1 ARST Meanwhile, the prophet Elisha summoned one of the other prophets. He said to him,“Get ready and go to the city of Ramoth in the region of Gilead. Take this jar of olive oil with you. BSB BSB: Now Elisha the prophet summoned one of the sons of the prophets and said to him, “Tuck your cloak under your belt, take this flask of oil, and go to Ramoth-gilead.
3 ARST and pour some of this oil on his head. Then say to him,‘Yahweh declares that he is appointing you to be the king of Israel.’ Then open the door and run away as quickly as you can.” BSB BSB: Then take the flask of oil, pour it on his head, and declare, ‘This is what the LORD says: I anoint you king over Israel.’ Then open the door and run. Do not delay!”
4 ARST So the young prophet went to Ramoth. BSB BSB: So the young prophet went to Ramoth-gilead,
5 ARST When he arrived, he saw that the commanders of the army were having a conference. He looked at Jehu and said,“Sir, I have a message for one of you.” Jehu replied,“Which one of us is the message for?” The young prophet replied,“It is for you, commander.” BSB BSB: and when he arrived, the army commanders were sitting there. “I have a message for you, commander,” he said. “For which of us?” asked Jehu. “For you, commander,” he replied.
6 ARST So Jehu got up and went with the young prophet into a house. There the young prophet poured some olive oil on Jehu’ s head and said to him,“Yahweh, the God whom we Israelites worship, declares this:‘I am appointing you to be the king of my Israelite people. BSB BSB: So Jehu got up and went into the house, where the young prophet poured the oil on his head and declared, “This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘I anoint you king over the LORD’s people Israel.
7 ARST You must kill your master King Joram son of Ahab, because I will punish Ahab’ s wife Jezebel for murdering many of my prophets and other people who served me. BSB BSB: And you are to strike down the house of your master Ahab, so that I may avenge the blood of My servants the prophets and the blood of all the servants of the LORD shed by the hand of Jezebel.
8 ARST You must kill not only Joram but all of Ahab’ s family. I want to get rid of every male in the family, including young ones and old ones. BSB BSB: The whole house of Ahab will perish, and I will cut off from Ahab every male, both slave and free, in Israel.
9 ARST I will get rid of Ahab’ s family, like I got rid of the families of two other kings of Israel, Jeroboam and Baasha. BSB BSB: I will make the house of Ahab like the houses of Jeroboam son of Nebat and Baasha son of Ahijah.
10 ARST And when Jezebel dies, her corpse will not be buried. Dogs will eat her corpse there in the city of Jezreel.’” After the young prophet said this, he left the room and ran. BSB BSB: And on the plot of ground at Jezreel the dogs will devour Jezebel, and there will be no one to bury her.’” Then the young prophet opened the door and ran.
11 ARST When Jehu came out of the room to where his other commanders were, they said to him,“Is everything all right? Why did that mad fellow come to you?” He replied,“You know what kinds of things young prophets like him say.” BSB BSB: When Jehu went out to the servants of his master, they asked, “Is everything all right? Why did this madman come to you?” “You know his kind and their babble,” he replied.
12 ARST They said,“You are lying. Tell us what he said!” He replied,“He told me several things, and then he told me that Yahweh said,‘I am appointing you to be the king of Israel.’” BSB BSB: “That is a lie!” they said. “Tell us now!” So Jehu answered, “He talked to me about this and that, saying, ‘This is what the LORD says: I anoint you king over Israel.’”
13 ARST Then they all spread their cloaks on the steps of the building for Jehu to walk out on, and they blew trumpets and shouted,“Jehu is now the king!” BSB BSB: Quickly, each man took his garment and put it under Jehu on the bare steps. Then they blew the ram’s horn and proclaimed, “Jehu is king!”
