1 Kings 21 · Verse 1

1 Kings 21:1

And it came to pass after these things, that Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard, which was in Jezreel, hard by the palace of Ahab king of Samaria.
1 Kings 21:1, King James Version

1 Kings 21:1 in other translations

BSBSome time later, Naboth the Jezreelite happened to own a vineyard in Jezreel next to the palace of Ahab king of Samaria.
WEBAfter these things, Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard which was in Jezreel, next to the palace of Ahab king of Samaria.
ASVAnd it came to pass after these things, that Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard, which was in Jezreel, hard by the palace of Ahab king of Samaria.
YLTAnd it cometh to pass, after these things, a vineyard hath been to Naboth the Jezreelite, that is in Jezreel, near the palace of Ahab king of Samaria,
DARBYAnd it came to pass after these things, that Naboth the Jizreelite had a vineyard, which was in Jizreel, by the side of the palace of Ahab king of Samaria.
BBENow Naboth the Jezreelite had a vine-garden in Jezreel, near the house of Ahab, king of Samaria.
WebsterAnd it came to pass after these things, that Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard, which was in Jezreel, hard by the palace of Ahab king of Samaria.

What does 1 Kings 21:1 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on 1 Kings 21:1-3
1Ki 21:1-4. Naboth Refuses Ahab His Vineyard. 1-3. Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard, which was in Jezreel--Ahab was desirous, from its contiguity to the palace, to possess it for a vegetable garden. He proposed to Naboth to give him a better in exchange, or to obtain it by purchase; but the owner declined to part with it. In persisting in his refusal, Naboth was not actuated by any feelings of disloyalty or disrespect to the king, but solely from a conscientious regard to the divine law, which, for important reasons, had prohibited the sale of a paternal inheritance [Le 25:23; Nu 36:7]; or if, through extreme poverty or debt, an assignation of it to another was unavoidable, the conveyance was made on the condition of its being redeemable at any time [Le 25:25-27]; at all events, of its reverting at the jubilee to the owner [Le 25:28]. In short, it could not be alienated from the family, and it was on this ground that Naboth (1Ki 21:3) refused to comply with the king's demand. It was not, therefore, any rudeness or disrespect that made Ahab heavy and displeased, but his sulky and pettish demeanor betrays a spirit of selfishness that could not brook to be disappointed of a favorite object, and that would have pushed him into lawless tyranny had he possessed any natural force of character.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary

Introduction

Ahab covets the vineyard of Naboth, and wishes to have it either by purchase or exchange, 1Kgs 21:1, 1Kgs 21:2. Naboth refuses to alienate it on any account, because it was his inheritance from his fathers, 1Kgs 21:3. Ahab becomes disconsolate, takes to his bed, and refuses to eat, 1Kgs 21:4. Jezebel, finding out the cause, promises to give him the vineyard, 1Kgs 21:5-7. She writes to the nobles of Jezreel to proclaim a fast, to accuse Naboth of blasphemy, carry him out, and stone him to death; which is accordingly done, 1Kgs 21:8-14. She then tells Ahab to go and take possession of the vineyard; he goes, and is met by Elijah, who denounces on him the heaviest judgments, 1Kgs 21:15-24. Ahab's abominable character, 1Kgs 21:25, 1Kgs 21:26. He humbles himself; and God promises not to bring the threatened public calamities in his days, but in the days of his son, 1Kgs 21:27-29. Verse 1 After these things - This and the twentieth chapter are transposed in the Septuagint; this preceding the account of the Syrian war with Ben-hadad. Josephus gives the history in the same order.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on 1 Kings 21:1-4
Naboth, perhaps, had been pleased that he had a vineyard situated so near the palace, but the situation proved fatal to him; many a man's possessions have been his snare, and his neighbourhood to greatness, of bad consequence. Discontent is a sin that is its own punishment, and makes men torment themselves. It is a sin that is its own parent; it arises not from the condition, but from the mind: as we find Paul contented in a prison, so Ahab was discontented in a palace. He had all the delights of Canaan, that pleasant land, at command; the wealth of a kingdom, the pleasures of a court, and the honours and powers of a throne; yet all avails him nothing without Naboth's vineyard. Wrong desires expose men to continual vexations, and those that are disposed to fret, however well off, may always find something or other to fret at.

