2 Chronicles 18

1 And Jehoshaphat has riches and honor in abundance, and joins affinity to Ahab,

Now Jehoshaphat had riches and honour in abundance; and he allied himself with Ahab.

2 and goes down at the end of [certain] years to Samaria to [visit] Ahab, and Ahab sacrifices sheep and oxen in abundance for him and for the people who [are] with him, and persuades him to go up to Ramoth-Gilead.

After some years, he went down to Ahab to Samaria. Ahab killed sheep and cattle for him in abundance, and for the people who were with him, and moved him to go up with him to Ramoth Gilead.

3 And Ahab king of Israel says to Jehoshaphat king of Judah, “Do you go with me [to] Ramoth-Gilead?” And he says to him, “As I—so you, and as your people—my people, and [we go] with you into the battle.”

Ahab king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat king of Judah, “Will you go with me to Ramoth Gilead?” He answered him, “I am as you are, and my people as your people. We will be with you in the war.”

4 And Jehoshaphat says to the king of Israel, “Please seek the word of YHWH this day.”

Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel, “Please enquire first for the LORD’s word.”

5 And the king of Israel gathers the prophets, four hundred men, and says to them, “Do we go to Ramoth-Gilead to battle, or do I refrain?” And they say, “Go up, and God gives [it] into the hand of the king.”

Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets together, four hundred men, and said to them, “Shall we go to Ramoth Gilead to battle, or shall I forbear?” They said, “Go up, for God will deliver it into the hand of the king.”

6 And Jehoshaphat says, “[Is there] not still a prophet of YHWH here, and we seek from him?”

But Jehoshaphat said, “Isn’t there here a prophet of the LORD besides, that we may enquire of him?”

7 And the king of Israel says to Jehoshaphat, “[There is] still one man to seek YHWH from him, and I have hated him, for he is not prophesying of good concerning me, but of evil [for] all his days, he [is] Micaiah son of Imlah”; and Jehoshaphat says, “Do not let the king say so.”

The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “There is yet one man by whom we may enquire of the LORD; but I hate him, for he never prophesies good concerning me, but always evil. He is Micaiah the son of Imla.” Jehoshaphat said, “Don’t let the king say so.”

8 And the king of Israel calls to a certain officer and says, “Hurry Micaiah son of Imlah.”

Then the king of Israel called an officer, and said, “Get Micaiah the son of Imla quickly.”

9 And the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat king of Judah are sitting, each on his throne, clothed with garments, and they are sitting in a threshing-floor at the opening of the Gate of Samaria, and all the prophets are prophesying before them.

Now the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah each sat on his throne, arrayed in their robes, and they were sitting in an open place at the entrance of the gate of Samaria; and all the prophets were prophesying before them.

10 And Zedekiah son of Chenaanah makes horns of iron for himself and says, “Thus said YHWH:

Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah made himself horns of iron and said, “The LORD says, ‘With these you shall push the Syrians, until they are consumed.’”

11 With these you push Aram until you have consumed them.” And all the prophets are prophesying so, saying, “Go up [to] Ramath-Gilead and prosper, and YHWH has given [it] into the hand of the king.”

All the prophets prophesied so, saying, “Go up to Ramoth Gilead, and prosper; for the LORD will deliver it into the hand of the king.”

12 And the messenger who has gone to call for Micaiah has spoken to him, saying, “Behold, the words of the prophets [as] one mouth [are] good toward the king, and please let your word be like one of theirs: and you have spoken good.”

The messenger who went to call Micaiah spoke to him, saying, “Behold, the words of the prophets declare good to the king with one mouth. Let your word therefore, please be like one of theirs, and speak good.”

13 And Micaiah says “YHWH lives, surely that which my God says, I speak it.”

Micaiah said, “As the LORD lives, I will say what my God says.”

14 And he comes to the king, and the king says to him, “Micaiah, do we go to Ramoth-Gilead to battle, or do I refrain?” And he says, “Go up, and prosper, and they are given into your hand.”

When he had come to the king, the king said to him, “Micaiah, shall we go to Ramoth Gilead to battle, or shall I forbear?” He said, “Go up, and prosper. They shall be delivered into your hand.”

15 And the king says to him, “How many times am I adjuring you that you speak to me only truth in the Name of YHWH?”

The king said to him, “How many times shall I adjure you that you speak to me nothing but the truth in the LORD’s name?”

16 And he says, “I have seen all Israel scattered on the mountains, as sheep that have no shepherd, and YHWH says, There are no masters for these, they each return to his house in peace.”

He said, “I saw all Israel scattered on the mountains, as sheep that have no shepherd. The LORD said, ‘These have no master. Let them each return to his house in peace.’”