14 ARST King Joram and his army had been defending Ramoth against the attacks by the army of the king of Aram. King Joram had returned to the city of Jezreel, to recover from being wounded in the battle against the army of Hazael, the king of Aram. And Jehu made plans to kill Joram. He said to his other commanders, “If you really want to help me, then make sure that no one leaves this city to go to warn the people of Jezreel about what I am planning to do.” BSB BSB: Thus Jehu son of Jehoshaphat, the son of Nimshi, conspired against Joram. (Now Joram and all Israel had been defending Ramoth-gilead against Hazael king of Aram,
16 ARST Then Jehu and his officers got into their chariots and rode to Jezreel, where Joram was still recovering. And King Ahaziah of Judah was there, visiting Joram. BSB BSB: Then Jehu got into his chariot and went to Jezreel, because Joram was laid up there. And Ahaziah king of Judah had gone down to see him.
17 ARST A guard was standing in the watchtower in Jezreel. He saw Jehu and his men approaching. He called out,“I see a lot of men who are approaching!” King Joram heard what the watchman said, so he said to his soldiers,“Send someone on a horse to go and find out if they are coming peacefully or in order to attack us.” BSB BSB: Now the watchman standing on the tower in Jezreel saw Jehu’s troops approaching, and he called out, “I see a company of troops!” “Choose a rider,” Joram commanded. “Send him out to meet them and ask, ‘Have you come in peace?’”
18 ARST So a man riding a horse rode out to meet Jehu and said to him,“The king wants to know if you are coming peacefully.” Jehu replied,“This is not the time for you to be concerned about peace! Turn around and come behind me!” So the guard in the watchtower reported that the messenger had reached the group that was approaching, but he was not returning alone. BSB BSB: So a horseman rode off to meet Jehu and said, “This is what the king asks: ‘Have you come in peace?’” “What do you know about peace?” Jehu replied. “Fall in behind me.” And the watchman reported, “The messenger reached them, but he is not coming back.”
19 ARST So King Joram sent another messenger who asked Jehu the same question. Again Jehu replied,“This is not the time for you to be concerned about peace! Turn around and follow me!” BSB BSB: So the king sent out a second horseman, who went to them and said, “This is what the king asks: ‘Have you come in peace?’” “What do you know about peace?” Jehu replied. “Fall in behind me.”
21 ARST Joram said to his soldiers,“Get my chariot ready.” So they did that. Then King Joram and King Ahaziah both rode toward Jehu, each one in his own chariot. And it happened that they met Jehu at the field that had previously belonged to Naboth! BSB BSB: “Harness!” Joram shouted, and they harnessed his chariot. Then Joram king of Israel and Ahaziah king of Judah set out, each in his own chariot, and met Jehu on the property of Naboth the Jezreelite.
22 ARST When Joram met Jehu, he said to him,“Are you coming to act peacefully toward me?” Jehu replied,“How can there be peace while you and your people are bowing down to idols and practicing very much witchcraft like your mother Jezebel did?” BSB BSB: When Joram saw Jehu, he asked, “Have you come in peace, Jehu?” “How can there be peace,” he replied, “as long as the idolatry and witchcraft of your mother Jezebel abound?”
23 ARST Joram cried out,“Ahaziah, they have deceived us! They want to kill us!” So Joram turned his chariot around and tried to flee. BSB BSB: Joram turned around and fled, calling out to Ahaziah, “Treachery, Ahaziah!”
25 ARST Then Jehu said to his assistant Bidkar,“Take his corpse and throw it here into the field that belonged to Naboth. I am sure that you remember that when you and I were riding together in chariots behind King Joram’ s father Ahab that Yahweh said this about Ahab, BSB BSB: And Jehu said to Bidkar his officer, “Pick him up and throw him into the field of Naboth the Jezreelite. For remember that when you and I were riding together behind his father Ahab, the LORD lifted up this burden against him:
26 ARST ‘Yesterday I saw Ahab murder Naboth and his sons here. And I solemnly promise that I will punish him right here in this same field!’ So take Joram’ s corpse and throw it into that field! That will fulfill what Yahweh said would happen.” BSB BSB: ‘As surely as I saw the blood of Naboth and the blood of his sons yesterday, declares the LORD, so will I repay you on this plot of ground, declares the LORD.’ Now then, according to the word of the LORD, pick him up and throw him on the plot of ground.”
