So let them provide two oxen. They can choose one ox for themselves. Cut it up, lay it on top of some wood, but don't set fire to it. I will prepare the other ox and lay it on top of some wood, and I won't set fire to it.

Whoever escapes from Hazael's sword Jehu will execute, and whoever escapes from Jehu's sword Elisha will put to death.

About this time tomorrow, I'll send my servants to you, and they'll search through your palace and your servants' houses. Whatever is important to you will be seized and taken away.'"

So he told Ben-hadad's envoys, "Tell his majesty the king, "Everything that you asked for the first time I will do, but this thing I cannot do.'" So the envoys left to deliver Ahab's response. They returned a little while later.

Right about then, a prophet approached King Ahab of Israel and told him, "This is what the LORD says: "You see all of this great big army, do you? Well now, I'm going to deliver them all right into your hand, and you will learn that I am the LORD!'"

The prophet approached the king of Israel and told him, "Go replenish your forces and prepare for the future, because early this next year the king of Aram will attack you again."

Ben-hadad made this promise to Ahab: "I will restore the cities that my ancestors took from your ancestors. You'll be able to build streets named after yourself in Damascus, as my father did in Samaria." "With this promise I will release you," Ahab replied. So Ahab made a treaty with Ben-hadad and let him go.

so he told him, "Because you haven't obeyed the LORD's voice, as soon as you leave here, a lion will kill you." As soon as the man left, a lion found him and killed him.

Ahab went back to his palace, sullen and in a foul mood, because Naboth the Jezreelite had turned down Ahab's offer by saying "I will not transfer my ancestors' inheritance to you!" He laid down on his bed, curled up with his face to the wall, and refused to eat.

Ask the king, "Did you commit murder? And now you're going to steal as well?' Also tell him, "This is what the LORD says: "Where the dogs were licking up Naboth's blood, dogs will also lick up your blood that's right yours!"'"

But Elijah answered, "I've found you because you sold yourself to do what the LORD considers to be evil! Now pay attention! I'm going to send evil in your direction! I will completely sweep you away and eliminate from Ahab every male, whether indentured servant or free, throughout Israel.

I will make your household resemble that of Nebat's son Jeroboam, or like the household of Ahijah's son Baasha, because of how you've provoked me to anger and made Israel to sin.

The LORD also has this to say about Jezebel: "Dogs will eat Jezebel within the outer ramparts of Jezreel.

Dogs will eat whoever belongs to Ahab and who dies in the city. The birds of the sky will eat whoever dies in the fields.'"

"Have you noticed that Ahab has humbled himself in my presence? Because he has humbled himself in my presence, I will not bring his evil to harvest during his lifetime, but I will bring evil to his household during his son's lifetime."

Then he asked Jehoshaphat, "Will you join me in battle against Ramoth-gilead?"

"I'm with you," Jehoshaphat answered the king of Israel. "My army will join yours, and my cavalry will be your cavalry." But Jehoshaphat also asked the king of Israel, "Please ask for a message from the LORD, first."

So the king of Israel called in about 400 prophets and asked them, "Should we go attack Ramoth-gilead, or should I call off the attack?" "Go attack them," they all said, "because the Lord will drop them right into the king's hand!"

All the other prophets were saying similar things, like "Go up to Ramoth-gilead and you will be successful, because the LORD will hand it over to the king!"

When Micaiah approached the king, the king asked him, "Micaiah, should we go to war against Ramoth-gilead, or should I not?" "Go to war," Micaiah replied, "and you will be successful, because the LORD will hand it over to the king!"

"The LORD asked, "Who will tempt King Ahab of Israel to attack Ramoth-gilead, so that he will die there?' And one was saying one thing and one was saying another.

"But then a spirit approached, stood in front of the LORD, and said, "I will entice him.'

"And the LORD asked him, "How?' ""I will go,' he announced, "and I will be a deceiving spirit in the mouth of all of his prophets!' "So the LORD said, "You're just the one to deceive him. You will be successful. Go and do it.'

Now therefore this is what the LORD says: "You won't be getting up from that bed of yours on which you're lying. You will most certainly die!"'" So Elijah got up and went.

