2 Kings 6

1 And the sons of the prophets said unto Elisha, Behold now, the place where we dwell with thee is too strait for us.2 Let us go, we pray thee, unto Jordan, and take thence every man a beam, and let us make us a place there, where we may dwell. And he answered, Go ye.3 And one said, Be content, I pray thee, and go with thy servants. And he answered, I will go.4 So he went with them. And when they came to Jordan, they cut down wood.5 But as one was felling a beam, the axe head fell into the water: and he cried, and said, Alas, master! for it was borrowed.s6 And the man of God said, Where fell it? And he shewed him the place. And he cut down a stick, and cast it in thither; and the iron did swim.7 Therefore said he, Take it up to thee. And he put out his hand, and took it.

8 Then the king of Syria warred against Israel, and took counsel with his servants, saying, In such and such a place shall be my camp.s9 And the man of God sent unto the king of Israel, saying, Beware that thou pass not such a place; for thither the Syrians are come down.10 And the king of Israel sent to the place which the man of God told him and warned him of, and saved himself there, not once nor twice.11 Therefore the heart of the king of Syria was sore troubled for this thing; and he called his servants, and said unto them, Will ye not shew me which of us is for the king of Israel?12 And one of his servants said, None, my lord, O king: but Elisha, the prophet that is in Israel, telleth the king of Israel the words that thou speakest in thy bedchamber.s

13 And he said, Go and spy where he is, that I may send and fetch him. And it was told him, saying, Behold, he is in Dothan.14 Therefore sent he thither horses, and chariots, and a great host: and they came by night, and compassed the city about.s15 And when the servant of the man of God was risen early, and gone forth, behold, an host compassed the city both with horses and chariots. And his servant said unto him, Alas, my master! how shall we do?s16 And he answered, Fear not: for they that be with us are more than they that be with them.17 And Elisha prayed, and said, Lord, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And the Lord opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha.18 And when they came down to him, Elisha prayed unto the Lord, and said, Smite this people, I pray thee, with blindness. And he smote them with blindness according to the word of Elisha.

19 And Elisha said unto them, This is not the way, neither is this the city: follow me, and I will bring you to the man whom ye seek. But he led them to Samaria.s20 And it came to pass, when they were come into Samaria, that Elisha said, Lord, open the eyes of these men, that they may see. And the Lord opened their eyes, and they saw; and, behold, they were in the midst of Samaria.21 And the king of Israel said unto Elisha, when he saw them, My father, shall I smite them? shall I smite them?22 And he answered, Thou shalt not smite them: wouldest thou smite those whom thou hast taken captive with thy sword and with thy bow? set bread and water before them, that they may eat and drink, and go to their master.23 And he prepared great provision for them: and when they had eaten and drunk, he sent them away, and they went to their master. So the bands of Syria came no more into the land of Israel.

24 And it came to pass after this, that Ben–hadad king of Syria gathered all his host, and went up, and besieged Samaria.25 And there was a great famine in Samaria: and, behold, they besieged it, until an ass's head was sold for fourscore pieces of silver, and the fourth part of a cab of dove's dung for five pieces of silver.26 And as the king of Israel was passing by upon the wall, there cried a woman unto him, saying, Help, my lord, O king.27 And he said, If the Lord do not help thee, whence shall I help thee? out of the barnfloor, or out of the winepress?s28 And the king said unto her, What aileth thee? And she answered, This woman said unto me, Give thy son, that we may eat him to day, and we will eat my son to morrow.29 So we boiled my son, and did eat him: and I said unto her on the next day, Give thy son, that we may eat him: and she hath hid her son.s

30 And it came to pass, when the king heard the words of the woman, that he rent his clothes; and he passed by upon the wall, and the people looked, and, behold, he had sackcloth within upon his flesh.31 Then he said, God do so and more also to me, if the head of Elisha the son of Shaphat shall stand on him this day.32 But Elisha sat in his house, and the elders sat with him; and the king sent a man from before him: but ere the messenger came to him, he said to the elders, See ye how this son of a murderer hath sent to take away mine head? look, when the messenger cometh, shut the door, and hold him fast at the door: is not the sound of his master's feet behind him?33 And while he yet talked with them, behold, the messenger came down unto him: and he said, Behold, this evil is of the Lord; what should I wait for the Lord any longer?

