1The word of Yahweh came to Jehu son of Hanani against Baasha, saying:
2“Because I raised you up from the dust and made you ruler over my people Israel, yet you have walked in the way of Jeroboam and made my people Israel sin, provoking me to anger with their sins,
3look, I am about to sweep away Baasha and his house, and I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam son of Nebat.
4Anyone belonging to Baasha who dies in the city the dogs will eat, and anyone belonging to him who dies in the open field the birds of the heavens will eat.”
5As for the rest of the acts of Baasha, and what he did, and his might—are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?
6And Baasha lay down with his fathers and was buried in Tirzah, and Elah his son reigned in his place.
7And also by the hand of the prophet Jehu son of Hanani the word of Yahweh came against Baasha and against his house, both because of all the evil that he did in the eyes of Yahweh, provoking him to anger with the work of his hands, being like the house of Jeroboam, and because he struck it down.
8In the twenty-sixth year of Asa king of Judah, Elah son of Baasha became king over Israel in Tirzah, for two years.
9And his servant Zimri, commander of half the chariotry, conspired against him. Now he was in Tirzah drinking himself drunk in the house of Arza, who was over the household in Tirzah.
10And Zimri came in and struck him down and killed him, in the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, and he reigned in his place.
11And it happened, when he became king, as soon as he sat on his throne, that he struck down all the house of Baasha; he did not leave him a single male, neither his kinsman-redeemers nor his friends.
12So Zimri destroyed all the house of Baasha, according to the word of Yahweh that he had spoken against Baasha by the hand of Jehu the prophet,
13because of all the sins of Baasha and the sins of Elah his son, which they sinned and which they made Israel sin, provoking Yahweh, the God of Israel, to anger with their idols.
14As for the rest of the acts of Elah, and all that he did—are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?
15In the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, Zimri reigned seven days in Tirzah. Now the people were encamped against Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines.
16And the people who were encamped heard it said, “Zimri has conspired, and also he has struck down the king.” So all Israel made Omri, the commander of the army, king over Israel that day in the camp.
17And Omri went up, and all Israel with him, from Gibbethon, and they besieged Tirzah.
18And it happened, when Zimri saw that the city was captured, that he came into the citadel of the king’s house and burned the king’s house down over himself with fire, and he died,
19because of his sins that he sinned, doing the evil in the eyes of Yahweh, walking in the way of Jeroboam and in his sin that he did, making Israel sin.
20As for the rest of the acts of Zimri, and his conspiracy that he made—are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?
21Then the people of Israel were divided in half: half the people were behind Tibni son of Ginath, to make him king, and half were behind Omri.
22But the people who were behind Omri prevailed over the people who were behind Tibni son of Ginath; and Tibni died, and Omri became king.
23In the thirty-first year of Asa king of Judah, Omri became king over Israel, for twelve years; in Tirzah he reigned six years.
24And he bought the hill of Samaria from Shemer for two talents of silver, and he built up the hill and called the name of the city that he built after Shemer, the owner of the hill, Samaria.
25And Omri did the evil in the eyes of Yahweh, and he acted more wickedly than all who were before him.
26And he walked in all the way of Jeroboam son of Nebat and in his sins, which he made Israel sin, provoking Yahweh, the God of Israel, to anger with their idols.
27As for the rest of the acts of Omri, what he did, and his might that he exercised—are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?
28And Omri lay down with his fathers and was buried in Samaria, and Ahab his son reigned in his place.
29And Ahab son of Omri became king over Israel in the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah, and Ahab son of Omri reigned over Israel in Samaria twenty-two years.
30And Ahab son of Omri did the evil in the eyes of Yahweh, more than all who were before him.
31And it came about — as if it were a trivial thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat — that he took as wife Jezebel daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, and he went and served Baal and bowed down to him.
32And he raised up an altar for Baal in the house of Baal that he built in Samaria.
33And Ahab made the Asherah, and Ahab did more to provoke Yahweh, the God of Israel, to anger than all the kings of Israel who were before him.
34In his days Hiel the Bethelite rebuilt Jericho. At the cost of Abiram his firstborn he laid its foundation, and at the cost of Segub his youngest he set up its gates, according to the word of Yahweh that he spoke by the hand of Joshua son of Nun.
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