1 Kings 17 - 2 Kings 2

Revised Standard Version

Elijah Predicts a Drought

17 Now Eli′jah the Tishbite, of Tishbe^[a] in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.” ² And the word of the Lord came to him, ³ “Depart from here and turn eastward, and hide yourself by the brook Cherith, that is east of the Jordan. ⁴ You shall drink from the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.” ⁵ So he went and did according to the word of the Lord; he went and dwelt by the brook Cherith that is east of the Jordan. ⁶ And the ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening; and he drank from the brook. ⁷ And after a while the brook dried up, because there was no rain in the land.

The Widow of Zarephath

⁸ Then the word of the Lord came to him, ⁹ “Arise, go to Zar′ephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. Behold, I have commanded a widow there to feed you.” ¹⁰ So he arose and went to Zar′ephath; and when he came to the gate of the city, behold, a widow was there gathering sticks; and he called to her and said, “Bring me a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.” ¹¹ And as she was going to bring it, he called to her and said, “Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.” ¹² And she said, “As the Lord your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of meal in a jar, and a little oil in a cruse; and now, I am gathering a couple of sticks, that I may go in and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it, and die.” ¹³ And Eli′jah said to her, “Fear not; go and do as you have said; but first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterward make for yourself and your son. ¹⁴ For thus says the Lord the God of Israel, ‘The jar of meal shall not be spent, and the cruse of oil shall not fail, until the day that the Lord sends rain upon the earth.’” ¹⁵ And she went and did as Eli′jah said; and she, and he, and her household ate for many days. ¹⁶ The jar of meal was not spent, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord which he spoke by Eli′jah.

Elijah Revives the Widow’s Son

¹⁷ After this the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became ill; and his illness was so severe that there was no breath left in him. ¹⁸ And she said to Eli′jah, “What have you against me, O man of God? You have come to me to bring my sin to remembrance, and to cause the death of my son!” ¹⁹ And he said to her, “Give me your son.” And he took him from her bosom, and carried him up into the upper chamber, where he lodged, and laid him upon his own bed. ²⁰ And he cried to the Lord, “O Lord my God, hast thou brought calamity even upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by slaying her son?” ²¹ Then he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried to the Lord, “O Lord my God, let this child’s soul come into him again.” ²² And the Lord hearkened to the voice of Eli′jah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived. ²³ And Eli′jah took the child, and brought him down from the upper chamber into the house, and delivered him to his mother; and Eli′jah said, “See, your son lives.” ²⁴ And the woman said to Eli′jah, “Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is truth.”

Elijah’s Message to Ahab

18 After many days the word of the Lord came to Eli′jah, in the third year, saying, “Go, show yourself to Ahab; and I will send rain upon the earth.” ² So Eli′jah went to show himself to Ahab. Now the famine was severe in Samar′ia. ³ And Ahab called Obadi′ah, who was over the household. (Now Obadi′ah revered the Lord greatly; ⁴ and when Jez′ebel cut off the prophets of the Lord, Obadi′ah took a hundred prophets and hid them by fifties in a cave, and fed them with bread and water.) ⁵ And Ahab said to Obadi′ah, “Go through the land to all the springs of water and to all the valleys; perhaps we may find grass and save the horses and mules alive, and not lose some of the animals.” ⁶ So they divided the land between them to pass through it; Ahab went in one direction by himself, and Obadi′ah went in another direction by himself.

⁷ And as Obadi′ah was on the way, behold, Eli′jah met him; and Obadi′ah recognized him, and fell on his face, and said, “Is it you, my lord Eli′jah?” ⁸ And he answered him, “It is I. Go, tell your lord, ‘Behold, Eli′jah is here.’” ⁹ And he said, “Wherein have I sinned, that you would give your servant into the hand of Ahab, to kill me? ¹⁰ As the Lord your God lives, there is no nation or kingdom whither my lord has not sent to seek you; and when they would say, ‘He is not here,’ he would take an oath of the kingdom or nation, that they had not found you. ¹¹ And now you say, ‘Go, tell your lord, “Behold, Eli′jah is here.”’ ¹² And as soon as I have gone from you, the Spirit of the Lord will carry you whither I know not; and so, when I come and tell Ahab and he cannot find you, he will kill me, although I your servant have revered the Lord from my youth. ¹³ Has it not been told my lord what I did when Jez′ebel killed the prophets of the Lord, how I hid a hundred men of the Lord’s prophets by fifties in a cave, and fed them with bread and water? ¹⁴ And now you say, ‘Go, tell your lord, “Behold, Eli′jah is here”’; and he will kill me.” ¹⁵ And Eli′jah said, “As the Lord of hosts lives, before whom I stand, I will surely show myself to him today.” ¹⁶ So Obadi′ah went to meet Ahab, and told him; and Ahab went to meet Eli′jah.

