THE BOOK OF SECOND KINGS
King James Version
1 ¶ Then Moab rebelled against Israel after the death of
Ahab.
2 And Ahaziah fell down through a
lattice in his upper chamber that was in Samaria, and was sick: and he sent
messengers, and said unto them, Go, enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron
whether I shall recover of this disease.
3
But the angel of the LORD said to Elijah the Tishbite,
Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say unto them, Is it not because there is not a God in
Israel, that ye go to enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron?
4
Now therefore thus saith the LORD, Thou
shalt not come down from that bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt surely
die. And Elijah departed.
5
And when the messengers turned back unto him, he said unto
them, Why are ye now turned back?
6
And they said unto him, There came a man up to meet us, and said unto
us, Go, turn again unto the king that sent you, and say unto him, Thus saith
the LORD, Is it not because there is not a God in Israel, that thou sendest to enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron? therefore
thou shalt not come down from that bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt
surely die.
7 And he said unto them, What manner of man was he which came up to meet you, and
told you these words?
8
And they answered him, He was an
hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins. And he said, It is Elijah the Tishbite.
9 ¶ Then the king sent unto him a captain of fifty with
his fifty. And he went up to him: and, behold, he sat on the
top of an hill. And he spake
unto him, Thou man of God, the king hath said, Come
down.
10
And Elijah answered and said to the captain of fifty, If I
be a man of God, then let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy
fifty. And there came down fire from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty.
11 Again also he sent unto him
another captain of fifty with his fifty. And he answered and said unto him, O
man of God, thus hath the king said, Come down quickly.
12
And Elijah answered and said unto them, If I be a man of
God, let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty. And the
fire of God came down from heaven, and consumed him and his
fifty.
13
And he sent again a captain of the third fifty with his
fifty. And the third captain of fifty went up, and came and fell on his knees
before Elijah, and besought him, and said unto him, O man of God, I pray thee,
let my life, and the life of these fifty thy servants, be precious in thy
sight.
14 Behold, there came fire down
from heaven, and burnt up the two captains of the former fifties with their
fifties: therefore let my life now be precious in thy
sight.
15
And the angel of the LORD said unto Elijah, Go down with him: be not afraid of him. And he arose, and
went down with him unto the king.
16
And he said unto him, Thus saith
the LORD, Forasmuch as thou hast sent messengers
to enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron, is it not because there is no God in
Israel to enquire of his word? therefore thou shalt not come down off that bed
on which thou art gone up, but shalt surely die.
17
So he died according to the word of the LORD which Elijah
had spoken. And Jehoram reigned in his stead in the second year of Jehoram the
son of Jehoshaphat king of Judah; because he had no son.
18
Now the rest of the acts of Ahaziah which he did, are they
not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
1 ¶ And it came to pass, when the LORD would take up
Elijah into heaven by a whirlwind, that Elijah went with
Elisha from Gilgal.
2
And Elijah said unto Elisha, Tarry here, I pray thee; for
the LORD hath sent me to Bethel. And Elisha said unto him, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I
will not leave thee. So they went down to Bethel.
3
And the sons of the prophets that were at Bethel came
forth to Elisha, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the
LORD will take away thy master from thy head to day? And he said, Yea, I know
it; hold ye your peace.
4
And Elijah said unto him, Elisha, tarry here, I pray thee;
for the LORD hath sent me to Jericho. And he said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I
will not leave thee. So they came to Jericho.
5 And the sons of the prophets
that were at Jericho came to Elisha, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the
LORD will take away thy master from thy head to day? And he answered, Yea, I
know it; hold ye your peace.
6
And Elijah said unto him, Tarry, I pray thee, here; for
the LORD hath sent me to Jordan. And he said, As the LORD liveth,
and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee. And they two went on.
7
And fifty men of the sons of the prophets went, and stood
to view afar off: and they two stood by Jordan.
8
And Elijah took his mantle, and wrapped it together, and
smote the waters, and they were divided hither and thither, so that they two
went over on dry ground.
9 ¶ And it came to pass, when they
were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what
I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray
thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me.
10
And he said, Thou hast asked a
hard thing: nevertheless, if thou see me when I am taken from thee, it shall be
so unto thee; but if not, it shall not be so.
