2 Kings 8

1 And Elisha spake unto the woman whose son he had revived, saying, 'Rise and go, thou and thy household, and sojourn where thou dost sojourn, for Jehovah hath called for a famine, and also, it is coming unto the land seven years.'

After Elisha caused the son of the woman from Shunem [town] to become alive again, he told her that she should leave with her family and live somewhere else for a while, because Yahweh was going to (send a famine/cause food to become very scarce) in the land. He said that the famine would last for seven years.

2 And the woman riseth, and doth according to the word of the man of God, and goeth, she and her household, and sojourneth in the land of the Philistines seven years.

So the woman did what Elisha told her to do. She and her family went to live in [the] Philistia [region] for seven years.

3 And it cometh to pass, at the end of seven years, that the woman turneth back from the land of the Philistines, and goeth out to cry unto the king, for her house, and for her field.

After the seven years were ended, they returned to their home. The woman went to the king to request that her house and her land be given back to her.

4 And the king is speaking unto Gehazi, servant of the man of God, saying, 'Recount, I pray thee, to me, the whole of the great things that Elisha hath done.'

When she arrived, the king was talking with Gehazi, Elisha’s servant. The king was saying to him, “Tell me all the great things that Elisha has done.”

5 And it cometh to pass, he is recounting to the king how he had revived the dead, and lo, the woman whose son he had revived is crying unto the king, for her house and for her field, and Gehazi saith, 'My lord, O king, this [is] the woman, and this her son, whom Elisha revived.'

While Gehazi was telling the king that Elisha had caused the son of a woman [from Shunem] to become alive again, that woman came in and requested the king to enable her to get her house and land back again. Gehazi exclaimed, “Your Majesty, this is the woman whose son Elisha caused to become alive again!”

6 And the king asketh at the woman, and she recounteth to him, and the king appointeth to her a certain eunuch, saying, 'Give back all that she hath, and all the increase of the field from the day of her leaving the land even till now.'

When the king asked her about it, she told him [that what Gehazi had said was true]. The king summoned one of his officials and said to him, “[I want] everything that this woman possessed previously, including the value of all the crops that have been harvested during these last seven years while she was away from her land, [to] be given back to her.” [So the official did that].

7 And Elisha cometh in to Damascus, and Ben-Hadad king of Aram is sick, and it is declared to him, saying, 'The man of God hath come hither.'

Elisha went to Damascus, [the capital of Syria], when Ben-Hadad, the king of Syria, was [very] sick. When someone told the king that Elisha was in Damascus,

8 And the king saith unto Hazael, 'Take in thy hand a present, and go to meet the man of God, and thou hast sought Jehovah by him, saying, Do I revive from this sickness?'

the king told [one of his officials named] Hazael, “Go and talk to that prophet and take a present/gift with you to give to him. Request him to ask Yahweh if I will recover from my illness.”

9 And Hazael goeth to meet him, and taketh a present in his hand, even of every good thing of Damascus, a burden of forty camels, and he cometh in and standeth before him, and saith, 'Thy son Ben-Hadad, king of Aram, hath sent me unto thee, saying, Do I revive from this sickness?'

So Hazael went to talk with Elisha. He took with him forty camels that were carrying many kinds of goods that were produced in Damascus. When Hazael met him, he said to him, “Your friend Ben-Hadad, the king of Syria, sent me to ask you whether [you think] he will recover from his illness.”

10 And Elisha saith unto him, 'Go, say, Thou dost certainly not revive, seeing Jehovah hath shewed me that he doth surely die.'

Elisha said to Hazael, “Go and say to him, ‘Yes, you will certainly not die from this illness,’ but Yahweh has shown me that he will certainly die [before he recovers].”

11 And he setteth his face, yea, he setteth [it] till he is ashamed, and the man of God weepeth.

Then Elisha stared at him and had a terrified look on his face. That caused Hazael to feel uneasy/embarrassed. Then [suddenly] Elisha started to cry.

12 And Hazael saith, 'Wherefore is my lord weeping?' and he saith, 'Because I have known the evil that thou dost to the sons of Israel — their fenced places thou dost send into fire, and their young men with sword thou dost slay, and their sucklings thou dost dash to pieces, and their pregnant women thou dost rip up.'

Hazael said, “Sir, why are you crying?” Elisha replied, “Because [Yahweh has enabled] me [to] know the terrible things that you will do to the people of Israel: You will burn their cities with walls around them, you will kill their fine young men with a sword, you will bash the heads of their children, and you will rip open the bellies of their pregnant women [with a sword].”

13 And Hazael saith, 'But what, [is] thy servant the dog, that he doth this great thing?' And Elisha saith, 'Jehovah hath shewed me thee — king of Aram.'

Hazael replied, “I am [as insignificant as] [MET] a dog; (how could I do such things?/I would never do such terrible things!)” [RHQ] Elisha replied, “Yahweh has also revealed to me that you will become the king of Syria.”