¹⁷ When Ahab saw Eli′jah, Ahab said to him, “Is it you, you troubler of Israel?” ¹⁸ And he answered, “I have not troubled Israel; but you have, and your father’s house, because you have forsaken the commandments of the Lord and followed the Ba′als. ¹⁹ Now therefore send and gather all Israel to me at Mount Carmel, and the four hundred and fifty prophets of Ba′al and the four hundred prophets of Ashe′rah, who eat at Jez′ebel’s table.”

Elijah’s Triumph over the Priests of Baal

²⁰ So Ahab sent to all the people of Israel, and gathered the prophets together at Mount Carmel. ²¹ And Eli′jah came near to all the people, and said, “How long will you go limping with two different opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Ba′al, then follow him.” And the people did not answer him a word. ²² Then Eli′jah said to the people, “I, even I only, am left a prophet of the Lord; but Ba′al’s prophets are four hundred and fifty men. ²³ Let two bulls be given to us; and let them choose one bull for themselves, and cut it in pieces and lay it on the wood, but put no fire to it; and I will prepare the other bull and lay it on the wood, and put no fire to it. ²⁴ And you call on the name of your god and I will call on the name of the Lord; and the God who answers by fire, he is God.” And all the people answered, “It is well spoken.” ²⁵ Then Eli′jah said to the prophets of Ba′al, “Choose for yourselves one bull and prepare it first, for you are many; and call on the name of your god, but put no fire to it.” ²⁶ And they took the bull which was given them, and they prepared it, and called on the name of Ba′al from morning until noon, saying, “O Ba′al, answer us!” But there was no voice, and no one answered. And they limped about the altar which they had made. ²⁷ And at noon Eli′jah mocked them, saying, “Cry aloud, for he is a god; either he is musing, or he has gone aside, or he is on a journey, or perhaps he is asleep and must be awakened.” ²⁸ And they cried aloud, and cut themselves after their custom with swords and lances, until the blood gushed out upon them. ²⁹ And as midday passed, they raved on until the time of the offering of the oblation, but there was no voice; no one answered, no one heeded.

³⁰ Then Eli′jah said to all the people, “Come near to me”; and all the people came near to him. And he repaired the altar of the Lord that had been thrown down; ³¹ Eli′jah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the Lord came, saying, “Israel shall be your name”; ³² and with the stones he built an altar in the name of the Lord. And he made a trench about the altar, as great as would contain two measures of seed. ³³ And he put the wood in order, and cut the bull in pieces and laid it on the wood. And he said, “Fill four jars with water, and pour it on the burnt offering, and on the wood.” ³⁴ And he said, “Do it a second time”; and they did it a second time. And he said, “Do it a third time”; and they did it a third time. ³⁵ And the water ran round about the altar, and filled the trench also with water.

³⁶ And at the time of the offering of the oblation, Eli′jah the prophet came near and said, “O Lord, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that thou art God in Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that I have done all these things at thy word. ³⁷ Answer me, O Lord, answer me, that this people may know that thou, O Lord, art God, and that thou hast turned their hearts back.” ³⁸ Then the fire of the Lord fell, and consumed the burnt offering, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench. ³⁹ And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces; and they said, “The Lord, he is God; the Lord, he is God.” ⁴⁰ And Eli′jah said to them, “Seize the prophets of Ba′al; let not one of them escape.” And they seized them; and Eli′jah brought them down to the brook Kishon, and killed them there.

The Drought Ends

⁴¹ And Eli′jah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink; for there is a sound of the rushing of rain.” ⁴² So Ahab went up to eat and to drink. And Eli′jah went up to the top of Carmel; and he bowed himself down upon the earth, and put his face between his knees. ⁴³ And he said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.” And he went up and looked, and said, “There is nothing.” And he said, “Go again seven times.” ⁴⁴ And at the seventh time he said, “Behold, a little cloud like a man’s hand is rising out of the sea.” And he said, “Go up, say to Ahab, ‘Prepare your chariot and go down, lest the rain stop you.’” ⁴⁵ And in a little while the heavens grew black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. And Ahab rode and went to Jezreel. ⁴⁶ And the hand of the Lord was on Eli′jah; and he girded up his loins and ran before Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.

