^8:1Now 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,¹ for the Lord has decreed that a famine will overtake the land for seven years.” ^8:2So the woman did as the prophet said.² She and her family went and lived in the land of the Philistines for seven years. ^8:3After 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.³^8:4Now the king was talking to Gehazi, the prophet’s⁴ servant, and said, “Tell me all the great things which Elisha has done.” ^8:5While Gehazi⁵ was telling the king how Elisha⁶ 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.⁷ Gehazi said, “My master, O king, this is the very woman and this is her son whom Elisha brought back to life!” ^8:6The king asked the woman about it, and she gave him the details.⁸ The king assigned a eunuch to take care of her request and ordered him,⁹ “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.”

Elisha Meets with Hazael

^8:7Elisha traveled to Damascus while King Ben Hadad of Syria was sick. The king¹⁰ was told, “The prophet¹¹ has come here.” ^8:8So the king told Hazael, “Take a gift¹² and go visit the prophet. Request from him an oracle from the Lord. Ask him,¹³ ‘Will I recover from this sickness?’ ” ^8:9So Hazael went to visit Elisha.¹⁴ He took along a gift,¹⁵ as well as¹⁶ forty camel loads of all the fine things of Damascus. When he arrived, he stood before him and said, “Your son,¹⁷ King Ben Hadad of Syria, has sent me to you with this question,¹⁸ ‘Will I recover from this sickness?’ ” ^8:10Elisha said to him, “Go and tell him, ‘You will surely recover,’¹⁹ but the Lord has revealed to me that he will surely die.” ^8:11Elisha²⁰ just stared at him until Hazael became uncomfortable.²¹ Then the prophet started crying. ^8:12Hazael 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.” ^8:13Hazael said, “How could your servant, who is as insignificant as a dog, accomplish this great military victory?”²² Elisha answered, “The Lord has revealed to me that you will be the king of Syria.”²³^8:14He left Elisha and went to his master. Ben Hadad²⁴ asked him, “What did Elisha tell you?” Hazael²⁵ replied, “He told me you would surely recover.” ^8:15The next day Hazael²⁶ took a piece of cloth, dipped it in water, and spread it over Ben Hadad’s²⁷ face until he died. Then Hazael replaced him as king.

Jehoram’s Reign over Judah

^8:16In the fifth year of the reign of Israel’s King Joram, son of Ahab, Jehoshaphat’s son Jehoram became king over Judah.²⁸^8:17He was thirty-two years old when he became king and he reigned for eight years in Jerusalem.²⁹^8:18He followed in the footsteps of the kings of Israel, just as Ahab’s dynasty had done, for he married Ahab’s daughter.³⁰ He did evil in the sight of³¹ the Lord. ^8:19But the Lord was unwilling to destroy Judah. He preserved Judah for the sake of³² his servant David to whom he had promised a perpetual dynasty.³³

^8:20During his reign Edom freed themselves from Judah’s control and set up their own king.³⁴^8:21Joram³⁵ crossed over to Zair with all his chariots. The Edomites, who had surrounded him, attacked at night and defeated him and his chariot officers.³⁶ The Israelite army retreated to their homeland.³⁷^8:22So Edom has remained free from Judah’s control to this very day.³⁸ At that same time Libnah also rebelled.

^8:23The 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.³⁹^8:24Joram passed away⁴⁰ and was buried with his ancestors in the city of David. His son Ahaziah replaced him as king.

Ahaziah Takes the Throne of Judah

^8:25In the twelfth year of the reign of Israel’s King Joram, son of Ahab, Jehoram’s son Ahaziah became king over Judah. ^8:26Ahaziah was twenty-two years old when he became king and he reigned for one year in Jerusalem.⁴¹ His mother was Athaliah, the granddaughter⁴² of King Omri of Israel. ^8:27He followed in the footsteps of Ahab’s dynasty and did evil in the sight of⁴³ the Lord, like Ahab’s dynasty, for he was related to Ahab’s family.⁴⁴

^8:28He joined Ahab’s son Joram in a battle against King Hazael of Syria at Ramoth Gilead in which the Syrians defeated Joram. ^8:29King Joram returned to Jezreel to recover from the wounds he received from the Syrians⁴⁵ in Ramah when he fought against King Hazael of Syria. King Ahaziah son of Jehoram of Judah went down to visit⁴⁶ Joram son of Ahab in Jezreel, for he was ill.

