Podcast Introduction  Today we’ll read 1 Kings 19-22. After the reading I’ll have some comments. I’m calling today’s episode “That Cursed Woman, Part 1.” Comments on 1 Kings 21 You might be wondering why Naboth refused to let King Ahab buy his land. Remember that Israel and Judah are the divided kingdom of God’s chosen people. Ahab, as you may remember, is king of Israel. Both of these kingdoms are part of the promised land, Canaan. When God rescued them from Pharoah’s Egypt, He promised Moses that He would take them to a land that would be theirs. That’s why it was called the Promised Land. When the twelve tribes arrived there after their forty years of wandering in the desert, each tribe was given a part of the land, and each part was then divided among the families of the tribes. And each family portion was given as a permanent possession. Actually, it wasn’t a possession, but more like a lease, because God retained actual ownership. In Leviticus 23 God tells the people: The land must not be permanently sold because the land is mine. You are just immigrants and foreign guests of mine. Allowance was made in this agreement for a family to temporarily sell their portion of land if they were to fall on hard times, financially. But in the year of Jubilee (which was every seven years), the land was to go back to the original family. So, King Ahab got it in his mind that he wanted Naboth’s land. Remember that Ahab is not a good man. He turned his back on God and he worshipped other gods, and he paid no heed to God’s Law. In making this offer to Naboth, he is asking Naboth to do something that a godly man would never do unless he was in dire straits. Obviously, Naboth had no need to sell, and he evidently didn’t trust that Ahab would give back the land in the year of Jubilee. So Ahab pouts, and Jezebel, his wife (who in 2 Kings 9:34 is called “that cursed woman”) has Naboth murdered so that Ahab can take the land without even paying for it.  We will see the consequences of Jezebel’s evil when we read 2 Kings 9. Design: Steve Webb | Photo: Shalev Cohen on Unsplash Today’s Bible Translation Bible translation used in today’s episode: Ch. 19-20 NLV; Ch. 21-22 CEB Support This a value for value podcast. There are no advertisers because advertising equals censorship. If you enjoy the Lifespring One Year Bible Rewind, decide how much value it brings to you. Only you can make that determination. Then put a number on the value and donate here: