1 Kings 16:8-14--Elah Reigns in Israel

1 Kings 16:8-14
English Standard Version

Elah Reigns in Israel
8 In the twenty-sixth year of Asa king of Judah, Elah the son of Baasha began to reign over Israel in Tirzah, and he reigned two years. 9 But his servant Zimri, commander of half his chariots, conspired against him. When he was at Tirzah, drinking himself drunk in the house of Arza, who was over the household in Tirzah, 10 Zimri came in and struck him down and killed him, in the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, and reigned in his place.

​11 When he began to reign, as soon as he had seated himself on his throne, he struck down all the house of Baasha. He did not leave him a single male of his relatives or his friends. 12 Thus Zimri destroyed all the house of Baasha, according to the word of the LORD, which he spoke against Baasha by Jehu the prophet, 13 for all the sins of Baasha and the sins of Elah his son, which they sinned and which they made Israel to sin, provoking the LORD God of Israel to anger with their idols. 14 Now the rest of the acts of Elah and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?

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We're making our way through the kings of the northern kingdom of Israel that will get us to King Ahab and the time of the prophet Elijah.  Remember that Asa, king of Judah, was a good king that ruled for a long time, so all these kings of Israel have their short time on the throne during his reign over Judah.  The next king of Israel, Elah, started his reign in the twenty-sixth year of King Asa, and was the son of Baasha, the last king of Israel.  Elah reigned for two years over Israel in the city of Tirzah.  (Remember that last time the house of Baasha was cursed and would become like the house of Jeroboam).

Elah apparently had a problem with drunkenness so that one night when he was drinking to excess in the house of Arza (who was over the household in Tirzah), Zimri, the commander of half of Elah's chariots, came and struck him down and killed him.  This occurred in the twenty-seventh year of King Asa of Judah, and Zimri reigned in the place of Elah, the son of Baasha.

As soon as Zimri sat down to reign, he killed all the household of Baasha so that not a male remained in his family or the family of any of his friends.  This fulfilled the curse that the LORD had spoken against Baasha through the prophet Jehu.  This was judgment for everything done by Baasha and Elah who walked in the footsteps of his father, and both of them walked in the footsteps of Jeroboam, bother personally worshiping false gods and leading Israel into the worship of false gods, and thus provoking the LORD to anger with their idols.  The rest of the acts of Elah, as short as they may be, are recorded for us in the book of Chronicles, and we are encouraged by the author to read more about him there if we want to know more of the story, however, the author of the book of Kings is trying to make his way quickly to the time of Elijah, and so he will say very little about the next few kings of Israel (Zimri and Omri) before getting to the time of King Ahab.  The narrative will change and become more "historical narrative" at that point, so hang on if you feel like this has read too much like vital records and genealogies as the tone is about to shift in another chapter.