24Thereupon Zedekiah son of Chenaanah stepped up and struck Micaiah on the cheek, and demanded, “Which way did the spirit of the LORD pass from me to speak with you?” 25And Micaiah replied, “You’ll find out on the day when you try to hide in the innermost room.” 26Then the king of Israel said, “Take Micaiah and turn him over to Amon, the city’s governor, and to Prince Joash, 27and say, ‘The king’s orders are: Put this fellow in prison, and let his fare be scant bread and scant water until I come home safe.’ ” 28To which Micaiah retorted, “If you ever come home safe, the LORD has not spoken through me.” b-He said further, “Listen, all you peoples!”-b
29So the king of Israel and King Jehoshaphat of Judah marched upon Ramoth-gilead. 30The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, c-“Disguise yourself and go-c into the battle; but you, wear your robes.” So the king of Israel went into the battle disguised. 31Now the king of Aram had instructed his thirty-two chariot officers: “Don’t attack anyone, small or great, except the king of Israel.” 32So when the chariot officers saw Jehoshaphat, whom they took for the king of Israel, they turned upon him to attack him, and Jehoshaphat cried out. 33And when the chariot officers became aware that he was not the king of Israel, they turned back from pursuing him. 34Then a man drew his bow at random and he hit the king of Israel between d-the plates of-d the armor; and he said to his charioteer, “Turn e-the horses-e around and get me f-behind the lines;-f I’m wounded.” 35The battle d-raged all day long,-d and the king remained propped up in the chariot facing Aram; the blood from the wound ran down into the hollow of the chariot, and at dusk he died. 36As the sun was going down, a shout went through the army: “Every man to his own town! Every man to his own district.”
37So the king died g-and was brought-g to Samaria. They buried the king in Samaria, 38and they flushed out the chariot at the pool of Samaria. Thus the dogs lapped up his blood and the whores bathed [in it], in accordance with the word that the LORD had spoken.h
39The other events of Ahab’s reign, and all his actions—the ivory palace that he built and all the towns that he fortified—are all recorded in the Annals of the Kings of Israel. 40Ahab slept with his fathers, and his son Ahaziah succeeded him as king.
41Jehoshaphat son of Asa had become king of Judah in the fourth year of King Ahab of Israel. 42Jehoshaphat was thirty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem for twenty-five years. His mother’s name was Azubah daughter of Shilhi. 43He followed closely the course of his father Asa and did not deviate from it, doing what was pleasing to the LORD. 44However, the shrines did not cease to function; the people still sacrificed and offered at the shrines. 45And further, Jehoshaphat submitted to the king of Israel. 46As for the other events of Jehoshaphat’s reign and the valor he displayed in battle, they are recorded in the Annals of the Kings of Judah. (47He also stamped out the remaining male prostitutes who had survived in the land from the time of his father Asa.)
48There was no king in Edom; i-a viceroy acted as king. 49Jehoshaphat-i constructed Tarshishj ships to sail to Ophir for gold. But he did not sail because the ships were wrecked at Ezion-geber. 50Then Ahaziah son of Ahab proposed to Jehoshaphat, “Let my servants sail on the ships with your servants”; but Jehoshaphat would not agree. 51Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of his father David, and his son Jehoram succeeded him as king.
52[Meanwhile,] Ahaziah son of Ahab had become king of Israel, in Samaria, in the seventeenth year of King Jehoshaphat of Judah; he reigned over Israel two years. 53He did what was displeasing to the LORD, following in the footsteps of his father and his mother, and in those of Jeroboam son of Nebat who had caused Israel to sin. 54He worshiped Baal and bowed down to him; he vexed the LORD, the God of Israel, just as his father had done.
a Meaning of Heb. uncertain.
b-b Or “presumed to think.”
c Others “horsemen”; meaning of Heb. parash(im) not always certain.
d Thus, Absalom having died, Adonijah was David’s oldest living son.
e Lit. “all his brothers, sons of the king.”
f So many mss. and ancient versions; usual editions “now.”
g-g Or (cf. Rashi, Ralbag, Radak) “have you said…?”
h-h Lit. “your lord’s men.”
a-a Lit. “there shall never cease to be a man of yours on the throne of Israel.” Cf. 2 Sam. 7.12–16.
