Hanani was prophet to Asa in the kingdom of Judah (2 Chron. 16:7-10). His son Jehu now is sent by the Lord with a message to Baasha of Israel. He must have been young at this time, for he is found rebuking Jehoshaphat after the death of Ahab (2 Chron. 19:2), and writing the annals of Jehoshaphat’s reign (2 Chron. 20:34).

 This message of rebuke to Baasha is similar to Ahijah’s message to Jeroboam (ch. 14:7-11). Here the expression “out of the dust,” which does not occur in ch. 14:7, seems to imply that Baasha had none of those antecedents of rank, wealth, etc., which in some measure fitted Jeroboam for his high office, but that Baasha was taken from the humblest ranks of the people.

Baasha had been the instrument to wipe out the house of Jeroboam. It should thus have been particularly clear to him what a terrible fate was in store for himself if he followed in Jeroboam’s footsteps. Repentance might have averted in a measure the terrible doom. God’s messages of judgment are frequently warnings of the irrevocable fate that will befall the transgressor if he persists in his course. God desires to save, not destroy.

Baasha ruled 24 years, and there were no doubt many items of interest in the official annals that could have been selected to give a comprehensive account of his reign. But all that the writer of Kings passes by, referring the reader to the fact that those things are already written in the “book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.” The thing that concerns him most is the position taken by each ruler in regard to Jehovah and His purpose for Israel, and the bearing that that would have upon the national history of God’s chosen people. Would the nation prosper or decline, would it endure forever or would it go down in ruin? The answer to those questions depended upon the attitude of king and people toward God.

This verse at first glance may seem to be out of place. The official record of Baasha’s reign has been concluded by the announcement in the preceding verse of his death and burial, and the accession of his son. But now the account goes back again to Baasha’s reign, referring once more to the message of Jehu against Baasha and his house. This additional statement was probably made for the purpose of driving home the particular heinousness of Baasha’s offense.

Baasha had wiped out the house of Jeroboam, yet he himself was no better. He walked in the same wicked ways that had caused the punishment to be meted out against the house he overthrow.

 Two years inclusive. Elah began to reign in the 26th year of Asa and terminated his reign in Asa’s 27th year (v. 10; see on ch. 15:28).

This shows the low moral level to which Israel had sunk. Zimri held a high position of trust in the army of Elah, but proved unfaithful, and turned against the king, whose throne it was his responsibility to uphold. Self-interest prevailed, and another assassination of a king appears in the record. There can be no peace or security, no tranquillity or safety, where king and people trample underfoot the law of God and refuse to have their lives molded according to the divine image.

 Drunkenness is an evil that helps bring nations to ruin. When rulers give themselves to wine, they neglect the affairs of state, and the nation suffers. “It is not for kings to drink wine; nor for princes strong drink: lest they drink, and forget the law, and pervert the judgment of any of the afflicted” (Prov. 31:4, 5).

These words indicate measures of unusual severity. Not only were all members of the royal family extirpated, but all friends as well, including, probably, the counselors and officers of state. It is not surprising that the nation did not take kindly to such a king, particularly not Omri, who, as an army officer in the service of the former king, would have reason to fear for his own safety. Those who endanger others endanger themselves.

Frequently the predictions of the prophets have the character of simple forecasts rather than divine decrees; God does not decree all the events He predicts. At other times the utterances of the prophets are pronouncements of judgment. It was the prerogative of God to assign the punishment to be meted out upon an evil ruler.

 The penalty was death where the wickedness merited it. In carrying out the intent of the judgment, the executioners of the divine decree were acting as agents of Heaven (see 2 Kings 9:7). Frequently, however, they served selfish ends, and acted from motives that were entirely vindictive. To the degree that they acted from such motives they incurred guilt. Thus the Assyrians, who executed God’s judgment, were later punished for the selfish and cruel motives that prompted their course (Isa. 10:5-13). Zimri probably went beyond the original intent of the judgment proclaimed against the “house of Baasha,” and slew many who were not worthy of destruction.

 That is, their worship of idols (see Deut. 32:16, 21; 1 Sam. 12:10, 21; Jer. 8:19). Few things are quite so foolish as for men to make gods for themselves with their own hands and then bow before them in worship. The folly of such a course is repeatedly made plain in the Word of God (Ps. 115:4-8; Isa. 41:21-29; 44:9-20; Jer. 10:3-8).

 Reigns of less than a year in length are often given in terms of days or months (2 Kings 15:8, 13; 23:31; 24:8; 2 Chron. 36:2, 9).

 Twenty-four years before, Baasha had smitten Nadab while he was fighting against Gibbethon (ch. 15:27).

 While Elah was drinking himself drunk at the house of his steward in Tirzah, he was slain by Zimri (v. 9), and as soon as the word reached the army at Gibbethon, they made Omri king. This incident recalls the favorite practice of the Roman armies, which, when they received word of the assassination of an emperor at Rome, were wont to invest their own commander with the purple.

 The siege of Tirzah must have been short, for the entire reign of Zimri was only seven days (v. 15). Omri doubtless had help from within the city, since he was able to capture it almost immediately.

