1 Kings 16 Ahab
Omri is dead and his son Ahab takes the throne. Ahab does more evil than any king before him in Israel. We have a lot more information on him than any of the earlier kings.
We see a quick synopsis of Ahab’s reign here, but we will get several more stories of his time on the throne. We will also get to meet some of the prophets of his time. These are the men God sent to try and bring Ahab back into line.
Another thing we see in today’s reading is the rebuilding of the walls of Jericho. When the walls initially came down, through the hand of God, Joshua pronounced the cost of rebuilding them. “Joshua laid an oath on them at that time, saying, ‘Cursed before the Lord be the man who rises up and rebuilds this city, Jericho. “At the cost of his firstborn shall he lay its foundation, and at the cost of his youngest sons hall he set up its gates”’” (Joshua 6:26).
Let’s rejoin our story and take a quick peek into history. We will see where the Spirit leads our journey today.
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Ahab stands on the balcony of the king’s home. It has only been a week since his father, Omri, died. He was buried here in the city he created; Samaria. Ahab was crowned king of Israel on that very same day. He is now looking out at all he controls. And he is thinking of the future.
“What deeds will I do for this people? What deeds will they do for me? I will leave my mark on this nation.”
As he is thinking, his wife, Jezebel steps up behind him and wraps her arms around him. She presses the side of her face against his shoulder. Ahab folds his arms over hers and drinks in her closeness. He did not marry her out of love, but the love, and lust, he feels for her now consumes him. He would do anything to make her happy.
“What are you thinking about my lord” she purrs.
“I was thinking about how I will leave my mark upon Israel. What wonders I might build, or what conquests I might gain.”
I know one way you can leave your mark.”
“How is that my queen?”
“You can erect a temple to my god, Baal. The altars that are here now are too small. They don’t honor Baal as they should. That is why he is withholding his blessings. If you built him a temple, he would bless you.”
“This is a good idea my queen. I will begin construction right away.”
“And you can worship him by my side” Jezebel purrs into Ahab’s back.
Ahab nods and rubs her arms.
Ahab was true to his word. Design and construction of a new temple begins the very next day. It takes six months to complete the temple. It is not as grand as the one Solomon built in Jerusalem, but Ahab made it beautiful just the same.
Jezebel is thrilled with the new temple. She and Ahab christen it by having sex on the altar. She is hoping that Ahab’s seed will take root in her womb as a blessing of Baal. She is beside herself with joy when she discovers that she is indeed with child from this dedication. When this child is born, he is not circumcised as Israel’s God requires but dedicated in a special ceremony in the temple of Baal.
“His name is Ahaziah, and he will one day sit on my throne” Ahab announced to the people in attendance.
Ahab begins worshiping Baal with Jezebel and becoming more wrapped up in her gods by the day. Jezebel comes to Ahab with another proposition.
“Baal has surely blessed us with a son. But I desire another. Please make for me an Asherah pole that we may be blessed again.”
Ahab refuses Jezebel nothing so he commissions an Asherah pole the next day. It will be the tallest one in all the kingdom of Israel and have the most intricate carvings.
Jezebel watches as it is erected just outside the window of her own chambers. Once it is in place, she lovingly runs her hand over the carvings and traces each line. It is cool to the touch and as smooth as polished stone. After the servants leave, she and Ahab commission this altar too.
God is not blind to the acts of Ahab. As hard as it is to watch this, God is working out His plan, and reserving His judgment is part of that plan. “Patience. Everything is in My hands” says the Father.
While Ahab is working on his ‘masterpieces’, another is resurrecting one that always fascinated him. Hiel of Bethel has long been dreaming of rebuilding the city of Jericho. The location of the old city is a perfect place to centralize commerce again. He has heard old superstitions about rebuilding it, but he doesn’t believe them or allow them to deter him from his dream.
Before construction can begin, the land has to be cleared. Most of the original buildings remains are covered with centuries of debris and vegetation. This all has to be cleared away first. Hiel and his sons tackle this part first. His six sons make an impressive crew! It takes them most of a month before the ground is ready for the foundations to be laid.
Hiel will use what he can of the original buildings’ foundations, but some are deteriorated and need replacing instead of shoring up. Heil knows he will need help in these activities.
