2 Kings 13

¹In the twenty-third year of Joʹash the son of Ahaziʹah, king of Judah, Jehoʹahaz the son of Jehu began to reign over Israel in Samarʹia, and he reigned seventeen years. ²He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and followed the sins of Jeroboʹam the son of Nebat, which he made Israel to sin; he did not depart from them. ³And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he gave them continually into the hand of Hazʹael king of Syria and into the hand of Ben-haʹdad the son of Hazʹael. ⁴Then Jehoʹahaz besought the Lord, and the Lord hearkened to him; for he saw the oppression of Israel, how the king of Syria oppressed them. ⁵(Therefore the Lord gave Israel a savior, so that they escaped from the hand of the Syrians; and the people of Israel dwelt in their homes as formerly. ⁶Nevertheless they did not depart from the sins of the house of Jeroboʹam, which he made Israel to sin, but walked in them; and the Asheʹrah also remained in Samarʹia.) ⁷For there was not left to Jehoʹahaz an army of more than fifty horsemen and ten chariots and ten thousand footmen; for the king of Syria had destroyed them and made them like the dust at threshing. ⁸Now the rest of the acts of Jehoʹahaz and all that he did, and his might, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? ⁹So Jehoʹahaz slept with his fathers, and they buried him in Samarʹia; and Joʹash his son reigned in his stead.

¹⁰In the thirty-seventh year of Joʹash king of Judah Jehoʹash the son of Jehoʹahaz began to reign over Israel in Samarʹia, and he reigned sixteen years. ¹¹He also did what was evil in the sight of the Lord; he did not depart from all the sins of Jeroboʹam the son of Nebat, which he made Israel to sin, but he walked in them. ¹²Now the rest of the acts of Joʹash, and all that he did, and the might with which he fought against Amaziʹah king of Judah, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? ¹³So Joʹash slept with his fathers, and Jeroboʹam sat upon his throne; and Joʹash was buried in Samarʹia with the kings of Israel.

¹⁴Now when Eliʹsha had fallen sick with the illness of which he was to die, Joʹash king of Israel went down to him, and wept before him, crying, “My father, my father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!” ¹⁵And Eliʹsha said to him, “Take a bow and arrows”; so he took a bow and arrows. ¹⁶Then he said to the king of Israel, “Draw the bow”; and he drew it. And Eliʹsha laid his hands upon the king’s hands. ¹⁷And he said, “Open the window eastward”; and he opened it. Then Eliʹsha said, “Shoot”; and he shot. And he said, “The Lord’s arrow of victory, the arrow of victory over Syria! For you shall fight the Syrians in Aphek until you have made an end of them.” ¹⁸And he said, “Take the arrows”; and he took them. And he said to the king of Israel, “Strike the ground with them”; and he struck three times, and stopped. ¹⁹Then the man of God was angry with him, and said, “You should have struck five or six times; then you would have struck down Syria until you had made an end of it, but now you will strike down Syria only three times.”

²⁰So Eliʹsha died, and they buried him. Now bands of Moabites used to invade the land in the spring of the year. ²¹And as a man was being buried, lo, a marauding band was seen and the man was cast into the grave of Eliʹsha; and as soon as the man touched the bones of Eliʹsha, he revived, and stood on his feet.

²²Now Hazʹael king of Syria oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoʹahaz. ²³But the Lord was gracious to them and had compassion on them, and he turned toward them, because of his covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and would not destroy them; nor has he cast them from his presence until now.

²⁴When Hazʹael king of Syria died, Ben-haʹdad his son became king in his stead. ²⁵Then Jehoʹash the son of Jehoʹahaz took again from Ben-haʹdad the son of Hazʹael the cities which he had taken from Jehoʹahaz his father in war. Three times Joʹash defeated him and recovered the cities of Israel.