2 Kings 13
Wycliffe Bible
13 In the three and twentieth year of Joash[a], the son of Ahaziah, king of Judah, Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, reigned upon Israel, in Samaria seventeen years. (In the twenty-third year of Joash, the son of Ahaziah, the king of Judah, Jehoahaz, the son of Jehu, began to reign upon Israel, in Samaria, and he reigned for seventeen years.)
2 And he did evil before the Lord, and he followed the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, that made Israel to do sin; and he bowed not away from those sins.
3 And the strong vengeance of the Lord was wroth against Israel, and he betook them into the hand of Hazael, king of Syria, and in(to) the hand of Benhadad, son of Hazael, in all (their) days.
4 Forsooth Jehoahaz besought the face of the Lord, and the Lord heard him; for he saw the anguish of Israel, for the king of Syria had all-broken them.
5 And the Lord gave a saviour to Israel, and he was delivered from the hand of the king of Syria; and the sons of Israel dwelled in their tabernacles, as yesterday and the third day ago. (And the Lord gave a saviour to Israel, and they were rescued from the hands of the king of Syria; and then the Israelites lived in their homes, like yesterday and the third day ago.)
6 Nevertheless they departed not from the sins of the house of Jeroboam, that made Israel to do sin; but they went in those sins; soothly also the [maumet] wood dwelled in Samaria (and also the idol grove/the sacred pole remained in Samaria).
7 And to Jehoahaz were not left of the people, but five hundred knights, and ten chariots, and ten thousand of footmen (And there were left of the people to Jehoahaz, but five hundred horsemen, and ten chariots, and ten thousand footmen); for the king of Syria had slain them, and had driven them [down] as into powder in the threshing of a cornfloor.
8 Forsooth the residue of [the] words of Jehoahaz, and all things that he did, and the strength of him, whether these be not written in the book of [the] words of [the] days of the kings of Israel?
9 And Jehoahaz slept with his fathers, and they buried him in Samaria; and Jehoash[b], his son, reigned for him.
10 In the seven and thirtieth year of Joash, king of Judah, Jehoash, the son of Jehoahaz, reigned upon Israel in Samaria sixteen years.[c] (In the thirty-seventh year of Joash, the king of Judah, Jehoash, the son of Jehoahaz, began to reign upon Israel in Samaria, and he reigned for sixteen years.)
11 And he did that, that is evil in the sight of the Lord (And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord); for he bowed not away from all the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, that made Israel to do sin; but he went in those sins.
12 [d]Forsooth the residue of [the] words of Jehoash, and all things that he did, but also his strength, how he fought against Amaziah, king of Judah, whether these be not written in the book of [the] words of [the] days of the kings of Israel?
13 And Jehoash slept with his fathers; forsooth Jeroboam (II) sat upon his throne (and his son, Jeroboam II, sat on his throne). And Jehoash was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel.
14 Forsooth Elisha was sick in a sickness, by which and he was dead (Now Elisha was sick with the sickness from which he would die); and Jehoash, king of Israel, went down to him, and wept before him, and said, My father! my father! the chariot of Israel, and the charioteer thereof!
15 And Elisha said to him, Bring thou a bow and arrows. And when he had brought to Elisha a bow and arrows,
16 he said to the king of Israel, Set thine hand on the bow. And when he had set his hand (on it), Elisha setted his hands on the hands of the king,
17 and (he) said, Open thou the east window. And when he had opened (it), Elisha said, Shoot thou an arrow; and he shot (it). And Elisha said, This is an arrow of [the] health of the Lord, and an arrow of health against Syria; and thou shalt smite Syria in Aphek, till thou waste it (And Elisha said, This is an arrow of the Lord’s victory, yea, an arrow of victory over Syria; and thou shalt strike Syria in Aphek, until thou destroy it).
18 And Elisha said, Take away the arrows. And when he had taken (them) away, Elisha said to him, Smite thou the earth with a dart (Strike thou the earth with this arrow). And when he had smitten three times, and had stood,
19 the man of God was wroth against him, and said, If thou haddest smitten five times, either six times, either seven times, thou shouldest have smitten Syria unto the ending (of it); now forsooth thou shalt smite it three times (but now thou shalt strike it only three times).
