Naboth Vineyard

One king lie down for im bed, im face turn to di wall, e refuse to chop. E get palaces, gold and army. So wetin dey make am frown like dis? One vegetable garden wey e no fit get.

Ahab na king of Israel, and one of im palaces dey for di town of Jezreel. Right beside am na one vineyard. Na one man wey dem dey call Naboth get am, and e don belong to im family for many generations. Ahab look across di wall and get one idea. Dat place go make perfect vegetable garden, e near di palace well well. So e make Naboth one offer. Give me your vineyard. I go give you better one for am, or if you prefer, I go pay you di money wey e worth. E sound fair. But Naboth answer, Di Lord forbid say I go give you di inheritance of my fathers.

Ahab go house with long face and vex. E lie down for im bed, turn im face away, and e no gree chop. Im wife, Queen Jezebel, come in. Wetin dey worry you like dis? Why you no gree chop? Ahab tell her. Naboth no gree sell, and Naboth no gree exchange. Jezebel look am. Na so you dey behave as king over Israel? Get up. Chop something. Make your heart happy. I go get Naboth vineyard for you myself.

And she do am, for di most cold way wey person fit imagine. She write letters for Ahab name, seal dem with di king own seal, and send dem to di elders and leaders of Naboth town. Di instructions dey make body cold. Announce one day of fasting, as if one disaster dey wey dem need to settle. Make Naboth sit for place of honour in front of everybody. Then bring two worthless men make dem sit opposite am and accuse am. You curse God and di king. Di leaders of di town do exactly as dem tell dem. Di false witnesses talk their lies. Dem carry Naboth go outside di town, and dem stone am till e die. And di word come back to di palace. E don happen. Get up, Jezebel tell Ahab. Take di vineyard. Naboth no dey alive again.

So Ahab go down to waka inside im new garden. But somebody dey wait am there. God don send Elijah. Dis na wetin Di Lord talk. You don kill man, and you still take im land? Ahab see am and talk, So you don find me, my enemy. I don find you, Elijah answer, because you don sell yourself to do wetin bad for di eye of Di Lord. Then Elijah announce God judgement. For di place where dogs lick Naboth blood, dogs go lick Ahab own blood. Dogs go chop Jezebel near di wall of Jezreel. Di whole royal house go fall. Di king fit think say na small quiet matter for small town. God don see every part of am.

And then something wey surprise happen. When Ahab hear dis words, e tear im cloth, wear rough sackcloth, and fast. E dey sleep inside sackcloth and e dey waka quietly, man wey don humble. And God talk to Elijah again. You don notice how Ahab don humble imself before me? Because e don humble imself, I no go bring di disaster for im lifetime. I go bring am for di days of im son. Ahab sorrow no cancel wetin dem do to Naboth. But e show say God dey notice, even for king wey don do big wrong, heart wey turn.

Why Naboth no just sell? No be stubbornness. For Israel, family land na gift from God, wey family dey hold for di generations wey dey come. Di law of Moses talk say dem no go sell land forever, because di land belong to God. Even when land change hand, e suppose return to di family for di year of jubilee. And di law demand at least two witnesses before dem fit condemn anybody to death, na why Jezebel arrange two. She use di outside form of di law to destroy one man wey di law suppose protect.

Naboth vineyard. You go find am for First Kings, chapter twenty-one. One king want something wey no be im own to take, and one queen show am how to take am. But God see di quiet injustice for dat small town, and e send person to talk. So see one question wey you go carry dey go. When you see say dem dey treat person unfairly, you go be di one wey go talk?