11 And it came to pass, as they
still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and
horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind
into heaven.
12
And Elisha saw it, and he cried, My father, my father, the
chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof. And he saw him no more: and he
took hold of his own clothes, and rent them in two pieces.
13 ¶ He took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from
him, and went back, and stood by the bank of Jordan;
14
And he took the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and
smote the waters, and said, Where is the LORD God of
Elijah? and when he also had smitten the waters, they
parted hither and thither: and Elisha went over.
15
And when the sons of the prophets which were to view at
Jericho saw him, they said, The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha. And they
came to meet him, and bowed themselves to the ground before him.
16
And they said unto him, Behold
now, there be with thy servants fifty strong men; let them
go, we pray thee, and seek thy master: lest peradventure the Spirit of the LORD
hath taken him up, and cast him upon some mountain, or into some valley. And he
said, Ye shall not send.
17
And when they urged him till he was ashamed, he said,
Send. They sent therefore fifty men; and they sought three days, but found him
not.
18 And when they came again to
him, (for he tarried at Jericho,) he said unto them, Did I not say unto you, Go
not?
19 ¶ And the men of the city said unto Elisha, Behold, I
pray thee, the situation of this city is pleasant, as my lord seeth: but the water is naught, and the ground barren.
20 And he said, Bring
me a new cruse, and put salt therein. And they brought it to him.
21
And he went forth unto the spring of the waters, and cast
the salt in there, and said, Thus saith the LORD, I
have healed these waters; there shall not be from thence any more death or
barren land.
22 So the waters were healed unto
this day, according to the saying of Elisha which he spake.
23
And he went up from thence unto Bethel: and as he was
going up by the way, there came forth little children out of the city, and
mocked him, and said unto him, Go up, thou bald head;
go up, thou bald head.
24 And he turned back, and looked
on them, and cursed them in the name of the LORD. And there came forth two she
bears out of the wood, and tare forty and two children of them.
25
And he went from thence to mount Carmel, and from thence
he returned to Samaria.
1 ¶ Now Jehoram the son of Ahab began to reign over
Israel in Samaria the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and reigned
twelve years.
2
And he wrought evil in the sight of the LORD; but not like
his father, and like his mother: for he put away the image of Baal that his
father had made.
3 Nevertheless he cleaved unto
the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, which made Israel to sin; he departed
not therefrom.
4
And Mesha king of Moab was a sheepmaster,
and rendered unto the king of Israel an hundred
thousand lambs, and an hundred thousand rams, with the
wool.
5
But it came to pass, when Ahab was dead, that the king of
Moab rebelled against the king of Israel.
6 ¶ And king Jehoram went out of Samaria the same time,
and numbered all Israel.
7
And he went and sent to Jehoshaphat the king of Judah,
saying, The king of Moab hath rebelled against me:
wilt thou go with me against Moab to battle? And he said, I will go up: I am as
thou art, my people as thy people, and my horses as thy horses.
8
And he said, Which way shall we
go up? And he answered, The way through the wilderness of Edom.
9
So the king of Israel went, and the king of Judah, and the
king of Edom: and they fetched a compass of seven days' journey: and there was
no water for the host, and for the cattle that followed
them.
10
And the king of Israel said, Alas!
that the LORD hath called these three kings together, to deliver them into the
hand of Moab!
11
But Jehoshaphat said, Is there
not here a prophet of the LORD, that we may enquire of the LORD by him? And one
of the king of Israel's servants answered and said, Here is Elisha the son of
Shaphat, which poured water on the hands of Elijah.
12
And Jehoshaphat said, The word of
the LORD is with him. So the king of Israel and
Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went down to him.
13
And Elisha said unto the king of Israel, What have I to do with thee? get thee to the prophets of thy
father, and to the prophets of thy mother. And the king of Israel said unto him, Nay: for the LORD hath called these three kings
together, to deliver them into the hand of Moab.
14
And Elisha said, As the LORD of hosts liveth,
before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I regard the presence of
Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look toward thee, nor see thee.
15 But now bring me a minstrel.
And it came to pass, when the minstrel played, that the hand of the LORD came
upon him.
