Old/New Testament
Elijah Rebukes King Ahaziah
1 Moab rebelled against Israel[a] after Ahab died. 2 Meanwhile, Ahaziah had fallen through the lattice in his upper room in Samaria and lay injured. He sent messengers to Ekron with these orders: “Go and consult with Ekron’s god Baal-zebub to find out[b] if I’m going to recover from this injury.”[c]
3 But the angel of the Lord spoke to Elijah the foreigner,[d] “Get up and go meet the messengers from the king of Samaria. Ask them ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you’re going to consult with Ekron’s god Baal-zebub? 4 Now therefore this is what the Lord says: “You won’t be getting up from that bed of yours on which you’re lying. You will most certainly die!”’” So Elijah got up and[e] went.
5 The messengers returned to the king and he asked them, “What’s this? You’ve come back?”
6 They replied, “We met a man who told us, ‘Go back to the king who sent you and ask him, “Is it because there is no God in Israel that you’re going to consult with Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? Therefore you won’t be getting up from that bed on which you’re lying. You will most certainly die!”’”
7 He told them, “Describe the man who met you and told you these things.”
8 They answered, “The man was a hairy fellow. He wore a leather sash around his waist.”
The king[f] responded, “It’s Elijah, that foreigner!”[g]
Fire from Heaven Destroys the King’s Henchmen
9 So the king sent out 50 men, along with their leader.[h] The leader[i] approached Elijah, who was sitting at the top of a hill. He ordered Elijah,[j] “Hey, man of God! The king orders you to come down!”
10 Elijah responded to the leader who was in charge of the 50 soldiers, “So I’m a man of God, am I? If so, may fire[k] fall from heaven and devour you and your 50 soldiers…”[l] Just then, fire fell from heaven and devoured that leader and his 50 soldiers.[m]
11 Later the king tried again—he sent another company of 50 soldiers, along with their leader, who ordered Elijah, “Hey, man of God! This is what the king orders: ‘Come down!’”
12 Elijah responded to the leader and to his entire company,[n] “So I’m a man of God, am I? If so, may fire[o] fall from heaven and devour you and your 50 soldiers…”[p] Just then, fire fell from heaven and devoured him and his 50 soldiers.[q]
13 Then the king tried yet again! The king sent a third company of 50 soldiers along with their leader. The third leader went up the hill,[r] approached Elijah,[s] fell on his knees in front of him, and begged him,[t] “Hey, man of God, please treat[u] my life and the lives of these servants of yours as precious! 14 Look how fire fell from heaven and devoured the two other companies of 50 soldiers, along with their captains, but now please treat me as if my life were precious!”
15 The angel of the Lord told Elijah, “Go down the hill with that man. Don’t be afraid of him!” So Elijah[v] got up and went down with him to meet the king.
16 Then Elijah spoke to the king, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Since you sent messengers to consult with Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron—is it because there is no God in Israel with whom to consult regarding his word?—therefore you’re not getting up from the bed on which you’re lying. You certainly will die!’” 17 And die he did, just as the Lord had said and just as Elijah had spoken!
After this, Jehoram ascended to the throne during the second year of the reign of Jehoshaphat’s son Jehoram from Judah. He took the place of Ahaziah, who had no son. 18 The rest of Ahaziah’s activities are recorded in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel,[w] are they not?
Elijah is Taken to Heaven
2 As the time drew near when the Lord was about to take Elijah to heaven in a wind storm, Elijah and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal. 2 Elijah instructed Elisha, “Remain here on this side, please, because the Lord is sending me as far as Bethel.”
But Elisha replied, “As the Lord lives, I’m not going to leave you while you’re still alive!” So they both went on to Bethel.
3 When the Guild of Prophets[x] who lived in Bethel came out to greet Elisha, they asked him, “You are aware, aren’t you, that later today the Lord is going to remove your master from being your mentor?”[y]
“Of course I’m aware of it,” he said. “Calm down.”