Elijah Flees from Jezebel

19 Ahab told Jez′ebel all that Eli′jah had done, and how he had slain all the prophets with the sword. ² Then Jez′ebel sent a messenger to Eli′jah, saying, “So may the gods do to me and more also, if I do not make your life as the life of one of them by this time tomorrow.” ³ Then he was afraid, and he arose and went for his life, and came to Beer-sheba, which belongs to Judah, and left his servant there.

⁴ But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a broom tree; and he asked that he might die, saying, “It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life; for I am no better than my fathers.” ⁵ And he lay down and slept under a broom tree; and behold, an angel touched him, and said to him, “Arise and eat.” ⁶ And he looked, and behold, there was at his head a cake baked on hot stones and a jar of water. And he ate and drank, and lay down again. ⁷ And the angel of the Lord came again a second time, and touched him, and said, “Arise and eat, else the journey will be too great for you.” ⁸ And he arose, and ate and drank, and went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb the mount of God.

Elijah Meets God at Horeb

⁹ And there he came to a cave, and lodged there; and behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and he said to him, “What are you doing here, Eli′jah?” ¹⁰ He said, “I have been very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts; for the people of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thy altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.” ¹¹ And he said, “Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; ¹² and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice. ¹³ And when Eli′jah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And behold, there came a voice to him, and said, “What are you doing here, Eli′jah?” ¹⁴ He said, “I have been very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts; for the people of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thy altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.” ¹⁵ And the Lord said to him, “Go, return on your way to the wilderness of Damascus; and when you arrive, you shall anoint Haz′ael to be king over Syria; ¹⁶ and Jehu the son of Nimshi you shall anoint to be king over Israel; and Eli′sha the son of Shaphat of A′bel-meho′lah you shall anoint to be prophet in your place. ¹⁷ And him who escapes from the sword of Haz′ael shall Jehu slay; and him who escapes from the sword of Jehu shall Eli′sha slay. ¹⁸ Yet I will leave seven thousand in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Ba′al, and every mouth that has not kissed him.”

Elisha Becomes Elijah’s Disciple

¹⁹ So he departed from there, and found Eli′sha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing, with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he was with the twelfth. Eli′jah passed by him and cast his mantle upon him. ²⁰ And he left the oxen, and ran after Eli′jah, and said, “Let me kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow you.” And he said to him, “Go back again; for what have I done to you?” ²¹ And he returned from following him, and took the yoke of oxen, and slew them, and boiled their flesh with the yokes of the oxen, and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he arose and went after Eli′jah, and ministered to him.

Ahab’s Wars with the Arameans

20 Ben-ha′dad the king of Syria gathered all his army together; thirty-two kings were with him, and horses and chariots; and he went up and besieged Samar′ia, and fought against it. ² And he sent messengers into the city to Ahab king of Israel, and said to him, “Thus says Ben-ha′dad: ³ ‘Your silver and your gold are mine; your fairest wives and children also are mine.’” ⁴ And the king of Israel answered, “As you say, my lord, O king, I am yours, and all that I have.” ⁵ The messengers came again, and said, “Thus says Ben-ha′dad: ‘I sent to you, saying, “Deliver to me your silver and your gold, your wives and your children”; ⁶ nevertheless I will send my servants to you tomorrow about this time, and they shall search your house and the houses of your servants, and lay hands on whatever pleases them,^[b] and take it away.’”

⁷ Then the king of Israel called all the elders of the land, and said, “Mark, now, and see how this man is seeking trouble; for he sent to me for my wives and my children, and for my silver and my gold, and I did not refuse him.” ⁸ And all the elders and all the people said to him, “Do not heed or consent.” ⁹ So he said to the messengers of Ben-ha′dad, “Tell my lord the king, ‘All that you first demanded of your servant I will do; but this thing I cannot do.’” And the messengers departed and brought him word again. ¹⁰ Ben-ha′dad sent to him and said, “The gods do so to me and more also, if the dust of Samar′ia shall suffice for handfuls for all the people who follow me.” ¹¹ And the king of Israel answered, “Tell him, ‘Let not him that girds on his armor boast himself as he that puts it off.’” ¹² When Ben-ha′dad heard this message as he was drinking with the kings in the booths, he said to his men, “Take your positions.” And they took their positions against the city.

Prophetic Opposition to Ahab

¹³ And behold, a prophet came near to Ahab king of Israel and said, “Thus says the Lord, Have you seen all this great multitude? Behold, I will give it into your hand this day; and you shall know that I am the Lord.” ¹⁴ And Ahab said, “By whom?” He said, “Thus says the Lord, By the servants of the governors of the districts.” Then he said, “Who shall begin the battle?” He answered, “You.” ¹⁵ Then he mustered the servants of the governors of the districts, and they were two hundred and thirty-two; and after them he mustered all the people of Israel, seven thousand.

