Reader’s Guide: “The Word for Today” Tuesday, November 27, 2012 Read – 1 Kings 21 & 22 In chapter 21 the encounter between Ahab and Elijah resumes. The battle is over Ahab’s sin of murder. Naboth is a poor man who unfortunately has a vineyard next to Ahab’s palace. Ahab wants Naboth’s vineyard and begins by attempting to obtain it legally. He offers Naboth a good price. Naboth does not want to sell the vineyard because it was given to his ancestors by God. That fact might slip by us unless we remember something very important about how Israel thought of the Land – at least in the beginning. The understanding was that the Land belonged to God. God gave the Land to his people, dividing it up among the tribes. The Land was meant to belong to those to whom it was given forever. If you lost the Land temporarily you would get it back at the year of Jubilee – every 50 years things were to revert to their beginning point. For Naboth to sell his vineyard would have been to sell what really belonged to God. It was not his to sell. Ahab appears to be stymied by Naboth. Enter Jezebel. This is no problem for her. She simply arranges for Naboth to be slandered and killed. The vineyard is taken away. The powerful get what they want. But that is not the end of the story. God steps forward in the voice of his prophet, Elijah, and judgment is pronounced. “In the place where dogs licked up the blood of Naboth, they will lick up Ahab’s blood… The dogs will eat Jezebel within the bounds of Jezreel.” Both of these predictions come to pass. The last chapter of 1 Kings brings a surprise to the story. Ahab has made an alliance with the Southern Kingdom! We have not heard about the story of the Southern Kingdom for awhile. What we discover here is that Asa has been succeeded by his son, Jehoshaphat. That story will actually be told a little later at the ending of chapter 22. What is surprising is that the two kingdoms who were separated and appeared to be at odds the last time we heard about the Southern Kingdom are now working together again. Strange things happen. The battle is against the Arameans. And the battle will mean the death of Ahab just as Elijah had predicted. Just as Elijah predicted the chariot, into which Ahab had bled his life blood and died, is washed at the pool of Samaria and the dogs come and lick up the blood. We have already met Jehoshaphat. Now we hear the story of his succession of his father, Asa. Like his father Asa, Jehoshaphat followed the ways of their ancestor David. Jehoshaphat is remembered as a good king. He is succeeded by his son, Jehoram. Once again the orderly succession of kings in the South is to be noted. Ahab is also succeeded by his son, Ahaziah. The situation in the Northern Kingdom does not change. Ahaziah is as wicked and his father and all the previous kings in the North. He is a worshiper of Baal as his mother and father had been.