1 Kings 20

And Benhadad the king of Syria gathered all his host together: and there were thirty and two kings with him, and horses, and chariots; and he went up and besieged Samaria, and warred against it.

Benhadad, the Syrian king, rallied his massive army. He was joined by thirty-two other kings, with their horses and chariots. They advanced, laid siege to Samaria and attacked it.

And he sent messengers to Ahab king of Israel into the city, and said unto him, Thus saith Benhadad,

Benhadad sent his messengers to Ahab, the king of Israel, in the city. He delivered a message saying, "This is what Benhadad says..."

Thy silver and thy gold is mine; thy wives also and thy children, even the goodliest, are mine.

Your wealth and treasures are mine; your loved ones, your beautiful family, they too belong to me.

And the king of Israel answered and said, My lord, O king, according to thy saying, I am thine, and all that I have.

The king of Israel responded with humility, "My lord, O king, as per your words, I am yours, along with everything I possess."

And the messengers came again, and said, Thus speaketh Benhadad, saying, Although I have sent unto thee, saying, Thou shalt deliver me thy silver, and thy gold, and thy wives, and thy children;

The messengers returned, relaying Benhadad's words, "Even though I've demanded your wealth, your wives, and your children, I persist..."

Yet I will send my servants unto thee to morrow about this time, and they shall search thine house, and the houses of thy servants; and it shall be, that whatsoever is pleasant in thine eyes, they shall put it in their hand, and take it away.

Tomorrow, my helpers will come to you. They'll look through your home and your workers' homes. Anything they find that you cherish, they'll take it.

Then the king of Israel called all the elders of the land, and said, Mark, I pray you, and see how this man seeketh mischief: for he sent unto me for my wives, and for my children, and for my silver, and for my gold; and I denied him not.

The king of Israel gathered the elders and said, "Please note, this man is up to no good. He asked for my family and my wealth, and I didn't refuse him."

And all the elders and all the people said unto him, Hearken not unto him, nor consent.

Every elder and every person pleaded with him, "Don't listen to him, don't agree."

Wherefore he said unto the messengers of Benhadad, Tell my lord the king, All that thou didst send for to thy servant at the first I will do: but this thing I may not do. And the messengers departed, and brought him word again.

He told Benhadad's messengers, "Tell your king, I'll do everything he first asked of me, but I can't do this." The messengers understood, left, and relayed his message.

And Benhadad sent unto him, and said, The gods do so unto me, and more also, if the dust of Samaria shall suffice for handfuls for all the people that follow me.

Benhadad sent a message, filled with anger and arrogance, daringly declaring, "May the gods punish me severely if the dust of Samaria is enough to provide a handful for each of my followers."

And the king of Israel answered and said, Tell him, Let not him that girdeth on his harness boast himself as he that putteth it off.

The king of Israel responded, "Tell him, don't brag about gearing up for battle as if you've already won."

And it came to pass, when Ben-hadad heard this message, as he was drinking, he and the kings in the pavilions, that he said unto his servants, Set yourselves in array. And they set themselves in array against the city.

Upon hearing the news, Ben-hadad, who was in the midst of a drink with other kings, felt a surge of urgency. He ordered his servants, "Prepare for battle!" And so, they lined up, ready to face the city.

And, behold, there came a prophet unto Ahab king of Israel, saying, Thus saith the LORD, Hast thou seen all this great multitude? behold, I will deliver it into thine hand this day; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD.

A prophet approached King Ahab of Israel with a message from the Lord. "Have you seen this vast crowd?" he asked. "Today, I will give them to you. You will then truly understand that I am the Lord."

And Ahab said, By whom? And he said, Thus saith the LORD, Even by the young men of the princes of the provinces. Then he said, Who shall order the battle? And he answered, Thou.

Ahab asked, "Who will lead us?" The response was, "The Lord says, the young leaders of the provinces will." Then he asked, "Who will strategize the battle?" The answer was simple, "You will."

Then he numbered the young men of the princes of the provinces, and they were two hundred and thirty two: and after them he numbered all the people, even all the children of Israel, being seven thousand.

He counted the young leaders, all two hundred and thirty-two of them. Then, he counted everyone else, all seven thousand children of Israel.

