I Kings 16, Brief Kingdoms of Israel

Baasha is king of the Israel, the northern kingdom. He became king by killing the former king, Nadab, son of Jeroboam.

1 Kings 16:1-4, Baasha's house to be consumed

Then the word of the LORD came to Jehu son of Hanani against Baasha: "I lifted you up from the dust and made you leader of my people Israel, but you walked in the ways of Jeroboam and caused my people Israel to sin and to provoke me to anger by their sins.  So I am about to consume Baasha and his house, and I will make your house like that of Jeroboam son of Nebat. Dogs will eat those belonging to Baasha who die in the city, and the birds of the air will feed on those who die in the country."

As Baasha killed Nadab, Baasha's kingdom will also perish.

Jehu recorded the details of the reign of Jehoshaphat (according to 2 Chronicles 20:34.) More details about the reign of Baasha are recorded by Josephus in his Antiquites of the Jews, Book VIII.

1 Kings 16:5-7, Elah

As for the other events of Baasha's reign, what he did and his achievements, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Israel? Baasha rested with his fathers and was buried in Tirzah. 

And Elah his son succeeded him as king. Moreover, the word of the LORD came through the prophet Jehu son of Hanani to Baasha and his house, because of all the evil he had done in the eyes of the LORD, provoking him to anger by the things he did, and becoming like the house of Jeroboam--and also because he destroyed it.

Elah, son of Baasha becomes king.  At this time, another prophet, Jehu, speaks out against Baasha. Hubbard argues that this book of Kings, along with recording the various dynasties, emphasizes the important role of prophets.

1 Kings 16:8-14, Zimri

In the twenty-sixth year of Asa king of Judah, Elah son of Baasha became king of Israel, and he reigned in Tirzah two years. Zimri, one of his officials, who had command of half his chariots, plotted against him. Elah was in Tirzah at the time, getting drunk in the home of Arza, the man in charge of the palace at Tirzah. Zimri came in, struck him down and killed him in the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah. Then he succeeded him as king.

As soon as he began to reign and was seated on the throne, he killed off Baasha's whole family. He did not spare a single male, whether relative or friend. So Zimri destroyed the whole family of Baasha, in accordance with the word of the LORD spoken against Baasha through the prophet Jehu-- because of all the sins Baasha and his son Elah had committed and had caused Israel to commit, so that they provoked the LORD, the God of Israel, to anger by their worthless idols. As for the other events of Elah's reign, and all he did, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Israel?

Zimri kills Elah while Elah is drunk and partying.  Zimri then destroys Baasha's family, as foretold earlier by the prophet Jehu.

1 Kings 16:15-20, Omri defeats Zimri

In the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, Zimri reigned in Tirzah seven days. The army was encamped near Gibbethon, a Philistine town. When the Israelites in the camp heard that Zimri had plotted against the king and murdered him, they proclaimed Omri, the commander of the army, king over Israel that very day there in the camp. Then Omri and all the Israelites with him withdrew from Gibbethon and laid siege to Tirzah. 

When Zimri saw that the city was taken, he went into the citadel of the royal palace and set the palace on fire around him. So he died, because of the sins he had committed, doing evil in the eyes of the LORD and walking in the ways of Jeroboam and in the sin he had committed and had caused Israel to commit.

As for the other events of Zimri's reign, and the rebellion he carried out, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Israel?

The reigns of the kings of the northern kingdom are getting shorter and shorter. Zimri only lasts seven days before Omri besieges Tirzah and Zimri kills himself by setting the palace on fire around him.

We are promised more details about Zimri's reign in "the book of the annals of the kings of Israel", but the reign is so short that this promise seems to be more of a mantra at the end of each short biography of a king.

1 Kings 16:21-28, Omri builds Samaria

Then the people of Israel were split into two factions; half supported Tibni son of Ginath for king, and the other half supported Omri. But Omri's followers proved stronger than those of Tibni son of Ginath. So Tibni died and Omri became king.

In the thirty-first year of Asa king of Judah, Omri became king of Israel, and he reigned twelve years, six of them in Tirzah. He bought the hill of Samaria from Shemer for two talents of silver and built a city on the hill, calling it Samaria, after Shemer, the name of the former owner of the hill.

But Omri did evil in the eyes of the LORD and sinned more than all those before him.  He walked in all the ways of Jeroboam son of Nebat and in his sin, which he had caused Israel to commit, so that they provoked the LORD, the God of Israel, to anger by their worthless idols.

As for the other events of Omri's reign, what he did and the things he achieved, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Israel? Omri rested with his fathers and was buried in Samaria. And Ahab his son succeeded him as king.

Omri defeats another pretender, Tibni. Then Omri builds a capitol city, Samaria. The northern kingdom will now be centered on Samaria. Omri manages to reign twelve years.

Few archaeological details of ancient Israelite history have survived the almost three millennia since that time. But Omri is named in the Moabite Stone (often called the Mesha Stele) in which a Moabite king brags about defeating a son of Omri in several battles. The Stele describes Omri as having "oppressed Moab for many days", but eventually, according to the Stele, the Moabites fight back.

1 Kings 16:29-33,  Ahab and Jezebel

In the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah, Ahab son of Omri became king of Israel, and he reigned in Samaria over Israel twenty-two years. Ahab son of Omri did more evil in the eyes of the LORD than any of those before him.

He not only considered it trivial to commit the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, but he also married Jezebel daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, and began to serve Baal and worship him. He set up an altar for Baal in the temple of Baal that he built in Samaria. Ahab also made an Asherah pole and did more to provoke the LORD, the God of Israel, to anger than did all the kings of Israel before him.

Omri's reign is followed by the reign of his son, Ahab. Ahab and his wife, Jezebel, will be the center of our story for a time.

1 Kings 16:34, Jericho rebuilt

In Ahab's time, Hiel of Bethel rebuilt Jericho. He laid its foundations at the cost of his firstborn son Abiram, and he set up its gates at the cost of his youngest son Segub, in accordance with the word of the LORD spoken by Joshua son of Nun.

