Tibni

Tibni, son of Ginath, was the rival claimant to the throne of Israel who contested Omri's succession after the brief reign and suicide of Zimri (1 Kings 16:21-22). His name means straw or hay. A significant portion of the people supported Tibni while others followed Omri, creating a divided kingdom within the northern state that lasted several years before Tibni died and Omri emerged as sole ruler.

Scripture records nothing further about Tibni's character, policies, or the nature of his support base. His death ("then Tibni died, and Omri reigned") is recorded without elaboration. He represents a period of acute political instability in the northern kingdom following the military coup cycle — Baasha, Elah, Zimri, and then the Tibni-Omri division — that characterized Israel's early decades of monarchy.