Dictionary Article

1. Eighth king of the northern kingdom of Israel, who reigned about 874–853 BC. His father, Omri, founded a dynasty that lasted 40 years, through the reigns of Ahab and his two sons, Ahaziah and Jehoram. Omri’s dynasty had an impact beyond biblical history, being mentioned on the famous Moabite Stone and in several Assyrian inscriptions. According to 1 Kings, Omri was a general in the army of King Elah, son of Baasha. When Elah was assassinated, Omri was acclaimed king by his own forces in the field (16:8-16). He prevailed in the resulting civil war and occupied Tirzah, the capital city (16:17-23). Soon he moved his capital to Samaria and built fortifications in the region (16:24). Omri also made an alliance with the Phoenicians, as David and Solomon had done, but was condemned for it by later generations. When Ahab succeeded his father (16:28), he pursued this alliance by marrying the Phoenician king’s daughter, Jezebel (16:29-31).

The Showdown at Carmel

In a showdown with the false prophets of Baal at Mt Carmel, Elijah set out to prove to Ahab that only the Lord is God. Elijah then killed the false prophets in the Kishon Valley and fled back to Jezreel.

Ahab’s marriage to Jezebel, an immoral and fanatical pagan, strongly affected Israel (21:21-26) and had consequences even in the southern kingdom of Judah. Athaliah, their daughter, married Jehoram of Judah and the results of this marriage were disastrous (2 Kgs 8:17-18, 26-27; 11:1-20). Under Jezebel’s influence Ahab gave up the worship of God and took up Baal worship. Ahab’s new religion was a fertility cult that featured sexual unions between priests and temple “virgins,” practices explicitly contrary to the laws of God. Even in marrying Jezebel, Ahab had violated the biblical prohibition of marriage to pagans (Dt 7:1-5).

The biblical narrative mentions that Ahab built many cities (1 Kgs 22:39) and fought a number of wars, but for the most part it centers on the great prophetic figure, Elijah (1 Kgs 17:1; 18:1; 19:1). Early in Ahab’s reign, God sent Elijah to predict years of drought and famine as punishment for the king’s sin (1 Kgs 17:1; 18:16-18). The drought lasted three and a half years and was such a remarkable period in Israel’s history that it was remembered into NT times (Lk 4:25; Jas 5:17). It was a time of great suffering for both people and animals (1 Kgs 18:5). At the end of the three and a half years Elijah challenged Ahab to gather all the pagan prophets for a final confrontation between God and Baal. Elijah taunted the 450 prophets of Baal for not being able to attract the attention of their false god. Then he prayed to God, and fire fell from heaven on God’s altar. The people shouted their belief in God and helped Elijah execute the pagan prophets (1 Kgs 18:16-40). The drought ended immediately (18:41-46).

When she heard what had happened to her prophets, Jezebel swore revenge. Elijah fled, and on Mt Horeb, God told him to anoint Jehu to become king of Israel in place of Ahab (1 Kgs 19:1-16). This assignment was carried out by the prophet’s successor, Elisha (1 Kgs 19:19-21; 2 Kgs 9:1-10). Elijah then challenged Ahab’s acquisition of a vineyard owned by a man named Naboth (1 Kgs 21:1-16). When Naboth refused to sell his land to the king, Jezebel had false witnesses swear that Naboth had cursed God and the king. Naboth was stoned to death for blasphemy. Elijah denounced Ahab, saying that as a judgment God would bring a bloody end to his family (1 Kgs 21:17-24). Ahab’s repentance caused God to postpone the judgment until after Ahab’s death (1 Kgs 21:27-29; 2 Kgs 10:1-14).

During his reign Ahab had military encounters with King Ben-hadad II of Syria (Aram), largely provoked by the Syrians. In the first encounter Ben-hadad besieged Samaria, Israel’s capital, and demanded heavy tribute. Ahab refused the demands and called a council of elders. As the Syrians were preparing to attack, a prophet advised Ahab to attack first (1 Kgs 20:1-14). The Syrians were routed and Ben-hadad barely escaped with his life (1 Kgs 20:15-22). The following year Ben-hadad mounted another attack on Ahab’s forces, was again defeated, and eventually surrendered to Ahab (1 Kgs 20:23-33). Ben-hadad gave up some Israelite cities that had been overrun by his father and granted Israel trading posts in Damascus (20:34). God rebuked Ahab through a prophet for forming such an alliance with a pagan power (1 Kgs 20:35-43).

In Ahab’s last war with Syria, he had the advantage of an alliance with the king of Judah, Jehoshaphat (1 Kgs 22:2-4; 2 Chr 18:1-3). That alliance had been fortified by the marriage of Ahab’s daughter Athaliah to Jehoram, son of Jehoshaphat. Ahab proposed a campaign for the recovery of Ramoth-gilead in the northeast corner of Israel. When Jehoshaphat refused to believe the optimistic predictions of Ahab’s 400 prophets, a prophet of God named Micaiah was called, who foretold Ahab’s death (1 Kgs 22:5-28; 2 Chr 18:4-27).

For the battle with Syria, Jehoshaphat put on his royal robes. Ahab tried to disguise himself as an ordinary soldier, but a Syrian archer hit him between the joints of his armor. Ahab died that evening, and his troops gave up the battle. His chariot and armor were washed beside the pool of Samaria, where, as Elijah had prophesied, dogs licked Ahab’s blood. The fallen king was succeeded by his son Ahaziah (1 Kgs 22:29-40; 2 Chr 18:28-34).

Ahab’s Failure

The Bible’s evaluation of Ahab is based not on his accomplishments as a warrior or politician but on his failure to lead Israel in devotion to God. He was worse than all the previous kings of Israel (1 Kgs 16:28-30), and his marriage to Jezebel and the introduction of Baal worship “did more to provoke the Lord, the God of Israel, to anger than all the kings of Israel who were before him” (1 Kgs 16:31-33, rsv).

2. Kolaiah’s son, a notorious false prophet in the closing days of Judah. He was among the Jews taken to Babylon in the deportation of Jehoiachin (598–597 BC). This Ahab and his colleague Zedekiah were denounced by the prophet Jeremiah for lying in God’s name and for their sexual immorality (Jer 29:21-23).

Tyndale Open Bible Dictionary