An Axhead Floats
1The company of the prophets said to Elisha, “Look, the place where we meet with you is too small for us. 2Let us go to the Jordan, where each of us can get a pole; and let us build a place there for us to meet.”
And he said, “Go.”
3Then one of them said, “Won’t you please come with your servants?”
“I will,” Elisha replied. 4And he went with them.
They went to the Jordan and began to cut down trees. 5As one of them was cutting down a tree, the iron axhead fell into the water. “Oh no, my lord!” he cried out. “It was borrowed!”
6The man of God asked, “Where did it fall?” When he showed him the place, Elisha cut a stick and threw it there, and made the iron float. 7“Lift it out,” he said. Then the man reached out his hand and took it.
Elisha Traps Blinded Arameans
8Now the king of Aram was at war with Israel. After conferring with his officers, he said, “I will set up my camp in such and such a place.”
9The man of God sent word to the king of Israel: “Beware of passing that place, because the Arameans are going down there.” 10So the king of Israel checked on the place indicated by the man of God. Time and again Elisha warned the king, so that he was on his guard in such places.
11This enraged the king of Aram. He summoned his officers and demanded of them, “Tell me! Which of us is on the side of the king of Israel?”
12“None of us, my lord the king,” said one of his officers, “but Elisha, the prophet who is in Israel, tells the king of Israel the very words you speak in your bedroom.”
13“Go, find out where he is,” the king ordered, “so I can send men and capture him.” The report came back: “He is in Dothan.” 14Then he sent horses and chariots and a strong force there. They went by night and surrounded the city.
15When the servant of the man of God got up and went out early the next morning, an army with horses and chariots had surrounded the city. “Oh no, my lord! What shall we do?” the servant asked.
16“Don’t be afraid,” the prophet answered. “Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”
17And Elisha prayed, “Open his eyes, Lord, so that he may see.” Then the Lord opened the servant’s eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.
18As the enemy came down toward him, Elisha prayed to the Lord, “Strike this army with blindness.” So he struck them with blindness, as Elisha had asked.
19Elisha told them, “This is not the road and this is not the city. Follow me, and I will lead you to the man you are looking for.” And he led them to Samaria.
20After they entered the city, Elisha said, “Lord, open the eyes of these men so they can see.” Then the Lord opened their eyes and they looked, and there they were, inside Samaria.
21When the king of Israel saw them, he asked Elisha, “Shall I kill them, my father? Shall I kill them?”
22“Do not kill them,” he answered. “Would you kill those you have captured with your own sword or bow? Set food and water before them so that they may eat and drink and then go back to their master.” 23So he prepared a great feast for them, and after they had finished eating and drinking, he sent them away, and they returned to their master. So the bands from Aram stopped raiding Israel’s territory.
Famine in Besieged Samaria
24Some time later, Ben-Hadad king of Aram mobilized his entire army and marched up and laid siege to Samaria. 25There was a great famine in the city; the siege lasted so long that a donkey’s head sold for eighty shekels6:25 That is, about 2 pounds or about 920 grams of silver, and a quarter of a cab6:25 That is, probably about 1/4 pound or about 100 grams of seed pods6:25 Or of doves’ dung for five shekels.6:25 That is, about 2 ounces or about 58 grams
26As the king of Israel was passing by on the wall, a woman cried to him, “Help me, my lord the king!”
27The king replied, “If the Lord does not help you, where can I get help for you? From the threshing floor? From the winepress?” 28Then he asked her, “What’s the matter?”
She answered, “This woman said to me, ‘Give up your son so we may eat him today, and tomorrow we’ll eat my son.’ 29So we cooked my son and ate him. The next day I said to her, ‘Give up your son so we may eat him,’ but she had hidden him.”
30When the king heard the woman’s words, he tore his robes. As he went along the wall, the people looked, and they saw that, under his robes, he had sackcloth on his body. 31He said, “May God deal with me, be it ever so severely, if the head of Elisha son of Shaphat remains on his shoulders today!”
32Now Elisha was sitting in his house, and the elders were sitting with him. The king sent a messenger ahead, but before he arrived, Elisha said to the elders, “Don’t you see how this murderer is sending someone to cut off my head? Look, when the messenger comes, shut the door and hold it shut against him. Is not the sound of his master’s footsteps behind him?” 33While he was still talking to them, the messenger came down to him.
The king said, “This disaster is from the Lord. Why should I wait for the Lord any longer?”