20 Then Elisha was dead (Then Elisha died), and they buried him. And the thieves of Moab came into the land in that year.
21 Forsooth some men buried a man (And some men were burying a man), and they saw the thieves, and they cast forth the dead body into the sepulchre of Elisha; and when it had touched the bones of Elisha, the man lived again, and stood up on his feet.
22 Then Hazael (But Hazael), king of Syria, tormented Israel in all the days of Jehoahaz.
23 And the Lord had mercy on them, and turned again to them for his covenant, that he had made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; and he would not destroy them, neither cast them away utterly, into this present time. (But the Lord had mercy on the Israelites, and returned to them, because of the covenant that he had made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; and he would not destroy them, nor throw them utterly away, even into this present time.)
24 And Hazael, king of Syria, died; and Benhadad, his son, reigned for him.
25 Forsooth Jehoash, the son of Jehoahaz, took away [the] cities from the hand of Benhadad, the son of Hazael, which he had taken by the right of battle from the hand of Jehoahaz, his father (which he had taken from the hand, or the power, of his father Jehoahaz, by right of battle); Jehoash smote him three times, and he yielded those cities to Israel.
Footnotes
- 2 Kings 13:1 Also known as Jehoash.
- 2 Kings 13:9 Also known as Joash.
- 2 Kings 13:10 Joash, king of Judah, was also known as Jehoash; Jehoash, king of Israel, was also known as Joash! For a time they reigned concurrently.
- 2 Kings 13:12 Compare verses 13:12-13 with 14:15-16.
2 Kings 13
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 13
Reign of Jehoahaz of Israel. 1 In the twenty-third year of Joash, son of Ahaziah, king of Judah, Jehoahaz, son of Jehu, became king over Israel in Samaria for seventeen years.
2 He did what was evil in the Lord’s sight: he did not depart from following the sins that Jeroboam, son of Nebat, had caused Israel to commit. 3 The Lord was angry with Israel and for a long time gave them into the power of Hazael, king of Aram, and of Ben-hadad, son of Hazael. 4 Then Jehoahaz entreated the Lord, who heard him, since he saw the oppression to which the king of Aram had subjected Israel.(A) 5 So the Lord gave Israel a savior,[a] and the Israelites, freed from the power of Aram, dwelt in their own tents as formerly. 6 Nevertheless, they did not desist from the sins the house of Jeroboam had caused Israel to commit, but persisted in them. The Asherah[b] remained even in Samaria.(B) 7 No army was left to Jehoahaz, except fifty horses with ten chariots and ten thousand foot soldiers, since the king of Aram had destroyed them and trampled them like dust.
8 The rest of the acts of Jehoahaz, with all that he did and his valor, are recorded in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel. 9 Jehoahaz rested with his ancestors; he was buried in Samaria and his son Joash succeeded him as king.
Reign of Joash of Israel. 10 In the thirty-seventh year of Joash, king of Judah, Joash, son of Jehoahaz, became king over Israel in Samaria sixteen years.
11 He did what was evil in the Lord’s sight; he did not desist from any of the sins Jeroboam, son of Nebat, had caused Israel to commit, but persisted in them.
12 [c]The rest of the acts of Joash, with all that he did and his valor, and how he fought with Amaziah, king of Judah, are recorded in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel. 13 Joash rested with his ancestors. Then Jeroboam sat on his throne. Joash was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel.
Elisha’s Deathbed Prophecy. 14 When Elisha was suffering from the sickness of which he was to die, Joash, king of Israel, went down to weep over him. “My father, my father!”[d] he exclaimed, “Israel’s chariot and steeds!”(C) 15 Elisha said to him, “Take bow and arrows,” and he took bow and arrows. 16 [e]Elisha said to the king of Israel, “Rest your hand on the bow,” and he rested his hand on it. Elisha placed his hands over the king’s hands 17 and said, “Open the window toward the east.” He opened it. Elisha said, “Shoot,” and he shot. He said,
“An arrow of victory for the Lord!
