While Gehazi ¹  was telling the king how Elisha ²  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. ³  Gehazi said, “My master, O king, this is the very woman and this is her son whom Elisha brought back to life!”

Elisha replied, “Hear the word of the Lord! This is what the Lord says, ‘About this time tomorrow a seah ¹  of finely milled flour will sell for a shekel and two seahs of barley for a shekel at the gate of Samaria.’”

This is what the king says: ‘Don’t let Hezekiah mislead you, for he is not able to rescue you from my hand! ¹ 

These nations are worshiping the Lord and at the same time serving their idols; their sons and grandsons do just as their fathers have done, to this very day.

‘Therefore I will allow you to die and be buried in peace. ¹  You will not have to witness ²  all the disaster I will bring on this place.’”’” Then they reported back to the king.

This is exactly what happened to him. The people trampled him to death in the city gate.

‘“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,” ¹  says the Lord.’ So now pick him up and throw him into this plot of land, just as the Lord said.” ² 

The king ¹  asked them, “Describe the appearance ²  of this man who came up to meet you and told you these things.”

So Hazael went to visit Elisha. ¹  He took along a gift, ²  as well as ³  forty camel loads of all the fine things of Damascus. When he arrived, he stood before him and said, “Your son, ⁴  King Ben Hadad of Syria, has sent me to you with this question, ⁵  ‘Will I recover from this sickness?’”

He was still talking to them when ¹  the messenger approached ²  and said, “Look, the Lord is responsible for this disaster! ³  Why should I continue to wait for the Lord to help?”

He went inside and had a meal. ¹  Then he said, “Dispose of this accursed woman’s corpse. Bury her, for after all, she was a king’s daughter.” ² 

Then the king asked her, “What’s your problem?” She answered, “This woman said to me, ‘Hand over your son; we’ll eat him today and then eat my son tomorrow.’

Now Elisha the prophet summoned a member of the prophetic guild ¹  and told him, “Tuck your robes into your belt, take this container ²  of olive oil in your hand, and go to Ramoth Gilead.

To this very day they observe their earlier practices. They do not worship ¹  the Lord; they do not obey the rules, regulations, law, and commandments that the Lord gave ²  the descendants of Jacob, whom he renamed Israel.

Don’t let Hezekiah talk you into trusting in the Lord when he says, “The Lord will certainly rescue us; this city will not be handed over to the king of Assyria.”

Isaiah replied, “This is your sign from the Lord confirming that the Lord will do what he has said. Do you want the shadow to move ahead ten steps or to go back ten steps?” ¹ 

Therefore this is what the Lord says, “You will not leave the bed you lie on, for you will certainly die!”’” So Elijah went on his way.

He brought the letter to king of Israel. It read: “This is a letter of introduction for my servant Naaman, ¹  whom I have sent to be cured of his skin disease.”

Gehazi, the prophet Elisha’s servant, thought, ¹  “Look, my master did not accept what this Syrian Naaman offered him. ²  As certainly as the Lord lives, I will run after him and accept something from him.”

Finally ¹  the Lord rejected Israel ²  just as he had warned he would do ³  through all his servants the prophets. Israel was deported from its land to Assyria and remains there to this very day.