Elisha Promises Food

¹But Elisha said, “Hear the word of the Lord: thus says the Lord, fTomorrow about this time a seah1 of fine flour shall be sold for a shekel,2 and two seahs of barley for a shekel, at the gate of Samaria.” ²Then gthe captain on whose hand the king leaned said to the man of God, h“If the Lord himself should make windows in heaven, could this thing be?” But he said, “You shall see it with your own eyes, but you shall not eat of it.”

The Syrians Flee

³Now there were four men who were lepers3 iat the entrance to the gate. And they said to one another, “Why are we sitting here until we die? ⁴If we say, ‘Let us enter the city,’ the famine is in the city, and we shall die there. And if we sit here, we die also. So now come, let us go over to the camp of the Syrians. If they spare our lives we shall live, and if they kill us we shall but die.” ⁵So they arose at twilight to go to the camp of the Syrians. But when they came to the edge of the camp of the Syrians, behold, there was no one there. ⁶For the Lord had made the army of the Syrians jhear the sound of chariots and of horses, the sound of a great army, so that they said to one another, “Behold, the king of Israel has hired against us kthe kings of the Hittites and the kings of Egypt to come against us.” ⁷lSo they fled away in the twilight and abandoned their tents, their horses, and their donkeys, leaving the camp as it was, and fled for their lives. ⁸And when these lepers came to the edge of the camp, they went into a tent and ate and drank, and they carried off silver and gold and clothing and went and hid them. Then they came back and entered another tent and carried off things from it and went and hid them.

⁹Then they said to one another, “We are not doing right. This day is a day of good news. If we are silent and wait until the morning light, punishment will overtake us. Now therefore come; let us go and tell the king's household.” ¹⁰So they came and called to the gatekeepers of the city and told them, “We came to the camp of the Syrians, and behold, there was no one to be seen or heard there, nothing but the horses tied and the donkeys tied and the tents as they were.” ¹¹Then the gatekeepers called out, and it was told within the king's household. ¹²And the king rose 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. Therefore they have gone out of the camp to hide themselves in the open country, thinking, ‘When they come out of the city, we shall take them alive and get into the city.’” ¹³And one of his servants said, “Let some men take five of the remaining horses, seeing that those who are left here will fare like the whole multitude of Israel who have already perished. Let us send and see.” ¹⁴So they took two horsemen, and the king sent them after the army of the Syrians, saying, “Go and see.” ¹⁵So they went after them as far as the Jordan, and behold, all the way was littered with garments and equipment that the Syrians had thrown away in their haste. And the messengers returned and told the king.

¹⁶Then the people went out and plundered the camp of the Syrians. So a seah of fine flour was sold for a shekel, and two seahs of barley for a shekel, maccording to the word of the Lord. ¹⁷Now the king had appointed nthe captain on whose hand he leaned to have charge of the gate. And the people trampled him in the gate, so that he died, as the man of God had said owhen the king came down to him. ¹⁸For when the man of God had said to the king, “Two seahs of barley shall be sold for a shekel, and a seah of fine flour for a shekel, about this time tomorrow in the gate of Samaria,” ¹⁹nthe captain had answered the man of God, “If the Lord himself should make windows in heaven, could such a thing be?” And he had said, p“You shall see it with your own eyes, but you shall not eat of it.” ²⁰And so it happened to him, for the people trampled him in the gate and he died.

Some Will Depart from the Faith

¹Now xthe Spirit expressly says that yin later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to zdeceitful spirits and teachings of demons, ²through the insincerity of aliars whose consciences are seared, ³bwho forbid marriage and crequire abstinence from foods dthat God created eto be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. ⁴For feverything created by God is good, and gnothing is to be rejected if it is ereceived with thanksgiving, ⁵for it is made holy hby the word of God and prayer.

A Good Servant of Christ Jesus

⁶iIf you put these things before the brothers,1 you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, being trained in the words of the faith and of the good doctrine that you have jfollowed. ⁷Have nothing to do with irreverent, ksilly myths. Rather ltrain yourself for godliness; ⁸for while mbodily training is of some value, godliness nis of value in every way, as oit holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come. ⁹The saying is ptrustworthy and deserving of full acceptance. ¹⁰For to this end we toil and strive,2 because we have our hope set on the living God, qwho is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe.