4 Elijah also spoke to him, “Elisha, remain here on this side, please, because the Lord is sending me to Jericho.”
But Elisha responded, “As the Lord lives, and while you’re still alive, I’m not going to leave you!” So they went to Jericho.
5 The Guild of Prophets who lived in Jericho approached Elisha and asked him, “You are aware, aren’t you, that later today the Lord is going to remove your master from being your mentor?”[z]
“Of course I’m aware of it,” he said. “Calm down.”
6 Elijah also spoke to him, “Elisha, remain here on this side, please, because the Lord is sending me to the Jordan River.”[aa]
But Elisha responded, “As the Lord lives, and while you’re still alive, I’m not going to leave you!” So they went on their way,[ab] 7 accompanied by 50 men from the Guild of Prophets, who stood at a short distance from them while they were both standing by the Jordan. 8 Elijah took off his ornamented cloak, wrapped it up in a roll, struck the water, and all of a sudden the water divided into two parts! One side of the river stood still opposite the other until the two of them crossed over on dry ground.
9 When they had crossed the Jordan River,[ac] Elijah invited Elisha, “Ask me what you want me to do for you before I’m taken away from you.”
So Elisha asked, “Please, may there be a double portion of[ad] your spirit upon me!”
10 “That’s a hard thing to ask for,” Elijah answered, “but if you see me while I’m being taken from you, it will happen for you. But if you don’t see me, it won’t happen.”
11 As they continued on, talking as they went, suddenly chariots blazing with fire and pulled by fiery horses appeared, separated the two of them, and Elijah ascended in a wind storm to heaven! 12 As Elisha continued to watch, he cried out, “My father! My father! The chariots of Israel and its cavalry!”[ae] Then he did not see Elijah anymore.
After this, Elisha[af] gripped his clothes that he was wearing, tore them apart into two pieces, 13 picked up Elijah’s ornamented cloak that had fallen from him, and went back to stand on the bank of the Jordan River.[ag] 14 Elisha[ah] took hold of Elijah’s ornamental cloak that had been left behind,[ai] struck the water, and cried out: “Where is the Lord God of Elijah?” All of a sudden, after he had struck the water, the water divided into two parts! One side of the river stood opposite the other, and Elisha crossed over.
Elisha is Recognized as Elijah’s Successor
15 As soon as the Guild of Prophets who lived adjacent to Jericho saw Elisha,[aj] they began to announce, “The spirit[ak] of Elijah is at rest on Elisha!” So they came out to meet him and they greeted him by bowing low to the ground in front of him.
16 Then they asked Elisha,[al] “Look! We have 50 valiant men here with your servant! Please let them go out and search for your master Elijah.[am] Perhaps the Spirit of the Lord has taken him up on a mountain or into a valley.”
Elisha responded, “Don’t bother searching.”
17 But they persisted until he was frustrated, so he said, “Send them out!” So they sent out the 50 men, and they looked around for three days but did not find Elijah.[an] 18 By the time they returned, Elisha[ao] was living in Jericho. Then Elisha asked them, “Didn’t I tell you not to go?”
Elisha Cures the Waters of Jericho
19 The men who lived in the city addressed Elisha. “Look now,” they said, “our[ap] city’s location is good, as you[aq] have been observing, but the water springs[ar] here are bad and the land isn’t sustaining crops.”
20 Elisha ordered them, “Bring me a new bowl and put some salt in it.” So they brought him what he had requested.[as]
21 Elisha went out to the springs, threw the salt into them, and declared, “This is what the Lord says: ‘I have purified these waters. Neither death nor barrenness is to flow from them anymore.’” 22 As a result, the water springs[at] remain pure to this day, just as[au] Elisha had declared.