¹⁶ And they went out at noon, while Ben-ha′dad was drinking himself drunk in the booths, he and the thirty-two kings who helped him. ¹⁷ The servants of the governors of the districts went out first. And Ben-ha′dad sent out scouts, and they reported to him, “Men are coming out from Samar′ia.” ¹⁸ He said, “If they have come out for peace, take them alive; or if they have come out for war, take them alive.”

¹⁹ So these went out of the city, the servants of the governors of the districts, and the army which followed them. ²⁰ And each killed his man; the Syrians fled and Israel pursued them, but Ben-ha′dad king of Syria escaped on a horse with horsemen. ²¹ And the king of Israel went out, and captured^[c] the horses and chariots, and killed the Syrians with a great slaughter.

²² Then the prophet came near to the king of Israel, and said to him, “Come, strengthen yourself, and consider well what you have to do; for in the spring the king of Syria will come up against you.”

The Arameans Are Defeated

²³ And the servants of the king of Syria said to him, “Their gods are gods of the hills, and so they were stronger than we; but let us fight against them in the plain, and surely we shall be stronger than they. ²⁴ And do this: remove the kings, each from his post, and put commanders in their places; ²⁵ and muster an army like the army that you have lost, horse for horse, and chariot for chariot; then we will fight against them in the plain, and surely we shall be stronger than they.” And he hearkened to their voice, and did so.

²⁶ In the spring Ben-ha′dad mustered the Syrians, and went up to Aphek, to fight against Israel. ²⁷ And the people of Israel were mustered, and were provisioned, and went against them; the people of Israel encamped before them like two little flocks of goats, but the Syrians filled the country. ²⁸ And a man of God came near and said to the king of Israel, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Because the Syrians have said, “The Lord is a god of the hills but he is not a god of the valleys,” therefore I will give all this great multitude into your hand, and you shall know that I am the Lord.’” ²⁹ And they encamped opposite one another seven days. Then on the seventh day the battle was joined; and the people of Israel smote of the Syrians a hundred thousand foot soldiers in one day. ³⁰ And the rest fled into the city of Aphek; and the wall fell upon twenty-seven thousand men that were left.

Ben-ha′dad also fled, and entered an inner chamber in the city. ³¹ And his servants said to him, “Behold now, we have heard that the kings of the house of Israel are merciful kings; let us put sackcloth on our loins and ropes upon our heads, and go out to the king of Israel; perhaps he will spare your life.” ³² So they girded sackcloth on their loins, and put ropes on their heads, and went to the king of Israel and said, “Your servant Ben-ha′dad says, ‘Pray, let me live.’” And he said, “Does he still live? He is my brother.” ³³ Now the men were watching for an omen, and they quickly took it up from him and said, “Yes, your brother Ben-ha′dad.” Then he said, “Go and bring him.” Then Ben-ha′dad came forth to him; and he caused him to come up into the chariot. ³⁴ And Ben-ha′dad said to him, “The cities which my father took from your father I will restore; and you may establish bazaars for yourself in Damascus, as my father did in Samar′ia.” And Ahab said, “I will let you go on these terms.” So he made a covenant with him and let him go.

A Prophet Condemns Ahab

³⁵ And a certain man of the sons of the prophets said to his fellow at the command of the Lord, “Strike me, I pray.” But the man refused to strike him. ³⁶ Then he said to him, “Because you have not obeyed the voice of the Lord, behold, as soon as you have gone from me, a lion shall kill you.” And as soon as he had departed from him, a lion met him and killed him. ³⁷ Then he found another man, and said, “Strike me, I pray.” And the man struck him, smiting and wounding him. ³⁸ So the prophet departed, and waited for the king by the way, disguising himself with a bandage over his eyes. ³⁹ And as the king passed, he cried to the king and said, “Your servant went out into the midst of the battle; and behold, a soldier turned and brought a man to me, and said, ‘Keep this man; if by any means he be missing, your life shall be for his life, or else you shall pay a talent of silver.’ ⁴⁰ And as your servant was busy here and there, he was gone.” The king of Israel said to him, “So shall your judgment be; you yourself have decided it.” ⁴¹ Then he made haste to take the bandage away from his eyes; and the king of Israel recognized him as one of the prophets. ⁴² And he said to him, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Because you have let go out of your hand the man whom I had devoted to destruction, therefore your life shall go for his life, and your people for his people.’” ⁴³ And the king of Israel went to his house resentful and sullen, and came to Samar′ia.

