2 Kings 6

The Axe Head Recovered

1 And a the sons of the prophets said to Elisha, "See now, the place where we dwell with you is too small for us. 2 "Please, let us go to the Jordan, and let every man take a beam from there, and let us make there a place where we may dwell." So he answered, "Go." 3 Then one said, b "Please consent to go with your servants." And he answered, "I will go." 4 So he went with them. And when they came to the Jordan, they cut down trees. 5 But as one was cutting down a tree, the iron ax head fell into the water; and he cried out and said, "Alas, master! For it was c borrowed." 6 So the man of God said, "Where did it fall?" And he showed him the place. So d he cut off a stick, and threw it in there; and he made the iron float. 7 Therefore he said, "Pick it up for yourself." So he reached out his hand and took it.

Horses and Chariots of Fire

8 Now the e king of Syria was making war against Israel; and he consulted with his servants, saying, "My camp will be in such and such a place." 9 And the man of God sent to the king of Israel, saying, "Beware that you do not pass this place, for the Syrians are coming down there." 10 Then the king of Israel sent someone to the place of which the man of God had told him. Thus he warned him, and he was watchful there, not just once or twice.

11 Therefore the heart of the king of Syria was greatly troubled by this thing; and he called his servants and said to them, "Will you not show me which of us is for the king of Israel?" 12 And one of his servants said, "None, my lord, O king; but Elisha, the prophet who is in Israel, tells the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bedroom." 13 So he said, "Go and see where he is, that I may send and get him." And it was told him, saying, "Surely he is in f Dothan." 14 Therefore he sent horses and chariots and a great army there, and they came by night and surrounded the city.

15 And when the servant of the man of God arose early and went out, there was an army, surrounding the city with horses and chariots. And his servant said to him, "Alas, my master! What shall we do?" 16 So he answered, g "Do not fear, for h those who are with us are more than those who are with them." 17 And Elisha prayed, and said, "LORD, I pray, open his eyes that he may see." Then the LORD i opened the eyes of the young man, and he saw. And behold, the mountain was full of j horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha. 18 So when the Syrians came down to him, Elisha prayed to the LORD, and said, "Strike this people, I pray, with blindness." And k He struck them with blindness according to the word of Elisha. 19 Now Elisha said to them, "This is not the way, nor is this the city. Follow me, and I will bring you to the man whom you seek." But he led them to Samaria.

20 So it was, when they had come to Samaria, that Elisha said, "LORD, open the eyes of these men, that they may see." And the LORD opened their eyes, and they saw; and there they were, inside Samaria! 21 Now when the king of Israel saw them, he said to Elisha, "My l father, shall I kill them? Shall I kill them?" 22 But he answered, "You shall not kill them. Would you kill those whom you have taken captive with your sword and your bow? m Set food and water before them, that they may eat and drink and go to their master." 23 Then he prepared a great feast for them; and after they ate and drank, he sent them away and they went to their master. So n the bands of Syrian raiders came no more into the land of Israel.

Ben-hadad's Siege of Samaria

24 And it happened after this that o BenHadad king of Syria gathered all his army, and went up and besieged Samaria. 25 And there was a great p famine in Samaria; and indeed they besieged it until a donkey's head was sold for eighty shekels of silver, and one-fourth of a 1 kab of dove droppings for five shekels of silver. 26 Then, as the king of Israel was passing by on the wall, a woman cried out to him, saying, "Help, my lord, O king!" 27 And he said, "If the LORD does not help you, where can I find help for you? From the threshing floor or from the winepress?" 28 Then the king said to her, "What is troubling you?" And she answered, "This woman said to me, 'Give your son, that we may eat him today, and we will eat my son tomorrow.' 29 "So q we boiled my son, and ate him. And I said to her on the next day, 'Give your son, that we may eat him'; but she has hidden her son." 30 Now it happened, when the king heard the words of the woman, that he r tore his clothes; and as he passed by on the wall, the people looked, and there underneath he had sackcloth on his body. 31 Then he said, s "God do so to me and more also, if the head of Elisha the son of Shaphat remains on him today!"