Matthew Henry, 1706 · public domain

1 Kings 21:1 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וַיְהִ֗יvay.Hiand it wasH1961
אַחַר֙'a.CharafterH310
הַדְּבָרִ֣יםha.de.va.Rimthe thingsH1697
הָאֵ֔לֶּהha.'E.leh<the> theseH428
כֶּ֧רֶםKe.rema vineyardH3754
הָיָ֛הha.Yahit belongedH1961
לְנָב֥וֹתle.na.Votto NabothH5022
הַיִּזְרְעֵאלִ֖יhai.yiz.re.'e.Lithe JezreeliteH3158
אֲשֶׁ֣ר'a.SherwhichH834
בְּיִזְרְעֶ֑אלbe.yiz.re.'El[was] in JezreelH3157
אֵ֚צֶל'E.tzelbesideH681
הֵיכַ֣לhei.Khal[the] palace ofH1964
אַחְאָ֔ב'ach.'AvAhabH256
מֶ֖לֶךְMe.lekh[the] king ofH4428
שֹׁמְרֽוֹן\׃sho.me.RonSamariaH8111

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for 1 Kings 21:1

  • Joshua 19:18

    And their border was toward Jezreel, and Chesulloth, and Shunem,

  • 1 Kings 18:45-46

    And it came to pass in the mean while, that the heaven was black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. And Ahab rode, and went to Jezreel. And the hand of the Lord was on Elijah; and he girded up his loins, and ran before Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.

  • 2 Chronicles 28:22

    And in the time of his distress did he trespass yet more against the Lord: this is that king Ahaz.

  • Judges 6:33

    Then all the Midianites and the Amalekites and the children of the east were gathered together, and went over, and pitched in the valley of Jezreel.

  • Ezra 9:13-14

    And after all that is come upon us for our evil deeds, and for our great trespass, seeing that thou our God hast punished us less than our iniquities deserve, and hast given us such deliverance as this; Should we again break thy commandments, and join in affinity with the people of these abominations? wouldest not thou be angry with us till thou hadst consumed us, so that there should be no remnant nor escaping?

  • 1 Samuel 29:1

    Now the Philistines gathered together all their armies to Aphek: and the Israelites pitched by a fountain which is in Jezreel.

  • Hosea 1:4-5

    And the Lord said unto him, Call his name Jezreel; for yet a little while, and I will avenge the blood of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu, and will cause to cease the kingdom of the house of Israel. And it shall come to pass at that day, that I will break the bow of Israel in the valley of Jezreel.

  • Jeremiah 5:3

    O Lord, are not thine eyes upon the truth? thou hast stricken them, but they have not grieved; thou hast consumed them, but they have refused to receive correction: they have made their faces harder than a rock; they have refused to return.

  • Isaiah 9:13

    For the people turneth not unto him that smiteth them, neither do they seek the Lord of hosts.

  • 1 Kings 20:35-43

    And a certain man of the sons of the prophets said unto his neighbour in the word of the Lord, Smite me, I pray thee. And the man refused to smite him. Then said he unto him, Because thou hast not obeyed the voice of the Lord, behold, as soon as thou art departed from me, a lion shall slay thee. And as soon as he was departed from him, a lion found him, and slew him. Then he found another man, and said, Smite me, I pray thee. And the man smote him, so that in smiting he wounded him. So the prophet departed, and waited for the king by the way, and disguised himself with ashes upon his face. …

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
1 Ahab being denied Naboth's vineyard, is grieved.
5 Jezebel writing letters against Naboth, he is condemned of blasphemy.
15 Ahab take possession of the vineyard.
17 Elijah denounces judgments against Ahab and Jezebel.
25 Wicked Ahab repenting, God defers the judgment.

A.M. 3105. B.C. 899. after.
20:35-43; 2Ch 28:22; Ezr 9:13,14; Isa 9:13; Jer 5:3
Jezreel.
18:45; Jos 19:18; Jud 6:33; 1Sa 29:1; Ho 1:4,5

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • 1 Kings 21:1

    And it came to pass after these things, that Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard, which was in Jezreel, hard by the palace of Ahab king of Samaria.

  • 1 Kings 21:2

    And Ahab spake unto Naboth, saying, Give me thy vineyard, that I may have it for a garden of herbs, because it is near unto my house: and I will give thee for it a better vineyard than it; or, if it seem good to thee, I will give thee the worth of it in money.

Read all of 1 Kings 21

1 Kings 21:1 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		PASADOS estos negocios, aconteció que Naboth de Jezreel tenía en Jezreel una viña junto al palacio de Achâb rey de Samaria.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		*Et il arriva, après ces choses, que Naboth, le Jizreélite, avait une vigne qui était à Jizreël, à côté du palais d’Achab, roi de Samarie.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Und es geschah nach diesen Dingen: Naboth, der Jisreeliter, hatte einen Weinberg, der zu Jisreel war, neben dem Palaste Ahabs, des Königs von Samaria.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Post verba autem hæc, tempore illo vinea erat Naboth Jezrahelitæ, quæ erat in Jezrahel, juxta palatium Achab regis Samariæ.