Probably into the strongest point of the palace, the citadel. His setting fire to the palace and perishing in the flames has a number of parallels in Eastern history.

Zimri reigned over Israel only seven days, yet he receives the same condemnation as did kings with the longest reigns. His death goes to illustrate the moral that the writer of Kings draws from the whole history of the Israelite monarchs, that a curse was upon them and the nation for their persistence in Jeroboam’s sin, which eventually brought each royal house to an ignominious and bloody end.

 The death of Zimri left Israel with two kings, each ruling over half of the nation. Since Zimri began his short reign of seven days in the 27th year of Asa (vs. 10, 15), and since Tibni and Omri began their reigns at that time, both began to reign in Asa’s 27th year.

We are not told how Tibni ruled or how he died, but there is an ominous significance in the terse statement that he died and that Omri reigned. Evidently there was a constant struggle between the two, which did not end till Omri had eliminated his rival.

 This evidently indicates the time when Omri began his sole reign. He was first made king in the 27th year of Asa (vs. 15, 16). Five years later, inclusive reckoning (the 31st year of Asa), he began his reign.

 This period has brought much difficulty to Biblical chronologists, yet it is comparatively simple. These 12 years cover the entire reign of Omri, not only the period of his undisputed rule, but also the period when Tibni ruled part of the land. Thus the years of Omri began in the 27th year of Asa, when the people made Omri king (vs. 15, 16), and terminated in Asa’s 38th year, when Omri was succeeded by his son Ahab (v. 29), a period of 12 years, inclusive reckoning (see p. 136).

From the period when he began his reign, till shortly after the death of Tibni. For a year after the death of his rival, Tirzah continued to be Omri’s capital.

 The accession of Omri marked a new period of settled government and prosperity for the northern kingdom. While the capital was at Tirzah, the nation had gone through a long period of dissension and unrest. Possibly seeds of disaffection still lurked at Tirzah, causing Omri to decide upon a new site for his capital. The hill of Samaria, 7 1/4 mi. (11.6 km.) northwest of Shechem, was the site selected. It would have been difficult to find a more perfect spot for the nation’s capital. Its position was one of great beauty, commanding a view of the sea and of the country for miles around. It was situated at the heart of the land. Militarily, the hill, with its steep sides, was admirably adapted to defense, as is shown by the long sieges it endured (1 Kings 20:1; 2 Kings 6:24; 17:5; 18:9, 10). The country round about was singularly productive. On the hill were abundant springs of water. Its history vindicated the sagacity of its founder, for Samaria continued as the capital of Israel till the close of the nation’s history.

Excavations at the ancient site of Samaria date the lowest levels of the city to Omri’s day.

 From a worldly standpoint Omri was a successful ruler. He did a great deal to bring peace and prosperity to his troubled land. His name occurs on the famous Moabite Stone, which records Omri’s occupation of Moab (see Additional Note on 2 Kings 3). Israel came to be known to the Assyrians as “the land of Omri,” while even Jehu, the extirpator of the house of Omri, is termed a “son of Omri”. But in the Lord’s sight Omri did worse than all the evil kings before him. In addition to an acceptance of the old idolatry, he probably went further, and introduced and encouraged the worship of the Sidonian Baal. The “statutes of Omri” are referred to by Micah (Micah 6:16), in connection with the “works of the house of Ahab,” as symbols of hardened and hopeless apostasy.

The name of Jezebel was to become proverbial for wickedness. Ethbaal, her father, was high priest of Baal (PK 114). Josephus calls him the priest of Astarte, who slew Pheles, king of Tyre, and founded a new dynasty and reigned over Tyre for 32 years (Against Apion. 1. 18). Jezebel’s priestly origin may account for the queen’s fanatical devotion to spreading false religion in Israel.

 Tyre was at this time the leading city of Phoenicia (see on Gen. 10:15), but the historic reputation of Sidon led the kings of Tyre to adopt the title “king of the Sidonians.” A dedication bowl found on the island of Cyprus bears this very inscription.

Literally, “lord.” The name refers to the great storm god, and to the many local fertility gods who were worshiped as the productive principle in nature. Ahab now promoted a corrupt religion.

No remains of this temple have been found, but it may have been part of Ahab’s splendid palace that has been excavated.

 See on Judges 3:7; 1 Kings 14:15. Baal was often associated with the goddess Asherah (Judges 2:13), and in the vicinity of his altar there was often a grove (see Judges 6:25, 30), a tree stump representing the goddess Asherah.

 See on Joshua 6:26. Jericho was now rebuilt and again became a place of considerable importance. It had great natural advantages, being well watered, and commanded the highway from the valley of the Jordan to the high ground of Bethel. It was now rebuilt by a Bethelite, probably under the patronage of Ahab.

See PK 230. Some understand this text to refer to the human sacrifices that were so brutal a part of the corrupt religion of the times. On this understanding, the first-born would be offered as a foundation sacrifice, and the youngest as its inaugural counterpart.