2 Kings 1:16-18
New English Translation
16 Elijah said to the king,[a] “This is what the Lord has said, ‘You sent messengers to seek an oracle from Baal Zebub, the god of Ekron. Is it because there is no God in Israel from whom you can seek a message? Therefore[b] you will not leave the bed you lie on, for you will certainly die.’”[c]
17 And he did die in keeping with the Lord’s message that he had spoken through Elijah. In the second year of the reign of King Jehoram son of Jehoshaphat over Judah, Ahaziah’s brother Jehoram replaced him as king of Israel, because he had no son.[d] 18 The rest of the events of Ahaziah’s reign, including his accomplishments, are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Israel.[e]
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- 2 Kings 1:16 tn Heb “he spoke to him,”
- 2 Kings 1:16 tn Heb “Because you sent… therefore you will not leave.” The rhetorical question is a parenthetical remark inserted into the proposition for dramatic effect.
- 2 Kings 1:16 sn For the third time in this chapter we read the Lord’s sarcastic question to the king and the accompanying announcement of judgment. The repetition emphasizes one of the chapter’s main themes. Israel’s leaders should seek guidance from their own God, not a pagan deity, for Israel’s sovereign God is the one who controls life and death.
- 2 Kings 1:17 tn Heb “Jehoram replaced him as king…because he had no son.” Some ancient textual witnesses add “his brother,” perhaps to clarify that it is not the contemporary Jehoram of Judah.
- 2 Kings 1:18 tn Heb “As for the rest of the acts of Ahaziah which he did, are they not recorded in the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”
2 Kings 1:16-18
Common English Bible
16 Elijah said to the king: “This is what the Lord says: Why did you send messengers to question Ekron’s god Baal-zebub? Is there no God in Israel whose word you could seek? Because of this, you won’t ever get out of the bed you are lying in; you’ll die for sure!” 17 So Ahaziah died in agreement with the Lord’s word that Elijah had spoken.
Because Ahaziah had no son, Joram[a] became king after him in the second year of Judah’s King Jehoram, who was Jehoshaphat’s son. 18 The rest of Ahaziah’s deeds, aren’t they written in the official records of Israel’s kings?
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- 2 Kings 1:17 Heb Jehoram; the king’s name is variously spelled in either long Jehoram or short Joram form.
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