1 Kings 20

NEW JERUSALEM	KING JAMES BIBLE
1 Ben-Hadad king of Aram mustered his whole army -- thirty-two kings were with him, and horses andchariots -- and marched on Samaria, to besiege it and take it by assault.	1 And Ben-hadad the king of Syria gathered all his host together: and there were thirty and two kings with him, and horses, and chariots: and he went up and besieged Samaria, and warred against it.
2 He sent messengers into the city to Ahab king of Israel to tel him, 'Ben-Hadad says this,	2 And he sent messengers to Ahab king of Israel into the city, and said unto him, Thus saith Ben-hadad,
3 "Your silver and gold are mine. Your wives and children remain yours." '	3 Thy silver and thy gold is mine; thy wives also and thy children, even the goodliest, are mine.
4 The king of Israel replied, 'As you command, my lord king. Myself and al I have are yours.'	4 And the king of Israel answered and said, My lord, O king, according to thy saying, I am thine, and all that I have.
5 The messengers came again, this time they said, 'Ben-Hadad says this, "I have already sent you anorder to hand over your silver and your gold, your wives and your children;	5 And the messengers came again, and said, Thus speaketh Ben-hadad, saying, Although I have sent unto thee, saying, Thou shalt deliver me thy silver, and thy gold, and thy wives, and thy children;
6 but I swear, this time tomorrow, I shal send my servants to ransack your house and your servants'houses and lay hands on everything that they value and take it away." '	6 Yet I will send my servants unto thee to morrow about this time, and they shall search thine house, and the houses of thy servants; and it shall be, that whatsoever is pleasant in thine eyes, they shall put it in their hand, and take it away.
7 The king of Israel summoned al the elders of the country and said, 'You can see clearly how this manintends to ruin us. He has already demanded my wives and my children, although I have not refused him mysilver and gold.'	7 Then the king of Israel called all the elders of the land, and said, Mark, I pray you, and see how this man seeketh mischief: for he sent unto me for my wives, and for my children, and for my silver, and for my gold; and I denied him not.
8 Al the elders and all the people said, 'Take no notice. Do not consent.'	8 And all the elders and all the people said unto him, Hearken not unto him, nor consent.
9 So he gave this answer to Ben-Hadad's messengers, 'Say to my lord the king, "Al you first required ofyour servant I wil do, but this I cannot do." ' And the messengers went back with the answer.	9 Wherefore he said unto the messengers of Ben-hadad, Tell my lord the king, All that thou didst send for to thy servant at the first I will do: but this thing I may not do. And the messengers departed, and brought him word again.
10 Ben-Hadad then sent him the following message, 'May the gods bring unnameable ills on me andworse il s too, if there is enough dust in Samaria for each of my fol owers to have a handful!'	10 And Ben-hadad sent unto him, and said, The gods do so unto me, and more also, if the dust of Samaria shall suffice for handfuls for all the people that follow me.
11 But the king of Israel returned this answer, 'Say: the man who puts on his armour is not the one toboast, but the man who takes it off.'	11 And the king of Israel answered and said, Tell him, Let not him that girdeth on his harness boast himself as he that putteth it off.
12 When Ben-Hadad heard this message -- he was under the awnings drinking with the kings -- he gaveorders to his servants, 'Take up position!' And they took up their positions against the city.	12 And it came to pass, when Ben-hadad heard this message, as he was drinking, he and the kings in the pavilions,that he said unto his servants, Set yourselves in array. And they set themselves in array against the city.
13 A prophet then arrived, looking for Ahab king of Israel. 'Yahweh says this,' he said. ' "You have seenthis huge army? This very day I shal deliver it into your hands, and you will know that I am Yahweh." '	13 And, behold, there came a prophet unto Ahab king of Israel, saying, Thus saith the LORD, Hast thou seen all this great multitude? behold, I will deliver it in to thine hand this day; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD.
14 'By whose means?' Ahab asked. The prophet replied, 'Yahweh says this, "By means of the guards ofthe district governors." ' 'Who wil co-ordinate the attack?' Ahab asked. 'You will,' the prophet replied.	14 And Ahab said, By whom? And he said, Thus saith the LORD, Even by the young men of the princes of the provinces. Then he said, Who shall order the battle? And he answered, Thou.
