Passage Resources Hebrew/Greek Your Content
Previous Next
Add parallel Print Page Options
Close NET

2 Kings 7
New English Translation

7 1 Elisha replied, “Listen to the Lord’s message. This is what the Lord has said, ‘About this time tomorrow a seah[a] of finely milled flour will sell for a shekel and two seahs of barley for a shekel at the gate of Samaria.’” 2 An officer who was the king’s right-hand man[b] responded to the prophet,[c] “Look, even if the Lord made it rain by opening holes in the sky, could this happen so soon?”[d] Elisha[e] said, “Look, you will see it happen with your own eyes, but you will not eat any of the food!”[f]

3 Now four men with a skin disease[g] were sitting at the entrance of the city gate. They said to one another, “Why are we just sitting here waiting to die?[h] 4 If we go into the city, we’ll die of starvation,[i] and if we stay here we’ll die! So come on, let’s defect[j] to the Syrian camp! If they spare us,[k] we’ll live; if they kill us—well, we were going to die anyway.”[l] 5 So they started toward[m] the Syrian camp at dusk. When they reached the edge of the Syrian camp, there was no one there. 6 The Lord had caused the Syrian camp to hear the sound of chariots and horses and a large army. Then they said to one another, “Look, the king of Israel has paid the kings of the Hittites and Egyptians to attack us!” 7 So they got up and fled at dusk, leaving behind their tents, horses, and donkeys. They left the camp as it was and ran for their lives. 8 When the men with a skin disease reached the edge of the camp, they entered a tent and had a meal.[n] They also took some silver, gold, and clothes and went and hid it all.[o] Then they went back and entered another tent. They looted it[p] and went and hid what they had taken. 9 Then they said to one another, “It’s not right what we’re doing! This is a day to celebrate, but we haven’t told anyone.[q] If we wait until dawn,[r] we’ll be punished.[s] So come on, let’s go and inform the royal palace.” 10 So they went and called out to the gatekeepers[t] of the city. They told them, “We entered the Syrian camp and there was no one there. We didn’t even hear a man’s voice.[u] But the horses and donkeys are still tied up, and the tents remain up.”[v] 11 The gatekeepers relayed the news to the royal palace.[w]

12 The king got up in the night and said to his advisers,[x] “I will tell you what the Syrians have done to us. They know we are starving, so they left the camp and hid in the field, thinking, ‘When they come out of the city, we will capture them alive and enter the city.’” 13 One of his advisers replied, “Pick some men and have them take five of the horses that are left in the city. (Even if they are killed, their fate will be no different than that of all the Israelite people—we’re all going to die!)[y] Let’s send them out so we can know for sure what’s going on.”[z] 14 So they picked two horsemen and the king sent them out to track the Syrian army.[aa] He ordered them, “Go and find out what’s going on.”[ab] 15 So they tracked them[ac] as far as the Jordan. The road was filled with clothes and equipment that the Syrians had discarded in their haste.[ad] The scouts[ae] went back and told the king. 16 Then the people went out and looted the Syrian camp. A seah[af] of finely milled flour sold for a shekel, and two seahs of barley for a shekel, just as in the Lord’s message.

