2 Kings 9

And Elisha the prophet called one of the children of the prophets, and said unto him, Gird up thy loins, and take this box of oil in thine hand, and go to Ramothgilead:

Elisha, the wise prophet, gently beckoned a young disciple. With a firm yet kind voice, he instructed, "Prepare yourself, take this box of sacred oil, and journey to Ramothgilead."

And when thou comest thither, look out there Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi, and go in, and make him arise up from among his brethren, and carry him to an inner chamber;

When you arrive there, seek out Jehu, Jehoshaphat's son, Nimshi's grandson. Approach him, call him away from his fellow officers, and guide him to a private room.

Then take the box of oil, and pour it on his head, and say, Thus saith the LORD, I have anointed thee king over Israel. Then open the door, and flee, and tarry not.

Grab the jar of oil, gently anoint his head, and declare, "The LORD proclaims, you are now the king of Israel." Then swiftly exit, don't linger.

So the young man, even the young man the prophet, went to Ramothgilead.

Thus, the youthful prophet, filled with determination and faith, journeyed to Ramothgilead.

And when he came, behold, the captains of the host were sitting; and he said, I have an errand to thee, O captain. And Jehu said, Unto which of all us? And he said, To thee, O captain.

Upon his arrival, he found the military leaders gathered. He announced, "I have a message for you, O leader." Jehu, puzzled, asked, "For which one of us?" The man replied, "For you, O leader."

And he arose, and went into the house; and he poured the oil on his head, and said unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, I have anointed thee king over the people of the LORD, even over Israel.

He stood up, entered the house, and anointed his head with oil. Then he declared, "The Lord, the God of Israel, proclaims: You are now the chosen king of His people, of all Israel."

And thou shalt smite the house of Ahab thy master, that I may avenge the blood of my servants the prophets, and the blood of all the servants of the LORD, at the hand of Jezebel.

You must strike down the household of your master Ahab, so I can avenge the blood of my faithful prophets and of all my servants, shed by Jezebel.

For the whole house of Ahab shall perish: and I will cut off from Ahab him that pisseth against the wall, and him that is shut up and left in Israel:

Every single member of Ahab's family will be wiped out. I will eliminate every male in Ahab's line, whether free or enslaved in Israel.

And I will make the house of Ahab like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah:

I will transform Ahab's household, making it resemble the fallen houses of Jeroboam and Baasha, once led by Nebat and Ahijah's sons.

And the dogs shall eat Jezebel in the portion of Jezreel, and there shall be none to bury her. And he opened the door, and fled.

Jezebel will meet her end in Jezreel, devoured by dogs, with no one to mourn or bury her. Overwhelmed, he flung open the door and escaped.

Then Jehu came forth to the servants of his lord: and one said unto him, Is all well? wherefore came this mad fellow to thee? And he said unto them, Ye know the man, and his communication.

Jehu emerged to meet his lord's servants. One asked, "Is everything okay? Why did this crazy man come to you?" Jehu replied, "You know the man and what he's like."

And they said, It is false; tell us now. And he said, Thus and thus spake he to me, saying, Thus saith the LORD, I have anointed thee king over Israel.

They scoffed, "That's a lie; tell us the truth." He replied, "This is exactly what he told me: 'The LORD says, I've chosen you to be Israel's king.'"

Then they hasted, and took every man his garment, and put it under him on the top of the stairs, and blew with trumpets, saying, Jehu is king.

In their urgency, each man grabbed his cloak, laid it beneath him atop the steps, and with a triumphant blast of trumpets, they joyfully declared, "Jehu is our king!"

So Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi conspired against Joram. (Now Joram had kept Ramothgilead, he and all Israel, because of Hazael king of Syria.

Jehu, grandson of Nimshi, plotted against Joram. Joram and all of Israel had been holding onto Ramothgilead, due to the threat of King Hazael of Syria.

But king Joram was returned to be healed in Jezreel of the wounds which the Syrians had given him, when he fought with Hazael king of Syria.) And Jehu said, If it be your minds, then let none go forth nor escape out of the city to go to tell it in Jezreel.

King Joram, wounded by the Syrians in his battle against King Hazael, had retreated to Jezreel to recover. Jehu then declared, "If you agree, let no one leave or escape from the city to spread the news in Jezreel."

So Jehu rode in a chariot, and went to Jezreel; for Joram lay there. And Ahaziah king of Judah was come down to see Joram.

Jehu, filled with determination, swiftly rode his chariot towards Jezreel, where Joram was resting. Meanwhile, Ahaziah, the king of Judah, had arrived, concerned and curious to check on Joram.

And there stood a watchman on the tower in Jezreel, and he spied the company of Jehu as he came, and said, I see a company. And Joram said, Take an horseman, and send to meet them, and let him say, Is it peace?

A guard stood alert atop the tower in Jezreel, his eyes catching sight of Jehu's approaching group. "I see a group coming," he announced. Joram, hearing this, quickly ordered, "Send a rider to greet them and ask, 'Do we have peace?'"

So there went one on horseback to meet him, and said, Thus saith the king, Is it peace? And Jehu said, What hast thou to do with peace? turn thee behind me. And the watchman told, saying, The messenger came to them, but he cometh not again.

A rider galloped to meet Jehu, asking on behalf of the king, "Is there peace?" Jehu responded, "What concern is peace to you? Follow behind me." The lookout reported, "The messenger met them, but he hasn't returned."

Then he sent out a second on horseback, which came to them, and said, Thus saith the king, Is it peace? And Jehu answered, What hast thou to do with peace? turn thee behind me.

