2 Kings 13
Christian Standard Bible
Israel’s King Jehoahaz
13 In the twenty-third year of Judah’s King Joash(A) son of Ahaziah, Jehoahaz(B) son of Jehu became king over Israel in Samaria, and he reigned seventeen years. 2 He did what was evil in the Lord’s sight and followed the sins that Jeroboam son of Nebat had caused Israel to commit; he did not turn away from them.(C) 3 So the Lord’s anger burned against Israel,(D) and he handed them over to King Hazael(E) of Aram and to his son Ben-hadad(F) during their reigns.
4 Then Jehoahaz sought the Lord’s favor, and the Lord heard him, for he saw the oppression the king of Aram inflicted on Israel.(G) 5 Therefore, the Lord gave Israel a deliverer,(H) and they escaped from the power of the Arameans. Then the people of Israel returned to their former way of life,[a] 6 but they didn’t turn away from the sins that the house of Jeroboam had caused Israel to commit. Jehoahaz continued them,(I) and the Asherah pole also remained standing in Samaria. 7 Jehoahaz did not have an army left, except for fifty horsemen, ten chariots, and ten thousand foot soldiers, because the king of Aram had destroyed them,(J) making them like dust at threshing.(K)
8 The rest of the events of Jehoahaz’s reign, along with all his accomplishments and his might, are written in the Historical Record of Israel’s Kings.(L) 9 Jehoahaz rested with his ancestors, and he was buried in Samaria. His son Jehoash[b] became king in his place.
Israel’s King Jehoash
10 In the thirty-seventh year of Judah’s King Joash, Jehoash son of Jehoahaz became king over Israel in Samaria, and he reigned sixteen years. 11 He did what was evil in the Lord’s sight. He did not turn away from all the sins that Jeroboam son of Nebat had caused Israel to commit, but he continued them.(M)
12 The rest of the events of Jehoash’s reign, along with all his accomplishments and the power he had to wage war against Judah’s King Amaziah,(N) are written in the Historical Record of Israel’s Kings. 13 Jehoash rested with his ancestors, and Jeroboam(O) sat on his throne. Jehoash was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel.
Elisha’s Death
14 When Elisha became sick with the illness from which he died, King Jehoash of Israel went down and wept over him and said, “My father, my father, the chariots and horsemen of Israel!” (P)
15 Elisha responded, “Get a bow and arrows.” So he got a bow and arrows.(Q) 16 Then Elisha said to the king of Israel, “Grasp the bow.” So the king grasped it, and Elisha put his hands on the king’s hands. 17 Elisha said, “Open the east window.” So he opened it. Elisha said, “Shoot!” So he shot.(R) Then Elisha said, “The Lord’s arrow of victory, yes, the arrow of victory over Aram. You are to strike down the Arameans in Aphek(S) until you have put an end to them.”
18 Then Elisha said, “Take the arrows!” So he took them. Then Elisha said to the king of Israel, “Strike the ground!” So he struck the ground three times and stopped. 19 The man of God(T) was angry with him and said, “You should have struck the ground five or six times. Then you would have struck down Aram until you had put an end to them, but now you will strike down Aram only three times.” 20 Then Elisha died and was buried.(U)
Now Moabite raiders(V) used to come into the land in the spring of the year. 21 Once, as the Israelites were burying a man, suddenly they saw a raiding party, so they threw the man into Elisha’s tomb. When he touched Elisha’s bones, the man revived and stood up!(W)
God’s Mercy on Israel
22 King Hazael(X) of Aram oppressed Israel throughout the reign of Jehoahaz, 23 but the Lord was gracious to them, had compassion on them,(Y) and turned toward them because of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.(Z) He was not willing to destroy them. Even now he has not banished them from his presence.(AA)
24 King Hazael of Aram died, and his son Ben-hadad(AB) became king in his place. 25 Then Jehoash son of Jehoahaz took back from Ben-hadad son of Hazael the cities that Hazael had taken in war from Jehoash’s father Jehoahaz. Jehoash defeated Ben-hadad three times and recovered the cities of Israel.(AC)
2 Kings 13
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Jehoahaz Reigns over Israel
13 In the twenty-third year of King Joash son of Ahaziah of Judah, Jehoahaz son of Jehu began to reign over Israel in Samaria; he reigned seventeen years. 2 He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and followed the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat that he caused Israel to sin; he did not depart from them.(A) 3 The anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, so he gave them repeatedly into the hand of King Hazael of Aram, then into the hand of Ben-hadad son of Hazael.(B) 4 But Jehoahaz entreated the Lord, and the Lord heeded him, for he saw the oppression of Israel, how the king of Aram oppressed them.(C) 5 Therefore the Lord gave Israel a savior, so they escaped from the hand of the Arameans, and the people of Israel lived in their homes as formerly.(D) 6 Nevertheless, they did not depart from the sins of the house of Jeroboam that he caused Israel to sin but walked[a] in them; the sacred pole[b] also remained in Samaria.(E) 7 So Jehoahaz was left with an army of not more than fifty horsemen, ten chariots, and ten thousand footmen, for the king of Aram had destroyed them and made them like the dust at threshing.(F) 8 Now the rest of the acts of Jehoahaz and all that he did, including his might, are they not written in the Book of the Annals of the Kings of Israel? 9 So Jehoahaz slept with his ancestors, and they buried him in Samaria; then his son Joash succeeded him.(G)
Jehoash Reigns over Israel
10 In the thirty-seventh year of King Joash of Judah, Jehoash son of Jehoahaz began to reign over Israel in Samaria; he reigned sixteen years. 11 He also did what was evil in the sight of the Lord; he did not depart from all the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat that he caused Israel to sin, but he walked in them. 12 Now the rest of the acts of Joash and all that he did, as well as the might with which he fought against King Amaziah of Judah, are they not written in the Book of the Annals of the Kings of Israel?(H) 13 So Joash slept with his ancestors, and Jeroboam sat upon his throne; Joash was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel.
Death of Elisha
14 Now when Elisha had fallen sick with the illness of which he was to die, King Joash of Israel went down to him and wept before him, crying, “My father, my father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!”(I) 15 Elisha said to him, “Take a bow and arrows,” so he took a bow and arrows. 16 Then he said to the king of Israel, “Draw the bow,” and he drew it. Elisha laid his hands on the king’s hands. 17 Then he said, “Open the window eastward,” and he opened it. Elisha said, “Shoot,” and he shot. Then he said, “The Lord’s arrow of victory, the arrow of victory over Aram! For you shall fight the Arameans in Aphek until you have made an end of them.”(J) 18 He continued, “Take the arrows,” and he took them. He said to the king of Israel, “Strike the ground with them”; he struck three times and stopped. 19 Then the man of God was angry with him and said, “You should have struck five or six times; then you would have struck down Aram until you had made an end of it, but now you will strike down Aram only three times.”(K)
20 So Elisha died, and they buried him. Now bands of Moabites used to invade the land in the spring of the year.(L) 21 As a man was being buried, a marauding band was seen and the man was thrown into the grave of Elisha; as soon as the man touched the bones of Elisha, he came to life and stood on his feet.
Israel Recaptures Cities from Aram
22 Now King Hazael of Aram oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoahaz.(M) 23 But the Lord was gracious to them and had compassion on them; he turned toward them because of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and would not destroy them, nor has he banished them from his presence until now.(N)
24 When King Hazael of Aram died, his son Ben-hadad succeeded him. 25 Then Jehoash son of Jehoahaz took again from Ben-hadad son of Hazael the towns that he had taken from his father Jehoahaz in war. Three times Joash defeated him and recovered the towns of Israel.(O)
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.