2 Kings 7-10

New American Standard Bible

Elisha Promises Food

7 Then Elisha said, “Listen to the word of the Lord; this is what the Lord says: ‘^(A)About this time tomorrow a ^[a]measure of fine flour will be sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, at the gate of Samaria.’” ^2 (B)The royal officer on whose hand the king was leaning responded to the man of God and said, “^(C)Even if the Lord were to make ^[b]windows in heaven, could this thing happen?” Then he said, “Behold, you are going to see it with your own eyes, but you will not eat ^[c]any of it.”

Four Men with Leprosy Report Arameans’ Flight

³ Now there were four ^(D)leprous men at the entrance of the gate; and they said to one another, “Why are we sitting here until we die? ⁴ If we say, ‘We will enter the city,’ then the famine is in the city and we will die there; but if we sit here, we will also die. Now then come, and let’s go over to ^(E)the camp of the Arameans. If they spare us, we will live; and if they kill us, then we will die.” ⁵ So they got up at twilight to go to the camp of the Arameans; when they came to the outskirts of the camp of the Arameans, behold, there was no one there. ⁶ For ^(F)the Lord had made the army of the Arameans hear a sound of chariots, a sound of horses, that is, the sound of a great army; and they said to one another, “Behold, the king of Israel has hired ^(G)the kings of the Hittites and ^(H)the kings of the Egyptians against us, to ^[d]attack us!” ⁷ So they ^(I)got up and fled at twilight, and abandoned their tents, their horses, and their donkeys—indeed the camp itself, just as it was; and they fled for their lives. ⁸ When these men with leprosy came to the outskirts of the camp, they entered one tent and ate and drank, and ^(J)carried from there silver, gold, and clothes, and they went and hid them; then they returned and entered another tent, and carried valuables from there also, and went and hid them.

⁹ Then they said to one another, “We are not doing the right thing. This day is a day of good news, but we are keeping silent about it; if we wait until the morning light, punishment will ^[e]overtake us. Now then come, let’s go and inform the king’s household.” ¹⁰ So they came and called to the gatekeepers of the city, and told them, saying, “We came to the camp of the Arameans, and behold, there was no one there, nor a human voice; only the horses tied and the donkeys tied, and the tents just as they were.” ¹¹ And the gatekeepers called and announced it inside the king’s house. ¹² Then the king got up in the night and said to his servants, “I will now tell you what the Arameans have done to us. They know that ^(K)we are hungry; so they have left the camp ^(L)to hide themselves in the field, saying, ‘When they come out of the city, we will capture them alive and get into the city.’” ¹³ One of his servants responded and said, “Please, have some men take five of the horses that remain, which are left ^[f]in the city. Behold, they will be in any case like all the multitude of Israel who are left in it; behold, they will be like all the multitude of Israel who have already perished, so let us send them and see.” ¹⁴ Therefore they took two chariots with horses, and the king sent them after the army of the Arameans, saying, “Go and see.”

The Promise Fulfilled

¹⁵ They went after them to the Jordan, and behold, all the way was full of clothes and equipment which the Arameans had thrown away when they fled in a hurry. Then the messengers returned and informed the king.

¹⁶ So the people went out and plundered the camp of the Arameans. Then a ^[g]measure of fine flour was sold for a shekel, and two ^[h]measures of barley for a shekel, ^(M)in accordance with the word of the Lord. ¹⁷ Now the king appointed ^(N)the royal officer on whose hand he leaned ^[i]to be in charge of the gate; but the people trampled on him at the gate, and he died, just as the man of God had said, ^(O)who spoke when the king came down to him. ¹⁸ So it happened just as the man of God had spoken to the king, saying, “^(P)Two ^[j]measures of barley for a shekel and a ^[k]measure of fine flour for a shekel, will be sold about this time tomorrow at the gate of Samaria.” ¹⁹ At that time the royal officer had responded to the man of God and said, “Now even if ^(Q)the Lord were to make windows in heaven, could such a thing as this happen?” And he had said, “Behold, you are going to see it with your own eyes, but you will not eat ^[l]any of it.” ²⁰ And this is what happened to him, for the people trampled on him at the gate and he died.