Jehu Becomes King

^9:1Now Elisha the prophet summoned a member of the prophetic guild¹ and told him, “Tuck your robes into your belt, take this container² of olive oil in your hand, and go to Ramoth Gilead. ^9:2When you arrive there, look for Jehu son of Jehoshaphat son of Nimshi and take him aside into an inner room.³^9:3Take the container of olive oil, pour it over his head, and say, ‘This is what the Lord says, “I have designated⁴ you as king over Israel.” ’ Then open the door and run away quickly!”⁵

^9:4So the young prophet⁶ went to Ramoth Gilead. ^9:5When he arrived, the officers of the army were sitting there.⁷ So he said, “I have a message for you, O officer.”⁸ Jehu asked, “For which one of us?”⁹ He replied, “For you, O officer.” ^9:6So Jehu¹⁰ got up and went inside. Then the prophet¹¹ 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. ^9:7You will destroy the family of your master Ahab.¹² 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.¹³^9:8Ahab’s entire family will die. I¹⁴ will cut off every last male belonging to Ahab in Israel, including even the weak and incapacitated.¹⁵^9:9I will make Ahab’s dynasty¹⁶ like those of Jeroboam son of Nebat and Baasha son of Ahijah. ^9:10Dogs will devour Jezebel on the plot of ground in Jezreel; she will not be buried.’ ”¹⁷ Then he opened the door and ran away.

^9:11When Jehu rejoined¹⁸ his master’s servants, they¹⁹ asked him, “Is everything all right?²⁰ 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.”²¹^9:12But 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,²² “This is what the Lord says, ‘I have designated you as king over Israel.’ ” ^9:13Each of them quickly took off his cloak and they spread them out at Jehu’s²³ feet on the steps.²⁴ The trumpet was blown²⁵ and they shouted, “Jehu is²⁶ king!” ^9:14Then Jehu son of Jehoshaphat son of Nimshi conspired against Joram.

Jehu the Assassin

Now Joram had been in Ramoth Gilead with the whole Israelite army,²⁷ guarding against an invasion by King Hazael of Syria. ^9:15But King Joram had returned to Jezreel to recover from the wounds he received from the Syrians²⁸ when he fought against King Hazael of Syria.²⁹ Jehu told his supporters,³⁰ “If you really want me to be king,³¹ then don’t let anyone escape from the city to go and warn Jezreel.” ^9:16Jehu drove his chariot³² to Jezreel, for Joram was recuperating³³ there. (Now King Ahaziah of Judah had come down to visit³⁴ Joram.)

^9:17Now the watchman was standing on the tower in Jezreel and saw Jehu’s troops approaching.³⁵ He said, “I see troops!”³⁶ Jehoram ordered,³⁷ “Send a rider out to meet them and have him ask, ‘Is everything all right?’ ”³⁸^9:18So the horseman³⁹ went to meet him and said, “This is what the king says, ‘Is everything all right?’ ”⁴⁰ Jehu replied, “None of your business!⁴¹ Follow me.” The watchman reported, “The messenger reached them, but hasn’t started back.” ^9:19So he sent a second horseman out to them⁴² and he said, “This is what the king says, ‘Is everything all right?’ ”⁴³ Jehu replied, “None of your business! Follow me.” ^9:20The watchman reported, “He reached them, but hasn’t started back. The one who drives the lead chariot drives like Jehu son of Nimshi;⁴⁴ he drives recklessly.” ^9:21Jehoram ordered, “Hitch up my chariot.”⁴⁵ When his chariot had been hitched up,⁴⁶ King Jehoram of Israel and King Ahaziah of Judah went out in their respective chariots⁴⁷ to meet Jehu. They met up with him⁴⁸ in the plot of land that had once belonged to Naboth of Jezreel.

^9:22When 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?”⁴⁹^9:23Jehoram turned his chariot around and took off.⁵⁰ He said to Ahaziah, “It’s a trap,⁵¹ Ahaziah!” ^9:24Jehu aimed his bow and shot an arrow right between Jehoram’s shoulders.⁵² The arrow went through⁵³ his heart and he fell to his knees in his chariot. ^9:25Jehu ordered⁵⁴ 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,”⁵⁵ says the Lord.’ So now pick him up and throw him into this plot of land, just as the Lord said.”⁵⁶

^9:27When King Ahaziah of Judah saw what happened, he took off⁵⁷ 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.⁵⁸ He fled to Megiddo⁵⁹ and died there. ^9:28His…

