Secondo libro dei Re 3

DIODATI	CATHOLIC PUBLIC DOMAIN
1 OR l’anno diciottesimo di Giosafat, re di Giuda, Gioram, figliuolo di Achab, cominciò a regnare sopra Israele in Samaria; e regnò dodici anni.	1 Truly, Joram, the son of Ahab, reigned over Israel, in Samaria, in the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah. And he reigned for twelve years.
2 E fece ciò che dispiace al Signore; non però come suo padre, e come sua madre; perciocchè tolse via la statua di Baal, che suo padre avea fatta.	2 And he did evil in the sight of the Lord, but not as his father and mother did. For he took away the statues of Baal, which his father had made.
3 Ma egli si attenne a’ peccati di Geroboamo, figliuolo di Nebat, per i quali egli avea fatto peccare Israele; egli non se ne rivolse.	3 Yet truly, he did adhere to the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, who caused Israel to sin; neither did he withdraw from these.
4 Or Mesa, re di Moab, nudriva molto minuto bestiame; e pagava per tributo al re d’Israele centomila agnelli, e centomila montoni con la lana.	4 Now Mesha, the king of Moab, raised many sheep. And he repaid to the king of Israel one hundred thousand lambs, and one hundred thousand rams, with their fleece.
5 Ma quando Achab fu morto, il re di Moab si ribellò contro al re d’Israele	5 And when Ahab had died, he transgressed the pact that he had with the king of Israel.
6 Laonde il re Gioram uscì in quel dì fuor di Samaria, e fece la rassegna di tutto Israele.	6 Therefore, king Joram departed on that day from Samaria, and he took a count of all of Israel.
7 E, partendo, mandò a dire a Giosafat, re di Giuda: Il re di Moab si è ribellato contro a me; verrai tu meco alla guerra contro a Moab? Ed egli disse: Sì, io vi salirò: fa’ conto di me come di te, della mia gente come della tua, e de’ miei cavalli come dei tuoi.	7 And he sent to Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, saying: “The king of Moab was withdrawn from me. Come to battle with me against him.” And he responded: “I will go up. What is mine, is yours. My people are your people. And my horses are your horses.”
8 Poi disse: Per qual via saliremo? E Gioram disse: Per la via del deserto di Edom.	8 And he said, “Along which way shall we ascend?” So he responded, “Along the desert of Idumea.”
9 Il re d’Israele adunque, e il re di Giuda, e il re di Edom, si partirono; e fatto il circuito di sette giornate di cammino, non vi era acqua per lo campo, nè per le bestie di servigio, che menavano con loro.	9 Therefore, the king of Israel, and the king of Judah, and the king of Idumea, traveled, and they went by a circuitous path for seven days. But there was no water for the army or for the beasts of burden which were following them.
10 E il re d’Israele disse: Oimè! certamente il Signore ha chiamati insieme questi tre re, per darli in mano di Moab.	10 And the king of Israel said: “Alas, alas, alas! The Lord has gathered we three kings, so that he might deliver us into the hands of Moab.”
11 E Giosafat disse: Non evvi qui alcun profeta del Signore, acciocchè per lui domandiamo il Signore; Ed uno dei servitori del re d’Israele rispose, e disse: Eliseo, figliuolo di Safat, che versava l’acqua sopra le mani d’Elia, è qui.	11 And Jehoshaphat said, “Is there not a prophet of the Lord here, so that we may appeal to the Lord through him?” And one of the servants of the king of Israel responded, “Elisha, the son of Shaphat, is here, who poured water upon the hands of Elijah.”
12 E Giosafat disse: La parola del Signore è con lui. Il re d’Israele adunque, e Giosafat, e il re di Edom, andarono a lui.	12 And Jehoshaphat said, “The word of the Lord is with him.” And so, the king of Israel, with Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, and with the king of Idumea, descended to him.
13 Ma Eliseo disse al re d’Israele: Che ho io a far teco? vattene a’ profeti di tuo padre, ed a’ profeti di tua madre. E il re d’Israele gli disse: No; perciocchè il Signore ha chiamati insieme questi tre re, per darli in mano di Moab.	13 Then Elisha said to the king of Israel: “What is there between you and me? Go to the prophets of your father and your mother.” And the king of Israel said to him, “Why has the Lord gathered these three kings, so that he might deliver them into the hands of Moab?”