Naboth’s Vineyard

21 Now Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard in Jezreel, beside the palace of Ahab king of Samar′ia. ² And after this Ahab said to Naboth, “Give me your vineyard, that I may have it for a vegetable garden, because it is near my house; and I will give you a better vineyard for it; or, if it seems good to you, I will give you its value in money.” ³ But Naboth said to Ahab, “The Lord forbid that I should give you the inheritance of my fathers.” ⁴ And Ahab went into his house vexed and sullen because of what Naboth the Jezreelite had said to him; for he had said, “I will not give you the inheritance of my fathers.” And he lay down on his bed, and turned away his face, and would eat no food.

⁵ But Jez′ebel his wife came to him, and said to him, “Why is your spirit so vexed that you eat no food?” ⁶ And he said to her, “Because I spoke to Naboth the Jezreelite, and said to him, ‘Give me your vineyard for money; or else, if it please you, I will give you another vineyard for it’; and he answered, ‘I will not give you my vineyard.’” ⁷ And Jez′ebel his wife said to him, “Do you now govern Israel? Arise, and eat bread, and let your heart be cheerful; I will give you the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.”

⁸ So she wrote letters in Ahab’s name and sealed them with his seal, and she sent the letters to the elders and the nobles who dwelt with Naboth in his city. ⁹ And she wrote in the letters, “Proclaim a fast, and set Naboth on high among the people; ¹⁰ and set two base fellows opposite him, and let them bring a charge against him, saying, ‘You have cursed God and the king.’ Then take him out, and stone him to death.” ¹¹ And the men of his city, the elders and the nobles who dwelt in his city, did as Jez′ebel had sent word to them. As it was written in the letters which she had sent to them, ¹² they proclaimed a fast, and set Naboth on high among the people. ¹³ And the two base fellows came in and sat opposite him; and the base fellows brought a charge against Naboth, in the presence of the people, saying, “Naboth cursed God and the king.” So they took him outside the city, and stoned him to death with stones. ¹⁴ Then they sent to Jez′ebel, saying, “Naboth has been stoned; he is dead.”

¹⁵ As soon as Jez′ebel heard that Naboth had been stoned and was dead, Jez′ebel said to Ahab, “Arise, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, which he refused to give you for money; for Naboth is not alive, but dead.” ¹⁶ And as soon as Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, Ahab arose to go down to the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, to take possession of it.

Elijah Pronounces God’s Sentence

¹⁷ Then the word of the Lord came to Eli′jah the Tishbite, saying, ¹⁸ “Arise, go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, who is in Samar′ia; behold, he is in the vineyard of Naboth, where he has gone to take possession. ¹⁹ And you shall say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord, “Have you killed, and also taken possession?”’ And you shall say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord: “In the place where dogs licked up the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick your own blood.”’”

²⁰ Ahab said to Eli′jah, “Have you found me, O my enemy?” He answered, “I have found you, because you have sold yourself to do what is evil in the sight of the Lord. ²¹ Behold, I will bring evil upon you; I will utterly sweep you away, and will cut off from Ahab every male, bond or free, in Israel; ²² and I will make your house like the house of Jerobo′am the son of Nebat, and like the house of Ba′asha the son of Ahi′jah, for the anger to which you have provoked me, and because you have made Israel to sin. ²³ And of Jez′ebel the Lord also said, ‘The dogs shall eat Jez′ebel within the bounds of Jezreel.’ ²⁴ Any one belonging to Ahab who dies in the city the dogs shall eat; and any one of his who dies in the open country the birds of the air shall eat.”

²⁵ (There was none who sold himself to do what was evil in the sight of the Lord like Ahab, whom Jez′ebel his wife incited. ²⁶ He did very abominably in going after idols, as the Amorites had done, whom the Lord cast out before the people of Israel.)

²⁷ And when Ahab heard those words, he rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his flesh, and fasted and lay in sackcloth, and went about dejectedly. ²⁸ And the word of the Lord came to Eli′jah the Tishbite, saying, ²⁹ “Have you seen how Ahab has humbled himself before me? Because he has humbled himself before me, I will not bring the evil in his days; but in his son’s days I will bring the evil upon his house.”

Joint Campaign with Judah against Aram

22 For three years Syria and Israel continued without war. ² But in the third year Jehosh′aphat the king of Judah came down to the king of Israel. ³ And the king of Israel said to his servants, “Do you know that Ramoth-gilead belongs to us, and we keep quiet and do not take it out of the hand of the king of Syria?” ⁴ And he said to Jehosh′aphat, “Will you go with me to battle at Ramoth-gilead?” And Jehosh′aphat said to the king of Israel, “I am as you are, my people as your people, my horses as your horses.”

