This sermon is from the Rev. Charles G. Dennison sermon archive, part of the “Life of Elijah” series, and was preached at Grace Orthodox Presbyterian Church in Sewickley, PA, during a worship service on Sunday, August 7, 1988.

1st Kings 21 now it came about after these things that Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard which was in Jezreel beside the palace of Ahab king of Samaria And Ahab spoke to Naboth, saying, Give me your vineyard, that I may have it for a vegetable garden, because it is close beside my house, and I will give you a better vineyard than it in its place.

If you like, I will give you the price of it in money. But Naboth said to Ahab, The Lord forbid me that I should give you the inheritance of my father’s. So Ahab came into his house, solemn and vexed, because of the word which Naboth the Jezreelite had spoken to him, for he said, I will not give you the inheritance of my father’s. And he lay down on his bed and turned his face and ate no food. But Jezebel, his wife, came to him and said to him, How is it that your spirit is so sullen that you are not eating food?

So 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 please you, I will give you a vineyard in its place. But he said, I will not give you my vineyard. And Jezebel, his wife, said to him, do you now reign over Israel? arise, eat bread, and let your heart be joyful, I will give you the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreel.”

So she wrote letters in Ahab’s name and sealed them with his seal and sent letters to the elders and to the nobles who were living with Naboth in his city. Now she wrote him the letters saying, proclaim a fast and seat Naboth at the head of the people and see two worthless men beside him and let them testify against him, saying, You cursed God and the king. Then take him out and stone him to death. So the men of his city, the elders and the nobles who lived in his city, did as Jezebel had sent word to them, just as it was written in the letters which he had sent them. They proclaimed a fast and seated Naboth at the head of the people. Then the two worthless men came in and sat before him, and the worthless men testified against him, even against Naboth, before the people, saying, Naboth cursed God and the king. So they took him outside the city and stoned him to death with stones. Then they sent word to Jezebel, saying, Naboth has been stoned and is dead.

And it came about 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. And it came about when Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, that Ahab arose to go down to the vineyard of Naboth, the Jezreelite, to take possession of it. Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah, Tishbite. saying, Arise, go down to meet Ahab, king of Israel, who is in Samaria. Behold, he is in the vineyard of Naboth, where he has gone down to take possession of it.

And 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 the dogs lick up the blood of Naboth, the dogs shall lick up your blood, even yours. And 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.

Behold, I will bring evil upon you, and will utterly sweep you away, and will cut off from Ahab every male, both bond and free, in Israel. And I will make your house like the house of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, and the house of Dasha, the son of Ahijah. because of the provocation which you have provoked me to anger, and because you have made Israel sin. And of Jezebel also has the Lord spoken, saying, The dog shall eat Jezebel and the district of Jezreel. One belonging to Ahab who dies in the city, the dog shall eat, and one who dies in the field, the birds of heaven shall eat.

Surely there is no one like Ahab who sold himself to do evil in the sight of the Lord because Jezebel, his wife, incited him. And he acted abominably in following idols according to all that the Amorites had done when the Lord had cast out before the sons of Israel. And it came about when Ahab heard these words that he tore his clothes and he put on sackcloth and fasted and lay in sackcloth and went about despondently. And the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, Do you see how Ahab has humbled himself before me? Because he has humbled himself before me, I will not bring this evil in his days, but I will bring the evil upon his house in his son’s days.

Let’s pray together. O Lord, for your people’s well-being, You do raise up those who will serve in positions of authority and responsibility. We rejoice, our God, that you have granted to your church able leaders, elders of the people. But we ask, our God, that the eye of your servants in this capacity will be kept upon the Word, and may the heart of these whom you’ve raised up be single and directed towards you. May they stand wonderfully in contrast to the elders of the city in which Naboth lived. And may they also be zealous for the Word and for its preaching that that proclamation of the word would always be within its proper boundaries. We ask our God your blessing upon the elders you have granted to this church, that they may rule wisely, that they may rule well. For Jesus’ sake. Amen.

Tonight we are dealing with a very familiar story one I’m sure as we read through it you recognized and possibly even thought a bit about the person of Ahab thought a bit about Jezebel thought a bit about Elijah and thought also about Nathan. They have this remarkable king. How much time is spent in reviewing his life, how much space is taken up here in 1 Kings dealing with him specifically. Certainly a very important figure a strategic figure in the history of Israel.

We are looking again at this man and we are taking stock of his corruption. It seems that we are always taking stock of his corruption. This evening, that corruption is expressly his covetousness. We understand that, as it is in contrast to, in violation of, the Tenth Commandment. The commandment of the Lord is very much in view in this passage.