15 So Ahab inspected the guards of the district governors: there were two hundred and thirty-two. Afterthese he reviewed the army, all the Israelites: there were seven thousand.	15 Then he numbered the young men of the princes of the provinces, and they were two hundred and thirty two: and after them he numbered all the people, even all the children of Israel, being seven thousand.
16 They made a sortie at midday, when Ben-Hadad was drinking himself senseless under the awnings,he and the thirty-two kings who were al ies.	16 And they went out at noon. But Ben-hadad was drinking himself drunk in the pavilions, he and the kings, the thirty and two kings that helped him.
17 The guards of the district governors led the sortie. A report was made to Ben-Hadad: 'Some menhave come out of Samaria.'	17 And the young men of the princes of the provinces went out first; and Ben-hadad sent out, and they told him, saying, There are men come out of Samaria.
18 He said, 'If they have come out for peace, take them alive; if they have come out for war, take themalive too.'	18 And he said, Whether they be come out for peace, take them alive; or whether they be come out for war, take them alive.
19 So they made a sortie from the city, the district governors' guards and behind them the army,	19 So these young men of the princes of the provinces came out of the city, and the army which followed them.
20 and each struck down his man. Aram took to flight and Israel pursued; Ben-Hadad king of Aramescaped on horseback.	20 And they slew every one his man: and the Syrians fled; and Israel pursued them: and Ben-hadad the king of Syria escaped on an horse with the horsemen.
21 The king of Israel then advanced, capturing horses and chariots and inflicting a great defeat on Aram.	21 And the king of Israel went out, and smote the horses and chariots, and slew the Syrians with a great slaughter.
22 The prophet then went to the king of Israel and said, 'Now is the time to be resolute and think careful yabout what you should do, for at the turn of the year the king of Aram wil march against you.'	22 And the prophet came to the king of Israel, and said unto him, Go, strengthen thy self, and mark, and see what thou doest: for at the return of the year the king of Syria will come up against thee.
23 The servants of the king of Aram said to him, 'Their gods are gods of the mountains; that is why theyhave proved stronger than we are. But if we fight them on level ground, we shal certainly beat them.	23 And the servants of the king of Syria said unto him, Their gods are gods of the hills; therefore they were stronger than we; but let us fight against them in the plain, and surely we shall be stronger than they.
24 This is what you must do: remove all these kings from their commands and appoint professionalsoldiers in their place.	24 And do this thing, Take the kings away, every man out of his place, and put captains in their rooms:
25 You, for your part, must recruit an army as large as the one which deserted you, with as many horsesand as many chariots; then if we fight them on level ground, we shal certainly beat them.' He listened to theiradvice and acted accordingly.	25 And number thee an army, like the army that thou hast lost, horse for horse, and chariot for chariot: and we will fight against them in the plain, and surely we shall be stronger than they. And he hearkened unto their voice, and did so.
26 At the turn of the year, Ben-Hadad mustered the Aramaeans and marched on Aphek to fight Israel.	26 And it came to pass at the return of the year, that Ben-hadad numbered the Syrians, and went up to Aphek, to fight against Israel.
27 The Israelites were already mobilised and provisioned, and marched out to meet them. Encampedopposite them, the Israelites looked like two herds of goats, whereas the Aramaeans fil ed the countryside.	27 And the children of Israel were numbered, and were all present, and went against them: and the children of Israel pitched before them like two little flocks of kids; but the Syrians filled the country.
28 The man of God then went to the king of Israel and said, 'Yahweh says this, "Since Aram has saidthat Yahweh is a god of the mountains and not a god of the plains, I shall put the whole of this huge army intoyour power, and you will know that I am Yahweh." '	28 And there came a man of God, and spake unto the king of Israel, and said, Thus saith the LORD, Because the Syrians have said, The LORD is God of the hills, but he is not God of the valleys, therefore will I deliver all this great multitude into thine hand, and ye shall know that I am the LORD.
29 For seven days they were encamped opposite each other. On the seventh day battle was joined andthe Israelites slaughtered the Aramaeans, a hundred thousand foot soldiers in one day.	29 And they pitched one over against the other seven days. And so it was, that in the seventh day the battle was joined: and the children of Israel slew of the Syrians an hundred thousand footmen in one day.
30 The rest fled to Aphek, into the citadel, but the city walls collapsed on twenty-seven thousand of thesurvivors. Now Ben-Hadad had fled and taken refuge in an inner room inside the citadel.	30 But the rest fled to Aphek, into the city; and there a wall fell upon twenty and seven thousand of the men that were left. And Ben-hadad fled, and came into the city, into an inner chamber.