We have a tangential statement that updates us on the reconstruction of Jericho. The prophecy by Joshua is in Joshua 6:26.

After Jeroboam created the northern kingdom, there have been, in Israel, six kings: Nadab, Baasha, Elah, Zimri, Omri, Ahab. The reigns of Jeroboam and Baasha are over twenty years in length; the reign of Omri was twelve. The others only reigned for a short time. Ahab will reign twenty-two years.  (A nice summary of the kings of Judah and Israel is given on this Wikipedia page.)

Stories from the notorious reign of Ahab and his queen will begin in the next chapter.

First published November 30, 2023, updated October 12, 2026

Baal and Ashera, Idols of the Ancient Near East

A colorful battle occurs in 1 Kings 18:16-45 when Elijah takes on 450 priests of Baal. He challenges them to a test by fiery sacrifice and in a dramatic daylong drama, the sacrifices to Baal are ignored while Elijah's sacrifice to YHWH is answered by fire from heaven. The god Baal shows up throughout the Old Testament but most notoriously in the books of 1 & 2 Kings. In addition to Baal, a secondary character is Asherah, often worshiped with "Asherah poles". The passage in 1 Kings, above, states that there were 400 prophets of Asherah, "who ate at Jezebel's table" (1 Kings 18:19.)

The uses of the ancient Hebrew word Ba'al is not clear. In the ancient Near East, in the Northwest Semitic languages, it often meant "lord" or "master". In the first chapter of Esther (see Esther 1:16-18) it is the word used by the king's court that is translated "husband" -- apparently "husband", "lord" or "master" were, in that culture, synonymous! In the Old Testament writings, the word Ba'al was often used to represent gods that Canaanites worshiped, as part of their pantheon. This was to distinguish this god or gods from the One God YHWH, as the Elijah episode demonstrates. As the Israelites moved into Canaan during the time of the judges, Ba'al was most likely the main fertility god of the local people. As the Israelites learned the seasonal rhythm of farming, they were introduced to a variety of fertility rites that went with planting and harvesting, rites that surely centered around worship of Ba'al.

Ba'al Zebub (literally "Lord of the flies"), the god of the Philistine city of Ekron, is briefly mentioned in 2 Kings 1:2. Over time, the Israelites adopted that name for the ruler of the demons and so in the New Testament, when Jesus healed a demon-possessed man (Matthew 12:22-24), he was accused of doing the healing in cohort with Ba'al Zebub.

El and Dagon

In some cultures, Ba'al was the son of the god El; "El" is another Semitic word that was a generic word for "god": Elijah's name, "Jah" is "El, simply means "YHWH is God"; the site "Bethel" is "House (Beth) of El". The word "El" probably had the same role in the ancient Near East as "Allah" has today in Arabic communities -- "Allah" is the Arabic word for "God" and so both Muslims and Arabic Christians use the word that way.) 

If El was the father of Ba'al in one culture, Dagon was the father of El in another culture. In 1 Samuel, early in Saul's reign, we see Dagon as a god of the Philistines. In Joshua 19:24-31, the region of Asher has a town called Beth Dagon ("house of Dagon".) In Judges 16:23-30, Samson's last act is to bring down a temple to Dagon. In 1 Samuel 5, the ark is carried into a temple of Dagon, leading to damage to the temple and the community.

Asherah

A female fertility goddess of the ancient Near East was Asherah. She is worshiped along with Ba'al in Judges 3:7; worship of Asherah often involved sacred trees ("Asherah poles") and are described at various times in 1 & 2 Kings. Ba'al and Asherah were especially associated with the reign of Israel's king Ahab and his wife Jezebel, during the time of Elijah. One of the many sins of Manasseh, several centuries later, was to put an Asherah pole even in the temple of Jerusalem (2 Kings 21:7.)

In the agricultural world of the ancient Near East, fertility (fertile lands, fertile animals, fertile wives) was an important characteristic of a land, flock, tribe.  Fertility was obviously associated with females (human or animal) and their ability to reproduce and so it was natural to assume a fertility idol would portray a female. Asherah was sometimes portrayed as pregnant with large breasts. In that male dominated world, it was natural to include sex as part of fertility worship and so some altars to Asherah or other fertility goddesses included temple prostitutes. When patriarch Judah had sex with Tamar, he apparently assumed she was a prostitute at such a shrine (see Genesis 38:21.) In Numbers 25, Israelite men were having sex with Moabite women as part of a fertility cult.

During the times of the divided kingdom, worship of gods and goddesses, other than YHWH, was metaphorically identified with adultery and prostitution. At times the comparison was not just metaphorical; at times worship of fertility goddesses involved literal prostitution.

Resources

Here are a few external links I looked at as I wrote this essay:

• The Fertility Cults of Canaan is an online article by Ray Vander Laan.
• On the worship of Baal and Asherah at GotQuestions.com
• On Asherah/Ashteroth from CompellingTruth.org
• On the Israelite struggle with Baal and Asherah  from CompellingTruth.org
• An Encyclopedia Britannica article on Asherah.

First published December 17, 2023; updated October 11, 2026

I Kings 15, Abijah, Asa, and Nadab, Baasha

Rehoboam and Jeroboam, kings of the southern and northern kingdoms, respectively, have died. The date is about 910 BC. 

1 Kings 15:1-5, Abijah

In the eighteenth year of the reign of Jeroboam son of Nebat, Abijah became king of Judah, and he reigned in Jerusalem three years. His mother's name was Maacah daughter of Abishalom. He committed all the sins his father had done before him; his heart was not fully devoted to the LORD his God, as the heart of David his forefather had been.

Nevertheless, for David's sake the LORD his God gave him a lamp in Jerusalem by raising up a son to succeed him and by making Jerusalem strong. For David had done what was right in the eyes of the LORD and had not failed to keep any of the LORD's commands all the days of his life--except in the case of Uriah the Hittite.

Abijah of Judah only lasts three years. David is given as an example of one who did right in the eyes of YHWH... with the one obvious exception.