An arrow of victory over Aram!
You will beat Aram at Aphek and finish him!”
18 Then he said to the king of Israel, “Take the arrows,” which he did. Elisha said to the king of Israel, “Beat the ground!” He beat the ground three times and stopped. 19 The man of God became angry with him and said, “You should have beat five or six times. You would have beaten Aram and finished him. Now you will beat Aram only three times.”
20 And so Elisha died and was buried.
At that time of year, bands of Moabites used to raid the land. 21 Once some people were burying a man, when suddenly they saw such a raiding band. So they cast the man into the grave of Elisha, and everyone went off. But when the man came in contact with the bones of Elisha, he came back to life and got to his feet.(D)
22 King Hazael of Aram oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoahaz. 23 But the Lord was gracious with Israel and looked on them with compassion because of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He was unwilling to destroy them or to cast them out from his presence even up to now. 24 So when King Hazael of Aram died and his son Ben-hadad succeeded him as king, 25 Joash, son of Jehoahaz, took back from Ben-hadad, son of Hazael, the cities Hazael had taken in battle from Jehoahaz, his father. Three times Joash beat him, and thus recovered the cities of Israel.
Footnotes
- 13:5 A savior: i.e., a military leader (cf. Jgs 3:9, 15). Here the identity of the savior is unclear, but the reappearance of a militant Elisha in this chapter after an absence of several chapters and nearly thirty years suggests the narrator may have had him in mind. Two generations later Joash’s grandson, Jeroboam II, will also “save” Israel (14:27).
- 13:6 Asherah: see note on Ex 34:13.
- 13:12–13 The conclusion to the reign of Joash is given again in 14:15–16. In both places it disrupts the standard pattern followed in the Books of Kings. The account of Joash’s reign ends in vv. 12–13; this leaves the story of Elisha’s last illness (in which Joash figures prominently) suspended between regnal accounts, much as the story of Elisha’s succession to Elijah’s prophetic office (chap. 2) was suspended between the accounts of Ahaziah and Joram. In 14:15–16 the concluding formula for Joash’s reign interrupts the account of the reign of Amaziah of Judah (14:1–22), much as Joash himself invaded Amaziah’s kingdom (14:11–14).
- 13:14 My father, my father: the way the king addresses the dying Elisha echoes Elisha’s address to Elijah in 2:12.
- 13:16–19 Symbolic acts, like prophetic oracles, were understood to unleash the power they expressed. Similar symbolic acts are seen in Ex 17:8–13; Jos 8:18–20; Ez 4:1–3.
2 Kings 13
Expanded Bible
Jehoahaz King of Israel
13 Jehoahaz son of Jehu became king over Israel in Samaria during the twenty-third year Joash son of Ahaziah was king of Judah. Jehoahaz ·ruled [reigned] seventeen years, 2 and he did ·what the Lord said was wrong [L evil in the eyes/sight of the Lord]. Jehoahaz ·did [followed] the same sins Jeroboam son of Nebat had done. Jeroboam had led Israel to sin, and Jehoahaz did not ·stop doing these same sins [depart/turn away from them]. 3 So the ·Lord was angry with [L Lord’s anger burned/kindled against] Israel and handed them over to Hazael king of Aram and his son Ben-Hadad ·for a long time [or repeatedly].
4 Then Jehoahaz ·begged [entreated; prayed to; sought the favor of] the Lord, and the Lord listened to him. The Lord had seen the ·troubles [oppression] of Israel; he saw how ·terribly [severely] the king of Aram was ·treating [oppressing] them. 5 He gave Israel a ·man to save them [rescuer; savior; T deliverer], and they escaped from the ·hand [grip; power] of the Arameans. The ·Israelites [L sons/T children of Israel] then lived in their own ·homes [L tents] as they had before, 6 but they still did not ·stop doing [depart/turn away from] these same sins that the ·family [L house] of Jeroboam had done. He had led Israel to sin, and they ·continued doing those sins [L walked in them]. The Asherah ·idol [pole; C a sacred tree or pole dedicated to the goddess Asherah; 1 Kin. 14:15] also was left standing in Samaria.