14 And he goeth from Elisha, and cometh in unto his lord, and he saith unto him, 'What said Elisha to thee?' and he saith, 'He said to me, Thou dost certainly recover.'

Then Hazael left and returned to his master/boss [the king], who asked him, “What did Elisha say?” He replied, “He told me that you would certainly recover.”

15 And it cometh to pass on the morrow, that he taketh the coarse cloth, and dippeth in water, and spreadeth on his face, and he dieth, and Hazael reigneth in his stead.

But the next day, [while the king was sleeping, ] Hazael took a blanket and soaked it in water. Then he spread it on the king’s face [in order that he could not breathe], and he died. Then Hazael became the king of Syria instead of Ben-Hadad.

16 And in the fifth year of Joram son of Ahab king of Israel — and Jehoshaphat [is] king of Judah — hath Jehoram son of Jehoshaphat king of Judah reigned;

After King Joram, the son of Ahab, had been ruling in Israel for almost five years, Jehoshaphat’s son Jehoram became the king of Judah.

17 a son of thirty and two years was he in his reigning, and eight years he hath reigned in Jerusalem.

He was thirty-two years old when he became the king, and he ruled in Jerusalem for eight years.

18 And he walketh in the way of the kings of Israel, as did the house of Ahab, for a daughter of Ahab was to him for a wife, and he doth the evil thing in the eyes of Jehovah,

His wife was the daughter of King Ahab. And like everyone in Ahab’s family, he continually did the evil things that the previous kings of Israel had done. He did things that Yahweh considered to be evil.

19 and Jehovah was not willing to destroy Judah, for the sake of David his servant, as He said to him, to give to him a lamp — to his sons all the days.

But Yahweh did not want to get rid of the people of Judah, because of what he had promised David, who served him [very well]. He had promised David that his descendants [MET] would always rule Judah.

20 In his days hath Edom revolted from under the hand of Judah, and they cause a king to reign over them,

During the time that Jehoram ruled, [the king of] Edom rebelled against Judah, and they appointed their own king.

21 and Joram passeth over to Zair, and all the chariots with him, and he himself hath risen by night, and smiteth Edom, that is coming round about unto him, and the heads of the chariots, and the people fleeth to its tents;

So Jehoram went with his army and all their chariots to Zair [city near the border of Edom]. There the army of Edom surrounded them. But during the night, Jehoram and the commanders in their chariots were able to get through the enemy lines and escaped. And all his soldiers also fled to their homes.

22 and Edom revolteth from under the hand of Judah till this day; then doth Libnah revolt at that time.

So after that, Edom was no longer controlled by Judah, and it is still like that. During that same time, the people of Libnah [city] also freed themselves from being controlled by Judah.

23 And the rest of the matters of Joram, and all that he did, are they not written on the book of the Chronicles of the kings of Judah?

[If you want to read about] the other things that Jehoram did, they are written in the scroll called ‘The History of the Kings of Judah’.

24 And Joram lieth with his fathers, and is buried with his fathers in the city of David, and reign doth Ahaziah his son in his stead.

Jehoram died [EUP] and was buried where the other kings of Judah had been buried in [the part of Jerusalem called] ‘The City of David’. Then Jehoram’s son Ahaziah became the king.

25 In the twelfth year of Joram son of Ahab king of Israel reigned hath Ahaziah son of Jehoram king of Judah;

After Ahab’s son Joram has been ruling in Israel for almost twelve years, Jehoram’s son Ahaziah became the king of Judah.

26 a son of twenty and two years [is] Ahaziah in his reigning, and one year he hath reigned in Jerusalem, and the name of his mother [is] Athaliah daughter of Omri king of Israel,

Ahaziah was twenty-two years old when he started to rule. He ruled in Jerusalem for [only] one year. His mother’s name was Athaliah, [the daughter of King Ahab and] the granddaughter of King Omri of Israel.

27 and he walketh in the way of the house of Ahab, and doth the evil thing in the eyes of Jehovah, like the house of Ahab, for he [is] son-in-law of the house of Ahab.

King Ahab conducted his life just like the members of Ahab’s family had done. He did things that Yahweh considered to be very evil.

28 And he goeth with Joram son of Ahab to battle with Hazael king of Aram in Ramoth-Gilead, and the Aramaeans smite Joram,

Ahaziah’s army joined the army of King Joram of Israel to fight against the army of King Hazael of Syria. Their armies started fighting at Ramoth [city] in [the] Gilead [region], and the soldiers of Syria wounded Joram.

29 and Joram the king turneth back to be healed in Jezreel of the wounds with which the Arameans smite him in Ramah, in his fighting with Hazael king of Aram, and Ahaziah son of Jehoram king of Judah hath gone down to see Joram son of Ahab in Jezreel, for he is sick.

King Joram returned to Jezreel [city] to recover from his wounds. King Ahaziah went to visit him there.