27 ARST When King Ahaziah saw what happened, he fled in his chariot toward the city of Beth Haggan. But Jehu pursued him and said to his other commanders,“Shoot him, also!” So they shot him with arrows while he was riding in his chariot on the road up to Gur, near the city of Ibleam. He continued going in his chariot until he reached the city of Megiddo, where he died. BSB BSB: When King Ahaziah of Judah saw this, he fled up the road toward Beth-haggan. And Jehu pursued him, shouting, “Shoot him too!” So they shot Ahaziah in his chariot on the Ascent of Gur, near Ibleam, and he fled to Megiddo and died there.
28 ARST His officials took his corpse back to Jerusalem and buried it in the tombs in the part of Jerusalem called the city of David, where his ancestors had been buried. BSB BSB: Then his servants carried him by chariot to Jerusalem and buried him with his fathers in his tomb in the City of David.
29 ARST Ahaziah had become the king of Judah when Joram had been ruling Israel for almost eleven years. BSB BSB: (In the eleventh year of Joram son of Ahab, Ahaziah had become king over Judah.)
30 ARST Then Jehu went to Jezreel. When Ahab’ s widow Jezebel heard what had happened, she put paint on her eyelids, and combed her hair to make it beautiful, and looked out the window of the palace toward the street below. BSB BSB: Now when Jehu arrived in Jezreel, Jezebel heard of it. So she painted her eyes, adorned her head, and looked down from a window.
31 ARST While Jehu was entering the city gate, she called out to him,“You are like Zimri! You are a murderer just like him! I think you are certainly not coming to act peacefully toward me!” BSB BSB: And as Jehu entered the gate, she asked, “Have you come in peace, O Zimri, murderer of your master?”
32 ARST Jehu looked up toward the window, and then he said,“Who is on my side? Anyone?” Two or three palace officials looked down at him from a window. BSB BSB: He looked up at the window and called out, “Who is on my side? Who?” And two or three eunuchs looked down at him.
33 ARST Jehu said to them,“Throw her down here!” So they threw her down and Jehu ordered that his men drive their chariots and horses over her body, and that is how she was killed. Some of her blood splattered on the city wall and on the horses that were pulling the chariots. BSB BSB: “Throw her down!” yelled Jehu. So they threw her down, and her blood splattered on the wall and on the horses as they trampled her underfoot.
34 ARST Then Jehu went into the palace and ate and drank. Then he said to some of his men,“Take the corpse of that women whom Yahweh has cursed and bury it, because she is a king’ s daughter and therefore should be buried properly.” BSB BSB: Then Jehu went in and ate and drank. “Take care of this cursed woman,” he said, “and bury her, for she was the daughter of a king.”
35 ARST But when they went to get her corpse to bury it, all that was left was only her skull and the bones of her feet and her hands. Everything else was gone. BSB BSB: But when they went out to bury her, they found nothing but her skull, her feet, and the palms of her hands.
36 ARST When they reported this to Jehu, he said,“That is what Yahweh said would happen! He told his servant Elijah,‘In the city of Jezreel, dogs will eat the flesh of Jezebel’ s corpse. BSB BSB: So they went back and told Jehu, who replied, “This is the word of the LORD, which He spoke through His servant Elijah the Tishbite: ‘On the plot of ground at Jezreel the dogs will devour the flesh of Jezebel.
37 ARST Her bones will be scattered there in Jezreel like dung, with the result that no one will be able to recognize them and say,“These are Jezebel’ s bones.”’” BSB BSB: And Jezebel’s body will lie like dung in the field on the plot of ground at Jezreel, so that no one can say: This is Jezebel.’”
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