32 But Elisha was sitting in his house, and t the elders were sitting with him. And the king sent a man ahead of him, but before the messenger came to him, he said to the elders, u "Do you see how this son of v a murderer has sent someone to take away my head? Look, when the messenger comes, shut the door, and hold him fast at the door. Is not the sound of his master's feet behind him?" 33 And while he was still talking with them, there was the messenger, coming down to him; and then the king said, "Surely this calamity is from the LORD; w why should I wait for the LORD any longer?"

  1. Cross References
    2 Kings 4:38
    And Elisha returned to Gilgal, and there was a famine in the land. Now the sons of the prophets were sitting before him; and he said to his servant, "Put on the large pot, and boil stew for the sons of the prophets.
  2. Cross References
    2 Kings 5:23
    So Naaman said, "Please, take two talents." And he urged him, and bound two talents of silver in two bags, with two changes of garments, and handed them to two of his servants; and they carried them on ahead of him.
  3. Cross References
    Exodus 22:14
    And if a man borrows anything from his neighbor, and it becomes injured or dies, the owner of it not being with it, he shall surely make it good.
  4. Cross References
    Exodus 15:25
    So he cried out to the LORD, and the LORD showed him a tree. When he cast it into the waters, the waters were made sweet. There He made a statute and an ordinance for them, and there He tested them.
    2 Kings 2:21
    Then he went out to the source of the water, and cast in the salt there, and said, "Thus says the LORD: 'I have healed this water; from it there shall be no more death or barrenness.'
    2 Kings 4:41
    So he said, "Then bring some flour." And he put it into the pot, and said, "Serve it to the people, that they may eat." And there was nothing harmful in the pot.
  5. Cross References
    2 Kings 8:28
    Now he went with Joram the son of Ahab to war against Hazael king of Syria at Ramoth Gilead; and the Syrians wounded Joram.
    2 Kings 8:29
    Then King Joram went back to Jezreel to recover from the wounds which the Syrians had inflicted on him at Ramah, when he fought against Hazael king of Syria. And Ahaziah the son of Jehoram, king of Judah, went down to see Joram the son of Ahab in Jezreel, because he was sick.
  6. Cross References
    Genesis 37:17
    And the man said, "They have departed from here, for I heard them say, 'Let us go to Dothan."' So Joseph went after his brothers and found them in Dothan.
  7. Cross References
    Exodus 14:13
    And Moses said to the people, "Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever.
    1 Kings 17:13
    And Elijah said to her, "Do not fear; go and do as you have said, but make me a small cake from it first, and bring it to me; and afterward make some for yourself and your son.
  8. Cross References
    2 Chronicles 32:7
    Be strong and courageous; do not be afraid nor dismayed before the king of Assyria, nor before all the multitude that is with him; for there are more with us than with him.
    Psalms 55:18
    He has redeemed my soul in peace from the battle that was against me, For there were many against me.
    Romans 8:31
    What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?
  9. Cross References
    Numbers 22:31
    Then the LORD opened Balaam's eyes, and he saw the Angel of the LORD standing in the way with His drawn sword in His hand; and he bowed his head and fell flat on his face.
    Luke 24:31
    Then their eyes were opened and they knew Him; and He vanished from their sight.
  10. Cross References
    2 Kings 2:11
    Then it happened, as they continued on and talked, that suddenly a chariot of fire appeared with horses of fire, and separated the two of them; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.
    Psalms 34:7
    The angel of the LORD encamps all around those who fear Him, And delivers them.
    Psalms 68:17
    The chariots of God are twenty thousand, Even thousands of thousands; The Lord is among them as in Sinai, in the Holy Place.
    Zechariah 1:8
    I saw by night, and behold, a man riding on a red horse, and it stood among the myrtle trees in the hollow; and behind him were horses: red, sorrel, and white.
    Zechariah 6:1 - 7
    Then I turned and raised my eyes and looked, and behold, four chariots were coming from between two mountains, and the mountains were mountains of bronze.
  11. Cross References
    Genesis 19:11
    And they struck the men who were at the doorway of the house with blindness, both small and great, so that they became weary trying to find the door.
    Acts 13:11
    And now, indeed, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you shall be blind, not seeing the sun for a time." And immediately a dark mist fell on him, and he went around seeking someone to lead him by the hand.
  12. Cross References
    2 Kings 2:12
    And Elisha saw it, and he cried out, "My father, my father, the chariot of Israel and its horsemen!" So he saw him no more. And he took hold of his own clothes and tore them into two pieces.
