Kings IV 6
1 And the sons of the prophets said to Elisaie, Behold now, the place wherein we dwell before thee is too narrow for us.
Now the sons of the prophets said to Elisha, There is not room enough for us in the place where we are living under your care;
2 Let us go, we pray thee, unto Jordan, and take thence every man a beam, and make for ourselves a habitation there.
So let us go to Jordan, and let everyone get to work cutting boards, and we will make a living-place for ourselves there. And he said to them, Go, then.
3 And he said, Go. And one of them said gently, Come with thy servants. And he said, I will go.
And one of them said, Be pleased to go with your servants. And he said, I will go.
4 And he went with them, and they came to Jordan, and began to cut down wood.
So he went with them. And when they came to Jordan, they got to work cutting down trees.
5 And behold, one was cutting down a beam, and the axe head fell into the water: and he cried out, Alas! master: and it was hidden.
But one of them, while cutting a board, let the head of his axe go into the water; and he gave a cry, and said, This is a bad business, my master, for it is another's.
6 And the man of God said, Where did it fall? and he shewed him the place: and he broke off a stick, and threw it in there, and the iron came to the surface.
And the man of God said, Where did it go in? and when he saw the place where it had gone into the water, cutting a stick, he put it into the water, and the iron came up to the top of the water.
7 And he said, Take it up to thyself. And he stretched out his hand, and took it.
Then he said, Take it up. So he put out his hand and took it.
8 And the king of Syria was at war with Israel: and he consulted with his servants, saying, I will encamp in such a place.
At that time the king of Aram was making war against Israel; and he had a meeting with the chiefs of his army and said, I will be waiting in secret in some named place.
9 And Elisaie sent to the king of Israel, saying, Take heed that thou pass not by that place, for the Syrians are hidden there.
And the man of God sent to the king of Israel, saying, Take care to keep away from that place, for the Aramaeans are waiting there in secret.
10 And the king of Israel sent to the place which Elisaie mentioned to him, and saved himself thence not once or twice.
So the king of Israel sent to the place where the man of God had said there was danger, and kept clear of it more than once.
11 And the mind of the king of Syria was very much disturbed concerning this thing; and he called his servants, and said to them, Will ye not tell me who betrays me to the king of Israel?
And at this, the mind of the king of Aram was greatly troubled, and he sent for his servants and said to them, Will you not make clear to me which of us is helping the king of Israel?
12 And one of his servants said, Nay, my Lord, O king, for Elisaie the prophet that is in Israel reports to the king of Israel all the words whatsoever thou mayest say in thy bedchamber.
And one of them said, Not one of us, my lord king; but Elisha, the prophet in Israel, gives the king of Israel news of the words you say even in your bedroom.
13 And he said, Go, see where this man [is], and I will send and take him. And they sent word to him, saying, Behold, [he is] in Dothaim.
Then he said, Go and see where he is, so that I may send and get him. And news came to him that he was in Dothan.
14 And he sent thither horses, and chariots, and a mighty host: and they came by night, and compassed about the city.
So he sent there horses and carriages and a great army; and they came by night, circling the town.
15 And the servant of Elisaie rose up early and went out; and, behold, a host compassed the city, and horses and chariots: and the servant said to him, O master, what shall we do?
Now the servant of the man of God, having got up early and gone out, saw an army with horses and carriages of war all round the town. And the servant said to him, O my master, what are we to do?
16 And Elisaie said, Fear not, for they who are with us [are] more than they that are with them.
And he said in answer, Have no fear; those who are with us are more than those who are with them.
17 And Elisaie prayed, and said, Lord, open, I pray thee, the eyes of the servant, and let him see. And the Lord opened his eyes, and he saw: and, behold, the mountain [was] full of horses, and there were chariots of fire round about Elisaie.
Then Elisha made a prayer to the Lord, saying, Lord, let his eyes be open so that he may see. And the Lord made the young man's eyes open; and he saw that all the mountain was full of horses and carriages of fire round Elisha.
18 And they came down to him; and he prayed to the Lord, and said, Smite, I pray thee, this people with blindness. And he smote them with blindness, according to the word of Elisaie.
Now when the Aramaeans came down to Elisha, he made a prayer to the Lord saying, Lord, make this people blind. And he made them blind at Elisha's request.
