(Please read the passage above before reading the commentary.)
My mom and dad lived in the same house for over fifty years and raised all of us kids in that house. They finally sold it and moved into a smaller unit. For us, as for them, it was a time of grieving for the memories of that house. We siblings still drive past the house every now and then.
Naboth had a vineyard on his family estate. He and his siblings, his parents and grandparents and their grandparents had lived on the estate for many generations. Naboth felt that to ask him to move was like asking him to get a whole new list of ancestors. He would not sell or trade for a new place.
Jezebel was a woman quite capable of taking care of herself. She was also practical in solving problems. She could take care of the problem with Naboth and present his vineyard to King Ahab.
The queen arranged a rigged court to get rid of Naboth. The king silently agreed to it. The town officials signed onto it. It seems that corruption was rampant in the community and, perhaps, the nation.
It was not that Naboth was forbidden to sell it. It was not that the King had tried to cheat him. It was that Naboth was not respected.That is the way it is with all of us when we do not respect others. When are we like the king, his wife, the judges, or the townspeople? When are we like Naboth? If we cannot identify with Naboth’s fate, we may not respect others enough to prevent them having the same fate.