7:3 Now four men with a skin disease 7 were sitting at the entrance of the city gate. They said to one another, “Why are we just sitting here waiting to die? 8 7:4 If we go into the city, we’ll die of starvation, 9 and if we stay here we’ll die! So come on, let’s defect 10 to the Syrian camp! If they spare us, 11 we’ll live; if they kill us – well, we were going to die anyway.” 12 7:5 So they started toward 13 the Syrian camp at dusk. When they reached the edge of the Syrian camp, there was no one there. 7:6 The Lord had caused the Syrian camp to hear the sound of chariots and horses and a large army. Then they said to one another, “Look, the king of Israel has paid the kings of the Hittites and Egypt to attack us!” 7:7 So they got up and fled at dusk, leaving behind their tents, horses, and donkeys. They left the camp as it was and ran for their lives. 7:8 When the men with a skin disease reached the edge of the camp, they entered a tent and had a meal. 14 They also took some silver, gold, and clothes and went and hid it all. 15 Then they went back and entered another tent. They looted it 16 and went and hid what they had taken. 7:9 Then they said to one another, “It’s not right what we’re doing! This is a day to celebrate, but we haven’t told anyone. 17 If we wait until dawn, 18 we’ll be punished. 19 So come on, let’s go and inform the royal palace.” 7:10 So they went and called out to the gatekeepers 20 of the city. They told them, “We entered the Syrian camp and there was no one there. We didn’t even hear a man’s voice. 21 But the horses and donkeys are still tied up, and the tents remain up.” 22 7:11 The gatekeepers relayed the news to the royal palace. 23
7:12 The king got up in the night and said to his advisers, 24 “I will tell you what the Syrians have done to us. They know we are starving, so they left the camp and hid in the field, thinking, ‘When they come out of the city, we will capture them alive and enter the city.’” 7:13 One of his advisers replied, “Pick some men and have them take five of the horses that are left in the city. (Even if they are killed, their fate will be no different than that of all the Israelite people – we’re all going to die!) 25 Let’s send them out so we can know for sure what’s going on.” 26 7:14 So they picked two horsemen and the king sent them out to track the Syrian army. 27 He ordered them, “Go and find out what’s going on.” 28 7:15 So they tracked them 29 as far as the Jordan. The road was filled with clothes and equipment that the Syrians had discarded in their haste. 30 The scouts 31 went back and told the king. 7:16 Then the people went out and looted the Syrian camp. A seah 32 of finely milled flour sold for a shekel, and two seahs of barley for a shekel, just as the Lord had said they would. 33
7:17 Now the king had placed the officer who was his right-hand man 34 at the city gate. When the people rushed out, they trampled him to death in the gate. 35 This fulfilled the prophet’s word which he had spoken when the king tried to arrest him. 36 7:18 The prophet told the king, “Two seahs of barley will sell for a shekel, and a seah of finely milled flour for a shekel; this will happen about this time tomorrow in the gate of Samaria.” 7:19 But the officer replied to the prophet, “Look, even if the Lord made it rain by opening holes in the sky, could this happen so soon?” 37 Elisha 38 said, “Look, you will see it happen with your own eyes, but you will not eat any of the food!” 39 7:20 This is exactly what happened to him. The people trampled him to death in the city gate.
8:1 Now Elisha advised the woman whose son he had brought back to life, “You and your family should go and live somewhere else for a while, 40 for the Lord has decreed that a famine will overtake the land for seven years.” 8:2 So the woman did as the prophet said. 41 She and her family went and lived in the land of the Philistines for seven years. 8:3 After seven years the woman returned from the land of the Philistines and went to ask the king to give her back her house and field. 42 8:4 Now the king was talking to Gehazi, the prophet’s 43 servant, and said, “Tell me all the great things which Elisha has done.” 8:5 While Gehazi 44 was telling the king how Elisha 45 had brought the dead back to life, the woman whose son he had brought back to life came to ask the king for her house and field. 46 Gehazi said, “My master, O king, this is the very woman and this is her son whom Elisha brought back to life!” 8:6 The king asked the woman about it, and she gave him the details. 47 The king assigned a eunuch to take care of her request and ordered him, 48 “Give her back everything she owns, as well as the amount of crops her field produced from the day she left the land until now.”
8:7 Elisha traveled to Damascus while King Ben Hadad of Syria was sick. The king 49 was told, “The prophet 50 has come here.” 8:8 So the king told Hazael, “Take a gift 51 and go visit the prophet. Request from him an oracle from the Lord. Ask him, 52 ‘Will I recover from this sickness?’” 8:9 So Hazael went to visit Elisha. 53 He took along a gift, 54 as well as 55 forty camel loads of all the fine things of Damascus. When he arrived, he stood before him and said, “Your son, 56 King Ben Hadad of Syria, has sent me to you with this question, 57 ‘Will I recover from this sickness?’” 8:10 Elisha said to him, “Go and tell him, ‘You will surely recover,’ 58 but the Lord has revealed to me that he will surely die.” 8:11 Elisha 59 just stared at him until Hazael became uncomfortable. 60 Then the prophet started crying. 8:12 Hazael asked, “Why are you crying, my master?” He replied, “Because I know the trouble you will cause the Israelites. You will set fire to their fortresses, kill their young men with the sword, smash their children to bits, and rip open their pregnant women.” 8:13 Hazael said, “How could your servant, who is as insignificant as a dog, accomplish this great military victory?” 61 Elisha answered, “The Lord has revealed to me that you will be the king of Syria.” 62 8:14 He left Elisha and went to his master. Ben Hadad 63 asked him, “What did Elisha tell you?” Hazael 64 replied, “He told me you would surely recover.” 8:15 The next day Hazael 65 took a piece of cloth, dipped it in water, and spread it over Ben Hadad’s 66 face until he died. Then Hazael replaced him as king.