Does the mother of Abijah differ in chapter 14? Some ancient manuscripts give Abijam in place of Abijah. Abijah's reign is described more fully in 2 Chronicles 13.

Abishalom is a variant of Absalom. The phrase translated "daughter of Absalom" could also mean "granddaughter of Absalom". According to 2 Samuel 14:27 , Absalom has one daughter, Tamar, and according to 2 Chronicles 13: 2, Maacah is a daughter (or granddaughter) of Uriel who probably married Tamar. Maacah's appearance several times in Old Testament scripture is due to the fact that she was the favorite wife of Rehoboam (see 2 Chronicles 11:21.)

1 Kings 15:6-8, Death of Abijah

There was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam throughout [Abijah's] lifetime. As for the other events of Abijah's reign, and all he did, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Judah? There was war between Abijah and Jeroboam. And Abijah rested with his fathers and was buried in the City of David. And Asa his son succeeded him as king.

Asa succeeds Abijah in Judah.

Most ancient Hebrew manuscripts give Rehoboam in verse 6 but some Hebrew manuscripts and Syriac manuscripts give Abijam/Abijah.

1 Kings 15:9-15, Asa

In the twentieth year of Jeroboam king of Israel, Asa became king of Judah, and he reigned in Jerusalem forty-one years. His grandmother's name was Maacah daughter of Abishalom. Asa did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, as his father David had done. He expelled the male shrine prostitutes from the land and got rid of all the idols his fathers had made. He even deposed his grandmother Maacah from her position as queen mother, because she had made a repulsive Asherah pole. Asa cut the pole down and burned it in the Kidron Valley.

Although he did not remove the high places, Asa's heart was fully committed to the LORD all his life.  He brought into the temple of the LORD the silver and gold and the articles that he and his father had dedicated.

After Rehoboam and Abijah, there is Asa in Judah. Asa is described as following YHWH. He attempts to root out the idols and he returns the precious medals to the temple in Jerusalem.

Maacah shows up again. Hubbard argues that the adjective "repulsive", describing the Asherah pole built by Macaah, probably indicates a sexually suggestive idol. (The ancients had their own pornography.)

1 Kings 15:16-19, Blockade by Baasha

There was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel throughout their reigns.

Baasha king of Israel went up against Judah and fortified Ramah to prevent anyone from leaving or entering the territory of Asa king of Judah. Asa then took all the silver and gold that was left in the treasuries of the LORD's temple and of his own palace. He entrusted it to his officials and sent them to Ben-Hadad son of Tabrimmon, the son of Hezion, the king of Aram, who was ruling in Damascus.

"Let there be a treaty between me and you," he said, "as there was between my father and your father. See, I am sending you a gift of silver and gold. Now break your treaty with Baasha king of Israel so he will withdraw from me."

Baasha becomes king of Israel and fortifies the important city of Ramah to prevent the people of the southern kingdom from easily trading with the people of Israel. (Ramah was only about five miles north of Jerusalem.) Meanwhile, Asa, in the southern kingdom, makes a treaty with Ben-Hadad in Damascus. Ben-Hadad's territory is east and northeast of the northern kingdom and provides a threat to Baasha's reign.

1 Kings 15:20-24, Aid of Ben-Hadad

Ben-Hadad agreed with King Asa and sent the commanders of his forces against the towns of Israel. He conquered Ijon, Dan, Abel Beth Maacah and all Kinnereth in addition to Naphtali.

When Baasha heard this, he stopped building Ramah and withdrew to Tirzah.

Then King Asa issued an order to all Judah--no one was exempt--and they carried away from Ramah the stones and timber Baasha had been using there. With them King Asa built up Geba in Benjamin, and also Mizpah.

As for all the other events of Asa's reign, all his achievements, all he did and the cities he built, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Judah? In his old age, however, his feet became diseased. Then Asa rested with his fathers and was buried with them in the city of his father David. And Jehoshaphat his son succeeded him as king.
 

Ben-Hadad, to the northeast of Judah, is an important ally, as he can attack the northern kingdom.  He forces Baasha to back off of his blockage of Israel.

We are briefly told that Jehoshaphat follows Asa.  We will return to the story of Jehoshaphat in I Kings 22. Before we do this, we will cover the reign of a number of kings of the northern kingdom.

1 Kings 15:25-28, Nadab

Nadab son of Jeroboam became king of Israel in the second year of Asa king of Judah, and he reigned over Israel two years. He did evil in the eyes of the LORD, walking in the ways of his father and in his sin, which he had caused Israel to commit. Baasha son of Ahijah of the house of Issachar plotted against him, and he struck him down at Gibbethon, a Philistine town, while Nadab and all Israel were besieging it. Baasha killed Nadab in the third year of Asa king of Judah and succeeded him as king.

In Israel, Nadab follows Jeroboam and then is murdered by Baasha. This paragraph seems to be a flashback to explain the occurrence of Baasha.

1 Kings 15:29-31, Massacre of Jeroboam's family

As soon as he began to reign, he killed Jeroboam's whole family. He did not leave Jeroboam anyone that breathed, but destroyed them all, according to the word of the LORD given through his servant Ahijah the Shilonite-- because of the sins Jeroboam had committed and had caused Israel to commit, and because he provoked the LORD, the God of Israel, to anger.

As for the other events of Nadab's reign, and all he did, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Israel?

In taking the crown, Baasha massacres Jeroboam's family.

1 Kings 15:32-34, Asa and Baasha at war

There was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel throughout their reigns. In the third year of Asa king of Judah, Baasha son of Ahijah became king of all Israel in Tirzah, and he reigned twenty-four years. He did evil in the eyes of the LORD, walking in the ways of Jeroboam and in his sin, which he had caused Israel to commit.

The kings of Judah after Rehoboam are Asa and the Jehoshaphat. 

The kings of Israel after Jeroboam are Abijah and Baasha, with a brief interlude of Nadab.

First published November 29, 2023, updated October 10, 2026

I Kings 14, Reigns of Rehoboam and Jeroboam

A prophet has confronted Jeroboam. Yet Jeroboam, king of the ten northern tribes of Israel, continues to do evil.