16
And he said, Thus saith the LORD,
Make this valley full of ditches.
17
For thus saith the LORD, Ye shall not see wind, neither
shall ye see rain; yet that valley shall be filled with water, that ye may
drink, both ye, and your cattle, and your beasts.
18
And this is but a light thing in the sight of the LORD: he
will deliver the Moabites also into your hand.
19
And ye shall smite every fenced city, and every choice
city, and shall fell every good tree, and stop all wells of water, and mar
every good piece of land with stones.
20 ¶ And it came to pass in the
morning, when the meat offering was offered, that, behold, there came water by
the way of Edom, and the country was filled with water.
21
And when all the Moabites heard that the kings were come
up to fight against them, they gathered all that were able to put on armour, and upward, and stood in the
border.
22
And they rose up early in the morning, and the sun shone
upon the water, and the Moabites saw the water on the other side as red as
blood:
23
And they said, This is blood: the
kings are surely slain, and they have smitten one another: now therefore, Moab,
to the spoil.
24 And when they came to the camp
of Israel, the Israelites rose up and smote the Moabites, so that they fled
before them: but they went forward smiting the Moabites, even in their country.
25
And they beat down the cities, and on every good piece of
land cast every man his stone, and filled it; and they stopped all the wells of
water, and felled all the good trees: only in Kirharaseth
left they the stones thereof; howbeit the slingers went about it, and smote it.
26
And when the king of Moab saw that the battle was too sore
for him, he took with him seven hundred men that drew swords, to break through
even unto the king of Edom: but they could not.
27 Then he took his eldest son
that should have reigned in his stead, and offered him for a burnt offering
upon the wall. And there was great indignation against Israel: and they
departed from him, and returned to their own land.
1 ¶ Now there cried a certain woman of the wives of the
sons of the prophets unto Elisha, saying, Thy servant my husband is dead; and thou knowest that thy
servant did fear the LORD: and the creditor is come to take unto him my two
sons to be bondmen.
2
And Elisha said unto her, What
shall I do for thee? tell me, what hast thou in the house? And she said, Thine handmaid hath not any thing
in the house, save a pot of oil.
3
Then he said, Go, borrow thee
vessels abroad of all thy neighbours, even empty
vessels; borrow not a few.
4
And when thou art come in, thou shalt shut the door upon
thee and upon thy sons, and shalt pour out into all those vessels, and thou
shalt set aside that which is full.
5
So she went from him, and shut the door upon her and upon
her sons, who brought the vessels to her; and she poured out.
6
And it came to pass, when the vessels were full, that she
said unto her son, Bring me yet a vessel. And he said unto her, There is not a vessel more. And the oil stayed.
7 Then she came and told the man
of God. And he said, Go, sell the oil, and pay thy debt, and live thou and thy
children of the rest.
8 ¶ And it fell on a day, that Elisha passed to Shunem,
where was a great woman; and she constrained him to eat bread. And so it was,
that as oft as he passed by, he turned in thither to eat bread.
9 And she said unto her husband, Behold now, I perceive that this is an
holy man of God, which passeth by us continually.
10
Let us make a little chamber, I pray thee, on the wall;
and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a stool, and a
candlestick: and it shall be, when he cometh to us, that he shall turn in
thither.
11 And it fell on a day, that he
came thither, and he turned into the chamber, and lay there.
12
And he said to Gehazi his servant, Call this Shunammite.
And when he had called her, she stood before him.
13
And he said unto him, Say now
unto her, Behold, thou hast been careful for us with all
this care; what is to be done for thee? wouldest thou
be spoken for to the king, or to the captain of the host? And she answered, I
dwell among mine own people.
14
And he said, What then is to be
done for her? And Gehazi answered, Verily she hath no
child, and her husband is old.
15 And he said, Call her. And when
he had called her, she stood in the door.
16
And he said, About this season,
according to the time of life, thou shalt embrace a son. And she said, Nay, my
lord, thou man of God, do not lie unto thine handmaid.
17
And the woman conceived, and bare a son at that season
that Elisha had said unto her, according to the time of life.
18 ¶ And when the child was grown, it
fell on a day, that he went out to his father to the reapers.
