2 Kings 9
1 Now the prophet Elisha called one of the sons of the prophets, and he said to him: “Gird your waist, and take this little bottle of oil in your hand, and go to Ramoth Gilead.
Meanwhile, the prophet Elisha summoned one of the other prophets. He said to him, “Get ready [IDM] and go to Ramoth [city] in [the] Gilead [region]. Take this jar of [olive] oil with you.
2 And when you arrive in that place, you will see Jehu, the son of Jehoshaphat, the son of Nimshi. And upon entering, you shall raise him up from the midst of his brothers, and you shall lead him into an inner room.
When you arrive there, search for a man named Jehu, the son of Jehoshaphat and grandson of Nimshi. Go with him into a room away from his companions,
3 And taking the little bottle of oil, you shall pour it upon his head, and you shall say: ‘Thus says the Lord: I have anointed you as king over Israel.’ And you shall open the door and flee. And you shall not remain in that place.”
and pour [some of] this oil on his head. Then say to him, ‘Yahweh declares that he is appointing you to be the king of Israel.’ Then open the door and run away as quickly as you can.”
4 Therefore, the young man, a servant of the prophet, went away to Ramoth Gilead.
So the young prophet went to Ramoth.
5 And he entered that place, and behold, the leaders of the army were sitting there, and he said, “I have a word for you, O prince.” And Jehu said, “For which one among us all?” And he said, “For you, O prince.”
When he arrived, he saw that the commanders of the army were having a conference. He [looked at Jehu and] said, “Sir, I have a message for [one of] you.” Jehu replied, “Which one of us is the message for?” The young prophet replied, “It is for you, commander/sir.”
6 And he rose up and entered into the room. And he poured the oil on his head, and he said: “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: ‘I have anointed you as king over Israel, the people of the Lord.
So Jehu got up and went with the young prophet into a house. There the young prophet poured some [olive] oil on Jehu’s head and said to him, “Yahweh, the God whom we Israelis [worship], declares this: ‘I am appointing you to be the king of my Israeli people.
7 And you shall strike down the house of Ahab, your lord. And I will avenge the blood of my servants, the prophets, and the blood of all the servants of the Lord, from the hand of Jezebel.
You must kill your master [King Joram], the son of Ahab, because I want to punish [Ahab’s wife] Jezebel for murdering [MTY] many of my prophets and other people who served me.
8 And I will destroy the entire house of Ahab. And I will cause to pass away from Ahab, whatever urinates against a wall, and whatever is lame, and whatever is least in Israel.
You must kill [not only Joram but] all of Ahab’s family. I want to get rid of every male in the family, including young ones and old ones.
9 And I will make the house of Ahab like the house of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha, the son of Ahijah.
I will get rid of Ahab’s family, like I got rid of the families of two other kings of Israel, Jeroboam and Baasha.
10 Also, the dogs will consume Jezebel, in the field of Jezreel. Neither will there be anyone who may bury her.’” And then he opened the door, and he fled.
And [when] Jezebel [dies], her corpse will not be buried. Dogs will eat her corpse there in Jezreel [city].’” After the young prophet said this, he left the room and ran.
11 Then Jehu went out to the servants of his lord. And they said to him: “Is everything well? Why has this insane man come to you?” And he said to them, “You know the man, and what he said.”
When Jehu came out of the room to where his other commanders were, they said to him, “Is everything all right? Why did that mad fellow come to you?” He replied, “You know what kinds of things young prophets like him say.”
12 But they responded, “That is false; instead, you should tell us.” And he said to them, “He said to me these certain things, and he said, ‘Thus says the Lord: I have anointed you as king over Israel.’”
They said, “You are lying! Tell us what he said!” He replied, “He told me that Yahweh said, ‘I am appointing [MTY] you to be the king of Israel.’”
13 And so they hurried away. And each one, taking his cloak, placed it under his feet, in the manner of a seat for judgment. And they sounded the trumpet, and they said: “Jehu reigns!”
Then they all spread their cloaks on the steps of the building [for Jehu to walk out on], and they blew trumpets and shouted, “Jehu is now the king!”
14 Then Jehu, the son of Jehoshaphat, the son of Nimshi, conspired against Joram. Now Joram had besieged Ramoth Gilead, he and all of Israel, against Hazael, the king of Syria.
