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2 Kings 3
Expanded Bible
2 Kings 3
Expanded Bible
War Between Israel and Moab
3 Joram son of Ahab became king over Israel at Samaria in Jehoshaphat’s eighteenth year as king of Judah. And Joram ·ruled [reigned] twelve years. 2 He did ·what the Lord said was wrong [L evil in the eyes/sight of the Lord], but ·he was not like [not to same extent as] his father and mother; he removed the stone pillars his father had made for Baal. 3 But he ·continued to sin like [L clung to the sin of] Jeroboam son of Nebat who had led Israel to sin. Joram did not ·stop doing these same sins [depart/L turn away from it].
4 Mesha king of Moab ·raised [bred] sheep. He ·paid [delivered to] the king of Israel one hundred thousand lambs and the wool of one hundred thousand sheep [C as annual tribute]. 5 But when Ahab died, the king of Moab turned against the king of Israel. 6 So King Joram went out from Samaria and ·gathered [mobilized; mustered] ·Israel’s army [L all Israel]. 7 He also sent messengers to Jehoshaphat king of Judah. “The king of Moab has ·turned [rebelled] against me,” he said. “Will you go with me to fight against Moab?”
Jehoshaphat replied, “I will go with you. My ·soldiers [L soldiers are your soldiers] and my horses are ·yours [L your horses].”
8 Jehoshaphat asked, “Which ·way should we attack [route should we take]?”
Joram answered, “Through the ·Desert [Wilderness] of Edom.”
9 So the king of Israel went with the king of Judah, joined by the king of Edom. After a ·roundabout [circuitous] march for seven days, there was no more water for the army or for their animals that were with them. 10 The king of Israel said, “·This is terrible [T Alas]! The Lord has called us three kings together to hand us over to the Moabites!”
11 But Jehoshaphat asked, “Is there ·a [L no] prophet of the Lord here? We can ·ask [inquire of] the Lord through him.”
An officer of the king of Israel answered, “Elisha son of Shaphat is here. He ·was Elijah’s servant [L used to pour water on the hands of Elijah].”
12 Jehoshaphat said, “·He speaks the Lord’s truth [The word of the Lord is with him].” So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went down to see Elisha.
13 Elisha said to the king of Israel, “·I have nothing [L What have I…?] to do with you. Go to the prophets of your father and to the prophets of your mother [C that is, to the prophets of their false gods]!”
The king of Israel said to Elisha, “No, the Lord has called us three kings together to hand us over to the Moabites.”
14 Elisha said, “As surely as the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts] lives, ·whom I serve [L before whom I stand], I wouldn’t even look at you or notice you if Jehoshaphat king of Judah were not here. I ·respect [have regard for] him. 15 Now bring me someone who plays the ·harp [lyre].”
While the ·harp [lyre] was being played, the ·Lord gave Elisha power [L hand of the Lord came upon him]. 16 Then Elisha said, “·The Lord says to [T Thus says the Lord:] ·dig holes in the valley [make trenches in this valley; or I will fill this valley full of pools]. 17 The Lord says you won’t see wind or rain, but the valley will be filled with water. Then you, your cattle, and your other animals can drink. 18 This is ·easy for the Lord to do [a slight/simple thing in the eyes/sight of the Lord]; he will also hand Moab over to you. 19 You will destroy every ·strong, walled [fortified] city and every important town. You will cut down every good tree and stop up all springs. You will ruin every good field with rocks.”
20 The next morning, about the time the sacrifice was offered, water ·came [flowed] from the direction of Edom and filled the valley.
21 All the Moabites heard that the kings had come up to fight against them. So they ·gathered [mobilized; called up] everyone old enough to put on armor and ·waited [they took up positions] at the border. 22 But when the Moabites got up early in the morning, the sun was shining on the water. They saw the water across from them, and it looked as red as blood. 23 Then they said, “This is blood! The kings must have fought and killed each other! Come, Moabites, ·let’s take the valuables from the dead bodies [let’s plunder them; L to the spoil]!”
24 When the Moabites came to the camp of Israel, the Israelites came out and fought them until they ran away. Then the Israelites ·went on into [invaded] the land, ·killing [slaughtering] the Moabites. 25 They ·tore down [destroyed; overturned] the cities and threw rocks all over every good field. They stopped up all the springs and cut down all the good trees. Kir Hareseth was the only city ·with its stones still in place [still standing], but the men with ·slingshots [slings] surrounded it and ·conquered [attacked] it, too.
