Old/New Testament
Elijah and King Ahaziah
1 After Ahab died, Moab ·broke away from Israel’s rule [rebelled against Israel]. 2 Ahaziah fell down through the ·wooden bars in [lattice of] his upstairs room in Samaria and was badly hurt. He sent messengers and told them, “Go, ask Baal-Zebub, god of Ekron, if I will recover from my ·injuries [illness].”
3 But the Lord’s ·angel [messenger] said to Elijah the Tishbite, “Go up and ·meet [confront; intercept] the messengers sent by the king of Samaria. Ask them, ‘Why are you going to ·ask questions of [consult with; inquire of] Baal-Zebub, god of Ekron? Is it because there is no God in Israel?’ 4 This is what the Lord says: ‘You will never get up from the bed you are lying on; you will surely die.’” Then Elijah ·left [set out; departed].
5 When the messengers returned to Ahaziah, he asked them, “Why have you returned [C so soon after being sent]?”
6 They said, “A man came to meet us. He said, ‘Go back to the king who sent you and tell him ·what the Lord says [T Thus says the Lord]: ‘Why are you going to ·ask questions of [consult with; inquire of] Baal-Zebub, god of Ekron? Is it because there is no God in Israel?’ You will never get up from the bed you are lying on; you will surely die.”’”
7 Ahaziah asked them, “What ·did the man look like who [kind of man] met you and told you this?”
8 They answered, “He ·was a hairy man [or wore a hairy cloak] and wore a leather belt around his waist.”
Ahaziah said, “It was Elijah the Tishbite.”
9 Then he sent a captain with his fifty men to Elijah. The captain went to Elijah, who was sitting on top of the hill, and said to him, “Man of God [C a prophet], the king says, ‘Come down!’”
10 Elijah answered the captain, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and ·burn up [consume; destroy] you and your fifty men.” Then fire came down from heaven and ·burned up [consumed; destroyed] the captain and his fifty men.
11 Ahaziah sent another captain and fifty men to Elijah. The captain said to him, “Man of God, this is what the king says: ‘Come down ·quickly [at once]!’”
12 Elijah answered, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and ·burn up [consume; destroy] you and your fifty men!” Then fire came down from heaven and ·burned up [consumed; destroyed] the captain and his fifty men.
13 Ahaziah then sent a third captain with his fifty men. The third captain came and fell down on his knees before Elijah and ·begged [pleaded], “Man of God, please ·respect [value; consider precious] my life and the lives of your fifty servants. 14 ·See [T Behold], fire came down from heaven and ·burned up [consumed; destroyed] the first two captains of fifty with all their men. But now, ·respect [value; consider precious] my life.”
15 The Lord’s ·angel [messenger] said to Elijah, “Go down with him and don’t be afraid of him.” So Elijah got up and went down with him to see the king.
16 Elijah told Ahaziah, “This is what the Lord says: ‘You have sent messengers to ·ask questions of [consult with; inquire of] Baal-Zebub, god of Ekron. Is it because there is no God in Israel to ask? Because of this, you will never get up from your bed; you will surely die.’” 17 So Ahaziah died, ·just as the Lord, through Elijah, had said he would [L in accordance with the word of the Lord which Elijah had spoken].
Because Ahaziah had no son to take his place, Joram[a] became king in Ahaziah’s place during the second year Jehoram son of Jehoshaphat was king of Judah. 18 The other things Ahaziah did ·are [L are they not…?] written in the book of the ·history [chronicles; annals] of the kings of Israel [C a history book now lost].
Elijah Is Taken to Heaven
2 When the Lord was about to take Elijah by a whirlwind up into heaven, Elijah and Elisha were leaving Gilgal. 2 Elijah said to Elisha, “Please stay here. The Lord has ·told me to go to [L sent me as far as] Bethel.”
But Elisha said, “As the Lord lives, and as you live, I won’t leave you.” So they went down to Bethel. 3 The ·groups [company; brotherhood; L sons] of prophets at Bethel came out to Elisha and said to him, “Do you know the Lord will take your ·master [lord] away from you today?”
Elisha said, “Yes, I know, ·but don’t talk about it [be quiet/still].”
4 Elijah said to him, “Stay here, Elisha, because the Lord has sent me to Jericho.”
But Elisha said, “As the Lord lives, and as you live, I won’t leave you.”
So they went to Jericho. 5 The ·groups [company; brotherhood; L sons] of prophets at Jericho came to Elisha and said, “Do you know that the Lord will take your ·master [lord] away from you today?”