King Joram and his army had been defending Ramoth against the attacks by the army of the king of Syria. King Joram had returned to Jezreel [city], to recover from being wounded in the battle against the army of Hazael, the king of Syria. And Jehu made plans to kill Joram. He said to his other commanders, “If helping me is truly what you want, make sure that no one leaves this city to go to warn the people of Jezreel [about what I am planning to do].”
15 And he had returned, so that he might be cured at Jezreel, because of his wounds. For the Syrians had struck him, while he was fighting against Hazael, the king of Syria. And Jehu said, “If it pleases you, let no one depart, fleeing from the city; otherwise he may go and give a report in Jezreel.”
16 And he climbed up and set out for Jezreel, because Joram was sick there, and Ahaziah, the king of Judah, had gone down to visit Joram.
Then Jehu and his officers got into their chariots and rode to Jezreel, where Joram was still recovering. And King Ahaziah of Judah was there, visiting Joram.
17 And so the watchman, who was standing upon the tower of Jezreel, saw the crowd of Jehu arriving, and he said, “I see a crowd.” And Joram said: “Take a chariot, and send to meet them. And those who go should say, ‘Is everything well?’”
A guard was standing in the watchtower in Jezreel. He saw Jehu and his men approaching. He called out, “I see a lot of men [who are approaching]!” King Joram [heard what the watchman said, so he] said to his soldiers, “Send someone on a horse to go and find out if they are coming to be friendly to us or to attack us.”
18 Therefore, he who had climbed into the chariot went away to meet him, and he said, “The king says this: ‘Is everything peaceful?’” And Jehu said: “What peace is there for you? Pass by and follow me.” Also the watchman gave a report, saying, “The messenger went to them, but he did not return.”
So a man rode out to meet Jehu and said to him, “The king wants to know [if you are coming to be] friendly to us.” Jehu replied, “This is not the time for you [RHQ] to be concerned about acting friendly! Turn around and come behind me!” So the guard in the watchtower reported that the messenger had reached the group [that was approaching], but that he was not returning [alone].
19 And then he sent a second chariot of horses. And he went to them, and he said, “The king says this: ‘Is there peace?’” And Jehu said: “What peace is there for you? Pass by and follow me.”
So King Joram sent another messenger, who asked Jehu the same question. Again Jehu replied, “This is not the time [RHQ] for you to be concerned about acting friendly! Turn around and follow me!”
20 Then the watchman gave a report, saying: “He went all the way to them, but he did not return. But their advance is like the advance of Jehu, the son of Nimshi. For he advances precipitously.”
Then the watchman reported again, “That messenger also reached them, but he is not coming back [alone]. And [the leader of the group must be] Jehu, the son of Nimshi, because he is driving [his chariot] furiously, [like Jehu does]!”
21 And Joram said, “Yoke the chariot.” And they yoked his chariot. And Joram, the king of Israel, and Ahaziah, the king of Judah, departed, each in his chariot. And they went out to meet Jehu. And they met him in the field of Naboth, the Jezreelite.
Joram said [to his soldiers], “Get [my chariot] ready!” So they did that. Then King Joram and King Ahaziah both rode toward Jehu, each one in his own chariot. And [it happened that] they met Jehu at the field that had previously belonged to Naboth!
22 And when Joram had seen Jehu, he said, “Is there peace, Jehu?” And he responded: “What is peace? For still the fornications of your mother, Jezebel, and her many poisons, are thriving.”
When Joram met Jehu, he said to him, “Are you coming on a peaceful visit?” Jehu replied, “(How can there be peace while you and your people are prostrating themselves to worship idols and practicing very much (witchcraft/sorcery) like your mother Jezebel did?/There certainly cannot be peace while you and your people are prostrating themselves to worship idols and practicing (witchcraft/sorcery) like your mother Jezebel has been doing!)” [RHQ]
23 Then Joram turned his hand, and, fleeing, he said to Ahaziah, “Treachery, Ahaziah!”
Joram cried out, “Ahaziah, they have deceived us! [They want to kill us]!” So Joram turned his chariot around and tried to flee.
24 But Jehu bent his bow with his hand, and he struck Joram between the shoulders. And the arrow went through his heart, and immediately he fell in his chariot.
But Jehu drew his bow mightily and shot [an arrow that pierced] Joram between his shoulder blades. The arrow [went through his body and] pierced his heart, and he slumped down dead in his chariot.