Jehoram Restores the Shunammite’s Land

8 Now ^(R)Elisha spoke to the woman whose son he had restored to life, saying, “Arise and go ^[m]with your household, and live wherever you can live; for the ^(S)Lord has called for a famine, and ^(T)it will indeed come on the land for seven years.” ² So the woman arose and acted in accordance with the word of the man of God: she went with her household and resided in the land of the Philistines for seven years. ³ Then at the end of seven years, the woman returned from the land of the Philistines; and she went to ^[n]appeal to the king for her house and for her field. ⁴ Now the king was speaking with ^(U)Gehazi, the servant of the man of God, saying, “Please report to me all the great things that Elisha has done.” ⁵ And as he was reporting to the king ^(V)how he had restored to life the one who was dead, behold, the woman whose son he had restored to life ^[o]appealed to the king for her house and for her field. And Gehazi said, “My lord the king, this is the woman and this is her son, whom Elisha restored to life.” ⁶ When the king asked the woman, she told everything to him. So the king appointed an officer for her, saying, “Restore all that was hers and all the produce of the field from the day that she left the land even until now.”

Elisha Predicts Evil from Hazael

⁷ Then Elisha came to ^(W)Damascus. Now ^(X)Ben-hadad, the king of Aram, was sick, and it was told to him, saying, “^(Y)The man of God has come here.” ⁸ And the king said to ^(Z)Hazael, “^(AA)Take a gift in your hand and go to meet the man of God, and ^(AB)inquire of the Lord by him, saying, ‘Will I recover from this sickness?’” ⁹ So Hazael went to meet him and took a gift in his hand, even every kind of good thing of Damascus, forty camels’ loads; and he came and stood before him and said, “^(AC)Your son Ben-hadad king of Aram has sent me to you, saying, ‘Will I recover from this sickness?’” ¹⁰ Then Elisha said to him, “^(AD)Go, say to him, ‘You will certainly recover’; but the ^(AE)Lord has shown me that he will certainly die.” ¹¹ And he ^[p]stared steadily at him ^(AF)until Hazael was embarrassed, and then ^(AG)the man of God wept. ¹² And Hazael said, “Why is my lord weeping?” And he ^[q]answered, “Because ^(AH)I know the evil that you will do to the sons of Israel: you will set their fortified cities on fire, you will kill their young men with the sword, their little ones you ^(AI)will smash to pieces, and you will rip up their pregnant women.” ¹³ Then Hazael said, “But what is your servant—^(AJ)a lowly dog—that he could do this great thing?” And Elisha ^[r]answered, “^(AK)The Lord has shown me that you will be king over Aram.” ¹⁴ So he left Elisha and came to his master, who said to him, “What did Elisha say to you?” And he ^[s]answered, “He told me that ^(AL)you would certainly recover.” ¹⁵ But on the following day, he took the ^[t]cover and dipped it in water, and spread it over his face, ^(AM)so that he died. And Hazael became king in his place.

Another Jehoram Reigns in Judah

¹⁶ Now in the fifth year of ^(AN)Joram the son of Ahab king of Israel, when Jehoshaphat was the king of Judah, Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat king of Judah became king. ¹⁷ He was ^(AO)thirty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned for eight years in Jerusalem. ¹⁸ He walked in the way of the kings of Israel, just as the house of Ahab had done, for ^(AP)Ahab’s daughter was his wife; and he did evil in the sight of the Lord. ¹⁹ However, the Lord did not want to destroy Judah, for the sake of David His servant, ^(AQ)since He had ^[u]promised him to give him a ^[v]lamp through his sons always.

