1 Kings Chapter 16
Five Successive Kings of Israel
A. Two short dynasties over Israel, Baasha and Zimri
1. Baasha’s rebuke and prophecy of judgment, 1 Kings 16:1-4
“Then the word of the LORD came to Jehu the son of Hanani, against Baasha, saying, ‘Inasmuch as I lifted you out of the dust and made you ruler over My people Israel, and you have walked in the way of Jeroboam, and have made My people Israel sin, to provoke Me to anger with their sins, surely I will take away the posterity of Baasha and the posterity of his house, and I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat. The dogs shall eat whoever belongs to Baasha and dies in the city, and the birds of the air shall eat whoever dies in the fields.’”
Baasha ascended to power through conspiracy, as recorded previously in 1 Kings 15:27, where he assassinated Nadab, the son of Jeroboam, and seized the throne. While the historical narrative does not detail God’s involvement in that transition, this passage makes it explicit that the Lord sovereignly raised Baasha “out of the dust,” placing him in authority over Israel. His ascent was not merely political maneuvering, it was permitted by the sovereign hand of God working behind the scenes, demonstrating that God may use even imperfect and ambitious men as instruments of His judgment.
The problem was not Baasha’s rise, but his conduct once on the throne. Instead of honoring the God who elevated him, Baasha followed the spiritual pattern of Jeroboam, continuing the idolatrous system that corrupted worship in the northern kingdom. He walked in the same path of rebellion, leading Israel deeper into sin, and provoking the Lord to righteous anger. Because of this, Baasha would suffer the same fate as the house of Jeroboam, even though he was not related by blood. He was, however, Jeroboam’s spiritual descendant, embracing the same false worship and perpetuating the same rebellion. Therefore, the judgment decreed over Jeroboam’s dynasty would now fall upon Baasha’s house with equal severity.
The Lord declared that Baasha’s posterity would be removed and his dynasty would be wiped out. The disgraceful imagery of dogs eating the corpses of those who die in the city, and birds consuming those who die in the fields, communicates absolute humiliation. In the ancient world, the denial of burial was viewed as a curse and a sign of divine displeasure. This same curse had already been spoken over Jeroboam’s house in 1 Kings 14:11, and now it followed Baasha, the man who once acted as God’s instrument in bringing judgment upon Jeroboam. Yet Baasha’s actions were not righteous zeal but personal ambition, and God, who sees the heart, judged him accordingly. He had become an assassin motivated by self-interest rather than a servant seeking the honor of the Lord, and his end would reflect that corruption.
2. The death of Baasha, 1 Kings 16:5-7
“Now the rest of the acts of Baasha, what he did, and his might, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? So Baasha rested with his fathers and was buried in Tirzah. Then Elah his son reigned in his place. And also the word of the LORD came by the prophet Jehu the son of Hanani against Baasha and his house, because of all the evil that he did in the sight of the LORD in provoking Him to anger with the work of his hands, in being like the house of Jeroboam, and because he killed them.”
The life and reign of Baasha came to an end much like many of the kings of the northern kingdom, with a brief historical summary followed by the solemn reminder of God's prophetic word against him. Baasha was buried in Tirzah, the then-capital of Israel, and his son Elah assumed the throne. Yet the closing evaluation of Baasha’s life is not found in his military accomplishments, political strength, or administrative acts, but in the prophetic indictment delivered by Jehu, the son of Hanani. Though Baasha had seized power through conspiracy and ruled with might, the Lord’s final assessment of his reign centers entirely on his sin and idolatry.
The passage emphasizes that Jehu the prophet played a long and significant role in Israel and Judah’s spiritual history. He is mentioned again decades later in 2 Chronicles 19:2, confronting Jehoshaphat king of Judah, which shows that Jehu’s ministry spanned more than fifty years. He also recorded historical events, as 2 Chronicles 20:34 states that Jehu wrote a detailed record concerning the kings of Israel. His father, Hanani, was likewise a faithful prophet who suffered imprisonment under King Asa for speaking the truth, as noted in 2 Chronicles 16:7-10. This lineage of faithful prophetic ministry shows that the Lord consistently sent His word through bold, uncompromising men who spoke truth regardless of who sat on the throne.