They replied, "We met a man who told us, "Go back to the king who sent you and ask him, "Is it because there is no God in Israel that you're going to consult with Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? Therefore you won't be getting up from that bed on which you're lying. You will most certainly die!"'"

Then Elijah spoke to the king, "This is what the LORD says: "Since you sent messengers to consult with Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron is it because there is no God in Israel with whom to consult regarding his word? therefore you're not getting up from the bed on which you're lying. You certainly will die!'"

"That's a hard thing to ask for," Elijah answered, "but if you see me while I'm being taken from you, it will happen for you. But if you don't see me, it won't happen."

As he was going out, he sent this message to King Jehoshaphat of Judah: "The king of Moab has rebelled against me. Will you go with me to fight Moab?"

"I'm coming," Jehoshaphat replied. "I'm like you! My army will act like your army and my cavalry like your cavalry," Then Jehoshaphat added: "What road do we take?" Jehoram answered, "We'll go along the Edom desert road."

This is what the LORD says: "Though you won't see wind or storm, nevertheless that river will overflow with water so that you, your cattle, and your livestock may drink.'

But he replied, "There isn't even one pot left." Then the oil stopped flowing. After this, she went and told the man of God what had happened. So he said, "Go sell the oil, pay your debt, and you and your children will be able to live on the proceeds."

and he told her, "About this time next year you will be embracing a son."

He asked her, "What's the point of visiting him today? It's not a New Moon, and it isn't the Sabbath!" But she kept saying, "Things will go well."

Somebody went out into the fields to grab some herbs, found a wild vine, and gathered a lap full of wild gourds, which he came and sliced up into the stew pot, but nobody else knew.

Elisha's attendant asked, "What? Will this serve 100 men?"

But he replied, "Distribute it to the people so they can eat, because this is what the LORD says: "They will eat and have a surplus!'" So he served them, and they ate and had some left over, just as the LORD had indicated.

When Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes, he sent a message to the king and asked, "Why did you tear your clothes? Please, let the man come visit me and he will learn that there is a prophet in Israel!"

Elisha sent a messenger out to him, who told him, "Go bathe in the Jordan River seven times. Your flesh will be restored for you. Now stay clean!"

But Elisha replied, "As the LORD lives, before whom I stand, I will not receive anything from you." Though Naaman urged him to take it, Elisha declined.

So Naaman asked, "No? Then please let your servant load two mules with dirt from Israel, because your servant will no longer offer any burnt offering or sacrifice to any other god but the LORD.

In this one area may the LORD pardon your servant: Whenever my master enters the temple of Rimmon to worship there, he will lean on my hand while I bow down in the temple of Rimmon. So may the LORD pardon your servant in this one area."

Naaman's leprosy will plague you and your descendants forever!" As he left Elisha's presence, he was infected with leprosy that looked like white snow.

The king of Aram flew into a rage over this, so he called in his advisors and asked them, "Will you please tell me which of us has joined the king of Israel?"

Meanwhile, the attendant to the man of God got up early in the morning and went outside, and there were the elite forces, surrounding the city, accompanied by horses and chariots! So Elisha's attendant cried out to him, "Oh no! Master! What will we do!?"

He replied, "No! Since the LORD won't give you victory, how will I be able to deliver you? From the threshing floor? From the wine press?"

So Elisha responded, "Listen to this message from the LORD! "This is what the LORD says: "At about this time tomorrow, in Samaria's city gate, a seah of finely ground flour will sell for a shekel, and two seahs of barley for a shekel."'"

One of his attendants suggested, "Please, let's take five of the remaining horses, since those who remain here will end up like the rest of Israel, which has already died, and we'll send them out to look."

It happened just as the man of God had spoken to the king: "At about this time tomorrow, in Samaria's city gate, a seah of finely ground flour will sell for a shekel, and two seahs of barley for a shekel."

So the king told Hazael, "Take a gift with you and go meet the man of God. Inquire of the LORD through him and ask, "Will I recover from this sickness?'"

So Hazael went out to meet with him and took a gift with him 40 camel loads filled with samples of everything good in Damascus. He approached the man of God and said, "Your son King Ben-hadad from Aram has sent me to you to ask you, "Will I recover from this sickness?'"

