to eternity!”

³² And the king David said, “Call for me to Zadok the priest and to Nathan the prophet and to Benaiah the son of Jehoiada.” And they came before the face of the king. ³³ And the king said to them, “Take with you the servants of your master, and you shall cause Solomon my son to mount on the female mule that is for me and bring him down to Gihon. ³⁴ And Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet shall anoint him there as king over Israel. And you shall blow with the horn and you shall say, ‘Let the king Solomon live!’ ³⁵ And you shall go up after him, and he shall come and sit on my throne; and he will reign in my place. And I have commanded him to be leader over Israel and over Judah.” ³⁶ And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada answered the king and said, “Truly! So has Yahweh the God of my master the king spoken. ³⁷ Just as Yahweh has been with my master the king, so may he be with Solomon. And may he make his throne greater than the throne of my master the king David.”

³⁸ And Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada and the Kerethite and the Pelethite went down and they caused Solomon to mount on the female mule of the king David. And they brought him to Gihon. ³⁹ And Zadok the priest took the horn of the oil from the tent and he anointed Solomon. And they blew with the horn, and all the people said, “Let the king Solomon live!” ⁴⁰ And all the people went up after him. And the people were playing with the flutes and were rejoicing with great joy. And the earth was split by their sound.

⁴¹ And Adonijah and all the called ones who were with him heard and they had finished eating. And Joab heard the sound of the horn, and he said, “Why is the sound of the city noisy?” ⁴² He was still speaking, and behold, Jonathan the son of Abiathar the priest came. And Adonijah said, “Come, for you are a man of strength and you will bring good news.” ⁴³ And Jonathan answered and said to Adonijah, “No, but our master the king David has caused Solomon to reign. ⁴⁴ And the king has sent with him Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada and the Kerethite and the Pelethite. And they caused him to mount on the female mule of the king. ⁴⁵ And Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have anointed him as king at Gihon, and they have come up from there rejoicing, and the city is in an uproar. This is the sound that you have heard. ⁴⁶ And also, Solomon sits on the throne of the kingship. ⁴⁷ And also, the servants of the king came to bless our master the king David, saying, ‘May God make the name of Solomon better than your name, and may he make his throne greater than your throne.’ And the king bowed down on the bed. ⁴⁸ And also, thus said the king, ‘Blessed be Yahweh the God of Israel, who has given one who sits on my throne today, and my eyes are seeing.’”

⁴⁹ And all the called ones who were for Adonijah trembled and rose. And they went, a man to his way. ⁵⁰ And Adonijah was afraid of the face of Solomon. And he rose and went and grasped the horns of the altar. ⁵¹ And it was told to Solomon, saying, “Behold, Adonijah fears Solomon the king. And behold, he has grasped the horns of the altar, saying, ‘Let Solomon the king swear to me as soon as today that he will not put to death his servant with the sword.’” ⁵² And Solomon said, “If he will be a son of strength, some of his hair will not fall to the ground. But if evil is found in him, then he will die.” ⁵³ And Solomon the king sent, and they brought him down from beside the altar. And he came and bowed down to Solomon the king. And Solomon said to him, “Go to your house.”

Chapter 2

¹ And the days of David to die came near, and he commanded Solomon his son, saying, ² “I am about to go in the way of all the earth. And you shall be strong, and you shall become a man. ³ And you shall keep the keeping of Yahweh your God to walk in his ways, to keep his statutes, his commandments, and his judgments, and his testimonies, according to what is written in the law of Moses, so that you may do wisely all that you do and everywhere that you would turn there, ⁴ so that Yahweh may cause his word to stand, which he spoke concerning me, saying, ‘If your sons will keep their way, to walk before my face in truth with all their heart and with all their soul,’ saying, ‘a man for you will not be cut off from on the throne of Israel.’ ⁵ And also you yourself know what Joab the son of Zeruiah did to me, what he did to two of the commanders of the armies of Israel, to Abner the son of Ner and to Amasa the son of Jether: and he slew them. And he put the bloodshed of war in peace and he gave the bloodshed of war on his belt, which was on his loins, and on his sandal, which was on his feet. ⁶ And you shall act according to your wisdom, and you shall not let his gray hair go down in peace to Sheol. ⁷ And to the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite do covenant faithfulness, and let them be among those who eat at your table. For so they came near to me when I fled from the face of Absalom your brother. ⁸ And behold, with you is Shimei the son of Gera the Benjamite from Bahurim. And he himself cursed me with a grievous curse on the day of my going to Mahanaim. And he himself went down to meet me at the Jordan, and I swore to him by Yahweh, saying, ‘I will not put you to death by the sword.’ ⁹ And now, do not leave him unpunished. For you are a wise man, and you know what you shall do to him. And you shall cause his gray hair to go down with blood to Sheol.”

¹⁰ And David lay down with his fathers and he was buried in the city of David. ¹¹ And the days that David reigned over Israel were 40 years. In Hebron he reigned seven years and in Jerusalem he reigned 33 years. ¹² And Solomon sat on the throne of David his father. And his kingdom was firmly established.

¹³ And Adonijah the son of Haggith came to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon. And she said, “Is your coming peaceful?” And he said, “It is peaceful.” ¹⁴ And he said, “A word is for me to you.” And she said, “Speak.” ¹⁵ And he said, “You yourself know that the kingship was for me, and all Israel had set their faces on me to reign. But the kingship turned around and became for my brother, for from Yahweh it was for him. ¹⁶ And now, I am requesting one request from with you, do not turn back my face.” And she said to him, “Speak.” ¹⁷ And he said, “Please speak to Solomon the king, for he will not turn back your face, that he may give to me Abishag the Shunammite for a wife.” ¹⁸ And Bathsheba said, “Good, I myself will speak concerning you to the king.”

¹⁹ And Bathsheba came to the king Solomon to speak to him concerning Adonijah. And the king rose to meet her and he bowed down to her and he sat on his throne. And he set a throne for the mother of the king, and she sat by his right hand. ²⁰ And she said, “One small request I am requesting from with you, do not turn back my face.” And the king said to her, “Request, my mother, for I will not turn back your face.” ²¹ And she said, “Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to Adonijah your brother for a wife.” ²² And the king Solomon answered and said to his mother, “And why are you requesting Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? Then request for him the kingship, for he is my brother, older than I, and for him and for Abiathar the priest and for Joab the son of Zeruiah!” ²³ And the king Solomon swore by Yahweh, saying, “Thus may God do to me, and thus may he add, unless by his life Adonijah has spoken this word. ²⁴ And now, as Yahweh is alive, who has established me and caused me to sit on the throne of David my father, and who has made for me a house just as he said, surely today Adonijah shall be put to death.” ²⁵ And the king Solomon sent by the hand of Benaiah the son of Jehoiada. And he attacked him and he died.

²⁶ And with respect to Abiathar the priest the king said, “Go to Anathoth, to your fields. For you are a man of death, but I will not put you to death on this day, because you lifted the box of my Lord Yahweh before the face of David my father and because you were afflicted with all that my father was afflicted.” ²⁷ And Solomon drove Abiathar out from being a priest to Yahweh, to fulfill the word of Yahweh, which he had spoken concerning the house of Eli at Shiloh.

²⁸ And the report came as far as Joab, for Joab had turned aside after Adonijah, but he had not turned aside after Absalom. And Joab fled to the tent of Yahweh and he took hold of the horns of the altar. ²⁹ And it was told to the king Solomon that Joab had fled to the tent of Yahweh, and behold, he was beside the altar. And Solomon sent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, saying, “Go, attack him.” ³⁰ And Benaiah entered into the tent of Yahweh and he said to him, “Thus says the king, ‘Come out!’” And he said, “No, for here I will die.” And Benaiah brought back word to the king, saying, “Thus has spoken Joab and thus he answered me.” ³¹ And the king said to him, “Do just as he has spoken and attack him and bury him. And you will remove from on me and from on the house of my father the bloodshed without cause that Joab poured out. ³² And Yahweh will return his blood on his head, because he attacked two men more righteous and better than himself and he slew them with the sword, and my father David did not know: Abner the son of Ner, the commander of the army of Israel, and Amasa the son of Jether, the commander of the army of Judah. ³³ And their shed blood will return on the head of Joab and on the head of his seed to eternity. But for David and for his seed and for his house and for his throne will be peace until eternity from with Yahweh.” ³⁴ And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada went up and attacked him and put him to death. And he was buried in his house in the wilderness. ³⁵ And the king gave Benaiah the son of Jehoiada in his place over the army. And Zadok the priest the king gave in place of Abiathar.

³⁶ And the king sent and called for Shimei, and he said to him, “Build a house for yourself in Jerusalem and dwell there. And do not go out from there here or there. ³⁷ And it will happen on the day when you go out and you pass over the wadi of Kidron, know surely that you will surely die. Your blood will be on your head.” ³⁸ And Shimei said to the king, “The word is good. Just as my master the king has spoken, thus your servant will do.” And Shimei dwelled in Jerusalem many days.

³⁹ And it happened from the end of three years that two of the slaves of Shimei fled to Achish the son of Maacah, the king of Gath. And they told Shimei, saying, “Behold, your slaves are in Gath.” ⁴⁰ And Shimei rose and saddled his donkey and went to Gath, to Achish, to seek his slaves. And Shimei went and brought back his slaves from Gath. ⁴¹ And it was told to Solomon that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath and had returned. ⁴² And the king sent and called for Shimei and said to him, “Did I not cause you to swear by Yahweh and testify against you, saying, ‘On the day when you go out and go here or there, surely know that you will surely die’? And you said to me, ‘The word I have heard is good.’ ⁴³ And why did you not keep the oath of Yahweh and the command that I commanded concerning you?” ⁴⁴ And the king said to Shimei, “You yourself know all the evil that your heart knows, that you did to David my father. And Yahweh will return your evil on your head. ⁴⁵ But the king Solomon will be blessed, and the throne of David will be established before the face of Yahweh until eternity.” ⁴⁶ And the king commanded Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and he went out and attacked him, and he died.

     And the kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon.

Chapter 3

¹ And Solomon made himself the son-in-law of Pharaoh the king of Egypt. And he took the daughter of Pharaoh and he brought her into the city of David until his completing to build his house and the house of Yahweh and the wall of Jerusalem round about. ² Only the people were sacrificing at the high places because a house had not been built for the name of Yahweh until those days. ³ And Solomon loved Yahweh by walking in the statutes of David his father, but at the high places he was sacrificing and burning incense.

⁴ And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for it was the great high place. Solomon offered up a thousand burnt up offerings on that altar. ⁵ At Gibeon Yahweh appeared to Solomon in a dream that night. And God said, “Request! What should I give to you?” ⁶ And Solomon said, “You yourself have did great covenant faithfulness with your servant David, my father, because he walked before your face in faithfulness and in righteousness and in uprightness of heart with you. And you have kept for him this great covenant faithfulness and you have given to him a son sitting on his throne as it is this day. ⁷ And now, Yahweh my God, you yourself have caused your servant to reign in place of David my father, but I am a young youth. I do not know going out or coming in. ⁸ And your servant is in the midst of your people, whom you have chosen, a numerous people who can not be numbered and can not be counted because of abundance. ⁹ And may you give to your servant a heart that hears to judge your people, to discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge your people, this heavy one?”

¹⁰ And the thing was good in the eyes of the Lord, that Solomon had requested this thing. ¹¹ And God said to him, “Because you have requested this thing and you have not requested for yourself many days, and you have not requested riches for yourself, and you have not requested the life of your enemies, but you requested for yourself discerning to hear justice, ¹² behold, I have done according to your word. Behold, I have given to you a wise and discerning heart, so that one has not been like you before your face, and after you will not rise one like you. ¹³ And also what you have not requested I have given to you, both riches and honor, so that there will not be a man like you among the kings all of your days. ¹⁴ And if you will walk in my ways to keep my statutes and my commandments, just as David your father walked, then I will lengthen your days.” ¹⁵ And Solomon awoke, and behold, it was a dream! And he entered Jerusalem and he stood before the face of the box of the covenant of the Lord. And he offered up burnt offerings and he made peace offerings. And he made a feast for all his servants.

¹⁶ At that time two women, prostitutes, came to the king and they stood before his face. ¹⁷ And the one woman said, “Please, my master, I and this woman dwell in one house, and I gave birth with her in the house. ¹⁸ And it happened on the third day of my giving birth that this woman also gave birth. And we were together, there was no stranger with us in the house, only we two were in the house. ¹⁹ And the son of this woman died at night, because she lay on him. ²⁰ And she arose in the middle of the night and she took my son from my side, and your female servant was asleep. And she laid him in her bosom. And her son, the one who died, she laid in my bosom. ²¹ And I rose in the morning to nurse my son, and behold, he was dead! And I considered diligently with respect to him in the morning, and behold, he was not my son, whom I had borne!” ²² And the other woman said, “No, but my son is the living one, and your son is the dead one.” And this one was saying, “No, but your son is the dead one, and my son is the living one.” And they spoke before the face of the king.

²³ And the king said, “This one says, ‘This is my son, the living one, and your son is the dead one,’ but this one says, ‘No, but your son is the dead one, and my son is the living one.’” ²⁴ And the king said, “Take a sword for me.” And they brought the sword before the face of the king. ²⁵ And the king said, “Divide the living child into two pieces, and give the half to one and the half to the other.” ²⁶ And the woman whose son was the living one said to the king, for her compassionate feelings for her son became warm. And she said, “Please, my master, give to her the living child, and you must certainly not put him to death!” But this one was saying, “Either for me or for you he will not be. Divide!” ²⁷ And the king answered and said, “Give to her the living child, and you must certainly not put him to death. She is his mother.” ²⁸ And all Israel heard the judgment that the king had judged, and they were afraid from the face of the king, because they saw that the wisdom of God was within him to do justice.

