1 Kings 20
1 Then Ben-hadad the King of Aram assembled all his armie, and two and thirtie Kings with him, with horses, and charets, and went vp and besieged Samaria, and fought against it.
And Benadad, king of Syria, gathered together all his host, and there were two and thirty kings with him, and horses, and chariots: and going up, he fought against Samaria, and besieged it.
2 And he sent messengers to Ahab King of Israel, into the citie,
And, sending messengers to Achab king of Israel into the city,
3 And sayd vnto him, Thus sayth Ben-hadad, Thy siluer and thy golde is mine: also thy women, and thy fayre children are mine.
He said: Thus saith Benadad: Thy silver, and thy gold is mine: and thy wives, and thy goodliest children are mine.
4 And the King of Israel answered, and sayd, My lord King, according to thy saying, I am thine, and all that I haue.
And the king of Israel answered: According to thy word, my lord O king, I am thine, and all that I have.
5 And when the messengers came againe, they said, Thus commandeth Ben-hadad, and saith, When I shall send vnto thee, and command, thou shalt deliuer me thy siluer and thy golde, and thy women, and thy children,
And the messengers came again, and said: Thus saith Benadad, who sent us unto thee: Thy silver, and thy gold, and thy wives, and thy children thou shalt deliver up to me.
6 Or els I will sende my seruants vnto thee by to morow this time: and they shall search thine house, and the houses of thy seruants: and whatsoeuer is pleasant in thine eyes, they shall take it in their handes, and bring it away.
Tomorrow therefore at this same hour I will send my servants to thee, and they shall search thy house, and the houses of thy servants: and all that pleaseth them, they shall put in their hands, and take away.
7 Then the King of Israel sent for all the Elders of the land, and sayd, Take heede, I pray you, and see how he seeketh mischiefe: for he sent vnto me for my wiues, and for my children, and for my siluer, and for my golde, and I denyed him not.
And the king of Israel called all the ancients of the land, and said: Mark, and see that he layeth snares for us. For he sent to me for my wives, and for my children, and for my silver and gold: and I said not nay.
8 And all the Elders, and all the people sayd to him, Hearken not vnto him, nor consent.
And all the ancients, and all the people said to him: Hearken not to him, nor consent to him.
9 Wherefore hee sayde vnto the messengers of Ben-hadad, Tell my lorde the King, All that thou didddest sende for to thy seruant at the first time, that I will doe, but this thing I may not do. And the messengers departed, and brought him an answere.
Wherefore he answered the messengers of Benadad: Tell my lord the king: All that thou didst send for to me thy servant at first, I will do: but this thing I cannot do.
10 And Ben-hadad sent vnto him, and sayde, The gods do so to me and more also, if the dust of Samaria be ynough to all the people that follow me, for euery man an handfull.
And the messengers returning brought him word. And he sent again and said: Such and such things may the gods do to me, and more may they add, if the dust of Samaria shall suffice for handfuls for all the people that follow me.
11 And the King of Israel answered, and sayd, Tell him, Let not him that girdeth his harneis, boast himselfe, as he that putteth it off.
And the king of Israel answering, said: Tell him: Let not the girded boast himself as the ungirded.
12 And when he heard that tidings, as he was with the Kings drinking in the pauilions, he sayd vnto his seruants, Bring forth your engines, and they set them against the citie.
And it came to pass, when Benadad heard this word, that he and the kings were drinking in pavilions, and he said to his servants: Beset the city. And they beset it.
13 And beholde, there came a Prophet vnto Ahab King of Israel, saying, Thus sayeth the Lord, Hast thou seene all this great multitude? beholde, I will deliuer it into thine hande this day, that thou mayest knowe, that I am the Lord.
And behold a prophet coming to Achab king of Israel, said to him: Thus saith the Lord: Hast thou seen all this exceeding great multitude, behold I will deliver them into thy hand this day: that thou mayest know that I am the Lord.
14 And Ahab sayd, By whome? And he sayde, Thus sayth the Lord, By the seruants of the princes of the prouinces. He sayde againe, Who shall order the battel? And he answered, Thou.
And Achab said: By whom? And he said to him: Thus saith the Lord: By the servants of the princes of the provinces. And he said: Who shall begin to fight? And he said: Thou.
15 Then he nombred the seruantes of the princes of the prouinces, and they were two hundreth, two and thirtie: and after them he nombred the whole people of all the children of Israel, euen seuen thousand.