And they went out at noon. But Benhadad was drinking himself drunk in the pavilions, he and the kings, the thirty and two kings that helped him.

They left under the midday sun. Meanwhile, Benhadad and his thirty-two allied kings were drowning in drunkenness within their tents.

And the young men of the princes of the provinces went out first; and Benhadad sent out, and they told him, saying, There are men come out of Samaria.

The brave young leaders were the first to step out. When Benhadad heard that men had emerged from Samaria, he was alerted with a sense of urgency.

And he said, Whether they be come out for peace, take them alive; or whether they be come out for war, take them alive.

He advised, "If they approach in peace or war, spare their lives."

So these young men of the princes of the provinces came out of the city, and the army which followed them.

These brave young leaders emerged from the city, their loyal troops trailing behind them.

And they slew every one his man: and the Syrians fled; and Israel pursued them: and Benhadad the king of Syria escaped on an horse with the horsemen.

Each man bravely took down his opponent. Overwhelmed, the Syrians retreated in fear, chased relentlessly by the Israelis. Amidst the chaos, Syria's King Benhadad narrowly escaped, fleeing on horseback with his cavalry.

And the king of Israel went out, and smote the horses and chariots, and slew the Syrians with a great slaughter.

The king of Israel charged forth and struck down the horses and chariots, cutting down the Syrians in a great slaughter.

And the prophet came to the king of Israel, and said unto him, Go, strengthen thyself, and mark, and see what thou doest: for at the return of the year the king of Syria will come up against thee.

The prophet approached the king of Israel with a stern warning, "Prepare yourself, be vigilant, and consider your actions carefully. By year's end, the Syrian king will wage war against you."

And the servants of the king of Syria said unto him, Their gods are gods of the hills; therefore they were stronger than we; but let us fight against them in the plain, and surely we shall be stronger than they.

The king of Syria's aides told him, "Their gods are mountain gods, that's why they're stronger. But if we battle them on flat land, we'll surely overpower them."

And do this thing, Take the kings away, every man out of his place, and put captains in their rooms:

Act on this, remove the kings from their thrones, each one from his position, and replace them with leaders in their stead.

And number thee an army, like the army that thou hast lost, horse for horse, and chariot for chariot: and we will fight against them in the plain, and surely we shall be stronger than they. And he hearkened unto their voice, and did so.

Gather your forces, equal to those you've lost, each horse, each chariot. We'll confront them on the battlefield, and without a doubt, we'll be stronger. He listened and followed their advice.

And it came to pass at the return of the year, that Benhadad numbered the Syrians, and went up to Aphek, to fight against Israel.

As the year turned anew, Benhadad rallied his Syrian forces, marching towards Aphek with a heart full of determination, ready to wage war against Israel.

And the children of Israel were numbered, and were all present, and went against them: and the children of Israel pitched before them like two little flocks of kids; but the Syrians filled the country.

The Israelites, counted and gathered, bravely faced their adversaries. They stood like two small herds of young goats, while the Syrians swarmed the land, overwhelming in number.

And there came a man of God, and spake unto the king of Israel, and said, Thus saith the LORD, Because the Syrians have said, The LORD is God of the hills, but he is not God of the valleys, therefore will I deliver all this great multitude into thine hand, and ye shall know that I am the LORD.

A prophet arrived, speaking to the king of Israel with a message from God. He said, "The Syrians claim that God only rules the hills, not the valleys. To prove them wrong, God will give you victory over their vast army. Then, everyone will know that He is the Lord."

And they pitched one over against the other seven days. And so it was, that in the seventh day the battle was joined: and the children of Israel slew of the Syrians an hundred thousand footmen in one day.

For seven tense days, they faced each other, a palpable tension hanging in the air. On the seventh day, the clash erupted. The Israelites, with a fierce determination, defeated a hundred thousand Syrian soldiers in a single, brutal day.

But the rest fled to Aphek, into the city; and there a wall fell upon twenty and seven thousand of the men that were left. And Benhadad fled, and came into the city, into an inner chamber.

