Speaking Unknown Languages and Prophesying

14 Love should be your guide. Be eager to have the gifts that come from the Holy Spirit, especially the gift of prophecy. ² If you speak languages that others don't know, God will understand what you are saying, though no one else will know what you mean. You will be talking about mysteries that only the Spirit understands. ³ But when you prophesy, you will be understood, and others will be helped. They will be encouraged and made to feel better.

⁴ By speaking languages that others don't know, you help only yourself. But by prophesying you help everyone in the church. ⁵ I am glad for you to speak unknown languages, although I prefer that you would prophesy. In fact, prophesying does much more good than speaking unknown languages, unless someone can help the church by explaining what you mean.

⁶ My friends, what good would it do, if I came and spoke unknown languages to you and didn't explain what I meant? How would I help you, unless I told you what God had shown me or gave you some knowledge or prophecy or teaching? ⁷ If all musical instruments sounded alike, how would you know the difference between a flute and a harp? ⁸ If a bugle call isn't clear, how would you know to get ready for battle?

⁹ This is how it is when you speak unknown languages. If no one can understand what you are talking about, you will only be talking to the wind. ¹⁰ There are many different languages in this world, and all of them make sense. ¹¹ But if I don't understand the language that someone is using, we will be like foreigners to each other. ¹² If you really want spiritual gifts, choose the ones that will be most helpful to the church.

¹³ When we speak languages that others don't know, we should pray for the power to explain what we mean. ¹⁴ For example, if I use an unknown language in my prayers, my spirit prays but my mind is useless. ¹⁵ Then what should I do? There are times when I should pray with my spirit, and times when I should pray with my mind. Sometimes I should sing with my spirit, and at other times I should sing with my mind.

¹⁶ Suppose some strangers are in your worship service, when you are praising God with your spirit. If they don't understand you, how will they know to say, “Amen”? ¹⁷ You may be worshiping God in a wonderful way, but no one else will be helped. ¹⁸ I thank God that I speak unknown languages more than any of you. ¹⁹ But words that make sense can help the church. This is why in church I would rather speak five words that make sense than to speak 10,000 words in a language that others don't know.

²⁰ My friends, stop thinking like children. Think like mature people and be as innocent as tiny babies. ^21 (A) In the Scriptures the Lord says,

²² Languages others don't know may mean something to unbelievers, but not to the Lord's followers. Prophecy, on the other hand, is for followers, not for unbelievers. ²³ Suppose everyone in your worship service started speaking unknown languages, and some outsiders or some unbelievers come in. Won't they think you are crazy? ²⁴ But suppose all of you are prophesying when those unbelievers and outsiders come in. They will realize that they are sinners, and they will want to change their ways because of what you are saying. ²⁵ They will tell what is hidden in their hearts. Then they will kneel down and say to God, “We are certain that you are with these people.”

The Woman from Shunem Is Given Back Her Land

8 ^(A) Elisha told the woman whose son he had brought back to life,^[a] “The Lord has warned that there will be no food here for seven years. Take your family and go live somewhere else for a while.” ² The woman did exactly what Elisha had said and went to live in Philistine territory.

She and her family lived there seven years. ³ Then she returned to Israel and immediately begged the king to give back her house and property.

⁴ Meanwhile, the king was asking Gehazi the servant of Elisha about the amazing things Elisha had been doing. ⁵ While Gehazi was telling him that Elisha had brought a dead boy back to life, the woman and her son arrived.

“Here's the boy, Your Majesty,” Gehazi said. “And this is his mother.”

⁶ The king asked the woman to tell her story, and she told him everything that had happened. He then said to one of his officials, “I want you to make sure that this woman gets back everything that belonged to her, including the money her crops have made since the day she left Israel.”

Hazael Kills Benhadad

⁷ Some time later Elisha went to the capital city of Damascus to visit King Benhadad of Syria, who was sick. And when Benhadad was told he was there, ⁸ he said to Hazael,^[b] “Go meet with Elisha the man of God and get him to ask the Lord if I will get well. And take along a gift for him.”