So he mustered the servants of the princes of the provinces, and he found the number of two hundred and thirty-two: and he mustered after them the people, all the children of Israel, seven thousand:
16 And they went out at noone: but Ben-hadad did drinke till he was drunken in the tentes, both he and the Kings: for two and thirtie Kings helped him.
And they went out at noon. But Benadad was drinking himself drunk in his pavilion, and the two and thirty kings with him, who were come to help him.
17 So the seruants of the princes of the prouinces went out first: and Ben-hadad sent out, and they shewed him, saying, There are men come out of Samaria.
And the servants of the princes of the provinces went out first. And Benadad sent. And they told him, saying: There are men come out of Samaria.
18 And he sayde, Whether they be come out for peace, take them aliue: or whether they bee come out to fight, take them yet aliue.
And he said: Whether they come for peace, take them alive: or whether they come to fight, take them alive.
19 So they came out of the citie, to wit, the seruants of the princes of the prouinces, and the hoste which followed them.
So the servants of the princes of the provinces went out, and the rest of the army followed:
20 And they slew euery one his enemie: and the Aramites fled, and Israel pursued them: but Ben-hadad ye King of Aram escaped on an horse with his horsemen.
And every one slew the man that came against him: and the Syrians fled, and Israel pursued after them. And Benadad king of Syria fled away on horseback with his horsemen.
21 And the King of Israel went out, and smote the horses and charets, and with a great slaughter slew he the Aramites.
But the king of Israel going out overthrew the horses and chariots, and slew the Syrians with a great slaughter.
22 (For there had come a Prophet to the King of Israel, and had sayd vnto him, Goe, be of good courage, and consider, and take heede what thou doest: for when the yeere is gone about, the King of Aram wil come vp against thee)
(And a prophet coming to the king of Israel, said to him: Go, and strengthen thyself, and know, and see what thou dost: for the next year the king of Syria will come up against thee.)
23 Then the seruants of the King of Aram said vnto him, Their gods are gods of the moutaines, and therefore they ouercame vs: but let vs fight against them in the playne, and doubtlesse we shall ouercome them.
But the servants of the king of Syria said to him: Their gods are gods of the hills, therefore they have overcome us: but it is better that we should fight against them in the plains, and we shall overcome them.
24 And this doe, Take the Kings away, euery one out of his place, and place captaines for them.
Do thou therefore this thing: Remove all the kings from thy army, and put captains in their stead:
25 And nomber thy selfe an armie, like the armie that thou hast lost, with such horses, and such charets, and we wil fight against them in the plaine, and doubtlesse we shall ouercome them: and he hearkened vnto their voyce, and did so.
And make up the number of soldiers that have been slain of thine, and horses according to the former horses, and chariots according to the chariots which thou hadst before: and we will fight against them in the plains, and thou shalt see that we shall overcome them. He believed their counsel and did so.
26 And after the yeere was gone about, Ben-hadad nombred the Aramites, and went vp to Aphek to fight against Israel.
Wherefore at the return of the year, Benadad mustered the Syrians, ancient up to Aphec, to fight against Israel.
27 And the children of Israel were nombred, and were all assembled and went against them, and the children of Israel pitched before them, like two litle flockes of kiddes: but the Aramites filled the countrey.
And the children of Israel were mustered, and taking victuals went out on the other side, and camped over against them, like two little hocks of goats: but the Syrians filled the land.
28 And there came a man of God, and spake vnto the King of Israel, saying, Thus sayeth the Lord, Because the Aramites haue sayd, The Lord is the God of the mountaines, and not God of the valleis, therefore will I deliuer all this great multitude into thine hand, and ye shall know that I am the Lord.
(And a man of God coming, said to the king of Israel: Thus saith the Lord: Because the Syrians have said: The Lord is God of the hills, but is not God of the valleys: I will deliver all this great multitude into thy hand, and you shall know that I am the Lord.)
29 And they pitched one ouer against the other seuen dayes, and in the seuenth day the battel was ioyned: and the children of Israel slew of the Aramites an hundreth thousand footemen in one day.
And both sides set their armies in array one against the other seven days, and on the seventh day the battle was fought: and the children of Israel slew of the Syrians a hundred thousand footmen in one day.
30 But the rest fled to Aphek into the citie: and there fel a wall vpon seuen and twentie thousand men that were left: and Ben-hadad fled into the citie, and came into a secret chamber.
