Day 161 of 730

¹Now Elisha had spoken to the woman, whose son he had restored to life, saying, "Arise, and go, you and your household, and stay for a while wherever you can; for the Lord has called for a famine. It shall also come on the land seven years."

²The woman arose, and did according to the word of the man of God. She went with her household, and lived in the land of the Philistines seven years.

³It happened at the seven years' end, that the woman returned out of the land of the Philistines. Then she went forth to cry to the king for her house and for her land.

⁴Now the king was talking with Gehazi the servant of the man of God, saying, "Please tell me all the great things that Elisha has done."

⁵It happened, as he was telling the king how he had restored to life him who was dead, that behold, the woman, whose son he had restored to life, cried to the king for her house and for her land. Gehazi said, "My lord, O king, this is the woman, and this is her son, whom Elisha restored to life."

⁶When the king asked the woman, she told him. So the king appointed to her a certain officer, saying, "Restore all that was hers, and all the fruits of the field since the day that she left the land, even until now."

⁷Elisha came to Damascus; and Benhadad the king of Syria was sick. It was told him, saying, "The man of God has come here."

⁸The king said to Hazael, "Take a present in your hand, and go, meet the man of God, and inquire of the Lord by him, saying, 'Will I recover from this sickness?'"

⁹So Hazael went to meet him, and took a present with him, even of every good thing of Damascus, forty camels' burden, and came and stood before him, and said, "Your son Benhadad king of Syria has sent me to you, saying, 'Will I recover from this sickness?'"

¹⁰Elisha said to him, "Go, tell him, 'You shall surely recover;' however the Lord has shown me that he shall surely die."

¹¹He settled his gaze steadfastly on him, until he was ashamed. Then the man of God wept.

¹²Hazael said, "Why do you weep, my lord?" He answered, "Because I know the evil that you will do to the children of Israel. You will set their strongholds on fire, and you will kill their young men with the sword, and will dash in pieces their little ones, and rip up their women with child."

¹³Hazael said, "But what is your servant, who is but a dog, that he should do this great thing?" Elisha answered, "The Lord has shown me that you will be king over Syria."

¹⁴Then he departed from Elisha, and came to his master, who said to him, "What did Elisha say to you?" He answered, "He told me that you would surely recover."

¹⁵It happened on the next day, that he took a thick cloth, dipped it in water, and spread it on his face, so that he died. Then Hazael reigned in his place.

¹⁶In the fifth year of Joram the son of Ahab king of Israel, Jehoshaphat being king of Judah then, Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat king of Judah began to reign.

¹⁷He was thirty-two years old when he began to reign. He reigned eight years in Jerusalem.

¹⁸He walked in the way of the kings of Israel, as did the house of Ahab; for he had the daughter of Ahab as wife. He did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord.

¹⁹However the Lord would not destroy Judah, for David his servant's sake, as he promised him to give to him a lamp for his children always.

²⁰In his days Edom revolted from under the hand of Judah, and made a king over themselves.

²¹Then Joram passed over to Zair, and all his chariots with him: and he rose up by night, and struck the Edomites who surrounded him, and the captains of the chariots; and the people fled to their tents.

²²So Edom revolted from under the hand of Judah to this day. Then Libnah revolted at the same time.

²³The rest of the acts of Joram, and all that he did, aren't they written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah?

²⁴Joram slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David; and Ahaziah his son reigned in his place.

²⁵In the twelfth year of Joram the son of Ahab king of Israel, Ahaziah the son of Jehoram king of Judah began to reign.

²⁶Twenty-two years old was Ahaziah when he began to reign; and he reigned one year in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Athaliah the daughter of Omri king of Israel.

²⁷He walked in the way of the house of Ahab, and did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, as did the house of Ahab; for he was the son-in-law of the house of Ahab.

²⁸He went with Joram the son of Ahab to war against Hazael king of Syria at Ramoth Gilead: and the Syrians wounded Joram.

²⁹King Joram returned to be healed in Jezreel of the wounds which the Syrians had given him at Ramah, when he fought against Hazael king of Syria. Ahaziah the son of Jehoram king of Judah went down to see Joram the son of Ahab in Jezreel, because he was sick.

¹Elisha the prophet called one of the sons of the prophets, and said to him, "Put your belt on your waist, take this vial of oil in your hand, and go to Ramoth Gilead.