Chapter 4

¹ And King Solomon was king over all Israel. ² And these were the officials which were for him: Azariah the son of Zadok was the priest. ³ Elihoreph and Ahijah, the sons of Shisha, were scribes. Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was the recorder. ⁴ And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the army. And Zadok and Abiathar were priests. ⁵ And Azariah the son of Nathan was over the stationed ones. And Zabud the son of Nathan was a priest, the friend of the king. ⁶ And Ahishar was over the house. And Adoniram the son of Abda was over the forced labor.

⁷ And for Solomon were 12 stationed ones over all Israel, and they sustained the king and his house. A month in the year it would be on one to sustain. ⁸ And these were their names: Ben Hur in the hill country of Ephraim, ⁹ Ben Deker in Makaz and in Shaalbim and Beth Shemesh and Elon Beth Hanan, ¹⁰ Ben Hesed in the Arubboth (for him was Sokoh and all the land of Hepher), ¹¹ Ben Abinadab was for all Naphoth Dor (Taphath, the daughter of Solomon, was for him for a wife), ¹² Baana the son of Ahilud in Taanach and Megiddo, and all Beth Shan that is beside Zarethan from below Jezreel, from Beth Shan as far as Abel Meholah, as far as from the other side of Jokmeam, ¹³ Ben Geber in Ramoth Gilead, for him were the villages of Jair the son of Manasseh that were in Gilead, for him was the region of Argob, which was in the Bashan—60 great cities with a wall and a gate bar of bronze; ¹⁴ Ahinadab the son of Iddo in Mahanaim, ¹⁵ Ahimaaz in Naphtali (he also took Basemath the daughter of Solomon for a wife), ¹⁶ Baana the son of Hushai in Asher and Bealoth, ¹⁷ Jehoshaphat the son of Paruah in Issachar, ¹⁸ Shimei the son of Ela in Benjamin, ¹⁹ Geber the son of Uri in the land of Gilead, the land of Sihon, the king of the Amorite and Og, the king of the Bashan, and he was the one stationed one who was in the land.

²⁰ Judah and Israel were numerous as the sand that is on the sea according to abundance. They were eating and drinking and rejoicing. ²¹ And Solomon was ruling over all the kingdoms from the river to the land of the Philistines and as far as the border of Egypt, bringing tribute near and serving Solomon all the days of his life. ²² And the bread of Solomon for one day was 30 cors of fine flour and 60 cors of flour, ²³ ten fat cattle and 20 pasture cattle and 100 sheep, apart from deer and gazelle and roebuck and fattened fowl. ²⁴ For he had dominion over all beyond the river, from Tiphsah and as far as Gaza, over all the kings of beyond the river. And peace was for him from all his sides, from all around. ²⁵ And Judah and Israel dwelled in safety, a man under his vine and under his fig tree, from Dan and as far as Beersheba, all the days of Solomon. ²⁶ And there was for Solomon 40,000 stalls of horses for his chariotry and 12,000 horsemen. ²⁷ And those stationed ones sustained the king Solomon and all the ones who came near to the table of the king Solomon, a man his month. They would not let anything be lacking. ²⁸ And they brought the barley and the straw for the horses and for the steed to the place there where it should be, a man according to his regulation.

²⁹ And God gave wisdom to Solomon and very much understanding and width of heart like the sand that is on the lip of the sea. ³⁰ And the wisdom of Solomon was greater than the wisdom of all the sons of the east and than all the wisdom of Egypt. ³¹ And he was wiser than every man, than Ethan the Ezrahite and Heman and Kalkol and Darda, the sons of Mahol. And his name was in all the surrounding nations. ³² And he spoke 3,000 proverbs and his songs were 1,005. ³³ And he spoke concerning the trees, from the cedar that is in the Lebanon and as far as the hyssop that comes out on the wall. And he spoke concerning the beast and concerning the bird and concerning the creeping thing and concerning the fish. ³⁴ And they came from all the peoples to hear the wisdom of Solomon, from with all the kings of the earth who had heard his wisdom.

Chapter 5

¹ And Hiram the king of Tyre sent his servants to Solomon when he heard that they had anointed him as king in place of his father, for Hiram was a one loved by David all the days. ² And Solomon sent to Hiram, saying, ³ “You yourself knew David my father, that he was not able to build a house for the name of Yahweh his God because of the face of the warfare that surrounded him, until Yahweh was giving them under the soles of his feet. ⁴ But now, Yahweh my God has given rest to me from all around. There is no adversary and there is no evil occurence. ⁵ And behold I am saying to build a house for the name of Yahweh my God, just as Yahweh spoke to David my father, saying, ‘Your son, whom I will give in your place on your throne, he will build the house for my name.’ ⁶ And now, command and let them cut for me cedars from the Lebanon and let my servants be with your servants and I will give to you the wage of your servants according to all that you say. For you yourself know that there is no man among us knowing how to cut trees like the Sidonians.”

⁷ And it happened as soon as Hiram heard the words of Solomon that he rejoiced exceedingly. And he said, “Blessed be Yahweh today, who has given to David a wise son over this great people.” ⁸ And Hiram sent to Solomon, saying, “I have heard what you sent to me. I myself will do all your desire with the trees of cedar and with the trees of cypress. ⁹ And my servants will bring down from the Lebanon to the sea, and I myself will set rafts on the sea as far as the place where you send for me. And I will break them up there and you yourself will lift. And you yourself will do my desire by giving the bread of my house.” ¹⁰ And Hiram was giving to Solomon trees of cedar and trees of cypress, all of his desire. ¹¹ And Solomon gave to Hiram 20,000 kors of wheat as food for his house and 20 kors of beaten oil. Thus Solomon would give to Hiram year by year. ¹² And Yahweh gave wisdom to Solomon, just as he spoke to him. And there was peace between Hiram and Solomon and the two of them cut a covenant.

¹³ And the king Solomon brought up forced labor from all Israel. And the forced labor was 30,000 men. ¹⁴ And he sent them to Lebanon, 10,000 by the month in shifts. They were a month in the Lebanon, two months in his house. And Adoniram was over the forced labor. ¹⁵ And there was for Solomon 70,000 who lift a burden and 80,000 who hew in the hill country, ¹⁶ apart from the officials of the stationed ones of Solomon who were over the work, 3,300 were the ones having dominion over the people, the ones who were doing the work. ¹⁷ And the king commanded and they removed large stones, precious stones to found the house, stones of hewing. ¹⁸ And the builders of Solomon and the builders of Hiram and the Gebalites hewed and they prepared the trees and the stones to build the house.

Chapter 6

¹ And it happened in year 480 of the going out of the sons of Israel from the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of the reigning of Solomon over Israel, in the month of Ziv (that is the second month), that he began to build the house of Yahweh. ² As for the house that the king Solomon built for Yahweh, 60 cubits was its length, and 20 its width, and 30 cubits its height. ³ As for the porch on the face of the temple of the house, 20 cubits was its length, in accordance with the face of the width of the house; ten by the cubit was its width in accordance with the face of the house. ⁴ And he made for the house windows with narrowed frames. ⁵ And he built against the wall of the house a spread out place all around, the walls of the house all around, for the temple and for the inner room. And he made side rooms all around. ⁶ The spread out place of the lowest level, five by the cubit was its width, and the middle level, six by the cubit was its width, and the third level, seven by the cubit was its width. For he gave ledges for the house all around the outside, so not to hold on to the walls of the house. ⁷ As for the house while it was being built, it was built of finished stone of a quarry. And a hammer or the ax, any implement of iron, was not heard in the house while it was being built. ⁸ The opening of the middle side room was to the shoulder of the house at the south, and by stairs they went up on the middle level, and from the middle level to the third level. ⁹ And he built the house and he finished it. And he covered the house with beams and rows with the cedars. ¹⁰ And he built the spread out place against all the house, five cubits was its height, and it held on to the house with the wood of cedar.

¹¹ And the word of Yahweh was to Solomon, saying, ¹² “This house that you are building, if you walk in my statutes and you do my judgments, and you keep all my commandments by walking in them, then I will cause my word to stand with you that I spoke to David your father. ¹³ And I will dwell in the midst of the sons of Israel and I will not forsake my people Israel.”

¹⁴ And Solomon built the house and he finished it. ¹⁵ And he built the walls of the house on the inside with sides of cedar. From the floor of the house up to the walls of the ceiling, he overlaid wood on the inside, and he overlaid the floor of the house with sides of cypress. ¹⁶ And he built 20 cubits from the rear of the house with sides of cedar from the floor up to the walls. And he built for it on the inside as an inner room, as the holiest holy place. ¹⁷ And 40 by the cubit was the house (that is the temple) before the face of it. ¹⁸ And cedar was into inside the house, carving of gourds and opened ones of flowers. The whole was cedar, there was no stone seen. ¹⁹ And he set up the inner room in the midst of the house on the inside for giving there the box of the covenant of Yahweh. ²⁰ And before the face of the inner room, it was 20 cubits in length, and 20 cubits in width, and 20 cubits its height. And he overlaid it with pure gold and he overlaid an altar with cedar. ²¹ And Solomon overlaid the house on the inside with pure gold. And he crossed chains of gold over the face of the inner room, and he overlaid it with gold. ²² And he overlaid all the house with gold until finishing all the house. And the whole of the altar that was for the inner room he overlaid with gold.

²³ And he made in the inner room two cherubs of wood of oil; ten cubits was its height. ²⁴ And five cubits was the wing of the one cherub and five cubits was the wing of the second cherub. It was ten cubits from the ends of its wings and as far as the ends of its wings. ²⁵ And ten by the cubit was the second cherub, one size and one shape were for the two cherubs. ²⁶ The height of the one cherub was ten by the cubit and so was the second cherub. ²⁷ And he gave the cherubs in the midst of the inner house. And they spread out the wings of the cherubs and the wing of the one touched against the wall and the wing of the second cherub was touching against the second wall. And their wings were toward the middle of the house, touching wing to wing. ²⁸ And he overlaid the cherubs with gold.

²⁹ And he carved all the walls of the house round about with engravings of carvings of cherubs and palm trees and opened ones of flowers, from inside and to the outside. ³⁰ And he overlaid the floor of the house with gold, for inside and for the outside. ³¹ Also he made the opening of the inner room with doors of wood of oil; the pillar, doorposts, were a fifth part. ³² And the two of the doors were wood of oil, and he carved on them carvings of cherubs and palm trees and opened ones of flowers, and he overlaid them with gold. And he beat out the gold on the cherubs and on the palm trees. ³³ And so he made for the opening of the temple doorposts of wood of oil from a fourth part. ³⁴ And the two of the doors were wood of cypress, the two of the one door leaves were folding and the two of the second door curtains were folding. ³⁵ And he carved cherubs and palm trees and opened ones of flowers. And he overlaid with gold made smooth on the engraving. ³⁶ And he built the inner courtyard with three rows of hewn stone and a row of cut beams of cedar.

³⁷ In the fourth year the house of Yahweh was founded, in the month of Ziv. ³⁸ And in the year 11, in the month of Bul (it is the eighth month), the house was finished according to all his words and according to all his requirements. And he built it seven years.

Chapter 7

¹ And Solomon built his house 13 years. And he finished all of his house. ² And he built the house of the forest of the Lebanon: 100 cubits was its length and 50 cubits was its width and 30 cubits was its height, with four rows of pillars of cedar and cut beams of cedar on the pillars. ³ And it was covered with cedar from above over the sides that were on the 45 pillars, 15 was the row. ⁴ And the window frames were three rows, and opening to opening were three occurrences. ⁵ And all the openings and the doorposts were squared framework. And the front of an opening to an opening were three occurrences. ⁶ And he made the porch of the pillars, 50 cubits was its length and 30 cubits was its width. And a porch was on their face and pillars and a roof were on their face. ⁷ And he made the porch of the throne there where he would judge, the porch of judgment. And it was covered with cedar from the floor up to the floor. ⁸ And his house there where he would dwell, the other courtyard, was from the house of the porch; it was like this work. And he would make a house for the daughter of Pharaoh, whom Solomon had taken, like this porch.

⁹ All of these were precious stones according to the measurement of hewn stones, sawn with the saw from inside and from outside and from the foundation up to the eaves and from outside up to the great courtyard. ¹⁰ And it was founded with precious stones, large stones, stones of ten cubits and stones of eight cubits. ¹¹ And from above were precious stones, according to the measurement of hewn stone, and cedar. ¹² And a great courtyard was all around, three hewn stone rows and a row of cut beams of cedar, and for the inner courtyard of the house of Yahweh and for the porch of the house.

¹³ And the king Solomon sent and took Hiram from Tyre. ¹⁴ He was a son of a woman, a widow, from the tribe of Naphtali and his father was a man of Tyre, one who engraves bronze. And he was filled with the wisdom and the understanding and the knowledge in order to do all the work with bronze. And he came to the king Solomon and he did all his work. ¹⁵ And he formed the two of the pillars bronze, 18 cubits was the height of the one pillar and a cord of 12 cubits surrounded the second pillar. ¹⁶ And he made the two of the capitals to give on the heads of the pillars, casting of bronze. Five cubits was the height of the one capital and five cubits was the height of the second capital. ¹⁷ Lattices, a work of lattice, twisted threads, a work of chains, were for the capitals which were on the head of the pillars. Seven were for the one capital and seven were for the second capital. ¹⁸ And he made the pillars, and two rows all around on the one lattice to cover the capitals, which were on the head of the pomegranates, and he did so for the second capital. ¹⁹ And the capitals, which were on the head of the pillars, were the work of a lily on the porch, four cubits. ²⁰ And capitals were on the two pillars, also from above. from near the belly, which was to the opposite of the lattice. And the pomegranates were 200, rows all around on the second capital. ²¹ And he raised up the pillars for the porch of the temple. And he raised up the right pillar and he called its name Jakin. And he raised up the left pillar and he called its name Boaz. ²² And on the head of the pillars was the work of a lily. And the work of the pillars was finished.

