4 Kings 13
13
1In the three and twentieth year of Joas son of Ochozias king of Juda, Joachaz the son of Jehu reigned over Israel in Samaria, seventeen years.
2And he did evil before the Lord, and followed the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nabat, who made Israel to sin: and he departed not from them.
3And the wrath of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he delivered them into the hand of Hazael the king of Syria, and into the hand of Benadad the son of Hazael, all days.
4But Joachaz besought the face of the Lord; and the Lord heard him, for he saw the distress of Israel, because the king of Syria had oppressed them.
5And the Lord gave Israel a saviour: and they were delivered out of the hand of the king of Syria. And the children of Israel dwelt in their pavilions as yesterday and the day before.
6But yet they departed not from the sins of Jeroboam, who made Israel to sin; but walked in them. And there still remained a grove also in Samaria.
7And Joachaz had no more left of the people than fifty horsemen, and ten chariots, and ten thousand footmen: for the king of Syria had slain them, and had brought them low as dust by threshing in the barnfloor.
8But the rest of the acts of Joachaz, and all that he did, and his valour, are they not written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Israel?
9And Joachaz slept with his fathers, and they buried him in Samaria: and Joas his son reigned in his stead.
10In the seven and thirtieth year of Joas king of Juda, Joas the son of Joachaz reigned over Israel in Samaria sixteen years.
11And he did that which is evil in the sight of the Lord: he departed not from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nabat, who made Israel to sin; but he walked in them.
12But the rest of the acts of Joas, and all that he did, and his valour wherewith he fought against Amasias king of Juda, are they not written in the book of the words of the days of the kings of Israel?
13And Joas slept with his fathers: and Jeroboam sat upon his throne. But Joas was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel.
14Now Eliseus was sick of the illness whereof he died. And Joas king of Israel went down to him, and wept before him, and said: O my father, my father, the chariot of Israel and the guider thereof.
15And Eliseus said to him: Bring a bow and arrows. And when he had brought him a bow and arrows,
16He said to the king of Israel: Put thy hand upon the bow. And when he had put his hand, Eliseus put his hands over the king's hands,
17And said: Open the window to the east. And when he had opened it, Eliseus said: Shoot an arrow. And he shot. And Eliseus said: The arrow of the Lord's deliverance, and the arrow of the deliverance from Syria. And thou shalt strike the Syrians in Aphec, till thou consume them.
18And he said: Take the arrows. And when he had taken them, he said to him: Strike with an arrow upon the ground. And he struck three times and stood still.
19And the man of God was angry with him, and said: If thou hadst smitten five or six or seven times, thou hadst smitten Syria even to utter destruction. But now three times shalt thou smite it.
20And Eliseus died, and they buried him. And the rovers from Moab came into the land the same year.
21And some that were burying a man saw the rovers, and cast the body into the sepulchre of Eliseus. And when it had touched the bones of Eliseus, the man came to life, and stood upon his feet.
22Now Hazael king of Syria afflicted Israel all the days of Joachaz.
23And the Lord had mercy on them, and returned to them because of his covenant, which he had made with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob. And he would not destroy them, nor utterly cast them away, unto this present time.
24And Hazael king of Syria died, and Benadad his son reigned in his stead.
25Now Joas the son of Joachaz took the cities out of the hand of Benadad, the son of Hazael, which he had taken out of the hand of Joachaz his father by war. Three times did Joas beat him; and he restored the cities to Israel.
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An historical text maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society.
2 Kings 13
13
King Jehoahaz of Israel
1In the 23rd year of the reign of Joash son of Ahaziah as king of Judah, Jehoahaz son of Jehu became king of Israel, and he ruled in Samaria for seventeen years. 2Like King Jeroboam before him he sinned against the LORD and led Israel into sin; he never gave up his evil ways. 3So the LORD was angry with Israel, and he allowed King Hazael of Syria and his son Benhadad to defeat Israel time after time. 4Then Jehoahaz prayed to the LORD, and the LORD, seeing how harshly the king of Syria was oppressing the Israelites, answered his prayer. 5The LORD sent Israel a leader, who freed them from the Syrians, and so the Israelites lived in peace, as before. 6But they still did not give up the sins into which King Jeroboam had led Israel, but kept on#13.6 Some ancient translations kept on; Hebrew he kept on. committing them; and the image of the goddess Asherah remained in Samaria.
7Jehoahaz had no armed forces left except fifty horsemen, ten chariots, and 10,000 men on foot, because the king of Syria had destroyed the rest, trampling them down like dust.
8Everything else that Jehoahaz did and all his brave deeds are recorded in The History of the Kings of Israel. 9He died and was buried in Samaria, and his son Jehoash succeeded him as king.
King Jehoash of Israel
10In the 37th year of the reign of King Joash of Judah, Jehoash son of Jehoahaz became king of Israel, and he ruled in Samaria for sixteen years. 11He too sinned against the LORD and followed the evil example of King Jeroboam, who had led Israel into sin. 12Everything else that Jehoash did, including his bravery in the war against King Amaziah of Judah, is recorded in The History of the Kings of Israel. 13Jehoash died and was buried in the royal tombs in Samaria, and his son Jeroboam II succeeded him as king.
The Death of Elisha
14 #
2 Kgs 2.12
The prophet Elisha fell ill with a fatal disease, and as he lay dying King Jehoash of Israel went to visit him. “My father, my father!” he exclaimed as he wept. “You have been the mighty defender of Israel!”
15“Get a bow and some arrows,” Elisha ordered him. Jehoash got them, 16and Elisha told him to get ready to shoot. The king did so, and Elisha placed his hands on the king's hands. 17Then, following the prophet's instructions, the king opened the window that faced towards Syria. “Shoot the arrow!” Elisha ordered. As soon as the king shot the arrow, the prophet exclaimed, “You are the LORD's arrow, with which he will win victory over Syria. You will fight the Syrians in Aphek until you defeat them.”
18Then Elisha told the king to take the other arrows and strike the ground with them. The king struck the ground three times, and then stopped. 19This made Elisha angry, and he said to the king, “You should have struck five or six times, and then you would have won complete victory over the Syrians; but now you will defeat them only three times.”
20Elisha died and was buried.
Every year bands of Moabites used to invade the land of Israel. 21Once, during a funeral, one of those bands was seen, and the people threw the corpse into Elisha's tomb and ran off.#13.21 One ancient translation and ran off; Hebrew and he ran off. As soon as the body came into contact with Elisha's bones, the man came back to life and stood up.
War between Israel and Syria
22King Hazael of Syria oppressed the Israelites during all of Jehoahaz' reign, 23but the LORD was kind and merciful to them. He would not let them be destroyed, but helped them, because of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He has never forgotten his people.
24At the death of King Hazael of Syria his son Benhadad became king. 25Then King Jehoash of Israel defeated Benhadad three times and recaptured the cities that had been taken by Benhadad during the reign of Jehoahaz, the father of Jehoash.
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Good News Bible. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.