¹⁴Jehu was the son of Jehoshaphat, the son of Nimshi. Jehu made plans against Joram. During that time Joram and Israel’s whole army had been guarding Ramoth Gilead. They had been guarding it against Hazael, the king of Aram.

¹⁵But King Joram had returned to Jezreel. He had gone there to give his wounds time to heal. The soldiers of Aram had wounded him in his battle against Hazael, the king of Aram.

Jehu said to his men, “Are you really on my side? If you are, don’t let anyone sneak out of the city. Don’t let them go and tell the news in Jezreel.” ¹⁶Then Jehu got into his chariot. He rode off to Jezreel. Joram was resting there. And Ahaziah, the king of Judah, had gone down to see him.

¹⁷A lookout was standing on the roof of the tower in Jezreel. He saw Jehu’s troops approaching. So he called out, “I see some troops coming.”

“Get a horseman,” Joram ordered. “Send him to ride out to them. Have him ask, ‘Are you coming in peace?’ ”

¹⁸The horseman rode out to where Jehu was. He said, “The king asks, ‘Are you coming in peace?’ ”

“What do you know about peace?” Jehu answered. “Get in line behind me.”

The lookout reported, “The messenger has reached them. But he isn’t coming back.”

¹⁹So the king sent out a second horseman. When he came to them, he told them, “The king asks, ‘Are you coming in peace?’ ”

Jehu replied, “What do you know about peace? Get in line behind me.”

²⁰The lookout reported, “The second messenger has reached them. But he isn’t coming back either. The one driving the chariot drives like Jehu, the son of Nimshi. He’s driving like a crazy man.”

²¹“Get my chariot ready,” King Joram ordered. When it was ready, he rode out. Ahaziah, the king of Judah, rode out with him. Each of them was in his own chariot. They both went to meet Jehu. They met him at the piece of land that had belonged to Naboth from Jezreel.

²²When Joram saw Jehu he asked, “Have you come here in peace, Jehu?”

“Your mother Jezebel worships statues of gods,” Jehu replied. “She also worships evil powers. The evil things she does have spread everywhere. As long as all of that goes on, how can there be peace?”

²³Joram turned around and tried to get away. He called out to Ahaziah. He said, “It’s treason, Ahaziah!”

²⁴Then Jehu shot an arrow at Joram. It hit him between the shoulders. It went through his heart. He sank down slowly in his chariot.

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