Elisha Rebukes Some Mockers
23 Later, Elisha[av] left there to go up to Bethel, and as he was traveling along the road, some insignificant[aw] young men came from the city and started mocking him. They told him, “Get on up,[ax] baldy! Get on up, baldy!” 24 He looked behind him, took note of the young men, and cursed them in the name of the Lord. Suddenly two female bears emerged from the woods and mauled 42 of the young men. 25 After this, he left from there to go to Mt. Carmel, and from there he went back to Samaria.
Jehoram Becomes King
3 Ahab’s son Jehoram ascended to the throne of Israel at Samaria during the eighteenth year of the reign of Judah’s King Jehoshaphat. He reigned for twelve years, 2 practicing evil in the Lord’s presence,[ay] only not to the extent that his mother and father had done[az]—he forced abolition of the sacred pillar to Baal[ba] that his father had crafted. 3 Even so,[bb] he kept on committing the sins that Nebat’s son Jeroboam had done, which ensnared Israel in sin—he never abandoned them.
Moab Rebels against Israel
4 Meanwhile, Moab’s King Mesha was a sheep breeder. He used to pay 100,000 lambs and the wool from 100,000 rams to the king of Israel as tribute. 5 After Ahab died, the king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel. 6 So King Jehoram left Samaria at that time[bc] and mustered the entire army of[bd] Israel. 7 As he was going out, he sent this message[be] to King Jehoshaphat of Judah: “The king of Moab has rebelled against me. Will you go with me to fight Moab?”
“I’m coming,” Jehoshaphat[bf] replied. “I’m like you! My army will act like your army and my cavalry like your cavalry,” Then Jehoshaphat[bg] added: 8 “What road do we take?”
Jehoram[bh] answered, “We’ll go along the Edom desert road.”
9 So the king of Israel, the king of Judah, and the king of Edom made a complete circuit on the road for seven days, but there was no water for the army or for the livestock that accompanied[bi] them.
10 Then the king of Israel remarked, “Oh no! The Lord has summoned us three kings so he can hand us over to Moab, hasn’t he?”
The Kings Seek Elisha’s Counsel
11 Jehoshaphat asked, “Isn’t there a prophet who belongs to the Lord and through whom we can ask the Lord a question?”
One of the king of Israel’s attendants replied, “Shaphat’s son Elisha lives here. He used to be Elijah’s personal attendant.”[bj]
12 Jehoshaphat answered, “He receives messages from[bk] the Lord.” So the king of Israel, Jehoshaphat, and the king of Edom went to visit Elisha.[bl]
13 Elisha asked the king of Israel, “What do I have in common[bm] with you? Go visit your parents’ prophets.”[bn]
The king of Israel replied, “No! The Lord has summoned these three kings so he can hand them over to Moab!”
14 But Elisha responded, “As the Lord of the Heavenly Armies lives, in whose presence I stand, I would never pay attention to you or even look in your direction were it not for my continuous respect for the presence of King Jehoshaphat of Judah. 15 Now bring me a musician.”
As the musician played, the hand of the Lord rested on Elisha, 16 so he said, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Fill this valley with trench after trench!’ 17 This is what the Lord says: ‘Though you won’t see wind or storm, nevertheless that river[bo] will overflow with water so that you, your cattle, and your livestock may drink.’ 18 And this is the easy part for the Lord[bp]—he’s also going to hand the Moabites over to you! 19 Then you are to attack every fortified city and every significant city. Cut down every significant tree, fill in all of the water springs, and ruin every prime piece of land with stones.”
War with Moab
20 The very next day, about the time of the morning offering, water suddenly appeared, coming from the direction of Edom, and the land overflowed with water! 21 Meanwhile, all the Moabites heard that the kings had come up to attack them, so everyone old enough to wear battle armor was mustered to stand guard at the border. 22 As the Moabites arose early that morning, the sun cast its rays on the water, and to the Moabites, the water across from them appeared to be red like blood. 23 So they concluded,[bq] “This must be blood! The kings must have had one mighty big fight and each man killed the other! So let’s go get the battle spoil, Moab!”
