1 En Joram, die seun van Agab, het koning geword oor Israel in Samar¡a in die agttiende jaar van Josafat, die koning van Juda, en hy het twaalf jaar geregeer.
2 En hy het gedoen wat verkeerd was in die oë van die HERE, maar nie soos sy vader en sy moeder nie, want hy het die klippilaar van Ba„l verwyder wat sy vader gemaak het.
3 Maar hy het die sondes van Jerobeam, die seun van Nebat, wat Israel laat sondig het, aangekleef sonder om daarvan af te wyk.
4 En Mesa, die koning van Moab, was 'n skaapboer, en hy het aan die koning van Israel gelewer honderd duisend lammers en honderd duisend ramme se wol.
5 Maar n die dood van Agab het die koning van Moab van die koning van Israel afvallig geword.
6 En in dieselfde tyd het koning Joram uit Samar¡a uitgetrek en die hele Israel gemonster.
7 Ook het hy Josafat, die koning van Juda, laat weet: Die koning van Moab het van my afvallig geword; sal u saam met my trek om teen die Moabiete te veg? En hy antwoord: Ek sal optrek; ek sal wees soos u, my volk soos u volk, my perde soos u perde.
8 En hy vra: Met watter pad sal ons optrek? Toe antwoord hy: Met die pad deur die woestyn van Edom.
9 So het die koning van Israel dan getrek en die koning van Juda en die koning van Edom; maar nadat hulle 'n pad van sewe dae omgetrek het, was daar geen water vir die leër en die vee wat in hulle voetspore gevolg het nie.
10 Toe sê die koning van Israel: Ag, die HERE het hierdie drie konings geroep om hulle in die hand van die Moabiete te gee!
11 En Josafat vra: Is hier nie 'n profeet van die HERE, dat ons deur hom die HERE kan raadpleeg nie? Toe antwoord een van die koning van Israel se dienaars en sê: Hier is El¡sa, die seun van Safat, wat water op die hande van El¡a gegiet het.
12 Daarop sê Josafat: By hom is die woord van die HERE. So het die koning van Israel en Josafat en die koning van Edom dan na hom afgegaan.
13 Maar El¡sa het aan die koning van Israel gesê: Wat het ek met u te doen? Gaan na die profete van u vader en die profete van u moeder! Maar die koning van Israel antwoord hom: Ag nee, want die HERE het hierdie drie konings geroep om hulle in die hand van die Moabiete te gee.
14 En El¡sa sê: So waar as die HERE van die leërskare leef voor wie se aangesig ek staan, as ek nie agting gehad het vir die persoon van Josafat, die koning van Juda, nie, ek sou na u nie kyk en u nie aansien nie.
15 Maar bring nou vir my 'n siterspeler. En toe die siterspeler op die snare speel, het die hand van die HERE op hom gekom,
16 en hy het gesê: So spreek die HERE: Maak hierdie dal vol gate.
17 Want so spreek die HERE: Julle sal geen wind sien nie, en julle sal geen reën sien nie, en tog sal hierdie dal vol water word, sodat julle self en julle vee en julle ander diere kan drink.
18 Ja, dit is nog te gering in die oë van die HERE: Hy sal ook die Moabiete in julle hand gee.
19 En julle sal elke versterkte stad en elke uitgesoekte stad oorweldig en elke goeie boom omkap en al die waterfonteine toestop, en elke goeie stuk grond sal julle met klippe bederwe.
20 En die volgende môre , omtrent die tyd dat hulle die spysoffer bring, kom daar meteens water van die kant van Edom af, sodat die land vol water geword het.
21 En toe al die Moabiete hoor dat die konings optrek om teen hulle te veg, is hulle opgeroep, almal wat die gord vasgespe en wat ouer was, en hulle het by die grens gaan staan.
22 Terwyl hulle die môre vroeg hul gereedmaak en die son oor die water opgaan, sien die Moabiete op 'n afstand die water rooi soos bloed.
23 En hulle sê: Dit is bloed; die konings het sekerlik mekaar aangeval en die een die ander verslaan; en nou op die buit af, julle Moabiete!
24 Maar toe hulle by die laer van Israel kom, het die Israeliete hulle gereedgemaak en die Moabiete verslaan, sodat hulle voor hul uit gevlug het; en hulle het dieper ingetrek en die Moabiete verslaan.