8:16 In the fifth year of the reign of Israel’s King Joram, son of Ahab, Jehoshaphat’s son Jehoram became king over Judah. 67 8:17 He was thirty-two years old when he became king and he reigned for eight years in Jerusalem. 68 8:18 He followed in the footsteps of the kings of Israel, just as Ahab’s dynasty had done, for he married Ahab’s daughter. 69 He did evil in the sight of 70 the Lord. 8:19 But the Lord was unwilling to destroy Judah. He preserved Judah for the sake of 71 his servant David to whom he had promised a perpetual dynasty. 72
8:20 During his reign Edom freed themselves from Judah’s control and set up their own king. 73 8:21 Joram 74 crossed over to Zair with all his chariots. The Edomites, who had surrounded him, attacked at night and defeated him and his chariot officers. 75 The Israelite army retreated to their homeland. 76 8:22 So Edom has remained free from Judah’s control to this very day. 77 At that same time Libnah also rebelled.
8:23 The rest of the events of Joram’s reign, including a record of his accomplishments, are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Judah. 78 8:24 Joram passed away 79 and was buried with his ancestors in the city of David. His son Ahaziah replaced him as king.
8:25 In the twelfth year of the reign of Israel’s King Joram, son of Ahab, Jehoram’s son Ahaziah became king over Judah. 8:26 Ahaziah was twenty-two years old when he became king and he reigned for one year in Jerusalem. 80 His mother was Athaliah, the granddaughter 81 of King Omri of Israel. 8:27 He followed in the footsteps of Ahab’s dynasty and did evil in the sight of 82 the Lord, like Ahab’s dynasty, for he was related to Ahab’s family. 83
8:28 He joined Ahab’s son Joram in a battle against King Hazael of Syria at Ramoth Gilead in which the Syrians defeated Joram. 8:29 King Joram returned to Jezreel to recover from the wounds he received from the Syrians 84 in Ramah when he fought against King Hazael of Syria. King Ahaziah son of Jehoram of Judah went down to visit 85 Joram son of Ahab in Jezreel, for he was ill.
9:1 Now Elisha the prophet summoned a member of the prophetic guild 86 and told him, “Tuck your robes into your belt, take this container 87 of olive oil in your hand, and go to Ramoth Gilead. 9:2 When you arrive there, look for Jehu son of Jehoshaphat son of Nimshi and take him aside into an inner room. 88 9:3 Take the container of olive oil, pour it over his head, and say, ‘This is what the Lord says, “I have designated 89 you as king over Israel.”’ Then open the door and run away quickly!” 90
9:4 So the young prophet 91 went to Ramoth Gilead. 9:5 When he arrived, the officers of the army were sitting there. 92 So he said, “I have a message for you, O officer.” 93 Jehu asked, “For which one of us?” 94 He replied, “For you, O officer.” 9:6 So Jehu 95 got up and went inside. Then the prophet 96 poured the olive oil on his head and said to him, “This is what the Lord God of Israel says, ‘I have designated you as king over the Lord’s people Israel. 9:7 You will destroy the family of your master Ahab. 97 I will get revenge against Jezebel for the shed blood of my servants the prophets and for the shed blood of all the Lord’s servants. 98 9:8 Ahab’s entire family will die. I 99 will cut off every last male belonging to Ahab in Israel, including even the weak and incapacitated. 100 9:9 I will make Ahab’s dynasty 101 like those of Jeroboam son of Nebat and Baasha son of Ahijah. 9:10 Dogs will devour Jezebel on the plot of ground in Jezreel; she will not be buried.’” 102 Then he opened the door and ran away.
9:11 When Jehu rejoined 103 his master’s servants, they 104 asked him, “Is everything all right? 105 Why did this madman visit you?” He replied, “Ah, it’s not important. You know what kind of man he is and the kinds of things he says.” 106 9:12 But they said, “You’re lying! Tell us what he said.” So he told them what he had said. He also related how he had said, 107 “This is what the Lord says, ‘I have designated you as king over Israel.’” 9:13 Each of them quickly took off his cloak and they spread them out at Jehu’s 108 feet on the steps. 109 The trumpet was blown 110 and they shouted, “Jehu is 111 king!” 9:14 Then Jehu son of Jehoshaphat son of Nimshi conspired against Joram.
Now Joram had been in Ramoth Gilead with the whole Israelite army, 112 guarding against an invasion by King Hazael of Syria. 9:15 But King Joram had returned to Jezreel to recover from the wounds he received from the Syrians 113 when he fought against King Hazael of Syria. 114 Jehu told his supporters, 115 “If you really want me to be king, 116 then don’t let anyone escape from the city to go and warn Jezreel.” 9:16 Jehu drove his chariot 117 to Jezreel, for Joram was recuperating 118 there. (Now King Ahaziah of Judah had come down to visit 119 Joram.)
