2 Kings · Bible in Basic English
2 Kings 7 Bible in Basic English
Audio: World English Bible (WEB), read by Winfred W. Henson · About the recordings
1 Then Elisha said, Give ear to the word of the Lord: the Lord says, Tomorrow, about this time, a measure of good meal will be offered for the price of a shekel and two measures of barley for a shekel, in the market-place of Samaria.
1 Elisha said, “Hear Yahweh’s word. Yahweh says, ‘Tomorrow about this time a seah of fine flour will be sold for a shekel, and two seahs of barley for a shekel, in the gate of Samaria.’”
2 Then the captain whose arm was supporting the king said to the man of God, Even if the Lord made windows in heaven, would such a thing be possible? And he said, Your eyes will see it, but you will not have a taste of the food.
2 Then the captain on whose hand the king leaned answered the man of God, and said, “Behold, if Yahweh made windows in heaven, could this thing be?” He said, “Behold, you will see it with your eyes, but will not eat of it.”
3 Now there were four lepers seated at the doorway into the town: and they said to one another, Why are we waiting here for death?
3 Now there were four leprous men at the entrance of the gate. They said to one another, “Why do we sit here until we die?
4 If we say, We will go into the town, there is no food in the town, and we will come to our end there; and if we go on waiting here, death will come to us. Come then, let us give ourselves up to the army of Aram: if they let us go on living, then life will be ours; and if they put us to death, then death will be ours.
4 If we say, ‘We will enter into the city,’ then the famine is in the city, and we will die there. If we sit still here, we also die. Now therefore come, and let’s surrender to the army of the Syrians. If they save us alive, we will live; and if they kill us, we will only die.”
5 So in the half light they got up to go to the tents of Aram; but when they came to the outer line of tents, there was no one there.
5 They rose up in the twilight to go to the camp of the Syrians. When they had come to the outermost part of the camp of the Syrians, behold, no man was there.
6 For the Lord had made the sound of carriages and horses, and the noise of a great army, come to the ears of the Aramaeans, so that they said to one another, Truly, the king of Israel has got the kings of the Hittites and of the Egyptians for a price to make an attack on us.
6 For the Lord had made the army of the Syrians to hear the sound of chariots and the sound of horses, even the noise of a great army; and they said to one another, “Behold, the king of Israel has hired against us the kings of the Hittites and the kings of the Egyptians to attack us.”
7 So they got up and went in flight, in the half light, without their tents or their horses or their asses or any of their goods; they went in flight, fearing for their lives.
7 Therefore they arose and fled in the twilight, and left their tents, their horses, and their donkeys, even the camp as it was, and fled for their life.
8 And when those lepers came to the outer line of tents, they went into one tent, and had food and drink, and took from it silver and gold and clothing, which they put in a secret place; then they came back and went into another tent from which they took more goods, which they put away in a secret place.
8 When these lepers came to the outermost part of the camp, they went into one tent, and ate and drank, then carried away silver, gold, and clothing and went and hid it. Then they came back, and entered into another tent and carried things from there also, and went and hid them.
9 Then they said to one another, We are not doing right. Today is a day of good news, and we say nothing: if we go on waiting here till the morning, punishment will come to us. So let us go and give the news to those of the king's house.
9 Then they said to one another, “We aren’t doing right. Today is a day of good news, and we keep silent. If we wait until the morning light, punishment will overtake us. Now therefore come, let’s go and tell the king’s household.”
10 So they came in, and, crying out to the door-keepers of the town, they gave them the news, saying, We came to the tents of the Aramaeans, and there was no one there and no voice of man, only the horses and the asses in their places, and the tents as they were.
10 So they came and called to the city gatekeepers; and they told them, “We came to the camp of the Syrians, and, behold, there was no man there, not even a man’s voice, but the horses tied, and the donkeys tied, and the tents as they were.”
11 Then the door-keepers, crying out, gave the news to those inside the king's house.
11 Then the gatekeepers called out and told it to the king’s household within.
12 Then the king got up in the night and said to his servants, This is my idea of what the Aramaeans have done to us. They have knowledge that we are without food; and so they have gone out of their tents, and are waiting secretly in the open country, saying, When they come out of the town, we will take them living and get into the town.
12 The king arose in the night, and said to his servants, “I will now show 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 field, saying, ‘When they come out of the city, we shall take them alive, and get into the city.’”
13 And one of his servants said in answer, Send men and let them take five of the horses which we still have in the town; if they keep their lives they will be the same as those of Israel who are still living here; if they come to their death they will be the same as all those of Israel who have gone to destruction: let us send and see.