19
And he said unto his father, My head, my head. And he said
to a lad, Carry him to his mother.
20
And when he had taken him, and brought him to his mother,
he sat on her knees till noon, and then died.
21
And she went up, and laid him on the bed of the man of
God, and shut the door upon him, and went out.
22
And she called unto her husband, and said, Send me, I pray thee, one of the young men, and one of the
asses, that I may run to the man of God, and come again.
23 And he said, Wherefore
wilt thou go to him to day? it is neither new moon,
nor sabbath. And she said, It shall be well.
24
Then she saddled an ass, and said to her servant, Drive,
and go forward; slack not thy riding for me, except I bid thee.
25
So she went and came unto the man of God to mount Carmel.
And it came to pass, when the man of God saw her afar off,
that he said to Gehazi his servant, Behold, yonder is that Shunammite:
26
Run now, I pray thee, to meet her, and say unto her, Is it well with thee? is it well with thy husband? is it
well with the child? And she answered, It is well.
27
And when she came to the man of God to the hill, she
caught him by the feet: but Gehazi came near to thrust her
away. And the man of God said, Let her alone; for her
soul is vexed within her: and the LORD hath hid it from me, and hath not told
me.
28
Then she said, Did I desire a son of my lord? did I not
say, Do not deceive me?
29
Then he said to Gehazi, Gird up thy loins, and take my
staff in thine hand, and go thy way: if thou meet any man,
salute him not; and if any salute thee, answer him not again: and lay my staff
upon the face of the child.
30
And the mother of the child said, As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I
will not leave thee. And he arose, and followed her.
31
And Gehazi passed on before them, and laid the staff upon
the face of the child; but there was neither voice, nor
hearing. Wherefore he went again to meet him, and told him, saying, The child is not awaked.
32
And when Elisha was come into the house, behold, the child
was dead, and laid upon his bed.
33
He went in therefore, and shut the door upon them twain,
and prayed unto the LORD.
34
And he went up, and lay upon the child, and put his mouth
upon his mouth, and his eyes upon his eyes, and his hands upon his hands: and
he stretched himself upon the child; and the flesh of the child waxed warm.
35
Then he returned, and walked in the house to and fro; and went up, and stretched himself
upon him: and the child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes.
36
And he called Gehazi, and said, Call this Shunammite. So he called her. And when she was come in unto him, he
said, Take up thy son.
37
Then she went in, and fell at his feet, and bowed herself
to the ground, and took up her son, and went out.
38 ¶ And Elisha came again to Gilgal: and there was a
dearth in the land; and the sons of the prophets were sitting before him: and
he said unto his servant, Set on the great pot, and seethe pottage for the sons
of the prophets.
39
And one went out into the field to gather herbs, and found
a wild vine, and gathered thereof wild gourds his lap full,
and came and shred them into the pot of pottage: for they knew them not.
40
So they poured out for the men to eat. And it came to
pass, as they were eating of the pottage, that they cried out, and said, O thou
man of God, there is death in the pot. And they could not eat thereof.
41 But he said, Then
bring meal. And he cast it into the pot; and he said, Pour
out for the people, that they may eat. And there was no harm in the pot.
42
And there came a man from Baalshalisha,
and brought the man of God bread of the firstfruits,
twenty loaves of barley, and full ears of corn in the husk thereof. And he
said, Give unto the people, that they may eat.
43 And his servitor said, What, should I set this before an
hundred men? He said again, Give the people, that they may eat: for thus saith
the LORD, They shall eat, and shall leave thereof.
44
So he set it before them, and they did eat, and left
thereof, according to the word of the LORD.
1 ¶ Now Naaman, captain of the host of the king of Syria,
was a great man with his master, and honourable,
because by him the LORD had given deliverance unto Syria: he was also a mighty
man in valour, but he was a leper.
2
And the Syrians had gone out by companies, and had brought
away captive out of the land of Israel a little maid; and
she waited on Naaman's wife.
3
And she said unto her mistress, Would God my lord were with the prophet that is in Samaria! for he would
recover him of his leprosy.
4
And one went in, and told his lord, saying, Thus and thus
said the maid that is of the land of Israel.