9:17 Now the watchman was standing on the tower in Jezreel and saw Jehu’s troops approaching. 120 He said, “I see troops!” 121 Jehoram ordered, 122 “Send a rider out to meet them and have him ask, ‘Is everything all right?’” 123 9:18 So the horseman 124 went to meet him and said, “This is what the king says, ‘Is everything all right?’” 125 Jehu replied, “None of your business! 126 Follow me.” The watchman reported, “The messenger reached them, but hasn’t started back.” 9:19 So he sent a second horseman out to them 127 and he said, “This is what the king says, ‘Is everything all right?’” 128 Jehu replied, “None of your business! Follow me.” 9:20 The watchman reported, “He reached them, but hasn’t started back. The one who drives the lead chariot drives like Jehu son of Nimshi; 129 he drives recklessly.” 9:21 Jehoram ordered, “Hitch up my chariot.” 130 When his chariot had been hitched up, 131 King Jehoram of Israel and King Ahaziah of Judah went out in their respective chariots 132 to meet Jehu. They met up with him 133 in the plot of land that had once belonged to Naboth of Jezreel.
9:22 When Jehoram saw Jehu, he asked, “Is everything all right, Jehu?” He replied, “How can everything be all right as long as your mother Jezebel promotes idolatry and pagan practices?” 134 9:23 Jehoram turned his chariot around and took off. 135 He said to Ahaziah, “It’s a trap, 136 Ahaziah!” 9:24 Jehu aimed his bow and shot an arrow right between Jehoram’s shoulders. 137 The arrow went through 138 his heart and he fell to his knees in his chariot. 9:25 Jehu ordered 139 his officer Bidkar, “Pick him up and throw him into the part of the field that once belonged to Naboth of Jezreel. Remember, you and I were riding together behind his father Ahab, when the Lord pronounced this judgment on him, 9:26 ‘“Know for sure that I saw the shed blood of Naboth and his sons yesterday,” says the Lord, “and that I will give you what you deserve right here in this plot of land,” 140 says the Lord.’ So now pick him up and throw him into this plot of land, just as the Lord said.” 141
9:27 When King Ahaziah of Judah saw what happened, he took off 142 up the road to Beth Haggan. Jehu chased him and ordered, “Shoot him too.” They shot him while he was driving his chariot up the ascent of Gur near Ibleam. 143 He fled to Megiddo 144 and died there. 9:28 His servants took his body 145 back to Jerusalem 146 and buried him in his tomb with his ancestors in the city of David. 9:29 Ahaziah had become king over Judah in the eleventh year of Joram son of Ahab.
9:30 Jehu approached Jezreel. When Jezebel heard the news, she put on some eye liner, 147 fixed up her hair, and leaned out the window. 9:31 When Jehu came through the gate, she said, “Is everything all right, Zimri, murderer of his master?” 148 9:32 He looked up at the window and said, “Who is on my side? Who?” Two or three 149 eunuchs looked down at him. 9:33 He said, “Throw her down!” So they threw her down, and when she hit the ground, 150 her blood splattered against the wall and the horses, and Jehu drove his chariot over her. 151 9:34 He went inside and had a meal. 152 Then he said, “Dispose of this accursed woman’s corpse. Bury her, for after all, she was a king’s daughter.” 153 9:35 But when they went to bury her, they found nothing left but 154 the skull, feet, and palms of the hands. 9:36 When they went back and told him, he said, “The Lord’s word through his servant, Elijah the Tishbite, has come to pass. He warned, 155 ‘In the plot of land at Jezreel, dogs will devour Jezebel’s flesh. 9:37 Jezebel’s corpse will be like manure on the surface of the ground in the plot of land at Jezreel. People will not be able to even recognize her.’” 156
10:1 Ahab had seventy sons living in Samaria. 157 So Jehu wrote letters and sent them to Samaria to the leading officials of Jezreel and to the guardians of Ahab’s dynasty. This is what the letters said, 158 10:2 “You have with you the sons of your master, chariots and horses, a fortified city, and weapons. So when this letter arrives, 159 10:3 pick the best and most capable 160 of your master’s sons, place him on his father’s throne, and defend 161 your master’s dynasty.”
10:4 They were absolutely terrified 162 and said, “Look, two kings could not stop him! 163 How can we?” 164 10:5 So the palace supervisor, 165 the city commissioner, 166 the leaders, 167 and the guardians sent this message to Jehu, “We are your subjects! 168 Whatever you say, we will do. We will not make anyone king. Do what you consider proper.” 169
10:6 He wrote them a second letter, saying, “If you are really on my side and are willing to obey me, 170 then take the heads of your master’s sons and come to me in Jezreel at this time tomorrow.” 171 Now the king had seventy sons, and the prominent 172 men of the city were raising them. 10:7 When they received the letter, they seized the king’s sons and executed all seventy of them. 173 They put their heads in baskets and sent them to him in Jezreel. 10:8 The messenger came and told Jehu, 174 “They have brought the heads of the king’s sons.” Jehu 175 said, “Stack them in two piles at the entrance of the city gate until morning.” 10:9 In the morning he went out and stood there. Then he said to all the people, “You are innocent. I conspired against my master and killed him. But who struck down all of these men? 10:10 Therefore take note that not one of the judgments the Lord announced against Ahab’s dynasty has failed to materialize. The Lord had done what he announced through his servant Elijah.” 176 10:11 Then Jehu killed all who were left of Ahab’s family in Jezreel, and all his nobles, close friends, and priests. He left no survivors.
