1 And Ben-hadad the king of Syria gathered all his host together: and there were thirty and two kings with him, and horses, and chariots: and he went up and besieged Samaria, and warred against it. 2 And he sent messengers to Ahab king of Israel into the city, and said unto him, Thus saith Ben-hadad, 3 Thy silver and thy gold is mine; thy wives also and thy children, even the goodliest, are mine. 4 And the king of Israel answered and said, My lord, O king, according to thy saying, I am thine, and all that I have. 5 And the messengers came again, and said, Thus speaketh Ben-hadad, saying, Although I have sent unto thee, saying, Thou shalt deliver me thy silver, and thy gold, and thy wives, and thy children; 6 Yet I will send my servants unto thee to morrow about this time, and they shall search thine house, and the houses of thy servants; and it shall be, that whatsoever is pleasant in thine eyes, they shall put it in their hand, and take it away. 7 Then the king of Israel called all the elders of the land, and said, Mark, I pray you, and see how this man seeketh mischief: for he sent unto me for my wives, and for my children, and for my silver, and for my gold; and I denied him not. 8 And all the elders and all the people said unto him, Hearken not unto him , nor consent. 9 Wherefore he said unto the messengers of Ben-hadad, Tell my lord the king, All that thou didst send for to thy servant at the first I will do: but this thing I may not do. And the messengers departed, and brought him word again. 10 And Ben-hadad sent unto him, and said, The gods do so unto me, and more also, if the dust of Samaria shall suffice for handfuls for all the people that follow me. 11 And the king of Israel answered and said, Tell him , Let not him that girdeth on his harness boast himself as he that putteth it off.
12 And it came to pass, when Ben-hadad heard this message, as he was drinking, he and the kings in the pavilions, that he said unto his servants, Set yourselves in array . And they set themselves in array against the city.
13 ¶ And, behold, there came a prophet unto Ahab king of Israel, saying, Thus saith the LORD, Hast thou seen all this great multitude? behold, I will deliver it into thine hand this day; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD. 14 And Ahab said, By whom? And he said, Thus saith the LORD, Even by the young men of the princes of the provinces. Then he said, Who shall order the battle? And he answered, Thou. 15 Then he numbered the young men of the princes of the provinces, and they were two hundred and thirty two: and after them he numbered all the people, even all the children of Israel, being seven thousand. 16 And they went out at noon. But Ben-hadad was drinking himself drunk in the pavilions, he and the kings, the thirty and two kings that helped him. 17 And the young men of the princes of the provinces went out first; and Ben-hadad sent out, and they told him, saying, There are men come out of Samaria. 18 And he said, Whether they be come out for peace, take them alive; or whether they be come out for war, take them alive. 19 So these young men of the princes of the provinces came out of the city, and the army which followed them. 20 And they slew every one his man: and the Syrians fled; and Israel pursued them: and Ben-hadad the king of Syria escaped on an horse with the horsemen. 21 And the king of Israel went out, and smote the horses and chariots, and slew the Syrians with a great slaughter.
22 ¶ And the prophet came to the king of Israel, and said unto him, Go, strengthen thyself, and mark, and see what thou doest: for at the return of the year the king of Syria will come up against thee. 23 And the servants of the king of Syria said unto him, Their gods are gods of the hills; therefore they were stronger than we; but let us fight against them in the plain, and surely we shall be stronger than they. 24 And do this thing, Take the kings away, every man out of his place, and put captains in their rooms: 25 And number thee an army, like the army that thou hast lost, horse for horse, and chariot for chariot: and we will fight against them in the plain, and surely we shall be stronger than they. And he hearkened unto their voice, and did so. 26 And it came to pass at the return of the year, that Ben-hadad numbered the Syrians, and went up to Aphek, to fight against Israel. 27 And the children of Israel were numbered, and were all present, and went against them: and the children of Israel pitched before them like two little flocks of kids; but the Syrians filled the country.
28 ¶ And there came a man of God, and spake unto the king of Israel, and said, Thus saith the LORD, Because the Syrians have said, The LORD is God of the hills, but he is not God of the valleys, therefore will I deliver all this great multitude into thine hand, and ye shall know that I am the LORD. 29 And they pitched one over against the other seven days. And so it was, that in the seventh day the battle was joined: and the children of Israel slew of the Syrians an hundred thousand footmen in one day. 30 But the rest fled to Aphek, into the city; and there a wall fell upon twenty and seven thousand of the men that were left. And Ben-hadad fled, and came into the city, into an inner chamber.
31 ¶ And his servants said unto him, Behold now, we have heard that the kings of the house of Israel are merciful kings: let us, I pray thee, put sackcloth on our loins, and ropes upon our heads, and go out to the king of Israel: peradventure he will save thy life. 32 So they girded sackcloth on their loins, and put ropes on their heads, and came to the king of Israel, and said, Thy servant Ben-hadad saith, I pray thee, let me live. And he said, Is he yet alive? he is my brother. 33 Now the men did diligently observe whether any thing would come from him, and did hastily catch it: and they said, Thy brother Ben-hadad. Then he said, Go ye, bring him. Then Ben-hadad came forth to him; and he caused him to come up into the chariot. 34 And Ben-hadad said unto him, The cities, which my father took from thy father, I will restore; and thou shalt make streets for thee in Damascus, as my father made in Samaria. Then said Ahab , I will send thee away with this covenant. So he made a covenant with him, and sent him away.