²⁰ In his days ^(AR)Edom broke away from the ^[w]rule of Judah, and appointed a king over themselves. ²¹ Then Joram crossed over to Zair, and all his chariots with him. And he got up at night and struck the Edomites who had surrounded him and the captains of the chariots; ^(AS)but ^[x]his army fled to their tents. ^22 (AT)So Edom has broken away from ^[y]Judah to this day. Then ^(AU)Libnah broke away at the same time. ²³ Now the rest of the acts of Joram and everything that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah?

Ahaziah Succeeds Jehoram in Judah

²⁴ So Joram ^[z]lay down with his fathers and ^(AV)was buried with his fathers in the city of David; and his son ^(AW)Ahaziah became king in his place.

^25 (AX)In the twelfth year of Joram the son of Ahab king of Israel, Ahaziah the son of Jehoram king of Judah began to reign. ^26 (AY)Ahaziah was twenty-two years old when he became king, and he reigned for one year in Jerusalem. And his mother’s name was Athaliah the granddaughter of Omri king of Israel. ^27 (AZ)He walked in the way of the house of Ahab and did evil in the sight of the Lord, like the house of Ahab, because he was a son-in-law of the house of Ahab.

²⁸ Then he went with Joram the son of Ahab to war against ^(BA)Hazael king of Aram at ^(BB)Ramoth-gilead, and the Arameans ^[aa]wounded Joram. ²⁹ So ^(BC)King Joram returned to have himself healed in Jezreel of the wounds which the Arameans had ^[ab]inflicted on him at ^(BD)Ramah when he fought against Hazael king of Aram. Then ^(BE)Ahaziah the son of Jehoram king of Judah went down to see Joram the son of Ahab in Jezreel because he was sick.

Jehu Reigns over Israel

9 Now Elisha the prophet summoned one of ^(BF)the sons of the prophets and said to him, “^[ac](BG)Get ready and ^(BH)take this flask of oil in your hand, and go to ^(BI)Ramoth-gilead. ² When you arrive there, then look there for ^(BJ)Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi, and go in and ^(BK)have him get up from among his brothers, and bring him to an inner room. ³ Then take the flask of oil and pour it on his head, and say, ‘This is what the Lord says: “^(BL)I have anointed you king over Israel.”’ Then open the door and flee, and do not wait.”

⁴ So ^(BM)the young man, the servant of the prophet, went to Ramoth-gilead. ⁵ When he arrived, behold, the commanders of the army were sitting, and he said, “I have a word for you, commander.” And Jehu said, “^[ad]For which one of us?” And he said, “For you, commander.” ⁶ He then got up and went into the house, and the prophet’s servant poured the oil on his head and said to him, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel says: ‘^(BN)I have anointed you king over the people of the Lord, over Israel. ⁷ And you shall strike the house of Ahab your master, ^(BO)so that I may avenge ^(BP)the blood of My servants the prophets, and the blood of all the servants of the Lord, ^(BQ)at the hand of Jezebel. ⁸ For the entire house of Ahab shall perish, and ^(BR)I will eliminate from Ahab ^(BS)every male person ^(BT)both ^[ae]slave and free in Israel. ^9 (BU)I will make the house of Ahab like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and ^(BV)like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah. ^10 (BW)The dogs will eat Jezebel in the territory of Jezreel, and no one will bury her.’” Then he opened the door and fled.

¹¹ Now Jehu went out to the servants of his master, and one said to him, “^(BX)Is everything well? Why did this ^(BY)crazy fellow come to you?” And he said to them, “You know very well the man and his talk.” ¹² And they said, “It is a lie; tell us now.” And he said, “Such and such he said to me, saying, ‘This is what the Lord says: “I have anointed you king over Israel.”’” ¹³ Then ^(BZ)they hurried, and each man took his garment and put it under him on the bare steps, and ^(CA)blew the trumpet, saying, “Jehu is king!”

