9. This is what the letter said: “Announce that there will be a day of fasting when the people will eat nothing. Then call all the people of the town together for a meeting. At the meeting we will talk about Naboth.
10. Find some men who will tell lies about Naboth. They should say that they heard Naboth speak against the king and against God. Then take Naboth out of the city and kill him with stones.”
11. So the elders and important men of Jezreel obeyed the command.
12. The leaders announced that there would be a day when all the people would eat nothing. On that day they called all the people together for a meeting. They put Naboth in a special place before the people.
13. Then two men told the people that they heard Naboth speak against God and the king. So the people carried Naboth out of the city and killed him with stones.
14. Then the leaders sent a message to Jezebel that said: “Naboth has been killed.”
15. When Jezebel heard this, she said to Ahab, “Naboth is dead. Now you can go and take the vineyard that you wanted.”
16. So Ahab went to the vineyard and took it for his own.
17. Then the Lord spoke to Elijah, the prophet from Tishbe:
18. “Go to King Ahab in Samaria. He will be at Naboth’s vineyard. He is there to take the vineyard as his own.
19. Tell Ahab that I, the Lord, say to him, ‘Ahab! You killed the man Naboth and now you are taking his land. So I, the Lord, tell you this: Where the dogs licked up the blood of Naboth, they will lick up your blood as well.’”
20. So Elijah went to Ahab. When Ahab saw him, he said, “Well, my enemy has found me again!” Elijah answered, “Yes, I found you, because you have again sold yourself out to do what the Lord says is evil.
21. So this is what he says to you: ‘I will make something bad happen to you. I will kill you and every male in your family.
22. I will destroy your family just as I destroyed the families of King Jeroboam son of Nebat and King Baasha. I will do this to you because you have made me angry and you have caused the Israelites to sin.’
23. The Lord also says this about your wife Jezebel: ‘Dogs will eat the body of Jezebel by the wall of the city of Jezreel.
24. As for the family of Ahab, whoever dies in the city will be eaten by dogs, and whoever dies in the fields will be eaten by birds.’”