²³ And he made the sea that was cast. It was ten by the cubit from its lip up to its lip, circular all around. And five by the cubit was its height and a cord of 30 cubits surrounded it all around. ²⁴ And gourds were from underneath to its lip, surrounding it all around, ten by the cubit, encircling the sea all around. The gourds were two rows that were cast when it was cast. ²⁵ It was standing over 12 cattle, three faces toward the north and three faces toward the west and three faces toward the south and three faces toward the east, and the sea was over them from above. And all their hindquarters were toward the inside. ²⁶ And its thickness was a handbreadth and its lip was like the work of the lip of a cup, the blossom of a lily. It contained 2,000 baths.

²⁷ And he made the ten bronze stands. Four by the cubit was the length of the one stand and four by the cubit was its width and three by the cubit was its height. ²⁸ And this was the work of the stand: rims were for them, and rims were between the joints. ²⁹ And on the rims, which were between the joints, were lions, oxen, and cherubs. And on the joints was a pedestal from above and from below to the lions and the cattle were wreaths, work of descent. ³⁰ And four wheels of bronze were for the one stand and axles of bronze and its four feet were shoulders for them, from the under part of the basin; the shoulders were cast from each side with wreaths. ³¹ And its mouth on the inside of the capital and upward was by the cubit, and its mouth was round, the work of a pedestal, a cubit and a half of the cubit. And also on its mouth were carvings and their rims were squared, not circular. ³² And the four of the wheels were for the under part of the rims, and the hands of the wheels were with the stand. And the height of the one wheel was a cubit and a half of the cubit. ³³ And the work of the wheels was like the work of the wheel of the chariot. Their hands and their rims and their spokes and their hubs, the whole thing was cast. ³⁴ And four shoulders were to the four corners of the one stand, its shoulders were part of the stand. ³⁵ And at the top of the stand, a half of the cubit was the height, circular all around. And on the head of the stand was its hands and its rims were part of it. ³⁶ And he engraved on the planks of its hands and on its rims cherubs, lions, and palm trees according to the bare space of each, and wreaths were all around. ³⁷ Like this he made the ten stands, one casting, one size, one shape was for all of them.

³⁸ And he made ten bronze basins. The one basin contained 40 baths. The one basin was four by the cubit, one basin was on the one base for the ten stands. ³⁹ And he gave the stands, five on the shoulder of the house from the right and five on the shoulder of the house from its left. And he gave the sea from the south shoulder of the house eastward, from in front of the south.

⁴⁰ And Hiram made the basins and the shovels and the sprinkling bowls. And Hiram finished doing all the work that he did for the king Solomon for the house of Yahweh: ⁴¹ two pillars, and the bowls of the capitals that were on the head of the two pillars, and the two latticeworks for covering the two bowls of the capitals that were on the head of the pillars, ⁴² and the 400 pomegranates for the two latticeworks, two rows of pomegranates for the one latticework to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the faces of the pillars, ⁴³ and the ten stands, and the ten basins on the stands, ⁴⁴ and the one sea and the 12 cattle under the sea, ⁴⁵ and the pots and the shovels and the sprinkling bowls and all these vessels that Hiram made for the king Solomon, for the house of Yahweh, were polished bronze. ⁴⁶ In the circular plain of the Jordan the king cast them in the compactness of the ground between Succoth and between Zarethan. ⁴⁷ And Solomon caused all the vessels to rest because of very much abundance, the weight of the bronze had not been ascertained.

⁴⁸ And Solomon made all the vessels that were in the house of Yahweh: the altar of gold and the table, which would have the bread of the face on it, was gold. ⁴⁹ And the five lampstands from the south and five from the north, before the face of the inner room, were pure gold. And the blossom and the lamps and the snuffers were gold. ⁵⁰ And the cups and the trimmers and the sprinkling bowls and the palms and the firepans were pure gold. And the sockets of the doors of the inner house, for the holiest holy place, for the doors of the house, for the temple, were gold.

⁵¹ And all the work that the king Solomon did for the house of Yahweh was complete. And Solomon brought in the holy things of David, his father, the silver and the gold and the vessels he gave into the storerooms of the house of Yahweh.

Chapter 8

¹ Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, all the heads of the tribes, the lifted ones of the fathers of the sons of Israel, to the king Solomon at Jerusalem, to bring up the box of the covenant of Yahweh from the city of David (it is Zion). ² And all the men of Israel assembled to the king Solomon in the month of Ethanim at the feast (it is the seventh month). ³ And all the elders of Israel came and the priests lifted the box. ⁴ And they brought up the box of Yahweh and the tent of meeting and all the vessels of holiness that were in the tent. And the priests and the Levites brought them up. ⁵ And the king Solomon and all the congregation of Israel, the ones who congregated to him, were with him before the face of the box, sacrificing sheep and cattle that could not be counted and could not be numbered because of abundance. ⁶ And the priests brought the box of the covenant of Yahweh into its place, into the inner room of the house, into the holiest holy place, to beneath the wings of the cherubs. ⁷ For the cherubs were spreading out wings toward the place of the box. And the cherubs covered over the box and over its poles from above. ⁸ And the poles were made long and the heads of the poles were seen from the holy place on the face of the inner room, and they were not seen on the outside. And they are there until this day. ⁹ There was nothing in the box except the two tablets of stone, which Moses caused to rest there at Horeb, where Yahweh cut with the sons of Israel when they went out from the land of Egypt. ¹⁰ And it happened when the priests went out from the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of Yahweh. ¹¹ And the priests were not able to stand to minister because of the face of the cloud, for the glory of Yahweh filled the house of Yahweh.

¹² Then Solomon said,

     “Yahweh has said

         he would dwell in the dark cloud.

     ¹³ Surely I have built a house of elevation for you, a place for your dwelling forever.” ¹⁴ And the king turned his face around and he blessed all the assembly of Israel, and all the assembly of Israel was standing. ¹⁵ And he said, “Blessed is Yahweh, the God of Israel, who spoke by his mouth with David my father, and fulfilled by his hand, saying, ¹⁶ ‘From the day when I brought out my people Israel from Egypt, I did not choose a city from all the tribes of Israel to build a house, so that my name would be there. But I chose David to be over my people Israel.’ ¹⁷ And it was with the heart of David my father to build a house for the name of Yahweh, the God of Israel. ¹⁸ But Yahweh said to David my father, ‘Because it was with your heart to build a house for my name, you did well that it was in your heart. ¹⁹ However, you will not build the house, but rather your son, the one who comes out from your loins, he himself will build the house for my name.’ ²⁰ And Yahweh has raised up his word that he had spoken. And I have risen up in the place of David my father, and I sit on the throne of Israel, just as Yahweh spoke. And I have built the house for the name of Yahweh, the God of Israel. ²¹ And I have set a place there for the box, where there is the covenant of Yahweh, which he cut with our fathers when he brought them out from the land of Egypt.”

²² And Solomon stood before the face of the altar of Yahweh, in front of all the assembly of Israel. And he spread out his palms to the heavens. ²³ And he said, “Yahweh, the God of Israel, there is no God like you in the heavens from above or on the earth from below, keeping the covenant and the covenant faithfulness to your servants, the ones who walk before your face with all their heart; ²⁴ which you have kept for your servant David my father, what you spoke to him. And you spoke with your mouth and with your hand you fulfilled, as this day. ²⁵ And now, Yahweh, the God of Israel, keep for your servant David my father, what you spoke to him, saying, ‘A man will not be cut off for you from before my face, sitting on the throne of Israel, if only your sons will keep their way, to walk before my face, just as you have walked before my face.’ ²⁶ And now, the God of Israel, please let your word be proven faithful, which you spoke to your servant David my father.

²⁷ Indeed, would God really dwell on the earth? Behold, the heavens and the heavens of the heavens can not contain you, how much less this house that I have built! ²⁸ Yet you will turn to the prayer of your servant and to his plea for favor, Yahweh my God, to listen to the cry and to the prayer that your servant is praying before your face today: ²⁹ that your eyes be opened to this house night and day, to the place where you have said, ‘My name will be there,’ to listen to the prayer that your servant will pray to this place. ³⁰ And you will listen to the plea for favor of your servant and your people Israel that they will pray toward this place. And you, you will listen toward the place of your dwelling to the heavens. And you will hear and forgive

³¹ a man who sins against his neighbor and lifts up against him a curse to curse him and a curse comes before the face of your altar in this house. ³² And you, you will hear in the heavens and act and judge your servants, by declaring as wicked a wicked one, to give his way on his head, and by declaring as righteous a righteous one, to give to him according to his righteousness.

³³ When your people Israel are struck down before the face of an enemy because they have sinned against you, and they turn back to you and they confess your name and they pray and they plead for favor toward you in this house, ³⁴ then you, you will hear in the heavens and you will forgive for the sin of your people Israel and bring them back to the ground that you gave to their fathers.

³⁵ When the heavens are restrained and there is no rain because they have sinned against you, and they pray toward this place and they confess your name and they turn back from their sin when you have afflicted them, ³⁶ then you, you will hear in the heavens and forgive for the sin of your servants and your people Israel, for you direct the good way in which they will walk. And you will give rain on your land, which you have given to your people for an inheritance.

³⁷ If famine would be in the land, if there would be pestilence, if there would be blight, mildew, locust, grasshopper, if his enemy would make it narrow for him in the land of his gates, any plague, any sickness, ³⁸ any prayer, any plea for favor that would be for any man, for any of your people Israel, who know, a man the plague of his heart, and he would spread out his palms toward this house, ³⁹ then you, you will hear in the heavens, the place of your dwelling, and you will forgive and act and give to a man according to all his ways, because you know his heart. For you, you know, you alone, the heart of all the sons of mankind, ⁴⁰ so that they may fear you all the days that they are alive on the face of the ground that you gave to our fathers.

⁴¹ And also, to the foreigner, he who is not from among your people Israel, and he comes from a distant land on account of your name, ⁴² for they will hear of your great name and your strong hand and your extended arm, and he will come and pray toward this house, ⁴³ you, you will hear in the heavens, the place of your dwelling, and you will act according to all that the foreigner has cried out to you, so that all the peoples of the earth will know your name to fear you, like your people Israel, and to know that your name has been called over this house that I have built.

⁴⁴ If your people go out to battle against his enemy, by the way that you send them, and they pray to Yahweh, in the way of the city, it which you have chosen, and the house that I have built for your name, ⁴⁵ then you will hear in the heavens their prayer and their plea for favor and you will do their justice.

⁴⁶ If they sin against you (for there is no man who does not sin) and you are angry with them and you give them over before the face of an enemy and they took them captive as their captives to the land of the enemy, distant or near, ⁴⁷ and they bring back to their heart in the land there where they have been taken captive, and they turn back and plead for favor to you in the land of those who took them captive, saying, ‘We have sinned and we have done iniquity, we have acted wickedly,’ ⁴⁸ and they return to you with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their enemies where they took them captive and they pray to you toward the way of their land, which you gave to their fathers, the city that you chose and the house that I have built for your name, ⁴⁹ then you will hear their prayer in the heavens, the place of your dwelling, and their plea for favor, and you will do their justice. ⁵⁰ And you will forgive your people who have sinned against you and all their transgressions that they have transgressed against you. And you will give them compassion before the face of those who took them captive and they will have compassion on them. ⁵¹ For they are your people and your inheritance, whom you brought out from Egypt, from the midst of the furnace of iron, ⁵² for your eyes to be opened to the plea for favor of your servant and to the plea for favor of your people Israel, to listen to them in all their crying out to you. ⁵³ For you yourself separated them for yourself as an inheritance from all the peoples of the earth, just as you spoke by the hand of Moses your servant when you brought out our fathers from Egypt, my Lord Yahweh.”

⁵⁴ And it happened that as soon as Solomon finishing to pray to Yahweh all this prayer and plea for favor, he rose from before the face of the altar of Yahweh, from bowing on his knees with his palms spread out toward the heavens. ⁵⁵ And he stood and he blessed all the assembly of Israel with a great voice, saying, ⁵⁶ “Blessed be Yahweh, who has given rest for his people Israel, according to all that he had spoken. One word did not fall from all his good word that he had spoken by the hand of Moses his servant. ⁵⁷ May Yahweh our God be with us, just as he was with our fathers. May he not leave us and may he not forsake us, ⁵⁸ inclining our heart to 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 may these words of mine, which I have pleaded for favor before the face of Yahweh, be near to Yahweh our God by day and night, to do the justice of his servant and the justice of his people Israel, the word of day by its day, ⁶⁰ so that all the peoples of the earth may know that Yahweh, he is the God, there is none besides! ⁶¹ And may your heart be completely with Yahweh our God, by walking in his statutes and by keeping his commandments, as this day.”

⁶² And the king and all Israel with him were sacrificing sacrifices before the face of Yahweh. ⁶³ And Solomon sacrificed a sacrifice of peace offerings which he sacrificed to Yahweh: 22,000 cattle and 120,000 sheep. And the king and all the sons of Israel dedicated the house of Yahweh. ⁶⁴ On that day the king set apart the middle of the courtyard that was before the face of the house of Yahweh, for he made there the burnt up offering and the grain offering and the fat pieces of the peace offerings because the altar of bronze that was before the face of Yahweh was too small to contain the burnt up offering and the grain offering and the fat pieces of the peace offerings. ⁶⁵ And Solomon performed the feast at that time, and all Israel with him, a great assembly, from Lebo Hamath as far as the wadi of Egypt, before the face of Yahweh our God seven days and seven days, 14 days. ⁶⁶ On the eighth day he sent the people away, and they blessed the king and they went to their tents rejoicing and good of heart on account of all the goodness that Yahweh had done for David, his servant, and for Israel, his people.

