I Kings 21:1-20, 23-24 is the story of Ahab of Israel and the vineyard of a subject, Naboth of Jezreel. This text is sandwiched between two accounts of Ahab's wars with the Arameans. Chapter 20 recounts a successful campaign against Israel's enemy but concludes with a prophetic rebuke of Ahab for making a treaty with King Ben-hadad and allowing him to return to his home. The second account (chapter 22:1-40) discloses the resounding defeat of Ahab's armies at the hands of the Arameans, a disaster that the prophet Micaiah predicted. In this battle, Ahab loses his life. In chapter 20, Ahab profits by not fulfilling the nature of the holy war under the covenant. In this story, he breaks the eighth commandment on stealing, the ninth commandment regarding false witness, both of which resulted from his breaking the tenth commandment of coveting what his neighbor has. He will profit financially by breaking the covenant. Corrupt courts will act in the name of the Lord and the king.
Between these epic tales lies the grim story of Ahab and Naboth's vineyard, a vignette that offers intriguing insights into Ahab and his Baalist queen Jezebel. It sheds helpful light upon the religious and cultural context in which Ahab, sensitive, or at least knowledgeable of the religious practices of the covenant, lived and functioned. Walsh notes that the parallel scenes share several common features. A and A' are both set in the vineyard. B and B' both consist of dialogue following a single narrative line. The scenes also feature common characters: C and C' feature Jezebel, the elders, conspirators and Naboth.[1]
The story is structured in terms of what Jerome T. Walsh calls a chiastic parallelism of six scenes: A. Ahab attempts to buy Naboth's vineyard (21:1-4a) B. Ahab and Jezebel (21:4b-7) C. Jezebel's plot (21:8-10) C'. Jezebel's plot succeeds (21:11-14) B'. Ahab and Jezebel (21:15) A'. Ahab takes possession of Naboth's vineyard (21:16).
1Later the following events took place: Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard in Jezreel, beside the palace of King Ahab of Samaria, a title mentioned only one other time. The title sets Ahab apart from the Hebrew tradition. 2 And Ahab said to Naboth, “Give me your vineyard, so that I may have it for a vegetable garden, because it is near my house; I will give you a better vineyard for it; or, if it seems good to you, I will give you its value in money.” Ahab's proposal to Naboth has a ring of sincerity and reasonableness to it. Naboth's vineyard is situated next to the palace. It is reasonable that the king might want to secure the land in and about his own residence. There is no hint that Ahab has violated any code of propriety or legality in suggesting to Naboth that he either swap this vineyard for a better one or buy it outright for a reasonable price. However, Naboth was not obligated to take the deal. 3 But Naboth said to Ahab, “The Lord forbid that I should give you my ancestral inheritance.” The statement by Naboth reflects the attitude of solidarity of the family. Further, he would have jeopardized his status as a free person. Naboth, for his part, replies in a manner that is equally businesslike and does not betray any hint of personal animosity toward the king. However, he rejects the request of the king on religious and cultural grounds. As an ancestral inheritance, this circumstance places an insurmountable obstacle in the way of either a swap or a sale. As the patrimony of his ancestors, religious law and cultural practice forbids Naboth to sell this land unless in circumstances of extreme impoverishment, and even then he would want to recover it as soon as possible. Naboth's rejection of Ahab's offer is not personal: it is strictly religious. Israelite land, by law, was supposed to stay with, or at least revert to, the descendants of the family who received the original land allotment (see Leviticus 25:23-28; Deuteronomy 19:14; 27:17). These considerations show us again that the covenant remains operative in Israel. The customs and laws of the Tribal Federation remain in force. 4 Ahab went home resentful and sullen because of what Naboth the Jezreelite had said to him; for he had said, “I will not give you my ancestral inheritance.” He lay down on his bed, actually “couch,” for feasting rather than bed, turned away his face, and would not eat. Ahab, who should have understood the position in which he had placed Naboth, nevertheless took the rejection personally. The text uses the same language used to describe his attitude following the prophet's rebuke in the previous chapter (cf. 20:43). The NRSV gives the impression that he returned "resentful and sullen" because Naboth had said "I will not give you my ancestral inheritance." The Hebrew, however, offers another possibility. It is likely that as Ahab returned home, he said, "I will not give you my ancestral inheritance," resentfully mimicking Naboth's words which were still stinging and ringing in his ears. Repeating what Naboth has said, Ahab neglects to include Naboth's reference to God forbidding that he should do such a thing.
