Beginning

18 After many days the word of the Lord was made to Elijah, in the third year, and said, Go, and show thee to Ahab, that I give rain upon the face of the earth (Go, and show thyself to Ahab, and I shall send rain upon the face of the earth).

² Therefore Elijah went to show himself to Ahab; forsooth a great hunger was made in Samaria (and there was then a great famine in Samaria).

³ And Ahab called Obadiah, the dispenser, either steward, of his house; forsooth Obadiah dreaded greatly the Lord God of Israel (and Obadiah greatly feared/greatly revered the Lord God of Israel).

⁴ For when Jezebel killed the prophets of the Lord, he took an hundred prophets, and hid them, by fifties and fifties, in dens (and hid them in caves, fifty by fifty), and fed them with bread and water.

⁵ Then Ahab said to Obadiah, Go thou into the land, to all the wells of waters, and into all (the) valleys, if in hap we may find grass, and save (the) horses and mules; and [the] work beasts perish not utterly (and so the work beasts shall not utterly perish).

⁶ And they parted the countries to themselves, that they should compass those; Ahab went by one way, and Obadiah went by another way, by himself.

⁷ And when Obadiah was in the way, Elijah met him (And when Obadiah was on the way, Elijah met him); and when he had known Elijah, he felled on his face, and said, Whether thou art my lord Elijah?

⁸ To whom he answered, I am. And Elijah said, Go thou, and say to thy lord, Elijah is present (Elijah is here).

⁹ And Obadiah said, What have I sinned, for thou betakest me in(to) the hand of Ahab, that he slay me?

¹⁰ Thy Lord God liveth, for no folk either realm is, whither my lord, seeking thee, sent not; and when all men answered, He is not here, he charged greatly all realms and folks, for thou were not found; (As the Lord thy God liveth, for there is no nation, or kingdom, where my lord hath not sent, seeking thee; and when all people answered, He is not here, he greatly charged each kingdom, and nation, to swear, that thou were not found there;)

¹¹ and now thou sayest to me, Go, and say to thy lord, Elijah is present (Elijah is here).

¹² And when I shall depart from thee, the Spirit of the Lord shall bear thee away into a place which I know not; and I shall enter, and tell to Ahab, and he shall not find thee, and he shall slay thee; forsooth thy servant dreadeth the Lord from his young childhood. (And when I shall leave thee, the Spirit of the Lord shall carry thee away to a place which I know not; and I shall go, and tell Ahab, but he shall not find thee, and then he shall kill me; and know ye that thy servant feareth the Lord/revereth the Lord, from his young childhood.)

¹³ Whether it is not showed to thee, my lord, what I did, when Jezebel killed the prophets of the Lord, that I hid of the prophets of the Lord an hundred men, by fifty and fifty, in dens, and I fed them with bread and water? (Was it not told to thee, my lord, what I did, when Jezebel killed the prophets of the Lord, that I hid a hundred of the prophets of the Lord in caves, fifty by fifty, and that I fed them with bread and water?)

¹⁴ And now thou sayest, Go, and say to thy lord, Elijah is present/Elijah is nigh, that he slay me. (And now thou sayest, Go, and say to thy lord, Elijah is here. No! he shall kill me!)

¹⁵ And Elijah said, The Lord of hosts liveth, before whose sight I stand, for today I shall appear to him. (And Elijah said, As the Lord of hosts liveth, whom I stand before, I shall appear before him today.)

¹⁶ Therefore Obadiah went into the meeting of Ahab, and showed it to him; and Ahab came into the meeting of Elijah. (And so Obadiah went to find Ahab, and told him everything; and Ahab came to meet with Elijah.)

¹⁷ And when he had seen Elijah, he said, Whether thou art he, that troublest Israel? (And when he had seen Elijah, he said, Art thou he who troublest Israel?)

¹⁸ And he said, Not I trouble Israel, but thou, and the house of thy father, which have forsaken the commandments of the Lord, and followed Baalim. (And Elijah said, It is not I who trouble Israel, but thou, and the house of thy father, who have deserted the commandments of the Lord, and followed Baalim.)