    2 Kings 5:13
    And his servants came near and spoke to him, and said, "My father, if the prophet had told you to do something great, would you not have done it? How much more then, when he says to you, 'Wash, and be clean'?
    2 Kings 8:9
    So Hazael went to meet him and took a present with him, of every good thing of Damascus, forty camel-loads; and he came and stood before him, and said, "Your son BenHadad king of Syria has sent me to you, saying, 'Shall I recover from this disease?'
  13. Cross References
    Romans 12:20
    Therefore "If your enemy is hungry, feed him; If he is thirsty, give him a drink; For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.
  14. Cross References
    2 Kings 5:2
    And the Syrians had gone out on raids, and had brought back captive a young girl from the land of Israel. She waited on Naaman's wife.
    2 Kings 6:8
    Now the king of Syria was making war against Israel; and he consulted with his servants, saying, "My camp will be in such and such a place.
    2 Kings 6:9
    And the man of God sent to the king of Israel, saying, "Beware that you do not pass this place, for the Syrians are coming down there.
  15. Cross References
    1 Kings 20:1
    Now BenHadad the king of Syria gathered all his forces together; thirty-two kings were with him, with horses and chariots. And he went up and besieged Samaria, and made war against it.
  16. Cross References
    2 Kings 4:38
    And Elisha returned to Gilgal, and there was a famine in the land. Now the sons of the prophets were sitting before him; and he said to his servant, "Put on the large pot, and boil stew for the sons of the prophets.
    2 Kings 8:1
    Then Elisha spoke to the woman whose son he had restored to life, saying, "Arise and go, you and your household, and stay wherever you can; for the LORD has called for a famine, and furthermore, it will come upon the land for seven years.
  17. Cross References
    Leviticus 26:27 - 29
    And after all this, if you do not obey Me, but walk contrary to Me.
    Deuteronomy 28:52 - 57
    They shall besiege you at all your gates until your high and fortified walls, in which you trust, come down throughout all your land; and they shall besiege you at all your gates throughout all your land which the LORD your God has given you.
    Lamentations 4:10
    The hands of the compassionate women Have cooked their own children; They became food for them In the destruction of the daughter of my people.
  18. Cross References
    1 Kings 21:27
    So it was, when Ahab heard those words, that he tore his clothes and put sackcloth on his body, and fasted and lay in sackcloth, and went about mourning.
  19. Cross References
    Ruth 1:17
    Where you die, I will die, And there will I be buried. The LORD do so to me, and more also, If anything but death parts you and me.
    1 Kings 19:2
    Then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, "So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I do not make your life as the life of one of them by tomorrow about this time.
  20. Cross References
    Ezekiel 8:1
    And it came to pass in the sixth year, in the sixth month, on the fifth day of the month, as I sat in my house with the elders of Judah sitting before me, that the hand of the Lord GOD fell upon me there.
    Ezekiel 14:1
    Now some of the elders of Israel came to me and sat before me.
    Ezekiel 20:1
    It came to pass in the seventh year, in the fifth month, on the tenth day of the month, that certain of the elders of Israel came to inquire of the LORD, and sat before me.
  21. Cross References
    Luke 13:32
    And He said to them, "Go, tell that fox, 'Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I shall be perfected.
  22. Cross References
    1 Kings 18:4
    For so it was, while Jezebel massacred the prophets of the LORD, that Obadiah had taken one hundred prophets and hidden them, fifty to a cave, and had fed them with bread and water.)
    1 Kings 18:13
    Was it not reported to my lord what I did when Jezebel killed the prophets of the LORD, how I hid one hundred men of the LORD's prophets, fifty to a cave, and fed them with bread and water?
    1 Kings 18:14
    "And now you say, 'Go, tell your master, "Elijah is here." ' He will kill me!"
    1 Kings 21:10
    And seat two men, scoundrels, before him to bear witness against him, saying, "You have blasphemed God and the king." Then take him out, and stone him, that he may die.
    1 Kings 21:13
    And two men, scoundrels, came in and sat before him; and the scoundrels witnessed against him, against Naboth, in the presence of the people, saying, "Naboth has blasphemed God and the king!" Then they took him outside the city and stoned him with stones, so that he died.
  23. Cross References
    Job 2:9
    Then his wife said to him, "Do you still hold fast to your integrity? Curse God and die!
New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
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