2 Kings 7
Lexham English Bible
Elisha Prophesies Hope for Relief
7 Elisha said, “Hear the word of Yahweh: ‘Thus says Yahweh, “At this time tomorrow a seah of wheat bread flour will sell for a shekel, and two seahs of barley for a shekel in the gate of Samaria.’” 2 Then the officer on whom the king relied[a] answered the man of God and said, “Look, even if Yahweh is making windows in heaven, could this thing happen?” And he said, “Look, you will be seeing it with your eyes, but you shall not eat from it there.”
Four Lepers Report the Departure of the Arameans
3 Now four men who had a skin disease were at the entrance of the gate, and they said to each other,[b] “Why are we sitting here until we die? 4 If we say, ‘Let us go into the city,’ the famine is in the city, and we shall die there; but if we sit here, we shall die. So then, come, let us fall into the camp of the Arameans. If they let us live, we shall live; but if they kill us, then we shall die.” 5 So they got up at dusk to go to the camp of the Arameans. They went up to the edge of the camp of the Arameans, and look, there was no man there! 6 Now the Lord had caused the camp of the Arameans to hear the sound of chariots, the sound of horses, and the sound of a great army. So they said to one another,[c] “Look, the king of Israel has hired the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Egypt to come against us!” 7 So they got up and fled at dusk and left their tents, their horses, their donkeys, and the camp as it was, and they fled for their lives. 8 When these who had the skin disease came to the edge of the camp, they went into a certain tent and they ate, drank, and took from there silver and gold and clothes. Then they went and hid them, then returned and came to another tent, and they took from there and went and hid them.
9 Then they said to one another,[d] “We are not doing right. This day is a day of good news! If we are silent and wait until the light of morning, they will find us and we will be punished.[e] So then, come, let us go and tell the house of the king.” 10 When they came, they called to the gatekeepers of the city and told them, saying, “We came to the camp of the Arameans, and behold, there was no man or the voice of a man there! Only the horses and the donkeys were tied up, and the tents were left as they were.” 11 Then the gatekeepers called and told it inside the house of the king. 12 The king got up in the night and said to his servants, “Please let me tell you what the Arameans have done to us. The Arameans know that we are hungry, so they went out from the camp to hide in the field, saying, ‘When they go out from the city, we shall seize them alive and go into the city.’” 13 Then one of his servants replied and said, “Please let them take five of the remaining horses which remain in the city; behold, they are like all of the multitude of Israel that remain in it; they are like all the multitude of Israel who have perished. Let us send and see.” 14 So he took two charioteer horsemen, and the king sent after the camp of the Arameans, saying, “Go, find out,” 15 and they went after them to the Jordan. Look, all of the way was littered with clothes and equipment which the Arameans had thrown away in their haste. Then the messengers returned and told the king.
Prophecy Fulfilled
16 So the people went out and plundered the camp of the Arameans. A seah of wheat flour went for a shekel and two seahs of barley went for a shekel according to the word of Yahweh. 17 Then the king appointed the officer he was depending on over the gate, but the people trampled him and he died, according to that which the man of God had said which he spoke when the king came down to him. 18 It happened as the man of God spoke to the king, saying, “Two seahs of barley shall be sold for a shekel and a seah of wheat flour for a shekel at this time tomorrow in the gate of Samaria.” 19 Then the officer had replied to the man of God and said, “Look, even if Yahweh is opening the windows in heaven, could this thing happen?” And he had said, “Look you are about to see it with your eyes, but you will not eat from it.” 20 So it had happened to him; the people trampled him in the gate and he died.
Footnotes
- 2 Kings 7:2 Literally “whom the king was leaning on his hand”
- 2 Kings 7:3 Literally “each to his friend”
- 2 Kings 7:6 Literally “each to his brother”
- 2 Kings 7:9 Literally “each to his friend”
- 2 Kings 7:9 Literally “guiltiness”
2 Kings 7
World English Bible
7 Elisha said, “Hear Yahweh’s word. Yahweh says, ‘Tomorrow about this time a seah[a] of fine flour will be sold for a shekel,[b] and two seahs of barley for a shekel, in the gate of Samaria.’”