Elisha answered, “Yes, I know, ·but don’t talk about it [be quiet/still].”
6 Elijah said to Elisha, “Stay here. The Lord has sent me to the Jordan River.”
Elisha answered, “As the Lord lives, and as you live, I won’t leave you.”
So the two of them went on. 7 Fifty men of the ·groups [company; brotherhood; L sons] of prophets came and stood ·far [at a distance] from where Elijah and Elisha were standing by the Jordan. 8 Elijah took off his ·coat [cloak; T mantle], ·rolled [folded] it up, and hit the water. The water divided to ·the right and to the left [L one side and the other], and Elijah and Elisha crossed over on dry ground [C reminiscent of the crossing of the Sea; Ex. 14].
9 After they had crossed over, Elijah said to Elisha, “What can I do for you before I am taken from you?”
Elisha said, “Leave me a double ·share [portion] of your spirit [C like a firstborn heir (Deut. 21:17), he asks for double the blessing of other followers of Elijah, not twice as much as Elijah].”
10 Elijah said, “You have asked a ·hard [difficult] thing. But if you see me when I am taken from you, it will be ·yours [as you request]. If you don’t, it won’t happen.”
11 As they were walking along and talking, a chariot of fire and horses of fire appeared and ·separated [drove between] Elijah from Elisha. Then Elijah ·went up [ascended] to heaven in a whirlwind. 12 Elisha saw it and shouted, “My father! My father! The chariots of Israel and ·their horsemen [its charioteers/or horses]!” And Elisha did not see him anymore. Then Elisha grabbed his own clothes and tore them in two [C a sign of mourning or distress].
13 He picked up Elijah’s ·coat [cloak; T mantle] that had fallen from him. Then he returned and stood on the bank of the Jordan. 14 Elisha hit the water with Elijah’s ·coat [cloak; T mantle] and said, “Where is the Lord, the God of Elijah?” When he hit the water, it divided to ·the right and to the left [L one side and the other], and Elisha crossed over [2:8].
15 The ·groups [company; brotherhood; L sons] of prophets at Jericho were watching from a distance and said, “·Elisha now has the spirit Elijah had [L Elijah’s spirit now rests on Elisha].” And they came to meet him, bowing down to the ground before him. 16 They said to him, “There are fifty ·strong [able] men with us. Please let them go and look for your ·master [lord]. Maybe the Spirit of the Lord has taken Elijah up and set him down on some mountain or in some valley.”
But Elisha answered, “No, don’t send them.”
17 When the ·groups [company; brotherhood; L sons] of prophets had begged Elisha until he ·couldn’t refuse them anymore [was too embarrassed/ashamed to refuse], he said, “Send them.” So they sent fifty men who looked for three days, but they could not find him. 18 Then they came back to Elisha at Jericho where he was staying. He said to them, “I told you not to go, didn’t I?”
Elisha Makes the Water of Jericho Pure
19 The people of the city said to Elisha, “Look, ·master [lord], this city is ·a nice place to live [well/pleasantly situated/located] as you can see. But the water is so bad the land ·cannot grow crops [is unproductive/unfruitful].”
20 Elisha said, “Bring me a new bowl and put salt in it.” So they brought it to him.
21 Then he went out to the ·spring [water source] and threw the salt in it. He said, “·This is what the Lord says [T Thus says the Lord]: ‘I have ·healed [purified; made wholesome] this water. From now on it won’t cause death, ·and it won’t keep the land from growing crops [or unfruitfulness/unproductiveness/or miscarriage].’” 22 So the water has been ·healed [purified; made wholesome] to this day just as Elisha had said.
Boys Make Fun of Elisha
23 From there Elisha went up to Bethel. On the way some boys came out of the city and ·made fun of [mocked; jeered at; Ps. 1:1; Prov. 1:22; 3:34; 13:1; Gal. 6:7] him. They said to him, “Go ·up too, you baldhead [away, baldy]! Go ·up too, you baldhead [away, baldy]!” 24 Elisha turned around, looked at them, and put a curse on them in the name of the Lord. Then two mother bears came out of the woods and ·tore [mauled] forty-two of the boys to pieces. 25 Elisha went to Mount Carmel and from there he returned to Samaria.
