2 Kings 1
1
The Lord Condemns Ahaziah
1-2Soon after King Ahab of Israel died, the country of Moab rebelled against his son King Ahaziah.#1.1,2 the country … King Ahaziah: The story of Moab's rebellion is in 3.4-27.
One day, Ahaziah fell through the wooden slats around the porch on the flat roof of his palace in Samaria, and he was badly injured. So he sent some messengers to the town of Ekron#1.1,2 Ekron: An important Philistine town about 65 kilometers southwest of Samaria. with orders to ask the god Baalzebub if he would get well.
3About the same time, an angel from the Lord sent Elijah the prophet from Tishbe to say to the king's messengers, “Ahaziah has rejected Israel's own God by sending you to ask Baalzebub about his injury. 4Tell him that because he has done this, he's on his deathbed!” And Elijah did what he was told.
5When the messengers returned to Ahaziah, he asked, “Why are you back so soon?”
6“A man met us along the road with a message for you from the Lord,” they answered. “The Lord wants to know why you sent us to ask Baalzebub about your injury and why you don't believe there's a God in Israel. The man also told us that the Lord says you're going to die.”
7“What did the man look like?” Ahaziah asked.
8 #
Mt 3.4; Mk 1.6. “He was hairy#1.8 hairy: Or “wearing a furry coat.” and had a leather belt around his waist,” they answered.
“It must be Elijah!” replied Ahaziah. 9So at once he sent an army officer and 50 soldiers to meet Elijah.
Elijah was sitting on top of a hill#1.9 a hill: Probably Mount Carmel. at the time. The officer went up to him and said, “Man of God,#1.9 Man of God: Another name for a prophet of the Lord. the king orders you to come down and talk with him.”
10 #
Lk 9.54. “If I am a man of God,” Elijah answered, “God will send down fire on you and your 50 soldiers.” Fire immediately came down from heaven and burned up the officer and his men.
11Ahaziah sent another officer and 50 more soldiers to Elijah. The officer said, “Man of God, the king orders you to come see him at once.”
12“If I am a man of God,” Elijah answered, “fire will destroy you and your 50 soldiers.” And God sent down fire#1.12 God sent down fire: Or “A mighty fire came down.” from heaven on the officer and his men.
13Ahaziah sent a third army officer and 50 more soldiers. This officer went up to Elijah, then he got down on his knees and begged, “Man of God, please be kind to me and these 50 servants of yours. Let us live! 14Fire has already wiped out the other officers and their soldiers. Please don't let it happen to me.”
15The angel from the Lord said to Elijah, “Go with him and don't be afraid.” So Elijah got up and went with the officer.
16When Elijah arrived, he told Ahaziah, “The Lord wants to know why you sent messengers to Ekron to ask Baalzebub about your injury. Don't you believe there's a God in Israel? Ahaziah, because you did that, the Lord says you will die.”
17Ahaziah died, just as the Lord had said. But since Ahaziah had no sons, Joram#1.17 Joram: The Hebrew text has “Jehoram,” another spelling of the name. his brother#1.17 his brother: Some ancient translations (see also 3.1); these words are not in the Hebrew text. then became king. This happened in the second year that Jehoram son of Jehoshaphat was king of Judah.#1.17 This happened … Judah: According to 3.1, this was also the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat's rule in Judah. In biblical times, a father and son would sometimes rule as kings at the same time. This way, when the father died, the son would already have control of the kingdom (see also 8.16). 18Everything else Ahaziah did while he was king is written in The History of the Kings of Israel.
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Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.
2 Kings 1
1
Ahaziah’s death
1After Ahab died, Moab rebelled against Israel.
2Ahaziah fell out the window of his second-story room in Samaria and was hurt. He sent messengers, telling them, “Go to Ekron’s god Baal-zebub, and ask if I will recover from this injury.”
3But the LORD’s messenger said to Elijah from Tishbe, “Go, intercept the messengers of Samaria’s king, and ask them, ‘Is it because there’s no God in Israel that you are going to question Ekron’s god Baal-zebub? 4This is what the LORD says: You will never get out of the bed you are lying in; you will die for sure!’” So Elijah set off.
5The messengers returned to Ahaziah. He said to them, “Why have you come back?”
6They said to him, “A man met us and said, ‘Go back to the king who sent you. Say to him, This is what the LORD says: Is it because there’s no God in Israel that you’ve come to question Ekron’s god Baal-zebub? Because of this, you will never get out of the bed you are lying in; you will die for sure!’”
7Ahaziah said to them, “Describe the man who met you and said these things.”
8They said to him, “He wore clothes made of hair#1.8 Or He was a hairy man. with a leather belt around his waist.”
Ahaziah said, “That was Elijah from Tishbe.”
9So Ahaziah sent out a commander with fifty soldiers. The commander met up with Elijah while he was sitting on a hilltop. The commander said, “Man of God, the king says, ‘Come down!’”
10Elijah replied to the commander of the fifty soldiers, “If I really am a man of God, may fire come down from the sky and burn up you and your fifty soldiers.” Then fire came down from the sky and burned up the commander and his fifty soldiers.
11Ahaziah then sent another commander with fifty soldiers. The commander said to Elijah, “Man of God, this is what the king says: ‘Hurry and come down!’”
12Elijah said to them, “If I really am a man of God, may fire come down from the sky and burn up you and your fifty soldiers.” Then God’s fire came down from the sky and burned up the commander and his fifty soldiers.
13For a third time Ahaziah sent a commander with fifty soldiers. So the third commander arrived. He kneeled before Elijah and begged him, “Man of God! Please have some regard for my life and the lives of these fifty soldiers who are your servants. 14Look, fire came from the sky and burned up the two earlier commanders and their troops of fifty soldiers. Please have regard for my life.”
15Then the LORD’s messenger said to Elijah, “Go down with him. Don’t be afraid of him.” So Elijah set out to go with him to the king.
16Elijah 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!” 17So Ahaziah died in agreement with the LORD’s word that Elijah had spoken.
Because Ahaziah had no son, Joram#1.17 Heb Jehoram; the king’s name is variously spelled in either long Jehoram or short Joram form. became king after him in the second year of Judah’s King Jehoram, who was Jehoshaphat’s son. 18The rest of Ahaziah’s deeds, aren’t they written in the official records of Israel’s kings?
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