The remaining survivors escaped to Aphek, seeking refuge in the city. Tragically, a wall collapsed, crushing 27,000 of the remaining men. Benhadad, in fear, fled deeper into the city, hiding in a secluded room.

And his servants said unto him, Behold now, we have heard that the kings of the house of Israel are merciful kings: let us, I pray thee, put sackcloth on our loins, and ropes upon our heads, and go out to the king of Israel: peradventure he will save thy life.

His servants pleaded with him, "We've heard that the Israeli kings are kind. Let's humble ourselves, dress in sackcloth, and approach the king of Israel. Maybe he'll spare your life."

So they girded sackcloth on their loins, and put ropes on their heads, and came to the king of Israel, and said, Thy servant Benhadad saith, I pray thee, let me live. And he said, Is he yet alive? he is my brother.

They wrapped themselves in rough sackcloth, ropes hanging from their heads, and approached the king of Israel. "Please," they pleaded on behalf of Benhadad, "spare his life." The king was surprised, "Is he still alive? He's like a brother to me."

Now the men did diligently observe whether any thing would come from him, and did hastily catch it: and they said, Thy brother Benhadad. Then he said, Go ye, bring him. Then Benhadad came forth to him; and he caused him to come up into the chariot.

The men watched him closely, eager to catch any hint of his intentions. They mentioned his brother, Benhadad. He responded, "Bring him here." And so, Benhadad was brought before him, and he invited him to join him in his chariot.

And Ben-hadad said unto him, The cities, which my father took from thy father, I will restore; and thou shalt make streets for thee in Damascus, as my father made in Samaria. Then said Ahab, I will send thee away with this covenant. So he made a covenant with him, and sent him away.

Ben-hadad promised, "I'll give back the cities my father took from yours. You can build your own streets in Damascus, just like my father did in Samaria." Ahab agreed, "I'll let you go on this promise." So, they made a pact and Ahab released him.

And a certain man of the sons of the prophets said unto his neighbour in the word of the LORD, Smite me, I pray thee. And the man refused to smite him.

A man among the prophets pleaded with his friend, guided by God's word, "Please, strike me." But his friend couldn't bring himself to do it.

Then said he unto him, Because thou hast not obeyed the voice of the LORD, behold, as soon as thou art departed from me, a lion shall slay thee. And as soon as he was departed from him, a lion found him, and slew him.

He told him, "Since you didn't listen to God, a lion will kill you once you leave my side." And just as predicted, as soon as he left, a lion found and killed him.

Then he found another man, and said, Smite me, I pray thee. And the man smote him, so that in smiting he wounded him.

He stumbled upon another man and pleaded, "Strike me, please." The man did, hurting him deeply with the blow.

So the prophet departed, and waited for the king by the way, and disguised himself with ashes upon his face.

The prophet, filled with anticipation, left quietly. He patiently awaited the king's arrival, his face masked with ashes to conceal his identity.

And as the king passed by, he cried unto the king: and he said, Thy servant went out into the midst of the battle; and, behold, a man turned aside, and brought a man unto me, and said, Keep this man: if by any means he be missing, then shall thy life be for his life, or else thou shalt pay a talent of silver.

As the king walked by, a soldier called out to him, his voice trembling with fear. He confessed, "I was in the thick of the battle, sire, when a man handed over a prisoner to me. He warned me, 'Guard this man with your life. If he escapes, it will cost you your life or a hefty fine of silver.'"

And as thy servant was busy here and there, he was gone. And the king of Israel said unto him, So shall thy judgment be; thyself hast decided it.

As your servant was distracted, he disappeared. The king of Israel told him, "Your fate is your own doing; you've sealed it yourself."

And he hasted, and took the ashes away from his face; and the king of Israel discerned him that he was of the prophets.

Quickly, he wiped the ashes from his face. The king of Israel recognized him then, seeing he was one of the prophets.

And he said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Because thou hast let go out of thy hand a man whom I appointed to utter destruction, therefore thy life shall go for his life, and thy people for his people.

He told him, "God says, because you released a man I marked for doom, your life will be exchanged for his, and your people for his people."

And the king of Israel went to his house heavy and displeased, and came to Samaria.

The king of Israel, burdened and upset, returned to his home in Samaria.