1 Kings 20
1 And Ben-hadad the king of Syria collected all his army: and [there were] thirty and two kings with him, and horses, and chariots: and he went up and besieged Samaria, and warred against it.
Now Ben-hadad, king of Aram, got all his army together, and thirty-two kings with him, and horses and carriages of war; he went up and made war on Samaria, shutting it in.
2 And he sent messengers to Ahab king of Israel into the city, and said to him, Thus saith Ben-hadad,
And he sent representatives into the town to Ahab, king of Israel;
3 Thy silver and thy gold [is] mine; thy wives also and thy children, [even] the most comely, [are] mine.
And they said to him, Ben-hadad says, Your silver and your gold are mine; and your wives and children are mine.
4 And the king of Israel answered and said, My lord, O king, according to thy saying, I [am] thine, and all that I have.
And the king of Israel sent him an answer saying, As you say, my lord king, I am yours with all I have.
5 And the messengers came again, and said, Thus speaketh Ben-hadad, saying, Although I have sent to thee, saying, Thou shalt deliver to me thy silver, and thy gold, and thy wives, and thy children;
Then the representatives came back again, and said, These are the words of Ben-hadad: I sent to you saying, Give up to me your silver and your gold, your wives and your children;
6 Yet I will send my servants to thee to-morrow about this time, and they shall search thy house, and the houses of thy servants; and it shall be, [that] whatever is pleasant in thy eyes, they shall take [it] in their hand, and carry [it] away.
But I will send my servants to you tomorrow about this time, to make a search through your house and the houses of your people, and everything which is pleasing in your eyes they will take away in their hands.
7 Then the king of Israel called all the elders of the land, and said, Mark, I pray you, and see how this [man] seeketh mischief: for he sent to me for my wives, and for my children, and for my silver, and for my gold, and I denied him not.
Then the king of Israel sent for all the responsible men of the land, and said, Now will you take note and see the evil purpose of this man: he sent for my wives and my children, my silver and my gold, and I did not keep them back.
8 And all the elders and all the people said to him, Hearken not [to him], nor consent.
And all the responsible men and the people said to him, Do not give attention to him or do what he says.
9 Wherefore he said to the messengers of Ben-hadad, Tell my lord the king, All that thou didst send for to thy servant at the first, I will do: but this thing I may not do. And the messengers departed, and brought him word again.
So he said to the representatives of Ben-hadad, Say to my lord the king, All the orders you sent the first time I will do; but this thing I may not do. And the representatives went back with this answer.
10 And Ben-hadad sent to him, and said, The gods do so to me, and more also, if the dust of Samaria shall suffice for handfuls for all the people that follow me.
Then Ben-hadad sent to him, saying, May the gods' punishment be on me if there is enough of the dust of Samaria for all the people at my feet to take some in their hands.
11 And the king of Israel answered and said, Tell [him], Let not him that girdeth on [his harness] boast himself as he that putteth it off.
And the king of Israel said in answer, Say to him, The time for loud talk is not when a man is putting on his arms, but when he is taking them off.
12 And it came to pass, when [Ben-hadad] heard this message as he [was] drinking, he and the kings in the pavilions, that he said to his servants, Set [yourselves in array]. And they set [themselves in array] against the city.
Now when this answer was given to Ben-hadad, he was drinking with the kings in the tents, and he said to his men, Take up your positions. So they put themselves in position for attacking the town.
13 And behold, there came a prophet to Ahab king of Israel, saying, Thus saith the LORD, Hast thou seen all this great multitude? behold, I will deliver it into thy hand this day; and thou shalt know that I [am] the LORD.
Then a prophet came up to Ahab, king of Israel, and said, The Lord says, Have you seen all this great army? See, I will give it into your hands today, and you will see that I am the Lord.
14 And Ahab said, By whom? And he said, Thus saith the LORD, [Even] by the young men of the princes of the provinces. Then he said, Who shall order the battle? And he answered, Thou.
And Ahab said, By whom? And he said, The Lord says, By the servants of the chiefs who are over the divisions of the land. Then he said, By whom is the fighting to be started? And he made answer, By you.
15 Then he numbered the young men of the princes of the provinces, and they were two hundred and thirty two: and after them he numbered all the people, [even] all the children of Israel, [being] seven thousand.