10:12 Jehu then left there and set out for Samaria. 177 While he was traveling through Beth Eked of the Shepherds, 10:13 Jehu encountered 178 the relatives 179 of King Ahaziah of Judah. He asked, “Who are you?” They replied, “We are Ahaziah’s relatives. We have come down to see how 180 the king’s sons and the queen mother’s sons are doing.” 10:14 He said, “Capture them alive!” So they captured them alive and then executed all forty-two of them in the cistern at Beth Eked. He left no survivors.
10:15 When he left there, he met 181 Jehonadab, son of Rekab, who had been looking for him. 182 Jehu greeted him and asked, 183 “Are you as committed to me as I am to you?” 184 Jehonadab answered, “I am!” Jehu replied, “If so, give me your hand.” 185 So he offered his hand and Jehu 186 pulled him up into the chariot. 10:16 Jehu 187 said, “Come with me and see how zealous I am for the Lord’s cause.” 188 So he 189 took him along in his chariot. 10:17 He went to Samaria and exterminated all the members of Ahab’s family who were still alive in Samaria, 190 just as the Lord had announced to Elijah. 191
10:18 Jehu assembled all the people and said to them, “Ahab worshiped 192 Baal a little; Jehu will worship 193 him with great devotion. 194 10:19 So now, bring to me all the prophets of Baal, as well as all his servants and priests. 195 None of them must be absent, for I am offering a great sacrifice to Baal. Any of them who fail to appear will lose their lives.” But Jehu was tricking them 196 so he could destroy the servants of Baal. 10:20 Then Jehu ordered, “Make arrangements for 197 a celebration for Baal.” So they announced it. 10:21 Jehu sent invitations throughout Israel, and all the servants of Baal came; not one was absent. They arrived at the temple of Baal and filled it up from end to end. 198 10:22 Jehu ordered the one who was in charge of the wardrobe, 199 “Bring out robes for all the servants of Baal.” So he brought out robes for them. 10:23 Then Jehu and Jehonadab son of Rekab went to the temple of Baal. Jehu 200 said to the servants of Baal, “Make sure there are no servants of the Lord here with you; there must be only servants of Baal.” 201 10:24 They went inside to offer sacrifices and burnt offerings. Now Jehu had stationed eighty men outside. He had told them, “If any of the men inside get away, you will pay with your lives!” 202
10:25 When he finished offering the burnt sacrifice, Jehu ordered the royal guard 203 and officers, “Come in and strike them down! Don’t let any escape!” So the royal guard and officers struck them down with the sword and left their bodies lying there. 204 Then they entered the inner sanctuary of the temple of Baal. 205 10:26 They hauled out the sacred pillar of the temple of Baal and burned it. 10:27 They demolished 206 the sacred pillar of Baal and 207 the temple of Baal; it is used as 208 a latrine 209 to this very day. 10:28 So Jehu eradicated Baal worship 210 from Israel.
10:29 However, Jehu did not repudiate the sins which Jeroboam son of Nebat had encouraged Israel to commit; the golden calves remained in Bethel 211 and Dan. 212 10:30 The Lord said to Jehu, “You have done well. You have accomplished my will and carried out my wishes with regard to Ahab’s dynasty. Therefore four generations of your descendants will rule over Israel.” 213 10:31 But Jehu did not carefully and wholeheartedly obey the law of the Lord God of Israel. 214 He did not repudiate the sins which Jeroboam had encouraged Israel to commit. 215
10:32 In those days the Lord began to reduce the size of Israel’s territory. 216 Hazael attacked their eastern border. 217 10:33 He conquered all the land of Gilead, including the territory of Gad, Reuben, and Manasseh, extending all the way from the Aroer in the Arnon Valley through Gilead to Bashan. 218
10:34 The rest of the events of Jehu’s reign, including all his accomplishments and successes, are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Israel. 219 10:35 Jehu passed away 220 and was buried in Samaria. 221 His son Jehoahaz replaced him as king. 10:36 Jehu reigned over Israel for twenty-eight years in Samaria.
1 sn A seah was a dry measure equivalent to about 7 quarts.
2 tn Heb “the officer on whose hand the king leans.”
3 tn Heb “man of God.”
4 tn Heb “the
5 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
6 tn Heb “you will not eat from there.”
7 sn See the note at 2 Kgs 5:1.
8 tn Heb “until we die.”
9 tn Heb “If we say, ‘We will enter the city,’ the famine is in the city and we will die there.”
10 tn Heb “fall.”
11 tn Heb “keep us alive.”
12 tn Heb “we will die.” The paraphrastic translation attempts to bring out the logical force of their reasoning.
13 tn Heb “they arose to go to.”
14 tn Heb “they ate and drank.”