⁹ Hazael left with forty camel loads of the best things made in Damascus as a gift for Elisha. He found the prophet and said, “Your servant, King Benhadad, wants to know if he will get well.”

¹⁰ “Tell him he will,” Elisha said to Hazael. “But the Lord has already told me that Benhadad will definitely die.” ¹¹ Elisha stared at him until Hazael was embarrassed, then Elisha began crying.^[c]

¹² “Sir, why are you crying?” Hazael asked.

Elisha answered, “Because I know the terrible things you will do to the people of Israel. You will burn down their walled cities and slaughter their young men. You will even crush the heads of their babies and rip open their pregnant women.”

^13 (B) “How could I ever do anything like that?” Hazael replied. “I'm only a servant and don't have that kind of power.”

“Hazael, the Lord has told me that you will be the next king of Syria.”

¹⁴ Hazael went back to Benhadad and told him, “Elisha said that you will get well.” ¹⁵ But the very next day, Hazael got a thick blanket; he soaked it in water and held it over Benhadad's face until he died. Hazael then became king.

King Jehoram of Judah

(2 Chronicles 21.2-20)

¹⁶ Jehoram son of Jehoshaphat became king of Judah in Joram's fifth year as king of Israel, while Jehoshaphat was still king of Judah.^{[d] 17} Jehoram was 32 years old when he became king, and he ruled 8 years from Jerusalem.

¹⁸ Jehoram disobeyed the Lord by doing wrong. He married Ahab's daughter and was as sinful as Ahab's family and the kings of Israel. ^19 (C) But the Lord refused to destroy Judah, because he had promised his servant David that someone from his family would always rule in Judah.

^20 (D) While Jehoram was king, the people of Edom rebelled and chose their own king. ²¹ So Jehoram^[e] and his cavalry marched to Zair, where the Edomite army surrounded him and his commanders. During the night he attacked the Edomites, but he was defeated, and his troops escaped to their homes.^{[f] 22} Judah was never able to regain control of Edom. Even the town of Libnah^[g] rebelled at that time.

²³ Everything else Jehoram did while he was king is written in The History of the Kings of Judah. ²⁴ Jehoram died and was buried beside his ancestors in Jerusalem.^[h] His son Ahaziah then became king.

King Ahaziah of Judah

(2 Chronicles 22.1-6)

²⁵ Ahaziah son of Jehoram became king of Judah in the twelfth year of Joram's rule in Israel. ²⁶ Ahaziah was 22 years old when he became king, and he ruled from Jerusalem for only one year. His mother was Athaliah, a granddaughter of King Omri of Israel. ²⁷ Since Ahaziah was related to Ahab's family,^[i] he acted just like them and disobeyed the Lord by doing wrong.

²⁸ Ahaziah went with King Joram of Israel to attack King Hazael and the Syrian troops at Ramoth in Gilead. Joram was wounded in that battle, ²⁹ so he went to the town of Jezreel to recover. Ahaziah went there to visit him.

Jonah Goes to Nineveh

3 Once again the Lord told Jonah ² to go to that great city of Nineveh and preach his message of doom.

³ Jonah obeyed the Lord and went to Nineveh. The city was so big that it took three days just to walk through it. ^4 (A) After walking for a day, Jonah warned the people, “Forty days from now, Nineveh will be destroyed!”

⁵ They believed God's message and set a time when they would go without eating to show their sorrow. Then everyone in the city, no matter who they were, dressed in sackcloth.

⁶ When the king of Nineveh heard what was happening, he also dressed in sackcloth; he left the royal palace and sat in dust.^{[a] 7-9} Then he and his officials sent out an order for everyone in the city to obey. It said:

None of you or your animals may eat or drink a thing. Each of you must wear sackcloth, and you must even put sackcloth on your animals.

You must also pray to the Lord God with all your heart and stop being sinful and cruel. Maybe God will change his mind and have mercy on us, so we won't be destroyed.

¹⁰ When God saw that the people had stopped doing evil things, he had pity and did not destroy them as he had planned.