²When you come there, find Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi, and go in, and make him arise up from among his brothers, and carry him to an inner room.

³Then take the vial of oil, and pour it on his head, and say, 'Thus says the Lord, "I have anointed you king over Israel."' Then open the door, flee, and do not wait."

⁴So the young man, even the young man the prophet, went to Ramoth Gilead.

⁵When he came, behold, the captains of the army were sitting. Then he said, "I have a message for you, captain." Jehu said, "To which of us all?" He said, "To you, O captain."

⁶He arose, and went into the house. Then he poured the oil on his head, and said to him, "Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, 'I have anointed you king over the people of the Lord, even over Israel.

⁷You shall strike the house of Ahab your master, that I may avenge the blood of my servants the prophets, and the blood of all the servants of the Lord, at the hand of Jezebel.

⁸For the whole house of Ahab shall perish. I will cut off from Ahab everyone who urinates against a wall, both him who is shut up and him who is left at large in Israel.

⁹I will make the house of Ahab like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah.

¹⁰The dogs will eat Jezebel on the plot of ground of Jezreel, and there shall be none to bury her.'" He opened the door, and fled.

¹¹Then Jehu came forth to the servants of his lord: and one said to him, "Is all well? Why did this mad fellow come to you?" He said to them, "You know the man and what his talk was."

¹²They said, "That is a lie. Tell us now." He said, "He said to me, 'Thus says the Lord, I have anointed you king over Israel.'"

¹³Then they hurried, and took every man his garment, and put it under him on the top of the stairs, and blew the trumpet, saying, "Jehu is king."

¹⁴So Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi conspired against Joram. (Now Joram was keeping Ramoth Gilead, he and all Israel, because of Hazael king of Syria;

¹⁵but king Joram was returned to be healed in Jezreel of the wounds which the Syrians had given him, when he fought with Hazael king of Syria.) Jehu said, "If this is your thinking, then let no one escape and go out of the city, to go to tell it in Jezreel."

¹⁶So Jehu rode in a chariot, and went to Jezreel; for Joram lay there. Ahaziah king of Judah had come down to see Joram.

¹⁷Now the watchman was standing on the tower in Jezreel, and he spied the company of Jehu as he came, and said, "I see a company." Joram said, "Take a horseman, and send to meet them, and let him say, 'Is it peace?'"

¹⁸So there went one on horseback to meet him, and said, "Thus says the king, 'Is it peace?'" Jehu said, "What do you have to do with peace? Fall in behind me!" The watchman said, "The messenger came to them, but he isn't coming back."

¹⁹Then he sent out a second on horseback, who came to them, and said, "Thus says the king, 'Is it peace?'" Jehu answered, "What do you have to do with peace? Fall in behind me!"

²⁰The watchman said, "He came to them, and isn't coming back. The driving is like the driving of Jehu the son of Nimshi; for he drives furiously."

²¹Joram said, "Get ready!" They got his chariot ready. Joram king of Israel and Ahaziah king of Judah went out, each in his chariot, and they went out to meet Jehu, and found him in the portion of Naboth the Jezreelite.

²²It happened, when Joram saw Jehu, that he said, "Is it peace, Jehu?" He answered, "What peace, so long as the prostitution of your mother Jezebel and her witchcraft abound?"

²³Joram turned his hands, and fled, and said to Ahaziah, "There is treason, Ahaziah!"

²⁴Jehu drew his bow with his full strength, and struck Joram between his arms; and the arrow went out at his heart, and he sunk down in his chariot.

²⁵Then Jehu said to Bidkar his captain, "Pick him up, and throw him in the plot of the field of Naboth the Jezreelite; for remember how, when you and I rode together after Ahab his father, the Lord laid this burden on him:

²⁶'Surely I have seen yesterday the blood of Naboth, and the blood of his sons,' says the Lord; 'and I will repay you in this plot of ground,' says the Lord. Now therefore take and cast him onto the plot of ground, according to the word of the Lord."

²⁷But when Ahaziah the king of Judah saw this, he fled by the way of the garden house. Jehu followed after him, and said, "Strike him also in the chariot!" They struck him at the ascent of Gur, which is by Ibleam. He fled to Megiddo, and died there.

²⁸His servants carried him in a chariot to Jerusalem, and buried him in his tomb with his fathers in the city of David.

²⁹In the eleventh year of Joram the son of Ahab began Ahaziah to reign over Judah.

