2 Kings 3
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Israel’s King Joram
3 Joram son of Ahab became king over Israel in Samaria during the eighteenth year of Judah’s King Jehoshaphat and reigned 12 years.(A) 2 He did what was evil in the Lord’s sight, but not like his father and mother,(B) for he removed the sacred pillar of Baal his father had made. 3 Nevertheless, Joram clung to the sins that Jeroboam son of Nebat had caused Israel to commit.(C) He did not turn away from them.
Moab’s Rebellion against Israel
4 King Mesha of Moab(D) was a sheep breeder. He used to pay(E) the king of Israel 100,000 lambs and the wool of 100,000 rams,(F) 5 but when Ahab died, the king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel.(G) 6 So King Joram marched out from Samaria at that time and mobilized all Israel. 7 Then he sent a message to King Jehoshaphat(H) of Judah: “The king of Moab has rebelled against me.(I) Will you go with me to fight against Moab?”
Jehoshaphat said, “I will go. I am as you are, my people as your people, my horses as your horses.”(J) 8 Then he asked, “Which route should we take?”
Joram replied, “The route of the Wilderness of Edom.”
9 So the king of Israel, the king of Judah, and the king of Edom(K) set out. After they had traveled their indirect route for seven days, they had no water for the army or their animals.
10 Then the king of Israel said, “Oh no, the Lord has summoned three kings, only to hand them over to Moab.”
11 But Jehoshaphat said, “Isn’t there a prophet of the Lord here? Let’s inquire of Yahweh through him.”(L)
One of the servants of the king of Israel answered, “Elisha son of Shaphat,(M) who used to pour water on Elijah’s hands, is here.”
12 Jehoshaphat affirmed, “The Lord’s words are with him.” So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went to him.(N)
13 However, Elisha said to King Joram of Israel, “We have nothing in common. Go to the prophets of your father and your mother!”(O)
But the king of Israel replied, “No, because it is the Lord who has summoned these three kings to hand them over to Moab.”
14 Elisha responded, “As the Lord of Hosts lives,(P) I stand before Him. If I did not have respect for King Jehoshaphat of Judah,(Q) I would not look at you; I wouldn’t take notice of you. 15 Now, bring me a musician.”(R)
While the musician played,(S) the Lord’s hand(T) came on Elisha. 16 Then he said, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Dig ditch after ditch in this wadi.’ 17 For the Lord says, ‘You will not see wind or rain, but the wadi will be filled with water,(U) and you will drink—you and your cattle and your animals.’ 18 This is easy in the Lord’s sight.(V) He will also hand Moab over to you.(W) 19 Then you must attack every fortified city and every choice city. You must cut down every good tree and stop up every spring of water. You must ruin every good piece of land with stones.”
20 About the time for the grain offering(X) the next morning, water suddenly came from the direction of Edom and filled the land.
21 All Moab had heard that the kings(Y) 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. 22 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.(Z) 23 “This is blood!” they exclaimed. “The kings(AA) have clashed swords and killed each other. So, to the spoil, Moab!”
24 However, when the Moabites came to Israel’s camp, the Israelites attacked them, and they fled from them. So Israel went into the land and struck down the Moabites. 25 They destroyed the cities, and each of them threw stones to cover every good piece of land. They stopped up every spring of water and cut down every good tree. In the end, only the buildings of Kir-hareseth(AB) were left. Then men with slings surrounded the city and attacked it.
26 When the king of Moab saw that the battle was too fierce for him, he took 700 swordsmen with him to try to break through to the king of Edom,(AC) but they could not do it. 27 So he took his firstborn son,(AD) 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.
2 Kings 3
Common English Bible
Moab’s rebellion
3 Joram,[a] Ahab’s son, became king of Israel in Samaria in the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat, Judah’s king. He ruled for twelve years. 2 He did what was evil in the Lord’s eyes, but he wasn’t as bad as his father and mother. He removed the sacred pillar of Baal that his father had made. 3 But he nevertheless clung to the sins that Jeroboam, Nebat’s son, had caused Israel to commit. He didn’t deviate from them.