15 tn Heb “and they hid [it].”
16 tn Heb “and they took from there.”
17 tn Heb “this day is a day of good news and we are keeping silent.”
18 tn Heb “the light of the morning.”
19 tn Heb “punishment will find us.”
20 tn The MT has a singular form (“gatekeeper”), but the context suggests a plural. The pronoun that follows (“them”) is plural and a plural noun appears in v. 11. The Syriac Peshitta and the Targum have the plural here.
21 tn Heb “and, look, there was no man or voice of a man there.”
22 tn Heb “but the horses are tied up and the donkeys are tied up and the tents are as they were.”
23 tn Heb “and the gatekeepers called out and they told [it] to the house of the king.”
24 tn Heb “servants” (also in v. 13).
25 tn Heb “Let them take five of the remaining horses that remain in it. Look, they are like all the people of Israel that remain in it. Look, they are like all the people of Israel that have come to an end.” The MT is dittographic here; the words “that remain in it. Look they are like all the people of Israel” have been accidentally repeated. The original text read, “Let them take five of the remaining horses that remain in it. Look, they are like all the people of Israel that have come to an end.”
26 tn Heb “and let us send so we might see.”
27 tn Heb “and the king sent [them] after the Syrian camp.”
28 tn Heb “Go and see.”
29 tn Heb “went after.”
30 tn Heb “and look, all the road was full of clothes and equipment that Syria had thrown away in their haste.”
31 tn Or “messengers.”
32 sn A seah was a dry measure equivalent to about 7 quarts.
33 tn Heb “according to the word of the
34 tn Heb “the officer on whose hand he leans.”
35 tn Heb “and the people trampled him in the gate and he died.”
36 tn Heb “just as the man of God had spoken, [the word] which he spoke when the king came down to him.”
37 tn Heb “the
38 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
39 tn Heb “you will not eat from there.”
40 tn Heb “Get up and go, you and your house, and live temporarily where you can live temporarily.”
41 tn Heb “and the woman got up and did according to the word of the man of God.”
42 tn Heb “and went out to cry out to the king for her house and her field.”
43 tn Heb “man of God’s.”
44 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Gehazi) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
45 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
46 tn Heb “and look, the woman whose son he had brought back to life was crying out to the king for her house and her field.”
47 tn Heb “and the king asked the woman and she told him.”
48 tn Heb “and he assigned to her an official, saying.”
49 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the king) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
50 tn Heb “man of God” (also a second time in this verse and in v. 11).
51 tn The Hebrew text also has “in your hand.”
52 tn Heb “Inquire of the
53 tn Heb “him”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
54 tn The Hebrew text also has “in his hand.”
55 tn Heb “and.” It is possible that the conjunction is here explanatory, equivalent to English “that is.” In this case the forty camel loads constitute the “gift” and one should translate, “He took along a gift, consisting of forty camel loads of all the fine things of Damascus.”
56 sn The words “your son” emphasize the king’s respect for the prophet.
57 tn Heb “saying.”
58 tc The consonantal text (Kethib) reads, “Go, say, ‘Surely you will not (לֹא, lo’) recover” In this case the vav beginning the next clause should be translated, “for, because.” The marginal reading (Qere) has, “Go, say to him (לוֹ, lo), ‘You will surely recover.” In this case the vav (ו) beginning the next clause should be translated, “although, but.” The Qere has the support of some medieval Hebrew
59 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
60 tn Heb “and he made his face stand [i.e., be motionless] and set [his face?] until embarrassment.”
61 tn Heb “Indeed, what is your servant, a dog, that he could do this great thing?” With his reference to a dog, Hazael is not denying that he is a “dog” and protesting that he would never commit such a dastardly “dog-like” deed. Rather, as Elisha’s response indicates, Hazael is suggesting that he, like a dog, is too insignificant to ever be in a position to lead such conquests.
62 tn Heb “The
63 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Ben Hadad) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
64 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Hazael) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
65 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Hazael) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
66 tn Heb “his”; the referent (Ben Hadad) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
67 tc The Hebrew text reads, “and in the fifth year of Joram son of Ahab king of Israel, and [or, ‘while’?] Jehoshaphat [was?] king of Judah, Jehoram son of Jehoshaphat king of Judah became king.” The first reference to “Jehoshaphat king of Judah” is probably due to a scribe accidentally copying the phrase from the later in the verse. If the Hebrew text is retained, the verse probably refers to the beginning of a coregency between Jehoshaphat and Jehoram.
68 map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.
69 tn Heb “he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, just as the house of Ahab did, for the daughter of Ahab was his wife.”
70 tn Heb “in the eyes of.”
71 tn The Hebrew has only one sentence, “and the
72 tn Heb “just as he had promised to give him and his sons a lamp all the days.” The metaphorical “lamp” symbolizes the Davidic dynasty; this is reflected in the translation.
73 tn Heb “in his days Edom rebelled from under the hand of Judah and enthroned a king over them.”
74 sn Joram is a short form of the name Jehoram.