5 His wife Jezebel came to him and said, “Why are you so depressed that you will not eat?” Ahab, in dire need of an attitude adjustment, gets one from a concerned wife. Jezebel appears and in an understandably concerned fashion begins to probe Ahab's psyche. Ahab then shares what is troubling him. Jezebel is a Phoenician princess from Sidon, who becomes queen of Israel, as King Ahab’s wife (I Kings 16:29-33). They encourage Baal worship among the people. She killed the prophets of the Lord (I Kings 18:4, 13). She maintained 450 prophets of Baal and 400 prophets of Asherah of her own (I Kings 18:19): Baal and Asherah (sometimes contextually translated “sacred pole,” as in I Kings 16:33) were a god and goddess of the area. Jezebel threatens Elijah’s life (I Kings 19:1-2). When Jehu was about to kill Joram (Ahab’s second son to rule), he said, “What peace can there be, so long as the many whoredoms and sorceries of your mother Jezebel continue?” (II Kings 9:22). See also Revelation 2:20. 6 He said to her, “Because I spoke to Naboth the Jezreelite and said to him, ‘Give me your vineyard for money; or else, if you prefer, I will give you another vineyard for it’; but he answered, ‘I will not give you my vineyard.’” In this account to his Sidonian queen, one whom would be less conversant with religious law and custom than he, Ahab changes the details slightly. He says that he offered money for Naboth's vineyard first and a swap second, when, in fact, it was the other way around. He gave Jezebel the version with which she would be most sympathetic. He also modifies Naboth's response. Missing now are not only Naboth's reference to God as the one forbidding the royal proposal, but also Naboth's reference to religious and cultural law: the land as an "ancestral inheritance." 7 His wife Jezebel, reacting immediately, said to him, “Do you (emphatic) now govern Israel? She alludes to his prior difficulties with the Aramean Ben-hadad. Alternatively, it is a transparent attempt to bring Ahab to his royal senses. In any case, Jezebel declares that she will handle this problem for Ahab. Get up, eat some food, and be cheerful; I will give you the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.”
Jezebel assumes the mantle of royal authority that Ahab was uncomfortable or inept at wearing. Walsh raises the tantalizing possibility that Ahab here is either a boorish wimp and whiner of the first order, or deceptively and passively manipulative, playing Jezebel like a lyre to achieve what he wanted more than anything did. 8 So she wrote letters in Ahab’s name and sealed them with his seal; she sent the letters to the elders and the nobles, first mention of freeman as a class, who lived with Naboth in his city. We see that communal justice could be fictional. Ahab exerted enormous influence. 9 She wrote in the letters, “Proclaim a fast, and seat Naboth at the head of the assembly. This placement at the head of the assembly was the place for the accused. The community called a fast to discover the fault within the community that lead to calamity. This show of conservative Israelite democracy and the evidence of two witnesses bring condemnation to Naboth and his family. 10 Seat two scoundrels (literally “sons of Belial” — the same term appears in I Samuel 2:12 and II Samuel 20:1 — and variously translated “worthless” or “base” men) opposite him, and have them bring a charge against him, saying, ‘You have cursed God (Leviticus 24:15-16, II Samuel 16:9) and the king (see Exodus 22:28).’ Under the covenant, such crimes were punishable by death. Then take him out, and stone him to death.” 11 The men of his city, the elders and the nobles who lived in his city, did as Jezebel had sent word to them. Just as it was written in the letters that she had sent to them, 12 they proclaimed a fast and seated Naboth at the head of the assembly. 13 The two scoundrels came in and sat opposite him; and the scoundrels brought a charge against Naboth, in the presence of the people, saying, “Naboth cursed God and the king.” Thus, Jezebel impales Naboth on the twin swords of blasphemy and treason. The reaction and punishment are swift. Jezebel receives blame for this injustice. The story shows that Israel had a legal system with defined laws now in the Torah. So they took him outside the city, and stoned him to death. 14 Then they sent to Jezebel, saying, “Naboth has been stoned; he is dead.” Jezebel may have been more familiar with religious and civil law than Ahab suspected. We learn in II Kings 9:26 that the judgment was also upon his family. A fast, used to indicate repentance, becomes a means of committing evil. The elders and nobles of Jezreel offer no wisdom to the assembly. They offer only complicity in breaking the covenant that bound them to the Lord and to each other. Power can make a mockery of the religious, political, and judicial systems of a nation.
15 As soon as Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned and was dead, Jezebel said to Ahab, while they are alone in the royal chamber, “Go, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, which he refused to give you for money; for Naboth is not alive, but dead.” Ahab is therefore apparently free to seize the patrimony that was now without an owner. 16 As soon as Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, Ahab set out to go down to the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, to take possession of it. We are now back to the opening scene. Naboth is dead. Ahab has his vineyard.