5 And the king of Syria said, Go to, go, and I will send a letter unto the king of Israel.
And he departed, and took with him ten talents of silver, and six thousand
pieces of gold, and ten changes of raiment.
6
And he brought the letter to the king of Israel, saying, Now when this letter is come unto thee, behold, I have
therewith sent Naaman my servant to thee, that thou mayest
recover him of his leprosy.
7
And it came to pass, when the king of Israel had read the
letter, that he rent his clothes, and said, Am I God, to kill and to make
alive, that this man doth send unto me to recover a man of his leprosy?
wherefore consider, I pray you, and see how he seeketh
a quarrel against me.
8 And it was so, when Elisha the
man of God had heard that the king of Israel had rent his clothes, that he sent
to the king, saying, Wherefore hast thou rent thy
clothes? let him come now to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in
Israel.
9 ¶ So Naaman came with his horses and with his chariot,
and stood at the door of the house of Elisha.
10 And Elisha sent a messenger
unto him, saying, Go and wash in Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come
again to thee, and thou shalt be clean.
11
But Naaman was wroth, and went
away, and said, Behold, I thought, He will surely come out to me, and stand,
and call on the name of the LORD his God, and strike his hand over the place,
and recover the leper.
12 Are not Abana and Pharpar,
rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? may I not wash in
them, and be clean? So he turned and went away in a
rage.
13
And his servants came near, and spake
unto him, and said, My father, if the prophet had bid
thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done
it? how much rather then, when he saith to thee, Wash, and
be clean?
14
Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in
Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God: and his flesh came again
like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.
15 ¶ And he returned to the man of God, he and all his
company, and came, and stood before him: and he said,
Behold, now I know that there is no God in all the earth, but in Israel: now
therefore, I pray thee, take a blessing of thy servant.
16
But he said, As the LORD liveth,
before whom I stand, I will receive none. And he urged him to take it; but he
refused.
17
And Naaman said, Shall there not
then, I pray thee, be given to thy servant two mules'
burden of earth? for thy servant will henceforth offer neither burnt offering
nor sacrifice unto other gods, but unto the LORD.
18
In this thing the LORD pardon thy servant, that when my
master goeth into the house of Rimmon to worship
there, and he leaneth on my hand, and I bow myself in
the house of Rimmon: when I bow down myself in the house of Rimmon, the LORD pardon thy servant in this thing.
19
And he said unto him, Go in peace. So
he departed from him a little way.
20 ¶ But Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God,
said, Behold, my master hath spared Naaman this Syrian, in not receiving at his
hands that which he brought: but, as the LORD liveth,
I will run after him, and take somewhat of him.
21 So Gehazi followed after
Naaman. And when Naaman saw him running after him, he lighted down from the
chariot to meet him, and said, Is all well?
22
And he said, All is well. My
master hath sent me, saying, Behold, even now there be come to me from mount
Ephraim two young men of the sons of the prophets: give them, I pray thee, a
talent of silver, and two changes of garments.
23 And Naaman said, Be content, take two talents. And he urged him, and bound
two talents of silver in two bags, with two changes of garments, and laid them
upon two of his servants; and they bare them before him.
24
And when he came to the tower, he took them from their
hand, and bestowed them in the house: and he let the men go, and they departed.
25 But he went in, and stood
before his master. And Elisha said unto him, Whence comest thou, Gehazi? And he said, Thy
servant went no whither.
26
And he said unto him, Went not
mine heart with thee, when the man turned again from his chariot to meet thee?
Is it a time to receive money, and to receive garments, and oliveyards,
and vineyards, and sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and
maidservants?
27
The leprosy therefore of Naaman shall cleave unto thee,
and unto thy seed for ever. And he went out from his
presence a leper as white as snow.
1 ¶ And the sons of the prophets said unto Elisha, Behold now, the place where we dwell
with thee is too strait for us.
2
Let us go, we pray thee, unto Jordan, and take thence
every man a beam, and let us make us a place there, where we may dwell. And he
answered, Go ye.
3
And one said, Be content, I pray
thee, and go with thy servants. And he answered, I will go.
4 So he went with them. And when
they came to Jordan, they cut down wood.