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Footnotes

1 Heb “Get up and go, you and your house, and live temporarily where you can live temporarily.”
2 Heb “and the woman got up and did according to the word of the man of God.”
3 Heb “and went out to cry out to the king for her house and her field.”
4 Heb “man of God’s.”
5 Heb “he”; the referent (Gehazi) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
6 Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
7 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.” The legal background of the situation is uncertain. For a discussion of possibilities, see M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (), .
8 Heb “and the king asked the woman and she told him.”
9 Heb “and he assigned to her an official, saying.”
10 Heb “he”; the referent (the king) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
11 Heb “man of God” (also a second time in this verse and in v. 11).
12 The Hebrew text also has “in your hand.”
13 Heb “Inquire of the Lord through him, saying.”
14 Heb “him”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
15 The Hebrew text also has “in his hand.”
16 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.”
17 The words “your son” emphasize the king’s respect for the prophet.
18 Heb “saying.”
19 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 and the ancient versions, and is consistent with v. 14, where Hazael tells the king, “You will surely recover.” It is possible that a scribe has changed לוֹ, “to him,” to לֹא, “not,” because he felt that Elisha would not lie to the king. See M. Cogan and H. Tadmor, II Kings (), . Another possibility is that a scribe has decided to harmonize Elisha’s message with Hazael’s words in v. 14. But it is possible that Hazael, once he found out he would become the next king, decided to lie to the king to facilitate his assassination plot by making the king feel secure.
20 Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
21 Heb “and he made his face stand [i.e., be motionless] and set [his face?] until embarrassment.”
22 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.
23 Heb “The Lord has shown me you [as] king over Syria.”
24 Heb “he”; the referent (Ben Hadad) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
25 Heb “he”; the referent (Hazael) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
26 Heb “he”; the referent (Hazael) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
27 Heb “his”; the referent (Ben Hadad) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
28 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.
29 For location see ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; .
30 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.”
31 Heb “in the eyes of.”
32 The Hebrew has only one sentence, “and the Lord was unwilling to destroy Judah for the sake of.” The translation divides it for the sake of clarity.
33 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.
34 Heb “in his days Edom rebelled from under the hand of Judah and enthroned a king over them.”
35 Joram is a short form of the name Jehoram.
36 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 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.
37 Heb “and the people fled to their tents.”
38 Heb “and Edom rebelled from under the hand of Judah until this day.”
39 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?”
40 Heb “lay down with his fathers.”
41 For location see ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; .
42 Hebrew בַּת (bat), “daughter,” can refer, as here to a granddaughter. See בַּת.
43 Heb “in the eyes of.”
44 Heb “and he walked in the way of the house of Ahab and did evil in the eyes of the Lord like the house of Ahab, for he was a relative by marriage of the house of Ahab.” For this use of חֲתַן (khatan), normally “son-in-law,” see חָתָן. Ahab was Ahaziah’s grandfather on his mother’s side.
45 Heb “which the Syrians inflicted [on] him.”
46 Heb “to see.”
1 Heb “one of the sons of the prophets.”
2 Or “flask.”
3 Heb “and go and set him apart from his brothers and bring him into an inner room in an inner room.”
4 Heb “anointed.”
5 Heb “and open the door and run away and do not delay.”
6 Heb “the young man, the young man, the prophet.” The 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.
7 Heb “and he arrived and look, the officers of the army were sitting.”
8 Heb “[there is] a word for me to you, O officer.”
9 Heb “To whom from all of us?”
10 Heb “he”; the referent (Jehu) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
11 Heb “he”; the referent (the prophet) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
12 Or “strike down the house of Ahab your master.”
13 Heb “I will avenge the shed blood of my servants the prophets and the shed blood of all the servants of the Lord from the hand of Jezebel.”
14 The has the second person, “you.”
15 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 (vé’atsur vé’azur, translated here “weak and incapacitated”) see the note at .
16 Heb “house.”
17 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 Lord’s people”), he goes on to tell how Jehu will become king (by a revolt against Ahab’s dynasty), makes it clear that Jehu will be an instrument of divine vengeance, and predicts the utter annihilation of Ahab’s family and the violent death of Jezebel.
18 Heb “went out to.”
19 The has the singular, “he said,” but many witnesses correctly read the plural.
20 Heb “Is there peace?”
21 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.
22 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.
23 Heb “his”; the referent (Jehu) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
24 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.
25 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.
26 Or “has become.”
27 Heb “he and all Israel.”
28 Heb “which the Syrians inflicted [on] him.”
30 The words “his supporters” are added for clarification.
31 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 660–61
32 Heb “rode [or, ‘mounted’] and went.”
33 Heb “lying down.”
34 Heb “to see.”
35 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).
36 The term שִׁפְעַת (shifat) appears to be a construct form of the noun, but no genitive follows.
37 Heb “said.”
38 Heb “Get a rider and send [him] to meet him and let him ask, ‘Is there peace?’ ”
39 Heb “the rider of the horse.”
40 Heb “Is there peace?”
41 Heb “What concerning you and concerning peace?” That is, “What concern is that to you?”
42 Heb “and he came to them.”
43 The 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.
44 Heb “and the driving is like the driving of Jehu son of Nimshi.”
45 The words “my chariot” are added for clarification.
46 Heb “and he hitched up his chariot.”
47 Heb “each in his chariot and they went out.”
48 Heb “they found him.”
49 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.
50 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.
51 Heb “Deceit, Ahaziah.”
52 Heb “and Jehu filled his hand with the bow and he struck Jehoram between his shoulders.”
53 Heb “went out from.”
54 Heb “said to.”
55 Heb “and I will repay you in this plot of land.”
56 Heb “according to the word of the Lord.”
57 Heb “and Ahaziah king of Judah saw and fled.”
58 After Jehu’s order (“kill him too”), the 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.
59 For location see ; ; ; ; .

Cross references

29 See 2 Kgs 8:28–29a.