Chapter 9

¹ And it happened as soon as Solomon finished building the house of Yahweh and the house of the king, and every desire of Solomon that he delighted to do, ² that Yahweh appeared to Solomon a second time, just as he had appeared to him at Gibeon. ³ And Yahweh said to him, “I have heard your prayer and your plea for favor that you plead for favor before my face. I have set apart this house that you built, by setting my name there until eternity. And my eyes and my heart will be there all the days. ⁴ And as for you, if you will walk before my face just as David your father walked with completeness of heart and with uprightness, by doing according to all that I have commanded you, if you keep my statutes and my judgments, ⁵ then I will raise up the throne of your kingdom over Israel for eternity, just as I spoke to David your father, saying, ‘A man for you will not be cut off from on the throne of Israel.’ ⁶ If you ever turn back, you or your sons, from after me and you do not keep my commandments, my statutes that I have given before your face, and you go and serve other gods and you bow down to them, ⁷ then I will cut off Israel from on the face of the ground that I have given to them, and the house that I have set apart for my name, I will send away from on my face, and Israel will be for a proverb and for a taunt among all the peoples. ⁸ And this house will be elevated, every one who passes by near it will be appalled and will hiss. And they will say, ‘On what account did Yahweh do thus to this land and to this house?’ ⁹ And they will say, ‘Because they forsook Yahweh their God, who brought their fathers out from the land of Egypt, and they held on to other gods and bowed down to them and served them. Therefore Yahweh brought on them all this evil.’” ¹⁰ And it happened from the end of 20 years that Solomon had built the two houses, the house of Yahweh and the house of the king. ¹¹ Hiram, the king of Tyre, had lifted Solomon with trees of cedar and with trees of cypress and with gold, according to all his delight. Then the king Solomon gave to Hiram 20 cities in the land of the Galilee. ¹² And Hiram came out from Tyre to see the cities that Solomon had given to him, but they were not right in his eyes. ¹³ And he said, “What are these cities that you have given to me, my brother?” And he called them the land of Kabul until this day. ¹⁴ And Hiram sent to the king 120 kikkars of gold.

¹⁵ Now this is the matter of the forced labor that the king Solomon brought up to build the house of Yahweh and his house and the Millo and the wall of Jerusalem and Hazor and Megiddo and Gezer. ¹⁶ Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, had gone up and seized Gezer and he burned it with fire and he slew the Canaanite, the one who dwelled in the city. And he gave it as sending gifts to his daughter, the wife of Solomon. ¹⁷ And Solomon built Gezer and lower Beth Horon ¹⁸ and Baalath and Tadmor in the wilderness in the land ^{[1] 19} and all the cities of the storehouses that were for Solomon and the cities of the chariotry and the cities of the horsemen and the desire of Solomon, whatever he desired to build in Jerusalem and in the Lebanon and in all the land of his dominion. ²⁰ All the people, the ones who were left over from the Amorite, the Hittite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, they who were not of the sons of Israel, ²¹ their sons who were left over after them in the land, them whom the sons of Israel were not able to utterly destroy, Solomon brought them up for the forced labor of serving until this day. ²² But from the sons of Israel Solomon did not give a servant, for they were the men of warfare and his servants and his commanders and his third men and the commanders of his chariotry and his horsemen.

²³ These were the commanders of the stationed ones who were over the work for Solomon, 550, the ones having dominion over the people, the ones doing the work.

²⁴ As soon as the daughter of Pharoah went up from the city of David to her house that he had built for her, then he built the Millo.

²⁵ And Solomon offered up three times in the year burnt up offerings and peace offerings on the altar that he built for Yahweh, and he burned incense with it, which was before the face of Yahweh. And he completed the house.

²⁶ And the king Solomon made a fleet in Ezion Geber, which is near Elath on the lip of the sea of reeds in the land of Edom. ²⁷ And Hiram sent in the fleet his servants, men of ships who knew the sea, with the servants of Solomon. ²⁸ And they came to Ophir and took from there gold, 420 kikkars. And they brought it to the king Solomon.

Chapter 10

¹ Now the queen of Sheba heard the report of Solomon with respect to the name of Yahweh. And she came to test him with difficult questions. ² And she came to Jerusalem with very heavy strength, camels lifting spices and very much gold and precious stone. And she came to Solomon and spoke to him all that was with her heart. ³ And Solomon told her all her matters. There was not a matter hidden from the king that he did not tell her. ⁴ And the queen of Sheba saw all the wisdom of Solomon and the house that he had built ⁵ and the food of his table and the seating of his servants and the service of his attendants and their apparel and his cupbearers and his burnt up offerings that he offered up at the house of Yahweh. And there was no more breath in her. ⁶ And she said to the king, “True is the word that I heard in my land concerning your words and concerning your wisdom. ⁷ And I did not believe the words until when I came and my eyes saw, and behold, the half was not told to me! You added wisdom and goodness to the report that I had heard. ⁸ Happy are your men! Happy are these servants of yours, the ones who stand continually before your face, the ones who hear your wisdom! ^{[1] 9} May Yahweh your God be blessed, who has delighted in you, to give you on the throne of Israel. Because Yahweh loves Israel for eternity, he set you as king to do justice and righteousness!” ¹⁰ And she gave to the king 120 kikkars of gold and very many spices and precious stone. There has not come again like that spice with respect to abundance that the queen of Sheba gave to King Solomon.

¹¹ And also the fleet of Hiram, which lifted gold from Ophir, brought from Ophir very many trees of almug and precious stone. ¹² And the king made the trees of almug a support for the house of Yahweh and for the house of the king, and lyres and harps for the ones who sing. Such trees of almug had not come in and had not been seen until this day.

¹³ And the king Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all her desire, whatever she requested apart from what he gave to her according to the hand of the king Solomon. And she turned and went to her land, she and her servants.

¹⁴ And the weight of the gold that came to Solomon in one year was 666 kikkars of gold, ¹⁵ apart from the men of the ones who explore and from the merchandise of the ones who go about, and all the kings of the Arab and the governors of the land. ¹⁶ And the king Solomon made 200 large beaten gold shields, 600 gold went up on one large shield, ¹⁷ and 300 beaten gold shields, three gold minas went up on one shield. And the king gave them to the house of the forest of the Lebanon. ¹⁸ And the king made a great ivory throne and he overlaid it with refined gold. ¹⁹ There were six steps to the throne and a round head for the throne from behind it. And hands were from this side and from that side toward the place of the seat. And two lions were standing beside the hands. ²⁰ And 12 lions were standing there on the six steps, from this side and from that side. It was not made so for any kingdoms. ²¹ And all the vessels of the drink of the king Solomon were gold, and all the vessels of the house of the forest of the Lebanon were beaten gold. There was no silver, it was not thought to be anything in the days of Solomon. ²² For the fleet of Tarshish was for the king on the sea with the fleet of Hiram. One of three years the fleet of Tarshish would come lifting gold and silver, ivory pieces and apes and peacocks.

²³ And the king Solomon became greater than all the kings of the earth with respect to riches and with respect to wisdom. ²⁴ And all the earth was seeking the face of Solomon to hear his wisdom, which God had given in his heart. ²⁵ And they were bringing, a man his gift, vessels of silver and vessels of gold and garments and weapons and spices, horses and mules, a matter of year by year.

²⁶ And Solomon gathered chariotry and horsemen. And there were for him 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horsemen. And he lead them into the cities of the chariotry and with the king in Jerusalem. ²⁷ And the king gave the silver in Jerusalem like the stones, and the cedars he gave like the sycamores that are in the lowlands with respect to abundance. ²⁸ And the going out of the horses that were for Solomon was from Egypt and from Kue; the ones who go about for the king would take from Kue for a price. ²⁹ And a chariot went up and went out from Egypt for 600 silver, and a horse for 150, and thus by their hand they brought out to all the kings of the Hittites and to the kings of Aram.

Chapter 11

¹ Now the king Solomon loved many foreign women, with the daughter of Pharaoh, Moabite women, Ammonite women, Edomite women, Sidonian women, Hittite women, ² from the nations that Yahweh had said to the sons of Israel, “You must not enter into them, and they must not enter into you. They will surely turn your heart after their gods.” Solomon clung to them for love. ³ And there were wives for him, 700 princesses, and 300 concubines. And his wives turned his heart. ⁴ And it happened that by the time of the old age of Solomon his wives turned his heart after other gods. And his heart was not completely with Yahweh his God like the heart of David his father. ⁵ And Solomon went after Ashtoreth, the god of the Sidonians, and after Milcom, the abomination of the Ammonites. ⁶ And Solomon did the evil thing in the eyes of Yahweh and he did not remain fully after Yahweh like David his father. ⁷ Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh, the abomination of Moab, on the hill that is on the face of Jerusalem, and for Molech, the abomination of the sons of Ammon. ⁸ And thus he did for all his foreign wives, who were burning incense and sacrificing to their gods.

⁹ And Yahweh became angry with Solomon, for his heart had turned from with Yahweh, the God of Israel, the one who had appeared to him two times. ¹⁰ And had commanded to him concerning this thing, to not go after other gods. But he did not keep what Yahweh had commanded. ¹¹ And Yahweh said to Solomon, “Because this is against you, that you have not kept my covenant and my statutes that I have commanded concerning you. Surely I will tear away the kingdom from with you and I will give it to your servant. ¹² However, in your days I will not do it for the sake of David, your father. From the hand of your son I will surely tear it away. ¹³ Only I will not tear away all the kingdom. I will give one tribe to your son for the sake of David my servant, and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have chosen.”

¹⁴ And Yahweh raised up an adversary against Solomon, Hadad the Edomite. He was from the seed of the king in Edom. ¹⁵ And it had happened when David was with Edom, when Joab the commander of the army went up to bury the pierced ones, that he had struck down every male in Edom. ¹⁶ For Joab and all Israel dwelled there six months until he had cut off every male in Edom. ¹⁷ But Adad fled, he and Edomite men from the servants of his father with him, to enter Egypt. And Hadad was a little boy. ¹⁸ And they rose up from Midian and entered Paran. And they took men with them from Paran and entered Egypt, to Pharaoh the king of Egypt. And he gave to him a house and he ordered bread for him and he gave land to him. ¹⁹ And Hadad found much favor in the eyes of Pharaoh. And he gave to him a wife, the sister of his wife, the sister of Tahpenes the queen. ²⁰ And the sister of Tahpenes bore for him Genubath, his son, and Tahpenes weaned him in the midst of the house of Pharaoh. And Genubath was in the house of Pharaoh in the midst of the sons of Pharaoh. ²¹ And Hadad heard in Egypt that David had laid down with his fathers and that Joab, the commander of the army, had died. And Hadad said to Pharaoh, “Send me away, and I will go to my land.” ²² And Pharaoh said to him, “But what are you lacking with me that, behold, you are seeking to go to your land?” And he said, “Nothing, but surely you must send me away.”

²³ And God raised up an adversary against him, Rezon the son of Eliada, who had fled from with Hadadezer, the king of Zobah, his master. ²⁴ And he gathered men for himself and he became a commander of a raiding band when David slew them. And they went to Damascus and they dwelled in it and they reigned in Damascus. ²⁵ And he was an adversary against Israel all the days of Solomon, and the evil that Hadad did. And he felt disgust against Israel and he reigned over Aram.

²⁶ And Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephrathite from the Zeredah, and the name of his mother was Zeruah, a widow woman, was a servant of Solomon. And he raised a hand against the king. ²⁷ Now this is the matter that he raised a hand against the king: Solomon had built the Millo, he had closed up the breach of the city of David his father. ²⁸ And the man Jeroboam was mighty of strength. And Solomon saw the young man, that he was one who does work, and he appointed him for all the forced labor of the house of Joseph. ²⁹ And it happened at that time that Jeroboam went out from Jerusalem, and the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him in the road. Now he was covering himself with a new cloak and the two of them were by themselves in the field. ³⁰ And Ahijah seized the new cloak that was over him and he tore it into 12 pieces. ³¹ And he said to Jeroboam, “Take for yourself ten pieces. For thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel, ‘Behold, I am about to tear away the kingdom from the hand of Solomon and I will give the ten tribes to you. ³² And one tribe will be for him, for the sake of my servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem (the city, it which I have chosen from all the tribes of Israel), ³³ because they have forsaken me and they have bowed down to Ashtoreth, the god of the Sidonians, to Chemosh, the god of Moab, and to Milcom, the god of the sons of Ammon. And they do not walk in my ways, to do the upright thing in my eyes, or my statutes or my judgments, like David his father. ³⁴ But I will not take all of the kingdom from his hand. Rather, I will put him as a leader all the days of his life, for the sake of David my servant, he whom I have chosen, who kept my commandments and my statutes. ³⁵ But I will take the kingship from the hand of his son and I will give it to you, ten of the tribes. ³⁶ But to his son I will give one tribe so that there may be a lamp for David my servant all the days before my face in Jerusalem, the city that I have chosen for myself, to set my name there. ³⁷ And I will take you, and you shall reign over all that your soul desires. And you shall be king over Israel. ³⁸ And it shall be that if you hear all that I command you and you walk in my ways and you do the upright thing in my eyes, to keep my statutes and my commandments, just as David my servant did, then I will be with you and I will build for you an established house, just as I built for David, and I will give Israel to you. ³⁹ And I will afflict the seed of David on account of this, only not all the days.’” ⁴⁰ And Solomon sought to put Jeroboam to death. And Jeroboam rose up and he fled to Egypt, to Shishak, the king of Egypt. And he was in Egypt until the death of Solomon.

⁴¹ And the remainder of the words of Solomon and all that he did and his wisdom are they not written on the book of the words of Solomon? ⁴² And the days that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel were 40 years. ⁴³ And Solomon lay down with his fathers and he was buried in the city of David his father. And Rehoboam his son reigned in his place.

