1 Now Ben-hadad, king of Aram, got all his army together, and thirty-two kings with him, and horses and carriages of war; he went up and made war on Samaria, shutting it in.2 And he sent representatives into the town to Ahab, king of Israel;3 And they said to him, Ben-hadad says, Your silver and your gold are mine; and your wives and children are mine.4 And the king of Israel sent him an answer saying, As you say, my lord king, I am yours with all I have.5 Then the representatives came back again, and said, These are the words of Ben-hadad: I sent to you saying, Give up to me your silver and your gold, your wives and your children;6 But I will send my servants to you tomorrow about this time, to make a search through your house and the houses of your people, and everything which is pleasing in your eyes they will take away in their hands.7 Then the king of Israel sent for all the responsible men of the land, and said, Now will you take note and see the evil purpose of this man: he sent for my wives and my children, my silver and my gold, and I did not keep them back.8 And all the responsible men and the people said to him, Do not give attention to him or do what he says.9 So he said to the representatives of Ben-hadad, Say to my lord the king, All the orders you sent the first time I will do; but this thing I may not do. And the representatives went back with this answer.10 Then Ben-hadad sent to him, saying, May the gods' punishment be on me if there is enough of the dust of Samaria for all the people at my feet to take some in their hands.11 And the king of Israel said in answer, Say to him, The time for loud talk is not when a man is putting on his arms, but when he is taking them off.12 Now when this answer was given to Ben-hadad, he was drinking with the kings in the tents, and he said to his men, Take up your positions. So they put themselves in position for attacking the town.13 Then a prophet came up to Ahab, king of Israel, and said, The Lord says, Have you seen all this great army? See, I will give it into your hands today, and you will see that I am the Lord.14 And Ahab said, By whom? And he said, The Lord says, By the servants of the chiefs who are over the divisions of the land. Then he said, By whom is the fighting to be started? And he made answer, By you.15 Then he got together the servants of all the chiefs who were over the divisions of the land, two hundred and thirty-two of them; and after them, he got together all the people, all the children of Israel, seven thousand.16 And in the middle of the day they went out. But Ben-hadad was drinking in the tents with the thirty-two kings who were helping him.17 And the servants of the chiefs who were over the divisions of the land went forward first; and when Ben-hadad sent out, they gave him the news, saying, Men have come out from Samaria.18 And he said, If they have come out for peace, take them living, and if they have come out for war, take them living.19 So the servants of the chiefs of the divisions of the land went out of the town, with the army coming after them.20 And every one of them put his man to death, and the Aramaeans went in flight with Israel after them; and Ben-hadad, king of Aram, got away safely on a horse with his horsemen.21 And the king of Israel went out and took the horses and the war-carriages, and made great destruction among the Aramaeans.22 Then the prophet came up to the king of Israel, and said to him, Now make yourself strong, and take care what you do, or a year from now the king of Aram will come up against you again.23 Then the king of Aram's servants said to him, Their god is a god of the hills; that is why they were stronger than we: but if we make an attack on them in the lowlands, we will certainly be stronger than they.24 This is what you have to do: take away the kings from their positions, and put captains in their places;25 And get together another army like the one which came to destruction, horse for horse, and carriage for carriage; and let us make war on them in the lowlands, and certainly we will be stronger than they. And he gave ear to what they said, and did so.26 So, a year later, Ben-hadad got the Aramaeans together and went up to Aphek to make war on Israel.27 And the children of Israel got themselves together, and food was made ready and they went against them; the tents of the children of Israel were like two little flocks of goats before them, but all the country was full of the Aramaeans.28 And a man of God came up and said to the king of Israel, The Lord says, Because the Aramaeans have said, The Lord is a god of the hills and not of the valleys; I will give all this great army into your hands, and