2 Kings 3

1 And Jehoram son of Ahab has reigned over Israel, in Samaria, in the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and he reigns twelve years,

And Jehoram, the son of Ahab, became king over Israel in Samaria in the eighteenth year of the rule of Jehoshaphat, king of Judah; and he was king for twelve years.

2 and does evil in the eyes of YHWH, only not like his father, and like his mother, and he turns aside the standing-pillar of Ba‘al that his father made;

He did evil in the eyes of the Lord; but not like his father and his mother, for he put away the stone pillar of Baal which his father had made.

3 surely he has cleaved to the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat that he caused Israel to sin; he has not turned aside from it.

But still he did the same sins which Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, did and made Israel do; he went on in them.

4 And Mesha king of Moab was a sheep-master, and he rendered to the king of Israel one hundred thousand lambs and one hundred thousand rams, [with] wool,

Now Mesha, king of Moab, was a sheep-farmer; and he gave regularly to the king of Israel the wool from a hundred thousand lambs and a hundred thousand sheep.

5 and it comes to pass at the death of Ahab, that the king of Moab transgresses against the king of Israel.

But when Ahab was dead, the king of Moab got free from the authority of the king of Israel.

6 And King Jehoram goes out from Samaria in that day, and inspects all Israel,

At that time, King Jehoram went out from Samaria and got all Israel together in fighting order.

7 and goes and sends to Jehoshaphat king of Judah, saying, “The king of Moab has transgressed against me; do you go with me to Moab for battle?” And he says, “I go up, as I, so you; as my people, so your people; as my horses, so your horses.”

And he sent to Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, saying, The king of Moab has got free from my authority: will you go with me to make war on Moab? And he said, I will go with you: I am as you are, my people as your people, and my horses as your horses.

8 And he says, “Where [is] this—the way we go up?” And he says, “The way of the wilderness of Edom.”

And he said, Which way are we to go? And he said in answer, By the waste land of Edom.

9 And the king of Israel goes, and the king of Judah, and the king of Edom, and they turn around the way seven days, and there has been no water for the camp, and for the livestock that [are] at their feet,

So the king of Israel went with the king of Judah and the king of Edom by a roundabout way for seven days: and there was no water for the army or for the beasts they had with them.

10 and the king of Israel says, “Aah! For YHWH has called for these three kings to give them into the hand of Moab.”

And the king of Israel said, Here is trouble: for the Lord has got these three kings together to give them into the hands of Moab.

11 And Jehoshaphat says, “Is there not a prophet of YHWH here, and we seek YHWH by him?” And one of the servants of the king of Israel answers and says, “Here [is] Elisha son of Shaphat, who poured water on the hands of Elijah.”

But Jehoshaphat said, Is there no prophet of the Lord here, through whom we may get directions from the Lord? And one of the king of Israel's men said in answer, Elisha, the son of Shaphat, is here, who was servant to Elijah.

12 And Jehoshaphat says, “The word of YHWH is with him”; and the king of Israel goes down to him, and Jehoshaphat, and the king of Edom.

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 says to the king of Israel, “And what do I [have to do] with you? Go to the prophets of your father, and to the prophets of your mother”; and the king of Israel says to him, “No, for YHWH has called for these three kings to give them into the hand of Moab.”

But Elisha said to the king of Israel, What have I to do with you? go to the prophets of your father and your mother. And the king of Israel said, No; for the Lord has got these three kings together to give them up into the hands of Moab.

14 And Elisha says, “YHWH of Hosts lives, before whom I have stood; for unless I am lifting up the face of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, I do not look to you, nor see you;

Then Elisha said, By the life of the Lord of armies whose servant I am, if it was not for the respect I have for Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, I would not give a look at you, or see you.

15 and now, bring a musician to me”; and it has been, at the playing of the musician, that the hand of YHWH is on him,

But now, get me a player of music, and it will come about that while the man is playing, the hand of the Lord will come on me and I will give you the word of the Lord: and they got a player of music, and while the man was playing, the hand of the Lord was on him.

16 and he says, “Thus said YHWH: Make this valley ditches—ditches;

And he said, The Lord says, I will make this valley full of water-holes.

17 for thus said YHWH: You do not see wind, nor do you see rain, and that valley is full of water, and you have drunk—you, and your livestock, and your beasts.

For the Lord says, Though you see no wind or rain, the valley will be full of water, and you and your armies and your beasts will have drink.

18 And this has been light in the eyes of YHWH, and he has given Moab into your hand,

And this will be only a small thing to the Lord: in addition he will give the Moabites into your hands.

19 and you have struck every fortified city, and every choice city, and you cause every good tree to fall, and you stop all fountains of waters, and you mar every good portion with stones.”

And you are to put every walled town to destruction, cutting down every good tree, and stopping up every water-spring, and making all the good land rough with stones.

20 And it comes to pass in the morning, at the ascending of the [morning] present, that behold, waters are coming in from the way of Edom, and the land is filled with the waters,

Now in the morning, about the time when the offering was made, they saw water flowing from the direction of Edom till the country was full of water.

21 and all of Moab has heard that the kings have come up to fight against them, and they are called together, from everyone girding on a girdle and upward, and they stand by the border.

Now all Moab, hearing that the kings had come to make war against them, got together all who were able to take up arms and went forward to the edge of the country.

22 And they rise early in the morning, and the sun has shone on the waters, and the Moabites see, from opposite [them], [that] the waters [are] red as blood,

And early in the morning they got up, when the sun was shining on the water, and they saw the water facing them as red as blood.

23 and say, “This [is] blood; the kings have been surely destroyed, and they each strike his neighbor; and now for spoil, Moab!”

Then they said, This is blood: it is clear that destruction has come on the kings; they have been fighting one another: now come, Moab, let us take their goods.

24 And they come to the camp of Israel, and Israel rises, and strikes the Moabites, and they flee from their face; and they enter into Moab, so as to strike Moab,

But when they came to the tents of Israel, the Israelites came out and made a violent attack on the Moabites, so that they went in flight before them; and they went forward still attacking them;

25 and they break down the cities, and they each cast his stone [on] every good portion, and have filled it, and they stop every fountain of water, and they cause every good tree to fall—until one had left its stones in Kir-Haraseth, and the slingers go around and strike it.

Pulling down the towns, covering every good field with stones, stopping up all the water-springs, and cutting down all the good trees; they went on driving Moab before them till only in Kir-hareseth were there any Moabites; and the fighting-men went round the town raining stones on it.

26 And the king of Moab sees that the battle has been too strong for him, and he takes with him seven hundred men drawing sword, to cleave through to the king of Edom, and they have not been able,

And when the king of Moab saw that the fight was going against him, he took with him seven hundred men armed with swords, with the idea of forcing a way through to the king of Aram, but they were not able to do so.

27 and he takes his son, the firstborn who reigns in his stead, and causes him to ascend [as] a burnt-offering on the wall, and there is great wrath against Israel, and they journey from off him, and return to the land.

Then he took his oldest son, who would have been king after him, offering him as a burned offering on the wall. So there was great wrath against Israel; and they went away from him, back to their country.