1 Kings Chapter 20
Ahab’s War with Syria
1 Benhadad, king of Aram, gathered his army, 32 kings with horses and chariots. He went up and laid siege to Samaria and attacked it. 2 He sent ambassadors to Ahab in the city, “Benhadad says, 3 ‘Your silver and gold are mine. Your most beautiful wives and children are mine too.’”
4 The king of Israel said, “It’s according to your message, my lord king. I and everything I have are yours.”
5 The ambassadors came back,
“This is what Benhadad said, ‘I sent to you saying, “You’ll give me your silver and gold, your wives and your children,” 6 but about this time tomorrow I’ll send my officials to search your palace and your officials’ houses. They’ll carry off whatever you consider valuable.’”
7 The king of Israel called the elders of the land, “See how this man is looking to make trouble; he sent for my wives, my children, my silver and gold. I didn’t tell him no.”
8 The elders and the people advised, “Don’t agree to anything.” 1 Kg 20:1-8
9 He said to Benhadad’s ambassadors, “Tell my lord the king, ‘Everything you sent for the first time I’ll do, but I can’t do this.” The ambassadors took him that message.
10 Benhadad sent to him, “May the gods do so to me and more also, if there’s enough dust left in Samaria for each of my soldiers to have a handful.”
11 The king of Israel answered, “The one that puts on his armor shouldn’t brag like the one that takes it off.”
12 When Benhadad heard it, he was drinking with the kings in temporary shelters and told his officers, “Take your positions.”
Ahab’s Victory over Ben-Hadad
They took their positions against the city.
1 Kg 20:9-12
13 A prophet approached Ahab, “Yahveh says: ‘I’ll deliver this big army to you today, and you’ll know I’m Yahveh.’”
14 Ahab said, “Who’ll do it?”
“Yahveh says, ‘The young men of the rulers in the province.’”
“Who’ll begin the battle?”
“You.”
15 He mustered the troops of the 232 provinces, 7,000 Israelites.
16 They went out at noon while Benhadad was getting drunk in temporary shelters with his 32 allied kings. 17 Israel’s troops went out first.
Benhadad sent out an inquiry, and they told him, “Troops have come out of Samaria.”
18 “If they’ve come out either for peace or war, take them alive.”
19 The troops came out of the city along with the entire army. 20 They each killed their man, the Arameans fled, and Israel chased them. Benhadad escaped on a horse with the cavalry. 21 The king of Israel struck the horses and chariots, and killed the Arameans with a great slaughter. 1 Kg 20:13-21
22 The prophet came to the king, “Make plans for another attack. At the first of the year, the king of Aram will come back.”
23 Now the officers of Aram’s king told him,
“Their gods are mountain gods; so they were stronger than we were. Let’s fight them on the plains. We’ll surely be stronger than they are. 24 Put a commander in place of each king. 25 Muster an army like the one you’ve lost, horse for horse, chariot for chariot. Then fight them in the plain; we’ll surely be stronger than they are.” 1 Kg 20:22-25
26 At the first of the year, Benhadad mustered the Arameans and went up to Aphek to fight Israel. 27 The Israelites mustered, gathered provisions, and went to meet them. They camped there like two little flocks of goats, but the Arameans filled the countryside. 28 Then a man of God came up and told the king of Israel,
“Yahveh says, ‘Because the Arameans have said I’m a mountain god, not a god of the valleys, I’ll give this great army to you; you’ll know I’m Yahveh.’”
29 They camped against one another for a week. The seventh day, the battle began, and the Israelites killed 100,000 foot soldiers in one day. 30 The rest fled into Aphek, and the wall fell on 27,000 more. Benhadad fled to the city into an inner room. 1 Kg 20:26-30
31 His officers told him, “We’ve heard that the kings of Israel are merciful. Let’s put burlap around our waists and ropes on our heads, and go out to the king of Israel. Maybe he’ll let you live.” 32 So they put burlap around their waists and ropes on their heads, and went to the king of Israel, “Benhadad says, ‘Please don’t kill me.’”
He said, “Is my brother still alive.”
A Prophet Condemns Ahab’s Release
33 The officers quickly picked up on his word and said, “Your brother Benhadad.” He said, “Go bring him here.” Benhadad came out, and he took him up into the chariot.
34 Benhadad told him, “I’ll restore the towns my father took from your father, and you’ll make streets in Damascus like my father did in Samaria.” Ahab said, “And I’ll let you go with this treaty.” He made a treaty with him and let him go. 1 Kg 20:31-34
35 One man from the company of prophets said to another by a message from Yahveh, “Strike me,” but he wouldn’t do it. 36 “Because you’ve ignored Yahveh, as soon as you leave me, a lion will kill you.” That’s what happened.
37 He found another man, “Strike me.” He struck him and wounded him.
38 The prophet left and waited for the king by the road. He disguised himself with a bandage over his eyes. 39 As the king went by, he shouted,
“I went into the battle, and a man brought a fellow over and said, ‘Guard this man. If he’s missing for any reason, it’s your life for his, or you’ll pay 75½ lbs a talent of silver.’ 40 While I was busy here and there, he got away.”
The king told him, “That’s what your judgment will be. You’ve decided it yourself.”
41 Right away he took the bandage off his eyes, and the king recognized he was one of the prophets. 42 He told him, “Yahveh says, since you let the man go that he’d devoted to destruction, it’s your life for his and your people for his.’”
43 The king of Israel went home to Samaria sullen and resentful. 1 Kg 20:35-43