1 After King Ahab's death, the country of Moab turned against Israel. 2 At this time, Ahaziah was king of Israel. He lived in the city of Samaria. One day he fell from the window of an upstairs room in his palace. He became very ill. So he sent men to the temple of Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron. He told them, ‘Ask their god if I will become well again after my disease.’
3 Then the angel of the Lord spoke to Elijah. [ a ] He was a prophet who came from Tishbe. The angel said, ‘Go and meet the men that the king of Samaria has sent. Say to them, “Do you think that there is no God in Israel? Is that why you are going to Ekron's god, Baal-Zebub, to ask if the king will be well again?” 4 Because you are doing this, the Lord says to you, Ahaziah, “You will never leave the bed that you are lying on. You will certainly die.” ’
5 Elijah went to tell the men the Lord 's message. So the men returned to the king. He asked them, ‘Why have you returned already?’ 6 They replied, ‘A man came to meet us. He told us to go back to the king who had sent us. He says to you, “This is what the Lord says: Why have you sent men to speak to Ekron's god, Baal-Zebub? You seem to think that there is no God in Israel. Because of that, you will not leave the bed that you are lying on. You will certainly die.” ’
7 The king asked them, ‘Describe the man who came to meet you. What did he look like?’ 8 They replied, ‘He was wearing rough clothes. He had tied a leather belt around him.’ Then the king said, ‘That was Elijah, the prophet from Tishbe.’
9 Then the king sent 50 soldiers with their captain to fetch Elijah. Elijah was sitting on the top of a hill. The captain went up and he said to Elijah, ‘Man of God, the king says, “Come down with us.” ’
10 Elijah replied to the captain, ‘If I am really a man of God, fire will come down from the sky. It will destroy you and your 50 soldiers.’ Then fire did come down from the sky. It destroyed the captain and his 50 soldiers.
11 Then the king sent another captain with 50 more soldiers to fetch Elijah. The captain went up and he said to Elijah, ‘Man of God, the king says, “Come down immediately!” ’ 12 Elijah answered, ‘If I am really a man of God, fire will come down from the sky. It will destroy you and your 50 soldiers.’ Then fire from God did come down from the sky. It destroyed the captain and his 50 soldiers.
13 So the king sent a third captain, with 50 more soldiers. This captain went up to Elijah. He bent down on his knees in front of Elijah to ask him to be kind to them. He said, ‘Man of God, we are your servants. Please do not kill me and my 50 soldiers. 14 We know that fire came down from the sky. It destroyed the two captains who came before me and all their soldiers. But now, please be kind and do not kill me.’
15 The angel of the Lord said to Elijah, ‘Go down with him. Do not be afraid of him.’ So Elijah went down with the captain to meet the king. 16 Elijah said to the king, ‘This is what the Lord says: You sent men to speak to Ekron's god, Baal-Zebub, to find out what would happen to you. Did you think that there is no God in Israel? You did not ask him what would happen. Because of that, you will not leave the bed that you are lying on. You will certainly die.’
17 So Ahaziah died. The Lord had told Elijah that this would happen. Ahaziah had no son, so his brother, Joram, became king after him. This happened in the second year that Jehoshaphat's son, Jehoram, ruled Judah as king.
18 The other things that happened while Ahaziah was king are written in a book. The book is called ‘The history of Israel's kings’. It tells about the things that King Ahaziah did. [ b ]
1 After King Ahab died, Moab broke away from Israel’s rule.
2 One day Ahaziah was on the roof of his house in Samaria. He fell down through the wooden bars on top of his house and was badly hurt. He called messengers and told them, “Go to the priests of Baal Zebub, the god of Ekron, and ask them if I will get well from my injuries.”
3 But the Lord ’s angel said to Elijah the Tishbite, “King Ahaziah has sent some messengers from Samaria. Go meet those men and ask them, ‘There is a God in Israel, so why are you men going to ask questions of Baal Zebub, the god of Ekron? 4 Since you did this, the Lord says, You will not get up from your bed. You will die!’” Then Elijah left.
5 When messengers came back to Ahaziah, he asked them, “Why did you come back so soon?”
6 The messengers said to Ahaziah, “A man came up to meet us and told us to go back to the king who sent us and tell him what the Lord says: ‘There is a God in Israel, so why did you send messengers to ask questions of Baal Zebub, the god of Ekron? Since you did this, you will not get up from your bed. You will die!’”
7 Ahaziah said to the messengers, “What did the man look like who met you and told you this?”
8 They answered Ahaziah, “This man was wearing a hairy coat [ a ] with a leather belt around his waist.”
Then Ahaziah said, “That was Elijah the Tishbite.”
9 Ahaziah sent a captain and 50 men to Elijah. The captain went to Elijah, who was sitting on top of a hill. The captain said to Elijah, “Man of God, the king says, ‘Come down!’”
