The Meaning of 1 Kings 21:5 Explained

1 Kings 21:5

KJV: But Jezebel his wife came to him, and said unto him, Why is thy spirit so sad, that thou eatest no bread?

YLT: And Jezebel his wife cometh in unto him, and speaketh unto him, 'What is this? -- thy spirit sulky, and thou art not eating bread!'

Darby: And Jezebel his wife came to him, and said to him, Why is thy spirit sullen, and thou eatest no bread?

ASV: But Jezebel his wife came to him, and said unto him, Why is thy spirit so sad, that thou eatest no bread?

KJV Reverse Interlinear

But Jezebel  his wife  came  to him, and said  unto him, Why is thy spirit  so sad,  that thou eatest  no bread? 

What does 1 Kings 21:5 Mean?

Context Summary

1 Kings 21:1-29 - Breaking Three Commandments
From a worldly point of view Naboth might have done a good stroke of business by selling his estate to. Ahab. A royal price and assured favor might have been his-but he had a conscience! Above the persuasive tones of the monarch's offer sounded the voice of God: "The land shall not be sold for ever, for the land is mine." See Leviticus 25:23; Numbers 36:7; Ezekiel 46:18.
Ahab knew perfectly well that Jezebel could not give him the property of another except by foul means, but he took pains not to inquire. Though the direct orders for Naboth's death did not come from him, yet, by his silence, he was an accomplice and an accessory; and divine justice penetrates all such specious excuses. God holds us responsible for wrongs which we do not arrest, though we have the power. The crime was blacker because of the pretext of religion, as suggested by a fast. See also 2 Kings 9:26. The blood of murdered innocence cries to God, and his requital, though delayed, is inevitable. See Revelation 6:9-10. [source]

Chapter Summary: 1 Kings 21

1  Ahab being denied Naboth's vineyard, is grieved
5  Jezebel writing letters against Naboth, he is condemned of blasphemy
15  Ahab take possession of the vineyard
17  Elijah denounces judgments against Ahab and Jezebel
25  Wicked Ahab repenting, God defers the judgment

What do the individual words in 1 Kings 21:5 mean?

But came to him Jezebel his wife and said to him what [is] this [that] your spirit [is] so sullen that no you eat food
וַתָּבֹ֥א אֵלָ֖יו אִיזֶ֣בֶל אִשְׁתּ֑וֹ וַתְּדַבֵּ֣ר אֵלָ֗יו מַה־ זֶּה֙ רוּחֲךָ֣ סָרָ֔ה וְאֵינְךָ֖ אֹכֵ֥ל ؟ לָֽחֶם

וַתָּבֹ֥א  But  came 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: בֹּוא 
Sense: to go in, enter, come, go, come in.
אֵלָ֖יו  to  him 
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine singular
Root: אֶל  
Sense: to, toward, unto (of motion).
אִיזֶ֣בֶל  Jezebel 
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: אִיזֶבֶל  
Sense: queen of Israel, wife of Ahab, daughter of Ethbaal.
אִשְׁתּ֑וֹ  his  wife 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct, third person masculine singular
Root: אִשָּׁה  
Sense: woman, wife, female.
וַתְּדַבֵּ֣ר  and  said 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Piel, Consecutive imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: דָּבַר 
Sense: to speak, declare, converse, command, promise, warn, threaten, sing.
אֵלָ֗יו  to  him 
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine singular
Root: אֶל  
Sense: to, toward, unto (of motion).
זֶּה֙  [is]  this  [that] 
Parse: Pronoun, masculine singular
Root: זֶה  
Sense: this, this one, here, which, this … that, the one … the other, another, such.
רוּחֲךָ֣  your  spirit 
Parse: Noun, common singular construct, second person masculine singular
Root: רוּחַ  
Sense: wind, breath, mind, spirit.
סָרָ֔ה  [is]  so  sullen 
Parse: Adjective, feminine singular
Root: סַר  
Sense: stubborn, implacable, rebellious, resentful, sullen.
וְאֵינְךָ֖  that  no 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Adverb, second person masculine singular
Root: אַיִן 
Sense: nothing, not, nought n.
אֹכֵ֥ל  you  eat 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine singular
Root: אָכַל  
Sense: to eat, devour, burn up, feed.
؟ לָֽחֶם  food 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: לֶחֶם  
Sense: bread, food, grain.