2 Kings 8:8–15

⁸he said to Hazael,^g “Take a gift^h with you and go to meet the man of God. Consultⁱ the Lord through him; ask him, ‘Will I recover from this illness?’ ”

⁹Hazael went to meet Elisha, taking with him as a gift forty camel-loads of all the finest wares of Damascus. He went in and stood before him, and said, “Your son Ben-Hadad king of Aram has sent me to ask, ‘Will I recover from this illness?’ ”

¹⁰Elisha answered, “Go and say to him, ‘You will certainly recover.’^j Nevertheless,^a the Lord has revealed to me that he will in fact die.” ¹¹He stared at him with a fixed gaze until Hazael was embarrassed.^k Then the man of God began to weep.^l

¹²“Why is my lord weeping?” asked Hazael.

“Because I know the harm^m you will do to the Israelites,” he answered. “You will set fire to their fortified places, kill their young men with the sword, dashⁿ their little children^o to the ground, and rip open^p their pregnant women.”

¹³Hazael said, “How could your servant, a mere dog,^q accomplish such a feat?”

“The Lord has shown me that you will become king^r of Aram,” answered Elisha.

¹⁴Then Hazael left Elisha and returned to his master. When Ben-Hadad asked, “What did Elisha say to you?” Hazael replied, “He told me that you would certainly recover.” ¹⁵But the next day he took a thick cloth, soaked it in water and spread it over the king’s face, so that he died.^s Then Hazael succeeded him as king.