In the thirty-eighth year of King Azariah’s reign over Judah, Jeroboam’s son Zechariah became king over Israel. He reigned in Samaria ¹  for six months.

Samaria’s food supply ran out. ¹  They laid siege to it so long that ²  a donkey’s head was selling for eighty shekels of silver ³  and a quarter of a kab ⁴  of dove’s droppings ⁵  for five shekels of silver. ⁶ 

Samaria has not committed half the sins you have; you have done more abominable deeds than they did. ¹  You have made your sisters appear righteous with all the abominable things you have done.

Oholah was the name of the older and Oholibah ¹  the name of her younger sister. They became mine, and gave birth to sons and daughters. ²  Oholah is Samaria and Oholibah is Jerusalem.

In the thirty-eighth year of Asa’s reign over Judah, Omri’s son Ahab became king over Israel. Ahab son of Omri ruled over Israel for twenty-two years in Samaria. ¹ 

Now King Ben Hadad of Syria assembled all his army, along with thirty-two other kings with their horses and chariots. He marched against Samaria ¹  and besieged and attacked it. ² 

Ben Hadad sent another message to him, “May the gods judge me severely ¹  if there is enough dirt left in Samaria for my soldiers to scoop up in their hands.” ² 

Now the king of Israel and King Jehoshaphat of Judah were sitting on their respective thrones, ¹  dressed in their robes, at the threshing floor at the entrance of the gate of Samaria. ²  All the prophets were prophesying before them.

Ahaziah fell through a window lattice in his upper chamber in Samaria ¹  and was injured. He sent messengers with these orders, ²  “Go, ask ³  Baal Zebub, ⁴  the god of Ekron, if I will survive this injury.”

Then Elisha said to them, “This is not the right road or city. Follow me, and I will lead you to the man you’re looking for.” He led them to Samaria. ¹ 

The prophet told the king, “Two seahs of barley will sell for a shekel, and a seah of finely milled flour for a shekel; this will happen about this time tomorrow in the gate of Samaria.”

In the twenty-third year of the reign of Judah’s King Joash son of Ahaziah, Jehu’s son Jehoahaz became king over Israel. He reigned in Samaria ¹  for seventeen years.

He took away all the gold and silver, all the items found in the Lord’s temple and in the treasuries of the royal palace, and some hostages. ¹  Then he went back to Samaria. ²  (

In the fifteenth year of the reign of Judah’s King Amaziah, son of Joash, Jeroboam son of Joash became king over Israel. He reigned for forty-one years in Samaria. ¹ 

In the fourth year of King Hezekiah’s reign (it was the seventh year of the reign of Israel’s King Hoshea, son of Elah), King Shalmaneser of Assyria marched ¹  up against Samaria ²  and besieged it.

I will destroy Jerusalem the same way I did Samaria ¹  and the dynasty of Ahab. ²  I will wipe Jerusalem clean, just as one wipes a plate on both sides. ³ 

Josiah also removed all the shrines on the high places in the cities of Samaria. The kings of Israel had made them and angered the Lord. ¹  He did to them what he had done to the high place in Bethel. ² 

and after several years ¹  went down to visit ²  Ahab in Samaria. ³  Ahab slaughtered many sheep and cattle to honor Jehoshaphat and those who came with him. ⁴  He persuaded him to join in an attack ⁵  against Ramoth Gilead.

Now the troops Amaziah had dismissed and had not allowed to fight in the battle ¹  raided ²  the cities of Judah from Samaria ³  to Beth Horon. They killed ⁴  3,000 people and carried off a large amount of plunder.

The king sent the following response: “To Rehum the commander, Shimshai the scribe, and the rest of their colleagues who live in Samaria and other parts of Trans-Euphrates: Greetings! ¹