But Elisha told him, "Go tell him, "You will certainly recover,' but the LORD has shown me that he will certainly die."

But Hazael responded, "What? Who am I, your servant, that I should do such a horrible thing?" But Elisha answered, "The LORD has shown me that you will be king over Aram."

The entire household of Ahab will die, and I will cut off from Ahab every male person in Israel, whether imprisoned or surviving.

I will make the household of Ahab like the household of Nebat's son Jeroboam and the household of Ahijah's son Baasha.

Furthermore, the dogs will eat Jezebel in the territory of Jezreel. There will be no burial for her.'" Then he opened the door and left.

"This is what the LORD says, "I have certainly observed the blood of Naboth and his sons, and I will repay you on this property," declares the LORD.' "Therefore take the body and throw it in the field, just as the LORD said."

"Dogs will eat Jezebel's flesh on the property of Jezreel, and her corpse will lie like dung on the surface of the field on the property in Jezreel, but no one will say, "This is Jezebel."'"

So the household overseer and the city supervisor, along with the elders and the children's guardians, sent word to Jehu, telling him, "We will serve you and do everything you ask. We won't set up a king, so do what you want to do."

Keep this in mind not a single statement by the LORD will fail to come about that he spoke concerning Ahab's dynasty, because the LORD has accomplished what he predicted by his servant Elijah."

Then Jehu assembled all the people and announced to them, "Ahab served Baal a little, but Jehu will serve him a lot!

Then they went in to offer sacrifices and burnt offerings. Meanwhile, Jehu had stationed 80 men outside, ordering them, "If any of these men whom I've brought into your control escape, the one who allows it will forfeit his life."

Nevertheless, the LORD told Jehu, "Because you have done well in carrying out what I saw as the right thing to do by completing everything I had in mind regarding Ahab's dynasty, your sons will sit on the throne of Israel to the fourth generation."

"Here's what we'll do: A third of you will enter here on this coming Sabbath dressed as guardians of the watch for the king's palace, with a third of you at the Sur gate, and a third at the gate behind the guards. Keep watch over the palace and defend it.

and ordered him, "Open a window that faces east." So he did so. Elisha ordered him, "Shoot!" So he shot. Then Elisha said, "This is the LORD's arrow of victory the victory arrow against Aram, because you will defeat the Arameans at Aphek until you will have utterly finished them off."

But King Jehoash of Israel sent this message to King Amaziah of Judah: "The thorn bush in Lebanon sent this message to the cedar of Lebanon: "Give your daughter to my son in marriage.' But just then a wild beast from Lebanon wandered by and trampled down the thorn bush.

This is what the LORD told Jehu: "Your children will sit on Israel's throne for the next four generations." And that is what happened:

and issued these orders to Uriah the priest: "Burn the morning burnt offering, the evening grain offering, the king's burnt offering and grain offering, the whole burnt offering, the grain offering, and the drink offering on behalf of all the people of the land on the large altar. And sprinkle all the blood from the burnt offering and from the sacrifice. But I will use the bronze altar to ask God questions."

But you are to fear the LORD, and he will deliver you from the control of all your enemies."

""Now who are you relying on, that you have rebelled against me? Look, you're trusting on Egypt to lean on like a staff, but it's a crushed reed, and if you lean on it, it will collapse and pierce your hand. Pharaoh, king of Egypt, is just like that to everyone who relies on him!

But Rab-shakeh spoke to them, "Has my master sent me to talk about this just to your master and to you, and not also to the men who are sitting on the wall, who will soon be eating their own feces and drinking their own urine along with you?"

"Don't let Hezekiah deceive you, because he will prove to be unable to deliver you from my control. And don't let Hezekiah make you trust in the LORD by telling you, "The LORD will certainly deliver us and this city will not be handed over to the king of Assyria."

Don't listen to Hezekiah, because this is what the king of Assyria says: "Make peace with me and come out to me! Each of you will eat from his own vine. Each will eat from his own fig tree. And each of you will drink water from his own cistern

"But don't listen to Hezekiah when he misleads you by saying, "The LORD will deliver us!" Has any of the gods of the nations delivered his land from control by the king of Assyria?