Then he got together the servants of all the chiefs who were over the divisions of the land, two hundred and thirty-two of them; and after them, he got together all the people, all the children of Israel, seven thousand.
16 And they went out at noon. But Ben-hadad [was] drinking himself drunk in the pavilions, he and the kings, the thirty and two kings that helped him.
And in the middle of the day they went out. But Ben-hadad was drinking in the tents with the thirty-two kings who were helping him.
17 And the young men of the princes of the provinces went out first; and Ben-hadad sent out, and they told him, saying, There are men come out of Samaria.
And the servants of the chiefs who were over the divisions of the land went forward first; and when Ben-hadad sent out, they gave him the news, saying, Men have come out from Samaria.
18 And he said, Whether they have come out for peace, take them alive; or whether they have come out for war, take them alive.
And he said, If they have come out for peace, take them living, and if they have come out for war, take them living.
19 So these young men of the princes of the provinces came out of the city, and the army which followed them.
So the servants of the chiefs of the divisions of the land went out of the town, with the army coming after them.
20 And they slew every one his man: and the Syrians fled; and Israel pursued them: and Ben-hadad the king of Syria escaped on a horse with the horsemen.
And every one of them put his man to death, and the Aramaeans went in flight with Israel after them; and Ben-hadad, king of Aram, got away safely on a horse with his horsemen.
21 And the king of Israel went out, and smote the horses and chariots, and slew the Syrians with a great slaughter.
And the king of Israel went out and took the horses and the war-carriages, and made great destruction among the Aramaeans.
22 And the prophet came to the king of Israel, and said to him, Go, strengthen thyself, and mark, and see what thou doest: for at the return of the year the king of Syria will come up against thee.
Then the prophet came up to the king of Israel, and said to him, Now make yourself strong, and take care what you do, or a year from now the king of Aram will come up against you again.
23 And the servants of the king of Syria said to him, Their gods [are] gods of the hills; therefore they were stronger than we; but let us fight against them in the plain, and surely we shall be stronger than they.
Then the king of Aram's servants said to him, Their god is a god of the hills; that is why they were stronger than we: but if we make an attack on them in the lowlands, we will certainly be stronger than they.
24 And do this thing, Take the kings away, every man out of his place, and put captains in their rooms:
This is what you have to do: take away the kings from their positions, and put captains in their places;
25 And number thee an army, like the army that thou hast lost, horse for horse, and chariot for chariot: and we will fight against them in the plain, [and] surely we shall be stronger than they. And he hearkened to their voice, and did so.
And get together another army like the one which came to destruction, horse for horse, and carriage for carriage; and let us make war on them in the lowlands, and certainly we will be stronger than they. And he gave ear to what they said, and did so.
26 And it came to pass at the return of the year, that Ben-hadad numbered the Syrians, and went up to Aphek, to fight against Israel.
So, a year later, Ben-hadad got the Aramaeans together and went up to Aphek to make war on Israel.
27 And the children of Israel were numbered, and were all present, and went against them: and the children of Israel encamped before them like two little flocks of kids; but the Syrians filled the country.
And the children of Israel got themselves together, and food was made ready and they went against them; the tents of the children of Israel were like two little flocks of goats before them, but all the country was full of the Aramaeans.
28 And there came a man of God, and spoke to the king of Israel, and said, Thus saith the LORD, Because the Syrians have said, The LORD [is] God of the hills, but he [is] not God of the valleys, therefore will I deliver all this great multitude into thy hand, and ye shall know that I [am] the LORD.
And a man of God came up and said to the king of Israel, The Lord says, Because the Aramaeans have said, The Lord is a god of the hills and not of the valleys; I will give all this great army into your hands, and you will see that I am the Lord.
29 And they encamped one over against the other seven days. And [so] it was, that in the seventh day the battle was joined: and the children of Israel slew of the Syrians a hundred thousand footmen in one day.
Now the two armies kept their positions facing one another for seven days. And on the seventh day the fight was started; and the children of Israel put to the sword a hundred thousand Aramaean footmen in one day.
30 But the rest fled to Aphek, into the city; and [there] a wall fell upon twenty and seven thousand of the men [that were] left. And Ben-hadad fled, and came into the city, into an inner chamber.