Then the king dispatched another messenger on horseback. Upon reaching them, he said, "The king asks: Do you come in peace?" To this, Jehu retorted, "What concern is peace to you? Fall in behind me."

And the watchman told, saying, He came even unto them, and cometh not again: and the driving is like the driving of Jehu the son of Nimshi; for he driveth furiously.

The guard reported, "He reached them but didn't return. His speed is like Jehu, Nimshi's son, known for his reckless driving."

And Joram said, Make ready. And his chariot was made ready. And Joram king of Israel and Ahaziah king of Judah went out, each in his chariot, and they went out against Jehu, and met him in the portion of Naboth the Jezreelite.

Joram commanded, "Prepare!" His chariot was swiftly readied. Both Joram, the king of Israel, and Ahaziah, the king of Judah, rode out in their chariots. They united against Jehu, confronting him on the land that once belonged to Naboth the Jezreelite.

And it came to pass, when Joram saw Jehu, that he said, Is it peace, Jehu? And he answered, What peace, so long as the whoredoms of thy mother Jezebel and her witchcrafts are so many?

When Joram spotted Jehu, he anxiously asked, "Is there peace, Jehu?" Jehu, filled with bitterness, retorted, "How can there be peace when your mother Jezebel's sins and witchcraft are so rampant?"

And Joram turned his hands, and fled, and said to Ahaziah, There is treachery, O Ahaziah.

Joram, in a panic, turned to flee, crying out to Ahaziah, "We've been betrayed, Ahaziah!"

And Jehu drew a bow with his full strength, and smote Jehoram between his arms, and the arrow went out at his heart, and he sunk down in his chariot.

With all his might, Jehu pulled back his bow, releasing an arrow that found its mark in Jehoram's chest. Piercing his heart, the arrow left Jehoram lifeless, slumping in his chariot.

Then said Jehu to Bidkar his captain, Take up, and cast him in the portion of the field of Naboth the Jezreelite: for remember how that, when I and thou rode together after Ahab his father, the LORD laid this burden upon him;

Jehu turned to his captain, Bidkar, his voice heavy with emotion. "Pick him up and throw him into Naboth's field," he said, his eyes reflecting a memory. "Remember, when you and I rode together behind his father Ahab, how God pronounced this sentence against him."

Surely I have seen yesterday the blood of Naboth, and the blood of his sons, saith the LORD; and I will requite thee in this plat, saith the LORD. Now therefore take and cast him into the plat of ground, according to the word of the LORD.

I saw the blood of Naboth and of his sons yesterday, declares the Lord, and I will repay you for it on this very plot of ground, says the Lord. Now, carry out my command and throw him onto this piece of land, as per the Lord's word.

But when Ahaziah the king of Judah saw this, he fled by the way of the garden house. And Jehu followed after him, and said, Smite him also in the chariot. And they did so at the going up to Gur, which is by Ibleam. And he fled to Megiddo, and died there.

When Ahaziah, the king of Judah, witnessed the chaos, fear gripped him and he escaped through the garden house. Jehu, relentless in his pursuit, ordered his men, "Strike him down in his chariot!" They obeyed, attacking him near Gur, close to Ibleam. Ahaziah managed to escape to Megiddo, but there, he met his end.

And his servants carried him in a chariot to Jerusalem, and buried him in his sepulchre with his fathers in the city of David.

His loyal aides gently transported him in a carriage to Jerusalem, where they laid him to rest alongside his ancestors in the heart of David's city.

And in the eleventh year of Joram the son of Ahab began Ahaziah to reign over Judah.

In the eleventh year of Joram, Ahab's son, Ahaziah began his rule over Judah, filled with anticipation and responsibility.

And when Jehu was come to Jezreel, Jezebel heard of it; and she painted her face, and tired her head, and looked out at a window.

When Jehu arrived in Jezreel, Jezebel got wind of it. She dolled herself up, putting on makeup and fixing her hair, then anxiously peered out the window.

And as Jehu entered in at the gate, she said, Had Zimri peace, who slew his master?

As Jehu stepped through the gate, she questioned with a hint of sarcasm, "Did Zimri, the one who killed his own master, find peace?"

And he lifted up his face to the window, and said, Who is on my side? who? And there looked out to him two or three eunuchs.

He raised his gaze towards the window, his voice trembling with uncertainty, "Who stands with me?" From the shadows, two or three eunuchs emerged, their faces reflecting loyalty.

And he said, Throw her down. So they threw her down: and some of her blood was sprinkled on the wall, and on the horses: and he trode her under foot.

He ordered, 'Throw her down!' So they threw her down, and her blood splattered on the wall and the horses. He trampled her underfoot.

And when he was come in, he did eat and drink, and said, Go, see now this cursed woman, and bury her: for she is a king’s daughter.

Once he arrived, he ate and drank, then commanded, "Go and see to this cursed woman and bury her. After all, she was a king's daughter."

And they went to bury her: but they found no more of her than the skull, and the feet, and the palms of her hands.

They went to lay her to rest, but all they found were her skull, feet, and the palms of her hands, filling their hearts with sorrow and disbelief.

Wherefore they came again, and told him. And he said, This is the word of the LORD, which he spake by his servant Elijah the Tishbite, saying, In the portion of Jezreel shall dogs eat the flesh of Jezebel:

They returned and reported to him. He responded, "This is God's message, delivered through His servant Elijah the Tishbite. He said, 'In Jezreel, dogs will feast on Jezebel's body.'"

And the carcase of Jezebel shall be as dung upon the face of the field in the portion of Jezreel; so that they shall not say, This is Jezebel.

Jezebel's end will be so tragic and humiliating, her remains will be like waste scattered in the fields of Jezreel. No one will even recognize her.