2 Kings 6

¹And the sons of the prophets said to Elisha, Behold, please, the place where we dwell before you is too narrow for us.

²Let us go, please, to the Jordan and take from there each a timber, and let us make for ourselves a place to dwell there.' And he said, 'Go.'

³And one said, 'Please be willing to go with your servants.' And he said, 'I will go.'

⁴And he went with them, and they came to the Jordan, and they cut down the trees.

⁵And it happened, as one was felling a log, the iron fell into the water, and he cried out and said, "Alas, my lord! And it was borrowed."

⁶And the man of God said, 'Where did it fall?' And he showed him the place. And he cut a stick and threw it there, and the iron floated.

⁷And he said, Pick it up for yourself. And he stretched out his hand and took it.

⁸Now the king of Aram was making war against Israel, and he took counsel with his servants, saying, 'At such-and-such a place shall be my camp.'

⁹And the man of God sent to the king of Israel, saying, "Beware of passing by this place, for Aram is encamped there."

¹⁰And the king of Israel sent to the place about which the man of God had spoken to him, and he warned it, and he kept guard there, not once and not twice.

¹¹And the heart of the king of Aram was troubled over this matter, and he called to his servants and said to them, 'Will you not tell me who among us is for the king of Israel?'

¹²And one of his servants said, 'No, my lord king; rather, it is Elisha the prophet, who is in Israel, who tells the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bedroom.'

¹³And he said, "Go and see where he is, that I may send and take him." And it was told to him, saying, "Behold, he is in Dothan."

¹⁴And he sent there horses and chariots and a great force, and they came by night and surrounded the city.

¹⁵And the servant of the man of God rose early to get up and went out, and behold, an army was surrounding the city with horses and chariots. And his servant said to him, "Alas, my lord! What shall we do?"

¹⁶And he said, 'Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.'

¹⁷And Elisha prayed and said, 'O LORD, please 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 all around Elisha.

¹⁸And they came down to him, and Elisha prayed to the LORD and said, Strike, please, this nation with blindness. And he struck them with blindness, according to the word of Elisha.

¹⁹And Elisha said to them, "This is not the way, and this is not the city. Follow me, and I will lead you to the man whom you are seeking." And he led them to Samaria.

²⁰And it came to pass, when they came into Samaria, that Elisha said, 'O 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.

²¹And when the king of Israel saw them, he said to Elisha, 'Shall I strike them down? Shall I strike them down, my father?'

²²And he said, You shall not strike them. Would you strike those whom you captured with your sword and your bow? Set bread and water before them, that they may eat and drink and go to their lord.

²³And he prepared for them a great feast, and they ate and drank, and he sent them away, and they went back to their masters. And the raiding bands of Aram did not come again into the land of Israel.

²⁴And it came to pass after this that Ben-hadad king of Aram gathered all his army and marched up and besieged Samaria.

²⁵And there was a great famine in Samaria, and behold, they were besieging it, until a donkey's head cost eighty pieces of silver and a quarter kab of dove's dung cost five pieces of silver.

²⁶And as the king of Israel was passing along the wall, a woman cried out to him, saying, Save, my lord the king!

²⁷And he said, 'If the LORD does not save you, from where shall I save you? From the threshing floor, or from the winepress?'

²⁸And the king said to her, 'What is the matter with you?' And this woman said, 'This woman said to me, "Give your son and we will eat him today, and we will eat my son tomorrow."'

²⁹So we boiled my son and ate him, and I said to her the next day, "Give your son, that we may eat him," but she had hidden her son.

³⁰And when the king heard the words of the woman, he tore his garments -- and he was passing along the wall -- and the people looked, and behold, sackcloth was against his flesh underneath.

³¹And he said, 'May God do so to me and more also, if the head of Elisha son of Shaphat remains on him today.'

³²And Elisha was sitting in his house, and the elders were sitting with him. And the king sent a man from before him, but before the messenger came to him, he said to the elders, 'Do you see that this son of a murderer has sent to remove my head? See, when the messenger comes, shut the door and hold him fast with the door. Is not the sound of his master's feet behind him?'

³³While he was still speaking with them, behold, the messenger came down to him, and he said, "Behold, this disaster is from the LORD. Why should I wait for the LORD any longer?"