25 And Jehu said to Bidkar, his commander: “Take and cast him into the field of Naboth, the Jezreelite. For I remember, when you and I, sitting in a chariot, were following Ahab, this man’s father, that the Lord lifted this burden upon him, saying:
Then Jehu said to his assistant Bidkar, “Take his corpse and throw it here into the field that belonged to Naboth. [I am sure that] you remember that when you and I were riding together [in chariots] behind King Joram’s father Ahab, that Yahweh said this about Ahab:
26 ‘Certainly, I will repay you in this field, says the Lord, for the blood of Naboth, and for the blood of his sons, which I saw yesterday, says the Lord.’ Therefore, take him now, and cast him into the field, in accord with the word of the Lord.”
‘Yesterday I saw Ahab murder [MTY] Naboth and his sons here. And I solemnly promise that I will punish him right here in this same field!’ So take Joram’s corpse and throw it into that field! That will fulfill what Yahweh said would happen.”
27 But Ahaziah, the king of Judah, seeing this, fled along the way of the garden house. And Jehu pursued him, and he said, “Strike this one also in his chariot.” And they struck him on the ascent to Gur, which is beside Ibleam. But he fled into Megiddo, and he died there.
When King Ahaziah saw what happened, he fled [in his chariot] toward Beth-Haggan [town]. But Jehu pursued him and said [to his other commanders], “Shoot him, also!” So they shot him [with arrows] while he was riding in his chariot on the road up to Gur, near Ibleam [town]. He continued going in his chariot until he reached Megiddo [city], where he died.
28 And his servants placed him upon his chariot, and they took him to Jerusalem. And they buried him in the sepulcher with his fathers, in the city of David.
His officials took his corpse back to Jerusalem and buried it in the tombs in the [part of Jerusalem called] ‘The City of David’, where his ancestors had been buried.
29 In the eleventh year of Joram, the son of Ahab, Ahaziah reigned over Judah.
Ahaziah had become the king of Judah when Joram had been ruling Israel for almost eleven years.
30 And Jehu went into Jezreel. But Jezebel, hearing of his arrival, painted her eyes with cosmetics, and adorned her head. And she watched through a window,
Then Jehu went to Jezreel. When [Ahab’s widow] Jezebel heard what had happened, she put paint/makeup on her eyelids, and combed her hair to make it beautiful, and looked out the window [of the palace toward the street below].
31 as Jehu was entering through the gate. And she said, “Is it possible for there to be peace for Zimri, who killed his lord?”
While Jehu was entering the city gate, she called out to him, “You [are like] Zimri! You are a murderer! [I think] you are certainly not [RHQ] coming on a peaceful visit!”
32 And Jehu lifted up his face to the window, and he said, “Who is this woman?” And two or three eunuchs bowed down before him.
Jehu looked up toward the window, and then he said, “Who is (on my side/wants to help me)? Anyone?” Two or three palace officials looked down at him [from a window and pointed to themselves].
33 And he said to them, “Throw her down with force.” And they threw her forcefully, and the wall was splattered with her blood, and the hoofs of the horses trampled her.
Jehu said to them, “Throw her down here!” So they threw her down, and [when she hit the ground and died], some of her blood splattered on the city wall and on the horses [that were pulling the chariots].
34 And when he had entered, so that he might eat and drink, he said: “Go, and see to that cursed woman, and bury her. For she is the daughter of a king.”
Then Jehu went into the palace and ate and drank. Then he said [to some of his men], “Take the corpse of that women whom Yahweh has cursed and bury it, because she is a king’s daughter [and therefore should be buried properly].”
35 But when they had gone, so that they might bury her, they found nothing but the skull, and the feet, and the ends of her hands.
But when they went to get her corpse to bury it, all that was left was only her skull and [the bones of] her feet and her hands. Everything else was gone.
36 And returning, they reported to him. And Jehu said: “It is the word of the Lord, which he spoke through his servant, Elijah the Tishbite, saying: ‘In the field of Jezreel, the dogs will consume the flesh of Jezebel.
When they reported this to Jehu, he said, “That is what Yahweh said would happen! He told his servant/prophet Elijah, ‘In [the city of] Jezreel, dogs will eat the flesh of Jezebel’s corpse.
37 And the flesh of Jezebel will be like dung upon the face of the earth, in the field of Jezreel, so that those who pass by may say: Is this that same Jezebel?’”
Her bones will be scattered there in Jezreel like dung, with the result that no one will be able to [recognize them and] say, “These are Jezebel’s bones.”’”