14 Ed Eliseo disse: Come il Signore degli eserciti, al quale io ministro, vive, se io non avessi rispetto a Giosafat, re di Giuda, io non ti riguarderei pure, e non ti vorrei vedere.	14 And Elisha said to him: “As the Lord of hosts lives, in whose sight I stand, if I was not humbled by the face of Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, certainly I would neither have listened to you, nor have looked upon you.
15 Ora, fatemi venire un sonatore. E come il sonatore sonava, la mano del Signore fu sopra Eliseo; ed egli disse:	15 But now, bring a musician to me.” And while the musician was playing, the hand of the Lord fell upon him, and he said:
16 Così ha detto il Signore: Facciansi in questa valle molte fosse.	16 “Thus says the Lord: Make, in the channel of this torrent, pit after pit.
17 Perciocchè così ha detto il Signore: Voi non sentirete vento, e non vedrete pioggia, e pur questa valle si empierà d’acqua, della quale berrete, e voi, e le vostre gregge, e le vostre bestie di servigio.	17 For thus says the Lord: You shall not see wind or rain. And yet this channel shall be filled with water. And you shall drink, you and your families, and your beasts of burden.
18 E ciò è ancora leggier cosa agli occhi del Signore; perciocchè egli vi darà eziandio Moab nelle mani.	18 And this is small in the sight of the Lord. So, in addition, he will also deliver Moab into your hands.
19 E voi disfarete tutte le città murate, e tutte le città principali, ed abbatterete ogni buon albero, e turerete ogni fontana d’acqua, e desolerete con pietre ogni buon campo	19 And you shall strike every fortified town and every elect city. And you shall cut down every fruitful tree. And you shall obstruct all the sources of water. And you shall cover every excellent field with stones.”
20 E la mattina seguente, nell’ora che si offerisce l’offerta, avvenne che, ecco delle acque che venivano di verso Edom; e la terra fu ripiena d’acque.	20 Then it happened that, in the morning, when the sacrifices were usually to be offered, behold, water was arriving along the way of Idumea, and the land was filled with water.
21 Or tutti i Moabiti, avendo inteso che quei re erano saliti per far loro guerra, si erano adunati a grida, da chiunque si cominciava a cingere la spada in su; e si erano fermati in su le frontiere.	21 Then all the Moabites, hearing that the kings had ascended so that they might fight against them, gathered all who had been girded with a belt around them, and they stood at the borders.
22 E quella mattina si levarono, come il sole dava già sopra quelle acque; e videro davanti a loro da lontano quelle acque rosse come sangue;	22 And rising up in early morning, and when the sun was now rising before the waters, the Moabites saw the waters opposite them, which were red like blood.
23 e dissero: Questo è sangue; per certo quei re si son distrutti, e l’uno ha percosso l’altro. Or dunque, Moabiti, alla preda.	23 And they said: “It is the blood of the sword! The kings have fought among themselves, and they have slain one another. Go now, Moab, to the spoils!”
24 Così vennero verso il campo d’Israele; ma gl’Israeliti si levarono, e percossero i Moabiti, ed essi fuggirono d’innanzi a loro; e gl’Israeliti entrarono nel paese de’ Moabiti, sempre percotendoli.	24 And they went into the camp of Israel. But Israel, rising up, struck Moab, and they fled before them. And since they had prevailed, they went and struck down Moab.
25 E disfecero le città; e ciascuno gittò la sua pietra ne’ migliori campi, e così li empierono di pietre; e turarono ogni fontana d’acqua, e abbatterono ogni buon albero; tanto che in Chir-hareset lasciarono sol le pietre; ma i frombolatori la circondarono, e la percotevano.	25 And they destroyed the cities. And they filled up every excellent field, each one casting stones. And they obstructed all the sources of water. And they cut down all the fruitful trees, to such an extent that only brick walls remained. And the city was encircled by the slingers of stones. And a great part of it was struck down.
26 E il re di Moab, veggendo che la battaglia lo sopraffaceva, prese seco settecento uomini con la spada tratta in mano, per ispuntare della parte del re di Edom; ma non poterono.	26 And when the king of Moab had seen this, specifically, that the enemies had prevailed, he took with him seven hundred men who draw the sword, so that he might break through to the king of Idumea. But they were unable.
27 Allora egli prese il suo figliuolo primogenito, che dovea regnare in luogo suo, e l’offerse in olocausto in sul muro, e vi fu grande indegnazione contro agl’Israeliti. E gli altri si partirono da lui, e ritornarono al paese	27 And taking his firstborn son, who would have reigned in his place, he offered him as a holocaust upon the wall. And there was great indignation in Israel. And they promptly withdrew from him, and they turned back to their own land.