But the rest went in flight to Aphek, into the town, where a wall came down on the twenty-seven thousand who were still living. And Ben-hadad went in flight into the town, into an inner room.
31 And his servants said to him, Behold now, we have heard that the kings of the house of Israel [are] merciful kings: let us, I pray thee, put sackcloth on our loins, and ropes upon our heads, and go out to the king of Israel: it may be he will save thy life.
Then his servants said to him, It is said that the kings of Israel are full of mercy: let us then put on haircloth, and cords on our heads, and go to the king of Israel; it may be that he will give you your life.
32 So they girded sackcloth on their loins, and [put] ropes on their heads, and came to the king of Israel, and said, Thy servant Ben-hadad saith, I pray thee, let me live. And he said, [Is] he yet alive? he [is] my brother.
So they put on haircloth, and cords on their heads, and came to the king of Israel and said, Your servant Ben-hadad says, Let me now keep my life. And he said, Is he still living? he is my brother.
33 Now the men diligently observed whether [any thing would come] from him, and did hastily catch [it]: and they said, Thy brother Ben-hadad. Then he said, Go ye, bring him. Then Ben-hadad came forth to him; and he caused him to come up into the chariot.
Now the men took it as a sign, and quickly took up his words; and they said, Ben-hadad is your brother. Then he said, Go and get him. So Ben-hadad came out to him and he made him get up into his carriage.
34 And [Ben-hadad] said to him, The cities, which my father took from thy father, I will restore; and thou shalt make streets for thee in Damascus, as my father made in Samaria. Then [said Ahab], I will send thee away with this covenant. So he made a covenant with him, and sent him away.
And Ben-hadad said to him, The towns my father took from your father I will give back; and you may make streets for yourself in Damascus as my father did in Samaria. And as for me, at the price of this agreement you will let me go. So he made an agreement with him and let him go.
35 And a certain man of the sons of the prophets said to his neighbor in the word of the LORD, Smite me, I pray thee. And the man refused to smite him.
And a certain man of the sons of the prophets said to his neighbour by the word of the Lord, Give me a wound. But the man would not.
36 Then said he to him, Because thou hast not obeyed the voice of the LORD, behold, as soon as thou hast departed from me, a lion will slay thee. And as soon as he had departed from him, a lion found him, and slew him.
Then he said to him, Because you have not given ear to the voice of the Lord, straight away when you have gone from me a lion will put you to death. And when he had gone, straight away a lion came rushing at him and put him to death.
37 Then he found another man, and said, Smite me, I pray thee. And the man smote him, so that in smiting he wounded [him].
Then he came across another man, and said, Give me a wound. And the man gave him a blow wounding him.
38 So the prophet departed, and waited for the king by the way, and disguised himself with ashes upon his face.
So the prophet went away, and pulling his head-band over his eyes to keep his face covered, took his place by the road waiting for the king.
39 And as the king passed by, he cried to the king: and he said, Thy servant went out into the midst of the battle; and behold, a man turned aside, and brought a man to me, and said, Keep this man: if by any means he shall be missing, then shall thy life be for his life, or else thou shalt pay a talent of silver.
And when the king went by, crying out to him he said, Your servant went out into the fight; and a man came out to me with another man and said, Keep this man: if by any chance he gets away, your life will be the price of his life, or you will have to give a talent of silver in payment.
40 And as thy servant was busy here and there, he was gone. And the king of Israel said to him, So [shall] thy judgment [be]; thyself hast decided [it].
But while your servant was turning this way and that, he was gone. Then the king of Israel said to him, You are responsible; you have given the decision against yourself.
41 And he hasted, and took the ashes away from his face; and the king of Israel discerned him that he [was] of the prophets.
Then he quickly took the head-band from his eyes; and the king of Israel saw that he was one of the prophets.
42 And he said to him, Thus saith the LORD, Because thou hast let go out of [thy] hand a man whom I appointed to utter destruction, therefore thy life shall go for his life, and thy people for his people.
And he said to him, These are the words of the Lord: Because you have let go from your hands the man whom I had put to the curse, your life will be taken for his life, and your people for his people.
43 And the king of Israel went to his house heavy and displeased, and came to Samaria.
Then the king of Israel went back to his house, bitter and angry, and came to Samaria.