¹¹Command and teach rthese things. ¹²sLet no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers tan example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity. ¹³Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching. ¹⁴uDo not neglect the gift you have, which was given you vby prophecy when the council of elders wlaid their hands on you. ¹⁵Practice these things, immerse yourself in them,3 so that xall may see your progress. ¹⁶yKeep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save zboth yourself and ayour hearers.

The Kings of the South and the North

¹“And as for me, uin the first year of uDarius the Mede, I stood up to confirm and strengthen him.

²“And now I will show you vthe truth. Behold, three more kings shall arise in Persia, and a fourth shall be far richer than all of them. And when he has become strong through his riches, he shall stir up all against the kingdom of Greece. ³Then wa mighty king shall arise, who shall rule with great dominion and xdo as he wills. ⁴And as soon as he has arisen, yhis kingdom shall be broken and divided ytoward the zfour winds of heaven, but anot to his posterity, nor according to the authority with which he ruled, for his kingdom shall be plucked up and go to others besides these.

⁵“Then the king of the south shall be strong, but one of his princes shall be stronger than he band shall rule, and his authority shall be a great authority. ⁶After some years cthey shall make an alliance, and the daughter of the king of the south shall come to the king of the north to make an agreement. But she shall not retain the strength of her arm, and he and his arm shall not endure, but she shall be given up, and her attendants, he who fathered her, and he who supported1 her in those times.

⁷“And from a branch from her roots one shall arise in his place. He shall come against the army and enter the dfortress of the king of the north, and he shall deal with them and shall prevail. ⁸He shall also carry off to Egypt their gods with their metal images and their precious evessels of silver and gold, and for some years he shall refrain from attacking the king of the north. ⁹Then the latter shall come into the realm of the king of the south but shall return to his own land.

¹⁰“His sons shall wage war and assemble a multitude of great forces, which shall keep coming fand overflow and pass through, and again shall carry the war as far as his dfortress. ¹¹Then the king of the south, gmoved with rage, shall come out and fight against the king of the north. hAnd he shall raise a great multitude, but it shall be given into his hand. ¹²And when the multitude is taken away, his heart shall be exalted, and he shall cast down tens of thousands, but he shall not prevail. ¹³For the king of the north shall again iraise a multitude, greater than the first. And jafter some years2 he shall come on with a great army and abundant supplies.

¹⁴“In those times many shall rise against the king of the south, and the violent among your own people shall lift themselves up in order to fulfill the vision, but kthey shall fail. ¹⁵Then the king of the north shall come and lthrow up siegeworks and take a well-fortified city. And the forces of the south shall not stand, or even his best troops, for there shall be no strength to stand. ¹⁶But he who comes against him shall mdo as he wills, and nnone shall stand before him. And he shall stand in othe glorious land, with destruction in his hand. ¹⁷He shall pset his face to come with the strength of his whole kingdom, and he shall bring terms of an agreement and perform them. He shall give him the daughter of women to destroy the kingdom,3 but it shall not stand or be to his advantage. ¹⁸Afterward he shall turn his face to the coastlands and shall capture many of them, but a commander shall put an end to his insolence. Indeed,4 he qshall turn his insolence back upon him. ¹⁹Then he shall turn his face back toward the rfortresses of his own land, but he shall sstumble and fall, tand shall not be found.

²⁰“Then shall arise in his place one who shall send an uexactor of tribute for the glory of the kingdom. But within a few days he shall be broken, neither in anger nor in battle. ²¹In his place shall arise a contemptible person to whom royal majesty has not been given. vHe shall come in without warning and obtain the kingdom wby flatteries. ²²Armies shall be xutterly swept away before him and broken, even the prince of the covenant. ²³And from the time that an alliance is made with him he shall act deceitfully, and he shall become strong with a small people. ²⁴yWithout warning he shall come into zthe richest parts5 of the province, and he shall do what neither his fathers nor his fathers' fathers have done, scattering among them plunder, spoil, and goods. He shall devise plans against strongholds, but only for a time. ²⁵And he shall stir up his power and his heart against athe king of the south with a great army. And the king of the south shall wage war with an exceedingly great and mighty army, but he shall not stand, for plots shall be devised against him. ²⁶Even those who eat his food shall break him. His army shall be bswept away, and many shall fall down slain. ²⁷And as for the two kings, their hearts shall be bent on doing evil. They shall speak lies at the same table, but to no avail, for cthe end is yet to be at the time appointed. ²⁸And he shall return to his land with great wealth, but his heart shall be set against the holy covenant. And he shall work his will and return to his own land.

