2 Kings 9 (New American Standard)

Jehu Reigns over Israel

1 Now Elisha the prophet called one of ¹the sons of the prophets and said to him, "²Gird up your loins, and ³take this flask of oil in your hand and go to ⁴Ramoth-gilead. 2 "When you arrive there, ^asearch out ⁵Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi, and go in and ^b6bid him arise from among his brothers, and bring him to an inner room. 3 "Then take the flask of oil and pour it on his head and say, 'Thus says the LORD, "⁷I have anointed you king over Israel."' Then open the door and flee and do not wait." 4 So ⁸the young man, the servant of the prophet, went to Ramoth-gilead. 5 When he came, behold, the captains of the army were sitting, and he said, "I have a word for you, O captain." And Jehu said, "^cFor which one of us?" And he said, "For you, O captain." 6 He arose and went into the house, and he poured the oil on his head and said to him, "Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, '⁹I have anointed you king over the people of the LORD, even over Israel. 7 'You shall strike the house of Ahab your master, ¹⁰that I may avenge ¹¹the blood of My servants the prophets, and the blood of all the servants of the LORD, ¹²at the hand of Jezebel. 8 'For the whole house of Ahab shall perish, and ¹³I will cut off from Ahab ¹⁴every male person ¹⁵both bond and free in Israel. 9 '¹⁶I will make the house of Ahab like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and ¹⁷like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah. 10 '¹⁸The dogs shall eat Jezebel in the territory of Jezreel, and none shall bury her."' Then he opened the door and fled. 11 Now Jehu came out to the servants of his master, and one said to him, "¹⁹Is all well ? Why did this ²⁰mad fellow come to you?" And he said to them, "You know very well the man and his talk." 12 They said, "It is a lie, tell us now." And he said, "Thus and thus he said to me, 'Thus says the LORD, "I have anointed you king over Israel.""' 13 Then ²¹they hurried and each man took his garment and placed it under him on the bare steps, and ²²blew the trumpet, saying, "Jehu is king !"

Jehoram (Joram) Is Assassinated

14 So Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi conspired against Joram. ²³Now Joram ^dwith all Israel was ^edefending Ramoth-gilead against Hazael king of Aram, 15 but ²⁴King ^fJoram had returned to Jezreel to be healed of the wounds which the Arameans had ^ginflicted on him when he fought with Hazael king of Aram. So Jehu said, "If this is your mind, then let no one escape or ^hleave the city to go tell it in Jezreel." 16 Then Jehu rode in a chariot and went to Jezreel, for Joram was lying there. ²⁵Ahaziah king of Judah had come down to see Joram. 17 Now the watchman was standing on the tower in Jezreel and he saw the ⁱcompany of Jehu as he came, and said, "I see a ^jcompany." And Joram said, "Take a horseman and send him to meet them and let him say, 'Is it peace ?' " 18 So a horseman went to meet him and said, "Thus says the king, 'Is it peace ?' " And Jehu said, "²⁶What have you to do with peace ? Turn behind me." And the watchman ^kreported, "The messenger came to them, but he did not return." 19 Then he sent out a second horseman, who came to them and said, "Thus says the king, 'Is it peace ?' " And Jehu ^lanswered, "What have you to do with peace ? Turn behind me." 20 The watchman ^mreported, "He came even to them, and he did not return ; and ²⁷the driving is like the driving of ²⁸Jehu the son of Nimshi, for he drives furiously." 21 Then ⁿJoram said, "^oGet ready." And they made his chariot ready. ^p29Joram king of Israel and Ahaziah king of Judah went out, each in his chariot, and they went out to meet Jehu and found him in the ^q30property of Naboth the Jezreelite. 22 When ^rJoram saw Jehu, he said, "Is it peace, Jehu ?" And he ^sanswered, "What peace, ³¹so long as the harlotries of your mother Jezebel and her witchcrafts are so many ?" 23 So ^tJoram ^ureined about and fled and said to Ahaziah, "³²There is treachery, O Ahaziah !" 24 And ³³Jehu ^vdrew his bow with his full strength and ^wshot ^xJoram between his arms ; and the arrow went ^ythrough his heart and he sank in his chariot. 25 Then Jehu said to Bidkar his officer, "Take him up and ³⁴cast him into the ^zproperty of the field of Naboth the Jezreelite, for I remember when ^aayou and I were riding together after Ahab his father, that the ³⁵LORD laid this ³⁶oracle against him: 26 'Surely ³⁷I have seen yesterday the blood of Naboth and the blood of his sons,' says the LORD, 'and ³⁸I will repay you in this ^bbproperty,' says the LORD. Now then, take and cast him into the ^ccproperty, according to the word of the LORD."

Jehu Assassinates Ahaziah

27 ³⁹When Ahaziah the king of Judah saw this, he fled by the way of the garden house. And Jehu pursued him and said, "^ddShoot him too, in the chariot." So they shot him at the ascent of Gur, which is at ⁴⁰Ibleam. But he fled to Megiddo and died there. 28 ⁴¹Then his servants carried him in a chariot to Jerusalem and buried him in his grave with his fathers in the city of David. 29 Now in ⁴²the eleventh year of Joram, the son of Ahab, Ahaziah became king over Judah. 30 When Jehu came to Jezreel, Jezebel heard of it, and ⁴³she painted her eyes and adorned her head and looked out the window. 31 As Jehu entered the gate, she said, "⁴⁴Is it ^eewell, Zimri, ^ffyour master's murderer ?" 32 Then he lifted up his face to the window and said, "Who is on my side ? Who ?" And two or three officials looked down at him.

Jezebel Is Slain

33 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 trampled her under foot. 34 When he came in, he ate and drank ; and he said, "See now to ⁴⁵this cursed woman and bury her, for ⁴⁶she is a king's daughter." 35 They went to bury her, but they found nothing more of her than the skull and the feet and the palms of her hands. 36 Therefore they returned and told him. And he said, "This is the word of the LORD, which He spoke by His servant Elijah the Tishbite, saying, '⁴⁷In the ^ggproperty of Jezreel the dogs shall eat the flesh of Jezebel ; 37 and ⁴⁸the corpse of Jezebel will be as dung on the face of the field in the ^hhproperty of Jezreel, so they cannot say, "This is Jezebel.""'