Jehu Assassinates Jehoram (Joram)

¹⁴ So Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi conspired against Joram. ^(CB)Now Joram ^[af]with all Israel was ^[ag]defending Ramoth-gilead against Hazael king of Aram, ¹⁵ but ^(CC)King ^[ah]Joram had returned to Jezreel to have himself healed of the wounds which the Arameans had ^[ai]inflicted on him when he fought Hazael king of Aram. So Jehu said to the other men, “If this is your ^[aj]intent, then let no ^[ak]one escape from the city to go tell about it in Jezreel.” ¹⁶ Then Jehu rode in a chariot and went to Jezreel, since Joram was lying there recovering. ^(CD)And Ahaziah the king of Judah had come down to see Joram.

¹⁷ Now the watchman was standing on the tower in Jezreel and he saw the ^[al]company of Jehu as he came, and he said, “I see a ^[am]company.” And ^[an]Joram said, “Take a horseman and send him to meet them and have him ^[ao]ask, ‘Is your intention peace?’” ¹⁸ So a horseman went to meet him and said, “This is what the king says: ‘Is your intention peace?’” But Jehu said, “^[ap](CE)How is peace any business of yours? Turn and follow me.” And the watchman ^[aq]reported, “The messenger came to them, but he did not return.” ¹⁹ Then he sent a second horseman, and he came to them and said, “This is what the king says: ‘Is your intention peace?’” And Jehu ^[ar]answered, “^[as]How is peace any business of yours? Turn and follow me.” ²⁰ And the watchman ^[at]reported, “He came up to them, but he did not return; and ^(CF)the ^[au]driving is like the driving of ^(CG)Jehu the son of Nimshi, for he drives furiously.”

²¹ Then ^[av]Joram said, “^[aw]Get ready.” And they ^[ax]made his chariot ready. ^(CH)Then ^[ay]Joram king of Israel and Ahaziah king of Judah went out, each in his chariot, and they went out to meet Jehu and found him on the ^[az](CI)property of Naboth the Jezreelite. ²² When ^[ba]Joram saw Jehu, he said, “Is your intention peace, Jehu?” And he ^[bb]answered, “What ‘peace,’ ^(CJ)so long as your mother Jezebel’s acts of prostitution and witchcraft are so many?” ²³ So ^[bc]Joram ^[bd]turned back and fled, and he said to Ahaziah, “^(CK)There is treachery, Ahaziah!” ²⁴ Then ^(CL)Jehu ^[be]drew his bow with his full strength and ^[bf]shot ^[bg]Joram between his arms; and the arrow went ^[bh]through his heart, and he sank in his chariot. ²⁵ And Jehu said to Bidkar his officer, “Pick him up and ^(CM)throw him on the ^[bi]property of the field of Naboth the Jezreelite; for remember, when ^[bj]you and I were riding together after his father Ahab, that the ^(CN)Lord brought this ^(CO)pronouncement against him: ²⁶ ‘^(CP)I have certainly seen yesterday the blood of Naboth and the blood of his sons,’ declares the Lord, ‘and ^(CQ)I will repay you on this ^[bk]property,’ declares the Lord. Now then, pick him up and throw him on the ^[bl]property, in accordance with the word of the Lord.”

Jehu Assassinates Ahaziah

^27 (CR)When Ahaziah the king of Judah saw this, he fled by way of the garden house. But Jehu pursued him and said, “^[bm]Shoot him too, in the chariot.” So they shot him at the ascent of Gur, which is at ^(CS)Ibleam. But he fled to Megiddo and died there. ^28 (CT)Then his servants carried him in a chariot to Jerusalem, and buried him in his grave with his fathers in the city of David.

²⁹ Now in ^(CU)the eleventh year of Joram, the son of Ahab, Ahaziah became king over Judah.