And they that remained fled to Aphec, into the city: and the wall fell upon seven and twenty thousand men, that were left. And Benadad fleeing went into the city, into a chamber that was within a chamber.
31 And his seruants sayd vnto him, Beholde nowe, we haue heard say that the Kings of the house of Israel are mercifull Kings: we pray thee, let vs put sacke cloth about our loynes, and ropes about our heads, and goe out to the King of Israel: it may be that he will saue thy life.
And his servants said to him: Behold, we have heard that the kings of the house of Israel are merciful: so let us put sackcloth on our loins, and ropes on our heads, and go out to the king of Israel: perhaps he will save our lives.
32 Then they gyrded sackecloth about their loynes, and put ropes about their heads, and came to the King of Israel, and sayd, Thy seruant Ben-hadad sayth, I pray thee, let me liue: and he sayd, Is he yet aliue? he is my brother.
So they girded sackcloth on their loins, and put ropes on their heads, and came to the king of Israel, and said to him: Thy servant Benadad saith: I beseech thee let me have my life. And he said: If he be yet alive he is my brother.
33 Now the men tooke diliget heede, if they could catch any thing of him, and made haste, and sayd, Thy brother Ben-hadad. And he sayd, Go, bring him. So Ben-hadad came out vnto him, and he caused him to come vp vnto the chariot.
The men took this for a sign: and in haste caught the word out of his mouth, and said: Thy brother Benadad. And he said to them: Go, and bring him to me. Then Benadad came out to him, and he lifted him up into his chariot.
34 And Ben-hadad sayd vnto him, The cities, which my father tooke from thy father, I wil restore, and thou shalt make streetes for thee in Damascus, as my father did in Samaria. Then said Ahab, I will let thee goe with this couenant. So he made a couenant with him, and let him goe.
And he said to him: The cities which my father took from thy father, I will restore: and do thou make thee streets in Damascus, as my father made in Samaria, and having made a league I will depart from thee. So he made a league with him, and let him go.
35 Then a certaine man of the children of the Prophets sayd vnto his neighbour by the comandement of the Lord, Smite me, I pray thee. But the man refused to smite him.
Then a certain man of the sons of the prophets said to his companion in the word of the Lord: Strike me. But he would not strike.
36 Then sayd he vnto him, Because thou hast not obeyed the voyce of the Lord, beholde, as soone as thou art departed from me, a lyon shall slay thee. So when he was departed from him, a lyon found him and slew him.
Then he said to him: Because thou wouldst not hearken to the word of the Lord, behold then shalt depart from me, and a lion shall slay thee. And when he was gone a little from him, a lion found him, and slew him.
37 Then he founde another man, and sayde, Smite mee, I pray thee. And the man smote him, and in smiting wounded him.
Then he found another man, and said to him: Strike me. And he struck him, and wounded him.
38 So the Prophet departed, and wayted for the King by the way, and disguised himselfe with ashes vpon his face.
So the prophet went, and met the king in the way, and disguised himself by sprinkling dust on his face and his eyes.
39 And when the King came by, he cried vnto the King, and said, Thy seruant went into the middes of the battel: and beholde, there went away a man, whom another man brought vnto me, and sayd, Keepe this man: if he be lost, and want, thy life shall go for his life, or els thou shalt pay a talent of siluer.
And as the king passed by, he cried to the king, and said: Thy servant went out to fight hand to hand: and when a certain man was run away, one brought him to me, and said: Keep this man: and if he shall slip away, thy life shall be for his life, or thou shalt pay a talent of silver.
40 And as thy seruant had here and there to do, he was gone: And the King of Israel said vnto him, So shall thy iudgement be: thou hast giuen sentence.
And whilst I in a hurry turned this way and that, on a sudden he was not to be seen. And the king of Israel said to him: This is thy judgment, which thyself hast decreed.
41 And hee hasted, and tooke the ashes away from his face: and the King of Israel knewe him that he was of the Prophets:
But he forthwith wiped off the dust from his face, and the king of Israel knew him, that he was one of the prophets.
42 And he said vnto him, Thus saith the Lord, Because thou hast let goe out of thine handes a man whom I appoynted to dye, thy life shall goe for his life, and thy people for his people.
And he said to him: Thus saith the Lord: Because thou hast let go out of thy hand a mall worthy of death, thy life shall be for his life, and thy people for his people.
43 And the King of Israel went to his house heauie and in displeasure, and came to Samaria.
And the king of Israel returned to his house, slighting to hear, and raging came into Samaria.