24 But when the Moabites arrived at the Israeli encampment, the Israelis got up and attacked them. The Moabites ran away from the Israelis,[br] who followed them into the land as they continued their pursuit against Moab. 25 They destroyed their cities, and all of them threw stones onto every piece of farm[bs] land, ruining the fields.[bt] Then they filled in all the water wells[bu] and chopped down all of the useful[bv] trees. Stone walls remained surrounding Kir-hareseth only, until the archers surrounded and attacked that city. 26 When the king of Moab realized that the battle was going strongly against him, he took 700 expert swordsmen to attempt to break through to the king of Edom, but was unable to do so. 27 So he took his firstborn son, whom he intended to reign after him, and offered him up as a burnt offering on the wall. There subsequently came great anger against Israel, so they abandoned the attack and returned to their homeland.
Jesus is Raised from the Dead(A)
24 But at early dawn on the first day of the week,[a] they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. 2 They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, 3 but when they went in, they didn’t find the body of the Lord Jesus.[b] 4 While they were puzzling over this, two men in dazzling robes suddenly stood beside them. 5 While the women remained terrified, bowing their faces to the ground, the men[c] asked them, “Why are you looking among the dead for someone who is living? 6 He is not here, but has been raised.[d] Remember what he told you while he was still in Galilee: 7 ‘The Son of Man must be handed over to sinful men, be crucified, and rise on the third day.’”
8 Then the women[e] remembered Jesus’[f] words. 9 They returned from the tomb and reported all these things to the eleven disciples[g] and all the others. 10 The women who told the apostles about it were Mary Magdalene,[h] Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and some[i] others. 11 But what they said seemed nonsense to them, so they did not believe them. 12 Peter, however, got up and ran to the tomb. He stooped down and saw only the linen cloths. Then he went home, wondering about what had happened.[j]
Jesus Meets Two Disciples(B)
13 On the same day, two of Jesus’ followers[k] were walking to a village called Emmaus, about 60 stadia[l] from Jerusalem. 14 They were talking with each other about all these things that had taken place. 15 While they were discussing and analyzing what had happened,[m] Jesus himself approached and began to walk with them, 16 but their eyes were prevented from recognizing him.
17 He asked them, “What are you discussing with each other as you’re walking along?” They stood still and looked gloomy.
18 The one whose name was Cleopas answered him, “Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who doesn’t know what happened there in the past few days?”
19 He asked them, “What things?”
They answered him, “The events involving Jesus of Nazareth,[n] who was a prophet, mighty in what he said and did before God and all the people, 20 and how our high priests and leaders handed him over to be condemned to death and had him crucified. 21 But we kept hoping that he would be the one to redeem[o] Israel. What is more, this is now the third day since these things occurred. 22 Even some of our women have startled us by what they told us.[p] They were at the tomb early this morning 23 and didn’t find his body there, so they came back and told us that they had seen a vision of angels, who were saying that he was alive. 24 Then some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said. However, they didn’t see him.”
25 Then Jesus[q] told them, “O, how foolish you are! How slow you are to believe everything the prophets said! 26 The Messiah[r] had to suffer these things and then enter his glory, didn’t he?” 27 Then, beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them all the passages of Scripture about himself.
28 As they came near the village where the two men[s] were headed, Jesus[t] acted as though he were going farther. 29 But they strongly urged him, “Stay with us, because it is almost evening and the daylight is nearly gone.” So he went in to stay with them.
30 While he was at the table with them, he took the bread, blessed it, broke it in pieces, and gave it to them. 31 Then their eyes were opened, and they knew who he was. And he vanished from them.
32 Then they asked each other, “Our hearts kept burning within us[u] as he was talking to us on the road and explaining the Scriptures to us, didn’t they?”
33 They got up right away, went back to Jerusalem, and found the eleven disciples[v] and their companions all together. 34 They kept saying, “The Lord has really risen and has appeared to Simon!” 35 Then the two men[w] began to tell what had happened on the road and how they had recognized him when he broke the bread in pieces.
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