1 Raja-raja 14:6-13

14:6 When Ahijah heard the sound of her footsteps as she came through the door, he said, “Come on in, wife of Jeroboam! Why are you pretending to be someone else? I have been commissioned to give you bad news. ¹  14:7 Go, tell Jeroboam, ‘This is what the Lord God of Israel says: “I raised you up ²  from among the people and made you ruler over my people Israel. 14:8 I tore the kingdom away from the Davidic dynasty and gave it to you. But you are not like my servant David, who kept my commandments and followed me wholeheartedly by doing only what I approve. ³  14:9 You have sinned more than all who came before you. You went and angered me by making other gods, formed out of metal; you have completely disregarded me. ⁴  14:10 So I am ready to bring disaster ⁵  on the dynasty ⁶  of Jeroboam. I will cut off every last male belonging to Jeroboam in Israel, including even the weak and incapacitated. ⁷  I will burn up the dynasty of Jeroboam, just as one burns manure until it is completely consumed. ⁸  14:11 Dogs will eat the members of your family ⁹  who die in the city, and the birds of the sky will eat the ones who die in the country.”’ Indeed, the Lord has announced it!

14:12 “As for you, get up and go home. When you set foot in the city, the boy will die. 14:13 All Israel will mourn him and bury him. He is the only one in Jeroboam’s family ¹⁰  who will receive a decent burial, for he is the only one in whom the Lord God of Israel found anything good.

1 Raja-raja 21:18-24

21:18 “Get up, go down and meet King Ahab of Israel who lives in Samaria. He is at the vineyard of Naboth; he has gone down there to take possession of it. 21:19 Say to him, ‘This is what the Lord says: “Haven’t you committed murder and taken possession of the property of the deceased?”’ Then say to him, ‘This is what the Lord says: “In the spot where dogs licked up Naboth’s blood they will also lick up your blood – yes, yours!”’”

21:20 When Elijah arrived, Ahab said to him, ¹¹  “So, you have found me, my enemy!” Elijah ¹²  replied, “I have found you, because you are committed ¹³  to doing evil in the sight of ¹⁴  the Lord. 21:21 The Lord says, ¹⁵  ‘Look, I am ready to bring disaster ¹⁶  on you. I will destroy you ¹⁷  and cut off every last male belonging to Ahab in Israel, including even the weak and incapacitated. ¹⁸  21:22 I will make your dynasty ¹⁹  like those of Jeroboam son of Nebat and Baasha son of Ahijah because you angered me and made Israel sin.’ ²⁰  21:23 The Lord says this about Jezebel, ‘Dogs will devour Jezebel by the outer wall ²¹  of Jezreel.’ 21:24 As for Ahab’s family, dogs will eat the ones ²²  who die in the city, and the birds of the sky will eat the ones who die in the country.”

1 Raja-raja 22:28

22:28 Micaiah said, “If you really do safely return, then the Lord has not spoken through me.” Then he added, “Take note, ²³  all you people.”

[14:6]  ¹ tn Heb “I am sent to you [with] a hard [message].”

[14:7]  ² tn The Hebrew text has “because” at the beginning of the sentence. In the Hebrew text vv. 7-11 are one long sentence comprised of a causal clause giving the reason for divine punishment (vv. 7-9) and the main clause announcing the punishment (vv. 10-11). The translation divides this lengthy sentence for stylistic reasons.

[14:8]  ³ tn Heb “what was right in my eyes.”

[14:9]  ⁴ tn Heb “you went and you made for yourself other gods, metal [ones], angering me, and you threw me behind your back.”

[14:10]  ⁵ sn Disaster. There is a wordplay in the Hebrew text. The word translated “disaster” (רָעָה, ra’ah) is from the same root as the expression “you have sinned” in v. 9 (וַתָּרַע [vattara’], from רָעַע, [ra’a’]). Jeroboam’s sins would receive an appropriate punishment.

[14:10]  ⁶ tn Heb “house.”

[14:10]  ⁷ tn Heb “and I will cut off from Jeroboam those who urinate against a wall (including both those who are) restrained and let free (or “abandoned”) in Israel.” The precise meaning of the idiomatic phrase עָצוּר וְעָזוּב (’atsur vÿ’azuv) is uncertain. For various options see HALOT 871 s.v. עצר 6 and M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 107. The two terms are usually taken as polar opposites (“slaves and freemen” or “minors and adults”), but Cogan and Tadmor, on the basis of contextual considerations (note the usage with אֶפֶס [’efes], “nothing but”) in Deut 32:36 and 2 Kgs 14:26, argue convincingly that the terms are synonyms, meaning “restrained and abandoned,” and refer to incapable or incapacitated individuals.

[14:10]  ⁸ tn The traditional view understands the verb בָּעַר (ba’ar) to mean “burn.” Manure was sometimes used as fuel (see Ezek 4:12, 15). However, an alternate view takes בָּעַר as a homonym meaning “sweep away” (HALOT 146 s.v. II בער). In this case one might translate, “I will sweep away the dynasty of Jeroboam, just as one sweeps away manure it is gone” (cf. ASV, NASB, TEV). Either metaphor emphasizes the thorough and destructive nature of the coming judgment.

[14:11]  ⁹ tn The Hebrew text has “belonging to Jeroboam” here.

[14:13]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “house.”

[21:20]  ¹¹ tn Heb “and Ahab said to Elijah.” The narrative is elliptical and streamlined. The words “when Elijah arrived” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[21:20]  ¹² tn Heb “he”; the referent (Elijah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[21:20]  ¹³ tn Heb “you have sold yourself.”

[21:20]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “in the eyes of.”

[21:21]  ¹⁵ tn The introductory formula “the Lord says” is omitted in the Hebrew text, but supplied in the translation for clarification.

[21:21]  ¹⁶ sn Disaster. There is a wordplay in the Hebrew text. The word translated “disaster” (רָעָה, ra’ah) is similar to the word translated “evil” (v. 20, הָרַע, hara’). Ahab’s sins would receive an appropriate punishment.

[21:21]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “I will burn after you.” Some take the verb בָּעַר (ba’ar) to mean here “sweep away.” See the discussion of this verb in the notes at 14:10 and 16:3.

[21:21]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “and I will cut off from Ahab those who urinate against a wall, [including both those who are] restrained and let free [or “abandoned”] in Israel.” The precise meaning of the idiomatic phrase עָצוּר וְעָזוּב (’atsur vÿ’azuv, translated here “weak and incapacitated”) is uncertain. For various options see HALOT 871 s.v. עצר and M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 107. The two terms are usually taken as polar opposites (“slaves and freemen” or “minors and adults”), but Cogan and Tadmor, on the basis of contextual considerations (note the usage with אֶפֶס (’efes), “nothing but”) in Deut 32:36 and 2 Kgs 14:26, argue convincingly that the terms are synonyms, meaning “restrained and abandoned,” and refer to incapable or incapacitated individuals.

[21:22]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “house.”

[21:22]  ²⁰ tn Heb “because of the provocation by which you angered [me], and you caused Israel to sin.”

[21:23]  ²¹ tc A few Hebrew mss and some ancient versions agree with 2 Kgs 9:10, 36, which reads, “the plot [of ground] at Jezreel.” The Hebrew words translated “outer wall” (חֵל, khel, defectively written here!) and “plot [of ground]” (חֵלֶק, kheleq) are spelled similarly.

[21:24]  ²² tn “Dogs will eat the ones who belonging to Ahab who die in the city.”

[22:28]  ²³ tn Heb “Listen.”