you will see that I am the Lord.29 Now the two armies kept their positions facing one another for seven days. And on the seventh day the fight was started; and the children of Israel put to the sword a hundred thousand Aramaean footmen in one day.30 But the rest went in flight to Aphek, into the town, where a wall came down on the twenty-seven thousand who were still living. And Ben-hadad went in flight into the town, into an inner room.31 Then his servants said to him, It is said that the kings of Israel are full of mercy: let us then put on haircloth, and cords on our heads, and go to the king of Israel; it may be that he will give you your life.32 So they put on haircloth, and cords on their heads, and came to the king of Israel and said, Your servant Ben-hadad says, Let me now keep my life. And he said, Is he still living? he is my brother.33 Now the men took it as a sign, and quickly took up his words; and they said, Ben-hadad is your brother. Then he said, Go and get him. So Ben-hadad came out to him and he made him get up into his carriage.34 And Ben-hadad said to him, The towns my father took from your father I will give back; and you may make streets for yourself in Damascus as my father did in Samaria. And as for me, at the price of this agreement you will let me go. So he made an agreement with him and let him go.35 And a certain man of the sons of the prophets said to his neighbour by the word of the Lord, Give me a wound. But the man would not.36 Then he said to him, Because you have not given ear to the voice of the Lord, straight away when you have gone from me a lion will put you to death. And when he had gone, straight away a lion came rushing at him and put him to death.37 Then he came across another man, and said, Give me a wound. And the man gave him a blow wounding him.38 So the prophet went away, and pulling his head-band over his eyes to keep his face covered, took his place by the road waiting for the king.39 And when the king went by, crying out to him he said, Your servant went out into the fight; and a man came out to me with another man and said, Keep this man: if by any chance he gets away, your life will be the price of his life, or you will have to give a talent of silver in payment.40 But while your servant was turning this way and that, he was gone. Then the king of Israel said to him, You are responsible; you have given the decision against yourself.41 Then he quickly took the head-band from his eyes; and the king of Israel saw that he was one of the prophets.42 And he said to him, These are the words of the Lord: Because you have let go from your hands the man whom I had put to the curse, your life will be taken for his life, and your people for his people.43 Then the king of Israel went back to his house, bitter and angry, and came to Samaria.

1 Porro Benadad rex Syriæ congregavit omnem exercitum suum, et triginta duos reges secum, et equos, et currus : et ascendens pugnabat contra Samariam, et obsidebat eam. 2 Mittensque nuntios ad Achab regem Israël in civitatem, 3 ait : Hæc dicit Benadad : Argentum tuum, et aurum tuum meum est : et uxores tuæ, et filii tui optimi, mei sunt. 4 Responditque rex Israël : Juxta verbum tuum, domine mi rex, tuus sum ego, et omnia mea. 5 Revertentesque nuntii, dixerunt : Hæc dicit Benadad, qui misit nos ad te : Argentum tuum, et aurum tuum, et uxores tuas, et filios tuos, dabis mihi. 6 Cras igitur hac eadem hora mittam servos meos ad te, et scrutabuntur domum tuam, et domum servorum tuorum : et omne quod eis placuerit, ponent in manibus suis, et auferent. 7 Vocavit autem rex Israël omnes seniores terræ, et ait : Animadvertite, et videte quoniam insidietur nobis : misit enim ad me pro uxoribus meis, et filiis, et pro argento et auro : et non abnui. 8 Dixeruntque omnes majores natu, et universus populus, ad eum : Non audias, neque acquiescas illi. 9 Respondit itaque nuntiis Benadad : Dicite domino meo regi : Omnia propter quæ misisti ad me servum tuum in initio, faciam : hanc autem rem facere non possum. 10 Reversique nuntii retulerunt ei. Qui remisit, et ait : Hæc faciant mihi dii, et hæc addant, si suffecerit pulvis Samariæ pugillis omnis populi qui sequitur me. 11 Et respondens rex Israël, ait : Dicite ei : Ne glorietur, accinctus æque ut discinctus. 12 Factum est autem cum audisset Benadad verbum istud, bibebat ipse et reges in umbraculis : et ait servis suis : Circumdate civitatem. Et circumdederunt eam.13 Et ecce propheta unus accedens ad Achab regem Israël, ait ei : Hæc dicit Dominus : Certe vidisti omnem multitudinem hanc nimiam ? ecce ego tradam eam in manu tua hodie, ut scias quia ego sum Dominus. 