⁵ And Jehosh′aphat said to the king of Israel, “Inquire first for the word of the Lord.” ⁶ Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets together, about four hundred men, and said to them, “Shall I go to battle against Ramoth-gilead, or shall I forbear?” And they said, “Go up; for the Lord will give it into the hand of the king.” ⁷ But Jehosh′aphat said, “Is there not here another prophet of the Lord of whom we may inquire?” ⁸ And the king of Israel said to Jehosh′aphat, “There is yet one man by whom we may inquire of the Lord, Micai′ah the son of Imlah; but I hate him, for he never prophesies good concerning me, but evil.” And Jehosh′aphat said, “Let not the king say so.” ⁹ Then the king of Israel summoned an officer and said, “Bring quickly Micai′ah the son of Imlah.” ¹⁰ Now the king of Israel and Jehosh′aphat the king of Judah were sitting on their thrones, arrayed in their robes, at the threshing floor at the entrance of the gate of Samar′ia; and all the prophets were prophesying before them. ¹¹ And Zedeki′ah the son of Chena′anah made for himself horns of iron, and said, “Thus says the Lord, ‘With these you shall push the Syrians until they are destroyed.’” ¹² And all the prophets prophesied so, and said, “Go up to Ramoth-gilead and triumph; the Lord will give it into the hand of the king.”

Micaiah Predicts Failure

¹³ And the messenger who went to summon Micai′ah said to him, “Behold, the words of the prophets with one accord are favorable to the king; let your word be like the word of one of them, and speak favorably.” ¹⁴ But Micai′ah said, “As the Lord lives, what the Lord says to me, that I will speak.” ¹⁵ And when he had come to the king, the king said to him, “Micai′ah, shall we go to Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall we forbear?” And he answered him, “Go up and triumph; the Lord will give it into the hand of the king.” ¹⁶ But the king said to him, “How many times shall I adjure you that you speak to me nothing but the truth in the name of the Lord?” ¹⁷ And he said, “I saw all Israel scattered upon the mountains, as sheep that have no shepherd; and the Lord said, ‘These have no master; let each return to his home in peace.’” ¹⁸ And the king of Israel said to Jehosh′aphat, “Did I not tell you that he would not prophesy good concerning me, but evil?” ¹⁹ And Micai′ah said, “Therefore hear the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven standing beside him on his right hand and on his left; ²⁰ and the Lord said, ‘Who will entice Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead?’ And one said one thing, and another said another. ²¹ Then a spirit came forward and stood before the Lord, saying, ‘I will entice him.’ ²² And the Lord said to him, ‘By what means?’ And he said, ‘I will go forth, and will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’ And he said, ‘You are to entice him, and you shall succeed; go forth and do so.’ ²³ Now therefore behold, the Lord has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these your prophets; the Lord has spoken evil concerning you.”

²⁴ Then Zedeki′ah the son of Chena′anah came near and struck Micai′ah on the cheek, and said, “How did the Spirit of the Lord go from me to speak to you?” ²⁵ And Micai′ah said, “Behold, you shall see on that day when you go into an inner chamber to hide yourself.” ²⁶ And the king of Israel said, “Seize Micai′ah, and take him back to Amon the governor of the city and to Jo′ash the king’s son; ²⁷ and say, ‘Thus says the king, “Put this fellow in prison, and feed him with scant fare of bread and water, until I come in peace.”’” ²⁸ And Micai′ah said, “If you return in peace, the Lord has not spoken by me.” And he said, “Hear, all you peoples!”

Defeat and Death of Ahab

²⁹ So the king of Israel and Jehosh′aphat the king of Judah went up to Ramoth-gilead. ³⁰ And the king of Israel said to Jehosh′aphat, “I will disguise myself and go into battle, but you wear your robes.” And the king of Israel disguised himself and went into battle. ³¹ Now the king of Syria had commanded the thirty-two captains of his chariots, “Fight with neither small nor great, but only with the king of Israel.” ³² And when the captains of the chariots saw Jehosh′aphat, they said, “It is surely the king of Israel.” So they turned to fight against him; and Jehosh′aphat cried out. ³³ And when the captains of the chariots saw that it was not the king of Israel, they turned back from pursuing him. ³⁴ But a certain man drew his bow at a venture, and struck the king of Israel between the scale armor and the breastplate; therefore he said to the driver of his chariot, “Turn about, and carry me out of the battle, for I am wounded.” ³⁵ And the battle grew hot that day, and the king was propped up in his chariot facing the Syrians, until at evening he died; and the blood of the wound flowed into the bottom of the chariot. ³⁶ And about sunset a cry went through the army, “Every man to his city, and every man to his country!”