War Between Israel and Moab
3 Joram son of Ahab became king over Israel at Samaria in Jehoshaphat’s eighteenth year as king of Judah. And Joram ·ruled [reigned] twelve years. 2 He did ·what the Lord said was wrong [L evil in the eyes/sight of the Lord], but ·he was not like [not to same extent as] his father and mother; he removed the stone pillars his father had made for Baal. 3 But he ·continued to sin like [L clung to the sin of] Jeroboam son of Nebat who had led Israel to sin. Joram did not ·stop doing these same sins [depart/L turn away from it].
4 Mesha king of Moab ·raised [bred] sheep. He ·paid [delivered to] the king of Israel one hundred thousand lambs and the wool of one hundred thousand sheep [C as annual tribute]. 5 But when Ahab died, the king of Moab turned against the king of Israel. 6 So King Joram went out from Samaria and ·gathered [mobilized; mustered] ·Israel’s army [L all Israel]. 7 He also sent messengers to Jehoshaphat king of Judah. “The king of Moab has ·turned [rebelled] against me,” he said. “Will you go with me to fight against Moab?”
Jehoshaphat replied, “I will go with you. My ·soldiers [L soldiers are your soldiers] and my horses are ·yours [L your horses].”
8 Jehoshaphat asked, “Which ·way should we attack [route should we take]?”
Joram answered, “Through the ·Desert [Wilderness] of Edom.”
9 So the king of Israel went with the king of Judah, joined by the king of Edom. After a ·roundabout [circuitous] march for seven days, there was no more water for the army or for their animals that were with them. 10 The king of Israel said, “·This is terrible [T Alas]! The Lord has called us three kings together to hand us over to the Moabites!”
11 But Jehoshaphat asked, “Is there ·a [L no] prophet of the Lord here? We can ·ask [inquire of] the Lord through him.”
An officer of the king of Israel answered, “Elisha son of Shaphat is here. He ·was Elijah’s servant [L used to pour water on the hands of Elijah].”
12 Jehoshaphat said, “·He speaks the Lord’s truth [The word of the Lord is with him].” So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went down to see Elisha.
13 Elisha said to the king of Israel, “·I have nothing [L What have I…?] to do with you. Go to the prophets of your father and to the prophets of your mother [C that is, to the prophets of their false gods]!”
The king of Israel said to Elisha, “No, the Lord has called us three kings together to hand us over to the Moabites.”
14 Elisha said, “As surely as the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts] lives, ·whom I serve [L before whom I stand], I wouldn’t even look at you or notice you if Jehoshaphat king of Judah were not here. I ·respect [have regard for] him. 15 Now bring me someone who plays the ·harp [lyre].”
While the ·harp [lyre] was being played, the ·Lord gave Elisha power [L hand of the Lord came upon him]. 16 Then Elisha said, “·The Lord says to [T Thus says the Lord:] ·dig holes in the valley [make trenches in this valley; or I will fill this valley full of pools]. 17 The Lord says you won’t see wind or rain, but the valley will be filled with water. Then you, your cattle, and your other animals can drink. 18 This is ·easy for the Lord to do [a slight/simple thing in the eyes/sight of the Lord]; he will also hand Moab over to you. 19 You will destroy every ·strong, walled [fortified] city and every important town. You will cut down every good tree and stop up all springs. You will ruin every good field with rocks.”
20 The next morning, about the time the sacrifice was offered, water ·came [flowed] from the direction of Edom and filled the valley.
21 All the Moabites heard that the kings had come up to fight against them. So they ·gathered [mobilized; called up] everyone old enough to put on armor and ·waited [they took up positions] at the border. 22 But when the Moabites got up early in the morning, the sun was shining on the water. They saw the water across from them, and it looked as red as blood. 23 Then they said, “This is blood! The kings must have fought and killed each other! Come, Moabites, ·let’s take the valuables from the dead bodies [let’s plunder them; L to the spoil]!”
24 When the Moabites came to the camp of Israel, the Israelites came out and fought them until they ran away. Then the Israelites ·went on into [invaded] the land, ·killing [slaughtering] the Moabites. 25 They ·tore down [destroyed; overturned] the cities and threw rocks all over every good field. They stopped up all the springs and cut down all the good trees. Kir Hareseth was the only city ·with its stones still in place [still standing], but the men with ·slingshots [slings] surrounded it and ·conquered [attacked] it, too.
26 When the king of Moab saw that the battle was ·too much for him [going against him], he took seven hundred men with swords to try to break through ·to [near to; across from] the king of Edom. But they could not break through. 27 Then the king of Moab took his oldest son, who would have been king after him, and ·offered [sacrificed] him as a burnt offering on the wall. ·So there was great anger against the Israelites, who [or Alarmed at this, the Israelites] left and went back to their own land.
