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Joacaz, rey de Israel

13 En el año veintitrés de Joás hijo de Ocozías, rey de Judá, comenzó a reinar Joacaz hijo de Jehú sobre Israel en Samaria, y reinó diecisiete años.

Él hizo lo malo ante los ojos del SEÑOR y siguió tras los pecados de Jeroboam hijo de Nabat, quien hizo pecar a Israel[a]; no se apartó de ellos. Por eso se encendió el furor del SEÑOR contra Israel, y los entregó en mano de Hazael, rey de Siria, y en mano de Ben-hadad hijo de Hazael, por mucho tiempo. Pero Joacaz imploró el favor del SEÑOR, y el SEÑOR lo escuchó, porque vio la opresión de Israel, pues el rey de Siria los oprimía. Entonces el SEÑOR dio un libertador a Israel, y salieron del dominio de los sirios. Así habitaron los hijos de Israel en sus moradas, como antes. Sin embargo, no se apartaron de los pecados de la casa de Jeroboam, quien hizo pecar a Israel; y anduvieron[b] en ellos. También el árbol ritual de Asera seguía en pie en Samaria.

No le había quedado gente a Joacaz, salvo cincuenta jinetes, diez carros y diez mil hombres de infantería. Porque el rey de Siria los había destruido y los había dejado como polvo de la trilla.

Los demás hechos de Joacaz, todas las cosas que hizo y su poderío, ¿no están escritos en el libro de las crónicas de los reyes de Israel? Joacaz reposó con sus padres, y lo sepultaron en Samaria. Y su hijo Joás reinó en su lugar.

Joás, rey de Israel

10 En el año treinta y siete de Joás, rey de Judá, comenzó a reinar Joás hijo de Joacaz sobre Israel en Samaria, y reinó dieciséis años.

11 Él hizo lo malo ante los ojos del SEÑOR. No se apartó de todos los pecados de Jeroboam hijo de Nabat, quien hizo pecar a Israel, sino que anduvo en ellos.

12 Los demás hechos de Joás, todas las cosas que hizo y el poderío con que luchó contra Amasías, rey de Judá, ¿no están escritos en el libro de las crónicas de los reyes de Israel? 13 Joás reposó con sus padres, y Jeroboam se sentó en su trono. Y Joás fue sepultado en Samaria, con los reyes de Israel.

Eliseo predice la victoria sobre Siria

14 Eliseo se enfermó de la enfermedad de la que moriría. Entonces Joás, rey de Israel, descendió a él y llorando en su presencia, dijo:

—¡Padre mío, padre mío! ¡Carro de Israel, y sus jinetes!

15 Eliseo le dijo:

—Toma un arco y flechas.

Él tomó un arco y flechas, 16 y Eliseo dijo al rey de Israel:

—Pon tu mano sobre el arco.

Cuando puso su mano, Eliseo puso sus manos sobre las manos del rey. 17 Luego dijo:

—Abre la ventana que da al oriente.

Él la abrió, y Eliseo dijo:

—¡Tira!

Y él tiró. Entonces Eliseo dijo:

—¡Flecha de victoria del SEÑOR! ¡Flecha de victoria contra Siria! Porque derrotarás a Siria en Afec, hasta acabar con ella.

18 Volvió a decir:

—Toma las flechas.

Las tomó, y Eliseo dijo al rey de Israel:

—¡Golpea la tierra!

Él golpeó la tierra tres veces y se detuvo. 19 Entonces el hombre de Dios se enojó contra él y dijo:

—De haber golpeado cinco o seis veces, entonces habrías derrotado a Siria hasta acabar con ella. Pero ahora la derrotarás solo tres veces.

Los restos de Eliseo

20 Murió Eliseo, y lo sepultaron. Al año siguiente llegaron al país unas bandas armadas de los moabitas. 21 Y aconteció que mientras algunos sepultaban a un hombre, he aquí que vieron una banda armada y arrojaron al muerto dentro del sepulcro de Eliseo. Y cuando el muerto cayó y tocó los restos de Eliseo, aquel revivió y se puso de pie.

Joás derrota tres veces a los sirios

22 Hazael, rey de Siria, oprimió a los israelitas todos los días de Joacaz. 23 Pero el SEÑOR fue generoso con ellos y les mostró misericordia. Se volvió hacia ellos a causa de su pacto con Abraham, Isaac y Jacob[c], y no quiso destruirlos ni echarlos de su presencia hasta ahora.

24 Después murió Hazael, rey de Siria, y su hijo Ben-hadad reinó en su lugar. 25 Entonces Joás hijo de Joacaz volvió a tomar de mano de Ben-hadad hijo de Hazael las ciudades que este había tomado en la guerra, de mano de su padre Joacaz. Tres veces lo derrotó Joás y recuperó las ciudades de Israel.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Reyes 13:2 Según muchos mss. y vers. antiguas; TM, Jozabad.
  2. 2 Reyes 13:6 Cf. 1 Rey. 12:28-30.
  3. 2 Reyes 13:23 Según vers. antiguas; TM, él anduvo.

