2 Kings 6:8-23

Living Bible

⁸ Once when the king of Syria was at war with Israel, he said to his officers, “We will mobilize our forces at ____” (naming the place).

⁹ Immediately Elisha warned the king of Israel, “Don’t go near ____” (naming the same place) “for the Syrians are planning to mobilize their troops there!”

¹⁰ The king sent a scout to see if Elisha was right, and sure enough, he had saved him from disaster. This happened several times.

¹¹ The king of Syria was puzzled. He called together his officers and demanded, “Which of you is the traitor? Who has been informing the king of Israel about my plans?”

¹² “It’s not us, sir,” one of the officers replied. “Elisha, the prophet, tells the king of Israel even the words you speak in the privacy of your bedroom!”

¹³ “Go and find out where he is, and we’ll send troops to seize him,” the king exclaimed.

And the report came back, “Elisha is at Dothan.”

¹⁴ So one night the king of Syria sent a great army with many chariots and horses to surround the city. ¹⁵ When the prophet’s servant got up early the next morning and went outside, there were troops, horses, and chariots everywhere.

“Alas, my master, what shall we do now?” he cried out to Elisha.

¹⁶ “Don’t be afraid!” Elisha told him. “For our army is bigger than theirs!”

¹⁷ Then Elisha prayed, “Lord, open his eyes and let him see!” And the Lord opened the young man’s eyes so that he could see horses of fire and chariots of fire everywhere upon the mountain!

¹⁸ As the Syrian army advanced upon them, Elisha prayed, “Lord, please make them blind.” And he did.

¹⁹ Then Elisha went out and told them, “You’ve come the wrong way! This isn’t the right city! Follow me and I will take you to the man you’re looking for.” And he led them to Samaria!

²⁰ As soon as they arrived Elisha prayed, “Lord, now open their eyes and let them see.” And the Lord did, and they discovered that they were in Samaria, the capital city of Israel!

²¹ When the king of Israel saw them, he shouted to Elisha, “Oh, sir, shall I kill them? Shall I kill them?”

²² “Of course not!” Elisha told him. “Do we kill prisoners of war? Give them food and drink and send them home again.”

²³ So the king made a great feast for them and then sent them home to their king. And after that the Syrian raiders stayed away from the land of Israel.