However, Elisha said to King Joram of Israel, “What do we have in common? Go to the prophets of your father and your mother!” But the king of Israel replied, “No, because it is the class="small-caps" >Lord who has summoned these three kings to hand them over to Moab.”

Elisha responded, “By the life of the class="small-caps" >Lord of Armies, before whom I stand: If I did not have respect for King Jehoshaphat of Judah, I wouldn’t look at you; I would not take notice of you.

Now, bring me a musician.” While the musician played, the class="small-caps" >Lord’s hand came on Elisha.

For the class="small-caps" >Lord says, ‘You will not see wind or rain, but the wadi will be filled with water, and you will drink—you and your cattle and your animals.’

This is easy in the class="small-caps" >Lord’s sight. He will also hand Moab over to you.

Then you will attack every fortified city and every choice city. You will cut down every good tree and stop up every spring. You will ruin every good piece of land with stones.”

About the time for the grain offering the next morning, water suddenly came from the direction of Edom and filled the land.

All Moab had heard that the kings had come up to fight against them. So all who could bear arms, from the youngest to the oldest, were summoned and took their stand at the border.

When they got up early in the morning, the sun was shining on the water, and the Moabites saw that the water across from them was red like blood.

“This is blood!” they exclaimed. “The kings have crossed swords and their men have killed one another. So, to the spoil, Moab!”

However, when the Moabites came to Israel’s camp, the Israelites attacked them, and they fled from them. So Israel went into the land attacking the Moabites.

They would destroy the cities, and each of them would throw a stone to cover every good piece of land. They would stop up every spring and cut down every good tree. This went on until only the buildings of Kir-hareseth were left. Then men with slings surrounded the city and attacked it.

When the king of Moab saw that the battle was too fierce for him, he took seven hundred swordsmen with him to try to break through to the king of Edom, but they could not do it.

So he took his firstborn son, who was to become king in his place, and offered him as a burnt offering on the city wall. Great wrath was on the Israelites, and they withdrew from him and returned to their land.

The Widow’s Oil Multiplied

One of the wives of the sons of the prophets cried out to Elisha, “Your servant, my husband, has died. You know that your servant feared the class="small-caps" >Lord. Now the creditor is coming to take my two children as his slaves.”

Elisha asked her, “What can I do for you? Tell me, what do you have in the house?” She said, “Your servant has nothing in the house except a jar of oil.”

Then he said, “Go out and borrow empty containers from all your neighbors. Do not get just a few.

Then go in and shut the door behind you and your sons, and pour oil into all these containers. Set the full ones to one side.”

So she left. After she had shut the door behind her and her sons, they kept bringing her containers, and she kept pouring.

When they were full, she said to her son, “Bring me another container.” But he replied, “There aren’t any more.” Then the oil stopped.

She went and told the man of God, and he said, “Go sell the oil and pay your debt; you and your sons can live on the rest.”

The Shunammite Woman’s Hospitality

One day Elisha went to Shunem. A prominent woman who lived there persuaded him to eat some food. So whenever he passed by, he stopped there to eat.

Then she said to her husband, “I know that the one who often passes by here is a holy man of God,

so let’s make a small, walled-in upper room and put a bed, a table, a chair, and a lamp there for him. Whenever he comes, he can stay there.”

The Shunammite Woman’s Son

One day he came there and stopped at the upstairs room to lie down.