75 tn Heb “and he arose at night and defeated Edom, who had surrounded him, and the chariot officers.” The Hebrew text as it stands gives the impression that Joram was surrounded and launched a victorious night counterattack. It would then be quite natural to understand the last statement in the verse to refer to an Edomite retreat. Yet v. 22 goes on to state that the Edomite revolt was successful. Therefore, if the MT is retained, it may be better to understand the final statement in v. 21 as a reference to an Israelite retreat (made in spite of the success described in the preceding sentence). The translation above assumes an emendation of the Hebrew text. Adding a third masculine singular pronominal suffix to the accusative sign before Edom (reading אֶתוֹ [’eto], “him,” instead of just אֶת [’et]) and taking Edom as the subject of verbs allows one to translate the verse in a way that is more consistent with the context, which depicts an Israelite defeat, not victory. There is, however, no evidence for this emendation.
76 tn Heb “and the people fled to their tents.”
77 tn Heb “and Edom rebelled from under the hand of Judah until this day.”
78 tn Heb “As for the rest of the acts of Joram and all which he did, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Judah?”
79 tn Heb “lay down with his fathers.”
80 map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.
81 tn Hebrew בַּת (bat), “daughter,” can refer, as here to a granddaughter. See HALOT 166 s.v. בַּת.
82 tn Heb “in the eyes of.”
83 tn Heb “and he walked in the way of the house of Ahab and did evil in the eyes of the
84 tn Heb “which the Syrians inflicted [on] him.”
85 tn Heb “to see.”
86 tn Heb “one of the sons of the prophets.”
87 tn Or “flask.”
88 tn Heb “and go and set him apart from his brothers and bring him into an inner room in an inner room.”
89 tn Heb “anointed.”
90 tn Heb “and open the door and run away and do not delay.”
91 tc Heb “the young man, the young man, the prophet.” The MT is probably dittographic, the phrase “the young man” being accidentally repeated. The phrases “the young man” and “the prophet” are appositional, with the latter qualifying more specifically the former.
92 tn Heb “and he arrived and look, the officers of the army were sitting.”
93 tn Heb “[there is] a word for me to you, O officer.”
94 tn Heb “To whom from all of us?”
95 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jehu) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
96 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the prophet) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
97 tn Or “strike down the house of Ahab your master.”
98 tn Heb “I will avenge the shed blood of my servants the prophets and the shed blood of all the servants of the
99 tc The LXX has the second person, “you.”
100 tn Heb “and I will cut off from Ahab those who urinate against a wall, [including both those who are] restrained and let free [or, ‘abandoned’] in Israel.” On the phrase וְעָצוּר וְעָזוּב (vÿ’atsur vÿ’azur, translated here “weak and incapacitated”) see the note at 1 Kgs 14:10.
101 tn Heb “house.”
102 sn Note how the young prophet greatly expands the message Elisha had given to him. In addition to lengthening the introductory formula (by adding “the God of Israel”) and the official declaration that accompanies the act of anointing (by adding “the
103 tn Heb “went out to.”
104 tc The MT has the singular, “he said,” but many witnesses correctly read the plural.
105 tn Heb “Is there peace?”
106 tn Heb “He said, ‘You, you know the man and his thoughts.’” Jehu tries to deflect their question by reminding them that the man is an eccentric individual who says strange things. His reply suggests that the man said nothing of importance. The translation seeks to bring out the tone and intent of Jehu’s reply.
107 tn Heb “So he said, ‘Like this and like this he said to me, saying.’” The words “like this and like this” are probably not a direct quote of Jehu’s words to his colleagues. Rather this is the narrator’s way of avoiding repetition and indicating that Jehu repeated, or at least summarized, what the prophet had said to him.
108 tn Heb “his”; the referent (Jehu) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
109 tn Heb “and they hurried and took, each one his garment, and they placed [them] beneath him on the bone [?] of the steps.” The precise nuance of גֶרֶם (gerem), “bone,” is unclear. Some suggest the nuance “bare” here; it may be a technical architectural term in this context.
110 tn Heb “they blew the trumpet.” This has been translated as a passive to avoid the implication that the same ones who shouted had all blown trumpets.
111 tn Or “has become.”
112 tn Heb “he and all Israel.”
113 tn Heb “which the Syrians inflicted [on] him.”
114 sn See 2 Kgs 8:28-29a.
115 tn The words “his supporters” are added for clarification.
116 tn Heb “If this is your desire.” נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) refers here to the seat of the emotions and will. For other examples of this use of the word, see BDB 660-61 s.v.
117 tn Heb “rode [or, ‘mounted’] and went.”
118 tn Heb “lying down.”
119 tn Heb “to see.”
120 tn Heb “the quantity [of the men] of Jehu, when he approached.” Elsewhere שִׁפְעַה (shif’ah), “quantity,” is used of a quantity of camels (Isa 60:6) or horses (Ezek 26:10) and of an abundance of water (Job 22:11; 38:34).
121 tn The term שִׁפְעַת (shifat) appears to be a construct form of the noun, but no genitive follows.
122 tn Heb “said.”
123 tn Heb “Get a rider and send [him] to meet him and let him ask, ‘Is there peace?’”
124 tn Heb “the rider of the horse.”
125 tn Heb “Is there peace?”
126 tn Heb “What concerning you and concerning peace?” That is, “What concern is that to you?”
127 tn Heb “and he came to them.”