17 Now the king had placed the officer who was his right-hand man[ag] at the city gate. When the people rushed out, they trampled him to death in the gate.[ah] This fulfilled the prophet’s word which he had spoken when the king tried to arrest him.[ai] 18 The prophet had told the king, “Two seahs of barley will sell for a shekel, and a seah of finely milled flour for a shekel; this will happen about this time tomorrow in the gate of Samaria.” 19 But the officer had replied to the prophet, “Look, even if the Lord made it rain by opening holes in the sky, could this happen so soon?”[aj] Elisha[ak] had said, “Look, you will see it happen with your own eyes, but you will not eat any of the food!”[al] 20 This is exactly what happened to him. The people trampled him to death in the city gate.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Kings 7:1 sn A seah was a dry measure equivalent to about 11 quarts (11 liters).
  2. 2 Kings 7:2 tn Heb “the officer on whose hand the king leans.”
  3. 2 Kings 7:2 tn Heb “man of God.”
  4. 2 Kings 7:2 tn Heb “the Lord was making holes in the sky, could this thing be?” Opening holes in the sky would allow the waters stored up there to pour to the earth and assure a good crop. But, the officer argues, even if this were to happen, it would take a long time to grow and harvest the crop.
  5. 2 Kings 7:2 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  6. 2 Kings 7:2 tn Heb “you will not eat from there.”
  7. 2 Kings 7:3 sn See the note at 2 Kgs 5:1.
  8. 2 Kings 7:3 tn Heb “until we die.”
  9. 2 Kings 7:4 tn Heb “If we say, ‘We will enter the city,’ the famine is in the city and we will die there.”
  10. 2 Kings 7:4 tn Heb “fall.”
  11. 2 Kings 7:4 tn Heb “keep us alive.”
  12. 2 Kings 7:4 tn Heb “we will die.” The paraphrastic translation attempts to bring out the logical force of their reasoning.
  13. 2 Kings 7:5 tn Heb “they arose to go to.”
  14. 2 Kings 7:8 tn Heb “they ate and drank.”
  15. 2 Kings 7:8 tn Heb “and they hid [it].”
  16. 2 Kings 7:8 tn Heb “and they took from there.”
  17. 2 Kings 7:9 tn Heb “this day is a day of good news and we are keeping silent.”
  18. 2 Kings 7:9 tn Heb “the light of the morning.”
  19. 2 Kings 7:9 tn Heb “punishment will find us.”
  20. 2 Kings 7:10 tn The MT has a singular form (“gatekeeper”), but the context suggests a plural. The pronoun that follows (“them”) is plural and a plural noun appears in v. 11. The Syriac Peshitta and the Targum have the plural here.
  21. 2 Kings 7:10 tn Heb “and, look, there was no man or voice of a man there.”
  22. 2 Kings 7:10 tn Heb “but the horses are tied up and the donkeys are tied up and the tents are as they were.”
  23. 2 Kings 7:11 tn Heb “and the gatekeepers called out and they told [it] within the house of the king.”
  24. 2 Kings 7:12 tn Heb “servants” (also in v. 13).
  25. 2 Kings 7:13 tn Heb “Let them take five of the remaining horses that remain in it. Look, they are like all the people of Israel that remain in it. Look, they are like all the people of Israel that have come to an end.” The MT is dittographic here; the words “that remain in it. Look they are like all the people of Israel” have been accidentally repeated. The original text read, “Let them take five of the remaining horses that remain in it. Look, they are like all the people of Israel that have come to an end.”
  26. 2 Kings 7:13 tn Heb “and let us send so we might see.”
  27. 2 Kings 7:14 tn Heb “and the king sent [them] after the Syrian camp.”
  28. 2 Kings 7:14 tn Heb “Go and see.”
  29. 2 Kings 7:15 tn Heb “went after.”
  30. 2 Kings 7:15 tn Heb “and look, all the road was full of clothes and equipment that Syria had thrown away in their haste.”
  31. 2 Kings 7:15 tn Or “messengers.”
  32. 2 Kings 7:16 sn A seah was a dry measure equivalent to about 11 quarts (11 liters).
  33. 2 Kings 7:17 tn Heb “the officer on whose hand he leans.”
  34. 2 Kings 7:17 tn Heb “and the people trampled him in the gate and he died.”
  35. 2 Kings 7:17 tn Heb “just as the man of God had spoken, [the word] which he spoke when the king came down to him.”
  36. 2 Kings 7:19 tn Heb “the Lord was making holes in the sky, could this thing be?” See the note at 7:2.
  37. 2 Kings 7:19 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Elisha) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  38. 2 Kings 7:19 tn Heb “you will not eat from there.”tn In the Hebrew text vv. 18-19a are one lengthy sentence, “When the man of God spoke to the king…, the officer replied to the man of God, ‘Look…so soon?’” The translation divides this sentence up for stylistic reasons.
Close CNVT

列王纪下 7
Chinese New Version (Traditional)

