²⁵ Then Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz took again from Ben-hadad the son of Hazael the cities ^(A)that he had taken from Jehoahaz his father in war. ^(B)Three times Joash defeated him and recovered the cities of Israel.

¹⁸ And he said, “Take the arrows,” and he took them. And he said to the king of Israel, “Strike the ground with them.” And he struck three times and stopped. ¹⁹ Then ^(A)the man of God was angry with him and said, “You should have struck five or six times; then you would have struck down Syria until you had made an end of it, but now you will strike down Syria only ^(B)three times.”

³² In those days the Lord ^(A)began to cut off parts of Israel. ^(B)Hazael defeated them throughout the territory of Israel:

^25 (A)He restored the border of Israel ^(B)from Lebo-hamath as far as the Sea of ^(C)the Arabah, according to the word of the Lord, the God of Israel, which he spoke by his servant ^(D)Jonah the son of Amittai, the prophet, who was from ^(E)Gath-hepher.