¹⁹ Nevertheless now send thou, and gather to me all Israel, into the hill of Carmel, and the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal, and [the] four hundred prophets of (the) maumet woods, that eat of the table of Jezebel. (But now send thou, and gather together for me all Israel on Mount Carmel, and the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal, and the four hundred prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.)

²⁰ Ahab sent to all the sons of Israel, and gathered together the prophets in the hill of Carmel. (And so Ahab sent for all the Israelites, and gathered together the prophets on Mount Carmel.)

²¹ Forsooth Elijah nighed to all the people of Israel, and said, How long halt ye into two parts? (How long shall ye waver between two paths?) If the Lord is God, follow ye him; and if Baal is God, follow ye him. And the people answered not one word to him.

²² And Elijah said again to the people, I dwelled alone a prophet of the Lord; soothly the prophets of Baal be four hundred and fifty, and the prophets of the maumet woods be four hundred men. (And Elijah said to the people, I am the only prophet of the Lord still left; but there be four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal, and four hundred prophets of Asherah.)

²³ (Let) Twain oxes be given to us; and choose they one ox, and they shall cut (it) into gobbets, and put it on wood, but put they not fire under (it); and I shall make (ready) the tother ox into sacrifice (and I shall prepare the other ox for sacrifice), and I shall put (it) on the wood, and I shall not put fire under (it either).

²⁴ Call ye the name of your gods, and I shall call the name of my God; and the God that heareth by fire falling down, given from heaven to waste the sacrifice, be he God. And all the people answered, and said, The reason is best, that Elijah hath spoken. (Then call ye on the name of your god, and I shall call on the name of my God; and the God who answereth with fire falling down, that is, with fire given from heaven to consume the sacrifice, he is God. And all the people answered, and said, What Elijah hath spoken is reasonable.)

²⁵ Therefore Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, Choose ye one ox to you, and make ye (ready) first your sacrifice, for ye be the more; and call ye the names of your gods, and put ye not fire under. (And so Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, Choose ye one ox for yourselves, and prepare ye first your sacrifice, for ye be the more; and then call ye on the name of your god, but put ye no fire under it.)

²⁶ And when they had taken the ox, whom Elijah gave to them, they made (ready the) sacrifice, and called the name of Baal, from the morrowtide till to midday, and said, Baal, hear us! And no voice was, neither any that answered; and they skipped over the altar, which they had made. (And when they had taken the ox, which was given to them, they prepared the sacrifice, and called on the name of Baal, from the morning until midday, and said, Baal, hear us! But there was no voice, nor anyone who answered; even as they leapt all around the altar, which they had made.)

²⁷ And when it was then midday, Elijah scorned them, and said, Cry ye with [a] greater voice, for Baal is your god, and in hap he speaketh with another, either he is in a harbourgerie, either in the way, either certainly he sleepeth, that he be raised up. (And when it was midday, Elijah scorned them, and said, Cry ye with a greater voice, for Baal is your god, and perhaps he speaketh with another, or else he is at an inn, or is on the way, or certainly he sleepeth, so that he must be raised up.)

²⁸ Therefore they cried with [a] great(er) voice, and they cut themselves with knives and lancets, after their custom, till they were beshed with blood.

²⁹ But after that midday passed, and while they prophesied, or prayed, the time came, in which the sacrifice is wont to be offered, neither voice was heard of their gods, neither any answered, neither perceived them praying. (But after that midday had passed, and yet while they prophesied, and prayed, the time came, in which the evening sacrifice was wont to be offered, and still neither the voice was heard of their god, nor anyone answered them, nor anyone perceived their prayers.)

³⁰ [And] Elijah said to all the people, Come ye to me. And when the people came to him, he arrayed the altar of the Lord, that was destroyed. (And Elijah said to all the people, Come ye close to me. And when the people came close to him, he repaired the altar of the Lord that was destroyed.)

³¹ And he took twelve stones, by the number of the lineages of the sons of Jacob, to which Jacob the word of the Lord was made, and said, Israel shall be thy name.

³² And he builded an altar of stones, in the name of the Lord, and he made a leading-to of water, either a ditch (and he made a leading-to, or a ditch, for the water), as by two little ditches, or furrows, in the compass of the altar^[a].

