Melaḵim Bĕt (2 Kings) 3
3
1And Yehoram son of Aḥaḇ began to reign over Yisra’ĕl at Shomeron in the eighteenth year of Yehoshaphat sovereign of Yehuḏah, and reigned twelve years.
2And he did evil in the eyes of יהוה, but not like his father and mother; for he removed the statue of Ba‛al which his father had made.
3But he clung to the sins of Yaroḇ‛am son of Neḇat, who had made Yisra’ĕl sin. He did not turn away from them.
4And Mĕysha sovereign of Mo’aḇ was a sheep-breeder, and he paid the sovereign of Yisra’ĕl one hundred thousand lambs and the wool of one hundred thousand rams.
5And it came to be, when Aḥaḇ died, that the sovereign of Mo’aḇ revolted against the sovereign of Yisra’ĕl.
6And Sovereign Yehoram went out of Shomeron at that time and mustered all Yisra’ĕl.
7And he went and sent to Yehoshaphat sovereign of Yehuḏah, saying, “The sovereign of Mo’aḇ has revolted against me. Do you go with me to fight against Mo’aḇ?” And he said, “I go up. I am as you are, my people as your people, my horses as your horses.”
8And he said, “Which way do we go up?” And he said, “By way of the Wilderness of Eḏom.”
9And the sovereign of Yisra’ĕl went, and the sovereign of Yehuḏah and the sovereign of Eḏom, and went round a journey of seven days. And there was no water for the army, nor for the cattle that followed them.
10And the sovereign of Yisra’ĕl said, “What? Has יהוה called these three sovereigns to give them into the hand of Mo’aḇ.”
11And Yehoshaphat said, “Is there no prophet of יהוה here? Then let us inquire of יהוה through him.” One of the servants of the sovereign of Yisra’ĕl then answered and said, “Elisha son of Shaphat is here, who poured water out on the hands of Ěliyahu.”
12And Yehoshaphat said, “The word of יהוה is with him.” And the sovereign of Yisra’ĕl and Yehoshaphat and the sovereign of Eḏom went down to him.
13And Elisha said to the sovereign of Yisra’ĕl, “What have I to do with you? Go to the prophets of your father and the prophets of your mother.” And the sovereign of Yisra’ĕl said to him, “No, for יהוה has called these three sovereigns to give them into the hand of Mo’aḇ.”
14And Elisha said, “As יהוה of hosts lives, before whom I stand, if it were not that I regard the presence of Yehoshaphat sovereign of Yehuḏah, I would not look at you nor see you.
15“And now, bring me a harpist.” And it came to be, when the harpist played, that the hand of יהוה came upon him.
16And he said, “Thus said יהוה, ‘Make this wadi ditches – ditches.’
17“For thus said יהוה, ‘You are not going to see wind, nor rain. Yet that wadi is to be filled with water, so that you, your cattle, and your beasts shall drink.’
18“And this shall be but a light matter in the eyes of יהוה. And He shall give Mo’aḇ into your hand.
19“And you shall strike every walled city and every choice city, and shall cut down every good tree, and stop up every fountain of water, and ruin every good piece of land with stones.”
20And it came to be in the morning, when the grain offering was offered, that see, water came by way of Eḏom, and the land was filled with water.
21And when all Mo’aḇ heard that the sovereigns had come up to fight against them, all who were able to bear arms and older were gathered, and they stood at the border.
22And they rose up early in the morning, and the sun was shining on the water. And the Mo’aḇites saw the water on the other side as red as blood.
23And they said, “This is blood. The sovereigns have indeed struck swords and have killed one another. And now, Mo’aḇ, to the spoil!”
24And they came to the camp of Yisra’ĕl, and Yisra’ĕl rose up and struck the Mo’aḇites, so that they fled before them. And striking they struck the Mo’aḇites.
25And they broke down the cities, and each man threw a stone on every good piece of land and filled it. And they stopped up all the fountains of water and cut down all the good trees, until only the stones of Qir Ḥaraseth was left. And the slingers went round and struck it.
26And when the sovereign of Mo’aḇ saw that the battle was too strong for him, he took with him seven hundred men who drew swords, to break through to the sovereign of Eḏom, but they could not,
27then took his eldest son who would have reigned in his place, and offered him as an ascending offering upon the wall. And there was great wrath against Yisra’ĕl. And they left him and returned to the land.