³⁷ So the king died, and was brought to Samar′ia; and they buried the king in Samar′ia. ³⁸ And they washed the chariot by the pool of Samar′ia, and the dogs licked up his blood, and the harlots washed themselves in it, according to the word of the Lord which he had spoken. ³⁹ Now the rest of the acts of Ahab, and all that he did, and the ivory house which he built, and all the cities that he built, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? ⁴⁰ So Ahab slept with his fathers; and Ahazi′ah his son reigned in his stead.

Jehoshaphat Reigns over Judah

⁴¹ Jehosh′aphat the son of Asa began to reign over Judah in the fourth year of Ahab king of Israel. ⁴² Jehosh′aphat was thirty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty-five years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Azu′bah the daughter of Shilhi. ⁴³ He walked in all the way of Asa his father; he did not turn aside from it, doing what was right in the sight of the Lord; yet the high places were not taken away, and the people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high places. ⁴⁴ Jehosh′aphat also made peace with the king of Israel.

⁴⁵ Now the rest of the acts of Jehosh′aphat, and his might that he showed, and how he warred, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? ⁴⁶ And the remnant of the male cult prostitutes who remained in the days of his father Asa, he exterminated from the land.

⁴⁷ There was no king in Edom; a deputy was king. ⁴⁸ Jehosh′aphat made ships of Tarshish to go to Ophir for gold; but they did not go, for the ships were wrecked at E′zion-ge′ber. ⁴⁹ Then Ahazi′ah the son of Ahab said to Jehosh′aphat, “Let my servants go with your servants in the ships,” but Jehosh′aphat was not willing. ⁵⁰ And Jehosh′aphat slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David his father; and Jeho′ram his son reigned in his stead.

Ahaziah Reigns over Israel

⁵¹ Ahazi′ah the son of Ahab began to reign over Israel in Samar′ia in the seventeenth year of Jehosh′aphat king of Judah, and he reigned two years over Israel. ⁵² He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and walked in the way of his father, and in the way of his mother, and in the way of Jerobo′am the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin. ⁵³ He served Ba′al and worshiped him, and provoked the Lord, the God of Israel, to anger in every way that his father had done.

Elijah Denounces Ahaziah

1 After the death of Ahab, Moab rebelled against Israel.

² Now Ahazi′ah fell through the lattice in his upper chamber in Samar′ia, and lay sick; so he sent messengers, telling them, “Go, inquire of Ba′al-ze′bub, the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover from this sickness.” ³ But the angel of the Lord said to Eli′jah the Tishbite, “Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samar′ia, and say to them, ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to inquire of Ba′al-ze′bub, the god of Ekron?’ ⁴ Now therefore thus says the Lord, ‘You shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone, but you shall surely die.’” So Eli′jah went.

⁵ The messengers returned to the king, and he said to them, “Why have you returned?” ⁶ And they said to him, “There came a man to meet us, and said to us, ‘Go back to the king who sent you, and say to him, Thus says the Lord, Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending to inquire of Ba′al-ze′bub, the god of Ekron? Therefore you shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone, but shall surely die.’” ⁷ He said to them, “What kind of man was he who came to meet you and told you these things?” ⁸ They answered him, “He wore a garment of haircloth, with a girdle of leather about his loins.” And he said, “It is Eli′jah the Tishbite.”

⁹ Then the king sent to him a captain of fifty men with his fifty. He went up to Eli′jah, who was sitting on the top of a hill, and said to him, “O man of God, the king says, ‘Come down.’” ¹⁰ But Eli′jah answered the captain of fifty, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.” Then fire came down from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty.

¹¹ Again the king sent to him another captain of fifty men with his fifty. And he went up^[d] and said to him, “O man of God, this is the king’s order, ‘Come down quickly!’” ¹² But Eli′jah answered them, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.” Then the fire of God came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty.

¹³ Again the king sent the captain of a third fifty with his fifty. And the third captain of fifty went up, and came and fell on his knees before Eli′jah, and entreated him, “O man of God, I pray you, let my life, and the life of these fifty servants of yours, be precious in your sight. ¹⁴ Lo, fire came down from heaven, and consumed the two former captains of fifty men with their fifties; but now let my life be precious in your sight.” ¹⁵ Then the angel of the Lord said to Eli′jah, “Go down with him; do not be afraid of him.” So he arose and went down with him to the king, ¹⁶ and said to him, “Thus says the Lord, ‘Because you have sent messengers to inquire of Ba′al-ze′bub, the god of Ekron,—is it because there is no God in Israel to inquire of his word?—therefore you shall not come down from the bed to which you have gone, but you shall surely die.’”

