2 Kings 3

¹And Jehoram son of Ahab became king over Israel in Samaria in the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and he reigned twelve years.

²And he did evil in the eyes of the LORD, only not like his father and like his mother; and he removed the pillar of Baal which his father had made.

³However, he clung to the sins of Jeroboam son of Nebat, who caused Israel to sin; he did not turn from it.

⁴Now Mesha king of Moab was a sheep breeder, and used to pay to the king of Israel a hundred thousand young rams and a hundred thousand rams of wool.

⁵And it came about, when Ahab died, that the king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel.

⁶And King Jehoram went out on that day from Samaria and mustered all Israel.

⁷And he went and sent to Jehoshaphat king of Judah, saying: 'The king of Moab has rebelled against me. Will you go with me to Moab for battle?' And he said: 'I will go up—as I am, so are you; as my people, so your people; as my horses, so your horses.'

⁸And he said, Which way shall we go up? And he said, By the way of the wilderness of Edom.

⁹And the king of Israel and the king of Judah and the king of Edom went forth, and they circled around by way of seven days; and there was no water for the camp and for the livestock that followed them.

¹⁰And the king of Israel said, 'Alas! For the LORD has called these three kings to give them into the hand of Moab.'

¹¹And Jehoshaphat said: 'Is there not here a prophet of the LORD through whom we may inquire of the LORD?' And one of the servants of the king of Israel answered and said: 'Here is Elisha son of Shaphat, who poured water on the hands of Elijah.'

¹²And Jehoshaphat said, The word of the Lord is with him. And the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went down to him.

¹³And Elisha said to the king of Israel, 'What have I to do with you? Go to the prophets of your father and to the prophets of your mother.' And the king of Israel said, 'No! For the LORD has called these three kings to give them into the hand of Moab.'

¹⁴And Elisha said: As the Lord of hosts lives, before whom I stand, were it not that I regard the face of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, I would not look at you or see you.

¹⁵And now, bring me a musician.' And as the musician played, the hand of the LORD came upon him.

¹⁶And he said, Thus says the Lord: Make this valley full of cisterns, cisterns.

¹⁷For thus says the LORD: You will not see wind, and you will not see rain, yet that valley will be filled with water, and you will drink—you and your livestock and your animals.

¹⁸And this is a light thing in the eyes of the LORD; he will also give Moab into your hand.

¹⁹And you shall strike every fortified city and every choice city; and every good tree you shall fell, and every spring of water you shall stop up, and every good plot of land you shall ruin with stones.

²⁰And it came about in the morning, when the grain offering was being offered, and behold, water was coming from the way of Edom, and the land was filled with water.

²¹And all Moab heard that the kings had come up to fight against them, and they called together all who girded a belt and upward; and they stood at the border.

²²And they rose early in the morning, and the sun had risen over the water. And the Moabites saw from across the water—red as blood.

²³And they said: This is blood! The kings have utterly destroyed each other — each man struck his fellow. And now, to the plunder, Moab!

²⁴And they came into the camp of Israel, and Israel arose and struck Moab, and they fled from before them; and they went in and struck her, striking Moab.

²⁵And they tore down the cities, and on every fertile plot each man threw stones and filled it; and every spring of water they stopped up, and every good tree they felled — until only the stones of Kir-hareseth remained; and the slingers surrounded and attacked it.

²⁶And the king of Moab saw that the battle was too strong for him. He took with him seven hundred sword-bearing men to break through to the king of Edom, but they were not able.

²⁷And he took his firstborn son who was to reign in his place, and offered him up as a burnt offering on the wall. And great wrath came upon Israel, and they departed from him and returned to their land.