Chapter 12

¹ And Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had come to Shechem to cause him to reign. ² And it happened as soon as Jeroboam the son of Nebat heard (now he was still in Egypt, where he had fled from the face of the king Solomon, and Jeroboam dwelled in Egypt), ^{[1] 3} that they sent and they called for him. And Jeroboam and all the assembly of Israel came and they spoke to Rehoboam, saying, ⁴ “Your father caused our yoke to be heavy. But you now, cause it to be lighter than the hard work of your father and than his heavy yoke that he gave on us, and we will serve you.” ⁵ And he said to them, “Go until three days, and return to me.” And the people went.

⁶ And the king Rehoboam consulted with the elders, who had been standing ones with the face of Solomon his father while he was alive, saying, “How are you advising to return this people a word?” ⁷ And they spoke to him, saying, “If today you will be a servant to this people and you will serve them, and you will answer them and will speak good words to them, then they will be servants for you all the days.” ⁸ But he forsook the advice of the elders that they had advised him. And he consulted with the young men who had grown up with him, who were the ones standing before his face. ⁹ And he said to them, “What word are you advising that we should return this people who spoke to me saying, ‘Cause it to be lighter than the yoke that your father gave on us’?” ¹⁰ And the young men who had grown up with him spoke to him, saying, “Thus you shall say to this people who spoke to you saying, ‘Your father caused our yoke to be heavy but you must cause it to be lighter than what is on us.’ Thus you shall speak to them, ‘My little one is thicker than the loins of my father. ¹¹ And now, my father loaded on you a heavy yoke, but as for me, I will add onto your yoke. My father punished you with the whips, but as for me, I will punish you with the scorpions.’”

¹² And Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam on the third day, just as the king had spoken, saying, “Return to me on the third day.” ¹³ And the king answered the people harshly. And he forsook the advice of the elders who had advised him. ¹⁴ And he spoke to them according to the advice of the young men, saying, “My father caused your yoke to be heavy, but as for me, I will add onto your yoke. My father punished you with the whips, but as for me, I will punish you with the scorpions.” ¹⁵ And the king did not listen to the people, for the turn was from with Yahweh,so that he raised up his word, which Yahweh had spoken by the hand of Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat.

¹⁶ And all Israel saw that the king had not listened to them, and the people returned the king a word, saying,

     “What portion is for us with David?

         And there is not an inheritance with the son of Jesse!

     To your tents, Israel!

         Now see your house, David.”

And Israel went to its tents. ¹⁷ But as for the sons of Israel, the ones who dwelled in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them. ¹⁸ And the king Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was over the forced labor, and all Israel stoned him with stone and he died. And the king Rehoboam strengthened himself to go up in the chariot to flee to Jerusalem. ¹⁹ And Israel has rebelled against the house of David to this day. ²⁰ And it happened as soon as all Israel heard that Jeroboam had returned, that they sent and called him to the congregation and they caused him to reign over all Israel. One was not after the house of David, except the tribe of Judah by itself.

²¹ And Rehoboam entered Jerusalem and he assembled all the house of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin, 180,000 were chosen who make war, to fight against the house of Israel to return the kingship to Rehoboam the son of Solomon. ²² And the word of God was to Shemaiah the man of God, saying, ²³ “Say to Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, the king of Judah, and to all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and the remainder of the people, saying, ²⁴ ‘Thus says Yahweh: You shall not go up and you shall not fight against your brothers, the sons of Israel. Return, a man to his house, for from with me this thing has been.’” And they heard the word of Yahweh and they turned back to go according to the word of Yahweh.

²⁵ And Jeroboam built Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim, and he dwelled in it. And he went out from there and he built Penuel. ²⁶ And Jeroboam said in his heart, “Now the kingdom will return to the house of David. ²⁷ If this people goes up to make sacrifices in the house of Yahweh in Jerusalem, and the heart of this people will return to their master, to Rehoboam, the king of Judah. And they will slay me and will return to Rehoboam, the king of Judah.” ²⁸ And the king consulted and made two calves of gold. And he said to them, “Going up to Jerusalem is too much for you. Behold your gods, Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt!” ²⁹ And he set the one in Bethel and the one he gave in Dan. ³⁰ And this thing became a sin, and the people went before the face of the one as far as Dan. ³¹ And he made the house of high places. And he made priests from the ends of the people, who were not from the sons of Levi. ³² And Jeroboam made a feast in the eighth month, on the 15th day of the month, like the feast that was in Judah, and he offered up on the altar. Thus he did at Bethel to sacrifice to the calves that he had made. And he caused to stand at Bethel the priests of the high places that he had made. ³³ And he offered up on the altar that he had made at Bethel, on the 15th day in the eighth month, in the month that he had devised by him alone. And he made a feast for the sons of Israel and he offered up on the altar to burn incense.

Chapter 13

¹ And behold, a man of God came from Judah with the word of Yahweh to Bethel. And Jeroboam was standing by the altar to burn incense. ² And he cried out against the altar with the word of Yahweh and he said: “Altar! Altar! Thus says Yahweh, ‘Behold, a son shall be born to the house of David, Josiah shall be his name. And he shall sacrifice on you the priests of the high places, the ones who are burning incense on you. And the bones of a human shall be burned on you.’” ³ And he gave a sign on that day, saying, “This is the sign that Yahweh has spoken: ‘Behold, the altar shall be torn into pieces, and the ash that is on it shall be poured out.’” ⁴ And it happened as soon as the king heard the word of the man of God that he had cried out against the altar at Bethel, that Jeroboam sent forth his hand from over the altar, saying, “Seize him!” And his hand that he had sent forth against him dried up and he was not able to return it to himself. ⁵ And the altar was torn into pieces and the ash was poured out from the altar, according to the sign that the man of God had given by the word of Yahweh. ⁶ And the king answered and said to the man of God, “Appease, please, the face of Yahweh your God and pray for me, so my hand may return to me.” And the man of God appeased the face of Yahweh, and the hand of the king returned to him, and it became like at the first. ⁷ And the king spoke to the man of God, “Come with me to the house and sustain yourself, and I will give to you a gift.” ⁸ And the man of God said to the king, “If you would give to me half of your house, I would not go with you, and I would not eat bread and I would not drink water in this place. ⁹ For thus he has commanded me by the word of Yahweh, saying, ‘You shall not eat bread and you shall not drink water and you shall not return by the road that you went.’” ¹⁰ And he went by another road and he did not return by the road by which he had come to Bethel.

¹¹ Now one old prophet was dwelling in Bethel, and his son came and he recounted to him all the news that the man of God had done that day in Bethel, the words that he had spoken to the king, and they recounted them to their father. ¹² And their father spoke to them, “Where is this, the road he went?” And his sons had seen the road that the man of God had gone when he came from Judah. ¹³ And he said to his sons, “Saddle the donkey for me.” And they saddled the donkey for him and he mounted on it. ¹⁴ And he went after the man of God and he found him sitting under the oak tree. And he said to him, “Are you the man of God, who came from Judah?” And he said, “I am.” ¹⁵ And he said to him, “Go with me to the house and eat bread.” ¹⁶ And he said, “I am not able to return with you or to come with you. And I will not eat bread and will not drink water with you in this place. ¹⁷ For a word was to me by the word of Yahweh, ‘You shall not eat bread and you shall not drink water there. You shall not return to go by the road in which you went.’” ¹⁸ And he said to him, “I also am a prophet like you, and a messenger spoke to me with the word of Yahweh, saying, ‘Bring him back with you to your house, so he may eat bread and he may drink water.’” (He lied to him.) ¹⁹ And he returned with him and he ate bread in his house and he drank water.

²⁰ And it happened that they were sitting at the table. And the word of Yahweh was to the prophet who had brought him back. ²¹ And he cried out to the man of God who had come from Judah, saying, “Thus says Yahweh, ‘Because you have been rebellious against the mouth of Yahweh and you have not kept the command that Yahweh your God had commanded you, ²² and you have returned and you have eaten bread and you have drunk water in the place where he spoke to you, “You shall not eat bread and you shall not drink water,” your corpse shall not enter into the grave of your fathers.’” ²³ And it happened after his eating bread and after his drinking, that he saddled the donkey for him, for the prophet whom he had brought back. ²⁴ And he went and a lion found him in the road and it put him to death. And his corpse was thrown in the road and the donkey was standing beside it and the lion was standing beside the corpse. ²⁵ And behold, men were passing by and they saw the corpse thrown in the road, and the lion standing beside the corpse. And they came and spoke in the city in which the old prophet was dwelling.

²⁶ And the prophet who had brought him back from the road heard and he said, “He is the man of God who was rebellious against the mouth of Yahweh. And Yahweh gave him to the lion, and it tore him into pieces and put him to death according to the word of Yahweh that he had spoken to him.” ²⁷ And he spoke to his sons, saying, “Saddle the donkey for me.” And they saddled it. ²⁸ And he went and found the corpse thrown in the road and the donkey and the lion standing beside the corpse. The lion had not eaten the corpse and had not torn the donkey into pieces. ²⁹ And the prophet lifted up the corpse of the man of God and he rested it on the donkey and he brought it back. And he entered into the city of the old prophet to wail and to bury him. ³⁰ And he rested his corpse in his grave. And they wailed over him, “Alas, my brother!” ³¹ And it happened after his burying him that he said to his sons, saying, “When I die, then you shall bury me in the grave in which the man of God is buried. Beside his bones rest my bones. ³² For the word that he cried out by the word of Yahweh against the altar that is in Bethel and against all the houses of the high places that are in the cities of Samaria will certainly happen.”

³³ After this matter Jeroboam did not return from his evil way, but he returned and made from the ends of the people priests of the high places. The desiring one, he would fill his hand, and he would become one of the priests of the high places. ³⁴ And by this thing it became the sin of the house of Jeroboam, both to efface and to annihilate from on the face of the ground.

Chapter 14

¹ At that time Abijah the son of Jeroboam became sick. ² And Jeroboam said to his wife, “Rise now and change yourself, so they will not know that you are the wife of Jeroboam. And you will go to Shiloh. Behold, Ahijah the prophet is there, he himself spoke concerning me as king over this people. ³ And you will take in your hand ten bread loaves and cakes and a jar of honey and go to him. He himself will tell you what will happen to the boy.” ⁴ And the wife of Jeroboam did so. And she rose and went to Shiloh and she entered the house of Ahijah. (Now Ahijah was not able to see because his eyes stood because of his old age.) ⁵ And Yahweh said to Ahijah, “Behold, the wife of Jeroboam is coming to seek a word from with you regarding her son, for he is sick. Like this and like that you shall speak to her. And it will happen as soon as she comes that she will be changing herself.”

⁶ And it happened as soon as Ahijah heard the sound of her feet entering in the opening that he said, “Enter, wife of Jeroboam. Why is this, you are changing yourself? Now I have been sent to you with a harsh thing. ⁷ Go, say to Jeroboam, thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel, ‘Because I raised you up from the midst of the people and I gave you as a leader over my people Israel, ⁸ and I tore the kingdom away from the house of David and I gave it to you, but you are not like my servant David, who kept my commandments and who walked after me with all his heart, to do only the upright thing in my eyes. ⁹ And you have done evil by doing more than all who were before your face. And you went and made for yourself other gods and cast images to provoke me to anger and you have thrown me behind your back. ¹⁰ Therefore, behold, I am about to bring evil to the house of Jeroboam, and I will cut off with respect to Jeroboam one who urinates against a wall, one who is restrained and one who is let free in Israel. And I will burn after the house of Jeroboam just as the dung burns until it is finished. ¹¹ The one who dies with respect to Jeroboam in the city the dogs will eat, and the one who dies in the country the birds of the heavens will eat, for Yahweh has spoken.’ ¹² And you, rise, go to your house. When your feet enter the city, then the child will die. ¹³ And all Israel will wail for him and they will bury him. For this one by himself with respect to Jeroboam will enter into a grave, because in him a good thing was found for Yahweh, the God of Israel, in the house of Jeroboam. ¹⁴ And Yahweh will raise up for himself a king over Israel who will cut off the house of Jeroboam this day, and what it will be even now! ¹⁵ And Yahweh will strike Israel just as the reed sways in the waters, and he will uproot Israel from on this good ground that he gave to their fathers. And he will scatter them from the other side of the river, because they made their Asherahs, which provoked Yahweh to anger. ¹⁶ And he will give Israel over on account of the sins of Jeroboam that he sinned and that he caused Israel to sin.”

¹⁷ And the wife of Jeroboam rose and went and came to Tirzah. She was entering at the threshold of the house and the boy died. ¹⁸ And they buried him and all Israel wailed for him, according to the word of Yahweh that he spoke by the hand of his servant Ahijah the prophet.

¹⁹ And the remainder of the matters of Jeroboam, that he fought and that he reigned, behold, they are written on the book of the matters of the days of the kings of Israel. ²⁰ And the days that Jeroboam reigned were 22 years. And he layed down with his fathers and Nadab his son reigned in his place.

²¹ Now Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, reigned in Judah. Rehoboam was a son of 41 years when he reigned. And he reigned 17 years in Jerusalem, the city there where Yahweh chose to put his name from all the tribes of Israel. And the name of his mother was Naamah the Ammonite woman. ²² And Judah did the evil thing in the eyes of Yahweh. And they made him jealous more than all that their fathers did with their sins that they sinned. ²³ And they, even they built for themselves high places and pillars and asherahs on every high hill and under every flourishing tree. ²⁴ And also a cultic prostitute was in the land. They did according to all the abominations of the nations that Yahweh had dispossessed from before the face of the sons of Israel.

²⁵ And it happened that in the fifth year of the king Rehoboam, Shishak the king of Egypt went up against Jerusalem. ²⁶ And he took away the treasures of the house of Yahweh and the treasures of the house of the king and the entirety he took. And he took all the shields of gold that Solomon had made. ²⁷ And the king Rehoboam made shields of bronze in their place. And he assigned them to the hand of the commanders of the ones who run, the ones who keep the opening of the house of the king. ²⁸ And it happened that as often as the king entered the house of Yahweh, the ones who run lifted them up and they brought them back to the chamber of the ones who run.

