1 No décimo oitavo ano de Josafá, rei de Judá, Jorão, filho de Acab, tornou-se rei de Israel em Samaria, e reinou durante doze anos.2 Fez o mal aos olhos do Senhor, mas não tanto como seu pai e sua mãe, porque tirou a estela que seu pai tinha erigido a Baal.3 Perseverou todavia nos pecados de Jeroboão, filho de Nabat, que fez pecar Israel, e não se apartou deles.4 Mesa, rei de Moab, possuidor de muitos rebanhos, pagava ao rei de Israel, à guisa de tributo, cem mil cordeiros e a lã de cem mil carneiros.5 Morrendo, porém, Acab, ele libertou-se do rei de Israel.6 O rei Jorão saiu de Samaria e passou em revista todo o Israel.7 Em seguida mandou dizer a Josafá, rei de Judá: O rei de Moab rebelou-se contra mim; queres vir comigo atacá-lo? Sim, respondeu Josafá; farei o que fizeres, meu povo fará o que fizer o teu, minha cavalaria fará o que fizer a tua.8 E ajuntou: Por onde iremos? Pelo caminho do deserto de Edom.9 O rei de Israel, o rei de Judá e o rei de Edom puseram-se em marcha, mas depois de darem uma volta de sete dias de marcha, veio a faltar água, tanto para o exército como para os animais que o seguiam.10 O rei de Israel exclamou: Ai! O Senhor juntou aqui os três reis para entregá-los ao rei de Moab!11 Josafá disse: Não há por aqui algum profeta do Senhor, para por meio dele consultarmos o Senhor? Sim, respondeu um dos servos do rei de Israel, está aqui Eliseu, filho de Safat, que derramava água nas mãos de Elias.12 Josafá disse: A palavra do Senhor está com ele. E desceram a ele Josafá, o rei de Israel e o rei de Edom.13 Eliseu disse ao rei de Israel: Que queres de mim, ó rei? Vai procurar os profetas de teu pai e de tua mãe. Não, disse-lhe o rei de Israel, porque o Senhor reuniu aqui estes três reis para entregá-los ao rei de Moab.14 Eliseu exclamou: Pela vida do Senhor dos exércitos a quem sirvo, se não fosse em atenção a Josafá, rei de Judá, eu não faria caso algum de ti, nem mesmo poria em ti os meus olhos.15 Mas agora trazei-me um tocador de harpa. Apenas fez o tocador vibrar as cordas, veio a mão do Senhor sobre Eliseu,16 e este disse: Eis o que diz o Senhor: Cavai neste vale fossas e fossas!17 Eis o que diz o Senhor: Não sentireis vento, nem vereis chuva, e contudo este vale se encherá de água; e bebereis vós, vossos rebanhos e vossos animais de carga.18 Porém, isto é pouco aos olhos do Senhor: ele vai entregar também Moab nas vossas mãos.19 Destruireis todas as cidades fortes, as cidades mais importantes, derrubareis todas as árvores frutíferas, tapareis todas as fontes e cobrireis de pedras todos os campos férteis.20 No dia seguinte pela manhã, à hora da oblação, desceram as águas do lado de Edom, e a terra encheu-se de água.21 Ouvindo os moabitas que aqueles reis vinham atacá-los, mobilizaram todos os que estavam na idade de pegar em armas e foram para a fronteira.22 Na manhã seguinte, quando o sol se levantava sobre as águas, os moabitas viram diante de si as águas vermelhas como sangue.23 É sangue!, exclamaram eles; os reis pelejaram entre si e destruíram-se mutuamente. Vamos, Moab, à presa!24 Logo, porém, que chegaram para atacar o acampamento dos israelitas, estes levantaram-se e feriram os moabitas, que fugiram diante deles. E, enquanto os feriam, iam penetrando mais adentro na sua terra.25 Destruíram as cidades, encheram toda a terra fértil de pedras, que cada um lançou, entupiram todas as fontes, derrubaram todas as árvores frutíferas, de modo que só ficaram as pedras da cidade de Quir-Caroset, que tinha sido cercada e atacada pelos fundibulários.26 Vendo o rei de Moab que perdia o combate, tomou consigo setecentos homens armados de espada para abrir caminho até o rei de Edom, mas não conseguiu.27 Tomando então o seu filho primogênito, que deveria reinar depois dele, ofereceu-o em holocausto sobre a muralha. Isso provocou uma tal indignação entre os israelitas, que estes se retiraram e voltaram para a sua terra.