³⁰When Jehu had come to Jezreel, Jezebel heard of it; and she painted her eyes, and attired her head, and looked out at the window.

³¹As Jehu entered in at the gate, she said, "Do you come in peace, Zimri, you murderer of your master?"

³²He lifted up his face to the window, and said, "Who is on my side? Who?" Two or three eunuchs looked out at him.

³³He said, "Throw her down!" So they threw her down; and some of her blood was sprinkled on the wall, and on the horses. Then he trampled her under foot.

³⁴When he had come in, he ate and drink; and he said, "See now to this cursed woman, and bury her; for she is a king's daughter."

³⁵They went to bury her; but they found no more of her than the skull, and the feet, and the palms of her hands.

³⁶Therefore they came back, and told him. He said, "This is the word of the Lord, which he spoke by his servant Elijah the Tishbite, saying, 'The dogs will eat the flesh of Jezebel on the plot of Jezreel,

³⁷and the body of Jezebel shall be as dung on the face of the field in the portion of Jezreel, so that they shall not say, "This is Jezebel."'"

¹In the Lord, I take refuge. How can you say to my soul, "Flee as a bird to your mountain!"

²For, behold, the wicked bend their bows. They set their arrows on the strings, that they may shoot in darkness at the upright in heart.

³If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?

⁴The Lord is in his holy temple. The Lord is on his throne in heaven. His eyes observe. His eyes examine the children of men.

⁵The Lord examines the righteous, but the wicked and him who loves violence his soul hates.

⁶On the wicked he will rain blazing coals; fire, sulfur, and scorching wind shall be the portion of their cup.

⁷For the Lord is righteous. He loves righteousness. The upright shall see his face.

¹My son, if you have become collateral for your neighbor, if you have struck your hands in pledge for a stranger;

²You are trapped by the words of your mouth. You are ensnared with the words of your mouth.

³Do this now, my son, and deliver yourself, seeing you have come into the hand of your neighbor. Go, humble yourself. Press your plea with your neighbor.

⁴Give no sleep to your eyes, nor slumber to your eyelids.

⁵Free yourself, like a gazelle from the hand of the hunter, like a bird from the snare of the fowler.

⁶Go to the ant, you sluggard. Consider her ways, and be wise;

⁷which having no chief, overseer, or ruler,

⁸provides her bread in the summer, and gathers her food in the harvest.

⁹How long will you sleep, sluggard? When will you arise out of your sleep?

¹⁰A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep:

¹¹so your poverty will come as a robber, and your scarcity as an armed man.

¹²A worthless person, a man of iniquity, is he who walks with a perverse mouth;

¹³who winks with his eyes, who signals with his feet, who motions with his fingers;

¹⁴in whose heart is perverseness, who devises evil continually, who always sows discord.

¹⁵Therefore his calamity will come suddenly. He will be broken suddenly, and that without remedy.

¹⁶There are six things which the Lord hates; yes, seven which are an abomination to him:

¹⁷haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood;

¹⁸a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are swift in running to mischief,

¹⁹a false witness who utters lies, and he who sows discord among brothers.

²⁰My son, keep your father's commandment, and do not forsake your mother's teaching.

²¹Bind them continually on your heart. Tie them around your neck.

²²When you walk, it will lead you. When you sleep, it will watch over you. When you awake, it will talk with you.

²³For the commandment is a lamp, and the Law is light. Reproofs of instruction are the way of life,

²⁴to keep you from the immoral woman, from the flattery of the wayward wife's tongue.

²⁵Do not lust after her beauty in your heart, neither let her captivate you with her eyelids.

²⁶For a prostitute reduces you to a piece of bread. The adulteress hunts for your precious life.

²⁷Can a man scoop fire into his lap, and his clothes not be burned?

²⁸Or can one walk on hot coals, and his feet not be scorched?

²⁹So is he who goes in to his neighbor's wife. Whoever touches her will not be unpunished.

³⁰Men do not despise a thief, if he steals to satisfy himself when he is hungry:

³¹but if he is found, he shall restore seven times. He shall give all the wealth of his house.

³²He who commits adultery with a woman is void of understanding. He who does it destroys his own soul.

³³He will get wounds and dishonor. His reproach will not be wiped away.

³⁴For jealousy arouses the fury of the husband. He won't spare in the day of vengeance.

³⁵He won't regard any ransom, neither will he rest content, though you give many gifts.