10 Elijah answered the captain of 50, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and destroy you and your 50 men!”
So fire came down from heaven and destroyed the captain and his 50 men.
11 Ahaziah sent another captain with 50 men to Elijah. He said to Elijah, “Man of God, the king says, ‘Come down quickly!’”
12 Elijah told the captain and his 50 men, “If I am a man of God, let fire come down from heaven and destroy you and your 50 men!”
Then God’s fire came down from heaven and destroyed the captain and his 50 men.
13 Ahaziah sent a third captain with 50 men. The third captain came to Elijah. He fell down on his knees and begged Elijah, saying to him, “Man of God, I ask you, please let my life and the lives of your 50 servants be valuable to you. 14 Fire came down from heaven and destroyed the first two captains and their 50 men. But now, have mercy and let us live!”
15 The Lord ’s angel said to Elijah, “Go with the captain. Don’t be afraid of him.”
So Elijah went with the captain to see King Ahaziah.
16 Elijah told Ahaziah, “This is what the Lord says: ‘There is a God in Israel, so why did you send messengers to ask questions of Baal Zebub, the god of Ekron? Since you did this, you will not get up from your bed. You will die!’”
17 Ahaziah died, just as the Lord said through Elijah. Ahaziah did not have a son, so Joram became the new king after Ahaziah. He began to rule during the second year that Jehoram son of Jehoshaphat was the king of Judah.
18 The other things that Ahaziah did are written in the book, The History of the Kings of Israel .
1 Then Moab rebelled against Israel after the death of Ahab.
2 And Ahaziah fell down through a lattice in his upper chamber that was in Samaria, and was sick: and he sent messengers, and said unto them, Go, enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron whether I shall recover of this disease.
3 But the angel of the Lord said to Elijah the Tishbite, Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say unto them, Is it not because there is not a God in Israel, that ye go to enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron?
4 Now therefore thus saith the Lord , Thou shalt not come down from that bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt surely die. And Elijah departed.
5 And when the messengers turned back unto him, he said unto them, Why are ye now turned back?
6 And they said unto him, There came a man up to meet us, and said unto us, Go, turn again unto the king that sent you, and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord , Is it not because there is not a God in Israel, that thou sendest to enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron? therefore thou shalt not come down from that bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt surely die.
7 And he said unto them, What manner of man was he which came up to meet you, and told you these words?
8 And they answered him, He was an hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins. And he said, It is Elijah the Tishbite.
9 Then the king sent unto him a captain of fifty with his fifty. And he went up to him: and, behold, he sat on the top of an hill. And he spake unto him, Thou man of God, the king hath said, Come down.
10 And Elijah answered and said to the captain of fifty, If I be a man of God, then let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty. And there came down fire from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty.
11 Again also he sent unto him another captain of fifty with his fifty. And he answered and said unto him, O man of God, thus hath the king said, Come down quickly.
12 And Elijah answered and said unto them, If I be a man of God, let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty. And the fire of God came down from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty.
13 And he sent again a captain of the third fifty with his fifty. And the third captain of fifty went up, and came and fell on his knees before Elijah, and besought him, and said unto him, O man of God, I pray thee, let my life, and the life of these fifty thy servants, be precious in thy sight.
14 Behold, there came fire down from heaven, and burnt up the two captains of the former fifties with their fifties: therefore let my life now be precious in thy sight.
15 And the angel of the Lord said unto Elijah, Go down with him: be not afraid of him. And he arose, and went down with him unto the king.
16 And he said unto him, Thus saith the Lord , Forasmuch as thou hast sent messengers to enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron, is it not because there is no God in Israel to enquire of his word? therefore thou shalt not come down off that bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt surely die.
17 So he died according to the word of the Lord which Elijah had spoken. And Jehoram reigned in his stead in the second year of Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat king of Judah; because he had no son.
18 Now the rest of the acts of Ahaziah which he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
1 Now ( A ) Moab broke with Israel after the death of Ahab. 2 And Ahaziah fell through the window lattice in his upper chamber which was in Samaria, and became ill. So he sent messengers and said to them, “Go, ( B ) inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, ( C ) whether I will recover from this sickness.” 3 But the angel of the Lord said to ( D ) Elijah the Tishbite, “Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria and say to them, ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are going to inquire of ( E ) Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron?’ 4 Now therefore, this is what the Lord says: ‘ [ a ] ( F ) You will not get down from the bed upon which you have lain, but you shall certainly die.’” Then Elijah departed.