"This is what Hezekiah says: "Today is a day of trouble, rebuke, and blasphemy, because children are about to be born, but there is no strength to bring them to birth. Perhaps the LORD your God will take note of everything that Rab-shakeh has said, whom his master the king of Assyria sent to taunt the living God, and then he will rebuke the words that the LORD your God has heard. Therefore offer a prayer for the survivors who remain.'"

"Look! you've heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the lands they completely destroyed them! Will you be spared?

Now, LORD our God, I'm praying that you will deliver us from his control, so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you alone, LORD, are God!"

"This will serve as a sign for you: you'll eat this year from what grows by itself, in the second year what grows from that, and in the third year you'll sow, reap, plant vineyards, and enjoy their fruit.

Those who survive from Judah's household will again put down deep roots and bear fruit extensively,

because a remnant will go out from Jerusalem, and survivors from Mount Zion. The zeal of the LORD will bring this about."

"Therefore this is what the LORD says concerning the king of Assyria: "Not only will he not approach this city or shoot an arrow in its direction, he won't approach it with so much as a shield, nor will he throw up a siege ramp against it.

"I will defend this city and preserve it for my own reasons, and because of my servant David.'"

During this time, Hezekiah became sick with a fatal illness, so Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, approached him and told him, "This is what the LORD says: "Put your household in order, because you are dying. You will not survive.'"

So Isaiah replied, "This will be your sign from the LORD that the LORD will do what he has promised. Shall the shadow go forward ten steps or go back ten steps?"

"Watch out! The days are coming when everything that's in your house everything that your ancestors have saved up right to this day will be carried off to Babylon. Nothing will be left,' declares the LORD.

"Some of your descendants your very own seed, whom you will father will be carried away to become officials in the palace of the king of Babylon.'"

He also built altars in the LORD's Temple, about which the LORD had said, "In Jerusalem I will place my Name."

He also erected the carved image of Asherah that he had made inside the Temple about which the LORD had spoken to David and to his son Solomon, "I will put my Name forever in this Temple and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen from all of the tribes of Israel.

And I will not make Israel's feet to wander anymore from the land that I have given to their ancestors, if they will only be careful to do everything that I have commanded them according to the entire Law that my servant Moses commanded them."

therefore this is what the LORD God of Israel says: "Look! I'm going to bring such a disaster to Jerusalem and Judah that both ears of those who hear about it will ring.

I will abandon the survivors of my heritage and hand them over to their enemies. They will become war booty and spoil to all of their enemies,

"Therefore, look! I will gather you to your ancestors, and you will be placed in your grave in peace. Your eyes will never see all the evil that I will bring on this place.'"'"

The LORD said, "I'm going to remove Judah from my sight as well, just as I've removed Israel. I will abandon Jerusalem, this city that I've chosen, as well as the Temple, about which I've spoken, "My Name shall remain there.'"

Gedaliah made this promise to them and to their men: "Don't be afraid of the servants of the Chaldeans. Live in the land and serve the king of Babylon, and things will go well with you."

Even though Judah became prominent among his relatives that is, the Commander-in-chief will be his descendant nevertheless the right of the firstborn went to Joseph.)

Saul ordered his armor bearer, "Draw your sword and run me through with it, or these uncircumcised people will come and abuse me."

Even back when Saul was ruling as king, you kept on leading the army of Israel out to battle and bringing them in again. The LORD your God told you, "You yourself will shepherd my people Israel and will be Commander-in-Chief over my people Israel.'"

David had announced, "Whoever first attacks the Jebusites will be appointed chief and commander." When Zeruiah's son Joab went up first, he became chief.

said in response, "May God forbid me to do this! I won't drink the blood of these men, will I? After all, they risked their lives to bring it to me." That's why he wouldn't drink it. The Three Warriors did these things.

So David asked God, "Am I to go out against the Philistines? Will you give me victory over them?" "Go out," the LORD replied to him, "and I'll put them right into your hand."

When you hear the sound of marching coming from the tops of the balsam trees, then go out to battle, because God will have gone out ahead of you to destroy the Philistine army."