1 T hen Elisha said, “Listen to the word of the Lord. The Lord says, ‘Tomorrow about this time, a basket of fine flour will be sold for one piece of silver in the gate of Samaria. And two baskets of barley will be sold for a piece of silver.’”

And Elisha said, Hear the word of Jehovah. Thus saith Jehovah: To-morrow about this time shall the measure of fine flour be at a shekel, and two measures of barley at a shekel, in the gate of Samaria.

2 T he captain on whose arm the king rested said to the man of God, “See, if the Lord should make windows in heaven, could this thing be?” Elisha said, “You will see it with your own eyes. But you will not eat of it.” The Syrians Leave

And the captain on whose hand the king leaned answered the man of God and said, Behold, if Jehovah should make windows in the heavens, would this thing be? And he said, Behold, thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but shalt not eat thereof.

3 N ow there were four men at the city gate with a bad skin disease. They said to one another, “Why do we sit here until we die?

And there were four leprous men at the entrance of the gate, and they said one to another, Why do we abide here until we die?

4 I f we go into the city, there is no food there and we will die. And if we sit here, we will die also. So now come, let us go over to the tents of the Syrians. If they do not kill us, we will live. And if they kill us, we will die there.”

If we say, Let us enter into the city, the famine is in the city, and we shall die there; and if we abide here, we shall die. And now come, let us fall away to the camp of the Syrians: if they save us alive, we shall live; and if they put us to death, we shall but die.

5 S o they got up in the evening to go to the Syrians. When they came to the tents of the Syrians, there was no one there.

And they rose up in the dusk to go to the camp of the Syrians; and they came to the extremity of the camp of the Syrians; and behold, there was no man there.

6 F or the Lord had made the Syrian army hear a sound of war-wagons and horses and an army of many soldiers. So they said to one another, “The king of Israel has paid the kings of the Hittites and the kings of the Egyptians to fight against us.”

For the Lord had made the army of the Syrians to hear a noise of chariots, and a noise of horses, a noise of a great host; and they said one to another, Behold, the king of Israel has hired against us the kings of the Hittites, and the kings of the Egyptians, to come upon us.

7 A nd they ran away in the evening. They left their tents and their horses and donkeys. They left everything just as it was, and ran for their lives.

And they rose up and fled in the dusk, and left their tents, and their horses, and their asses, the camp as it was, and fled for their life.

8 T hen the men with a bad skin disease came to the tents. They went into one tent and ate and drank. They carried away silver and gold and clothing, and hid them. Then they returned and went into another tent and carried things away from it, and hid them.

And those lepers came to the extremity of the camp; and they went into one tent, and ate and drank, and carried thence silver and gold, and garments, and went and hid it; and they came again, and entered into another tent, and carried thence, and went and hid.

9 T hey said to one another, “We are not doing right. This is a day of good news, but we are keeping quiet. We will be punished if we wait until morning. So now let us go and tell those of the king’s house.”

And they said one to another, We are not doing right; this day is a day of good tidings, and we hold our peace: if we tarry till the morning light, the iniquity will find us out; and now come, let us go and tell the king's household.

10 A nd they came and called the men who watched the city gate. They said to them, “We went to the tents of the Syrians. But there was no one to be seen or heard there. Only the horses and donkeys were tied there. The tents were left just as they were.”

And they came and called to the porters of the city, and told them saying, We came to the camp of the Syrians, and behold, there was no one there, no sound of man, but the horses tied, and the asses tied, and the tents as they were.

11 S o the men at the gate called out, and the news was heard in the king’s house.

And the porters cried and told to the king's house within.

12 T he king got up in the night and said to his servants, “I will tell you what the Syrians have done to us. They know that we are hungry. So they have left the tents to hide themselves in the field. They are saying, ‘When they come out of the city, we will take them alive and get into the city.’”

And the king rose up in the night and said to his servants, Let me tell you what the Syrians have done to us. They know that we are hungry, and they have gone out of the camp to hide themselves in the field, saying, When they come out of the city, we shall catch them alive, and get into the city.

13 O ne of his servants said, “Let some men take five of the horses that are left. Those who are left in the city are not doing better than all those who have died. So let us send men out to see.”

And one of his servants answered and said, Let some one take, I pray thee, five of the horses that remain, which are left in the city (behold, they are as all the multitude of Israel that are left in it: behold, they are even as all the multitude of the Israelites that have perished), and let us send and see.

14 S o they took two war-wagons with horses. And the king sent them after the Syrian army, saying, “Go and see.”

And they took two chariots with their horses; and the king sent after the army of the Syrians, saying, Go and see.

15 T hey went after them to the Jordan. All the way was covered with clothes and objects which the Syrians had thrown away in their hurry. Then the men returned and told the king.

And they went after them to the Jordan; and behold, all the way was full of garments and materials, which the Syrians had cast away in their haste. And the messengers returned and told the king.

16 S o the people went out and took what the Syrians had left. Then a basket of fine flour was sold for a piece of silver. And two baskets of barley sold for a piece of silver, just as the word of the Lord had said.

And the people went out and plundered the camp of the Syrians; and the measure of fine flour was at a shekel, and two measures of barley at a shekel, according to the word of Jehovah.

17 N ow the king chose the captain on whose arm he rested to watch the gate. But the people stepped on him at the gate. He died just as the man of God had said when the king came down to him.

And the king had appointed the captain on whose hand he leaned to have the charge of the gate; and the people trampled upon him in the gate, and he died, according to what the man of God had said,—what he had said when the king came down to him.

18 I t happened just as the man of God had told the king, saying, “About this time tomorrow at the gate of Samaria, two baskets of barley will sell for a piece of silver. And a basket of fine flour will sell for a piece of silver.”

And it came to pass as the man of God had spoken to the king saying, Two measures of barley shall be at a shekel, and the measure of fine flour at a shekel, to-morrow about this time in the gate of Samaria.

19 T hen the captain had said to the man of God, “See, if the Lord should make windows in heaven, could such a thing be?” And Elisha had said, “You will see it with your own eyes. But you will not eat of it.”

And the captain answered the man of God and said, Behold, if Jehovah should make windows in the heavens, would such a thing be? And he said, Behold, thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but shalt not eat thereof.

20 S o it happened to him. The people stepped on him at the gate, and he died.

And so it happened to him; and the people trampled upon him in the gate, and he died.