In the eighteenth year of King Jehoshaphat’s reign over Judah, Ahab’s son Jehoram became king over Israel in Samaria; ¹  he ruled for twelve years.

Elisha traveled to Damascus while King Ben Hadad of Syria was sick. The king ¹  was told, “The prophet ²  has come here.”

Conspirators plotted against him in Jerusalem, ¹  so he fled to Lachish. But they sent assassins after him ²  and they killed him there.

In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah’s reign, King Sennacherib of Assyria marched up against all the fortified cities of Judah and captured them.

In the eighteenth year of King Josiah’s reign, the king sent the scribe Shaphan son of Azaliah, son of Meshullam, to the Lord’s temple with these orders: ¹ 

After Ahab died, Moab rebelled against Israel. ¹ 

Ahaziah fell through a window lattice in his upper chamber in Samaria ¹  and was injured. He sent messengers with these orders, ²  “Go, ask ³  Baal Zebub, ⁴  the god of Ekron, if I will survive this injury.”

The king of Syria said, “Go! I will send a letter to the king of Israel.” So Naaman ¹  went, taking with him ten talents ²  of silver, six thousand shekels of gold, ³  and ten suits of clothes.

When the king heard what the woman said, he tore his clothes. As he was passing by on the wall, the people could see he was wearing sackcloth under his clothes. ¹ 

But the Lord had mercy on them and felt pity for them. ¹  He extended his favor to them ²  because of the promise he had made ³  to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He has been unwilling to destroy them or remove them from his presence to this very day. ⁴ 

So the Lord announced through ¹  his servants the prophets:

The boy grew and one day he went out to see his father who was with the harvest workers. ¹ 

Later King Ben Hadad of Syria assembled his entire army and attacked ¹  and besieged Samaria. ² 

While the king of Israel was passing by on the city wall, a woman shouted to him, “Help us, my master, O king!”

When Athaliah heard the royal guard ¹  shout, she joined the crowd ²  at the Lord’s temple.

When Elisha the prophet ¹  heard that the king had torn his clothes, he sent this message to the king, “Why did you tear your clothes? Send him ²  to me so he may know there is a prophet in Israel.”

He answered, “Everything is fine. ¹  My master sent me with this message, ‘Look, two servants of the prophets just arrived from the Ephraimite hill country. ²  Please give them a talent ³  of silver and two suits of clothes.’”

If we go into the city, we’ll die of starvation, ¹  and if we stay here we’ll die! So come on, let’s defect ²  to the Syrian camp! If they spare us, ³  we’ll live; if they kill us – well, we were going to die anyway.” ⁴ 

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. ¹  If we wait until dawn, ²  we’ll be punished. ³  So come on, let’s go and inform the royal palace.”

So Hilkiah the priest, Ahikam, Acbor, Shaphan, and Asaiah went to Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shullam son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, the supervisor of the wardrobe. ¹  (She lived in Jerusalem in the Mishneh ²  district.) They stated their business, ³