31 'Look,' his servants said to him, 'we have heard that the kings of Israel are faithful and kind kings. Letus put sackcloth round our waists and cords round our heads and go out to the king of Israel; perhaps he wilspare your life.'	31 And his servants said unto him, Behold now, we have heard that the kings of the house of Israel are merciful kings: let us, I pray thee, put sackcloth on our loins, and ropes upon our heads, and go out to the king of Israel: peradventure he will save thy life.
32 So they wrapped sackcloth round their waists and put cords round their heads and went to the king ofIsrael, and said, 'Your servant Ben-Hadad says, "Spare my life." '	32 So they girded sackcloth on their loins, and put ropes on their heads, and came to the king of Israel, and said, Thy servant Ben-hadad saith, I pray thee, let me live. And he said, Is he yet alive? he is my brother.
33 'So he is stil alive?' he replied. 'He is my brother.' The men took this for a good omen and quicklyseized on his words. 'Yes,' they said, 'Ben-Hadad is your brother.' Ahab said, 'Go and fetch him.' Then Ben-Hadad came out to him and Ahab made him get up into his chariot.	33 Now the men did diligently observe whether any thing would come from him, and did hastily catch it: and they said, Thy brother Ben-hadad. Then he said, Go ye, bring him. Then Ben-hadad came forth to him; and he caused him to come up into the chariot.
34 Ben-Hadad said, 'I shall restore the towns which my father took from your father and you may set upa trading quarter for yourself in Damascus as my father did in Samaria.' 'With a treaty,' Ahab said, 'I shall set youfree.' Granting him a treaty, Ahab let him go.	34 And Ben-hadad said unto him, The cities, which my father took from thy father, I will restore; and thou shalt make streets for thee in Damascus, as my father made in Samaria. Then said Ahab, I will send thee away with this covenant. So he made a covenant with him, and sent him away.
35 At Yahweh's command a member of the brotherhood of prophets said to a companion of his, 'Strikeme,' but the man refused to strike him.	35 And a certain man of the sons of the prophets said unto his neighbour in the word of the LORD, Smite me, I pray thee. And the man refused to smite him.
36 So he said to him, 'Since you have disobeyed Yahweh's order, the very moment you leave me a lionwil kill you.' And no sooner had he left him than he met a lion, which killed him.	36 Then said he unto him, Because thou hast not obeyed the voice of the LORD, behold, as soon as thou art departed from me, a lion shall slay thee. And as soon as he was departed from him, a lion found him, and slew him.
37 The prophet then went to find another man and said, 'Strike me,' and the man struck him andwounded him.	37 Then he found another man, and said, Smite me, I pray thee. And the man smote him, so that in smiting he wounded him.
38 The prophet then went and stood waiting for the king on the road, disguising himself with a bandageover his eyes.	38 So the prophet departed, and waited for the king by the way, and disguised himself with ashes upon his face.
39 As the king passed, he cal ed out to him, 'Your servant was making his way to where the fight wasthickest when someone left the fighting to bring a man to me, and said, "Guard this man; if he is found missing,your life wil pay for his, or else you wil have to pay one talent of silver."	39 And as the king passed by, he cried unto the king: and he said, Thy servant went out into the midst of the battle; and, behold, a man turned aside, and brought a man unto me, and said, Keep this man: if by any means he be missing, then shall thy life be for his life, or else thou shalt pay a talent of silver.
40 But your servant was busy with one thing and another, the man disappeared.' The king of Israel said,'That is your sentence then. You have pronounced it yourself.'	40 And as thy servant was busy here and there, he was gone. And the king of Israel said unto him, So shall thy judgment be; thyself hast decided it.
41 At this the man quickly pul ed off the bandage over his eyes, and the king of Israel recognised him asone of the prophets.	41 And he hasted, and took the ashes away from his face; and the king of Israel discerned him that he was of the prophets.
42 He said to the king, 'Yahweh says this, "Since you have let the man escape who was under my curseof destruction, your life wil pay for his, your people for his people." '	42 And he said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Because thou hast let go out of thy hand a man whom I appointed to utter destruction, therefore thy life shall go for his life, and thy people for his people.
43 And the king of Israel went home, gloomy and out of temper, back to Samaria.	43 And the king of Israel went to his house heavy and displeased, and came to Samaria.