26 When the king of Moab saw that the battle was ·too much for him [going against him], he took seven hundred men with swords to try to break through ·to [near to; across from] the king of Edom. But they could not break through. 27 Then the king of Moab took his oldest son, who would have been king after him, and ·offered [sacrificed] him as a burnt offering on the wall. ·So there was great anger against the Israelites, who [or Alarmed at this, the Israelites] left and went back to their own land.
2 Kings 3
New International Version
2 Kings 3
New International Version
Moab Revolts
3 Joram[a](A) son of Ahab became king of Israel in Samaria in the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and he reigned twelve years. 2 He did evil(B) in the eyes of the Lord, but not as his father(C) and mother had done. He got rid of the sacred stone(D) of Baal that his father had made. 3 Nevertheless he clung to the sins(E) of Jeroboam son of Nebat, which he had caused Israel to commit; he did not turn away from them.
4 Now Mesha king of Moab(F) raised sheep, and he had to pay the king of Israel a tribute of a hundred thousand lambs(G) and the wool of a hundred thousand rams. 5 But after Ahab died, the king of Moab rebelled(H) against the king of Israel. 6 So at that time King Joram set out from Samaria and mobilized all Israel. 7 He also sent this message to Jehoshaphat king of Judah: “The king of Moab has rebelled against me. Will you go with me to fight(I) against Moab?”
“I will go with you,” he replied. “I am as you are, my people as your people, my horses as your horses.”
8 “By what route shall we attack?” he asked.
“Through the Desert of Edom,” he answered.
9 So the king of Israel set out with the king of Judah and the king of Edom.(J) After a roundabout march of seven days, the army had no more water for themselves or for the animals with them.
10 “What!” exclaimed the king of Israel. “Has the Lord called us three kings together only to deliver us into the hands of Moab?”
11 But Jehoshaphat asked, “Is there no prophet of the Lord here, through whom we may inquire(K) of the Lord?”
An officer of the king of Israel answered, “Elisha(L) son of Shaphat is here. He used to pour water on the hands of Elijah.[b](M)”
12 Jehoshaphat said, “The word(N) of the Lord is with him.” So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went down to him.
13 Elisha said to the king of Israel, “Why do you want to involve me? Go to the prophets of your father and the prophets of your mother.”
“No,” the king of Israel answered, “because it was the Lord who called us three kings together to deliver us into the hands of Moab.”
14 Elisha said, “As surely as the Lord Almighty lives, whom I serve, if I did not have respect for the presence of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, I would not pay any attention to you. 15 But now bring me a harpist.”(O)
While the harpist was playing, the hand(P) of the Lord came on Elisha 16 and he said, “This is what the Lord says: I will fill this valley with pools of water. 17 For this is what the Lord says: You will see neither wind nor rain, yet this valley will be filled with water,(Q) and you, your cattle and your other animals will drink. 18 This is an easy(R) thing in the eyes of the Lord; he will also deliver Moab into your hands. 19 You will overthrow every fortified city and every major town. You will cut down every good tree, stop up all the springs, and ruin every good field with stones.”
20 The next morning, about the time(S) for offering the sacrifice, there it was—water flowing from the direction of Edom! And the land was filled with water.(T)
21 Now all the Moabites had heard that the kings had come to fight against them; so every man, young and old, who could bear arms was called up and stationed on the border. 22 When they got up early in the morning, the sun was shining on the water. To the Moabites across the way, the water looked red—like blood. 23 “That’s blood!” they said. “Those kings must have fought and slaughtered each other. Now to the plunder, Moab!”
24 But when the Moabites came to the camp of Israel, the Israelites rose up and fought them until they fled. And the Israelites invaded the land and slaughtered the Moabites. 25 They destroyed the towns, and each man threw a stone on every good field until it was covered. They stopped up all the springs and cut down every good tree. Only Kir Hareseth(U) was left with its stones in place, but men armed with slings surrounded it and attacked it.
26 When the king of Moab saw that the battle had gone against him, he took with him seven hundred swordsmen to break through to the king of Edom, but they failed. 27 Then he took his firstborn(V) son, who was to succeed him as king, and offered him as a sacrifice on the city wall. The fury against Israel was great; they withdrew and returned to their own land.
Footnotes
- 2 Kings 3:1 Hebrew Jehoram, a variant of Joram; also in verse 6
- 2 Kings 3:11 That is, he was Elijah’s personal servant.
Expanded Bible (EXB)
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New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.