²⁹ And the remainder of the matters of Rehoboam and all that he did, are they not written on the book of the matters of the days of the kings of Judah? ³⁰ And there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all the days. ³¹ And Rehoboam layed down with his fathers and he was buried with his fathers in the city of David. And the name of his mother was Naamah the Ammonite woman. And Abijam his son reigned in his place.

Chapter 15

¹ Now in year 18 of King Jeroboam the son of Nebat, Abijam reigned over Judah. ² Three years he reigned in Jerusalem. And the name of his mother was Maacah the daughter of Abishalom. ³ And he walked in all the sins of his father that he had done before his face. And his heart was not completely with Yahweh his God like the heart of David his father. ⁴ But for the sake of David, Yahweh his God gave to him a lamp in Jerusalem by raising up his son after him, and by causing Jerusalem to stand, ⁵ because David had done the upright thing in the eyes of Yahweh and he had not turned from all that he had commanded him all the days of his life, except in the matter of Uriah the Hittite. ⁶ And war was between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all the days of his life.

⁷ And the remainder of the matters of Abijam and all that he did, are they not written on the book of the matters of the days of the kings of Judah? And war was between Abijah and Jeroboam. ⁸ Then Abijam laid down with his fathers and they buried him in the city of David. And Asa his son reigned in his place.

⁹ And in year 20 of Jeroboam the king of Israel, Asa reigned as the king of Judah. ¹⁰ And he reigned 41 years in Jerusalem. And the name of his mother was Maacah the daughter of Abishalom. ¹¹ And Asa did the upright thing in the eyes of Yahweh like David his father. ¹² And he caused the cultic prostitutes to pass over from the land. And he removed all the idols that his fathers had made. ¹³ And also Maacah his mother he removed her from being queen-mother because she had made a horrid thing for the Asherah. And Asa cut down her horrid thing and he burned it in the wadi of Kidron. ¹⁴ But they did not remove the high places. Nevertheless, the heart of Asa was completely with Yahweh all his days. ¹⁵ And he brought the holy things of his father and his holy things for the house of Yahweh, silver and gold and vessels.

¹⁶ And war was between Asa and Baasha the king of Israel, all their days. ¹⁷ And Baasha the king of Israel went up against Judah and he built up the Ramah, so as not to give going out or coming in to Asa the king of Judah. ¹⁸ And Asa took all the silver and the gold that was remaining in the storerooms of the house of Yahweh and the storerooms of the house of the king, and he gave them into the hand of his servants. And the king Asa sent them to Ben Hadad, the son of Tabrimmon, the son of Hezion, the king of Aram, the one who dwelled in Damascus, saying, ¹⁹ “Let there be a covenant between me and you, between my father and your father. Behold, I have sent to you a present of silver and gold. Go, break your covenant with Baasha the king of Israel and he may go up from against me.” ²⁰ And Ben Hadad listened to the king Asa and he sent the commanders of the strong ones who were for him against the cities of Israel. And he struck Ijon and Dan and Abel Beth Maacah and all Kinnereth, with all the land of Naphtali. ²¹ And it happened as soon as Baasha heard, that he ceased from building up the Ramah and he dwelled in Tirzah. ²² And the king Asa caused all Judah to hear, There was no one free from obligation. And they lifted up the stones of the Ramah and its trees that Baasha had built. And with them the king Asa built Geba of Benjamin and the Mizpah.

²³ And the remainder of all the matters of Asa and all his might and all that he did and the cities that he built, are they not written on the book of the matters of the days of the kings of Judah? Only at the time of his old age did he become sick in his feet. ²⁴ And Asa laid down with his fathers and he was buried with his fathers in the city of David his father. And Jehoshaphat his son reigned in his place.

²⁵ And Nadab the son of Jeroboam reigned over Israel in year two of Asa the king of Judah. And he reigned over Israel two years. ²⁶ And he did the evil thing in the eyes of Yahweh. And he walked in the way of his father and in his sin that he caused Israel to sin. ²⁷ And Baasha the son of Ahijah of the house of Issachar conspired against him, and Baasha struck him down at Gibbethon, which is for the Philistines. And Nadab and all Israel were laying siege against Gibbethon. ²⁸ And Baasha put him to death in year three of Asa the king of Judah. And he reigned in his place. ²⁹ And it happened that as soon as he reigned, he struck down all the house of Jeroboam. He did not leave any breathing one of Jeroboam, until he had annihilated him according to the word of Yahweh, which he had spoken by the hand of his servant Ahijah the Shilonite, ³⁰ on account of the sins of Jeroboam that he sinned and that he caused Israel to sin, by his anger that he provoked Yahweh, the God of Israel, to anger.

³¹ And the remainder of the matters of Nadab and all that he did, are they not written on the book of the matters of the days of the kings of Israel? ³² And war was between Asa and Baasha the king of Israel all their days.

³³ In year three of Asa the king of Judah, Baasha the son of Ahijah reigned over all Israel in Tirzah 24 years. ³⁴ And he did the evil thing in the eyes of Yahweh. And he walked in the way of Jeroboam and in his sin that he caused Israel to sin.

Chapter 16

¹ And the word of Yahweh was to Jehu the son of Hanani, against Baasha, saying, ² “Because I raised you up from the dust and I gave you as leader over my people Israel, and you walked in the way of Jeroboam and caused my people Israel to sin, by provoking me to anger by their sins, ³ behold, I am about to burn after Baasha and after his house. And I shall make your house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat. ⁴ The one who dies of Baasha in the city the dogs shall eat. And the one who dies of him in the field the birds of the heavens shall eat.

⁵ And the remainder of the matters of Baasha and what he did and his might, are they not written on the book of the matters of the days of the kings of Israel? ⁶ And Baasha laid down with his fathers and he was buried in Tirzah. And Elah his son reigned in his place. ⁷ And also by the hand of Jehu the son of Hanani the prophet, the word of Yahweh was to Baasha and to his house, and against all the evil that he had done in the eyes of Yahweh, by provoking him to anger with the work of his hands, by being like the house of Jeroboam, and because he had struck him down.

⁸ In the year of year 26 of Asa the king of Judah, Elah the son of Baasha reigned over Israel in Tirzah, two years. ⁹ And his servant Zimri, the commander of half of the chariotry, conspired against him. And he was in Tirzah drinking himself drunk in the house of Arza, who was over the house in Tirzah. ¹⁰ And Zimri entered and he struck him down and he put him to death in year 27 of Asa the king of Judah. And he reigned in his place. ¹¹ And it happened that when he reigned, as soon as he sat on his throne, he struck down all the house of Baasha. He did not leave of him one who urinates on a wall or his kinsmen or his friend. ¹² And Zimri annihilated all the house of Baasha according to the word of Yahweh that he spoke against Baasha by the hand of Jehu the prophet, ¹³ concerning all the sins of Baasha and the sins of Elah his son which they had sinned, and because they caused Israel to sin, by provoking Yahweh, the God of Israel, to anger with their vapors. ¹⁴ And the remainder of the matters of Elah and all that he did, are they not written on the book of the matters of the days of the kings of Israel?

¹⁵ In the year of year 27 of Asa the king of Judah, Zimri reigned seven days in Tirzah. And the people were camping against Gibbethon, which was for the Philistines. ¹⁶ And the people, the ones who camped, heard, saying, “Zimri has conspired and also has struck down the king!” And all Israel caused Omri, the commander of the army, to reign over Israel on that day in the camp. ¹⁷ And Omri went up from Gibbethon and all Israel with him, and they laid seige against Tirzah. ¹⁸ And it happened as soon as Zimri saw that the city had been seized, that he entered into the citadel of the house of the king. And he burned the house of the king over himself with fire and he died, ¹⁹ on account of his sin that he had sinned by doing the evil thing in the eyes of Yahweh, by walking in the way of Jeroboam, and by his sin that he did by causing Israel to sin. ²⁰ And the remainder of the matters of Zimri and his conspiracy that he conspired, are they not written on the book of the matters of the days of the kings of Israel?

²¹ Then the people of Israel was divided by the half. Half of the people were behind Tibni the son of Ginath, to cause him to reign, but the other half were behind Omri. ²² And the people who were behind Omri became strong against the people who were behind Tibni the son of Ginath. And Tibni died and Omri reigned. ²³ In the year of year 31 of Asa the king of Judah, Omri reigned over Israel 12 years. In Tirzah he reigned six years. ²⁴ And he bought the hill Samaria from with Shemer for two kikkars silver. And he built the hill and he called the name of the city that he built Samaria, in accordance with the name of Shemer, the master of the hill. ²⁵ And Omri did the evil thing in the eyes of Yahweh and he did more evil than all who were before him. ²⁶ And he walked in all the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and in his sins that he caused Israel to sin by provoking Yahweh, the God of Israel, to anger with their vapors. ²⁷ And the remainder of the matters of Omri, what he did and his might that he did, are they not written on the book of the matters of the days of the kings of Israel? ²⁸ And Omri laid down with his fathers and he was buried in Samaria. And Ahab his son reigned in his place.

²⁹ And Ahab the son of Omri reigned over Israel in the year of year 38 of Asa the king of Judah. And Ahab the son of Omri reigned over Israel in Samaria 22 years. ³⁰ And Ahab the son of Omri did the evil thing in the eyes of Yahweh, more than all who were before his face. ³¹ And it happened (was his walking in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat trivial?) that he took a wife, Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal the king of the Sidonians. And he went and served the Baal and he bowed down to him. ³² And he raised up an altar for the Baal at the house of the Baal that he had built in Samaria. ³³ And Ahab made the Asherah and Ahab continued to act, to provoke Yahweh, the God of Israel, to anger more than all the kings of Israel who were before his face. ³⁴ In his days Hiel the Bethelite built Jericho. For Abiram his firstborn he founded it, and for Segub his younger one he set up its doors, according to the word of Yahweh that he spoke by the hand of Joshua the son of Nun.

Chapter 17

¹ And Elijah the Tishbite from the Tishbites of Gilead said to Ahab, “As Yahweh, the God of Israel is alive, before whose face I stand, there will not be dew or rain these years unless by the mouth of my word.” ² And the word of Yahweh was to him, saying, ³ “Go from this place and turn for yourself eastward. And you will be hidden at the wadi of Kerith, which is on the face of the Jordan. ⁴ And it will happen that you shall drink from the wadi. And I have commanded the ravens to sustain you there.” ⁵ And he went and did according to the word of Yahweh. And he went and dwelled at the wadi of Kerith, which is on the face of the Jordan. ⁶ And the ravens were bringing bread and meat to him in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening. And he drank from the wadi. ⁷ And it happened from the end of some days that the wadi dried up because rain was not in the land.

⁸ And the word of Yahweh was to him, saying, ⁹ “Rise, go to Zarephath, which is for Sidon, and you shall dwell there. Behold, I have commanded a woman, a widow, there to sustain you.” ¹⁰ And he rose and went to Zarephath. And he entered into the opening of the city. And behold, there was a woman, a widow, gathering wood pieces. And he called to her and he said, “Please take to me a little water in the vessel and I will drink.” ¹¹ As she went to take, and he called to her, and said, “Please take to me a bit of bread in your hand.” ¹² And she said, “As Yahweh your God is alive, there is not for me a bread cake, but only a fullness of a palm of flour in the jar and a little bit of oil in the jug. And behold, I am gathering two wood pieces and I will enter and I make it for me and for my son. And we will eat it and will die.” ¹³ And Elijah said to her, “Do not fear. Come, do according to your word, only make for me from there a little bread cake at the first and bring it out to me. And make for you and for your son at the later time. ¹⁴ For thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel, ’The jar of flour will not come to an end, and the jug of oil will not lack, until the day Yahweh gives rain on the face of the ground.’” ¹⁵ And she went and did according to the word of Elijah. And she ate, he and she and her house for days. ¹⁶ The jar of flour did not come to an end, and the jug of oil did not lack, according to the word of Yahweh, which he had spoken by the hand of Elijah.

¹⁷ And it happened that after these things the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became sick, and his sickness became very strong until breath did not remain in him. ¹⁸ And she said to Elijah, “What is to me and is to you, man of God, that you came to me to cause my iniquity to be remembered and to put my son to death?” ¹⁹ And he said to her, “Give to me your son.” And he took him from her lap and he brought him up to the upper room there where he was dwelling, and he laid him down on his bed. ²⁰ And he cried out to Yahweh and said, “Yahweh, my God, will you also cause evil on the widow with whom I am sojourning, by putting her son to death?” ²¹ And he stretched himself out over the child three times. And he cried out to Yahweh and he said, “Yahweh, my God, please let the life of this child return on his inner part.” ²² And Yahweh heard the voice of Elijah. And the life of the child returned on his inner part, and he lived. ²³ And Elijah took the child and he brought him down from the upper room to the house, and he gave him to his mother. And Elijah said, “See, your son lives.” ²⁴ And the woman said to Elijah, “Now this I know, that you are a man of God. And the word of Yahweh in your mouth is truth.”

Chapter 18

¹ And it was many days and the word of Yahweh was to Elijah in the third year, saying, “Go, appear to Ahab and I will give rain on the face of the ground.” ² And Elijah went to appear to Ahab. (Now the famine was strong in Samaria.) ³ And Ahab called to Obadiah, who was over the house. (Now Obadiah was one who feared Yahweh exceedingly. ⁴ And it had happened when Jezebel cut off the prophets of Yahweh, that Obadiah had taken 100 prophets and hid them, 50 men in the cave, and he sustained them with bread and water.) ⁵ And Ahab said to Obadiah, “Go in the land to all the springs of water and to all the wadis. Perhaps we will find grass and we will keep alive a horse or a mule, and not cut off some of the livestock.” ⁶ And they divided the land for themselves to pass through it. Ahab went in the one way by himself and Obadiah went in the one way by himself.