7 Nothing was left of Jehoahaz’s army except fifty horsemen, ten chariots, and ten thousand foot soldiers. The king of Aram had destroyed them and made them like ·chaff [L dust at threshing time].
8 Everything else Jehoahaz did and all his ·victories [achievements; power] ·are [L are they not…?] written in the book of the ·history [chronicles; annals; 1:18] of the kings of Israel. 9 Jehoahaz ·died [L lay down/T slept with his fathers/ancestors] and was buried in Samaria, and his son Jehoash became king in his place.
Jehoash King of Israel
10 Jehoash son of Jehoahaz became king of Israel in Samaria during Joash’s thirty-seventh year as king of Judah. Jehoash ·ruled [reigned] sixteen years, 11 and he did ·what the Lord said was wrong [L evil in the eyes/sight of the Lord]. He did not ·stop doing [depart/turn away from] the same sins Jeroboam son of Nebat had done. Jeroboam had led Israel to sin, and Jehoash continued to do the same thing. 12 Everything else he did and all his ·victories [achievements; power], including his war against Amaziah king of Judah, ·are [L are they not…?] written in the book of the ·history [chronicles; annals; 1:18] of the kings of Israel. 13 Jehoash ·died [L lay down/T slept with his fathers/ancestors], and Jeroboam took his place on the throne. Jehoash was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel.
The Death of Elisha
14 At this time Elisha became sick. ·Before he died [or …with the illness of which he would die], Jehoash king of Israel went to Elisha and cried ·for [over] him. Jehoash said, “My father, my father! ·The chariots [or Chariot; C a reference to Elisha as Israel’s defender; cf. 2:12] of Israel and ·their [its] horsemen!”
15 Elisha said to Jehoash, “Take a bow and arrows.” So he took a bow and arrows. 16 Then Elisha said to him, “Put your hand on the bow.” So Jehoash put his hand on the bow. Then Elisha put his hands on the king’s hands. 17 Elisha said, “Open the east window.” So Jehoash opened the window. Then Elisha said, “Shoot,” and Jehoash shot. Elisha said, “The Lord’s arrow of victory, the arrow of victory over Aram! You will defeat the Arameans at Aphek until you ·destroy [make an end of] them.”
18 Elisha said, “Take the arrows.” So Jehoash took them. Then Elisha said to him, “Strike the ground.” So Jehoash struck the ground three times and stopped. 19 The man of God was ·angry [aroused/provoked to anger] with him. “You should have struck five or six times!” Elisha said. “Then you would have struck Aram until you had completely destroyed it. But now you will ·defeat it [L strike down Aram] only three times.”
20 Then Elisha died and was buried.
At that time ·groups [bands] of Moabites would rob the land in the springtime. 21 Once as some Israelites were burying a man, suddenly they saw a ·group [band] of Moabites coming. The Israelites threw the dead man into Elisha’s ·grave [tomb]. When the man touched Elisha’s bones, the man ·came back to life [revived] and stood on his feet.
War with Aram
22 During all the days Jehoahaz was king, Hazael king of Aram ·troubled [oppressed] Israel. 23 But the Lord was ·kind [gracious] to the Israelites; he had ·mercy [compassion; pity] on them and helped them because of his ·agreement [covenant; treaty] with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. To this day he has ·never wanted [been unwilling] to destroy them or ·reject them [banish/cast them from his presence].
24 When Hazael king of Aram died, his son Ben-Hadad became king in his place. 25 During a war Hazael had taken some cities from Jehoahaz, Jehoash’s father. Now Jehoash took back those cities from Hazael’s son Ben-Hadad. He defeated Ben-Hadad three times and ·took back [recovered] the cities of Israel.
2001 by Terence P. Noble
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.
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