1 Now Jehoram, the son of Ahab, began to reign over Israel in Samaria the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, and reigned twelve years.2 And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, but not like his father and like his mother, for he put away the images of Baal that his father had made.3 Nevertheless, he cleaved unto the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, who made Israel sin; he did not depart from them.4 And Mesha, king of Moab, was a pastor and rendered unto the king of Israel one hundred thousand lambs and one hundred thousand rams, with the wool.5 But it came to pass, when Ahab was dead, that the king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel.6 And King Jehoram went out of Samaria the same time and numbered all Israel.7 And he went and sent to Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, saying, The king of Moab has rebelled against me; wilt thou go with me against Moab to battle? And he said, I will go up; I [am] as thou [art], my people as thy people [and] my horses as thy horses.8 And he said, Which way shall we go up? And he answered, The way through the wilderness of Edom.9 So the king of Israel went and the king of Judah and the king of Edom, and as they walked round about seven days' journey through the desert, there was no water for the host or for the beasts that followed them.10 Then the king of Israel said, Alas! The LORD has called these three kings together, to deliver them into the hand of Moab!11 But Jehoshaphat said, [Is there] not a prophet of the LORD here, that we may enquire of the LORD by him? And one of the king of Israel's servants answered and said, Here [is] Elisha, the son of Shaphat, who poured water on the hands of 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 Then Elisha said unto the king of Israel, What have I to do with thee? Go to the prophets of thy father and to the prophets of thy mother. And the king of Israel said unto him, No, for the LORD has called these three kings together, to deliver them into the hand of Moab.14 And Elisha said, [As] the LORD of the hosts lives, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, I would not look toward thee nor see thee.15 But now bring me a minstrel. And when the minstrel played, the hand of the LORD came upon him;16 and he said, Thus hath the LORD said, Make this valley full of ditches.17 For thus hath the LORD said, Ye shall not see wind, neither shall ye see rain; yet this valley shall be filled with water, that ye may drink, both ye and your livestock and your beasts.18 And this is [but] a light thing in the sight of the LORD; he will also deliver the Moabites into your hands.19 And ye shall smite every fenced city and every choice city and shall fell every good tree and stop every fountain of water and mar every good piece of land with stones.20 And it came to pass in the morning, when the present was offered, that water came by the way of Edom, and the land was filled with water.21 And when all the Moabites heard that the kings were come up to fight against them, they gathered all that were able to gird on a girdle and upward and stood in the border.22 And when they rose up early in the morning, and the sun shone upon the water, and the Moabites saw the water before them [as] red as blood;23 and they said, This [is] blood; the kings are surely slain, and they have smitten one another. Now therefore, Moab, to the spoil.24 But when they came to the camp of Israel, the Israelites rose up and smote the Moabites so that they fled before them, but they went forward smiting the Moabites, even in [their] country.25 And they beat down the cities, and on every good piece of land each man cast his stone and filled it, and they stopped all the fountains of water and felled all the good trees until they left their stones only in Kirharaseth, for the slingers went about [it] and smote it.26 And when the king of Moab saw that the battle was overcoming him, he took with him seven hundred men that drew swords to break through unto the king of Edom, but they could not.27 Then he took his eldest son that should have reigned in his stead and offered him [for] a burnt offering upon the wall. And there was great indignation in Israel, and they departed from him and returned to [their own] land.: