Douay-Rheims Catholic Bible RHE
The Message Bible MSG
1 And the sons of the prophets said to Eliseus: Behold, the place where we dwell with thee is too strait for us.
1
One day the guild of prophets came to Elisha and said, "You can see that this place where we're living under your leadership is getting cramped - we have no elbow room.
2 Let us go as far as the Jordan, and take out of the wood every man a piece of timber, that we may build us there a place to dwell in. And he said: Go.
2
Give us permission to go down to the Jordan where each of us will get a log. We'll build a roomier place." Elisha said, "Go ahead."
3 And one of them said: But come thou also with thy servants. He answered: I will come.
3
One of them then said, "Please! Come along with us!" He said, "Certainly."
4 So he went with them. And when they were come to the Jordan, they cut down wood.
4
He went with them. They came to the Jordan and started chopping down trees.
5 And it happened, as one was felling some timber, that the head of the ax fell into the water: and he cried out, and said: Alas, alas, alas, my lord, for this same was borrowed.
5
As one of them was felling a timber, his axhead flew off and sank in the river. "Oh no, master!" he cried out. "And it was borrowed!"
6 And the man of God said: Where did it fall? and he shewed him the place: Then he cut off a piece of wood, and cast it in thither: and the iron swam.
6
The Holy Man said, "Where did it sink?" The man showed him the place. He cut off a branch and tossed it at the spot. The axhead floated up.
7 And he said: Take it up. And he put out his hand, and took it.
7
"Grab it," he said. The man reached out and took it.
8 And the king of Syria warred against Israel, and took counsel with his servants, saying: In such and such a place, let us lay an ambush.
8
One time when the king of Aram was at war with Israel, after consulting with his officers, he said, "At such and such a place I want an ambush set."
9 And the man of God sent to the king of Israel, saying: Beware that thou pass not to such a place: for the Syrians are there in ambush.
9
The Holy Man sent a message to the king of Israel: "Watch out when you're passing this place, because Aram has set an ambush there."
10 And the king of Israel, sent to the place which the man of God had told him, and prevented him, and looked well to himself there not once nor twice.
10
So the king of Israel sent word concerning the place of which the Holy Man had warned him. This kind of thing happened all the time.
11 And the heart of the king of Syria, was troubled for this thing. And calling together his servants, he said: Why do you not tell me who it is that betrays me to the king of Israel?
11
The king of Aram was furious over all this. He called his officers together and said, "Tell me, who is leaking information to the king of Israel? Who is the spy in our ranks?"
12 And one of his servants said: No one, my lord, O king: but Eliseus, the prophet, that is in Israel, telleth the king of Israel all the words, that thou speakest in thy privy chamber.
12
But one of his men said, "No, my master, dear king. It's not any of us. It's Elisha the prophet in Israel. He tells the king of Israel everything you say, even what you whisper in your bedroom."
13 And he said to them: Go, and see where he is: that I may send and take him. And they told him: saying: Behold he is in Dothan.
13
The king said, "Go and find out where he is. I'll send someone and capture him." The report came back, "He's in Dothan."
14 Therefore, he sent thither horses, and chariots, and the strength of an army: and they came by night, and beset the city.
14
Then he dispatched horses and chariots, an impressive fighting force. They came by night and surrounded the city.
15 And the servant of the man of God, rising early went out, and saw an army round about the city, and horses and chariots: and he told him, saying: Alas, alas, alas, my lord, what shall we do?
15
Early in the morning a servant of the Holy Man got up and went out. Surprise! Horses and chariots surrounding the city! The young man exclaimed, "Oh, master! What shall we do?"
16 But he answered: Fear not: for there are more with us than with them.
16
He said, "Don't worry about it - there are more on our side than on their side."
17 And Eliseus prayed, and said: Lord, open his eyes, that he may see. And the Lord opened the eyes of the servant, and he saw: and behold, the mountain was full of horses, and chariots of fire round about Eliseus.
17
Then Elisha prayed, "O God, open his eyes and let him see." The eyes of the young man were opened and he saw. A wonder! The whole mountainside full of horses and chariots of fire surrounding Elisha!
18 And the enemies came down to him: but Eliseus prayed to the Lord, saying: Strike, I beseech thee, this people with blindness: and the Lord struck them with blindness, according to the word of Eliseus.
18
When the Arameans attacked, Elisha prayed to God, "Strike these people blind!" And God struck them blind, just as Elisha said.
19 And Eliseus said to them: This is not the way, neither is this the city: follow me, and I will shew you the man whom you seek. So he led them into Samaria.
19
Then Elisha called out to them, "Not that way! Not this city! Follow me and I'll lead you to the man you're looking for." And he led them into Samaria.
20 And when they were come into Samaria, Eliseus said: Lord, open the eyes of these men, that they may see. And the Lord opened their eyes, and they saw themselves to be in the midst of Samaria.
20
As they entered the city, Elisha prayed, "O God, open their eyes so they can see where they are." God opened their eyes. They looked around - they were trapped in Samaria!
21 And the king of Israel said to Eliseus, when he saw them: My father, shall I kill them?
21
When the king of Israel saw them, he said to Elisha, "Father, shall I massacre the lot?"
22 And he said: Thou shalt not kill them: for thou didst not take them with thy sword, or thy bow, that thou mayst kill them: but set bread and water before them, that they may eat and drink, and go to their master.
22
"Not on your life!" said Elisha. "You didn't lift a hand to capture them, and now you're going to kill them? No sir, make a feast for them and send them back to their master."
23 And a great provision of meats was set before them, and they ate and drank; and he let them go: and they went away to their master: and the robbers of Syria came no more into the land of Israel.
23
So he prepared a huge feast for them. After they ate and drank their fill he dismissed them. Then they returned home to their master. The raiding bands of Aram didn't bother Israel anymore.
24 And it came to pass, after these things, that Benadad, king of Syria, gathered together all his army, and went up and besieged Samaria.
24
At a later time, this: Ben-Hadad king of Aram pulled together his troops and launched a siege on Samaria.
25 And there was a great famine in Samaria: and so long did the siege continue, till the head of an ass was sold for fourscore pieces of silver, and the fourth part of a cabe of pigeons’ dung, for five pieces of silver.
25
This brought on a terrible famine, so bad that food prices soared astronomically. Eighty shekels for a donkey's head! Five shekels for a bowl of field greens!
26 And as the king of Israel was passing by the wall, a certain woman cried out to him, saying: Save me, my lord, O king.
26
One day the king of Israel was walking along the city wall. A woman cried out, "Help! Your majesty!"
27 And he said: If the Lord doth not save thee, how can I save thee? out of the barnfloor, or out of the winepress? And the king said to her: What aileth thee? And she answered:
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He answered, "If God won't help you, where on earth can I go for help? To the granary? To the dairy?"
28 This woman said to me: Give thy son, that we may eat him today, and we will eat my son tomorrow.
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The king continued, "Tell me your story."
29 So we boiled my son, and ate him. And I said to her on the next day: Give thy son, that we may eat him. And she hath hid her son.
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So we cooked my son and ate him. The next day I told her, 'Your turn - bring your son so we can have him for supper.' But she had hidden her son away."
30 When the king heard this, he rent his garments, and passed by upon the wall. And all the people saw the haircloth which he wore within next to his flesh.
30
When the king heard the woman's story he ripped apart his robe. Since he was walking on the city wall, everyone saw that next to his skin he was wearing coarse burlap.
31 And the king said: May God do so and so to me, and may he add more, if the head of Eliseus, the son of Saphat, shall stand on him this day.
31
And he called out, "God do his worst to me - and more - if Elisha son of Shaphat still has a head on his shoulders at this day's end."
32 But Eliseus sat in his house, and the ancients sat with him. So he sent a man before: and before that messenger came, he said to the ancients: Do you know that this son of a murderer hath sent to cut off my head? Look then when the messenger shall come, shut the door, and suffer him not to come in: for behold the sound of his master’s feet is behind him.
32
Elisha was sitting at home, the elders sitting with him. The king had already dispatched an executioner, but before the man arrived Elisha spoke to the elders: "Do you know that this murderer has just now sent a man to take off my head? Look, when the executioner arrives, shut the door and lock it. Don't I even now hear the footsteps of his master behind him?"
33 While he was yet speaking to them, the messenger appeared, who was coming to him. And he said: Behold, so great an evil is from the Lord: what shall I look for more from the Lord?
33
While he was giving his instructions, the king showed up, accusing, "This trouble is directly from God! And what's next? I'm fed up with God!"
The Douay-Rheims Bible is in the public domain.
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.