The reason for God’s judgment against Baasha is stated plainly. He provoked the Lord to anger through the evil he committed, particularly by maintaining and strengthening the idolatrous system of Jeroboam, which ensnared Israel in false worship. Scripture affirms God’s nature as merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abundant in steadfast love, as Psalm 103:8 declares. Because the Lord is slow to anger, it required significant continual rebellion on Baasha’s part to stir God’s righteous wrath. His sin was not accidental or momentary, it was persistent, deliberate, and foundational to his reign.
The text also notes that Baasha was judged partly “because he killed them,” referring to his massacre of Jeroboam’s house. Although God had foretold the destruction of Jeroboam’s lineage and allowed Baasha to rise as the instrument to accomplish that judgment, Baasha was not coerced into evil. His actions flowed from the corruption already within his own heart. God permitting Baasha to act does not make God the author of his wickedness. Rather, God sovereignly used Baasha’s sin to accomplish His just purposes while still holding Baasha responsible for his motives and deeds. This reflects a consistent biblical pattern, in which the Lord may permit the wicked to carry out what they desire, yet He remains righteous in judging them because the evil originates from their own will. As Clarke notes, God is frequently described as doing that which He simply permits in His providence. Baasha acted of his own ambition and cruelty, and the Lord, who searches all hearts, judged him accordingly.
3. The two-year reign of Elah, 1 Kings 16:8-14
“In the twenty-sixth year of Asa king of Judah, Elah the son of Baasha became king over Israel, and reigned two years in Tirzah. Now his servant Zimri, commander of half his chariots, conspired against him as he was in Tirzah drinking himself drunk in the house of Arza, steward of his house in Tirzah. And Zimri went in and struck him and killed him in the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, and reigned in his place. Then it came to pass, when he began to reign, as soon as he was seated on his throne, that he killed all the household of Baasha; he did not leave him one male, neither of his relatives nor of his friends. Thus Zimri destroyed all the household of Baasha, according to the word of the LORD, which He spoke against Baasha by Jehu the prophet, for all the sins of Baasha and the sins of Elah his son, by which they had sinned and by which they had made Israel sin, in provoking the LORD God of Israel to anger with their idols. Now 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?”
Elah succeeded his father Baasha and reigned from the capital city of Tirzah, but his reign was short lived, lasting only two years. This brevity was itself a testimony to God’s displeasure with Baasha’s wicked dynasty. While every king in Israel desired to establish a lasting royal line, God did not bless Baasha’s house. The sin of the father poisoned the stability of the son’s throne. Elah’s reign ended abruptly because the divine judgment pronounced through the prophet Jehu was already in motion. His rule was not marked by strength or righteousness, but by vulnerability and spiritual decline.
Elah’s downfall came through one of his own officers, Zimri, the commander over half the chariot forces. Zimri exploited a moment of weakness, entering the house of Arza, Elah’s steward, where the king was drinking himself drunk. The scene highlights the moral decay within the northern kingdom. A king entrusted with the responsibility of governing God’s people indulged in excessive drunkenness, abandoning discipline and vigilance. This made his assassination simple and swift. Just as Baasha had murdered Nadab to seize power, his own son met the same fate, demonstrating the biblical principle that a man often reaps what he sows.
As soon as Zimri assumed the throne, he massacred every male descendant of Baasha, including relatives and associates. This ruthless purge was common practice in the ancient Near East, where new rulers exterminated all potential rivals to secure their positions. Baasha himself had done this to Jeroboam’s household, yet David had shown a godly alternative when he spared the house of Saul. The contrast highlights the spiritual bankruptcy of Israel’s northern kings in comparison with the righteousness of Israel’s ideal monarch.