2 Then the captain on whose hand the king leaned answered the man of God, and said, “Behold, if Yahweh made windows in heaven, could this thing be?”
He said, “Behold, you will see it with your eyes, but will not eat of it.”
3 Now there were four leprous men at the entrance of the gate. They said to one another, “Why do we sit here until we die? 4 If we say, ‘We will enter into the city,’ then the famine is in the city, and we will die there. If we sit still here, we also die. Now therefore come, and let’s surrender to the army of the Syrians. If they save us alive, we will live; and if they kill us, we will only die.”
5 They rose up in the twilight, to go to the camp of the Syrians. When they had come to the outermost part of the camp of the Syrians, behold, no man was there. 6 For the Lord[c] had made the army of the Syrians to hear the sound of chariots, and the sound of horses, even the noise of a great army; and they said to one another, “Behold, the king of Israel has hired against us the kings of the Hittites and the kings of the Egyptians to attack us.” 7 Therefore they arose and fled in the twilight, and left their tents, and their horses, and their donkeys, even the camp as it was, and fled for their life. 8 When these lepers came to the outermost part of the camp, they went into one tent, and ate and drank, and carried away silver, gold, and clothing, and went and hid it. Then they came back, and entered into another tent, and carried things from there also, and went and hid them. 9 Then they said to one another, “We aren’t doing right. Today is a day of good news, and we keep silent. If we wait until the morning light, punishment will overtake us. Now therefore come, let’s go and tell the king’s household.”
10 So they came and called to the city gatekeepers; and they told them, “We came to the camp of the Syrians, and, behold, there was no man there, not even a man’s voice, but the horses tied, and the donkeys tied, and the tents as they were.”
11 He called the gatekeepers; and they told it to the king’s household within. 12 The king arose in the night, and said to his servants, “I will now show you what the Syrians have done to us. They know that we are hungry. Therefore they have gone out of the camp to hide themselves in the field, saying, ‘When they come out of the city, we shall take them alive, and get into the city.’”
13 One of his servants answered, “Please let some people take five of the horses that remain, which are left in the city. Behold, they are like all the multitude of Israel who are left in it. Behold, they are like all the multitude of Israel who are consumed. Let’s send and see.”
14 Therefore they took two chariots with horses; and the king sent them out to the Syrian army, saying, “Go and see.”
15 They went after them to the Jordan; and behold, all the path was full of garments and equipment which the Syrians had cast away in their haste. The messengers returned, and told the king. 16 The people went out and plundered the camp of the Syrians. So a seah[d] of fine flour was sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel,[e] according to Yahweh’s word. 17 The king appointed the captain on whose hand he leaned to be in charge of the gate; and the people trampled over him in the gate, and he died as the man of God had said, who spoke when the king came down to him. 18 It happened as the man of God had spoken to the king, saying, “Two seahs[f] of barley for a shekel,[g] and a seah of fine flour for a shekel, shall be tomorrow about this time in the gate of Samaria;” 19 and that captain answered the man of God, and said, “Now, behold, if Yahweh made windows in heaven, might such a thing be?” and he said, “Behold, you will see it with your eyes, but will not eat of it.” 20 It happened like that to him; for the people trampled over him in the gate, and he died.
Footnotes
- 7:1 1 seah is about 7 liters or 1.9 gallons or 0.8 pecks
- 7:1 A shekel is about 10 grams or about 0.35 ounces. In this context, it was probably a silver coin weighing that much.
- 7:6 The word translated “Lord” is “Adonai.”
- 7:16 1 seah is about 7 liters or 1.9 gallons or 0.8 pecks
- 7:16 A shekel is about 10 grams or about 0.35 ounces. In this context, it was probably a silver coin weighing that much.
- 7:18 1 seah is about 7 liters or 1.9 gallons or 0.8 pecks
- 7:18 A shekel is about 10 grams or about 0.35 ounces. In this context, it was probably a silver coin weighing that much.
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