Covetousness Which is Idolatry

1 Kings 21:1-29
    1 And it came to pass after these things that Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard which was in Jezreel, next to the palace of Ahab king of Samaria. 2 So Ahab spoke to Naboth, saying, "Give me your vineyard, that I may have it for a vegetable garden, because it is near, next to my house; and for it I will give you a vineyard better than it. Or, if it seems good to you, I will give you its worth in money."  3 But Naboth said to Ahab, "The LORD forbid that I should give the inheritance of my fathers to you!"
    4 So Ahab went into his house sullen and displeased because of the word which Naboth the Jezreelite had spoken to him; for he had said, "I will not give you the inheritance of my fathers." And he lay down on his bed, and turned away his face, and would eat no food. 5 But Jezebel his wife came to him, and said to him, "Why is your spirit so sullen that you eat no food?"  6 He said to her, "Because I spoke to Naboth the Jezreelite, and said to him, 'Give me your vineyard for money; or else, if it pleases you, I will give you another vineyard for it.' And he answered, 'I will not give you my vineyard.'"
    7 Then Jezebel his wife said to him, "You now exercise authority over Israel! Arise, eat food, and let your heart be cheerful; I will give you the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite."  8 And she wrote letters in Ahab's name, sealed them with his seal, and sent the letters to the elders and the nobles who were dwelling in the city with Naboth. 9 She wrote in the letters, saying, Proclaim a fast, and seat Naboth with high honor among the people; 10 and seat two men, scoundrels, before him to bear witness against him, saying, "You have blasphemed God and the king." Then take him out, and stone him, that he may die.
    11 So the men of his city, the elders and nobles who were inhabitants of his city, did as Jezebel had sent to them, as it was written in the letters which she had sent to them. 12 They proclaimed a fast, and seated Naboth with high honor among the people. 13 And two men, scoundrels, came in and sat before him; and the scoundrels witnessed against him, against Naboth, in the presence of the people, saying, "Naboth has blasphemed God and the king!" Then they took him outside the city and stoned him with stones, so that he died. 14 Then they sent to Jezebel, saying, "Naboth has been stoned and is dead."
    15 And it came to pass, when Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned and was dead, that Jezebel said to Ahab, "Arise, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, which he refused to give you for money; for Naboth is not alive, but dead." 16 So it was, when Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, that Ahab got up and went down to take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.
    17 Then the word of the LORD came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, 18 "Arise, go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, who lives in Samaria. There he is, in the vineyard of Naboth, where he has gone down to take possession of it. 19 You shall speak to him, saying, 'Thus says the LORD: "Have you murdered and also taken possession?"' And you shall speak to him, saying, 'Thus says the LORD: "In the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth, dogs shall lick your blood, even yours."'"
    20 So Ahab said to Elijah, "Have you found me, O my enemy?"  And he answered, "I have found you, because you have sold yourself to do evil in the sight of the LORD: 21 'Behold, I will bring calamity on you. I will take away your posterity, and will cut off from Ahab every male in Israel, both bond and free. 22 I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah, because of the provocation with which you have provoked Me to anger, and made Israel sin.' 23 And concerning Jezebel the LORD also spoke, saying, 'The dogs shall eat Jezebel by the wall of Jezreel.' 24 The dogs shall eat whoever belongs to Ahab and dies in the city, and the birds of the air shall eat whoever dies in the field."
    25 But there was no one like Ahab who sold himself to do wickedness in the sight of the LORD, because Jezebel his wife stirred him up. 26 And he behaved very abominably in following idols, according to all that the Amorites had done, whom the LORD had cast out before the children of Israel.
    27 So it was, when Ahab heard those words, that he tore his clothes and put sackcloth on his body, and fasted and lay in sackcloth, and went about mourning.  28 And the word of the LORD came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, 29 "See how Ahab has humbled himself before Me? Because he has humbled himself before Me, I will not bring the calamity in his days. In the days of his son I will bring the calamity on his house."

In Jezreel next to Ahab’s palace was a plot of land with a vineyard which the king wanted for himself as a vegetable garden.  He offered to buy it at a good price from Naboth the owner, but he did not want to part with his family inheritance (the land was the wealth and inheritance in the land from the LORD as Numbers 36:7 and Ezekiel 46:18 say).  After sulking a while, Ahab’s evil wife Jezebel came up with a scheme to give a fake feast for Naboth with false accusations brought against him there to show him a blasphemer against God and the king, and be put to death by stoning to get the land for her husband.  Elijah was sent by the LORD to tell Ahab that he was a murderer and that the dogs would eventually lap up his blood where they had already done so for the blood of the innocent man.  Even Jezebel would be eaten by the dogs. The LORD prophesied calamities on Ahab and his descendants for this heinous premeditated murder out of covetousness, which is idolatry (Colossians 3:5).  Ahab had broken the commandments by these acts of greed and murder (Exodus 20:13, 17, 23:7), and faced the divine justice due him.  He had given the example to cause Israel to sin as a king, and would answer for it along with his wife who made it happen.  The scriptures here say just how bad Ahab was to sell himself to such wickedness by her goading.  He broke the first commandment by his idolatry, imitating the ungodly around him whom they should have killed off in the beginning, but let live to corrupt all Israel.  But Ahab did repent, and God held off on the punishment until he died.  But his descendants and Jezebel would pay the price.  We see then that disobedience and rejection of worship and honor to the LORD bring certain consequences; we have all sinned in our hearts as well as in action (Romans 3:23, 6:23), and will face divine justice absolutely and irrevocably unless pardoned by God’s work in Christ (Hebrews 9:27-28).  There is a price for our sin, but there is redemption and reconciliation in His Son (Psalm 2:12).