Jesus Rises from the Dead(A)
24 Very early on the first day of the week, at dawn, the women came to the tomb, bringing the spices they had prepared. 2 They found the stone rolled away from the entrance of the tomb, 3 but when they went in, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 While they were ·wondering [puzzling; perplexed] about this, two men in ·shining [dazzling; gleaming like lightning; 9:29] clothes suddenly stood beside them. 5 The women were ·very afraid [terrified] and bowed their ·heads [faces] to the ground. The men said to them, “Why are you looking for ·a living person in this place for the dead [L the living among the dead]? 6 He is not here; he has risen from the dead. Do you remember what he told you [L while he was still] in Galilee? 7 He said the Son of Man must be ·handed over [betrayed] to sinful people, be crucified, and rise from the dead on the third day.” 8 Then the women remembered what Jesus had said.
9 The women ·left [returned from] the tomb and told all these things to ·the eleven apostles [L the Eleven] and ·the other followers [L all the rest]. 10 It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and some other women who told the apostles ·everything that had happened at the tomb [L these things]. 11 But they did not believe the women, because it ·sounded [seemed] like nonsense. 12 But Peter got up and ran to the tomb. Bending down and looking in, he saw only the [linen] cloth that Jesus’ body had been wrapped in. Peter went away to his home, ·wondering [amazed; marveling] about what had happened.
Jesus on the Road to Emmaus(B)
13 That same day two of Jesus’ followers were going to a town named Emmaus, about seven miles [C Greek: sixty stadia; a stadion was about 600 ft.] from Jerusalem. 14 They were talking about everything that had happened. 15 While they were talking and discussing, Jesus himself came near and began walking with them, 16 but ·they [L their eyes] were kept from recognizing him. 17 Then he said, “What are these things you are ·talking about [discussing] while you walk?”
The two followers stopped, looking ·very sad [downcast]. 18 The one named Cleopas answered, “·Are you the only visitor in Jerusalem who does not [or Are you only a visitor in Jerusalem and don’t] know what just happened there?”
19 Jesus said to them, “What ·are you talking about [L things]?”
They said, “About Jesus of Nazareth. He was a prophet ·who said and did many powerful things [L powerful in deed and word] before God and all the people. 20 Our ·leading [T chief] priests and ·leaders [rulers] handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him. 21 But we were hoping that he would ·free [rescue; redeem] Israel. Besides [L all] this, it is now the third day since this happened. 22 ·And [L But also; Moreover] some women among us ·amazed [astonished] us. Early this morning they went to the tomb, 23 but they did not find his body there. They came and told us that they had seen a vision of angels who said that Jesus was alive! 24 So some of our group went to the tomb, too. They found it just as the women said, but they did not see Jesus.”
25 Then Jesus said to them, “·You are foolish [L O foolish ones] and slow [L in heart] to believe everything the prophets said. 26 ·They said [L Was it not necessary…?] that the ·Christ [Messiah] must suffer these things before he enters his glory.” 27 Then starting with what Moses and all the prophets [C a way of referring to the whole Old Testament] had said about him, Jesus began to explain everything that had been written about himself in [L all] the Scriptures.
28 They came near the town ·of Emmaus [L to which they were going], and Jesus acted as if he were going farther. 29 But they ·begged [urged] him, “Stay with us, because it is late; it is almost night.” So he went in to stay with them.
30 When Jesus ·was at the table [L reclined; C the posture of a formal meal] with them, he took some bread, ·gave thanks [blessed it], ·divided [broke] it, and gave it to them [C Jesus, the guest, functions like the host in a Eucharist-like meal]. 31 And then, ·they were allowed to recognize Jesus [L their eyes were opened]. But when they saw who he was, he disappeared. 32 They said to each other, “·It felt like a fire burning in [L Didn’t our hearts burn within…?] us when Jesus talked to us on the road and ·explained [opened] the Scriptures to us.”
33 So ·the two followers [L they] got up ·at once [L the same hour] and went back to Jerusalem. There they found ·the eleven apostles [L the Eleven] and others gathered. 34 They were saying, “The Lord really has risen from the dead! He showed himself to Simon.”
35 Then ·the two followers [L they] told what had happened on the road and how they recognized Jesus when he ·divided [broke] the bread.
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