4 Kings 3
3
1And Joram the son of Achab reigned over Israel in Samaria in the eighteenth year of Josaphat king of Juda. And he reigned twelve years.
2And he did evil before the Lord, but not like his father and his mother: for he took away the statues of Baal, which his father had made.
3Nevertheless he stuck to the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nabat, who made Israel to sin, nor did he depart from them.
4Now Mesa, king of Moab, nourished many sheep: and he paid to the king of Israel a hundred thousand lambs, and a hundred thousand rams with their fleeces.
5And when Achab was dead, he broke the league which he had made with the king of Israel.
6And king Joram went out that day from Samaria, and mustered all Israel.
7And he sent to Josaphat king of Juda, saying: The king of Moab is revolted from me; come with me against him to battle. And he answered: I will come up. He that is mine is thine: my people, thy people: and my horses, thy horses.
8And he said: Which way shall we go up? But he answered: By the desert of Edom.
9So the king of Israel, and the king of Juda, and the king of Edom went: and they fetched a compass of seven days' journey. And there was no water for the army, and for the beasts, that followed them.
10And the king of Israel said: Alas, alas, alas, the Lord hath gathered us three kings together, to deliver us into the hands of Moab!
11And Josaphat said: Is there not here a prophet of the Lord, that we may beseech the Lord by him? And one of the servants of the king of Israel answered: Here is Eliseus the son of Saphat, who poured water on the hands of Elias.
12And Josaphat said: The word of the Lord is with him. And the king of Israel, and Josaphat king of Juda, and the king of Edom went down to him.
13And Eliseus said to the king of Israel: What have I to do with thee? Go to the prophets of thy father, and thy mother. And the king of Israel said to him: Why hath the Lord gathered together these three kings, to deliver them into the hands of Moab?
14And Eliseus said to him: As the Lord of hosts liveth, in whose sight I stand, if I did not reverence the face of Josaphat king of Juda, I would not have hearkened to thee, nor looked on thee.
15But now bring me hither a minstrel. And when the minstrel played, the hand of the Lord came upon him, and he said:
16Thus saith the Lord: Make the channel of this torrent full of ditches.
17For thus saith the Lord: You shall not see wind, nor rain: and yet this channel shall be filled with waters. And you shall drink, you and your families, and your beasts.
18And this is a small thing in the sight of the Lord. Moreover he will deliver also Moab into your hands.
19And you shall destroy every fenced city, and every choice city, and shall cut down every fruitful tree, and shall stop up all the springs of waters: and every goodly field you shall cover with stones.
20And it came to pass in the morning, when the sacrifices used to be offered, that, behold, water came by the way of Edom, and the country was filled with water.
21And all the Moabites, hearing that the kings were come up to fight against them, gathered together all that were girded with a belt upon them, and stood in the borders.
22And they rose early in the morning, and the sun being now up, and shining upon the waters, the Moabites saw the waters over against them red, like blood,
23And they said: It is the blood of the sword: the kings have fought among themselves, and they have killed one another. Go now, Moab, to the spoils.
24And they went into the camp of Israel: but Israel rising up defeated Moab, who fled before them. And they being conquerors went and smote Moab.
25And they destroyed the cities: and they filled every goodly field, every man casting his stone. And they stopt up all the springs of waters: and cut down all the trees that bore fruit, so that brick walls only remained. And the city was beset by the slingers, and a great part thereof destroyed.
26And when the king of Moab saw this, to wit, that the enemies had prevailed, he took with him seven hundred men that drew the sword, to break in upon the king of Edom. But they could not.
27Then he took his eldest son that should have reigned in his stead, and offered him for a burnt-offering upon the wall. And there was great indignation in Israel; and presently they departed from him, and returned into their own country.
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An historical text maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society.
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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