128 tc The MT has simply “peace,” omitting the prefixed interrogative particle. It is likely that the particle has been accidentally omitted; several ancient witnesses include it or assume its presence.
129 tn Heb “and the driving is like the driving of Jehu son of Nimshi.”
130 tn The words “my chariot” are added for clarification.
131 tn Heb “and he hitched up his chariot.”
132 tn Heb “each in his chariot and they went out.”
133 tn Heb “they found him.”
134 tn Heb “How [can there be] peace as long as the adulterous acts of Jezebel your mother and her many acts of sorcery [continue]?” In this instance “adulterous acts” is employed metaphorically for idolatry. As elsewhere in the OT, worshiping other gods is viewed as spiritual adultery and unfaithfulness to the one true God. The phrase “many acts of sorcery” could be taken literally, for Jezebel undoubtedly utilized pagan divination practices, but the phrase may be metaphorical, pointing to her devotion to pagan customs in general.
135 tn Heb “and Jehoram turned his hands and fled.” The phrase “turned his hands” refers to how he would have pulled on the reins in order to make his horses turn around.
136 tn Heb “Deceit, Ahaziah.”
137 tn Heb “and Jehu filled his hand with the bow and he struck Jehoram between his shoulders.”
138 tn Heb “went out from.”
139 tn Heb “said to.”
140 tn Heb “and I will repay you in this plot of land.”
141 tn Heb “according to the word of the
142 tn Heb “and Ahaziah king of Judah saw and fled.”
143 tn After Jehu’s order (“kill him too”), the MT has simply, “to the chariot in the ascent of Gur which is near Ibleam.” The main verb in the clause, “they shot him” (וַיִּכְהוּ, vayyikhhu), has been accidentally omitted by virtual haplography/homoioteleuton. Note that the immediately preceding form הַכֻּהוּ (hakkuhu), “shoot him,” ends with the same suffix.
144 map For location see Map1-D4; Map2-C1; Map4-C2; Map5-F2; Map7-B1.
145 tn Heb “drove him.”
146 map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.
147 tn Heb “she fixed her eyes with antimony.” Antimony (פּוּךְ, pukh) was used as a cosmetic. The narrator portrays her as a prostitute (see Jer 4:30), a role she has played in the spiritual realm (see the note at v. 22).
148 sn Jezebel associates Jehu with another assassin, Zimri, who approximately 44 years before had murdered King Elah, only to meet a violent death just a few days later (1 Kgs 16:9-20). On the surface Jezebel’s actions seem contradictory. On the one hand, she beautifies herself as if to seduce Jehu, but on the other hand, she insults and indirectly threatens him with this comparison to Zimri. Upon further reflection, however, her actions reveal a clear underlying motive. She wants to retain her power, not to mention her life. By beautifying herself, she appeals to Jehu’s sexual impulses; by threatening him, she reminds him that he is in the same precarious position as Zimri. But, if he makes Jezebel his queen, he can consolidate his power. In other words through her actions and words Jezebel is saying to Jehu, “You desire me, don’t you? And you need me!”
149 tn Heb “two, three.” The narrator may be intentionally vague or uncertain here, or the two numbers may represent alternate traditions.
150 tn The words “when she hit the ground” are added for stylistic reasons.
151 tn Heb “and he trampled her.”
152 tn Heb “and he went and ate and drank.”
153 tn Heb “Attend to this accursed woman and bury her for she was the daughter of a king.”
154 tn Heb “they did not find her, except for.”
155 tn Heb “It is the word of the
156 tn Heb “so that they will not say, ‘This is Jezebel.’”
157 map For location see Map2-B1; Map4-D3; Map5-E2; Map6-A4; Map7-C1.
158 tn Heb “to the officers of Jezreel, the elders, and to the guardians of Ahab, saying.” It is not certain why the officials of Jezreel would be in Samaria. They may have fled there after they heard what happened to Joram and before Jehu entered the city. They would have had time to flee while Jehu was pursuing Ahaziah.
159 tn Heb “And now when this letter comes to you – with you are the sons of your master and with you are chariots and horses and a fortified city and weapons.”
160 tn Hebrew יָשָׁר (yashar) does not have its normal moral/ethical nuance here (“upright”), but a more neutral sense of “proper, right, suitable.” For the gloss “capable,” see HALOT 450 s.v. יָשָׁר.
161 tn Or “fight for.”
162 tn Heb “they were very, very afraid.” The term מְאֹד (me’od) “very,” is repeated for emphasis.
163 tn Heb “did not stand before him.”
164 tn Heb “How can we stand?”
165 tn Heb “the one who was over the house.”
166 tn Heb “the one who was over the city.”
167 tn Or “elders.”
168 tn Heb “servants.”
169 tn Heb “Do what is good in your eyes.”
170 tn Heb “If you are mine and you are listening to my voice.”
171 sn Jehu’s command is intentionally vague. Does he mean that they should bring the guardians (those who are “heads” over Ahab’s sons) for a meeting, or does he mean that they should bring the literal heads of Ahab’s sons with them? (So LXX, Syriac Peshitta, and some
172 tn Heb “great,” probably in wealth, position, and prestige.
173 tn Heb “and when the letter came to them, they took the sons of the king and slaughtered seventy men.”