Zimri’s bloody purge was also the exact fulfillment of the prophetic word delivered by Jehu. God had declared that every descendant of Baasha would be cut off because of his idolatry and because of the violence he committed against Jeroboam’s house. The judgment was carried out precisely as God had spoken. The text stresses that both Baasha and his son Elah led Israel into sin, provoking the Lord to anger through their idolatrous practices. In less than fifty years, two entire royal dynasties had been wiped out, a stark demonstration of divine justice. As Knapp observes, God intended these judgments to stand as a warning to future generations who would live in rebellion. Elah’s short reign serves as yet another reminder that idolatry, corruption, and moral collapse bring instability and destruction to leaders and nations alike.
4. The seven-day reign of Zimri, 1 Kings 16:15-20
“In the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, Zimri had reigned in Tirzah seven days. And the people were encamped against Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines. Now the people who were encamped heard it said, ‘Zimri has conspired and also has killed the king.’ So all Israel made Omri, the commander of the army, king over Israel that day in the camp. Then Omri and all Israel with him went up from Gibbethon, and they besieged Tirzah. And it happened, when Zimri saw that the city was taken, that he went into the citadel of the king’s house and burned the king’s house down upon himself with fire, and died, because of the sins which he had committed in doing evil in the sight of the LORD, in walking in the way of Jeroboam, and in his sin which he had committed to make Israel sin. Now the rest of the acts of Zimri, and the treason he committed, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?”
Zimri’s reign stands as the shortest of any king in Israel’s history, lasting only seven days. After assassinating Elah and wiping out the house of Baasha, Zimri seized the throne but found no support among the people or the military. His rule was doomed from the beginning. While the army of Israel was engaged in a campaign against the Philistine stronghold of Gibbethon, word spread through the camp that Zimri had murdered the king. The soldiers and their leaders immediately rejected Zimri’s authority and proclaimed Omri, the commander of the army, as the legitimate king. This event highlights a rare glimpse of public and military influence in the politics of the northern kingdom. Israel was not a democracy, but the people and the army at times exercised significant power when rejecting illegitimate or unwanted rulers.
Omri then marched from Gibbethon to the capital city of Tirzah and laid siege to it. Realizing that the city had fallen, Zimri chose not to face capture or public humiliation. Instead, he retreated into the fortified portion of the royal palace, set it ablaze, and took his own life in the flames. His suicide was a tragic end, consistent with the spiritual corruption that marked his brief rule. The biblical text attributes his death directly to the sins he committed, especially in walking in the way of Jeroboam and continuing the idolatrous system that corrupted Israel. Even though he reigned for only seven days, he persisted in the same rebellion that plagued every king of the northern kingdom up to that point.
Zimri is one of the few recorded suicides in Scripture. Along with him, we find Samson (Judges 9:54), Saul (1 Samuel 31:4), and Ahithophel (2 Samuel 17:23). Scripture never presents suicide as noble or righteous. It is the sin of self-murder, a tragic outcome of despair and deception. Yet it is equally wrong to treat suicide as an unforgivable sin. Those who take their own lives have fallen victim to the lies of Satan, whose aim is always to “steal, and to kill, and to destroy,” according to John 10:10. As Morgan noted, suicide is the final act of cowardice, not heroism. It is the retreat of a person unwilling or unable to face the consequences of life, and it reflects the brokenness of a heart that has succumbed to darkness rather than turning to God.
Zimri’s brief rule demonstrates the sovereignty and justice of God. The Lord is not obligated to give wicked rulers long reigns, and in Zimri’s case, judgment came swiftly. Although many evil kings were given years, even decades, God is entirely within His rights to bring down a corrupt leader immediately. His end stands as a solemn warning, as Knapp observes, to all traitors and assassins who would seize power through violence. Zimri died as he lived, marked by rebellion against God and destruction toward others, and his flame was extinguished by the very fire he used in his final act of desperation.