³⁰ When Jehu came to Jezreel, Jezebel heard about it, and ^(CV)she put makeup on her eyes and adorned her head, and looked down through the window. ³¹ As Jehu entered the gate, she said, “^(CW)Is your intention peace, Zimri, his master’s murderer?” ³² Then he raised his face toward the window and said, “Who is with me, who?” And two or three officials looked down at him.

Jezebel Is Killed

³³ Then he said, “Throw her down.” So they threw her down, and some of her blood spattered on the wall and on the horses, and he trampled her underfoot. ³⁴ When he came in, he ate and drank; and he said, “See now to ^(CX)this cursed woman and bury her, for ^(CY)she is a king’s daughter.” ³⁵ So they went to bury her, but they found nothing of her except the skull, the feet, and the palms of her hands. ³⁶ Therefore they returned and informed him. And he said, “This is the word of the Lord, which He spoke by His servant Elijah the Tishbite, saying, ‘^(CZ)On the ^[bn]property of Jezreel the dogs shall eat the flesh of Jezebel; ³⁷ and ^(DA)the corpse of Jezebel will be like dung on the face of the field in the ^[bo]property of Jezreel, so they cannot say, “This is Jezebel.”’”

Judgment upon Ahab’s House

10 Now Ahab had seventy sons in ^(DB)Samaria. And Jehu wrote letters and sent them to Samaria, to the officials of Jezreel, the elders, and to the guardians of the children of Ahab, saying, ² “And now, ^(DC)when this letter comes to you, since your master’s sons are with you, ^[bp]as well as the chariots and horses, and a fortified city and the weapons, ³ select the best and most capable of your master’s sons and seat him on his father’s throne, and fight for your master’s house.” ⁴ But they feared greatly and said, “Behold, ^(DD)the two kings did not stand firm before him; how then can we stand?” ⁵ And the one who was in charge of the household, and the one who was in charge of the city, and the elders, and the guardians of the children, sent word to Jehu, saying, “^(DE)We are your servants, and everything that you tell us we will do. We will not appoint any man king; do what is good in your sight.” ⁶ Then he wrote them a letter a second time, saying, “If you are on my side, and will listen to my voice, take the heads of the men, your master’s sons, and come to me at Jezreel about this time tomorrow.” Now the king’s sons, seventy men, were with the great people of the city, who were raising them. ⁷ When the letter came to them, they took the king’s sons and ^(DF)slaughtered them, seventy men, and put their heads in baskets, and sent them to him at Jezreel. ⁸ When the messenger came and informed him, saying, “They have brought the heads of the king’s sons,” he said, “Put them in two heaps at the entrance of the gate until morning.” ⁹ Now in the morning he went out and stood and said to all the people, “You are ^[bq]innocent; behold, ^(DG)I conspired against my master and killed him, but ^(DH)who ^[br]killed all these? ¹⁰ Know then that ^(DI)nothing of the word of the Lord, which the Lord spoke concerning the house of Ahab, shall ^[bs]fall to the earth, for the Lord has done ^(DJ)what He spoke ^[bt]through His servant Elijah.” ¹¹ So Jehu ^[bu]killed all who remained of the house of Ahab in ^(DK)Jezreel, and all his great men, his acquaintances, and his priests, until he left him without a survivor.

¹² Then he set out and ^[bv]went to Samaria. On the way while he was at ^[bw]Beth-eked of the shepherds, ^13 (DL)Jehu ^[bx]encountered the relatives of Ahaziah king of Judah, and he said, “Who are you?” And they ^[by]answered, “We are the relatives of Ahaziah; and we have come down to greet the sons of the king and the sons of the queen mother.” ¹⁴ Then he said, “Take them alive.” So they took them alive, and slaughtered them at the pit of Beth-eked, forty-two men; and he left none of them.