Hiel’s activities have not gone unnoticed. The people in nearby cities are watching his progress, and some have even reported his efforts to King Ahab. Men are pouring into the region in search of work. Ahab also sends a contingent of builders and soldiers to guard the process. He is anxious to see this city rebuilt too.
Each day is filled with activity. It is time to set the foundations. Large carefully cut stones are hauled in from the closest quarries. Day after day, the shape of the city is mapped out by the placement of the foundation stones. The houses will wait until last, but larger buildings and the protective wall are laid out.
On the sixth day of laying the foundations, Hiel’s eldest son, Abiram, is working on the south-west corner of the wall. He has stepped a few paces back to rest after just finishing placing and packing one of the large stones in place. Another stone breaks free of the ropes holding it to the donkeys who are pulling it. The donkeys are struggling with the load, as a hill marked their path. This hill is also at the south-west corner of the wall.
As the ropes snap, the stone plunges down the hill to the very place where Abiam is working. Abrim hears something coming towards him, just in time to turn around and see it. The stone smashes into him and knocks him to the ground and continues on its downward path. It comes to a complete stop as it crashes against the stones Abiram just finished placing. The new stone has crushed every bone in Abiram’s body and his blood mars the underside of it.
Hiel is heartbroken over the death of his son, but he has to carry on. The loss of one man, even the head designer’s son, will not stop the project. Safety measures are enacted so that this sort of tragedy doesn’t happen again.
Three years later, the city is almost complete. The main building have been erected, the city center marked out with low walls for people to sit on, and the walls are complete. They are not nearly as thick as those of the original city. They are not deep enough to accommodate homes being built entirely into them, but they are tall and sturdy. All that remains is to hang the gates.
Hiel has called a special ceremony to complete this task. He wants the people to be on hand for this momentous occasion. And he is not disappointed. Hundreds of people have turned out to see this city’s final step in completion.
Hiel and his sons are going to hang the gates. They are massive and heavy, but between the six of them (five sons and a father), Hiel knows they can do it. The people watch as Hiel and sons swing into action.
“Pull on the rope over there”, Hiel calls out to one of his sons. The ropes lift the door into an upright position. Carefully the left gate is moved into position. Hiel’s youngest son works in the pin for the top hinge, his nest oldest son handles the middle pin, and his middle son places the lowest pin. Hiel and his two remaining sons use the ropes to hold the gate raised off the ground for the pins to be inserted.
Everything goes perfectly with the left side. Everyone moves into position to place the right gate. As Segub, Hiel’s youngest son, drives the upper pin into place, the ladder he is standing on suddenly breaks in two. Segub follows it to the ground and lands on a broken rung. It impales itself into Segub’s back and protrudes out the front of his tunic. There is no question of his death.
Hiel falls to his knees weeping. The rumors of why no one had rebuilt this city crowd themselves into his mind. The chief reason being the curse uttered by Joshua after the original walls fell. “Cursed before the Lord be the man who rises up and rebuilds this city, Jericho. ‘At the cost of his firstborn shall he lay its foundation, and at the cost of his youngest son shall he set up its gates.’”
Hiel moans and begins rocking back and forth as he realizes the cost he has paid for his arrogance. He had heard of Joshua’s curse, but never gave it much thought. Now it has come to pass upon his children. “If there were some way to take it back, I would do it in an instant” he tells himself.
But there is no going back, snd the city of Jericho is ready to open its gates to commerce and community. Hiel decides that he will NOT live in this city that has taken the lives of two of his sons. He returns to Bethel with his four remaining sons. Ahab stations a garrison within the city and life begins again in Jericho.
(to be continued)
I had to look up what the gods mentioned in today’s passage were ‘known for’. Both have an aspect of fertility in them. I figured that using them in this fashion would work with our story.
Ahab fell a LONG WAY away from the Lord. But God wasn’t finished with him yet. God is getting ready to send Elijah to Ahab and speak to him on God’s behalf. Things would have been much better for Ahab if he would have listened to God from the beginning.
Father God, I PRAY with ALL my heart that I don’t walk away. That I let You lead me in Your perfect plan. That I don’t have to go through too many more lessons. I KNOW that You have not made my husband ill, but I’m giving You reign in this time to redeem it and use it for Your purposes.