B. The fourth dynasty of the northern kingdom of Israel, The House of Omri
1. The 12-year reign of Omri, King of Israel, 1 Kings 16:21-28
“Then the people of Israel were divided into two parts, half of the people followed Tibni the son of Ginath, to make him king, and half followed Omri. But the people who followed Omri prevailed over the people who followed Tibni the son of Ginath. So Tibni died and Omri reigned. In the thirty-first year of Asa king of Judah, Omri became king over Israel, and reigned twelve years. Six years he reigned in Tirzah. And he bought the hill of Samaria from Shemer for two talents of silver, then he built on the hill, and called the name of the city which he built, Samaria, after the name of Shemer, owner of the hill. Omri did evil in the eyes of the LORD, and did worse than all who were before him. For he walked in all the ways of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and in his sin by which he had made Israel sin, provoking the LORD God of Israel to anger with their idols. Now the rest of the acts of Omri which he did, and the might that he showed, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? So Omri rested with his fathers and was buried in Samaria. Then Ahab his son reigned in his place.”
After the death of Zimri, the nation of Israel fractured into two factions. One group backed Tibni the son of Ginath, while the other supported Omri, the commander of the army. This internal division led to a civil conflict that continued for approximately five years. Omri’s supporters gradually grew stronger until they finally prevailed, resulting in Tibni’s death and Omri’s undisputed rule. As Poole notes, even civil war and the heavy hand of God’s judgments did not drive the people of Israel to repentance, proving the depth of their spiritual rebellion and the certainty of coming national ruin. Clarke observes that Omri initially controlled only part of the kingdom, and after Tibni’s death in the thirty-first year of Asa, he secured full authority, reigning for a total of twelve years.
Omri ruled for six years in Tirzah but soon purchased the hill of Samaria from a man named Shemer. For two talents of silver, he acquired a strategic, elevated location and built a new city upon it. This new capital, named Samaria, became the permanent political center of the northern kingdom. Its hilltop position made it secure and easily defended, and because it was a newly founded city, it had no preexisting tribal claims that could foster internal rivalry. Archaeological discoveries at Samaria confirm that Omri was the first to build on the 100-meter-high hill, and his construction established a fortress city capable of enduring multiple sieges. His political and military insight shaped the northern kingdom for generations.
Spiritually, however, Omri sank even lower than the kings before him. Scripture states plainly that he “did worse than all who were before him,” and that he walked in the ways of Jeroboam, maintaining and enhancing the idolatrous system that corrupted Israel from its beginning as a divided kingdom. He became the sixth king after Jeroboam, and not one of them departed from his wicked pattern. According to Knapp, Omri may have even formalized Jeroboam’s idolatrous worship through legislation, possibly alluded to in Micah 6:16, making idolatry not merely tolerated but enforced. This spiritual apostasy remained in effect for more than two centuries until the northern kingdom fell.
Although the biblical record limits its praise, secular history identifies Omri as one of Israel’s most powerful and influential rulers. The Moabite Stone describes him as the conqueror of Moab. Assyrian inscriptions refer to him as a formidable warrior, and for many years the Assyrians called Israel “the house of Omri,” showing how central his dynasty had become in the region. He was a king of military strength and political vision, yet his success did nothing to move Israel toward God. Instead, he compounded national guilt and deepened Israel’s idolatry. Knapp notes that his very name means “heaping,” and through his wickedness he helped heap up divine wrath that would ultimately fall on his dynasty, culminating in the death of his great-grandson Joram and the complete destruction of his household thirty-six years later.
Omri died and was buried in the capital he had built, Samaria, and his son Ahab succeeded him. As the narrative continues, it becomes clear that Ahab would surpass even his father in wickedness, plunging Israel further into rebellion against God.
2. Ahab begins his 22-year reign, 1 Kings 16:29-34
“In the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah, Ahab the son of Omri became king over Israel, and Ahab the son of Omri reigned over Israel in Samaria twenty-two years. Now Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the LORD, more than all who were before him. And it came to pass, as though it had been a trivial thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, that he took as wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal, king of the Sidonians, and he went and served Baal and worshiped him. Then he set up an altar for Baal in the temple of Baal, which he had built in Samaria. And Ahab made a wooden image. Ahab did more to provoke the LORD God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel who were before him. In his days Hiel of Bethel built Jericho. He laid its foundation with Abiram his firstborn, and with his youngest son Segub he set up its gates, according to the word of the LORD, which He had spoken through Joshua the son of Nun.”