174 tn Heb “him”; the referent (Jehu) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
175 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jehu) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
176 tn Heb “Know then that there has not fallen from the word of the
177 tn Heb “and he arose and went and came to Samaria.”
178 tn Heb “found.”
179 tn Or “brothers.”
180 tn Heb “for the peace of.”
181 tn Heb “found.”
182 tn Heb “and he went from there and found Jehonadab son of Rekab [who was coming] to meet him.”
183 tn Heb “and he blessed him and said to him.”
184 tn Heb “Is there with your heart [what is] right, as my heart [is] with your heart?”
185 tc Heb “Jehonadab said, ‘There is and there is. Give your hand.’” If the text is allowed to stand, there are two possible ways to understand the syntax of וָיֵשׁ (vayesh), “and there is”: (1) The repetition of יֵשׁ (yesh, “there is and there is”) could be taken as emphatic, “indeed I am.” In this case, the entire statement could be taken as Jehonadab’s words or one could understand the words “give your hand” as Jehu’s. In the latter case the change in speakers is unmarked. (2) וָיֵשׁ begins Jehu’s response and has a conditional force, “if you are.” In this case, the transition in speakers is unmarked. However, it is possible that וַיֹּאמֶר (vayyo’mer), “and he said,” or וַיֹּאמֶר יֵהוּא (vayyo’mer yehu), “and Jehu said,” originally appeared between יֵשׁ and וָיֵשׁ and has accidentally dropped from the text by homoioarcton (note that both the proposed וַיֹּאמֶר and וָיֵשׁ begin with vav, ו). The present translation assumes such a textual reconstruction; it is supported by the LXX, Syriac Peshitta, and Vulgate.
186 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jehu) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
187 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jehu) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
188 tn Heb “and see my zeal for the
189 tc The MT has a plural form, but this is most likely an error. The LXX, Syriac Peshitta, and Vulgate all have the singular.
190 tn Heb “and he struck down all the remaining ones to Ahab in Samaria until he destroyed him.”
191 tn Heb “according to the word of the
192 tn Or “served.
193 tn Or “serve.”
194 tn Heb “much” or “greatly.”
195 tn Heb “and now, all the prophets of Baal, all his servants and all his priests summon to me.”
196 tn Heb “acted with deception [or, ‘trickery’].”
197 tn Heb “set apart”; or “observe as holy.”
198 tn Heb “and the house of Baal was filled mouth to mouth.”
199 tn Heb “and he said to the one who was over the wardrobe.”
200 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jehu) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
201 tn Heb “Search carefully and observe so that there are not here with you any servants of the
202 tn Heb “The man who escapes from the men whom I am bringing into your hands, [it will be] his life in place of his life.”
203 tn Heb “runners.”
204 tn Heb “and they threw.” No object appears. According to M. Cogan and H. Tadmor (II Kings [AB], 116), this is an idiom for leaving a corpse unburied.
205 tn Heb “and they came to the city of the house of Baal.” It seems unlikely that a literal city is meant. Some emend עִיר (’ir), “city,” to דְּבִיר (dÿvir) “holy place,” or suggest that עִיר is due to dittography of the immediately preceding עַד (’ad) “to.” Perhaps עִיר is here a technical term meaning “fortress” or, more likely, “inner room.”
206 tn Or “pulled down.”
207 tn The verb “they demolished” is repeated in the Hebrew text.
208 tn Heb “and they made it into.”
209 tn The consonantal text (Kethib) has the hapax legomenon מַחֲרָאוֹת (makhara’ot), “places to defecate” or “dung houses” (note the related noun חרא (khr’)/חרי (khri), “dung,” HALOT 348-49 s.v. *חֲרָאִים). The marginal reading (Qere) glosses this, perhaps euphemistically, מוֹצָאוֹת (motsa’ot), “outhouses.”
210 tn Heb “destroyed Baal.”
211 map For location see Map4-G4; Map5-C1; Map6-E3; Map7-D1; Map8-G3.
212 tn Heb “Except the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat which he caused Israel to commit, Jehu did not turn aside from after them – the golden calves which [were in] Bethel and which [were] in Dan.”
213 tn Heb “Because you have done well by doing what is proper in my eyes – according to all which was in my heart you have done to the house of Ahab – sons of four generations will sit for you on the throne of Israel.” In the Hebrew text the Lord’s statement is one long sentence (with a parenthesis). The translation above divides it into shorter sentences for stylistic reasons.
214 tn Heb “But Jehu was not careful to walk in the law of the
215 tn Heb “He did not turn aside from the sins of Jeroboam which he caused Israel to commit.”
216 tn Heb “began to cut off Israel.”
217 tn Heb “Hazael struck them down in all the territory of Israel, from the Jordan on the east.” In the Hebrew text the phrase “from the Jordan on the east” begins v. 33.
218 tn Heb “all the land of Gilead, the Gadites, and the Reubenites, and the Manassehites, from Aroer which is near the Arnon Valley, and Gilead, and Bashan.”
219 tn Heb “As for the rest of the events of Jehu, and all which he did and all his strength, are they not written on the scroll of the events of the days of the kings of Israel?”
220 tn Heb “lay down with his fathers.”
221 map For location see Map2-B1; Map4-D3; Map5-E2; Map6-A4; Map7-C1.