There is in Ahab, then, an insatiability, and in that we are well to take him into account especially as he is a marker for our own spiritual well-being. There is in Ahab an insatiability. There is this perpetual dissatisfaction so that he must have more and more and more now we are amused by the willful child when seeing the cookie jar is not satisfied with just one but has to taste them all if not consume them all Of course, there is a price to pay for such behavior. We are not as much amused by the adult man who in having his wife is not content but seems to be compelled to at least try to seduce every woman he meets. Insatiable.

Well, when this insatiability, this dissatisfaction is placed in a position of power, how compounded is the evil? how great the possibility of wickedness. There are those, for instance, who suggest to us that the Song of Solomon is actually written as an indictment against Solomon, who as king, acts like the kings of the earth, stretches out his hand to take the Shulamite for himself, even though she belongs to, is promised to another, the shepherd boy, to whom she belongs, to whom she has been promised. She, taken from him, becomes one of Solomon’s concubines. He then, acting as one of the kings in the world, taking whom he will, for himself, doing what he will, for you see, he is not answerable to the law, he is above the law. Now there is not only this covetousness on Ahab’s part, this insatiability, But with regard to the commandment itself, there seems to be a lack, a general lack of comprehension.

I’ve given you, neighbor, a reasonable proposal. What reason could you have for not accepting my offer? Well, the commandments of God are not just those that pertain to the moral life, of the nation of Israel. They also pertain to matters like the inheritance. And Naboth here is presenting the law’s case with regard to that inheritance. How can I give up the inheritance of my fathers? You understand the objection of Naboth when you realize what that inheritance means to him. that inheritance of his father’s is his portion and an indication of his place within the promised people, as one who is in the covenant.

Ahab’s suggestion here, then, is that he forsake his portion in the covenant, and treated as if it were nothing, and thus become one like him. The king wants Nahab to be like him. I’m sorry, the king wants Naboth to be like him. One who equally disregards the law, lives without any regard to it.

We have already indicated the way in which Ahab views the law, how wonderful that law was. It came as the word of the spirit to a nation that had been constituted by God, and in its law was then to be distinguished from all the other nations of the world. You have the law as it is understood by the nations in the world, those communities, those political states are not without their theories of law, and its implementation, and what is at the heart of that? Well, there are certain people in society who make the laws, and there are other people in society who have to obey the laws. That’s the way the nations of the earth understood law. Now what happens when God comes to Sinai? Law itself is transformed. The very notion of law is transformed. Utterly unique on the face of the earth.

There are not then those few or There is not that segment of society that stands immune to the law because it makes the law. Rather, all of God’s people stand before the one who is truly king, God himself, and all must submit, regardless of what station and standing they have within the community.

Well, what is Ahab’s view of the law? Ahab’s view of the law is that of the nations. I am immune. Others comply, I don’t. There are laws in Israel to protect the rights of the people, that’s well and good, but I am above the law, and as king, I have a right to see that wall laid aside. Well, the corruption of Ahab, the covetousness of this man, his disregard of the law, his treatment of that law, how then here in this passage Ahab becomes the epitome of that corruption that plagues Israel unto her death.

At this point, we begin to build upon that which has preceded. You remember the stories in 1 Kings 20? the double victories of the Israelites over the Syrians, Ben-Hadad being the king of the Syrians. But you recall the circumstances of that second victory by Ahab? He spares Ben-Hadad, welcomes him as a brother, as a compatriot. endeavors through this welcome after his victory to establish Ben-Hadad and the Syrians as allies.

Then comes the word of the prophet. You fail to act as you should have. For the Lord delivered this king into your hands for a purpose. That purpose was his annihilation. You recall how that reminded us of another instance in the book of 1 Samuel. How when Saul was king, he spared an enemy and was judged by sin. And because he had so sinned, Samuel pronounced God’s judgment against him, that he would in fact be removed and the kingdom would not be his. Well, now we move into the 21st chapter of 1 Kings.

And do the particulars of this story remind you of any story? from the previous history of the people of God? A man who has something that someone else wants. And so this man ends up involved in a conspiracy to get what he lacks, doesn’t have, to the point that in his involvement he becomes party to murder. and then is confronted by a prophet, and his sin is exposed. Familiar? Why we move from Saul to David. David wanted Bathsheba. and he conspires and Bathsheba’s husband is murdered so that David can have what he wants and Nathan the prophet comes and confronts David for his sins so now all of this which speaks to us of the failure of the kings of Israel. Be one even as wonderful as David.

Now, focus is itself in this figure of Abel. As if all the corruption was being concentrated in him. And you were seeing then the failure of that kingship. in Israel, played out for you in this single person, Ahab. Well, it’s not as if there isn’t any grace observable in Ahab. It isn’t as if he wasn’t the beneficiary of his upbringing so that at least something has rubbed off on him from his contact with the covenant and the oracles of God. He’s disappointed in his covetousness, he is not satisfied, but yet he can’t bring himself, at this point, to raise his own hand against me.

