23. Omri became king of Israel. It was in the 31st year that Asa was king of Judah. Omri ruled for 12 years. He ruled in Tirzah for six of those years.
24. He bought the hill of Samaria from Shemer. He weighed out 150 pounds of silver for it. Then he built a city on the hill. He called it Samaria. He named it after Shemer. Shemer had owned the hill before him.
25. But Omri did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. He sinned more than all of the kings who had ruled before him.
26. He lived the way Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, had lived. He sinned as Jeroboam had sinned. Jeroboam had also caused Israel to commit the same sins. Israel made the Lord very angry. They did it by worshiping worthless statues of gods. The Lord is the God of Israel.
27. The other events of Omri's rule are written down. Everything he did and the things he accomplished are written down. All of those things are written in the official records of the kings of Israel.
28. Omri joined the members of his family who had already died. His body was buried in Samaria. His son Ahab became the next king after him.
29. Ahab became king of Israel. It was in the 38th year that Asa was king of Judah. Ahab ruled over Israel in Samaria for 22 years. He was the son of Omri.
30. Ahab, the son of Omri, did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. He did more evil things than any of the kings who had ruled before him.
31. He thought it was only a small thing to commit the sins Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, had committed. Ahab also got married to Jezebel. She was Ethbaal's daughter. Ethbaal was king of the people of Sidon. Ahab began to serve the god Baal and worship him.
32. He set up an altar to honor Baal. He set it up in the temple of Baal that he built in Samaria.
33. Ahab also made a pole that was used to worship the goddess Asherah. He made the Lord very angry. He did more to make him angry than all of the kings of Israel had done before him. The Lord is the God of Israel.