1 Kings 14:1-3, King's son is ill

At that time Abijah son of Jeroboam became ill, and Jeroboam said to his wife, "Go, disguise yourself, so you won't be recognized as the wife of Jeroboam. Then go to Shiloh. Ahijah the prophet is there--the one who told me I would be king over this people. Take ten loaves of bread with you, some cakes and a jar of honey, and go to him. He will tell you what will happen to the boy."

Abijah sends his wife to see Abijah to ask about the future of her son. (Abijah is the prophet who first told Jeroboam the kingdom would be his in 1 Kings 11:29-39.)

Commentators Patterson and Austel argue that the Hebrew word for jar, baqbuq (בַּקְבֻּק), is onomatopoeic, representing the gurgling sound of liquid being poured from a jar.

1 Kings 14:4-6, Visit to Ahijah

So Jeroboam's wife did what he said and went to Ahijah's house in Shiloh. Now Ahijah could not see; his sight was gone because of his age.

But the LORD had told Ahijah, "Jeroboam's wife is coming to ask you about her son, for he is ill, and you are to give her such and such an answer. When she arrives, she will pretend to be someone else."

So when Ahijah heard the sound of her footsteps at the door, he said, "Come in, wife of Jeroboam. Why this pretense? I have been sent to you with bad news.

 

Ahijah is blind but still, guided by YHWH, outs the queen.

1 Kings 14:7-11, Disaster to the house of Jeroboam

Go, tell Jeroboam that this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: `I raised you up from among the people and made you a leader over my people Israel. I tore the kingdom away from the house of David and gave it to you, but you have not been like my servant David, who kept my commands and followed me with all his heart, doing only what was right in my eyes. You have done more evil than all who lived before you. You have made for yourself other gods, idols made of metal; you have provoked me to anger and thrust me behind your back.

"`Because of this, I am going to bring disaster on the house of Jeroboam. I will cut off from Jeroboam every last male in Israel--slave or free. I will burn up the house of Jeroboam as one burns dung, until it is all gone. Dogs will eat those belonging to Jeroboam who die in the city, and the birds of the air will feed on those who die in the country. The LORD has spoken!'

Ahijah's prophecy is destruction of the house of Jeroboam, because of the idolatry of the king of Israel.

The Hebrew phrase in verse 10, translated "every last male" by the NIV, involves a crude phrase that appeared earlier in 1 Samuel 25:22.  The word for male is literally "one who pisseth against the wall", as translated in the King James Version. This expression appears six times in the Old Testament: here and in 1 Samuel 25: 22, also in 1 Samuel 25:34, 1 Kings 16:11, 1 Kings 21:21,and 2 Kings 9:8. In each case, it describes males who are about to be killed. (The website gotquestions.org has this article on the phrase.) Since dogs also urinate against the side of a building, this phrase may suggest that the men about to be killed are dogs, not real humans. We note that the phrase here is followed by a statement about dogs eating the corpses.

1 Kings 14:12-16, Son to die

"As for you, go back home. When you set foot in your city, the boy will die. All Israel will mourn for him and bury him. He is the only one belonging to Jeroboam who will be buried, because he is the only one in the house of Jeroboam in whom the LORD, the God of Israel, has found anything good.

"The LORD will raise up for himself a king over Israel who will cut off the family of Jeroboam. This is the day! What? Yes, even now. And the LORD will strike Israel, so that it will be like a reed swaying in the water. He will uproot Israel from this good land that he gave to their forefathers and scatter them beyond the River, because they provoked the LORD to anger by making Asherah poles. And he will give Israel up because of the sins Jeroboam has committed and has caused Israel to commit."

The poor mother is to go home, being told that her son will die. But the son will be the only one to be buried. Destruction will come to the northern tribes and they will be scattered east of the Euphrates River. One of the reasons for this coming destruction is the worship of the fertility goddess, Asherah.

1 Kings 14:17-18, Death of son

Then Jeroboam's wife got up and left and went to Tirzah. As soon as she stepped over the threshold of the house, the boy died. They buried him, and all Israel mourned for him, as the LORD had said through his servant the prophet Ahijah.

All happens as has been prophesied.

Tirzah will soon be the capital of the northern kingdom, explicitly described that way in 1 Kings 16:8 during the short reign of Elah, son of Baasha.

1 Kings 14: 19-20, End of Jeroboam's reign

The other events of Jeroboam's reign, his wars and how he ruled, are written in the book of the annals of the kings of Israel. He reigned for twenty-two years and then rested with his fathers. And Nadab his son succeeded him as king.

Jeroboam, king of Israel, dies. One of his sons, Nadab, succeeds him as king of the ten tribes. The "annals of the kings of Israel" supposedly contains further information about Jeroboam's reign, but that work has been lost to time.

We now move on to the history of the southern kingdom.

1 Kings 14:21-24, Rehoboam and idols

Rehoboam son of Solomon was king in Judah. He was forty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city the LORD had chosen out of all the tribes of Israel in which to put his Name. His mother's name was Naamah; she was an Ammonite.

Judah did evil in the eyes of the LORD. By the sins they committed they stirred up his jealous anger more than their fathers had done. They also set up for themselves high places, sacred stones and Asherah poles on every high hill and under every spreading tree.

There were even male shrine prostitutes in the land; the people engaged in all the detestable practices of the nations the LORD had driven out before the Israelites.

Even Solomon's son does not follow YHWH. Instead, he follows other gods, possibly influenced by his pagan mother. The goddess Asherah is mentioned again, along with a new accusation: shrine prostitutes. (Hubbard says that the Hebrew translated "male shrine prostitutes" probably referred to both male and female prostitutes.)

1 Kings 14:25-28, Jerusalem sacked

In the fifth year of King Rehoboam, Shishak king of Egypt attacked Jerusalem. He carried off the treasures of the temple of the LORD and the treasures of the royal palace. He took everything, including all the gold shields Solomon had made.

So King Rehoboam made bronze shields to replace them and assigned these to the commanders of the guard on duty at the entrance to the royal palace. Whenever the king went to the LORD's temple, the guards bore the shields, and afterward they returned them to the guardroom.