25 Daarna het hulle die stede verwoes en op elke goeie stuk grond elkeen sy klip gegooi, sodat dit daarvan vol was, en elke waterfontein toegestop en elke goeie boom omgekap, totdat hulle net in Kir-Har,set die klipmure daarvan laat oorbly het. Maar toe die slingeraars dit omsingel en beskiet,
26 en die koning van Moab sien dat die geveg vir hom te swaar word, het hy sewe honderd man wat die swaard uittrek, met hom saamgeneem om na die koning van Edom deur te breek; maar hulle kon nie.
27 Daarop neem hy sy eersgebore seun, wat in sy plek koning sou word, en offer hom as brandoffer op die muur. Toe het 'n groot toorn oor Israel gekom, sodat hulle van hom weggetrek en na hulle land teruggegaan het.
1 And Jehoram, the son of Ahab, became king over Israel in Samaria in the eighteenth year of the rule of Jehoshaphat, king of Judah; and he was king for twelve years.
2 He did evil in the eyes of the Lord; but not like his father and his mother, for he put away the stone pillar of Baal which his father had made.
3 But still he did the same sins which Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, did and made Israel do; he went on in them.
4 Now Mesha, king of Moab, was a sheep-farmer; and he gave regularly to the king of Israel the wool from a hundred thousand lambs and a hundred thousand sheep.
5 But when Ahab was dead, the king of Moab got free from the authority of the king of Israel.
6 At that time, King Jehoram went out from Samaria and got all Israel together in fighting order.
7 And he sent to Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, saying, The king of Moab has got free from my authority: will you go with me to make war on Moab? And he said, I will go with you: I am as you are, my people as your people, and my horses as your horses.
8 And he said, Which way are we to go? And he said in answer, By the waste land of Edom.
9 So the king of Israel went with the king of Judah and the king of Edom by a roundabout way for seven days: and there was no water for the army or for the beasts they had with them.
10 And the king of Israel said, Here is trouble: for the Lord has got these three kings together to give them into the hands of Moab.
11 But Jehoshaphat said, Is there no prophet of the Lord here, through whom we may get directions from the Lord? And one of the king of Israel's men said in answer, Elisha, the son of Shaphat, is here, who was servant to Elijah.
12 And Jehoshaphat said, The word of the Lord is with him. So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went down to him.
13 But Elisha said to the king of Israel, What have I to do with you? go to the prophets of your father and your mother. And the king of Israel said, No; for the Lord has got these three kings together to give them up into the hands of Moab.
14 Then Elisha said, By the life of the Lord of armies whose servant I am, if it was not for the respect I have for Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, I would not give a look at you, or see you.
15 But now, get me a player of music, and it will come about that while the man is playing, the hand of the Lord will come on me and I will give you the word of the Lord: and they got a player of music, and while the man was playing, the hand of the Lord was on him.
16 And he said, The Lord says, I will make this valley full of water-holes.
17 For the Lord says, Though you see no wind or rain, the valley will be full of water, and you and your armies and your beasts will have drink.
18 And this will be only a small thing to the Lord: in addition he will give the Moabites into your hands.
19 And you are to put every walled town to destruction, cutting down every good tree, and stopping up every water-spring, and making all the good land rough with stones.
20 Now in the morning, about the time when the offering was made, they saw water flowing from the direction of Edom till the country was full of water.
21 Now all Moab, hearing that the kings had come to make war against them, got together all who were able to take up arms and went forward to the edge of the country.
22 And early in the morning they got up, when the sun was shining on the water, and they saw the water facing them as red as blood.
23 Then they said, This is blood: it is clear that destruction has come on the kings; they have been fighting one another: now come, Moab, let us take their goods.
24 But when they came to the tents of Israel, the Israelites came out and made a violent attack on the Moabites, so that they went in flight before them; and they went forward still attacking them;
25 Pulling down the towns, covering every good field with stones, stopping up all the water-springs, and cutting down all the good trees; they went on driving Moab before them till only in Kir-hareseth were there any Moabites; and the fighting-men went round the town raining stones on it.
26 And when the king of Moab saw that the fight was going against him, he took with him seven hundred men armed with swords, with the idea of forcing a way through to the king of Aram, but they were not able to do so.
27 Then he took his oldest son, who would have been king after him, offering him as a burned offering on the wall. So there was great wrath against Israel; and they went away from him, back to their country.