14 Et ait Achab : Per quem ? Dixitque ei : Hæc dicit Dominus : Per pedissequos principum provinciarum. Et ait : Quis incipiet præliari ? Et ille dixit : Tu. 15 Recensuit ergo pueros principum provinciarum, et reperit numerum ducentorum triginta duorum : et recensuit post eos populum, omnes filios Israël, septem millia. 16 Et egressi sunt meridie. Benadad autem bibebat temulentus in umbraculo suo, et reges triginta duo cum eo, qui ad auxilium ejus venerant. 17 Egressi sunt autem pueri principum provinciarum in prima fronte. Misit itaque Benadad : qui nuntiaverunt ei, dicentes : Viri egressi sunt de Samaria. 18 Et ille ait : Sive pro pace veniunt, apprehendite eos vivos : sive ut prælientur, vivos eos capite. 19 Egressi sunt ergo pueri principum provinciarum, ac reliquus exercitus sequebatur : 20 et percussit unusquisque virum qui contra se veniebat : fugeruntque Syri, et persecutus est eos Israël. Fugit quoque Benadad rex Syriæ in equo cum equitibus suis. 21 Necnon egressus rex Israël percussit equos et currus, et percussit Syriam plaga magna. 22 Accedens autem propheta ad regem Israël, dixit ei : Vade, et confortare, et scito, et vide quid facias : sequenti enim anno rex Syriæ ascendet contra te.23 Servi vero regis Syriæ dixerunt ei : Dii montium sunt dii eorum, ideo superaverunt nos : sed melius est ut pugnemus contra eos in campestribus, et obtinebimus eos. 24 Tu ergo verbum hoc fac : amove reges singulos ab exercitu tuo, et pone principes pro eis : 25 et instaura numerum militum qui ceciderunt de tuis, et equos secundum equos pristinos, et currus secundum currus quos ante habuisti : et pugnabimus contra eos in campestribus, et videbis quod obtinebimus eos. Credidit consilio eorum, et fecit ita. 26 Igitur postquam annus transierat, recensuit Benadad Syros, et ascendit in Aphec ut pugnaret contra Israël. 27 Porro filii Israël recensiti sunt, et acceptis cibariis profecti ex adverso, castraque metati sunt contra eos, quasi duo parvi greges caprarum : Syri autem repleverunt terram. 28 (Et accedens unus vir Dei, dixit ad regem Israël : Hæc dicit Dominus : Quia dixerunt Syri : Deus montium est Dominus, et non est Deus vallium : dabo omnem multitudinem hanc grandem in manu tua, et scietis quia ego sum Dominus.) 29 Dirigebantque septem diebus ex adverso hi atque illi acies, septima autem die commissum est bellum : percusseruntque filii Israël de Syris centum millia peditum in die una. 30 Fugerunt autem qui remanserant in Aphec, in civitatem : et cecidit murus super viginti septem millia hominum qui remanserant. Porro Benadad fugiens ingressus est civitatem, in cubiculum quod erat intra cubiculum. 31 Dixeruntque ei servi sui : Ecce, audivimus quod reges domus Israël clementes sint : ponamus itaque saccos in lumbis nostris, et funiculos in capitibus nostris, et egrediamur ad regem Israël : forsitan salvabit animas nostras. 32 Accinxerunt saccis lumbos suos, et posuerunt funiculos in capitibus suis, veneruntque ad regem Israël, et dixerunt ei : Servus tuus Benadad dicit : Vivat, oro te, anima mea. Et ille ait : Si adhuc vivit, frater meus est. 33 Quod acceperunt viri pro omine : et festinantes rapuerunt verbum ex ore ejus, atque dixerunt : Frater tuus Benadad. Et dixit eis : Ite, et adducite eum ad me. Egressus est ergo ad eum Benadad, et levavit eum in currum suum. 34 Qui dixit ei : Civitates quas tulit pater meus a patre tuo, reddam : et plateas fac tibi in Damasco, sicut fecit pater meus in Samaria, et ego fœderatus recedam a te. Pepigit ergo fœdus, et dimisit eum.35 Tunc vir quidam de filiis prophetarum dixit ad socium suum in sermone Domini : Percute me. At ille noluit percutere. 36 Cui ait : Quia noluisti audire vocem Domini, ecce recedes a me, et percutiet te leo. Cumque paululum recessisset ab eo, invenit eum leo, atque percussit. 37 Sed alterum inveniens virum, dixit ad eum : Percute me. Qui percussit eum, et vulneravit. 38 Abiit ergo propheta, et occurrit regi in via, et mutavit aspersione pulveris os et oculos suos. 39 Cumque rex transisset, clamavit ad regem, et ait : Servus tuus egressus est ad præliandum cominus : cumque fugisset vir unus, adduxit eum quidam ad me, et ait : Custodi virum istum : qui si lapsus fuerit, erit anima tua pro anima ejus, aut talentum argenti appendes. 40 Dum autem ego turbatus huc illucque me verterem, subito non comparuit. Et ait rex Israël ad eum : Hoc est judicium tuum, quod ipse decrevisti. 41 At ille statim abstersit pulverem de facie sua, et cognovit eum rex Israël, quod esset de prophetis. 42 Qui ait ad eum : Hæc dicit Dominus : Quia dimisisti virum dignum morte de manu tua, erit anima tua pro anima ejus, et populus tuus pro populo ejus. 43 Reversus est igitur rex Israël in domum suam, audire contemnens, et furibundus venit in Samariam.