Jerusalem is sacked by a king of Egypt. The marvelous riches of Solomon's palace and temple, described in earlier chapters, are gone within five years of Solomon's death.

Both the commentary by Patterson and Austel, and the commentary by Hubbard, identify the king, Shishak, as Shoshenq 1, founder of the Twenty-Second Dynasty in Egypt, and the successor to the pharaoh of 1 Kings 3:1, whose daughter Solomon married.

1 Kings 14:29-31, Rehoboam then Abijah

As for the other events of Rehoboam's reign, and all he did, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Judah?

There was continual warfare between Rehoboam and Jeroboam. And Rehoboam rested with his fathers and was buried with them in the City of David. His mother's name was Naamah; she was an Ammonite. And Abijah his son succeeded him as king.

When Rehoboam finally dies, his son, Abijah becomes king. One notices that both Rehoboam and Jeroboam have sons named Abijah. 

First published November 28, 2023, updated October 9, 2026

I Kings 13, A Prophet Confronts Jeroboam

Rehoboam rules the southern kingdom of Judah and Benjamin while Jeroboam rules the northern kingdom of ten tribes. The author of the scroll of Kings will now guides us through the reigns of various kings, alternating back and forth between the kingdoms, covering one king's full reign before picking up the story of the king of the other kingdom.

1 Kings 13:1-3, "O altar, altar!"

By the word of the LORD a man of God came from Judah to Bethel, as Jeroboam was standing by the altar to make an offering. He cried out against the altar by the word of the LORD: "O altar, altar! This is what the LORD says: `A son named Josiah will be born to the house of David. On you he will sacrifice the priests of the high places who now make offerings here, and human bones will be burned on you.'"

That same day the man of God gave a sign: "This is the sign the LORD has declared: The altar will be split apart and the ashes on it will be poured out."

A prophet confronts Jeroboam and his idolatry. The prophet comes from the southern kingdom, which still has the temple and ark of the covenant.

The prophet announces that a later king, a Josiah, will kill the priests of this alternate worship site and burn their bodies on that same altar. But first, the altar will be split and, at that time, all the uncleaned ashes will be poured out. Commentators Hubbard, Patterson and Austel, all argue that the point of the ashes spilling onto the ground is that such an event invalidates the sacrifice (see, for example, Leviticus 6:10-11.)

1 Kings 13:4-5, Shriveled hand

When King Jeroboam heard what the man of God cried out against the altar at Bethel, he stretched out his hand from the altar and said, "Seize him!" But the hand he stretched out toward the man shriveled up, so that he could not pull it back. Also, the altar was split apart and its ashes poured out according to the sign given by the man of God by the word of the LORD.

Jeroboam wants the man of God seized (and presumably killed) but the king's hand is suddenly shriveled up and the altar splits into pieces.

1 Kings 13: 6-10, Repentance

Then the king said to the man of God, "Intercede with the LORD your God and pray for me that my hand may be restored." So the man of God interceded with the LORD, and the king's hand was restored and became as it was before.

The king said to the man of God, "Come home with me and have something to eat, and I will give you a gift."

But the man of God answered the king, "Even if you were to give me half your possessions, I would not go with you, nor would I eat bread or drink water here. For I was commanded by the word of the LORD: `You must not eat bread or drink water or return by the way you came.'"

So he took another road and did not return by the way he had come to Bethel.

 

Jeroboam is undone by the result of his shriveled hand and broken altar and so begs forgiveness and healing. This is done, but the prophet refuses to eat with the king. The prophet returns home in a way that is different than expected.

1 Kings 13:11-17, Betrayed by an old prophet 

Now there was a certain old prophet living in Bethel, whose sons came and told him all that the man of God had done there that day. They also told their father what he had said to the king.

Their father asked them, "Which way did he go?" And his sons showed him which road the man of God from Judah had taken. 

So he said to his sons, "Saddle the donkey for me." And when they had saddled the donkey for him, he mounted it and rode after the man of God. He found him sitting under an oak tree and asked, "Are you the man of God who came from Judah?" 

"I am," he replied.

So the prophet said to him, "Come home with me and eat."

The man of God said, "I cannot turn back and go with you, nor can I eat bread or drink water with you in this place. I have been told by the word of the LORD: `You must not eat bread or drink water there or return by the way you came.'"

The old prophet goes after the young one and attempts to get the young one to return to Bethel and stay with him. (No motives are given for this.)

1 Kings 13:18-23, Lie

The old prophet answered, "I too am a prophet, as you are. And an angel said to me by the word of the LORD: `Bring him back with you to your house so that he may eat bread and drink water.'" (But he was lying to him.)

So the man of God returned with him and ate and drank in his house. While they were sitting at the table, the word of the LORD came to the old prophet who had brought him back. He cried out to the man of God who had come from Judah, "This is what the LORD says: `You have defied the word of the LORD and have not kept the command the LORD your God gave you. You came back and ate bread and drank water in the place where he told you not to eat or drink. Therefore your body will not be buried in the tomb of your fathers.'"

When the man of God had finished eating and drinking, the prophet who had brought him back saddled his donkey for him.

The old prophet lies and seduces the younger man into eating and drinking with him. (Again, we are given no motives.) At first the older prophet seemed to want to honor the younger man but now he deceives him. And then has a prophetic decree against the younger man. (That one's body is not buried in the family tomb indicates that one suffers a violent death away from home.)

1 Kings 13:24-26, Lion attack

As he went on his way, a lion met him on the road and killed him, and his body was thrown down on the road, with both the donkey and the lion standing beside it.

Some people who passed by saw the body thrown down there, with the lion standing beside the body, and they went and reported it in the city where the old prophet lived. When the prophet who had brought him back from his journey heard of it, he said, "It is the man of God who defied the word of the LORD. The LORD has given him over to the lion, which has mauled him and killed him, as the word of the LORD had warned him."

 

The younger prophet is killed by a lion. This is apparently because he ate with the old man. Everyone seems to understand that the young prophet had disobeyed YHWH.