Jehoahaz’s Reign over Israel

13 In the twenty-third year of the reign of Judah’s King Joash son of Ahaziah, Jehu’s son Jehoahaz became king over Israel. He reigned in Samaria for seventeen years. He did evil in the sight of[a] the Lord. He continued in[b] the sinful ways of Jeroboam son of Nebat who had encouraged Israel to sin; he did not repudiate those sins.[c] The Lord was furious with[d] Israel and handed them over to[e] King Hazael of Syria and to Hazael’s son Ben Hadad for many years.[f]

Jehoahaz asked for the Lord’s mercy,[g] and the Lord responded favorably,[h] for he saw that Israel was oppressed by the king of Syria.[i] The Lord provided a deliverer[j] for Israel, and they were freed from Syria’s power.[k] The Israelites once more lived in security.[l] But they did not repudiate[m] the sinful ways of the family[n] of Jeroboam, who encouraged Israel to sin; they continued in those sins.[o] There was even an Asherah pole[p] standing in Samaria. Jehoahaz had no army left[q] except for 50 horsemen, 10 chariots, and 10,000 foot soldiers. The king of Syria had destroyed his troops[r] and trampled on them as dust.[s]

The rest of the events of Jehoahaz’s reign, including all his accomplishments and successes, are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Israel.[t] Jehoahaz passed away[u] and was buried[v] in Samaria. His son Jehoash[w] replaced him as king.

Jehoash’s Reign over Israel

10 In the thirty-seventh year of King Jehoash’s reign over Judah, Jehoahaz’s son Jehoash became king over Israel. He reigned in Samaria for sixteen years. 11 He did evil in the sight of[x] the Lord. He did not repudiate[y] the sinful ways of Jeroboam son of Nebat who encouraged Israel to sin; he continued in those sins.[z] 12 The rest of the events of Jehoash’s[aa] reign, including all his accomplishments and his successful war with King Amaziah of Judah, are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Israel.[ab] 13 Jehoash passed away[ac] and Jeroboam succeeded him on the throne.[ad] Jehoash was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel.

Elisha Makes One Final Prophecy

14 Now Elisha had a terminal illness.[ae] King Jehoash of Israel went down to visit him.[af] He wept before him and said, “My father, my father! The chariot[ag] and horsemen of Israel!”[ah] 15 Elisha told him, “Take a bow and some arrows,” and he did so.[ai] 16 Then Elisha[aj] told the king of Israel, “Aim the bow.”[ak] He did so,[al] and Elisha placed his hands on the king’s hands. 17 Elisha[am] said, “Open the east window,” and he did so.[an] Elisha said, “Shoot!” and he did so.[ao] Elisha[ap] said, “This arrow symbolizes the victory the Lord will give you over Syria.[aq] You will annihilate Syria in Aphek!”[ar] 18 Then Elisha[as] said, “Take the arrows,” and he did so.[at] He told the king of Israel, “Strike the ground!” He struck the ground three times and stopped. 19 The prophet[au] got angry at him and said, “If you had struck the ground five or six times, you would have annihilated Syria![av] But now, you will defeat Syria only three times.”

20 Elisha died and was buried.[aw] Moabite raiding parties invaded[ax] the land at the beginning of the year.[ay] 21 One day some men[az] were burying a man when they spotted[ba] a raiding party. So they threw the dead man[bb] into Elisha’s tomb. When the body[bc] touched Elisha’s bones, the dead man[bd] came to life and stood on his feet.

