[0] "Have you seen how Ahab has humbled himself before me? Because he has
humbled himself before me, I will not bring the evil in his days; but in
his son's days I will bring the evil upon his house." [1] After the death
of Ahab, Moab rebelled against Israel. [2] Now Ahazi'ah fell through the
lattice in his upper chamber in Sama'ria, and lay sick; so he sent
messengers, telling them, "Go, inquire of Ba'al-ze'bub, the god of Ekron,
whether I shall recover from this sickness." [3] But the angel of the LORD
said to Eli'jah the Tishbite, "Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the
king of Sama'ria, and say to them, `Is it because there is no God in Israel
that you are going to inquire of Ba'al-ze'bub, the god of Ekron?' [4] Now
therefore thus says the LORD, `You shall not come down from the bed to
which you have gone, but you shall surely die.'" So Eli'jah went. [5] The
messengers returned to the king, and he said to them, "Why have you
returned?" [6] And they said to him, "There came a man to meet us, and said
to us, `Go back to the king who sent you, and say to him, Thus says the
LORD, Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are sending to
inquire of Ba'al-ze'bub, the god of Ekron? Therefore you shall not come
down from the bed to which you have gone, but shall surely die.'" [7] He
said to them, "What kind of man was he who came to meet you and told you
these things?" [8] They answered him, "He wore a garment of haircloth, with
a girdle of leather about his loins." And he said, "It is Eli'jah the
Tishbite." [9] Then the king sent to him a captain of fifty men with his
fifty. He went up to Eli'jah, who was sitting on the top of a hill, and
said to him, "O man of God, the king says, `Come down.'" [10] But Eli'jah
answered the captain of fifty, "If I am a man of God, let fire come down
from heaven and consume you and your fifty." Then fire came down from
heaven, and consumed him and his fifty. [11] Again the king sent to him
another captain of fifty men with his fifty. And he went up and said to
him, "O man of God, this is the king's order, `Come down quickly!'" [12]
But Eli'jah answered them, "If I am a man of God, let fire come down from
heaven and consume you and your fifty." Then the fire of God came down from
heaven and consumed him and his fifty. [13] Again the king sent the captain
of a third fifty with his fifty. And the third captain of fifty went up,
and came and fell on his knees before Eli'jah, and entreated him, "O man of
God, I pray you, let my life, and the life of these fifty servants of
yours, be precious in your sight. [14] Lo, fire came down from heaven, and
consumed the two former captains of fifty men with their fifties; but now
let my life be precious in your sight." [15] Then the angel of the LORD
said to Eli'jah, "Go down with him; do not be afraid of him." So he arose
and went down with him to the king, [16] and said to him, "Thus says the
LORD, `Because you have sent messengers to inquire of Ba'al-ze'bub, the god
of Ekron,--is it because there is no God in Israel to inquire of his
word?--therefore you shall not come down from the bed to which you have
gone, but you shall surely die.'" [17] So he died according to the word of
the LORD which Eli'jah had spoken. Jeho'ram, his brother, became king in
his stead in the second year of Jeho'ram the son of Jehosh'aphat, king of
Judah, because Ahazi'ah had no son. [18] Now the rest of the acts of
Ahazi'ah which he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles
of the Kings of Israel?