⁷ And it happened that Obadiah was in the road, and behold, Elijah was to meet him. And he recognized him and fell on his face and said, “Is this you, my master Elijah?” ⁸ And he said to him, “It is I. Go, say to your master, ‘Here is Elijah.’” ⁹ And he said, “How have I sinned, that you are giving your servant over into the hand of Ahab, to put me to death? ¹⁰ As Yahweh your God is alive, if there is a nation or a kingdom there where my master has not sent to seek you, and they said ‘he is not here,’ then he caused the kingdom or the nation to swear that it did not find you. ¹¹ And now you are saying, ‘Go, say to your master, “Here is Elijah.”’ ¹² And it will happen that I myself will go from with you, and the Spirit of Yahweh will lift you to where I will not know. And I will come to tell Ahab and he will not find you and he will slay me. And your servant has been fearing Yahweh from my youth. ¹³ Has it not been told to my master, what I did when Jezebel slew the prophets of Yahweh, and I hid from the prophets of Yahweh a hundred men, 50 by 50 men in the cave, and I sustained them with bread and water? ¹⁴ And now you are saying, ‘Go, say to your master, “Here is Elijah,”’ and he will slay me.” ¹⁵ And Elijah said, “As Yahweh of hosts is alive, before whose face I stand, surely today I will appear to him.”

¹⁶ And Obadiah went to meet Ahab, and he told him. And Ahab went to meet Elijah. ¹⁷ And it happened as soon as Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said to him, “Are you this one who troubles Israel?” ¹⁸ And he said, “I have not troubled Israel, but rather you and the house of your father, by your forsaking the commandments of Yahweh and going after the Baals. ¹⁹ And now send, gather to me all Israel to the mountain of the Carmel, and the 450 prophets of the Baal and the 400 prophets of the Asherah, those who eat of the table of Jezebel.”

²⁰ And Ahab sent among all the sons of Israel and he gathered the prophets to the mountain of the Carmel. ²¹ And Elijah came near to all the people and he said, “Until when will you be limping over the two opinions? If Yahweh is God, go after him, but if the Baal, go after him.” And the people did not answer him a word. ²² And Elijah said to the people, “I myself remain a prophet of Yahweh by myself, but the prophets of the Baal are 450 men. ²³ And let them give to us two bulls, and let them choose for themselves the one bull, and let them cut it into pieces. And let them set it on the wood pieces, but a fire they will not set. And as for me I will make the one bull that I will give on the wood pieces, but a fire I will not set. ²⁴ And you will call on the name of your god, but as for me, I will call on the name of Yahweh. And it will happen that the God who answers with fire, he is God.” And all the people answered and they said, “The thing is good.”

²⁵ And Elijah said to the prophets of the Baal, “Choose for yourselves the one bull and make it first, for you are the most abundant. And call on the name of your god, but a fire you will not set.” ²⁶ And they took the bull that he gave to them and they made, and they called on the name of the Baal from the morning and until the midday, saying, “The Baal, answer us!” But there was no voice and there was no answering. And they limped beside the altar that he had made. ²⁷ And it happened at the midday that Elijah mocked them and he said, “Cry out with a great voice, for he is a god. Surely he is musing, or surely moving away for himself, or surely a way is for him. Pehaps he is asleep and he will wake up.” ²⁸ And they cried out with a great voice, and they cut themselves, according to their custom, with the swords and with the spears, until a pouring out of blood was on them. ²⁹ And it happened as soon as the midday passed, that they prophesied until the offering up of the grain offering, but there was no voice and there was no answering and there was no attentiveness.

³⁰ And Elijah said to all the people, “Come near to me.” And all the people came near to him. And he repaired the torn down altar of Yahweh. ³¹ And Elijah took 12 stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom was the word of Yahweh, saying, “Israel shall be your name.” ³² And he built with the stones an altar in the name of Yahweh. And he made a trench like the house of two seahs of seed surrounding the altar. ³³ And he arranged the wood pieces. And he cut the bull into pieces and he set it on the wood pieces. ³⁴ And he said, “Fill four jars with water, and pour out on the burnt up offering and on the wood pieces.” And he said “Do it a second time,” and they did it a second time. And he said, “Do it a third time,” and they did it a third time. ³⁵ And the water went around the altar and even the trench he filled with water. ³⁶ And it happened at the offering up of the grain offering, that Elijah the prophet came near and he said, “Yahweh, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known today that you are God in Israel, and I am your servant, and by your word I have done all these things. ³⁷ Answer me, Yahweh! Answer me, that this people may know that you, Yahweh, are God, and you have turned around their heart backward.” ³⁸ And the fire of Yahweh fell and ate the burnt up offering and the wood pieces and the stones and the dust. And it licked up the water that was in the trench. ³⁹ And all the people saw and they fell on their faces. And they said, “Yahweh, he is God! Yahweh, he is God!” ⁴⁰ And Elijah said to them, “Seize the prophets of the Baal. Do not let a man from them slip away.” And they seized them. And Elijah brought them down to the wadi Kishon and he slaughtered them there.

⁴¹ And Elijah said to Ahab, “Get up, eat and drink, for there is the sound of the roar of the rain.” ⁴² And Ahab went up to eat and to drink. And Elijah went up to the head of the Carmel, and he bent down toward the earth and he put his face between his knees. ⁴³ And he said to his young man, “Go up, now, look toward the way of the sea.” And he went up and he looked and he said, “There is not anything.” And he said, “Return seven times.” ⁴⁴ And it happened at the seventh time that he said, “Behold, a small cloud like the palm of a man is going up from the sea.” And he said, “Go up, say to Ahab, ‘Harness and go down so the rain will not stop you.’” ⁴⁵ And it happened until here and until there, that the heavens became dark with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. And Ahab rode and went to Jezreel. ⁴⁶ And the hand of Yahweh was to Elijah, and he girded up his loins and he ran before the face of Ahab as far as your coming into Jezreel.

Chapter 19

¹ And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done and everthing, that he had slain all the prophets with the sword. ² And Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, “So may the gods do and so may they add, unless about this time tomorrow I will set your life as the life of one from them.” ³ And he saw and rose and went for his life and he came to Beersheba, which is for Judah. And he caused his young man to rest there. ⁴ But as for him, he went a road of a day into the wilderness, and he came and sat under one broom shrub. And he requested with respect to his life to die, and he said, “Too much, now, Yahweh; take my life, for I am not better than my fathers.” ⁵ And he lay down and slept under one broom shrub. And behold this, an angel was touching him and he said to him, “Get up! Eat!” ⁶ And he looked, and behold, at the place of his head was a bread cake of glowing coals and a jug of water. And he ate and drank and returned and lay down. ⁷ And the angel of Yahweh returned a second time and he touched him and he said, “Get up! Eat! For the road will be too much for you.” ⁸ And he rose and ate and drank. And he went in the strength of that food 40 days and 40 nights as far as the mountain of God, Horeb.

⁹ And he entered there into the cave, and he spent the night there. And behold, the word of Yahweh was to him and he said to him, “What is for you here, Elijah?” ¹⁰ And he said, “I have been very zealous for Yahweh, the God of hosts, but the sons of Israel have forsaken your covenant, your altars they have torn down, and your prophets they have slain with the sword. And I am left, I by myself, and they seek my life, to take it.” ¹¹ And he said, “Go out and stand on the mountain before the face of Yahweh, and behold, Yahweh is about to pass over!” And a great and strong wind was splitting the mountains and shattering rocks before the face of Yahweh. Yahweh was not in the wind. And after the wind was an earthquake. Yahweh was not in the earthquake. ¹² And after the earthquake was a fire. Yahweh was not in the fire. And after the fire was the voice of a thin whisper. ¹³ And it happened as soon as Elijah heard, that he wrapped his face in his cloak. And he went out and stood at the opening of the cave. And behold, a voice was to him and it said, “What is for you here, Elijah?” ¹⁴ And he said, “I have been very zealous for Yahweh, the God of hosts, but the sons of Israel have forsaken your covenant, your altars they have torn down, and your prophets they have slain with the sword. And I am left, I by myself, and they seek my life, to take it.”

¹⁵ And Yahweh said to him, “Go, return to your way toward the wilderness of Damascus. And you shall come and anoint Hazael as king over Aram. ¹⁶ And you shall anoint Jehu the son of Nimshi as king over Israel. And you shall anoint Elisha the son of Shaphat from Abel Meholah as prophet in your place. ¹⁷ And it will happen that the one who slips away from the sword of Hazael, Jehu will put to death. And the one who slips away from the sword of Jehu, Elisha will put to death. ¹⁸ And I have left in Israel 7000 men, all the knees that have not bowed to the Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him.”

¹⁹ And he went from there and found Elisha the son of Shaphat. And he was plowing with 12 pairs before his face and he was with the 12th. And Elijah passed over to him and he threw his cloak on him. ²⁰ And he left the cattle and he ran after Elijah and he said, “Please let me kiss my father and my mother, and let me go after you.” And he said to him, “Go, return, for what have I done to you?” ²¹ And he returned from after him. And he took the pair of cattle and he sacrificed it and with the implements of the cattle he boiled them, the meat. And he gave to the people and they ate. And he rose and went after Elijah and he attended him.

Chapter 20

¹ Now Ben Hadad the king of Aram gathered all his strength and 32 kings with him, and horse and chariotry. And he went up and laid seige against Samaria and he fought against it. ² And he sent messengers to Ahab the king of Israel at the city. ³ And he said to him, ‘Thus says Ben Hadad, “Your silver and your gold, it is for me. And your wives and your sons, the good ones, they are for me.”’ ⁴ And the king of Israel answered and said, “According to your word, my master the king, I and all that is for me is for you.” ⁵ And the messengers returned and said, “Thus says Ben Hadad, saying, ‘Surely I sent to you, saying, your silver and your gold and your wives and your sons you will give to me, ⁶ but rather around this time tomorrow I will send my servants to you, and they will search through your house and the houses of your servants. And it will happen that any precious thing of your eyes they will put in their hand and they will take.’”

⁷ And the king of Israel called to all the elders of the land. And he said, “Please know and see that this one is seeking evil, for he has sent to me for my wives and for my sons and for my silver and for my gold, and I have not withheld from him.” ⁸ And all the elders and all the people said to him, “Do not listen and do not consent.” ⁹ And he said to the messengers of Ben Hadad, “Say to my master the king, ‘All that you sent to your servant at the first I will do, but this thing I am not able to do.’” And the messengers went and returned him word. ¹⁰ And Ben Hadad sent to him and he said, “Thus may gods do to me and thus may they add, if the dust of Samaria will be sufficient for handfuls for all the people who will be at my feet!” ¹¹ And the king of Israel answered and said, “Speak, ‘one about to gird should not boast like one who is ungirding.’” ¹² And it happened at the hearing of this word as he was drinking, he and the kings in the huts, that he said to his servants, “Set up,” and they set up against the city.

¹³ And behold, one prophet came near to Ahab the king of Israel and he said, “Thus says Yahweh, ‘Have you seen all of this great crowd? Behold, I am about to give it into your hand today, and you shall know that I am Yahweh.’” ¹⁴ And Ahab said, “By whom?” And he said, “Thus says Yahweh, by the young men of the commanders of the provinces.” And he said, “Who will tie up the battle?” And he said, “You.” ¹⁵ And he mustered the young men of the commanders of the provinces, and they were 232. And after them he mustered all the people, all the sons of Israel were 7,000.

¹⁶ And they went out at the midday. And Ben Hadad was drinking drunk in the huts, he and the kings, 32 kings who helped him. ¹⁷ And the young men of the commanders of the provinces went out at the first. And Ben Hadad sent and they told him, saying, “Men have gone out from Samaria.” ¹⁸ And he said, “If they have gone out for peace, seize them alive, and if they have gone out for war, alive seize them.” ¹⁹ And these went out from the city, the young men of the commanders of the provinces and the strength that was behind them. ²⁰ But they struck down, a man his man. And Aram fled and Israel pursued them. And Ben Hadad the king of Aram slipped away on a horse with horsemen. ²¹ And the king of Israel went out and he struck down the horse and the chariot. And he struck Aram a great blow.

²² And the prophet came near to the king of Israel and he said to him, “Go, strengthen yourself, and know and see what you should do, because at the return of the year the king of Aram will be coming up against you.” ²³ And the servants of the king of Aram said to him, “Their gods are gods of the mountains. Therefore they were stronger than us. But indeed let us fight them in the plain, surely we will be stronger than them. ²⁴ And do this thing: remove the kings, a man from his place, and set governors in their places. ²⁵ And you should assign for yourself strength like the strength that fell from you, and a horse like the horse and a chariot like the chariot, and we will fight them in the plain. Surely will we be stronger than them.” And he listened to their voice and did so.

²⁶ And it happened at the return of the year, that Ben Hadad mustered Aram. And he went up to Aphek for the battle with Israel. ²⁷ And the sons of Israel had been mustered and were sustained and they went to meet them. And the sons of Israel camped in front of them were like two little flocks of goats, and Aram filled the land. ²⁸ And a man of God came near and said to the king of Israel, and he said, “Thus says Yahweh, ‘Because Aram said “Yahweh is a god of mountains, but he is not a god of valleys,” I shall give all of this great crowd into your hand, and you shall know that I am Yahweh.’” ²⁹ And they camped, these opposite these, seven days. And it happened on the seventh day that the battle approached, and the sons of Israel struck down Aram, 100,000 on foot in one day. ³⁰ And the ones who were left fled to Aphek, into the city, and the wall fell on 127,000 men, the ones who were left. And Ben Hadad fled and entered into the city, a room in a room.

