1 Kings 12:16

12:16 When all Israel saw that the king refused to listen to them, the people answered the king, “We have no portion in David, no share in the son of Jesse!¹ Return to your homes, O Israel!² Now, look after your own dynasty, O David!”³ So Israel returned to their homes.⁴

1 Kings 12:28

12:28 After the king had consulted with his advisers,⁵ he made two golden calves. Then he said to the people,⁶ “It is too much trouble for you to go up to Jerusalem. Look, Israel, here are your gods who brought you up from the land of Egypt.”

1 Kings 13:2

13:2 With the authority of the Lord⁷ he cried out against the altar, “O altar, altar! This is what the Lord says, ‘Look, a son named Josiah will be born to the Davidic dynasty. He will sacrifice on you the priests of the high places who offer sacrifices on you. Human bones will be burned on you.’”⁸

1 Kings 14:5

14:5 But the Lord had told Ahijah, “Look, Jeroboam’s wife is coming to find out from you what will happen to her son, for he is sick. Tell her so-and-so.⁹ When she comes, she will be in a disguise.”

1 Kings 18:44

18:44 The seventh time the servant¹⁰ said, “Look, a small cloud, the size of the palm of a man’s hand, is rising up from the sea.” Elijah¹¹ then said, “Go and tell Ahab, ‘Hitch up the chariots and go down, so that the rain won’t overtake you.’”¹²

1 Kings 19:11

19:11 The Lord¹³ said, “Go out and stand on the mountain before the Lord. Look, the Lord is ready to pass by.”

A very powerful wind went before the Lord, digging into the mountain and causing landslides,¹⁴ but the Lord was not in the wind. After the windstorm there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake.

1 Kings 20:13

The Lord Delivers Israel

20:13 Now a prophet visited King Ahab of Israel and said, “This is what the Lord says, ‘Do you see this huge army?¹⁵ Look, I am going to hand it over to you this very day. Then you will know that I am the Lord.’”

1 Kings 20:31

20:31 His advisers¹⁶ said to him, “Look, we have heard that the kings of the Israelite dynasty are kind.¹⁷ Allow us to put sackcloth around our waists and ropes on our heads¹⁸ and surrender¹⁹ to the king of Israel. Maybe he will spare our lives.”

¹sn We have no portion in David; no share in the son of Jesse. Their point seems to be that they have no familial relationship with David that brings them any benefits or places upon them any obligations. They are being treated like outsiders.

²tn Heb “to your tents, Israel.” The word “return” is supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

³tn Heb “Now see your house, David.”

⁴tn Heb “went to their tents.”

⁵tn The words “with his advisers” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

⁶tn Heb “to them,” although this may be a corruption of “to the people.” Cf. the Old Greek translation.

⁷tn Heb “by the word of the Lord.”

⁸sn ‘Look…you.’ For the fulfillment of this prophecy see 2 Kgs 23:15-20.

⁹sn Tell her so-and-so. Certainly the Lord gave Ahijah a specific message to give to Jeroboam’s wife (see vv. 6-16), but the author of Kings here condenses the Lord’s message with the words “so-and-so.” For dramatic effect he prefers to have us hear the message from Ahijah’s lips as he speaks to the king’s wife.

¹⁰tn Heb “he”; the referent (the servant) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹¹tn Heb “he”; the referent (Elijah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹²tn Heb “so that the rain won’t restrain you.”

¹³tn Heb “he”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹⁴tn Heb “tearing away the mountains and breaking the cliffs” (or perhaps, “breaking the stones”).

¹⁵tn Heb “this great horde.”

¹⁶tn Or “servants.”

¹⁷tn Or “merciful.” The word used here often means “devoted” or “loyal.” Perhaps the idea is that the Israelite kings are willing to make treaties with other kings.

¹⁸sn Sackcloth was worn as a sign of sorrow and repentance. The precise significance of the ropes on the head is uncertain, but it probably was a sign of submission. These actions were comparable to raising a white flag on the battlefield or throwing in the towel in a boxing match.

¹⁹tn Heb “go out.”