以利沙預言撒瑪利亞獲救

7 以利沙說：“你們要聽耶和華的話。耶和華這樣說：‘明日大約這個時候，在撒瑪利亞的城門，三公斤麵粉只賣十一克銀子，六公斤大麥也只是賣十一克銀子。’” 2 但那攙扶王的官長回答神人，說：“即使耶和華在天上開了窗戶，也不會有這事發生。”以利沙說：“看哪，你要親眼看見，卻吃不著。”

亞蘭軍撤退

3 有四個痲風病人在城門口那裡，他們彼此說：“我們為甚麼坐在這裡等死呢？ 4 我們如果說：‘我們進城去吧！’城裡正有饑荒，我們就要死在那裡。我們如果坐在這裡，也是要死。現在，讓我們去投降亞蘭人的軍隊吧；如果他們饒我們一命，我們就可以活著；如果他們要殺死我們，我們就死吧。” 5 於是他們在黃昏動身去到亞蘭人的軍營那裡；他們來到亞蘭人的軍營外邊，竟看不見一個人在那裡。 6 因為主使亞蘭人的軍隊聽見戰車、戰馬和大軍的聲音；他們就彼此說：“看哪，一定是以色列王雇用了赫人的眾王和埃及人的眾王來攻擊我們。” 7 於是他們在黃昏的時候起來逃跑，他們丟下他們的帳幕，他們的馬匹和他們的驢子；軍營仍在那裡，他們卻只顧逃命去了。 8 這些患痲風病的人來到軍營的外邊，他們進入其中一座帳幕，又吃又喝，並且從那裡取去金子、銀子和衣服，然後離去，把東西收藏起來。他們再回去，進入另一座帳幕，從那裡拿走財物，去收藏起來。

四個痲風病人報信

9 他們彼此說：“我們這樣作是不對的。今天是報好消息的日子，我們竟不出聲，如果我們等到早上天亮，我們就算為有罪了。現在，來吧，我們要去通知王家。” 10 他們就去呼喊守城門的，告訴他們說：“我們去過亞蘭人的軍營那裡，看見那裡一個人也沒有，也沒有人聲。只有馬仍拴著，驢仍拴著，帳幕都原封不動。” 11 守城門的就喊叫起來，又往城內給王家報信。 12 王在夜間起來，對他的臣僕說：“我告訴你們亞蘭人對我們所作的是怎麼一回事。他們知道我們鬧饑荒，所以出到軍營外在田野埋伏，心裡說：‘他們必從城裡出來。我們就可以活捉他們，進入城裡去了。’” 13 他的一位臣僕回答，說：“請叫人拉五匹剩下的馬來；看哪，牠們像所有剩下在這裡的以色列人，都要像所有死去的以色列人一樣；讓我們打發人去看看吧。” 14 於是他們取了兩輛戰車和馬匹，王差人去追蹤亞蘭軍，吩咐他們：“去查看吧。” 15 他們就去追蹤亞蘭軍直到約旦河。看哪，沿途堆滿了衣物器具，就是亞蘭人在匆忙逃走時丟棄的。於是使者回去向王報告。

預言應驗

16 眾民就出去，搶掠亞蘭人的軍營。於是三公斤麵粉賣十一克銀子，六公斤大麥也賣十一克銀子，好像耶和華所說的。 17 王指派那官長，就是那攙扶他的，在城門口鎮壓。眾民在城門那裡把他踐踏在地，他就死了，好像神人所說的，就是王下來到神人那裡時，他所說的。 18 這是因為當神人對王說：“明天大約這個時分，在撒瑪利亞城門口，六公斤大麥賣十一克銀子，三公斤麵粉也賣十一克銀子。” 19 那官長回答神人，說：“即使耶和華在天上開了窗戶，也不會有這事發生。”神人說：“看哪，你要親眼看見，卻吃不著。” 20 這事果然發生在他身上：眾民把他踐踏在地，他就死了。

Listen to 2 Kings 7
Close NIV

2 Kings 7
New International Version

7 Elisha replied, “Hear the word of the Lord. This is what the Lord says: About this time tomorrow, a seah[a] of the finest flour will sell for a shekel[b] and two seahs[c] of barley for a shekel(A) at the gate of Samaria.”