13 One of his servants answered, “Please let some people take five of the horses that remain, which are left in the city. Behold, they are like all the multitude of Israel who are left in it. Behold, they are like all the multitude of Israel who are consumed. Let’s send and see.”
14 So they took two horsemen; and the king sent them after the army of the Aramaeans, saying, Go and see.
14 Therefore they took two chariots with horses; and the king sent them out to the Syrian army, saying, “Go and see.”
15 And they went after them as far as Jordan; and all the road was covered with clothing and vessels dropped by the Aramaeans in their flight. So those who were sent went back and gave the news to the king.
15 They went after them to the Jordan; and behold, all the path was full of garments and equipment which the Syrians had cast away in their haste. The messengers returned and told the king.
16 Then the people went out and took the goods from the tents of the Aramaeans. So a measure of good meal was to be had for the price of a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, as the Lord had said.
16 The people went out and plundered the camp of the Syrians. So a seah of fine flour was sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, according to Yahweh’s word.
17 And the king gave authority to that captain, on whose arm he was supported, to have control over the doorway into the town; but he was crushed to death there under the feet of the people, as the man of God had said when the king went down to him.
17 The king had appointed the captain on whose hand he leaned to be in charge of the gate; and the people trampled over him in the gate, and he died as the man of God had said, who spoke when the king came down to him.
18 So the words of the man of God came true, which he said to the king: Two measures of barley will be offered for the price of a shekel and a measure of good meal for a shekel, tomorrow about this time in the market-place of Samaria.
18 It happened as the man of God had spoken to the king, saying, “Two seahs of barley for a shekel, and a seah of fine flour for a shekel, shall be tomorrow about this time in the gate of Samaria;”
19 And that captain said to the man of God, Even if the Lord made windows in heaven, would such a thing be possible? And he said to him, Your eyes will see it, but you will not have a taste of the food.
19 and that captain answered the man of God, and said, “Now, behold, if Yahweh made windows in heaven, might such a thing be?” and he said, “Behold, you will see it with your eyes, but will not eat of it.”
20 And such was his fate; for he was crushed to death under the feet of the people, in the doorway into the town.
20 It happened like that to him, for the people trampled over him in the gate, and he died.
Cross references (18)
Related passages for each verse, from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge as collected and ranked by readers at OpenBible.info.
- 1 Joshua 3:5; Exodus 16:12; Ezekiel 37:4; 1 Samuel 11:9; Exodus 14:13
- 2 Genesis 7:11; Genesis 18:12–14; Malachi 3:10; Psalm 78:41; Romans 3:3
- 3 Leviticus 13:45–46; Numbers 5:2–4; 2 Kings 7:4; Jeremiah 8:14; 2 Kings 8:4
- 4 Jeremiah 14:18; 2 Samuel 14:14; Luke 15:17–19; Esther 4:16; Jonah 3:9
- 5 Deuteronomy 28:7; Ezekiel 12:6–7; Leviticus 27:8; 1 Samuel 30:17; Ezekiel 12:12
- 6 2 Samuel 5:24; Isaiah 31:1; 1 Kings 10:29; Revelation 9:9; 2 Chronicles 12:2–3
- 7 Proverbs 28:1; Psalm 48:4–6; Numbers 35:11–12; Psalm 20:7–8; Amos 2:14–16
- 8 Matthew 13:44; Joshua 7:21; 2 Kings 5:24; Matthew 25:18; Jeremiah 41:8
- 9 Isaiah 52:7; Philippians 2:4; 2 Kings 7:6; Isaiah 41:27; Nahum 1:15
- 10 Psalm 127:1; 2 Samuel 18:26; Mark 13:34–35; 2 Kings 7:11; 2 Kings 7:6–7
- 12 Joshua 8:4; 2 Kings 6:25–29
- 13 2 Kings 5:13; Lamentations 4:9; 2 Kings 7:4; Jeremiah 14:18; 2 Kings 6:33
- 15 Philippians 3:7–8; Isaiah 2:20; Matthew 16:26; Hebrews 12:1; Isaiah 10:3
- 16 2 Kings 7:1; Isaiah 33:4; Isaiah 33:23; Job 27:16–17; Psalm 68:12
- 17 2 Kings 6:32; 2 Kings 7:2; Isaiah 25:10; 2 Kings 9:33; Hebrews 10:29
- 18 Genesis 18:14; 2 Kings 6:32; 2 Kings 7:1–2
- 19 2 Kings 7:2
- 20 Numbers 20:12; Hebrews 3:18–19; Isaiah 7:9; Jeremiah 17:5–6; Job 20:23
Cross references: OpenBible.info (CC BY), drawn mainly from the public-domain Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. · Sources & licences