19 And Elisaie said to them, This [is] not the city, and this [is] not the way: follow me, and I will bring you to the man whom ye seek. And he led them away to Samaria.
And Elisha said to them, This is not the way, and this is not the town: come after me so that I may take you to the man you are searching for. And he took them to Samaria.
20 And it came to pass when they entered into Samaria, that Elisaie said, Open, I pray thee, O Lord, their eyes, and let them see. And the Lord opened their eyes, and they saw; and, behold, they were in the midst of Samaria.
And when they had come into Samaria, Elisha said, Lord, let the eyes of these men be open so that they may see. And the Lord made their eyes open, and they saw that they were in the middle of Samaria.
21 And the king of Israel said to Elisaie, when he saw them, Shall I [not] verily smite them, [my] father?
And the king of Israel, when he saw them, said to Elisha, My father, am I to put them to the sword?
22 And he said, Thou shalt not smite them, unless thou wouldest smite those whom thou hast taken captive with thy sword and with thy bow: set bread and water before them, and let them eat and drink, and depart to their master.
But he said in answer, You are not to put them to death; have you any right to put to death those whom you have not taken prisoner with your sword and your bow? put bread and water before them, so that they may have food and drink and go to their master.
23 And he set before them a great feast, and they ate and drank: and he dismissed them and they departed to their master. And the bands of Syria came no longer into the land of Israel.
So he made ready a great feast for them, and when they had had food and drink, he sent them away and they went back to their master. And no more bands of Aramaeans came into the land of Israel.
24 And it came to pass after this, that the son of Ader king of Syria gathered all his army, and went up, and besieged Samaria.
Now after this, Ben-hadad, king of Aram, got together all his army and went up to make an attack on Samaria, shutting the town in on all sides with his forces.
25 And there was a great famine in Samaria: and, behold, they besieged it, until an ass's head was [valued] at fifty pieces of silver, and the fourth part of a cab of dove's dung at five pieces of silver.
And they became very short of food in Samaria; for they kept it shut in till the price of an ass's head was eighty shekels of silver, and a small measure of doves' droppings was five shekels of silver.
26 And the king of Israel was passing by on the wall, and a woman cried to him, saying, Help, my lord, O king.
And when the king of Israel was going by on the wall, a woman came crying out to him, and said, Help! my lord king.
27 And he said to her, Unless the Lord help thee, whence shall I help thee? from the corn-floor, or from the wine-press?
And he said, If the Lord does not give you help, where am I to get help for you? from the grain-floor or the grape-crusher?
28 And the king said to her, What is [the matter] with thee? And the woman said to him, This [woman] said to me, Give thy son, and we will eat him to-day, and we will eat my son to-morrow.
And the king said to her, What is troubling you? And she said in answer, This woman said to me, Give your son to be our food today, and we will have my son tomorrow.
29 So we boiled my son, and ate him; and I said to her on the second day, Give thy son, and let us eat him: and she has hidden her son.
So, boiling my son, we had a meal of him; and on the day after I said to her, Now give your son for our food; but she has put her son in a secret place.
30 And it came to pass, when the king of Israel heard the words of the woman, [that] he rent his garments; and he passed by on the wall, and the people saw sackcloth within upon his flesh.
Then the king, hearing what the woman said, took his robes in his hands, violently parting them; and, while he was walking on the wall, the people, looking, saw that under his robe he had haircloth on his flesh.
31 And he said, God do so to me and more also, if the head of Elisaie shall stand upon him this day.
Then he said, May God's punishment come on me if Elisha, the son of Shaphat, keeps his head on his body after this day.
32 And Elisaie was sitting in his house, and the elders were sitting with him; and [the king] sent a man before him: before the messenger came to him, he also said to the elders, Do ye see that this son of a murderer has sent to take away my head? See, as soon as the messenger shall have come, shut the door, and forcibly detain him at the door: [is] not the sound of his master's feet behind him?
But Elisha was in his house, and the responsible men were seated there with him; and before the king got there, Elisha said to those who were with him, Do you see how this cruel and violent man has sent to take away my life?
33 While he was yet speaking with them, behold, a messenger came to him: and he said, Behold, this evil [is] of the Lord; why should I wait for the Lord any longer?
While he was still talking to them, the king came down and said, This evil is from the Lord; why am I to go on waiting any longer for the Lord?