³³ And he dressed [the] wood, and he parted the ox by (its) members, and put it upon the wood, and said, Fill ye four pots with water, and pour ye it upon the burnt sacrifice (to be), and upon the wood.

³⁴ And again he said, Also the second time do ye this. And they did (it) the second time. And he said, Do ye the same thing the third time; and they did (it) the third time.

³⁵ And the waters ran about the altar, and the ditch, or rut, of [the] leading-to of water was filled. (And the water ran about the altar, and the ditch, or the rut, of the leading-to for the water, was completely filled.)

³⁶ And when the time was then, that the burnt sacrifice should be offered, Elijah the prophet nighed, and said, Lord God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Israel, show thou today that thou art God of Israel, and that I am thy servant, and have done all these words by thy commandment. (And when it was the time, that the burnt sacrifice should be offered, Elijah the prophet came near, and said, Lord God of Abraham, and Isaac, and Israel, or Jacob, show thou today that thou art the God of Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that I have done all these things by thy commandment.)

³⁷ Lord, hear thou me; Lord, hear thou me; that this people learn, that thou art the Lord God, and that thou hast converted again the heart of them. (Lord, hear thou me; Lord, hear thou me; so that this people shall learn that thou art the Lord God, and thou shalt turn their hearts back to thee again.)

³⁸ Soothly [the] fire of the Lord felled down then, and devoured the burnt sacrifice, the wood, and the stones, and it licked up also the powder, and the water that was in the leading-(to), (or the rut,) of (the) water. (Then the fire of the Lord fell down, and devoured the burnt sacrifice, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and it also licked up the water that was in the ditch, or in the rut, for the water.)

³⁹ And when all the people had seen this, the people felled into his face (the people fell down on their faces), and said, The Lord, he is God; the Lord, he is God.

⁴⁰ And Elijah said to them, Take ye the prophets of Baal; not one soothly escape of them. And when they had taken them, Elijah led them to the strand of Kishon, and killed them there. (And Elijah said to them, Take ye hold of the prophets of Baal; do not let one of them escape. And when they had taken hold of them, Elijah led them to the Kishon Stream/to the Kishon Gorge, and they killed them there.)

⁴¹ And Elijah said to Ahab, Go thou up, and eat, and drink, for the sound of much rain is nigh. (And Elijah said to Ahab, Go thou to eat, and drink, for there is the sound of much rain coming.)

⁴² Ahab went up to eat and drink; but Elijah went up into (the top of) the hill of Carmel, and he set lowly his face to the earth, betwixt his knees; (So Ahab went to eat and drink; but Elijah went up to the top of Mount Carmel, and he put his face low to the ground, between his knees;)

⁴³ and said to his servant, Go thou up, and behold thou against the sea. And when he had gone up, and beheld, he said, Nothing is (there). And again Elijah said to him, Turn thou again seven times. (and said to his servant, Go thou up now, and behold the sea. And when he had gone, and beheld it, he said, There is nothing there. And Elijah said to him, Do it again; and in all, he commanded him to do it seven times.)

⁴⁴ And in the seventh time, lo! a little cloud, as the step of a man, went up from the sea. And Elijah said, Go thou up, and say to Ahab, Join thy chariot, and go down, lest the rain before-occupy thee. (And on the seventh time, lo! a little cloud, like the hand of a man, went up from the sea. And Elijah said, Go thou up now, and say to Ahab, Join up thy chariot, and get going, or the rain shall stop thee!)

⁴⁵ And when they turned them hither and thither, lo! heavens were made dark, and cloud, and wind, and great rain was made. Therefore Ahab went up (into his chariot), and went into Jezreel; (And when they turned themselves here and there, lo! the skies were made dark with clouds and wind, and a great rain came. And so Ahab went up into his chariot, and went back to Jezreel;)

⁴⁶ and the hand of the Lord was made upon Elijah, and when his loins were girded, he ran before Ahab, till he came into Jezreel. (and the hand of the Lord was made upon Elijah, and when his loins were girded up, he ran ahead of Ahab, all the way back to Jezreel.)

19 Forsooth Ahab told to Jezebel all things that Elijah had done, and how he had slain with (the) sword all the prophets of Baal.