4 Now Moab’s King Mesha kept sheep. He would pay Israel’s king one hundred thousand lambs and the wool from one hundred thousand rams. 5 But when Ahab died, Moab’s king rebelled against Israel’s king. 6 So King Joram set out from Samaria at once. He prepared all Israel for war. 7 He sent word to Judah’s King Jehoshaphat, “Moab’s king has rebelled against me. Will you go with me to fight against Moab?”
Jehoshaphat responded, “Yes, I’ll go. We’ll fight as one: you and I, our troops and our horses.”
8 “Which road should we take?” Joram asked.
Jehoshaphat responded, “The road that goes through the Edomite wilderness.”
9 So Israel’s and Judah’s kings set out with the king of Edom. They marched around for seven days until there was no water left for the army or for the animals with them. 10 Israel’s king said, “This is terrible! Has the Lord brought us three kings together only to hand us over to Moab?”
11 Jehoshaphat said, “Isn’t there any prophet of the Lord around, so we could question the Lord through him?”
One of the servants of Israel’s king answered, “Elisha, Shaphat’s son, is here. He used to pour water on Elijah’s hands.”
12 Jehoshaphat said, “He has the Lord’s word!” So Israel’s king and Jehoshaphat and Edom’s king went down to see Elisha.
13 Elisha said to Israel’s king, “What do we have to do with each other? Go to your father’s or mother’s prophets.”
Then Israel’s king said to him, “Don’t say that, because it is the Lord who has brought us three kings together—but only to hand us over to Moab!”
14 Elisha said, “I swear by the life of the Lord of heavenly forces, the one I stand before and serve, if I didn’t care about Judah’s King Jehoshaphat, I wouldn’t notice you or even look at you! 15 Now bring me a musician.” While the musician played, the Lord’s power came over Elisha. 16 He said, “This is what the Lord says: This valley will be filled with pools.[b] 17 This is what the Lord says: You won’t see any wind or rain, but that valley will be full of water. Then you’ll be able to drink—you, your cattle, and your animals. 18 This is easy for the Lord to do. He will also hand Moab over to you. 19 You will then attack every fort and every grand city, cutting down all the good trees, stopping up all the springs, and ruining the good fields with stones.”
20 The next morning, at the time to offer the grain offering, water came flowing from the direction of Edom. The land filled up with water.
21 Now all the Moabites had heard how these kings had come to fight against them. So all who were able to fight were summoned, and they took up positions along the border. 22 They got up early in the morning as the sun’s rays shone on the water. The Moabites saw the water from a distance. It looked as red as blood. 23 They said, “It’s blood! The kings must have fought each other and killed themselves! Now get the plunder, Moab!”
24 But when they entered Israel’s camp, the Israelites rose up and attacked the Moabites. The Moabites fled from them. Israel moved forward, striking the Moabites down as they went.[c] 25 Then the Israelites destroyed the Moabite cities. Each Israelite threw a stone on every piece of good land until it was covered. They stopped up every spring and cut down every good tree. Only Kir-hareseth remained with its stone wall intact,[d] but then stone throwers[e] surrounded it and attacked it.
26 Moab’s king saw that he was losing the battle. So he took seven hundred soldiers with him, each with sword in hand, to break through to Edom’s king. But they failed. 27 Then he took his oldest son, who was to succeed him as king, and he offered him on the wall as an entirely burned offering. As a result, outrage was expressed by Israel. So they pulled back from Moab’s king and returned to their own country.
Footnotes
- 2 Kings 3:1 Heb Jehoram (also in 3:6); the king’s name is variously spelled in either long Jehoram or short Joram form.
- 2 Kings 3:16 LXX, Vulg Fill this valley with ditches.
- 2 Kings 3:24 Heb uncertain
- 2 Kings 3:25 Heb uncertain
- 2 Kings 3:25 Heb uncertain
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