1 Kings 13:27-32, His own tomb

The prophet said to his sons, "Saddle the donkey for me," and they did so.

Then he went out and found the body thrown down on the road, with the donkey and the lion standing beside it. The lion had neither eaten the body nor mauled the donkey. So the prophet picked up the body of the man of God, laid it on the donkey, and brought it back to his own city to mourn for him and bury him.

Then he laid the body in his own tomb, and they mourned over him and said, "Oh, my brother!"

After burying him, he said to his sons, "When I die, bury me in the grave where the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside his bones. For the message he declared by the word of the LORD against the altar in Bethel and against all the shrines on the high places in the towns of Samaria will certainly come true."

Despite his part in the death of the younger man, the older man buries the body of the younger man in his own tomb and mourns over him. He then asks that his children bury him next to the prophet. 

This is a strange story of confusion and remorse. The prophecy about Josiah is fulfilled almost three centuries later in 2 Kings 23. In 2 Kings 23:15-18, we are told that the bones of both prophets are treated with respect.

The commentary by Patterson and Austel claims that the term "Samaria", as a city or a region, did not exist until the reign of Omri, c. 880 BC, and so the older prophet's statement about towns of Samaria represents the narrator's update of the prophet's statement.

1 Kings 13: 33-34, Continuation in evil

Even after this, Jeroboam did not change his evil ways, but once more appointed priests for the high places from all sorts of people. Anyone who wanted to become a priest he consecrated for the high places. This was the sin of the house of Jeroboam that led to its downfall and to its destruction from the face of the earth.

A quick summary -- Jeroboam continues to do evil. The chapter began with Jeroboam sacrificing to idols at Bethel and ends with a reminder that much can be blamed on Jeroboam's idolatry.

First published November 27, 2023, updated October 8, 2026

I Kings 12, A Kingdom Divided

The date is about 930 BC. Solomon has died. Now there will be a fight for the throne.

1 Kings 12:1-5, Solomon's taxes

Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all the Israelites had gone there to make him king. When Jeroboam son of Nebat heard this (he was still in Egypt, where he had fled from King Solomon), he returned from Egypt.

So they sent for Jeroboam, and he and the whole assembly of Israel went to Rehoboam and said to him: "Your father put a heavy yoke on us, but now lighten the harsh labor and the heavy yoke he put on us, and we will serve you."

Rehoboam answered, "Go away for three days and then come back to me." So the people went away.

Shechem, about thirty miles north of Jerusalem, is the same city whose prince raped Dinah, daughter of Jacob in Genesis 34. It has been a major city throughout the time of the judges and kings of Israel and is apparently a place where Rehoboam expects to be crowned king, after his father.

Rehoboam inherits a wealthy and powerful kingdom. He also inherits the arrogance that goes with that power and so he is about to destroy his inheritance.

This is the first we hear of the heavy tax burden Solomon used to create his wealth and power. It was surely involved in the numerous constructions projects in Jerusalem, involving the use of conscripted slave labor.

Jeroboam has now returned from Egypt and is among those who make the request for a lighter yoke.

1 Kings 12:6-7, "Serve the people"

Then King Rehoboam consulted the elders who had served his father Solomon during his lifetime. "How would you advise me to answer these people?" he asked.

They replied, "If today you will be a servant to these people and serve them and give them a favorable answer, they will always be your servants."

Solomon's experienced council gives wise advice: "Be kind, reasonable, and consolidate your kingdom."

1 Kings 12:8-11, Young men weigh in

But Rehoboam rejected the advice the elders gave him and consulted the young men who had grown up with him and were serving him.

He asked them, "What is your advice? How should we answer these people who say to me, `Lighten the yoke your father put on us'?"

The young men who had grown up with him replied, "Tell these people who have said to you, `Your father put a heavy yoke on us, but make our yoke lighter'--tell them, `My little finger is thicker than my father's waist. My father laid on you a heavy yoke; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions.'"

Rehoboam's clique of wealthy young elites has different advice. These young men, who have grown up in the spoiled shelter of Solomon's palace, recommend that Rehoboam come down hard on any question about easing taxes. 

1 Kings 12:12-15, A harsh response

Three days later Jeroboam and all the people returned to Rehoboam, as the king had said, "Come back to me in three days."

The king answered the people harshly. Rejecting the advice given him by the elders, he followed the advice of the young men and said, "My father made your yoke heavy; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions."

So the king did not listen to the people, for this turn of events was from the LORD, to fulfill the word the LORD had spoken to Jeroboam son of Nebat through Ahijah the Shilonite.

Rehoboam gives the harsh, hard response. His attitude is "tone deaf" -- he is not listening to the people or to Solomon's elders. He will pay for his arrogance.

The writer of the scroll of Kings explains that this decision is fulfilling the earlier prophecy, given in the previous chapter.

1 Kings 12:16-19, "To your tents!"

When all Israel saw that the king refused to listen to them, they answered the king: "What share do we have in David, what part in Jesse's son? To your tents, O Israel! Look after your own house, O David!" So the Israelites went home.

But as for the Israelites who were living in the towns of Judah, Rehoboam still ruled over them.

King Rehoboam sent out Adoniram, who was in charge of forced labor, but all Israel stoned him to death. King Rehoboam, however, managed to get into his chariot and escape to Jerusalem. So Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to this day.

Rehoboam's response is met with rebellion. The rebellion echoes an earlier one of David's time (2 Samuel 20:1-2) where the northern tribes had broken off from David for a short time. It appears that there has been a simmering unrest since those days two generations back.

The first person sent to quell the disturbance is killed. Rehoboam flees to Jerusalem and the ten northern tribes of Israel break off from Rehoboam. This rebellion continues through the time of the author.

1 Kings 12:20, Jeroboam crowned

When all the Israelites heard that Jeroboam had returned, they sent and called him to the assembly and made him king over all Israel. Only the tribe of Judah remained loyal to the house of David.

Jeroboam, the charismatic leader that frightened Solomon, has managed to become leader of the rebellion. So the Israelites, presumably still gathered at Shechem, crown Jeroboam king. Only Judah remains with Solomon's son, Rehoboam.