² And Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, and said, Gods do these things to me (The gods do these things to me), and add these things too, no but tomorrow in this hour I shall put thy life as the life of one of them.

³ Therefore Elijah dreaded, and rose (up), and went whither ever his will bare him; and he came into Beersheba of Judah, and he left there his servant (and he left his servant there);

⁴ and went into (the) desert, the way of one day. And when he came, and sat under one juniper tree, he asked to his soul, that he should die (he prayed that he should die); and he said, Lord, it sufficeth to me, take my soul (now); for I am not (any) better than my fathers.

⁵ And he casted forth himself (And he threw himself down), and slept in the shadow of the juniper tree. And lo! the angel of the Lord touched him, and said to him, Rise thou (up), and eat.

⁶ (And) He beheld, and, lo! at his head was a loaf baken under ashes, and a vessel of water. Therefore he ate, and drank, and slept again.

⁷ And the angel of the Lord turned again the second time, and touched him; and he said to him, Rise thou, and eat; for a great way is to thee (Rise thou up, and eat, or the way shall be too much for thee),

⁸ And when he had risen, he ate, and drank; and he went in the strength of that meat forty days and forty nights, unto Horeb, the hill of God. (And when he had risen, he ate, and drank; and he went in the strength of that food for forty days and forty nights, unto Mount Sinai, the mountain of God.)

⁹ And when he had come thither, he dwelled in a den (And when he had come there, he lived in a cave); and lo! the word of the Lord was made to him, and said to him, Elijah, what doest thou here?

¹⁰ And he answered, By fervent love, that is, of all the heart, I have loved fervently, for the Lord God of hosts; for the sons of Israel have forsaken the covenant of the Lord; they have destroyed thine altars, and killed with (the) sword thy prophets; and I am left alone, and they seek my life, that they do it away. (And he answered, With fervent love, that is, with all of my heart, I have fervently loved for the Lord God of hosts; but the Israelites have deserted the covenant of the Lord; they have destroyed thy altars, and killed thy prophets with the sword; and I alone am left, and now they seek my life, so that they can do me away.)

¹¹ And he said to Elijah, Go thou out, and stand in the hill, before the Lord. And lo! the Lord passeth, and a great wind, and strong, turning upside-down hills, and all-breaking stones before the Lord; not in the wind is the Lord. And after the wind is a stirring; not in the stirring is the Lord. (And he said to Elijah, Go thou out, and stand on the mount before the Lord. And lo! the Lord then passed by, and there was a great strong wind, that turned the mountains upside-down, and broke up the stones before the Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind there was a great shaking; but the Lord was not in that shaking.)

¹² And after the stirring is a fire; not in the fire is the Lord. And after the fire is an hissing of thin wind, or breathing softly; there is the Lord. (And after the stirring, or the shaking, there was a fire; but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was a hissing of the wind, as if softly breathing; and there was the Lord/and the Lord was there.)

¹³ And when Elijah had heard this, he covered his face with a mantle, and he went out, and stood in the door of the den (and stood at the entrance to the cave). And a voice spake to him, and said, Elijah, what doest thou here?

¹⁴ And he answered, With fervent love I have loved fervently, for the Lord God of hosts; for the sons of Israel have forsaken thy covenant; they have destroyed thine altars, and they have killed with (the) sword thy prophets; and I am left alone, and they seek my life, that they do it away. (And he answered, and said, With fervent love I have fervently loved for the Lord God of hosts; but the Israelites have deserted thy covenant; they have destroyed thy altars, and they have killed thy prophets with the sword; and I alone am left, and now they seek my life, so that they can do me away.)

¹⁵ And the Lord said to him, Go, and turn again into thy way, by the desert, into Damascus (And the Lord said to him, Go, and return on the way, by the wilderness, to Damascus); and when thou shalt come thither, thou shalt anoint Hazael king upon Syria;

¹⁶ and thou shalt anoint (unto) king upon Israel, Jehu, the son of Nimshi; and thou shalt anoint a prophet for thee, Elisha, the son of Shaphat, that is of Abelmeholah. (and thou shalt anoint Jehu, the son of Nimshi, to be king upon Israel; and thou shalt anoint Elisha, the son of Shaphat, of Abelmeholah, to be the prophet in thy place.)