以利沙找回斧頭
1一群先知對以利沙說：「你看，我們住的地方實在太小了。 2請讓我們去約旦河吧，我們每人都可以從那裡砍一根木頭蓋房子居住。」以利沙說：「你們去吧。」 3其中一人請以利沙一起去，以利沙答應了， 4便和他們一起去約旦河砍伐樹木。 5有個人砍樹的時候，斧頭掉進了水裡。他大喊：「唉！師傅，這把斧頭是借來的。」 6上帝的僕人問：「斧頭掉在哪裡了？」他就指給以利沙看。以利沙砍了一根樹枝拋進水裡，斧頭便浮了上來。 7以利沙說：「你去拿上來吧！」他便伸手拿起了斧頭。
以利沙使亞蘭軍敗退
8亞蘭王與以色列人交戰，他和臣僕商議要在某處安營。 9上帝的僕人傳信給以色列王，說：「你要小心，不要經過那個地方，因為亞蘭人埋伏在那裡。」 10以色列王派人到上帝的僕人所說的地方，警告那裡的人要小心防備。這樣的事情發生了好幾次。
11亞蘭王因此十分惱怒，召來臣僕質問他們：「你們當中誰向以色列王洩露了我們的計劃？」 12一位臣僕說：「我主我王啊，沒有人洩露。是以色列的先知以利沙將王在寢宮所談的事告訴了以色列王。」 13王說：「去找出他在哪裡，我派人去捉拿他。」王得知以利沙在多坍後， 14便派出大隊人馬和戰車前往那裡，他們在夜間抵達多坍，把城圍住。 15上帝僕人的侍者清早起來，走到外面，看見城被軍隊、車馬包圍，就對上帝的僕人說：「唉！我主啊，我們該怎麼辦呢？」 16上帝的僕人說：「不要害怕！我們的兵馬比他們的還要多。」 17他隨後禱告：「耶和華啊，求你開他的眼睛，讓他看見。」於是，耶和華開那個侍者的眼睛，他就看見山上到處都是火車火馬圍繞著以利沙。 18亞蘭人向以利沙衝來，以利沙祈求耶和華說：「求你使他們瞎眼。」耶和華聽了以利沙的禱告，使他們瞎了眼。 19以利沙對他們說：「不是這條路，也不是這座城。跟我來，我帶你們到你們要找的人那裡。」以利沙把他們領到撒瑪利亞。
20他們進城後，以利沙禱告：「耶和華啊，求你開他們的眼睛，讓他們看見。」耶和華開了他們的眼睛，他們就看見了，發現自己在撒瑪利亞城中。 21以色列王看見他們，問以利沙說：「我父啊，我可以殺他們嗎？」 22以利沙答道：「不可殺他們。豈可殺用刀和弓抓來的俘虜呢？給他們吃的喝的，讓他們吃喝完了回自己主人那裡吧。」 23於是，以色列王為他們大擺宴席，等他們吃喝完畢，便放他們回自己主人那裡。之後，亞蘭人不再侵犯以色列。
撒瑪利亞城被圍困
24後來，亞蘭王便·哈達召集全軍圍困撒瑪利亞。 25撒瑪利亞被困後，城裡陷入嚴重饑荒，以致一個驢頭可賣二十兩銀子，二百克鴿子糞可賣一兩銀子。 26一天，以色列王從城牆上走過，一個婦人向他呼喊：「我主我王啊，求你幫幫我！」 27王說：「如果耶和華不幫助你，我怎能幫助你呢？我豈有麥子和酒？ 28你有什麼難處呢？」婦人說：「這個女人對我說，『我們今天吃你兒子，明天再吃我兒子。』 29於是我們把我兒子煮了吃。第二天我叫她把她兒子交出來，她卻把兒子藏了起來。」 30王聽了婦人的話，就撕裂衣服。王走在城牆上，人們都看見他貼身穿著麻衣。 31王說：「如果今天沙法的兒子以利沙的頭顱還留在他頸項上，願上帝重重地懲罰我！」
32王派使者去以利沙那裡。那時，以利沙正與長老們坐在他家中。使者到達之前，以利沙對長老說：「你們看，這兇手派人來斬我的頭。使者到達時，你們要把他關在門外。他後面不就是他主人的腳步聲嗎？」 33話音未落，使者已經到了，說：「既然這禍是從耶和華來的，我何必再仰望祂呢？」