22 Now King Hazael of Syria oppressed Israel throughout Jehoahaz’s reign.[be] 23 But the Lord had mercy on them and felt pity for them.[bf] He extended his favor to them[bg] because of the promise he had made[bh] to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He has been unwilling to destroy them or remove them from his presence to this very day.[bi] 24 When King Hazael of Syria died, his son Ben Hadad replaced him as king. 25 Jehoahaz’s son Jehoash took back from[bj] Ben Hadad son of Hazael the cities that he had taken from his father Jehoahaz in war. Jehoash defeated him three times and recovered the Israelite cities.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Kings 13:2 tn Heb “in the eyes of.”
  2. 2 Kings 13:2 tn Heb “walked after.”
  3. 2 Kings 13:2 tn Heb “he did not turn aside from it.”
  4. 2 Kings 13:3 tn Heb “and the anger of the Lord burned against.”
  5. 2 Kings 13:3 tn Heb “he gave them into the hand of.”
  6. 2 Kings 13:3 tn Heb “all the days.”
  7. 2 Kings 13:4 tn Heb “appeased the face of the Lord.”
  8. 2 Kings 13:4 tn Heb “and the Lord listened to him.”
  9. 2 Kings 13:4 tn Heb “for he saw the oppression of Israel, for the king of Syria oppressed them.”
  10. 2 Kings 13:5 sn The identity of this unnamed “deliverer” is debated. For options see M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 143.
  11. 2 Kings 13:5 tn Heb “and they went from under the hand of Syria.”
  12. 2 Kings 13:5 tn Heb “and the sons of Israel lived in their tents as before.”
  13. 2 Kings 13:6 tn Heb “they did not turn away from.”
  14. 2 Kings 13:6 tn Heb “house.”
  15. 2 Kings 13:6 tc Heb “in it he walked.” The singular verb (הָלַךְ, halakh) is probably due to an error of haplography and should be emended to the plural (הָלְכוּ, halekhu). Note that a vav immediately follows (on the form וְגַם, vegam).
  16. 2 Kings 13:6 tn Or “an image of Asherah”; ASV, NASB “the Asherah”; NCV “the Asherah idol.”sn Asherah was a leading deity of the Canaanite pantheon, wife/sister of El and goddess of fertility. She was commonly worshiped at shrines in or near groves of evergreen trees, or, failing that, at places marked by wooden poles. These were to be burned or cut down (Deut 12:3; 16:21; Judg 6:25, 28, 30; 2 Kgs 18:4).
  17. 2 Kings 13:7 tn Heb “Indeed he did not leave to Jehoahaz people.” The identity of the subject is uncertain, but the king of Syria, mentioned later in the verse, is a likely candidate.
  18. 2 Kings 13:7 tn Heb “them,” i.e., the remainder of this troops.
  19. 2 Kings 13:7 tn Heb “and made them like dust for trampling.”
  20. 2 Kings 13:8 tn Heb “As for the rest of the events of Jehoahaz, and all which he did and his strength, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”
  21. 2 Kings 13:9 tn Heb “lay down with his fathers.”
  22. 2 Kings 13:9 tn Heb “and they buried him.”
  23. 2 Kings 13:9 tn Heb “Joash,” an alternate form of the name “Jehoash.” For clarity, the translation consistently uses “Jehoash” for the son of Jehoahaz King of Israel in 13:9, 12, 13, 14, 25.
  24. 2 Kings 13:11 tn Heb “in the eyes of.”
  25. 2 Kings 13:11 tn Heb “turn away from all.”
  26. 2 Kings 13:11 tn Heb “in it he walked.”
  27. 2 Kings 13:12 tn “Joash”; Jehoash and Joash are alternate forms of the same name.
  28. 2 Kings 13:12 tn Heb “As for the rest of the events of Joash, and all which he did and his strength, [and] how he fought with Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”
  29. 2 Kings 13:13 tn Heb “lay down with his fathers.”
  30. 2 Kings 13:13 tn Heb “sat on his throne.”
  31. 2 Kings 13:14 tn Heb “Now Elisha was ill with the illness by which he would die.”
  32. 2 Kings 13:14 tn Heb “went down to him.”
  33. 2 Kings 13:14 tn Though the noun is singular here, it may be collective, in which case it could be translated “chariots.”
  34. 2 Kings 13:14 sn By comparing Elisha to a one-man army, the king emphasizes the power of the prophetic word. See the note at 2:12.
  35. 2 Kings 13:15 tn Heb “and he took a bow and some arrows.”
  36. 2 Kings 13:16 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  37. 2 Kings 13:16 tn Heb “Cause your hand to ride on the bow.”
  38. 2 Kings 13:16 tn Heb “and he caused his hand to ride.”
  39. 2 Kings 13:17 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  40. 2 Kings 13:17 tn Heb “He opened [it].”
  41. 2 Kings 13:17 tn Heb “and he shot.”
  42. 2 Kings 13:17 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  43. 2 Kings 13:17 tn Heb “The arrow of victory of the Lord and the arrow of victory over Syria.”
  44. 2 Kings 13:17 tn Heb “you will strike down Syria in Aphek until destruction.”
  45. 2 Kings 13:18 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  46. 2 Kings 13:18 tn Heb “and he took [them].”
  47. 2 Kings 13:19 tn Heb “man of God.”
  48. 2 Kings 13:19 tn Heb “[It was necessary] to strike five or six times, then you would strike down Syria until destruction.” On the syntax of the infinitive construct, see GKC 349 §114.k.
  49. 2 Kings 13:20 tn Heb “and they buried him.”
  50. 2 Kings 13:20 tn Heb “entered.”
  51. 2 Kings 13:20 tc The MT reading בָּא שָׁנָה (baʾ shanah), “it came, year,” should probably be emended to בְּבָא הַשָּׁנָה (bevaʾ hashanah), “at the coming [i.e., ‘beginning’] of the year.” See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (AB), 148.
  52. 2 Kings 13:21 tn Heb “and it so happened [that] they.”
  53. 2 Kings 13:21 tn Heb “and look, they saw.”
  54. 2 Kings 13:21 tn Heb “the man”; the adjective “dead” has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
  55. 2 Kings 13:21 tn Heb “the man.”
  56. 2 Kings 13:21 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the dead man) has been specified in the translation for clarity. Otherwise the reader might think it was Elisha rather than the unnamed dead man who came back to life.
  57. 2 Kings 13:22 tn Heb “all the days of Jehoahaz.”
  58. 2 Kings 13:23 tn Or “showed them compassion.”
  59. 2 Kings 13:23 tn Heb “he turned to them.”
  60. 2 Kings 13:23 tn Heb “because of his covenant with.”
  61. 2 Kings 13:23 tn Heb “until now.”
  62. 2 Kings 13:25 tn Heb “from the hand of.”