5
But as one was felling a beam, the axe head fell into the
water: and he cried, and said, Alas, master! for it
was borrowed.
6
And the man of God said, Where
fell it? And he shewed him the place. And he cut down a stick, and cast it in
thither; and the iron did swim.
7 Therefore said he, Take it up
to thee. And he put out his hand, and took it.
8 ¶ Then the king of Syria warred against Israel, and
took counsel with his servants, saying, In such and
such a place shall be my camp.
9
And the man of God sent unto the king of Israel, saying, Beware that thou pass not such a place; for thither the
Syrians are come down.
10 And the king of Israel sent to
the place which the man of God told him and warned him of, and saved himself
there, not once nor twice.
11
Therefore the heart of the king of Syria was sore troubled
for this thing; and he called his servants, and said unto them, Will ye not
shew me which of us is for the king of Israel?
12 And one of his servants said,
None, my lord, O king: but Elisha, the prophet that is in Israel, telleth the king of Israel the words that thou speakest in thy bedchamber.
13 ¶ And he said, Go and spy where he is, that I may send
and fetch him. And it was told him, saying, Behold, he is in Dothan.
14 Therefore sent he thither
horses, and chariots, and a great host: and they came by night, and compassed
the city about.
15
And when the servant of the man of God was risen early,
and gone forth, behold, an host compassed the city
both with horses and chariots. And his servant said unto him, Alas, my master! how shall we do?
16 And he answered, Fear not: for
they that be with us are more than they that be with them.
17
And Elisha prayed, and said, LORD, I pray thee, open his
eyes, that he may see. And the LORD opened the eyes of the young man; and he
saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round
about Elisha.
18 And when they came down to him,
Elisha prayed unto the LORD, and said, Smite this
people, I pray thee, with blindness. And he smote them with blindness according
to the word of Elisha.
19
And Elisha said unto them, This
is not the way, neither is this the city: follow me, and I will bring you to
the man whom ye seek. But he led them to Samaria.
20 And it came to pass, when they
were come into Samaria, that Elisha said, LORD, open the eyes of these men,
that they may see. And the LORD opened their eyes, and they saw; and, behold,
they were in the midst of Samaria.
21
And the king of Israel said unto Elisha, when he saw them,
My father, shall I smite them? shall I smite them?
22 And he answered, Thou shalt not smite them: wouldest
thou smite those whom thou hast taken captive with thy sword and with thy bow?
set bread and water before them, that they may eat and drink, and go to their
master.
23
And he prepared great provision for them: and when they
had eaten and drunk, he sent them away, and they went to their master. So the bands of Syria came no more into
the land of Israel.
24 ¶ And it came to pass after this, that Benhadad king
of Syria gathered all his host, and went up, and besieged Samaria.
25
And there was a great famine in Samaria: and, behold, they
besieged it, until an ass's head was sold for fourscore pieces of silver, and
the fourth part of a cab of dove's dung for five pieces of
silver.
26
And as the king of Israel was passing by upon the wall,
there cried a woman unto him, saying, Help, my lord, O king.
27
And he said, If the LORD do not help thee, whence shall I
help thee? out of the barnfloor, or out of the
winepress?
28 And the king said unto her,
What aileth thee? And she answered, This woman said unto me, Give thy
son, that we may eat him to day, and we will eat my son to
morrow.
29
So we boiled my son, and did eat him: and I said unto her
on the next day, Give thy son, that we may eat him:
and she hath hid her son.
30 And it came to pass, when the
king heard the words of the woman, that he rent his clothes; and he passed by
upon the wall, and the people looked, and, behold, he had sackcloth within upon
his flesh.
31
Then he said, God do so and more also to me, if the head
of Elisha the son of Shaphat shall stand on him this day.
32
But Elisha sat in his house, and the elders sat with him; and the king
sent a man from before him: but ere the messenger came to him, he said to the
elders, See ye how this son of a murderer hath sent to take away mine head?
look, when the messenger cometh, shut the door, and hold him fast at the door:
is not the sound of his master's feet behind him?
33 And while he yet talked with
them, behold, the messenger came down unto him: and he said, Behold, this evil
is of the LORD; what should I wait for the LORD any longer?