The corruption is there. The corruption will in time take its toll, but it is not as yet complete in this man, any more than it is complete in Israel. Enter an amaranth. Enter one in whom corruption is so absolute that there remains nothing yet for it to accomplish the imperfect.

The spirit with which Ahab flirts. The one with whom he cavorts. This one is the seductress. This one is the epitome of the spirit of seduction. Here is the harlot. personified, epitomized. That one in whom there is no ambiguity, no hesitation whatsoever. She lives for the world and there is no question about that.

There is nothing she will not do. in fact she will manipulate the law she hates and she will use the name of the God she despises there isn’t a commandment she won’t violate and she does a pretty good job in just this simple instance of violating the law the objective of life to take the objective of life to grasp to possess to call it mine and never let it go therefore we have the corruption of Ahab and the wickedness of Jezebel, over against both is the righteousness of Nebuchadnezzar. If there is one here who stands for the inheritance and the purpose of God, if there is one who who stands over against the Esau’s of the world who have no respect for the inheritance at all is found in this man remarkably naïve a nation full of corruption yet one who now stands forth wonderfully as a testimony to the glory and intention of God He loves what God has given him, and he is satisfied with what God has given him. And in his reverence for God, and in his love for that inheritance, he is enabled by the Spirit to refuse a king.

The most powerful man in his world And Naboth stands up to him in righteousness, though it costs him his life. What a remarkable man he is. Now you may be confused and distressed for Naboth’s sake. For in reading this story, though there comes the pronouncement of judgment at the end, though Elijah arises on behalf of Naboth, still the injustice cries out and cries out in such a way as to suggest to us that justice has not been done in the case of Naboth.

The lover of God has been charged with being the hater of God, and that charge has been left to stand, seemingly. The righteous man has died, the wicked have lived. The honorable loses his inheritance, What good is that plot of ground to him now, while the dishonorable claim it? The righteous man has suffered, and he has suffered in the extreme. He’s lost everything, even his life. But isn’t that the point? And isn’t that, in conclusion, the glory of the stance of this man?

For that inheritance, that simple little vineyard, outside the city wall, beside the castle, the palace of Ahab, is but a pointer. The principle that Naboth must live by is to hold fast that inheritance, not for the inheritance’s sake, that is, not for the sake of that little vegetable garden, that vineyard. He must hold fast to that because it points to something even more glorious. All vineyards in this world are losable. But there is a vineyard that cannot be lost. Vineyards of this world, when we die, we see no more. But there is a vineyard that is ours through death itself.

And it is ultimately for the sake of that vineyard, for the sake of that inheritance, that we stand our ground against all who would intrude, all who would suggest that that inheritance is in fact not ours, theirs, their possession. We see, even in this one neighbor, something of the Lord Jesus Christ, don’t we? Falsely charged, called a blasphemer, said to be at odds with the country and its hopes, executed for his stand, seemingly having no inheritance in this world yet, given that inheritance above. And from the vantage point of that inheritance, also the promise that all things are his.

Well then. Native sits at his table. he drinks of his wine feasts on the fruits of his vineyard and from that table with his Savior he owns the world and Ahab and Jezebel Own nothing. Nothing. Now it may not appear to you to be like that at all as you look at the world. The Ahabs of the world, the Jezebels take over. Injustice abounds. Pay it no mind. The world isn’t theirs, even though they claim it. The inheritance does not belong to them, even though they kill you to get it. All things belong to Christ. You belong to Him. And in Him, all things have been given to you. And in the day in which his vineyard is made plain to your sight, you will understand all of this perfectly. Let’s pray.

Our Father, we do thank you indeed We review the history of Israel and we see the complicity of Ahab and his corruption. We recognize that he is but an acting out of the history of Israel in its totality. And that as that compromising weakness was found in him, a weakness that led to death, so it was found in Israel, even though Israel was filled with a boast concerning herself, her righteousness, and even a claim that she lived above the law. We thank you for what has come in the gospel and how you sort out these various stories for us with the scrutinizing light that comes to us from your word.

May our hope be in that one prefigured in the person of Nathan. May our eyes be set upon him in the knowledge that though injustice seems to reign in this world, yet it does not have the final word at all. Rather, Your justice reigns supreme in the vindication of your son and in the vindication of all who trust in him.

The sermon text provided above is derived from the sermon audio recording making use of generative tools. It has not been manually edited. While transcription tools have a high degree of accuracy, the output may include generative textual, punctuation, and/or formatting errors.