¹⁷ And it shall be, whoever shall flee the sword of Hazael, Jehu shall slay him; and whoever shall flee the sword of Jehu, Elisha shall slay him.

¹⁸ And I shall leave to me in Israel seven thousand of men, of which the knees be not bowed before Baal, and each mouth that worshipped not him, and kissed not his hand. (But I shall leave for me seven thousand men in Israel, who have not bowed their knees before Baal, and whose mouths have not worshipped him, nor kissed his hand.)

¹⁹ Therefore Elijah went forth from thence, and found Elisha, the son of Shaphat, earing in twelve yokes of oxen; and he was one in the twelve yokes of oxen, earing. And when Elijah had come to him, Elijah casted his mantle upon him. (And so Elijah went forth from there, and found Elisha, the son of Shaphat, plowing with twelve yokes of oxen; and he was plowing alongside the twelfth yoke of them. And when Elijah had come to him, he threw his mantle upon him.)

²⁰ And he ran anon after Elijah, when the oxen were left, and said, I pray thee, kiss I my father and my mother, and so I shall follow thee. And Elijah said to him, Go thou, and turn again, for I have done to thee that that was mine (to do). (And leaving the oxen behind, Elisha ran at once after Elijah, and said, I pray thee, let me kiss my father and my mother good-bye, and then I shall follow thee. And Elijah said to him, Go thou, and return, for I have done to thee what was mine to do.)

²¹ Soothly he turned again from Elijah, and took twain oxen, and killed them; and with the plow of the oxen he seethed the flesh, and gave (the meat) to the people, and they ate; and he rose (and then he rose up), and went, and followed Elijah, and ministered to him.

20 Forsooth Benhadad, king of Syria, gathered together all his host, and two and thirty kings with him, and horses, and chariots; and he went up against Samaria, and fought, and besieged it.

² And he sent messengers to Ahab, king of Israel, into the city, and (they) said (to him), Benhadad saith these things,

³ Thy silver and thy gold is mine, and thy wives, and thy best sons be mine.

⁴ And the king of Israel answered, By thy word, my lord the king, I am thine, and all my things be thine.

⁵ And the messengers turned again, and said, Benhadad, that sent us to thee, saith these things (again), Thou shalt give to me thy silver, and thy gold, and thy wives, and thy sons.

⁶ Therefore tomorrow, in this same hour, I shall send my servants to thee, and they shall seek (throughout) thine house, and the house of thy servants; and they shall put in their hands, and take away all thing that shall please them.

⁷ Forsooth the king of Israel called all the elder men of the land, and said, Perceive ye, and see, that he setteth treason to us; for he sent to me for my wives, and sons, and for (my) silver, and gold, and I forsook not. (And the king of Israel called all the elders of the land, and said, Perceive ye, and see, that this man hath set treason for us; for he sent to me for my wives, and my sons, and my silver, and my gold, and I agreed to it all.)

⁸ And all the greater men in birth (And all the men of great age, that is, the elders), and all the people said to him, Hear thou not, neither assent thou to him.

⁹ And he answered to the messengers of Benhadad, Say ye to my lord the king, I shall do all things, for which thou sentest in the beginning to me, thy servant; but I may not do this thing. And the messengers turned again, and told all things to him. (And so he answered to the messengers of Benhadad, and said, Say ye to my lord the king, I, thy servant, shall do all the things for which thou sentest to me at the beginning; but I cannot do this thing. And the messengers returned, and told all these things to Benhadad.)

¹⁰ Which sent again, and said, Gods do these things to me, and add these things too (And Benhadad sent them back again to Ahab, to say to him, The gods do these things to me, and add these things too), if the dust of Samaria shall suffice to the fist[ful]s of all the people that followeth me.

¹¹ And the king of Israel answered, and said, Say ye to him, A girded man, that is, he that goeth to battle, have not glory evenly as a man ungirded, that is, as he that hath the victory, and hath put off his armours. (And Ahab, the king of Israel, answered, and said, Say ye to him, A girded man, that is, he who goeth to battle, hath not equal glory to an ungirded man, that is, he who already hath the victory, and hath put off his armour.)

