1 And Ben-Hadad king of Syria assembled all his host; and there were thirty-two kings with him, and horses and chariots; and he went up and besieged Samaria, and fought against it.
2 And he sent messengers to Ahab king of Israel into the city, and said to him, Thus says Ben-Hadad:
3 Thy silver and thy gold is mine; thy wives also and thy children, the goodliest, are mine.
4 And the king of Israel answered and said, My lord, O king, according to thy saying, I am thine, and all that I have.
5 And the messengers came again, and said, Thus speaks Ben-Hadad saying: I sent to thee indeed, saying, Thou shalt deliver me thy silver, and thy gold, and thy wives, and thy children;
6 but to-morrow about this time I will send my servants to thee, and they shall search thy house, and the houses of thy servants; and it shall be, that whatsoever is pleasant in thy sight, they shall put in their hand and take away.
7 And the king of Israel called all the elders of the land and said, Mark, I pray you, and see how this {man} seeks mischief; for he sent to me for my wives, and for my children, and for my silver, and for my gold; and I denied him not.
8 And all the elders and all the people said to him, Hearken not, nor consent.
9 And he said to the messengers of Ben-Hadad, Tell my lord the king, All that thou didst send for to thy servant at the first I will do; but this thing I cannot do. And the messengers departed, and brought him word again.
10 And Ben-Hadad sent to him and said, The gods do so to me, and more also, if the dust of Samaria shall suffice for handfuls for all the people that follow me!
11 And the king of Israel answered and said, Tell {him}, Let not him that girdeth on boast himself as he that putteth off!
12 And it came to pass when he heard this word, as he was drinking, he and the kings in the tents, that he said to his servants, Set yourselves. And they set themselves against the city.
13 And behold, a prophet drew near to Ahab king of Israel, and said, Thus saith Jehovah: Hast thou seen all this great multitude? behold, I will deliver it into thy hand this day; and thou shalt know that I am Jehovah.
14 And Ahab said, By whom? And he said, Thus saith Jehovah: By the servants of the princes of the provinces. Then he said, Who shall begin the battle? And he said, Thou.
15 And he numbered the servants of the princes of the provinces, and they were two hundred and thirty-two; and after them he numbered all the people, all the children of Israel, seven thousand.
16 And they went out at noon; and Ben-Hadad drank himself drunk in the tents, he and the kings, the thirty-two kings that helped him.
17 And the servants of the princes of the provinces went out first; and Ben-Hadad sent out, and they told him saying, There are men come out of Samaria.
18 And he said, Whether they be come out for peace, take them alive; or whether they be come out for war, take them alive.
19 And these servants of the princes of the provinces came out of the city, and the army that followed them.
20 And they slew every one his man; and the Syrians fled, and Israel pursued them; and Ben-Hadad the king of Syria escaped on a horse with the horsemen.
21 And the king of Israel went out, and smote the horses and chariots, and slew the Syrians with a great slaughter.
22 And the prophet drew near to the king of Israel, and said to him, Go, strengthen thyself, and understand, and see what thou shalt do; for at the return of the year the king of Syria will come up against thee.
23 And the servants of the king of Syria said to him, Their gods are gods of the mountains; therefore they were stronger than we; but if we fight against them on the plateau, shall we not be stronger than they?
24 And do this: take the kings away, every man out of his place, and put governors in their stead;
25 and number thee an army, like the army that thou hast lost, horse for horse, and chariot for chariot; and we will fight against them on the plateau: shall we not be stronger than they? And he hearkened to their voice, and did so.
26 And it came to pass, at the return of the year, that Ben-Hadad numbered the Syrians, and went up to Aphek, to fight against Israel.
27 And the children of Israel were numbered and victualled, and they went against them; and the children of Israel encamped before them like two little flocks of goats; but the Syrians filled the land.
28 And the man of God drew near, and spoke to the king of Israel and said, Thus saith Jehovah: Because the Syrians have said, Jehovah is a god of the mountains, but he is not a god of the valleys, I will give all this great multitude into thy hand, and ye shall know that I am Jehovah.
29 And they encamped one over against the other seven days; and it came to pass that on the seventh day the battle was joined; and the children of Israel smote of the Syrians a hundred thousand footmen in one day.
30 And the rest fled to Aphek, into the city; and the wall fell on twenty-seven thousand men of them that were left. And Ben-Hadad fled, and came into the city, {from} chamber to chamber.
