2 Kings 3

NEW JERUSALEM	DOUAI-RHEIMS
1 Jehoram son of Ahab became king of Israel in Samaria in the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat king ofJudah, and reigned for twelve years.	1 And Joram the son of Achab reigned over Israel in Samaria in the eighteenth year of m Josaphat king of Juda. And he reigned twelve years.
2 He did what is displeasing to Yahweh, though not like his father and mother, for he did away with thepil ar to Baal which his father had made.	2 And he did evil before the Lord, but not like his father and his mother: for he took away the statues of Baal, which his father had made.
3 Nonetheless, he continued to practise the sins into which Jeroboam son of Nebat had led Israel and didnot give them up.	3 Nevertheless he stuck to the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nabat, who made Israel to sin, nor did he depart from them.
4 Mesha king of Moab was a sheep-breeder and used to pay the king of Israel in tribute a hundredthousand lambs and a hundred thousand rams with their wool.	4 Now Mesa, king of Moab, nourished many sheep, and he paid to the king of Israel a hundred thousand lambs, and a hundred thousand rams with their fleeces.
5 But when Ahab died, the king of Moab rebel ed against the king of Israel.	5 And when Achab was dead, he broke the league which he had made with the king of Israel.
6 At once King Jehoram left Samaria and mustered al Israel.	6 And king Joram went out that day from Samaria, and mustered all Israel.
7 After this he sent word to the king of Judah, 'The king of Moab has rebel ed against me. Wil you go towar with me against Moab?' 'I wil ,' he replied. 'I wil be as you, my men as yours, my horses as yours,'	7 And he sent to Josaphat king of Juda, saying: The king of Moab is revolted from me, come with me against him to battle. And he answered: I will come up: he that is mine, is thine: my people, thy people: and my horses, thy horses.
8 and added, 'Which way are we to attack?' 'Through the desert of Edom,' the other answered.	8 And he said: Which way shall we go up? But he answered: By the desert of Edom.
9 So they set out, the king of Israel, the king of Judah and the king of Edom. They carried out a flankingmovement for seven days, until there was no water left for the troops or for the beasts of their baggage train.	9 So the king of Israel, and the king of Juda, and the king of Edom went, and they fetched a compass of seven days' journey, and there was no water for the army, and for the beasts, that followed them.
10 'Alas!' the king of Israel exclaimed, 'Yahweh has summoned us three kings, only to put us into thepower of Moab.'	10 And the king of Israel said: Alas, alas, alas, the Lord hath gathered us three kings together, to deliver us into the hands of Moab!
11 But the king of Judah said, 'Is there no prophet of Yahweh here for us to consult Yahweh through him?'One of the king of Israel's servants answered, 'Elisha son of Shaphat is here, who used to pour water on thehands of Elijah.'	11 And Josaphat said: Is there not here a prophet of the Lord, that we may beseech the Lord by him? And one of the servants of the king of Israel answered: Here is Eliseus the son of Saphat, who poured water on the hands of Elias.
12 'The word of Yahweh is with him,' the king of Judah said. So the king of Israel, the king of Judah andthe king of Edom went to consult him.	12 And Josaphat said: The word of the Lord is with him. And the king of Israel, and Josaphat king of Juda, and the king of Edom went down to him.
13 But Elisha said to the king of Israel, 'What business have you with me? Go to your father's and yourmother's prophets.' 'No,' the king of Israel answered, 'Yahweh is the one who has summoned us three kings,only to put us into the power of Moab.' Elisha replied,	13 And Eliseus said to the king of Israel: What have I to do with thee? go to the prophets of thy father, and thy mother. And the king of Israel said to him: Why hath the Lord gathered together these three kings, to deliver them into the hands of Moab?
14 'By the life of Yahweh Sabaoth whom I serve, if I did not respect the king of Judah, I would take nonotice of you, nor so much as look at you.	14 And Eliseus said to him: As the Lord of hosts liveth, in whose sight I stand, if I did not reverence the face of Josaphat king of Juda, I would not have hearkened to thee, nor looked on thee.
15 Now bring me someone who can play the lyre.' And as the musician played, the hand of Yahweh cameon him	15 But now bring me hither a minstrel. And when the minstrel played, the hand of the Lord came upon him, and he said:
16 and he said, 'Yahweh says this, "Dig in this val ey ditch after ditch,"	16 Thus saith the Lord: Make the channel of this torrent full of ditches.
17 for Yahweh says, "You wil see no wind, you will see no rain, but this val ey wil become ful of water,and you and your troops and your baggage animals will drink."	17 For thus saith the Lord: You shall not see wind, nor rain: and yet this channel shall be filled with waters, and you shall drink, you and your families, and your beasts.
18 But this is only a trifle in Yahweh's eyes, for he wil put Moab itself into your power.	18 And this is a small thing in the sight of the Lord: moreover he will deliver also Moab into your hands.
19 You wil storm every fortified town, fell every productive tree, block every water-hole, ruin al the bestfields with stones.'	19 And you shall destroy every fenced city, and every choice city, and shall cut down every fruitful tree, and shall stop up all the springs of waters, and every goodly field you shall cover with stones.
20 Next morning at the time when the oblation was being offered, water came from the direction of Edom,and the whole terrain was flooded.	20 And it came to pass in the morning, when the sacrifices used to be offered, that behold, water came by the way of Edom, and the country was filled with water.
21 When the Moabites learned that the kings were advancing to fight them, al those of an age to beararms were mobilised; they took up position on the frontier.	21 And all the Moabites hearing that the kings were come up to fight against them, gathered together all that were girded with a belt upon them, and stood in the borders.
22 In the morning when they got up, the sun was shining on the water; and in the distance the Moabitessaw the water as red as blood.	22 And they rose early in the morning, and the sun being now up, and shining upon the waters, the Moabites saw the waters over against them red, like blood,
23 'This is blood!' they said. 'The kings must have fought among themselves and killed one another. Sonow for the booty, Moab!'	23 And they said: It is the blood of the sword: the kings have fought among themselves, and they have killed one another: go now, Moab, to the spoils.
24 But when they reached the Israelite camp, the Israelites launched their attack and the Moabites fledbefore them, and as they advanced they cut the Moabites to pieces.	24 And they went into the camp of Israel: but Israel rising up defeated Moab, who fled before them. And they being conquerors, went and smote Moab.
25 They laid the towns in ruins, and each man threw a stone into al the best fields to fil them up, and theyblocked every water-hole and felled every productive tree. In the end, there was only Kir-Hareseth left, which theslingers surrounded and bombarded.	25 And they destroyed the cities: and they filled every goodly field, every man casting his stone: and they stopt up all the springs of waters: and cut down all the trees that bore fruit, so that brick walls only remained: and the city was beset by the slingers, and a great part thereof destroyed.
26 When the king of Moab saw that the battle had turned against him, he mustered seven hundredswordsmen in the hope of breaking a way out and going to the king of Aram, but he failed.	26 And when the king of Moab saw this, to wit, that the enemies had prevailed, he took with him seven hundred men that drew the sword, to break in upon the king of Edom: but they could not.
27 Then he took his eldest son who was to succeed him and offered him as a sacrifice on the city wal .Alarmed at this, the Israelites withdrew and retired to their own territory.	27 Then he took his eldest son that should have reigned in his stead, and offered him for a burnt offering upon the wall: and there was great indignation in Israel, and presently they departed from him, and returned into their own country.