2 Kings 6

Elisha and the Floating Ax Head

1 The disciples of the prophets said to Elisha, “The place where we’re staying is too small for us.

2 Let’s go to the Jordan River. Each of us can get some logs and make a place for us to live there.”
Elisha said, “Go ahead.”3 Then one of the disciples asked, “Won’t you please come with us?”Elisha answered, “I’ll go.”4 So he went with them. They came to the Jordan River and began to cut down trees.

5 As one of them was cutting down a tree, the ax head fell into the water. He cried out, “Oh no, master! It was borrowed!”
6 The man of God asked, “Where did it fall?” When he showed Elisha the place, Elisha cut off a piece of wood. He threw it into the water at that place and made the ax head float.

7 Elisha said, “Pick it up.” The disciple reached for it and picked it up.

The Aramean Army Is Struck With Blindness

8 Whenever the king of Aram was fighting against Israel, he asked for advice from his officers about where they were to camp.9 So the man of God would send a message to the king of Israel, “Be careful not to go by that place. The Arameans are hiding there.”

10 Then the king of Israel would send someone to the place that the man of God told him about. Elisha warned them so that they would be on their guard. He did this repeatedly.
11 The king of Aram was very angry about this. He called his officers and asked them, “Won’t you tell me who among us is a spy for the king of Israel?”12 One of his officers answered, “No one, Your Majesty. Elisha, the prophet in Israel, tells the king of Israel everything you say—even what you say in your bedroom.”13 The king said, “Find out where he is. Then I will send men to capture him.”The king was told, “He is in Dothan.”

14 So the king sent horses and chariots and a large fighting unit there. They came at night and surrounded the city.
15 When the servant of the man of God got up in the morning and went outside, he saw troops, horses, and chariots surrounding the city. Elisha’s servant asked, “Master, what should we do?”16 Elisha answered, “Don’t be afraid. We have more forces on our side than they have on theirs.”

17 Then Elisha prayed, “Lord, please open his eyes so that he may see.” The Lord opened the servant’s eyes and let him see. The mountain around Elisha was full of fiery horses and chariots.
18 As the Arameans came down to get him, Elisha prayed to the Lord, “Please strike these people with blindness.” The Lord struck them with blindness, as Elisha had asked.19 Elisha told them, “This isn’t the way! This isn’t the city. Follow me, and I will lead you to the man you’re looking for.” So he led them into Samaria.

20 When they came into Samaria, Elisha said, “Lord, open the eyes of these men, and let them see.” The Lord opened their eyes and let them see that they were in the middle of Samaria.
21 When the king of Israel saw them, he asked Elisha, “Master, should I kill them? Should I kill them?”22 Elisha answered, “Don’t kill them. Do you kill everyone you take captive in combat? Give them food and water. Let them eat and drink. Then let them go back to their master.”23 So the king prepared a great feast for them. They ate and drank, and then he sent them back to their master. After this, Aramean troops didn’t raid Israel’s territory anymore.

The Aramean Army Blockades Samaria

24 Later King Benhadad of Aram assembled his whole army. They went to Samaria and blockaded it.

25 The shortages caused by the blockade of Samaria became so severe that a donkey’s head sold for two pounds of silver and a half-pint of dovet manure for two ounces of silver.
26 As the king of Israel was walking on the city wall, a woman cried to him, “Help me, Your Majesty!”27 He answered, “If the Lord doesn’t help you, how can I help you? I can’t give you something from the threshing floort or the winepress.”

28 Then the king asked her, “What’s the matter?”
She answered, “This woman told me, ‘Give up your son. Let’s eat him today. We’ll eat my son tomorrow.’

29 So we boiled my son and ate him. The next day I told her, ‘Give up your son. We’ll eat him,’ but she hid her son.”
30 When the king heard the woman say this, he tore his clothes in distress. As he was walking on the city wall, the people saw that he was wearing sackcloth under his clothes.

31 He said, “May God strike me dead if the head of Elisha, son of Shaphat, stays on his body today.”
32 Elisha was sitting in his home with the city’s leaders. The king had sent one of his men ahead of him to Elisha’s house. But before the messenger arrived, Elisha asked the leaders, “Do you see how this murderer has sent someone to tear off my head? When the messenger comes, close the door. Hold it shut because the king will be following him.”33 While he was still talking to them, the messenger arrived. He said to Elisha, “This severe famine is from the Lord. Why should I wait any longer for the Lord to help us?”