2 Kings 1
1
Elijah and the Messengers of Ahaziah
1Moab rebelled against Israel after the death of Ahab. 2Ahaziah had fallen through the lattice in his upper room, which was in Samaria, and he was injured. So he sent messengers, and he said to them, “Go, inquire of Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron, if I will survive this injury.”
3Then the angel of Yahweh spoke to Elijah the Tishbite, “Get up, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria and speak to them, ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to inquire of Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron?’ 4Therefore, thus says Yahweh, ‘The bed upon which you have gone, you will not come down from it, but you shall surely die.’ ” So Elijah went.
5When the messengers returned to him, he asked them, “Why have you returned?” 6Then they said to him, “A man came up to meet us, and he said to us, ‘Go, return to the king who sent you and speak to him, “Thus says Yahweh, ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending to inquire of Baal-Zebub the god of Ekron? Therefore the bed upon which you have gone, you will not come down from it, for you will surely die.’ ” ’ ” 7Then he spoke to them, “What was the manner of the man who came up to meet you and spoke to you all these things?” 8They answered him, “A hairy man#Literally “an owner of hair” with a leather belt girded around his waist.” And he said, “It is Elijah the Tishbite.”
9So Ahaziah#Literally “he” sent to him the commander of fifty with his fifty men, and he went up to him while he was sitting on the top of the hill. He said to him, “O man of God, the king says, ‘Come down.’ ” 10Then Elijah answered and said to the commander of the fifty, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty!” Then fire came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty.
11So he again sent#Literally “returned and sent” another commander of fifty and his fifty men. He answered and said to him, “O man of God, thus says the king, ‘Come down quickly!’ ” 12Then Elijah answered and said to them, “If I am a man of God, then let fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty!” Then the fire of God came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty.
13So he again sent#Literally “returned and sent” a third time a commander of fifty and his fifty, and the commander of the third fifty went up and came and knelt down on his knees before Elijah and entreated him. He said to him, “O man of God, please let my life and the lives of your servants, these fifty, be precious in your eyes. 14Behold, fire from heaven came down and consumed the first two commanders of fifty and their fifties, so then let my life be precious in your eyes.” 15Then the angel of Yahweh spoke to Elijah, “Go down with him. Do not be afraid because of him.” So he got up and went down with him to the king, 16and he said to him, “Thus says Yahweh, ‘Because you have sent messengers to inquire of Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron—is it because there is no God in Israel from whom to inquire his word?—therefore the bed upon which you went, you shall not come down from it, for you shall surely die.’ ”
Epitaph for Ahaziah
17So he died, according to the word of Yahweh which Elijah had spoken, and Joram became king in his place in the second year of Joram the son of Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, because he had no son. 18The remainder of the acts of Ahaziah which he did, are they not written in the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?
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2 Kings 1
1
Elijah and King Ahaziah
1After the death of King Ahab of Israel, the country of Moab rebelled against Israel.
2King Ahaziah of Israel fell off the balcony on the roof of his palace in Samaria and was seriously injured. So he sent some messengers to consult Baalzebub, the god of the Philistine city of Ekron, in order to find out whether or not he would recover. 3But an angel of the LORD commanded Elijah, the prophet from Tishbe, to go and meet the messengers of King Ahaziah and ask them, “Why are you going to consult Baalzebub, the god of Ekron? Is it because you think there is no god in Israel? 4Tell the king that the LORD says, ‘You will not recover from your injuries; you will die!’ ”
Elijah did as the LORD commanded, 5and the messengers returned to the king. “Why have you come back?” he asked.
6They answered, “We were met by a man who told us to come back and tell you that the LORD says to you, ‘Why are you sending messengers to consult Baalzebub, the god of Ekron? Is it because you think there is no god in Israel? You will not recover from your injuries; you will die!’ ”
7“What did the man look like?” the king asked.
8 #
Mt 3.4; Mk 1.6 “He was wearing a cloak made of animal skins, tied with#1.8 was wearing… with; or was a hairy man and wore. a leather belt,” they answered.
“It's Elijah!” the king exclaimed.
9Then he sent an officer with fifty men to get Elijah. The officer found him sitting on a hill and said to him, “Man of God, the king orders you to come down.”
10 #
Lk 9.54
“If I am a man of God,” Elijah answered, “may fire come down from heaven and kill you and your men!” At once fire came down and killed the officer and his men.
11The king sent another officer with fifty men, who went up#1.11 One ancient translation went up; Hebrew answered. and said to Elijah, “Man of God, the king orders you to come down at once!”
12“If I am a man of God,” Elijah answered, “may fire come down from heaven and kill you and your men!” At once the fire of God came down and killed the officer and his men.
13Once more the king sent an officer with fifty men. He went up the hill, fell on his knees in front of Elijah, and pleaded, “Man of God, be merciful to me and my men. Spare our lives! 14The two other officers and their men were killed by fire from heaven; but please be merciful to me!”
15The angel of the LORD said to Elijah, “Go down with him, and don't be afraid.” So Elijah went with the officer to the king 16and said to him, “This is what the LORD says: ‘Because you sent messengers to consult Baalzebub, the god of Ekron — as if there were no god in Israel to consult — you will not get well; you will die!’ ”
17Ahaziah died, as the LORD had said through Elijah. Ahaziah had no sons, so his brother#1.17 Some ancient translations his brother; Hebrew does not have these words. Joram succeeded him as king in the second year of the reign of Jehoram son of Jehoshaphat, king of Judah.
18Everything else that King Ahaziah did is recorded in The History of the Kings of Israel.
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Good News Bible with Deuterocanonicals/Apocrypha. 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.