5 When the messengers returned to [ b ] Ahaziah, he said to them, “ [ c ] Why have you returned?” 6 They said to him, “A man came up to meet us and said to us, ‘Go, return to the king who sent you and say to him, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending messengers ( G ) to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? Therefore [ d ] you will not get down from the bed upon which you have lain, but you shall certainly die.’”’” 7 Then he said to them, “What [ e ] did the man look like, who came up to meet you and spoke these words to you?” 8 And they said to him, “ ( H ) He was a hairy man with a leather [ f ] belt worn around his waist.” And he said, “It is Elijah the Tishbite.”
9 Then the king ( I ) sent to him a captain of fifty with his fifty men . And he went up to him, and behold, he was sitting on the top of the hill. And he said to him, “You man of God, the king says, ‘Come down.’” 10 But Elijah replied to the captain of fifty, “If I am a man of God, ( J ) may fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.” ( K ) Then fire came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty men .
11 So the king again sent to him another captain of fifty with his fifty men . And he said to him, “You man of God, this is what the king says: ‘Come down quickly!’” 12 But Elijah replied to them, “If I am a man of God, may fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty.” Then the fire of God came down from heaven and consumed him and his fifty men .
13 So the king ( L ) again sent the captain of a third fifty with his fifty men . When the third captain of fifty went up, he came and bowed down on his knees before Elijah, and begged him and said to him, “You man of God, please let my life and the lives of these fifty servants of yours be precious in your sight. 14 Behold, fire came down from heaven and consumed the first two captains of fifty with their fifties; but now let my [ g ] life be precious in your sight.” 15 And ( M ) the angel of the Lord said to Elijah, “Go down with him; ( N ) do not be afraid of him.” So he got up and went down with him to the king. 16 Then he said to him, “This is what the Lord says: ‘Since you have sent messengers ( O ) to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron—is it because there is no God in Israel to inquire of His word? Therefore [ h ] you will not get down from the bed upon which you have lain, but you shall certainly die.’”
17 So Ahaziah died in accordance with the word of the Lord which Elijah had spoken. And since he had no son, Jehoram became king in his place ( P ) in the second year of Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat, king of Judah. 18 Now as for the rest of the acts of Ahaziah which he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?
1 After Ahab’s death, Moab ( A ) rebelled against Israel. 2 Now Ahaziah had fallen through the lattice of his upper room in Samaria and injured himself. So he sent messengers, ( B ) saying to them, “Go and consult Baal-Zebub, ( C ) the god of Ekron, ( D ) to see if I will recover ( E ) from this injury.”
3 But the angel ( F ) of the Lord said to Elijah ( G ) the Tishbite, “Go up and meet the messengers of the king of Samaria and ask them, ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel ( H ) that you are going off to consult Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron?’ 4 Therefore this is what the Lord says: ‘You will not leave ( I ) the bed you are lying on. You will certainly die!’” So Elijah went.
5 When the messengers returned to the king, he asked them, “Why have you come back?”
6 “A man came to meet us,” they replied. “And he said to us, ‘Go back to the king who sent you and tell him, “This is what the Lord says: Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending messengers to consult Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron? Therefore you will not leave ( J ) the bed you are lying on. You will certainly die!”’”
7 The king asked them, “What kind of man was it who came to meet you and told you this?”
8 They replied, “He had a garment of hair [ a ] ( K ) and had a leather belt around his waist.”
The king said, “That was Elijah the Tishbite.”
9 Then he sent ( L ) to Elijah a captain ( M ) with his company of fifty men. The captain went up to Elijah, who was sitting on the top of a hill, and said to him, “Man of God, the king says, ‘Come down!’”
10 Elijah answered the captain, “If I am a man of God, may fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men!” Then fire ( N ) fell from heaven and consumed the captain and his men.
11 At this the king sent to Elijah another captain with his fifty men. The captain said to him, “Man of God, this is what the king says, ‘Come down at once!’”
12 “If I am a man of God,” Elijah replied, “may fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men!” Then the fire of God fell from heaven and consumed him and his fifty men.
13 So the king sent a third captain with his fifty men. This third captain went up and fell on his knees before Elijah. “Man of God,” he begged, “please have respect for my life ( O ) and the lives of these fifty men, your servants! 14 See, fire has fallen from heaven and consumed the first two captains and all their men. But now have respect for my life!”
15 The angel ( P ) of the Lord said to Elijah, “Go down with him; do not be afraid ( Q ) of him.” So Elijah got up and went down with him to the king.
16 He told the king, “This is what the Lord says: Is it because there is no God in Israel for you to consult that you have sent messengers ( R ) to consult Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron? Because you have done this, you will never leave ( S ) the bed you are lying on. You will certainly die!” 17 So he died, ( T ) according to the word of the Lord that Elijah had spoken.
Because Ahaziah had no son, Joram [ b ] ( U ) succeeded him as king in the second year of Jehoram son of Jehoshaphat king of Judah. 18 As for all the other events of Ahaziah’s reign, and what he did, are they not written in the book of the annals of the kings of Israel?