¹⁵ Now when he had gone from there, he ^[bz]encountered ^(DM)Jehonadab the son of ^(DN)Rechab coming to meet him; and he ^[ca]greeted him and said to him, “Is your heart right, just as my heart is with your heart?” And Jehonadab ^[cb]answered, “It is.” Jehu said, “If it is, ^(DO)give me your hand.” And he gave him his hand, and he pulled him up to him into the chariot. ¹⁶ Then he said, “Come with me and ^(DP)see my zeal for the Lord.” So ^[cc]he had him ride in his chariot. ¹⁷ When he came to Samaria, ^(DQ)he ^[cd]killed all who remained to Ahab in Samaria, until he had eliminated ^[ce]them, ^(DR)in accordance with the word of the Lord which He spoke to Elijah.

Jehu Destroys Baal Worshipers

¹⁸ Then Jehu gathered all the people and said to them, “^(DS)Ahab served Baal a little; Jehu will serve him much. ¹⁹ Now, ^(DT)summon to me all the prophets of Baal, all his worshipers and all his priests; let no one go missing, because I have a great sacrifice for Baal; whoever is missing shall not live.” But Jehu did it in deception, in order to eliminate the worshipers of Baal. ²⁰ And Jehu said, “^(DU)Proclaim a holy assembly for Baal.” And ^(DV)they proclaimed it. ²¹ Then Jehu sent word ^[cf]throughout Israel, and all the worshipers of Baal came, so that there was not a person left who did not come. And when they entered ^(DW)the house of Baal, the house of Baal was filled from one end to the other. ²² And he said to the one who was ^[cg]in charge of the wardrobe, “Bring out garments for all the worshipers of Baal.” So he brought out the garments for them. ²³ Then Jehu entered the house of Baal with Jehonadab the son of Rechab; and he said to the worshipers of Baal, “Search carefully and see to it that there is here with you none of the servants of the Lord, but only the worshipers of Baal.” ²⁴ Then they entered to ^[ch]offer sacrifices and burnt offerings.

Now Jehu had stationed for himself eighty men outside, and he had said, “^(DX)The one who allows any of the men whom I bring into your hands to escape ^[ci]shall give up his life in exchange.”

²⁵ Then it came about, as soon as he had finished ^[cj]offering the burnt offering, that Jehu said to the ^[ck](DY)guard and to the royal officers, “^(DZ)Go in, ^[cl]kill them; let none come out.” So they ^[cm]killed them with the edge of the sword; and the ^[cn]guard and the royal officers threw them out, and went to the ^[co]sanctuary of the house of Baal. ²⁶ They brought out the ^(EA)memorial stones of the house of Baal and burned them. ²⁷ They also tore down the memorial stone of Baal and tore down the house of Baal, and ^(EB)made it a latrine as it is to this day.

²⁸ So Jehu eradicated Baal from Israel. ²⁹ However, ^(EC)as for the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, into which he misled Israel, from these Jehu did not desist, including the ^(ED)golden calves that were at Bethel and at Dan. ³⁰ Yet the Lord said to Jehu, “Because you have done well in performing what is right in My eyes, and have done to the house of Ahab in accordance with everything that was in My heart, ^(EE)your sons to the fourth generation shall sit on the throne of Israel.” ³¹ But Jehu ^(EF)was not careful to walk in the Law of the Lord, the God of Israel, with all his heart; ^(EG)he did not desist from the sins of Jeroboam, into which he misled Israel.

³² In those days the ^(EH)Lord began to cut off pieces from Israel; and ^(EI)Hazael ^[cp]defeated them throughout the territory of Israel: ³³ from the Jordan eastward, all the land of Gilead, the Gadites, the Reubenites, and the Manassites; from ^(EJ)Aroer, which is by the Valley of the Arnon, that is, ^(EK)Gilead and Bashan.

Jehoahaz Succeeds Jehu

³⁴ Now as for the rest of the acts of Jehu and everything that he did and all his might, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? ³⁵ And Jehu ^[cq]lay down with his fathers, and they buried him in Samaria. And his son Jehoahaz became king in his place. ³⁶ So the ^[cr]time which Jehu reigned over Israel in Samaria was twenty-eight years.