31 And his servants said to him, Behold now, we have heard that the kings of the house of Israel are merciful kings: let us, I pray thee, put sackcloth on our loins, and ropes upon our heads, and go out to the king of Israel; perhaps he will save thy life.
32 And they girded sackcloth on their loins, and ropes on their heads, and came to the king of Israel, and said, Thy servant Ben-Hadad says, I pray thee, let me live. And he said, Is he yet alive? he is my brother.
33 And the men took it as a good omen, and hastened to catch what came from him, and they said, Thy brother Ben-Hadad. ...And he said, Go, bring him. And Ben-Hadad came forth to him; and he caused him to come up into the chariot.
34 And {Ben-Hadad} said to him, The cities that my father took from thy father I will restore; and thou shalt make streets for thyself in Damascus, as my father made in Samaria. And I {said Ahab} will send thee away with this covenant. So he made a covenant with him, and sent him away.
35 And a certain man of the sons of the prophets said to another by the word of Jehovah, Smite me, I pray thee. But the man refused to smite him.
36 Then said he to him, Because thou hast not hearkened to the voice of Jehovah, behold, when thou departest from me, the lion will slay thee. And when he had departed from him, the lion found him and slew him.
37 Then he found another man, and said, Smite me, I pray thee. And the man smote him violently, and wounded {him}.
38 And the prophet departed, and waited for the king by the way, and disguised himself with a sash over his eyes.
39 And as the king passed by, he cried to the king and said, Thy servant went out into the midst of the battle; and behold, a man turned aside, and brought a man to me and said, Keep this man; if by any means he be missing, then shall thy life be for his life, or thou shalt pay a talent of silver.
40 And as thy servant was busy here and there, he was gone. And the king of Israel said to him, So {is} thy judgment: thyself hast decided {it}.
41 Then he hastily took the sash away from his face; and the king of Israel discerned him, that he was of the prophets.
42 And he said to him, Thus saith Jehovah: Because thou hast let go out of thy hand the man that I had devoted to destruction, thy life shall be for his life, and thy people for his people.
43 And the king of Israel went to his house sullen and vexed, and came to Samaria.
1 亚兰王便．哈达聚集他的全军， 有三十二个王与他在一起， 他带着战马和战车， 上去围困撒玛利亚， 攻打那城。