²⁹“At the time appointed he shall return and come into the south, but it shall not be this time as it was before. ³⁰For ships of dKittim shall come against him, and he shall be afraid and withdraw, and shall turn back and ebe enraged and etake action against the holy covenant. He shall turn back and pay attention to those who forsake the holy covenant. ³¹Forces from him shall appear and fprofane the temple and fortress, and shall take away the regular burnt offering. And gthey shall set up the abomination that makes desolate. ³²He shall seduce with flattery those who violate the covenant, but the people who know their God shall stand firm and take action. ³³hAnd the wise among the people shall make many understand, though for some days they shall stumble by sword and flame, by captivity and plunder. ³⁴When they stumble, they shall receive a little help. And many shall join themselves to them with flattery, ³⁵and some of the wise shall stumble, so that they may be refined, ipurified, and jmade white, until kthe time of the end, kfor it still awaits the appointed time.

³⁶“And the king shall ldo as he wills. mHe shall exalt himself and magnify himself above every god, nand shall speak astonishing things against othe God of gods. pHe shall prosper qtill the indignation is accomplished; for what is decreed shall be done. ³⁷He shall pay no attention to the gods of his fathers, or to the one beloved by women. He shall not pay attention to any other god, for mhe shall magnify himself above all. ³⁸He shall honor the god of fortresses instead of these. A god whom his fathers did not know he shall honor rwith gold and silver, with precious stones and costly gifts. ³⁹He shall deal with the strongest fortresses with the help of a foreign god. Those who acknowledge him he shall load with honor. He shall make them rulers over many and sshall divide the land for a price.6

⁴⁰t“At the time of the end, the king of the south shall attack7 him, but the king of the north shall rush upon him ulike a whirlwind, with chariots and horsemen, and with many ships. And he shall come into countries and vshall overflow and pass through. ⁴¹He shall come into wthe glorious land. And tens of thousands shall fall, but these shall be delivered out of his hand: xEdom and xMoab and the main part of the xAmmonites. ⁴²He shall stretch out his hand against the countries, and the land of Egypt shall not escape. ⁴³He shall become ruler of the treasures of gold and of silver, and all the precious things of Egypt, and the yLibyans and the zCushites shall follow in his train. ⁴⁴But news from the east and the north shall alarm him, and he shall go out with great fury to destroy and devote many to destruction. ⁴⁵And he shall pitch his palatial tents between the sea and the glorious holy mountain. Yet he shall come to his end, with none to help him.

Daleth

²⁵uMy soul clings to the dust;

vgive me life waccording to your word!

²⁶When xI told of my ways, you answered me;

yteach me your statutes!

²⁷zMake me understand the way of your precepts,

and I will ameditate on your wondrous works.

²⁸bMy soul melts away for sorrow;

strengthen me according to your word!

²⁹Put false ways far from me

and graciously cteach me your law!

³⁰I have chosen the way of faithfulness;

I dset your rules before me.

³¹I cling to your testimonies, O Lord;

elet me not be put to shame!

³²I will run in the way of your commandments

when you fenlarge my heart!5

He

³³gTeach me, O Lord, the way of your statutes;

and I will keep it hto the end.6

³⁴iGive me understanding, that I may keep your law

and observe it with my whole heart.

³⁵jLead me in the path of your commandments,

for I kdelight in it.

³⁶lIncline my heart to your testimonies,

and not to mselfish gain!

³⁷nTurn my eyes from looking at worthless things;

and ogive me life in your ways.

³⁸pConfirm to your servant your promise,

qthat you may be feared.

³⁹Turn away the rreproach that I dread,

for your rules are good.

⁴⁰Behold, I slong for your precepts;

tin your righteousness give me life!

Waw

⁴¹Let your usteadfast love come to me, O Lord,

your salvation vaccording to your promise;

⁴²then wshall I have an answer for him rwho taunts me,

for I trust in your word.

⁴³And take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth,

for my xhope is in your rules.

⁴⁴I will keep your law continually,

forever and ever,

⁴⁵and I shall walk yin a wide place,

for I have zsought your precepts.

⁴⁶I will also speak of your testimonies abefore kings

and shall not be put to shame,

⁴⁷for I bfind my delight in your commandments,

which I love.

⁴⁸I will clift up my hands toward your commandments, which I love,

and I will dmeditate on your statutes.