17 Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah ("Yahweh is my God!") a common expression to indicate a prophetic and oracular experience, the Tishbite, introducing him with dramatic suddenness, saying: 18 Go down to meet King Ahab of Israel, who rules in Samaria; he is now in the vineyard of Naboth, where he has gone to take possession. The confrontation occurs as Ahab seeks to take the land. Although Ahab was a lukewarm Yahwist, he did not seem to resent or hinder the proselytizing efforts of his Sidonian queen who imported priests of Baal and quickly gained a large following for the "Storm god" among the reluctant and spineless followers of Yahweh in the northern kingdom. Elijah had already opposed the Baal influences that Ahab and Jezebel have brought to Israel to the point where Jezebel sought his death (17-19). 19 You shall say to him, “Thus says the Lord: Have you killed, and also taken possession?” You shall say to him, “Thus says the Lord: In the place where dogs licked up the blood of Naboth, dogs will also lick up your blood (see I Kings 22:38).” The first part of the verse is an indictment, and the second part is an oracle of doom. Note the difference between the prophecy in v. 19 and the actual result in II Kings 9:25-6, giving it a hint of historicity. Jehu has his aide Bidkar place the body of Ahab on the plot that belongs Naboth to fulfill the word of the Lord given here.
20 Ahab said to Elijah, “Have you found me, O my enemy?” Elijah is Ahab's worst nightmare. He answered, “I have found you. Because you have sold yourself to do what is evil in the sight of the Lord, 21 I will bring disaster on you. … The message is clear: God will not allow this sin of envy qua murder to go unpunished but will requite the injustice to Naboth with the full force of divine zeal.
The story shows the resistance the prophetic community gave to the movement toward syncretism between the worship of Yahweh and the worship of Baal. In this case, Jezebel was a worshipper of Baal in the traditions of Canaan. The point here is that the king remains under the covenant that Yahweh had with Israel. It was the practice of the city-states in Canaan that the king had arbitrary rights and privileges. The covenant with Yahweh required respect for the person, rights, and property of the people. The story relates the transgression by King Ahab of the Shechemite Twelve Commandments and the Ten Commandments.
17 “Cursed be anyone who moves a neighbor’s boundary marker.” All the people shall say, “Amen!”
24 “Cursed be anyone who strikes down a neighbor in secret.” All the people shall say, “Amen!” – Deuteronomy 27
The story shows the breaking of the eighth commandment on stealing, the ninth commandment on false witness, the tenth commandment on coveting, and the sixth commandment on murder. Such breaking of the covenant by the king will justify judgment on the kings throughout the Deuteronomic History.
In Israel, kings were not exempt from following God’s laws (see Deuteronomy 17:14-20). Old Testament prophets, as well as Jesus and other NT leaders, insist that God’s leaders and other people treat all other people justly, regardless of rank. Kings were obligated to honor God and neighbor, not be abusive of people’s rights through improper use of royal prerogatives. As the prophet Micah says (6:8):
“[The Lord] has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”
A more specific parallel to our passage is Micah 2:1-3:
“Alas for those who devise wickedness and evil deeds on their beds! When the morning dawns, they perform it, because it is in their power. They covet fields, and seize them; houses, and take them away; they oppress householder and house, people and their inheritance. Therefore thus says the LORD: Now, I am devising against this family an evil from which you cannot remove your necks; and you shall not walk haughtily, for it will be an evil time.”
See similarly Isaiah 5:7-10, where Israel is the vineyard.
The purpose of this story in the biblical context is to illustrate how pagan, syncretistic, non-exclusively Yahwistic religion leads to the disruption of Israelite beliefs, morals and ethical standards. Disobedience of Yahweh’s torah (law/instruction), by king, queen and people, leads to disastrous consequences, for which one can see the summary in II Kings 17. New Testament writers similarly insist that people who claim the name of Jesus Christ follow him alone as Lord, living lives of faith and holy (both moral and ethical) behavior.
Coveting can appear so innocent and reasonable. We see what someone else has and can see where what they have what benefit us. Surely, there is nothing wrong with that. We see something advertised regularly, and we can justify our having it.
Envy is yet another step, for it involves wanting what another person has, and willing to do or say anything to take it from that person. Such aggressive behavior toward a neighbor, friend, or co-worker is such an aggressive act that we can hardly believe we would do something like that. We can justify taking down other people so easily, sometimes by destroying their reputation, and sometimes by far more direct means.
Stealing can be so subtle. We can steal their reputation, their influence, as well as steal physical things.
[1] (For a fascinating discussion of the parallelism in 1 Kings and in 1 Kings 21, see Jerome T. Walsh, Berit Olam: Studies in Hebrew Narrative and Poetry -- 1 Kings [Collegeville, Minn.: The Liturgical Press, 1996.)
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