17 And the king of Israel says to Jehoshaphat, “Did I not say to you [that] he does not prophesy good concerning me, but rather of evil?”

The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “Didn’t I tell you that he would not prophesy good concerning me, but evil?”

18 And [Micaiah] says, “Therefore, hear a word of YHWH: I have seen YHWH sitting on His throne, and all the host of the heavens standing on His right and His left;

Micaiah said, “Therefore hear the LORD’s word: I saw the LORD sitting on his throne, and all the army of heaven standing on his right hand and on his left.

19 and YHWH says, Who entices Ahab king of Israel, and he goes up and falls in Ramoth-Gilead? And this speaker says thus, and that speaker thus.

The LORD said, ‘Who will entice Ahab king of Israel, that he may go up and fall at Ramoth Gilead?’ One spoke saying in this way, and another saying in that way.

20 And the spirit goes out, and stands before YHWH, and says, I entice him; and YHWH says to him, With what?

A spirit came out, stood before the LORD, and said, ‘I will entice him.’ “The LORD said to him, ‘How?’

21 And he says, I go out, and have become a spirit of falsehood in the mouth of all his prophets. And He says, You entice, and also, you are able; go out and do so.

“He said, ‘I will go, and will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’ “He said, ‘You will entice him, and will prevail also. Go and do so.’

22 And now, behold, YHWH has put a spirit of falsehood in the mouth of these prophets of yours, and YHWH has spoken calamity concerning you.”

“Now therefore, behold, the LORD has put a lying spirit in the mouth of these your prophets; and the LORD has spoken evil concerning you.”

23 And Zedekiah son of Chenaanah comes near and strikes Micaiah on the cheek, and says, “Where [is] this—the way the spirit [from] YHWH passed over from me to speak with you?”

Then Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah came near, and struck Micaiah on the cheek, and said, “Which way did the LORD’s Spirit go from me to speak to you?”

24 And Micaiah says, “Behold, you see in that day that you enter into the innermost chamber to be hidden.”

Micaiah said, “Behold, you shall see on that day, when you go into an inner room to hide yourself.”

25 And the king of Israel says, “Take Micaiah, and turn him back to Amon head of the city, and to Joash son of the king,

The king of Israel said, “Take Micaiah, and carry him back to Amon the governor of the city, and to Joash the king’s son;

26 and you have said, Thus said the king: Put this [one] in the house of restraint, and cause him to eat bread of oppression, and water of oppression, until my return in peace.”

and say, ‘The king says, “Put this fellow in the prison, and feed him with bread of affliction and with water of affliction, until I return in peace.”’”

27 And Micaiah says, “If you certainly return in peace, YHWH has not spoken by me”; and he says, “Hear, O peoples, all of them!”

Micaiah said, “If you return at all in peace, the LORD has not spoken by me.” He said, “Listen, you people, all of you!”

28 And the king of Israel goes up—and Jehoshaphat king of Judah—to Ramoth-Gilead;

So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah went up to Ramoth Gilead.

29 and the king of Israel says to Jehoshaphat to disguise himself, and to go into battle, “And you, put on your garments.” And the king of Israel disguises himself, and they go into battle.

The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “I will disguise myself, and go into the battle; but you put on your robes.” So the king of Israel disguised himself; and they went into the battle.

30 And the king of Aram has commanded the heads of the charioteers whom he has, saying, “You do not fight with small or with great, except with the king of Israel by himself.”

Now the king of Syria had commanded the captains of his chariots, saying, “Don’t fight with small nor great, except only with the king of Israel.”

31 And it comes to pass at the heads of the charioteers seeing Jehoshaphat, that they have said, “He is the king of Israel,” and they turn around against him to fight, and Jehoshaphat cries out, and YHWH has helped him, and God entices them from him;

When the captains of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, they said, “It is the king of Israel!” Therefore they turned around to fight against him. But Jehoshaphat cried out, and the LORD helped him; and God moved them to depart from him.

32 indeed, it comes to pass, at the heads of the charioteers seeing that it has not been the king of Israel—they turn back from after him.

When the captains of the chariots saw that it was not the king of Israel, they turned back from pursuing him.

33 And a man has drawn with a bow in his simplicity, and strikes the king of Israel between the joinings and the coat of mail, and he says to the charioteer, “Turn your hand, and you have brought me out of the camp, for I have become [gravely] sick.”

A certain man drew his bow at random, and struck the king of Israel between the joints of the armour. Therefore he said to the driver of the chariot, “Turn around and carry me out of the battle, for I am severely wounded.”

34 And the battle increases on that day, and the king of Israel has been propped up in the chariot in front of Aram until the evening, and he dies at the time of the going in of the sun.

The battle increased that day. However, the king of Israel propped himself up in his chariot against the Syrians until the evening; and at about sunset, he died.