2 The officer on whose arm the king was leaning(B) said to the man of God, “Look, even if the Lord should open the floodgates(C) of the heavens, could this happen?”

“You will see it with your own eyes,” answered Elisha, “but you will not eat(D) any of it!”

The Siege Lifted

3 Now there were four men with leprosy[d](E) at the entrance of the city gate. They said to each other, “Why stay here until we die? 4 If we say, ‘We’ll go into the city’—the famine is there, and we will die. And if we stay here, we will die. So let’s go over to the camp of the Arameans and surrender. If they spare us, we live; if they kill us, then we die.”

5 At dusk they got up and went to the camp of the Arameans. When they reached the edge of the camp, no one was there, 6 for the Lord had caused the Arameans to hear the sound(F) of chariots and horses and a great army, so that they said to one another, “Look, the king of Israel has hired(G) the Hittite(H) and Egyptian kings to attack us!” 7 So they got up and fled(I) in the dusk and abandoned their tents and their horses and donkeys. They left the camp as it was and ran for their lives.

8 The men who had leprosy(J) reached the edge of the camp, entered one of the tents and ate and drank. Then they took silver, gold and clothes, and went off and hid them. They returned and entered another tent and took some things from it and hid them also.

9 Then they said to each other, “What we’re doing is not right. This is a day of good news and we are keeping it to ourselves. If we wait until daylight, punishment will overtake us. Let’s go at once and report this to the royal palace.”

10 So they went and called out to the city gatekeepers and told them, “We went into the Aramean camp and no one was there—not a sound of anyone—only tethered horses and donkeys, and the tents left just as they were.” 11 The gatekeepers shouted the news, and it was reported within the palace.

12 The king got up in the night and said to his officers, “I will tell you what the Arameans have done to us. They know we are starving; so they have left the camp to hide(K) in the countryside, thinking, ‘They will surely come out, and then we will take them alive and get into the city.’”

13 One of his officers answered, “Have some men take five of the horses that are left in the city. Their plight will be like that of all the Israelites left here—yes, they will only be like all these Israelites who are doomed. So let us send them to find out what happened.”

14 So they selected two chariots with their horses, and the king sent them after the Aramean army. He commanded the drivers, “Go and find out what has happened.” 15 They followed them as far as the Jordan, and they found the whole road strewn with the clothing and equipment the Arameans had thrown away in their headlong flight.(L) So the messengers returned and reported to the king. 16 Then the people went out and plundered(M) the camp of the Arameans. So a seah of the finest flour sold for a shekel, and two seahs of barley sold for a shekel,(N) as the Lord had said.

17 Now the king had put the officer on whose arm he leaned in charge of the gate, and the people trampled him in the gateway, and he died,(O) just as the man of God had foretold when the king came down to his house. 18 It happened as the man of God had said to the king: “About this time tomorrow, a seah of the finest flour will sell for a shekel and two seahs of barley for a shekel at the gate of Samaria.”

19 The officer had said to the man of God, “Look, even if the Lord should open the floodgates(P) of the heavens, could this happen?” The man of God had replied, “You will see it with your own eyes, but you will not eat any of it!” 20 And that is exactly what happened to him, for the people trampled him in the gateway, and he died.

Footnotes

  1. 2 Kings 7:1 That is, probably about 12 pounds or about 5.5 kilograms of flour; also in verses 16 and 18
  2. 2 Kings 7:1 That is, about 2/5 ounce or about 12 grams; also in verses 16 and 18
  3. 2 Kings 7:1 That is, probably about 20 pounds or about 9 kilograms of barley; also in verses 16 and 18
  4. 2 Kings 7:3 The Hebrew for leprosy was used for various diseases affecting the skin; also in verse 8.
Next
2 Kings 6
2 Kings 8
Next
dropdown
New English Translation (NET)

NET Bible® copyright ©1996-2017 by Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. http://netbible.com All rights reserved.

Chinese New Version (Traditional) (CNVT)

Chinese New Version (CNV). Copyright © 1976, 1992, 1999, 2001, 2005 by Worldwide Bible Society.

The Chinese New Version is made available by Worldwide Bible Society
New International Version (NIV)

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.

July Summer Surge

More on the NIV