2 他派遣一些使者进城去见以色列王亚哈， 对他说： "便．哈达这样说：
3 ‘你的银子， 你的金子都是我的； 你的妻子和你最健壮的儿女也是我的。’"
4 以色列王回答说： "我主我王啊， 就照着你所说的， 我和我所有的一切都可以归你。"
5 那些使者再来说： "便．哈达这样说： ‘我曾经差派人对你说： 你要把你的银子， 你的金子， 你的妻子和你的儿女都给我。
6 明天大约这个时间， 我要差派我的臣仆到你那里去； 他们要搜查你的王宫和你臣仆的家； 凡是他们看为宝贵的， 他们都要下手拿走。’"
7 以色列王把国中所有的长老都召了来， 对他们说： "请你们想想， 看这人怎样的麻烦， 他曾经差派人来我这里要我的妻子、我的儿女、我的银子和我的金子， 我都没有拒绝他。"
8 众长老和人民对王说： "不要听从他， 也不要答应他。"
9 于是亚哈对便．哈达的使者说： "请你们告诉我主我王说： ‘王第一次差派人来向你仆人所要的一切， 我都必照办； 可是这次所要的， 我却不能照办。’"于是使者去了， 把这些话回复便．哈达。
10 便．哈达又差派人去见亚哈说： "撒玛利亚的尘土若是足够跟从我的人每人捧一捧的话， 愿神明惩罚我， 并且加倍惩罚我。"
11 以色列王回答说： "你们去告诉他， 佩戴武器的人， 不可像解除武器的那样自夸。"
12 便．哈达与众王正在帐棚里喝酒， 一听见了这话， 就对他的臣仆说： "你们列队进攻。"他们就列队进攻那城。
13 这时， 忽然有一个先知前来见以色列王亚哈， 说： "耶和华这样说： ‘你看见这些强大的军兵吗？看啊， 今天我必把他们交在你手里， 你就知道我是耶和华。’"
14 亚哈问： "借着谁呢？"先知回答： "耶和华这样说： ‘借着跟从各省省长的年轻人。’"亚哈又问： "谁先开战呢？"先知说： "是你。"
15 于是亚哈数点了跟从各省省长的年轻人， 共有二百三十二人。以后， 他又数点所有的人民， 以色列众民共有七千人。
16 在正午， 便．哈达与帮助他的三十二个王正在帐棚里痛饮的时候， 他们出发了。
17 跟从各省省长的年轻人首先出发。便．哈达派人去察看， 他们回报他说： "有人从撒玛利亚出来了。"
18 便．哈达说： "如果他们是为了求和出来， 你们要活捉他们； 如果他们是为了争战出来， 你们也要活捉他们。"
19 从城里出来的这些人， 就是跟从各省省长的年轻人， 军兵跟在他们后面。
20 他们各人遇见对手就杀。亚兰人逃跑， 以色列人追赶他们。亚兰王便．哈达骑着马， 与一些骑兵一起逃走。
21 以色列王出来， 攻打战马和战车， 大大地击败了亚兰人。
22 那先知前来见以色列王， 对他说： "你要自强， 留意看看你所要预备的， 因为明年春天亚兰王必再上来攻击你。"
23 亚兰王的臣仆对亚兰王说： "以色列人的神是山神， 所以他们比我们强； 但我们若是在平原上与他们争战， 我们必比他们强大。
24 王应该这样作： 把众王各人的职务解除， 另立军官代替他们；
25 又照着王损失的军兵的数目， 招募一支新的军队， 照数补充战马和战车。然后我们可以与他们在平原上作战， 我们必定比他们强。"王听从他们的话， 并且这样行了。
26 过了年， 便．哈达数点了亚兰人， 就上到亚弗去， 要与以色列人争战。
27 以色列人数点人数， 预备了粮食， 就去迎战亚兰人。以色列人对着他们安营， 好像两小群山羊羔； 亚兰人却满布了那地。
28 有一位神人前来对以色列王说： "耶和华这样说： ‘因为亚兰人说耶和华是山神， 不是平原的神， 所以我要把这些强大的军兵交在你手里， 你们就知道我是耶和华。’"
29 以色列人和亚兰人相对安营， 共七天。到了第七日， 两军终于接战了。那一天， 以色列人杀了亚兰人步兵十万。
30 余下来的都逃入亚弗城里， 城墙倒塌， 压死了余下来的二万七千人。便．哈达也逃到城里来， 躲进一间密室里。
31 他的臣仆对他说： "我们听说以色列家的王都是仁慈的王； 我们不如腰束麻布， 头套绳索， 出去投降以色列王， 或许他会使你的性命存活。"
32 于是他们腰束麻布， 头套绳索， 来见以色列王， 对他说： "你的仆人便．哈达说： ‘求你使我的性命存活！ ’"亚哈说： "他还活着吗？他是我的兄弟！ "
33 那些人认为这些话是个吉兆， 急忙抓住他的话， 说： "便．哈达是王的兄弟！ "亚哈说： "你们去请他来。"便．哈达出来见王， 亚哈就去请他上车。
34 便．哈达对王说： "我父亲从你父亲夺得的众城， 我都必还给你； 你可以为自己在大马士革设立市场， 像我父亲在撒玛利亚设立市场一样。"亚哈说： "我与你立了这样的约， 就放你去。"于是他和便．哈达立了约， 就放他走了。
35 先知门徒中有一个人奉耶和华的命令对他的一个同伴说： "你打我吧！ "可是， 那人却不肯打他。
36 他就对那人说： "因为你不听从耶和华的话， 你一离开我， 就必有狮子咬死你。"那人一离开他， 果然遇见了狮子， 把他咬死。
37 先知的门徒又遇见另一个人， 对他说： "你打我吧！ "那人就打他， 把他打伤。
38 于是那先知去了， 在路旁等候王。他用头巾蒙住自己的眼睛， 把自己改了装。
39 王从那里经过的时候， 他向王呼叫说： "你仆人出征， 在战阵之中， 忽然有一个人转过来， 带了另一个人来见我， 说： ‘你看守这个人， 他若是走失了， 就要你替他偿命， 否则你要支付三十公斤银子。’
40 你仆人正在忙这忙那的时候， 那人就不见了。"以色列王对他说： "你的判案就是这样， 你已经自己判决了。"
41 他急忙把蒙在眼上的头巾除下， 以色列王就认出他是一个先知。
42 先知对王说： "耶和华这样说： 因为你把我要灭绝的人从你手中放走， 所以要你替他偿命。要你的人民抵偿他的人民。"
43 于是以色列王闷闷不乐回到撒玛利亚， 自己的王宫里去了。