¹² And it was done, when Benhadad had heard this word, he drank, and also the kings, in shadowing places (in a shady place in their tents); and he said to his servants, Compass ye the city. And they compassed it.

¹³ And lo! one prophet nighed to Ahab, king of Israel, and said to him, The Lord God saith these things, Certainly thou hast seen all this multitude full great (Certainly thou hast seen all this very great multitude); lo! I shall betake it into thine hand today, that thou know that I am the Lord.

¹⁴ And Ahab said, By whom? And he said to Ahab, The Lord saith these things, By the squires, or the footmen, of the princes of (the) provinces. And Ahab said, Who shall begin to fight? And the prophet said, Thou.

¹⁵ Therefore he numbered the young men of the princes of [the] provinces, and he found the number of two hundred and two and thirty; and after them he numbered the people, all the sons of Israel, seven thousand. (And so he called for the young men who served the leaders of the provinces, and he found them to number two hundred and thirty-two; and after them he called for the people, yea, all the Israelites/the whole Israelite army, seven thousand of them.)

¹⁶ And they went out in midday. Forsooth Benhadad drank, and was drunken in his shadowing place, and (the) two and thirty kings with him, that came to the help of him. (And they went out at midday. And in a shady place in their tents, Benhadad drank, and became drunk, as did the thirty-two kings who were with him, who came to help him.)

¹⁷ And the young men of the princes of (the) provinces went out in the first front. Therefore Benhadad sent men, which told to him, and said, Men went out of Samaria (And Benhadad sent out men, who reported back to him, and said, Some men have come out of Samaria).

¹⁸ And he said, Whether they come for peace, take ye them quick; whether to fight, take ye them quick. [And he saith, Whether for peace they come, taketh them alive; whether that they fight, taketh them alive.]

¹⁹ Therefore the young men of the princes of (the) provinces went out, and the residue host followed (them);

²⁰ and each smote the man that came against him. And (the) men of Syria fled, and Israel pursued them; also Benhadad, the king of Syria, fled on an horse with his knights.

²¹ Also the king of Israel went out, and smote (the) horses and chariots, and he smote Syria with a full great vengeance. (And the king of Israel went out, and struck down the horses and the chariots, and he struck down the Syrians with a very great slaughter.)

²² Forsooth a prophet nighed to the king of Israel, and said, Go thou, and be strengthened, and know, and see, what thou shalt do; for the king of Syria shall ascend against thee in the year following (for the king of Syria shall also come against thee next year).

²³ Soothly the servants of the king of Syria said to him, The Gods of hills be the Gods of the sons of Israel (The gods of the hills be the gods of the Israelites), therefore they overcame us; but it is better that we fight against them in [the] field places, and we shall get them there.

²⁴ Therefore do thou this word, or counsel; remove thou all [the] kings from thine host, and set thou princes for them; (And so do thou this thing, or follow thou this counsel; remove thou all the kings from thy army, and put thou other leaders in their place;)

²⁵ and restore thou the number of knights, that felled of thine, and [the] horses after the former horses, and restore thou [the] chariots, by the chariots which thou haddest before; and we shall fight against them in [the] field places, and thou shalt see, that we shall get them. He believed to the counsel of them, and did so (He believed in their counsel, and did so).

²⁶ Therefore after that the year had passed, Benhadad numbered men of Syria (Benhadad called for the Syrians), and he went up into Aphek, to fight against Israel.

²⁷ Forsooth the sons of Israel were numbered; and when meats were taken, they went forth even against (them); and they, as two little flocks of goats, setted tents against men of Syria. Forsooth men of Syria filled the land. (And the Israelites were also called for; and when provisions were taken, they went forth opposite them; and they, as but two little flocks of goats, pitched their tents opposite the Syrians. And the Syrians filled the land.)

²⁸ And one prophet of God nighed, and said to the king of Israel, The Lord God saith these things, For (the) men of Syria said, God of hills is the Lord of them, and he is not God of valleys (The god of the hills is their Lord, and he is not the god of the valleys), (and so) I shall give all this great multitude in(to) thine hand, and ye shall know that I am the Lord.

