THE SIEGE OF SAMARIA

24 Some time later, King Ben-hadadi of Aram brought all his military units together and marched up and laid siege to Samaria. 25 So there was a severe faminej in Samaria, and they continued the siege against it until a donkey’s head sold for thirty-four ouncesB of silver, and a cupC of dove’s dungD sold for two ouncesE of silver.k

26 As the king of Israel was passing by on the wall, a woman cried out to him, “My lord the king, help!”

27 He answered, “If the Lord doesn’t help you, where can I get help for you? From the threshing floor or the winepress?”l 28 Then the king asked her, “What’s the matter?”m

She said, “This woman said to me, ‘Give up your son, and we will eat him today. Then we will eat my son tomorrow.’ 29 So we boiled my son and ate him, and I said to her the next day, ‘Give up your son, and we will eat him,’n but she has hidden her son.”

30 When the king heard the woman’s words, he tore his clothes.o Then, as he was passing by on the wall, the people saw that there was sackclothp under his clothes next to his skin. 31 He announced, “May God punish me and do so severelyq if the head of Elisha son of Shaphat remains on his shoulders today.”