Study Desk

There were also men who served other gods by selling their bodies for sex. So the people of Judah were worse than the people who had lived in the land before them. And the Lord took the land away from those people to give it to the Israelites.

Abijah ruled in Jerusalem for three years. His mother's name was Maacah. She was Absalom's daughter.

But for David's sake, the Lord gave Abijah a kingdom in Jerusalem and allowed him to have a son. He also kept Jerusalem safe.

He ruled in Jerusalem for 41 years. His grandmother's name was Maacah, and she was the daughter of Absalom.

During Asa's time there were men who served other gods by selling their bodies for sex. Asa forced them to leave the country. He took away the idols that his ancestors had made.

During Asa's second year as king of Judah, Jeroboam's son Nadab became king of Israel. Nadab ruled over Israel for two years.

Ahijah's son Baasha became king of Israel during the third year that Asa ruled over Judah. Baasha ruled in Tirzah for 24 years,

Elah son of Baasha became king during the 26th year that Asa was the king of Judah. He ruled in Tirzah for two years.

Omri became king of Israel during Asa's 31st year as the king of Judah. Omri ruled over Israel for 12 years. Six of those years he ruled from Tirzah.

Then Omri bought the hill of Samaria from Shemer for about 150 pounds of silver. Omri built a city on that hill. He named the city Samaria after the name of its owner, Shemer.

Ahab son of Omri became king of Israel during the 38th year that Asa was king of Judah. Ahab ruled Israel from the town of Samaria for 22 years.

It was not enough for Ahab to commit the same sins that Jeroboam, son of Nebat, had done. Ahab also married Jezebel, daughter of King Ethbaal of Sidon. Then Ahab began to serve and worship Baal.

He built a temple and an altar in Samaria for worshiping Baal.

Elijah was a prophet from the town of Tishbe in Gilead. He said to King Ahab, "I serve the Lord , the God of Israel. By his power, I promise that no dew or rain will fall for the next few years. The rain will fall only when I command it to fall."

So Elijah went to Zarephath. He went to the town gate and saw a woman there gathering wood for a fire. She was a widow. Elijah said to her, "Would you bring me a small cup of water to drink?"

The woman answered, "I promise you, before the Lord your God, that I have nothing but a handful of flour in a jar and a little bit of olive oil in a jug. I came here to gather a few pieces of wood for a fire to cook our last meal. My son and I will eat it and then die from hunger."

Elijah said to the woman, "Don't worry. Go home and cook your food as you said. But first make a small piece of bread from the flour that you have and bring it to me. Then cook some for yourself and your son.

So the woman went home and did what Elijah told her to do. And Elijah, the woman, and her son had enough food for a long time.

They decided where each of them would go to look for water. Ahab went in one direction by himself, and Obadiah went in another direction by himself.

As surely as the Lord your God lives, the king has been looking for you everywhere. He has sent people to every country to find you. He even made the rulers of those countries swear that you were not there.