Chapter 7
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 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 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 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 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 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 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 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 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 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 gatekeepers called out and told it to the king ’s household within .
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 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 Therefore they took two chariots with horses ; and the king sent them out to the Syrian army , saying, " Go and see ."
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 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 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 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 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 It happened like that to him , for the people trampled over him in the gate , and he died .