2 Kings 3
1 2
3 4 5
6 7 8
9 10 11
12 13 14
15 16 17
18 19 20
21 22 23
24 25
1 Now Jehoram the son of Ahab
began to reign over Israel in Samaria the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat king of
Judah, and reigned twelve years.
2 And he wrought evil in the sight of the
LORD; but not like his father, and like his mother: for he put away the image of
Baal that his father had made.
3 Nevertheless he cleaved unto the sins of
Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which made Israel to sin; he departed not therefrom.
4 And Mesha king of Moab was a sheepmaster,
and rendered unto the king of Israel an hundred thousand lambs, and an hundred
thousand rams, with the wool.
5 But it came to pass, when Ahab was dead,
that the king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel.
6 And king Jehoram went out
of Samaria the same time, and numbered all Israel.
7 And he went and sent to Jehoshaphat the
king of Judah, saying, The king of Moab hath rebelled against me: wilt thou go
with me against Moab to battle? And he said, I will go up: I am as thou art,
my people as thy people, and my horses as thy horses.
8 And he said, Which way shall we go up?
And he answered, The way through the wilderness of Edom.
9 So the king of Israel went, and the king
of Judah, and the king of Edom: and they fetched a compass of seven days’
journey: and there was no water for the host, and for the cattle that followed
them.
10 And the king of Israel said, Alas! that
the LORD hath called these three kings together, to deliver them into the hand
of Moab!
11 But Jehoshaphat said, Is there
not here a prophet of the LORD, that we may enquire of the LORD by him? And one
of the king of Israel’s servants answered and said, Here is Elisha the
son of Shaphat, which poured water on the hands of Elijah.
12 And Jehoshaphat said, The word of the
LORD is with him. So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom
went down to him.
13 And Elisha said unto the king of
Israel, What have I to do with thee? get thee to the prophets of thy father, and
to the prophets of thy mother. And the king of Israel said unto him, Nay: for
the LORD hath called these three kings together, to deliver them into the hand
of Moab.
14 And Elisha said, As the LORD of
hosts liveth, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I regard the
presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look toward thee, nor see
thee.
15 But now bring me a minstrel. And it
came to pass, when the minstrel played, that the hand of the LORD came upon him.
16 And he said, Thus saith the LORD, Make
this valley full of ditches.
17 For thus saith the LORD, Ye shall not
see wind, neither shall ye see rain; yet that valley shall be filled with water,
that ye may drink, both ye, and your cattle, and your beasts.
18 And this is but a light thing in
the sight of the LORD: he will deliver the Moabites also into your hand.
19 And ye shall smite every fenced city,
and every choice city, and shall fell every good tree, and stop all wells of
water, and mar every good piece of land with stones.
20 And it came to pass in the
morning, when the meat offering was offered, that, behold, there came water by
the way of Edom, and the country was filled with water.
21 And when all the Moabites heard that
the kings were come up to fight against them, they gathered all that were able
to put on armour, and upward, and stood in the border.
22 And they rose up early in the morning,
and the sun shone upon the water, and the Moabites saw the water on the other
side as red as blood:
23 And they said, This is blood:
the kings are surely slain, and they have smitten one another: now therefore,
Moab, to the spoil.
24 And when they came to the camp of
Israel, the Israelites rose up and smote the Moabites, so that they fled before
them: but they went forward smiting the Moabites, even in their country.
25 And they beat down the cities, and on
every good piece of land cast every man his stone, and filled it; and they
stopped all the wells of water, and felled all the good trees: only in
Kirharaseth left they the stones thereof; howbeit the slingers went about it,
and smote it.
26 And when the king of Moab saw that the
battle was too sore for him, he took with him seven hundred men that drew
swords, to break through even unto the king of Edom: but they could not.
27 Then 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 against Israel: and they departed from
him, and returned to their own land.
Return to Bible Index Page
|