Death of Ahaziah

¹⁷ So he died according to the word of the Lord which Eli′jah had spoken. Jeho′ram, his brother,^[e] became king in his stead in the second year of Jeho′ram the son of Jehosh′aphat, king of Judah, because Ahazi′ah had no son. ¹⁸ Now the rest of the acts of Ahazi′ah which he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?

Elijah Ascends to Heaven

2 Now when the Lord was about to take Eli′jah up to heaven by a whirlwind, Eli′jah and Eli′sha were on their way from Gilgal. ² And Eli′jah said to Eli′sha, “Tarry here, I pray you; for the Lord has sent me as far as Bethel.” But Eli′sha said, “As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So they went down to Bethel. ³ And the sons of the prophets who were in Bethel came out to Eli′sha, and said to him, “Do you know that today the Lord will take away your master from over you?” And he said, “Yes, I know it; hold your peace.”

⁴ Eli′jah said to him, “Eli′sha, tarry here, I pray you; for the Lord has sent me to Jericho.” But he said, “As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So they came to Jericho. ⁵ The sons of the prophets who were at Jericho drew near to Eli′sha, and said to him, “Do you know that today the Lord will take away your master from over you?” And he answered, “Yes, I know it; hold your peace.”

⁶ Then Eli′jah said to him, “Tarry here, I pray you; for the Lord has sent me to the Jordan.” But he said, “As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.” So the two of them went on. ⁷ Fifty men of the sons of the prophets also went, and stood at some distance from them, as they both were standing by the Jordan. ⁸ Then Eli′jah took his mantle, and rolled it up, and struck the water, and the water was parted to the one side and to the other, till the two of them could go over on dry ground.

⁹ When they had crossed, Eli′jah said to Eli′sha, “Ask what I shall do for you, before I am taken from you.” And Eli′sha said, “I pray you, let me inherit a double share of your spirit.” ¹⁰ And he said, “You have asked a hard thing; yet, if you see me as I am being taken from you, it shall be so for you; but if you do not see me, it shall not be so.” ¹¹ And as they still went on and talked, behold, a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them. And Eli′jah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. ¹² And Eli′sha saw it and he cried, “My father, my father! the chariots of Israel and its horsemen!” And he saw him no more.

Elisha Succeeds Elijah

Then he took hold of his own clothes and rent them in two pieces. ¹³ And he took up the mantle of Eli′jah that had fallen from him, and went back and stood on the bank of the Jordan. ¹⁴ Then he took the mantle of Eli′jah that had fallen from him, and struck the water, saying, “Where is the Lord, the God of Eli′jah?” And when he had struck the water, the water was parted to the one side and to the other; and Eli′sha went over.

¹⁵ Now when the sons of the prophets who were at Jericho saw him over against them, they said, “The spirit of Eli′jah rests on Eli′sha.” And they came to meet him, and bowed to the ground before him. ¹⁶ And they said to him, “Behold now, there are with your servants fifty strong men; pray, let them go, and seek your master; it may be that the Spirit of the Lord has caught him up and cast him upon some mountain or into some valley.” And he said, “You shall not send.” ¹⁷ But when they urged him till he was ashamed, he said, “Send.” They sent therefore fifty men; and for three days they sought him but did not find him. ¹⁸ And they came back to him, while he tarried at Jericho, and he said to them, “Did I not say to you, Do not go?”

Elisha Performs Miracles

¹⁹ Now the men of the city said to Eli′sha, “Behold, the situation of this city is pleasant, as my lord sees; but the water is bad, and the land is unfruitful.” ²⁰ He said, “Bring me a new bowl, and put salt in it.” So they brought it to him. ²¹ Then he went to the spring of water and threw salt in it, and said, “Thus says the Lord, I have made this water wholesome; henceforth neither death nor miscarriage shall come from it.” ²² So the water has been wholesome to this day, according to the word which Eli′sha spoke.

²³ He went up from there to Bethel; and while he was going up on the way, some small boys came out of the city and jeered at him, saying, “Go up, you baldhead! Go up, you baldhead!” ²⁴ And he turned around, and when he saw them, he cursed them in the name of the Lord. And two she-bears came out of the woods and tore forty-two of the boys. ²⁵ From there he went on to Mount Carmel, and thence he returned to Samar′ia.