2 Kings 1
1 And Moab transgresses against Israel after the death of Ahab,
After the death of Ahab, Moab made itself free from the authority of Israel.
2 and Ahaziah falls through the lattice in his upper chamber that [is] in Samaria, and is sick, and sends messengers, and says to them, “Go, inquire of Ba‘al-Zebub god of Ekron if I recover from this sickness.”
Now Ahaziah had a fall from the window of his room in Samaria, and was ill. And he sent men, and said to them, Put a question to Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, about the outcome of my disease, to see if I will get well or not.
3 And a messenger of YHWH has spoken to Elijah the Tishbite, “Rise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and speak to them, Is it because there is not a God in Israel—you are going to inquire of Ba‘al-Zebub god of Ekron?
But the angel of the Lord said to Elijah the Tishbite, Go now, and, meeting the men sent by the king of Samaria, say to them, Is it because there is no God in Israel, that you are going to get directions from Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron?
4 And therefore, thus said YHWH: The bed to where you have gone up, you do not come down from it, for you certainly die”; and Elijah goes on.
Give ear then to the words of the Lord: You will never again get down from the bed on to which you have gone up, but death will certainly come to you. Then Elijah went away.
5 And the messengers return to him, and he says to them, “What [is] this—you have turned back!”
And the men he had sent came back to the king; and he said to them, Why have you come back?
6 And they say to him, “A man has come up to meet us and says to us, Go, return to the king who sent you, and you have said to him, Thus said YHWH: Is it because there is not a God in Israel—you are sending to inquire of Ba‘al-Zebub god of Ekron? Therefore, the bed to where you have gone up, you do not come down from it, for you certainly die.”
And they said to him, On our way we had a meeting with a man who said, Go back to the king who sent you and say to him, The Lord says, Is it because there is no God in Israel that you send to put a question to Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? For this reason, you will not come down from the bed on to which you have gone up, but death will certainly come to you.
7 And he says to them, “What [is] the fashion of the man who has come up to meet you, and speaks these words to you?”
And he said to them, What sort of a man was it who came and said these words to you?
8 And they say to him, “A hairy man, and a girdle of skin girt around his loins”; and he says, “He [is] Elijah the Tishbite.”
And they said in answer, He was a man clothed in a coat of hair, with a leather band about his body. Then he said, It is Elijah the Tishbite.
9 And he sends to him a head of fifty and his fifty, and he goes up to him (and behold, he is sitting on the top of the hill), and he speaks to him, “O man of God, the king has spoken, Come down.”
Then the king sent to him a captain of fifty with his fifty men; and he went up to him where he was seated on the top of a hill, and said to him, O man of God, the king has said, Come down.
10 And Elijah answers and speaks to the head of the fifty, “And if I [am] a man of God, fire comes down from the heavens and consumes you and your fifty”; and fire comes down from the heavens and consumes him and his fifty.
And Elijah in answer said to the captain of fifty, If I am a man of God, may fire come down from heaven on you and on your fifty men, and put an end to you. Then fire came down from heaven and put an end to him and his fifty men.
11 And he turns and sends to him another head of fifty and his fifty, and he answers and speaks to him, “O man of God, thus said the king: Hurry, come down.”
Then the king sent another captain of fifty with his fifty men; and he said to Elijah, O man of God, the king says, Come down quickly.
12 And Elijah answers and speaks to them, “If I [am] a man of God, fire comes down from the heavens and consumes you and your fifty”; and fire of God comes down from the heavens and consumes him and his fifty.
And Elijah in answer said, If I am a man of God, may fire come down from heaven on you and on your fifty men, and put an end to you. And the fire of God came down from heaven, and put an end to him and his fifty men.
13 And he turns and sends a third head of fifty and his fifty, and the third head of fifty goes up, and comes in, and bows on his knees before Elijah, and makes supplication to him, and speaks to him, “O man of God, please let my soul and the soul of your servants—these fifty—be precious in your eyes.
Then he sent a third captain of fifty with his fifty men; and the third captain of fifty went up, and falling on his knees before Elijah, requesting mercy of him, said, O man of God, let my life and the life of these your fifty servants be of value to you.
14 Behold, fire has come down from the heavens and consumes the two heads of the former fifties and their fifties; and now, let my soul be precious in your eyes.”
For fire came down from heaven and put an end to the first two captains of fifty and their fifties; but now let my life be of value in your eyes.
15 And a messenger of YHWH speaks to Elijah, “Go down with him, do not be afraid of him”; and he rises and goes down with him to the king,
Then the angel of the Lord said to Elijah, Go down with him; have no fear of him. So he got up and went down with him to the king.
16 and speaks to him, “Thus said YHWH: Because that you have sent messengers to inquire of Ba‘al-Zebub god of Ekron—is it because there is not a God in Israel to inquire of His word? Therefore, the bed to where you have gone up—you do not come down from it, for you certainly die.”
And he said to him, This is the word of the Lord: Because you sent men to put a question to Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, for this reason you will never again get down from the bed on to which you have gone up, but death will certainly come to you.
17 And he dies, according to the word of YHWH that Elijah spoke, and Jehoram reigns in his stead, in the second year of Jehoram son of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, for he had no son.
So death came to him, as the Lord had said by the mouth of Elijah. And Jehoram became king in his place in the second year of the rule of Jehoram, son of Jehoshaphat, king of Judah; because he had no son.
18 And the rest of the matters of Ahaziah that he did, are they not written on the scroll of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?
Now the rest of the acts of Ahaziah, are they not recorded in the book of the history of the kings of Israel?