³¹ And his servants said to him, “Behold, please, we have heard that the kings of the house of Israel, that they are kings of mercy. Please let us put sackcloth around our loins and ropes on our heads, and we will go out to the king of Israel. Perhaps he may let your life live.” ³² And they girded on sackcloth around their waists and ropes on their heads and they came to the king of Israel. And they said, “Your servant Ben Hadad says, ‘Please let my life live.’” And he said, “Is he still alive? He is my brother.” ³³ And the men sought an omen and they hurried and accepted whether it was from him. And they said, “Your brother is Ben Hadad.” And he said, “Come, bring him!” And Ben Hadad went out to him, and he brought him up on the chariot. ³⁴ And he said to him, “I will return the cities that my father took from with your father, and the outside you may set up for yourself in Damascus, just as my father set up in Samaria. As for me, by the covenant, I will send you away.” And he cut a covenant for him and he sent him away.

³⁵ And one man from the sons of the prophets said to his neighbor, “By the word of Yahweh, please strike me.” But the man refused to strike him. ³⁶ And he said to him, “Because you did not listen to the voice of Yahweh, behold, you are about to go from with me, and the lion will strike you down.” And he went from beside him and the lion found him and struck him down. ³⁷ And he found one man and said, “Please strike me.” And the man struck him, striking and wounding. ³⁸ And the prophet went and he stood for the king on the road. And he made himself unrecognizable with the covering over his eyes. ³⁹ And it happened that the king was passing by and he himself cried out to the king. And he said, “Your servant went out in the middle of the battle, and behold, a man turned aside and he brought a man to me. And he said, ‘Keep this man. If he is missing at all, then your life will be in place of his life or you must weigh a kikkar of silver.’” ⁴⁰ And it happened that your servant was doing here and there, and he was not there.” And the king of Israel said to him, “Thus is your judgment, you yourself have decided.” ⁴¹ And he hurried and removed the covering from over his eyes. And the king of Israel recognized him, that he was from the prophets. ⁴² And he said to him, “Thus says Yahweh, ‘Because you have sent away a man of complete destruction from hand. And it will be your life in place of his life, and your people in place of his people.’” ⁴³ And the king of Israel went to his house sullen and vexed, and he came to Samaria.

Chapter 21

¹ Now it happened after these things that there was a vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, which was in Jezreel, beside the palace of Ahab the king of Samaria. ² And Ahab spoke to Naboth, saying, “Give to me your vineyard, and it will be for me as a garden of herbage, because it is near beside my house. And let me give to you in its place a better vineyard than it. If it is good in your eyes, let me give to you silver of the price of this one.” ³ And Naboth said to Ahab, “Far be it for me from Yahweh, from my giving the inheritance of my fathers to you.” ⁴ And Ahab entered into his house sullen and vexed on account of the word that Naboth the Jezreelite had spoken to him. And he said, “I will not give to you the inheritance of my fathers.” And he lay down on his bed,and he turned away his face and he did not eat bread.

⁵ And Jezebel his wife came to him and she spoke to him, “What is this? Your spirit is sullen and you are not eating bread?” ⁶ And he spoke to her, “Because I spoke to Naboth the Jezreelite and I said to him, ‘Give your vineyard to me for silver, or if you are desiring, let me give a vineyard to you in its place.’ And he said, ‘I will not give my vineyard to you.’” ⁷ And Jezebel his wife said to him, “You now, you do the kingship over Israel. Get up! Eat bread and let your heart be good! I myself will give to you the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.” ⁸ And she wrote letters in the name of Ahab, and she sealed them with his seal. And she sent the letters to the elders and to the nobles who were in his city, the ones who dwelled near Naboth. ⁹ And she wrote in the letters, saying, “Call a fast and seat Naboth at the head the people. ¹⁰ And seat two men, sons of worthlessness, in front of him and let them witness against him, saying, ‘You cursed God and the king.’ And take him out and stone him and let him die.”

¹¹ And the men of his city, the elders and the nobles, who were the ones dwelling in his city, did just as Jezebel had sent to them, just as was written in the letters that she had sent to them. ¹² They called a fast and they seated Naboth at the head of the people. ¹³ And the two men, the sons of worthlessness, came and they sat in front of him, and the men of worthlessness witnessed against Naboth in front of the people, saying, “Naboth cursed God and the king.” And they brought him to the outside of the city and they stoned him with the stones and he died. ¹⁴ And they sent to Jezebel, saying, “Naboth has been stoned and he has died.” ¹⁵ And it happened as soon as Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned and had died, that Jezebel said to Ahab, “Get up! Possess the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, which he refused to give to you for silver, for Naboth is not alive, but he has died!” ¹⁶ And it happened as soon as Ahab heard that Naboth had died, that Ahab rose to go down to the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite to possess it.

¹⁷ And the word of Yahweh was to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, ¹⁸ “Get up! Go down to meet Ahab the king of Israel, who is in Samaria. Behold he is in the vineyard of Naboth, there where he has gone down to possess it. ¹⁹ And you shall speak to him saying, ‘Thus says Yahweh, “Have you murdered and also taken possession?”’ And you shall speak to him, saying, ‘Thus says Yahweh, “In a place where the dogs licked the blood of Naboth, the dogs will lick your blood, even you.”’” ²⁰ And Ahab said to Elijah, “Have you found me, my enemy?” And he said, “I have found, on account of you having sold yourself by doing the evil thing in the eyes of Yahweh. ²¹ ‘Behold, I am about to bring evil on you and I will burn after you, and I will cut off with respect to Ahab one who urinates on a wall, and one who is restrained, and one who is let free in Israel. ²² And I will give over your house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat and like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah, on account of the anger that you have provoked to anger and you have caused Israel to sin.’ ²³ And also with respect to Jezebel Yahweh has spoken, saying, ‘The dogs will eat Jezebel at the rampart of Jezreel.’ ²⁴ The one of Ahab who dies in the city, the dogs shall eat. And the one who dies in the field, the bird of the heavens shall eat.” ²⁵ Surely there was not one like Ahab, who sold himself by doing the evil thing in the eyes of Yahweh, he whom Jezebel his wife incited. ²⁶ And he acted very abominably by walking after the idols, like all that the Amorite had done, whom Yahweh had dispossessed from the face of the sons of Israel.

²⁷ And it happened as soon as Ahab heard these words, that he tore his garments and put sackcloth over his flesh and he fasted. And he lay down in the sackcloth and he walked softly. ²⁸ And the word of Yahweh was to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, ²⁹ “Have you seen that Ahab has humbled himself from before my face? Because he has humbled himself from my face, I will not bring the evil thing in his days. In the days of his son I will bring the evil thing on his house.”

Chapter 22

¹ And they dwelled three years; there was no war between Aram and Israel. ² And it happened in the third year, that Jehoshaphat the king of Judah went down to the king of Israel. ³ And the king of Israel said to his servants, “Do you know that Ramoth Gilead is for us, but we are staying inactive from taking it from the hand of the king of Aram?” ⁴ And he said to Jehoshaphat, “Will you go with me to war at Ramoth Gilead?” And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “Like me, like you. Like my people, like your people. Like my horses, like your horses.”

⁵ And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “Please seek the word of Yahweh at today.” ⁶ And the king of Israel gathered the prophets, about 400 men, and he said to them, “Should I go against Ramoth Gilead to war, or should I refrain?” And they said, “Go up, for my Lord will give into the hand of the king.” ⁷ And Jehoshaphat said, “Is there still no prophet of Yahweh here so we may seek from him?” ⁸ And the king of Israel responded to Jehoshaphat, “There is still one man for seeking Yahweh from him, but I myself hate him because he does not prophesy good on my account, but rather evil: Micaiah the son of Imlah.” And Jehoshaphat said, “The king should not say so.” ⁹ And the king of Israel called to one eunuch. And he said, “Get quickly Micaiah the son of Imlah.” ¹⁰ Now the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah were sitting, a man on his throne, clothed with garments, by the threshing floor at the opening of the gate of Samaria. And all the prophets were prophesying before their faces. ¹¹ And Zedekiah the son of Kenaanah made horns of iron for him, and he said, “Thus says Yahweh: ‘With these you shall gore Aram until their finishing.’” ¹² And all the prophets were prophesying thus, saying, “Go up to Ramoth Gilead and be successful, and Yahweh will give into the hand of the king.”

¹³ And the messenger who had gone to call Micaiah spoke to him, saying, “Behold, please, the words of the prophets as one mouth are good for the king. Please let your word be like the one word from them and speak good.” ¹⁴ And Micaiah said, “As Yahweh is alive, surely what Yahweh will say to me, it I will speak.” ¹⁵ And he came to the king, and the king said to him, “Micaiah, should we go to Ramoth Gilead to war, or should we refrain?” And he said to him, “Go up and be successful, and Yahweh will give into the hand of the king.” ¹⁶ And the king said to him, “Up to how many times must I cause you to swear that you would not speak concerning me except truth in the name of Yahweh?” ¹⁷ And he said, “I saw all Israel scattered to the mountains, like a flock when there is not a shepherd for them. And Yahweh said, ‘There are no masters for these. Let them return, a man to his house, in peace.’” ¹⁸ And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “Did I not say to you he would not prophesy good concerning me, but rather evil?” ¹⁹ And he said, “Therefore hear the word of Yahweh: I saw Yahweh sitting on his throne, and all the host of the heavens standing beside him from his right and from his left. ²⁰ And Yahweh said, ‘Who will deceive Ahab, so he may go up and may fall at Ramoth Gilead?’ And this one said, “In this way,” and this one was saying, “In this way.” ²¹ And the spirit went out, and he stood before the face of Yahweh. And he said, ‘I myself will deceive him.’ And Yahweh said to him, ‘By what means?’ ²² And he said, ‘I will go out and I will be a spirit of falsehood in the mouth of all his prophets.’ And he said, ‘You may deceive and also you will be able. Go out and do so.’ ²³ And now, behold, Yahweh has given a spirit of falsehood into the mouth of all these prophets of yours. And Yahweh has spoken evil against you.”

²⁴ And Zedekiah the son of Kenaanah came near, and he struck Micaiah on the cheek. And he said, “How is this, the Spirit of Yahweh has passed over from with me to speak with you?” ²⁵ And Micaiah said, “Behold, you are about to see on that day when you enter a room in a room to hide yourself.” ²⁶ And the king of Israel said, “Take Micaiah and return him to Amon, the commander of the city, and to Joash, the son of the king. ²⁷ And you shall say, ‘Thus says the king, “Put this one in the house of imprisonment and feed him bread of oppression and water of oppression, until my coming in peace.’” ²⁸ And Micaiah said, “If indeed you return in peace, Yahweh has not spoken by me.” And he said, “Listen, peoples, all of them.”

²⁹ And the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah went up to Ramoth Gilead. ³⁰ And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “I will cause myself to be unrecognizable and come into the battle, but you wear your garments.” And the king of Israel caused himself to be unrecognizable and he came into the battle. ³¹ Now the king of Aram had commanded the commanders of the chariotry, which were 32 for him, saying, “You shall not fight with a small one or with a great one, but rather with the king of Israel by himself.” ³² And it happened as soon as the commanders of the charioty saw Jehoshaphat, that they themselves said, “Surely he is the king of Israel.” And they turned aside to fight against him, and Jehoshaphat cried out. ³³ And it happened as soon as the commanders of the chariotry saw that he was not the king of Israel, that they turned back from after him. ³⁴ But a man drew with the bow in his innocence and he struck the king of Israel between the joints and the body armor. And he said to his charioteer, “Turn your hand and bring me out from the camp, for I am wounded.” ³⁵ And the battle went up on that day and the king was being stood up in the chariot opposite Aram. And he died in the evening and the blood of the wound poured out to the bosom of the chariot. ³⁶ Then the cry passed through in the camp about the going of the sun, saying, “A man to his city and a man to his land!”

³⁷ And the king died and came to Samaria. And they buried the king in Samaria. ³⁸ And one rinsed the chariot beside the pool of Samaria. And the dogs licked his blood, and the prostitutes bathed, according to the word of Yahweh that he had spoken. ³⁹ And the remainder of the matters of Ahab and all that he did, and the house of ivory that he built, and all the cities that he built, are they not written on the book of the matters of the days of the kings of Israel? ⁴⁰ And Ahab lay down with his fathers. And Ahaziah his son reigned in his place.

⁴¹ And Jehoshaphat the son of Asa reigned over Judah in year four of Ahab the king of Israel. ⁴² Jehoshaphat was a son of 35 years when he reigned, and he reigned 25 years in Jerusalem. And the name of his mother was Azubah the daughter of Shilhi. ⁴³ And he walked in every way of Asa his father, he did not turn away from it, to do the upright thing in the eyes of Yahweh. However the high places they did not remove. The people were still sacrificing and burning incense at the high places. ⁴⁴ And Jehoshaphat made peace with the king of Israel.

⁴⁵ And the remainder of the matters of Jehoshaphat, and his mighty things that he did, and how he fought, are they not written on the book of the matters of the days of the kings of Judah? ⁴⁶ And the remainder of the cultic prostitutes who were left in the days of Asa his father, he burned from the land. ⁴⁷ And there was not a king in Edom, a stationed one was king. ⁴⁸ Jehoshaphat made ships of Tarshish to go to Ophir for gold, but he did not go because ships were broken at Ezion Geber. ⁴⁹ Then Ahaziah the son of Ahab said to Jehoshaphat, “Let my servants go with your servants in the ships.” But Jehoshaphat was not willing. ⁵⁰ And Jehoshaphat lay down with his fathers and he was buried with his fathers in the city of David his father. And Jehoram his son reigned in his place.

⁵¹ Ahaziah the son of Ahab reigned over Israel in Samaria in year 17 of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah. And he reigned over Israel two years. ⁵² And he did the evil thing in the eyes of Yahweh. And he 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 caused Israel to sin. ⁵³ And he served the Baal and he bowed down to him. And he provoked Yahweh, the God of Israel, to anger, according to all that his father had done.