1 Kings 12:21-24, Intervention of Shemaiah

When Rehoboam arrived in Jerusalem, he mustered the whole house of Judah and the tribe of Benjamin--a hundred and eighty thousand fighting men--to make war against the house of Israel and to regain the kingdom for Rehoboam son of Solomon.

But this word of God came to Shemaiah the man of God: "Say to Rehoboam son of Solomon king of Judah, to the whole house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the rest of the people, `This is what the LORD says: Do not go up to fight against your brothers, the Israelites. Go home, every one of you, for this is my doing.'" 

So they obeyed the word of the LORD and went home again, as the LORD had ordered.

Rehoboam's first plan is to muster out an army and reconquer Israel. But Shemaiah, a "man of God" intervenes.

This passage parallels 2 Chronicles 12.  In that passage (2 Chronicles 12:15), Shemaiah is identified as a prophet who, with "Iddo the seer", records the history of Rehoboam's reign.

We see here that the tribe of Benjamin also supports Rehoboam, contrary to the earlier statement that only one tribe stayed with the king. Previously Benjamin had tended to be allied with Saul, opposed to the dynasty of David. Some suggest that Benjamin was divided, some going with Jeroboam, others staying with Rehoboam. Bible scholars have also raised questions about the tribe of Simeon as its territory was south of Judah and the tribe may have been absorbed into Judah at some time.

1 Kings 12:25-27, What about the temple?

Then Jeroboam fortified Shechem in the hill country of Ephraim and lived there. From there he went out and built up Peniel.

Jeroboam thought to himself, "The kingdom will now likely revert to the house of David. If these people go up to offer sacrifices at the temple of the LORD in Jerusalem, they will again give their allegiance to their lord, Rehoboam king of Judah. They will kill me and return to King Rehoboam."

Jeroboam fortifies his domain. Shechem is in Ephraim; Peniel is apparently east of the Jordan.

After presumably worrying about military avenues of attacks, Jeroboam also worries about the religious practices of his people.

1 Kings 12:28-31, "Here are your gods"

After seeking advice, the king made two golden calves. He said to the people, "It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Here are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt."

One he set up in Bethel, and the other in Dan. And this thing became a sin; the people went even as far as Dan to worship the one there. Jeroboam built shrines on high places and appointed priests from all sorts of people, even though they were not Levites.

Jeroboam sets up two idols in an attempt to keep his subjects from going to Jerusalem. The use of the golden calves is not explained (they may have represented other gods or may have been intended, like the cherubim, to be the seat of the invisible YHWH) but one is clearly reminded of Aaron's calf from Exodus 32.

Dan is in the northern part of the kingdom; Bethel is at the southern end, probably 10-15 miles from Jerusalem.

1 Kings 12:32-33, Festival

He instituted a festival on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, like the festival held in Judah, and offered sacrifices on the altar. This he did in Bethel, sacrificing to the calves he had made. And at Bethel he also installed priests at the high places he had made. On the fifteenth day of the eighth month, a month of his own choosing, he offered sacrifices on the altar he had built at Bethel. So he instituted the festival for the Israelites and went up to the altar to make offerings.

In order to promote his own kingdom and separate it from Jerusalem, Jeroboam creates his own festival. The Feast of Booths, during which Solomon's temple was dedicated, occurred on the fifteenth day of the seventh month. Jeroboam seems to have initiated a competing festival on the  fifteenth day of the eighth month. It is possible that there may have already been a Canaanite festival at that time.

First published November 25, 2023, updated October 7, 2026

I Kings 11, Wives and Concubines

Solomon's reign involves both considerable knowledge and wisdom. We have reached the height of Solomon's reign, indeed, the height of Israel's power and influence. The writer of the scroll of Kings has summarized Solomon's wealth and now leads us into the downside of his reign. (In an attempt to keep up with the events of the Old Testament, I mark eleven here as a bad number -- David's reign goes downhill in the eleventh chapter of 2 Samuel and the eleventh chapter of 1 Kings describes the decay of a once humble Solomon.)

1 Kings 11:1-3, 700 wives, 300 concubines

King Solomon, however, loved many foreign women besides Pharaoh's daughter--Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians and Hittites. They were from nations about which the LORD had told the Israelites, "You must not intermarry with them, because they will surely turn your hearts after their gods." Nevertheless, Solomon held fast to them in love. He had seven hundred wives of royal birth and three hundred concubines, and his wives led him astray.

Solomon's extravagance extends to his harem, to his wives and concubines. His "love" for them translates into accommodating their religious practices.

It is ironic that with one thousand wives and concubines, we have only three recorded children of Solomon: Rehoboam (probably his oldest son) who succeeded him, and two daughters, Tapath and Basemath, married to Israelite governors (1 Kings 4:11-15.)

1 Kings 11:4-6, Ashtoreth and Molech, 

As Solomon grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the LORD his God, as the heart of David his father had been. He followed Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and Molech the detestable god of the Ammonites.

So Solomon did evil in the eyes of the LORD; he did not follow the LORD completely, as David his father had done.

The effect of a thousand lovers is that Solomon allows their many gods into his house and heart, breaking the covenant with YHWH.

1 Kings 11:7-10, Turned away from YHWH

On a hill east of Jerusalem, Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the detestable god of Moab, and for Molech the detestable god of the Ammonites. He did the same for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and offered sacrifices to their gods.

The LORD became angry with Solomon because his heart had turned away from the LORD, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice. Although he had forbidden Solomon to follow other gods, Solomon did not keep the LORD's command.

 

Solomon goes beyond mere accommodation, building an altar to Chemosh and Molech on a hill east of Jerusalem. The author notes that this had occurred even though YHWH had twice appeared to Solomon.

1 Kings 11:11-13, Torn away

So the LORD said to Solomon, "Since this is your attitude and you have not kept my covenant and my decrees, which I commanded you, I will most certainly tear the kingdom away from you and give it to one of your subordinates. Nevertheless, for the sake of David your father, I will not do it during your lifetime. I will tear it out of the hand of your son.