²⁹ And seven days these and they dressed battle arrays even against each other; and in the seventh day the battle was joined altogether, and the sons of Israel smote of the men of Syria an hundred thousand of footmen in one day. (And for seven days these and they directed battle arrays opposite each other; and then on the seventh day the battle was joined, and the Israelites struck down a hundred thousand Syrian footmen in one day.)

³⁰ And they that (were) left fled into the city of Aphek, and the wall felled down upon seven and twenty thousand of (the) men that (were) left. Forsooth Benhadad fled, and entered into the city, into a closet that was within a closet;

³¹ and his servants said to him, [Lo!] We have heard that the kings of the house of Israel be merciful, therefore put we sackcloths in our loins, and cords in our heads (and so let us put sackcloths on our loins, and cords on our heads), and go we out to the king of Israel; in hap he shall save our lives.

³² They girded their loins with sackcloths, and put cords in their heads, and they came to the king of Israel, and said to him, Thy servant Benhadad saith, I pray thee, let my soul live. And he said, If Benhadad liveth yet, he is my brother. (And so they girded up their loins with sackcloths, and put cords on their heads, and they came to the king of Israel, and said to him, Thy servant Benhadad saith, I pray thee, let me live. And Ahab said, If Benhadad yet liveth, he is my brother, that is, I will make peace with him.)

³³ Which thing the men of Syria took for a gracious word, and they ravished hastily the word of his mouth (and they hastily took hold of the word of his mouth), and said, Thy brother Benhadad liveth. And Ahab said to them, Go ye, and bring ye him to me. Therefore Benhadad went out to him, and he raised up Benhadad into his chariot.

³⁴ [The] Which Benhadad said to him, I shall yield the cities which my father took from thy father, and make thou streets to thee in Damascus, as my father made in Samaria; and I shall be bound to peace, and I shall depart from thee. Therefore Ahab made [a] bond of peace with him, and delivered him. (And Benhadad said to Ahab, I shall give back the cities which my father took from thy father, and then thou can make streets of commerce, or for trading, for thyself in Damascus, like my father made in Samaria. And Ahab said, On those terms I shall be bound in peace with thee, and then thou can depart from me. And so he made a covenant with him, and let him go.)

³⁵ Then a man of the sons of the prophets said to his fellow, in the word of the Lord (by the word of the Lord), Smite thou me. And he would not smite (him).

³⁶ To whom the prophet said, For thou wouldest not hear the voice of the Lord, lo! thou shalt go [away] from me, and a lion shall smite thee. And when he had gone a little from him, a lion found him, and slew him.

³⁷ But also the prophet found another man, and he said to that man, Smite thou me. And he smote him, and wounded him.

³⁸ Therefore the prophet went, and met the king in the way; and he changed with a cloth, that is, by (the) wrapping of a cloth, his mouth and eyes. (And so the prophet went, and met the king on the way; and he covered his mouth and his eyes with a cloth, that is, he disguised his face by wrapping it in a cloth.)

³⁹ And when the king had passed (And as the king passed by), he cried to the king, and said, Thy servant went out to fight anon, and when one man had fled, a man brought him to me, and said, Keep thou this man; and if he escapeth, thy life shall be for his life, either thou shalt pay a talent of silver.

⁴⁰ Soothly while I was troubled, and turned me hither and thither, suddenly he appeared not. And the king of Israel said to him, This is thy doom that thou [thyself] hast deemed. (And while I was troubled, and turned myself here and there, suddenly he was gone. And the king of Israel said to him, This is thy judgement, or thy sentence, that thou thyself hast pronounced, or declared.)

⁴¹ And anon he removed the cloth, either binding, from his face (And at once he removed the cloth, or the wrapping, from his face), and the king of Israel knew him, that he was (one) of the prophets.

⁴² The which said to the king, The Lord saith these things, For thou deliveredest from thine hand a man worthy (of) death, thy life shall be for his life, and thy people for his people.

⁴³ Therefore the king of Israel turned again into his house, and despised to hear God’s word, and came wroth into Samaria.^[b] (And so the king of Israel returned to his house, despising the word of God that he had heard, and came back angry to Samaria.)