Ahab rose to the throne of Israel in the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah. Asa ruled for forty-one years, and during that time Israel cycled through seven different kings, demonstrating the instability and moral decay of the northern kingdom. Ahab inherited the throne from his father Omri, who had been politically successful but spiritually disastrous. The biblical record makes it clear that Ahab surpassed every king before him in wickedness. The phrase “did evil in the sight of the LORD, more than all who were before him” places Ahab at the bottom of Israel’s spiritual history up to this point. His sins not only matched Jeroboam’s but exceeded them. Jeroboam sinned by corrupting the worship of the LORD, introducing golden calves, unauthorized priests, and unlawful places of worship. Ahab went further and embraced full pagan idolatry. For Jeroboam it was a matter of worshipping the true God the wrong way, but for Ahab it became a matter of abandoning the true God altogether and replacing Him with Baal.
Ahab’s marriage to Jezebel intensified this apostasy. Jezebel was the daughter of Ethbaal, king of the Sidonians. Ethbaal’s very name meant “With Baal,” indicating complete devotion to the pagan deity. Jezebel’s name likely derived from a Phoenician cultic cry meaning “Where is Baal?” but in Hebrew it became an insulting pun, since zebel means dung. She was infamous for her idolatry, brutality, immorality, and sorcery. As Poole notes, she embodied everything corrupt and destructive. Jezebel dominated Ahab spiritually and politically. According to Meyer, Ahab’s problem was not so much innate depravity but weakness of character. He was an easily manipulated man controlled by a strong and wicked woman. Many of the worst crimes in history have been committed by weak men steered by stronger, evil influences. Clarke notes that Jezebel’s character was so notorious that marrying her was considered the height of wicked provocation against God and a sure path to national disaster.
From a purely worldly perspective, the marriage between Ahab and Jezebel would have looked like a carefully crafted political alliance. Israel and Phoenicia were both threatened by Syria, and Tyre was at the height of its commercial and naval power. Its colonies stretched across the Mediterranean, its fleets traveled as far as Spain and Cornwall, and its daughter-city Carthage was rising as a global power. A secular historian would have praised Ahab’s marriage as brilliant diplomacy. Yet spiritual compromise for political gain always leads to ruin. Jezebel brought with her the worship of Baal, and Ahab openly embraced it. He built a temple for Baal in Samaria, erected an altar, and set up a wooden image, likely an Asherah pole, representing Canaanite fertility worship. This institutionalization of paganism marked a new low for Israel. Omri had already introduced idolatrous statutes, but Ahab turned idolatry into the official state religion. The text says plainly that Ahab did more to provoke the Lord to anger than all the kings before him, summarizing the full collapse of Israel’s covenant faithfulness.
The closing note of the chapter describes a shocking event during Ahab’s reign. Hiel of Bethel rebuilt the ancient city of Jericho, defying the solemn curse that Joshua pronounced centuries earlier. After the fall of Jericho, Joshua declared, “Cursed be the man before the LORD who rises up and builds this city Jericho; he shall lay its foundation with his firstborn, and with his youngest he shall set up its gates” (Joshua 6:26). Ahab either encouraged Hiel to rebuild Jericho or simply ignored this act of rebellion against God’s Word. Hiel’s firstborn son, Abiram, died during the laying of the foundation, and his youngest son, Segub, died when the gates were set in place, exactly as God had spoken. Scripture does not specify how the sons died. They may have been struck by divine judgment or, tragically, may have been offered as foundation sacrifices. Archaeological discoveries show that such sacrifices occurred in the ancient world, where children were buried in the foundations of major building projects to secure supposed blessings from pagan gods.
This event served as a direct warning to Ahab. It demonstrated that the Word of the Lord spoken through Joshua still held absolute authority. God’s message was clear: “You cannot violate My Word without paying the price.” Yet Ahab ignored the warning. Just as he rejected God's commands and embraced idolatry, he also hardened his heart against the evidence of divine judgment occurring right before him. Ahab’s reign, launched in the arrogance of idolatry and political compromise, would soon bring Israel into one of the most spiritually intense and conflict-filled periods in its history, preparing the stage for the arrival of Elijah the prophet.