b Meaning of Heb. uncertain.
c I.e., Joab had thus brought bloodguilt on David’s house; see 2 Sam. 3.27 and 20.10.
d I.e., for whose maintenance you provide; see 2 Sam. 19.32 ff.
e See 2 Sam. 16.5 ff; 19.17 ff.
f-f Lit. “And for him and for Abiathar and for Joab son of Zeruiah.” Meaning of Heb. uncertain.
g Heb. “me.”
h Heb. “him.”
i Cf. 1 Sam. 3.14.
a-a Lit. “do not know to go out and come in”; cf. Num. 27.17.
a Or “in Aloth.”
b-b Meaning of Heb. uncertain.
a-a Exact meaning of Heb. uncertain.
b Resuming the account begun in 4.2.
c Heb. “war”; cf. Targum.
d-d Septuagint reads, “20,000 baths.”
a Meaning of parts of vv. 4–6 uncertain.
b I.e., the inner sanctuary, designated in v. 16 and elsewhere as the “Holy of Holies.”
c Septuagint and Targum read “lowest.”
d-d Meaning of Heb. uncertain.
e Septuagint reads “rafters.”
f Meaning of vv. 17–22 is unclear in part.
g-g Heb. “in front of.”
h-h I.e., the Shrine.
a-a So called because of the rows of cedar columns. Septuagint reads “three rows” instead of “four rows”; cf. v. 3.
b Apparently the “planks” connected the columns longitudinally, and the “beams” (v. 2) connected the planks transversely.
c Septuagint reads “windows.”
d-d Meaning of Heb. uncertain.
e Syriac reads “rafters.”
f Lit. “sawed with a saw in the inside and outside.”
g Heb. nehosheth means both copper and bronze. In the translation “copper” is ordinarily used to denote the natural product and “bronze” for the artifacts.
h Two Heb. mss. read “pomegranates.”
i About fifty Heb. mss. read “columns.”
j Lit. “belly”; exact force of Heb. uncertain.
k I.e., each of the two capitals.
l Lit. “sea.”
m Emendation yields “frames.”
n-n Lit. “in the thick of the earth.”
a I.e., of Booths. Cf. Lev. 23.34.
b-b Lit. “who spoke with His own mouth … and has fulfilled with His own hand.”
c Lit. “risen in place of.”
d 2 Chron. 6.18 adds “with man.”
e The Septuagint, with a different vocalization, reads “chastise.”
f I.e., coming from one end of the country to the other.
g I.e., of the second seven-day feast; cf. 2 Chron. 7.8–10.
a Lit. “cut.”
b Lit. “dismiss from My presence.”
c-c Targum and some other ancient versions read “and this House shall become a ruin.”
d An action performed at the sight of ruin to ward off a like fate from the observer; cf. note at Jer. 18.16.
e See 6.38–7.1.
f Perhaps taken to mean “as nothing.”
g A citadel.
h So kethib, cf. Ezek. 47.19, 48.28; qere Tadmor.
i Their names are not listed in the text.
j-j Meaning of Heb. uncertain.
k Elsewhere called Elath.
a-a The force of the phrase is uncertain.
b-b 2 Chron. 9.4 reads “… and the procession with which he went up to.…”
c Others “sandalwood.”
d Or “prince”; like Phoenician mamlakt.
e Probably a fleet of large ships.
f So 2 Chron. 1.14; 9.25; Heb. here “led.”
g Usually Egypt, here perhaps Musru, a neighbor of Kue (Cilicia).
h I.e., Solomon’s dealers.
a I.e., in marriage; cf. Deut. 7.3–4; 23.4, 8–9.
b-b Lit. “This is with you.”
c-c Emendation yields “defeated”; cf. 2 Sam. 8.13.
d Heb. Adad.
e Septuagint reads “reared.”
f Heb. “him.”
g I.e., establish your residence.
a-a 2 Chron. 10.2 reads “So Jeroboam returned from Egypt.”
b Lit. “tents.”
c Elsewhere called Adoniram; cf. 2 Sam. 20.24 and note.
d-d Heb. “them.”
a I.e., at the top of the steps or ramp.
b Heb. “son.”
c-c Septuagint reads “And his sons showed.”
d-d Lit. “it came.”
a-a