Yet I will not tear the whole kingdom from him, but will give him one tribe for the sake of David my servant and for the sake of Jerusalem, which I have chosen."

Solomon is told that the kingdom will be taken from him, but after his death. This means the kingdom will be split up. The one tribe that remains is Judah.  

Meanwhile, Solomon has made some enemies. Three of them are described below.

1 Kings 11:14-16, Hadah

Then the LORD raised up against Solomon an adversary, Hadad the Edomite, from the royal line of Edom. 

Earlier when David was fighting with Edom, Joab the commander of the army, who had gone up to bury the dead, had struck down all the men in Edom. Joab and all the Israelites stayed there for six months, until they had destroyed all the men in Edom.

 

An old feud rises up, between a descendant of Edom/Esau and Solomon. Joab, David's commander, had previously destroyed the army of Edom. (Edom would have controlled a region on the southeast shore of the Dead Sea.)

1 Kings 11:17-20, Prospering in Egypt

But Hadad, still only a boy, fled to Egypt with some Edomite officials who had served his father. They set out from Midian and went to Paran. Then taking men from Paran with them, they went to Egypt, to Pharaoh king of Egypt, who gave Hadad a house and land and provided him with food.

Pharaoh was so pleased with Hadad that he gave him a sister of his own wife, Queen Tahpenes, in marriage. The sister of Tahpenes bore him a son named Genubath, whom Tahpenes brought up in the royal palace. There Genubath lived with Pharaoh's own children.

Hadad, as a boy, flees from the Joab massacre. Welcomed by Pharaoh, Hadad now has some power and probably has sights on the throne of Israel.

1 Kings 11:21-22, Return to Israel

While he was in Egypt, Hadad heard that David rested with his fathers and that Joab the commander of the army was also dead. Then Hadad said to Pharaoh, "Let me go, that I may return to my own country."

"What have you lacked here that you want to go back to your own country?" Pharaoh asked. 

"Nothing," Hadad replied, "but do let me go!"

 

Hearing that both David and Joab are dead, Hadad returns to Israel. 

1 Kings 11:23-25, Another adversary

And God raised up against Solomon another adversary, Rezon son of Eliada, who had fled from his master, Hadadezer king of Zobah. He gathered men around him and became the leader of a band of rebels when David destroyed the forces [of Zobah]; the rebels went to Damascus, where they settled and took control.

Rezon was Israel's adversary as long as Solomon lived, adding to the trouble caused by Hadad. So Rezon ruled in Aram and was hostile toward Israel.

Rezon, in Damascus, is also a foe of Solomon. Solomon then had foes to the northeast (Damascus) and southeast (Edom.)

1 Kings 11:26-33, Abijah speaks to Jeroboam

Also, Jeroboam son of Nebat rebelled against the king. He was one of Solomon's officials, an Ephraimite from Zeredah, and his mother was a widow named Zeruah. 

Here is the account of how he rebelled against the king: Solomon had built the supporting terraces and had filled in the gap in the wall of the city of David his father. Now Jeroboam was a man of standing, and when Solomon saw how well the young man did his work, he put him in charge of the whole labor force of the house of Joseph.

About that time Jeroboam was going out of Jerusalem, and Ahijah the prophet of Shiloh met him on the way, wearing a new cloak. The two of them were alone out in the country, and Ahijah took hold of the new cloak he was wearing and tore it into twelve pieces.

Then he said to Jeroboam, "Take ten pieces for yourself, for this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: `See, I am going to tear the kingdom out of Solomon's hand and give you ten tribes. But for the sake of my servant David and the city of Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, he will have one tribe. I will do this because they have forsaken me and worshiped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Molech the god of the Ammonites, and have not walked in my ways, nor done what is right in my eyes, nor kept my statutes and laws as David, Solomon's father, did.

Jeroboam, a man of standing in Solomon's court, is told by Abijah, "the prophet of Shiloh", that he will receive ten of the twelve tribes. 

(NIV footnotes: as before, the Hebrew word millo,  translated "supporting terraces" is unclear.)

1 Kings 11:34-40, Ten tribes and one tribe

" `But I will not take the whole kingdom out of Solomon's hand; I have made him ruler all the days of his life for the sake of David my servant, whom I chose and who observed my commands and statutes. I will take the kingdom from his son's hands and give you ten tribes. I will give one tribe to his son so that David my servant may always have a lamp before me in Jerusalem, the city where I chose to put my Name.

However, as for you, I will take you, and you will rule over all that your heart desires; you will be king over Israel.  If you do whatever I command you and walk in my ways and do what is right in my eyes by keeping my statutes and commands, as David my servant did, I will be with you. I will build you a dynasty as enduring as the one I built for David and will give Israel to you. I will humble David's descendants because of this, but not forever.'"

Solomon tried to kill Jeroboam, but Jeroboam fled to Egypt, to Shishak the king, and stayed there until Solomon's death.

Abijah says that David's descendants will be humbled but that this is to be temporary; the Davidic/Solomon dynasty will still endure forever.  

Solomon, apparently aware of the threat from Jeroboam, tries to kill him, but Jeroboam flees.

We have some discrepancy on the tribes that stay with Solomon's dynasty. Is it one, Judah? Or two? We will look at this in the next chapter.

Hubbard argues that Shishak is the same king as Shoshenq 1, founder of the Twenty-Second Dynasty in Egypt, and the successor to the pharaoh of 1 Kings 3:1, whose daughter Solomon married. Shishak will later attack Jerusalem and raid the rich temple and palace (1 Kings 14:25-26.)

1 Kings 11:41-43, Death of Solomon

As for the other events of Solomon's reign--all he did and the wisdom he displayed--are they not written in the book of the annals of Solomon? Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel forty years. Then he rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of David his father. And Rehoboam his son succeeded him as king.

Solomon "rests with his fathers" and is buried in David's tomb. Rehoboam is to be Solomon's successor.

The book of the annals of Solomon in one of a number of ancient Hebrew texts lost to time.

First published November 25, 2023, updated October 6, 2026