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Melaḵim Bĕt (2 Kings) 3: TS2009
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2 Kings 3
3
Moab’s rebellion
1Joram,#3.1 Heb Jehoram (also in 3:6); the king’s name is variously spelled in either long Jehoram or short Joram form. Ahab’s son, became king of Israel in Samaria in the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat, Judah’s king. He ruled for twelve years. 2He did what was evil in the LORD’s eyes, but he wasn’t as bad as his father and mother. He removed the sacred pillar of Baal that his father had made. 3But he nevertheless clung to the sins that Jeroboam, Nebat’s son, had caused Israel to commit. He didn’t deviate from them.
4Now Moab’s King Mesha kept sheep. He would pay Israel’s king one hundred thousand lambs and the wool from one hundred thousand rams. 5But when Ahab died, Moab’s king rebelled against Israel’s king. 6So King Joram set out from Samaria at once. He prepared all Israel for war. 7He sent word to Judah’s King Jehoshaphat, “Moab’s king has rebelled against me. Will you go with me to fight against Moab?”
Jehoshaphat responded, “Yes, I’ll go. We’ll fight as one: you and I, our troops and our horses.”
8“Which road should we take?” Joram asked.
Jehoshaphat responded, “The road that goes through the Edomite wilderness.”
9So Israel’s and Judah’s kings set out with the king of Edom. They marched around for seven days until there was no water left for the army or for the animals with them. 10Israel’s king said, “This is terrible! Has the LORD brought us three kings together only to hand us over to Moab?”
11Jehoshaphat said, “Isn’t there any prophet of the LORD around, so we could question the LORD through him?”
One of the servants of Israel’s king answered, “Elisha, Shaphat’s son, is here. He used to pour water on Elijah’s hands.”
12Jehoshaphat said, “He has the LORD’s word!” So Israel’s king and Jehoshaphat and Edom’s king went down to see Elisha.
13Elisha said to Israel’s king, “What do we have to do with each other? Go to your father’s or mother’s prophets.”
Then Israel’s king said to him, “Don’t say that, because it is the LORD who has brought us three kings together—but only to hand us over to Moab!”
14Elisha said, “I swear by the life of the LORD of heavenly forces, the one I stand before and serve, if I didn’t care about Judah’s King Jehoshaphat, I wouldn’t notice you or even look at you! 15Now bring me a musician.” While the musician played, the LORD’s power came over Elisha. 16He said, “This is what the LORD says: This valley will be filled with pools.#3.16 LXX, Vulg Fill this valley with ditches. 17This is what the LORD says: You won’t see any wind or rain, but that valley will be full of water. Then you’ll be able to drink—you, your cattle, and your animals. 18This is easy for the LORD to do. He will also hand Moab over to you. 19You will then attack every fort and every grand city, cutting down all the good trees, stopping up all the springs, and ruining the good fields with stones.”
20The next morning, at the time to offer the grain offering, water came flowing from the direction of Edom. The land filled up with water.
21Now all the Moabites had heard how these kings had come to fight against them. So all who were able to fight were summoned, and they took up positions along the border. 22They got up early in the morning as the sun’s rays shone on the water. The Moabites saw the water from a distance. It looked as red as blood. 23They said, “It’s blood! The kings must have fought each other and killed themselves! Now get the plunder, Moab!”
24But when they entered Israel’s camp, the Israelites rose up and attacked the Moabites. The Moabites fled from them. Israel moved forward, striking the Moabites down as they went.#3.24 Heb uncertain 25Then the Israelites destroyed the Moabite cities. Each Israelite threw a stone on every piece of good land until it was covered. They stopped up every spring and cut down every good tree. Only Kir-hareseth remained with its stone wall intact,#3.25 Heb uncertain but then stone throwers#3.25 Heb uncertain surrounded it and attacked it.
26Moab’s king saw that he was losing the battle. So he took seven hundred soldiers with him, each with sword in hand, to break through to Edom’s king. But they failed. 27Then he took his oldest son, who was to succeed him as king, and he offered him on the wall as an entirely burned offering. As a result, outrage was expressed by Israel. So they pulled back from Moab’s king and returned to their own country.
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