35 ¶ And a certain man of the sons of the prophets said unto his neighbour in the word of the LORD, Smite me, I pray thee. And the man refused to smite him. 36 Then said he unto him, Because thou hast not obeyed the voice of the LORD, behold, as soon as thou art departed from me, a lion shall slay thee. And as soon as he was departed from him, a lion found him, and slew him. 37 Then he found another man, and said, Smite me, I pray thee. And the man smote him, so that in smiting he wounded him . 38 So the prophet departed, and waited for the king by the way, and disguised himself with ashes upon his face. 39 And as the king passed by, he cried unto the king: and he said, Thy servant went out into the midst of the battle; and, behold, a man turned aside, and brought a man unto me, and said, Keep this man: if by any means he be missing, then shall thy life be for his life, or else thou shalt pay a talent of silver. 40 And as thy servant was busy here and there, he was gone. And the king of Israel said unto him, So shall thy judgment be; thyself hast decided it . 41 And he hasted, and took the ashes away from his face; and the king of Israel discerned him that he was of the prophets. 42 And he said unto him, Thus saith the LORD, Because thou hast let go out of thy hand a man whom I appointed to utter destruction, therefore thy life shall go for his life, and thy people for his people. 43 And the king of Israel went to his house heavy and displeased, and came to Samaria.
Ngwa ye Iziraela ne Aramu
1 Mambo we Aramu Bhenihadadi kakubunganya babhayani babe bose, kabhatshiwa ne bamwe bomambo bali makumi matatu ana bali babili nge mbizi nenge koloyi dze ngwa. Ngono kabhuda kunonginilila Samariya kugwa nayo. 2 Katuma batumwa mu nzi nkulu kuna Ahabu mambo we Iziraela kunon'dwa beti, “Bhenihadadi kati, 3 ‘Siliva iyo ne golide iyo nge zwangu ne bakadzi bose bakanaka nenge bana nge bangu.’ ”
4 Ngono mambo we Iziraela kashandula eti, “Koga sekwa maleba tetshi wangu, mambo wangu, ndabe nthu wenyu na zose zwandinazo nge zwenyu.”
5 Batumwa bakazha kakale bakadwa Ahabu bakati, “Bhenihadadi kati ndakazhisa dama kuti undizhisile siliva iyo ne golide iyo ne bakadzi babo ne bana babo. 6 Ngono ngwenu, mangwana nge tjibaka itjetji, ndowotuma hadzasha dzangu, kuwofunyungudza mu ng'umba iyo ye bumambo nemu ng'umba dze balanda babo, ngono banowotola tjimwe ne tjimwe tjinowobe tjibagutsha.”
7 Ndizo mambo we Iziraela kadana sholotjena dzose dze shango kabadwa kati, “Bonani nlume iwoyu sekwaanoshaka phipiti ndiko, ngoti wakanditumila batumwa eshaka bakadzi bangu ne bana bangu ne siliva yangu ne golide yangu, ngono asitongo lambana naye.”
8 Ngono sholotjena dzose ne bathu bose bakashandula mambo beti, “Musitongo gala manteedza kene kuli kudumana naye.”
9 Ndizo Ahabu kadwa hadzasha dza Bhenihadadi kati, “Mudwe tetshi wangu mambo wangu muti, ‘Zose zwamakashaka mu nlanda wenyu kutanga ndowozwithama, koga ezwi andingazwithame.’ ”
Batumwa bakamilika bakabgwiliza shandulo kuna Bhenihadadi. 10 Bhenihadadi kabgwiliza batumwa kunodwa Ahabu beti, “Midzimu indilobe ipaphulula, ha kungabe ne limbelimbe lingawanika mu Samariya lili mu maboko e bathu bose bakandisala shule!”
11 Mambo we Iziraela kashandula eti, “Mudwe Mambo Bhenihadadi muti, ‘Nthu unotola zwibhayano eyenda ku ngwa aatozwikudza se unozwitula edwa kungwa.’ ”
12 Kukati Bhenihadadi ehwa thawu idzedzi bali mu mishasha beng'wa ana bamwe bomambo, kadwa babhayani babe kati, “Tolani zwibhayano munogwa.” Ngono ibo bakatola zwibhayano kunonginilila nzi nkulu.
13 Ngono bonani, nlebesambeli kazha pana Ahabu mambo we Iziraela kandwa kati, “Yahwe banolebeleka beti, ‘Apa wabona bunjinji igogu gusibushoma kene? Bona, nasi ndogulonga mu luboko gugo, ngono unowoziba kuti ndimi Yahwe.’ ”
14 Ahabu kabhuzwa eti, “Ndiani unowotungamilila ngwa?” Nlebesambeli kashandula eti, “Yahwe bakati bazhuzha be babhayani ba pasi kwe balauli be mituthu banowoyenda ku ngwa.”
Mambo kabhuzwa eti, “Ndiani unowonotanga ngwa?”
Nlebesambeli kadabila eti, “Ndimwi mambo?”
15 Ndizo mambo kadana bazhuzha be babhayani bapasi kwe balauli be mituthu bali mazana ali mabili ana makumi matatu ana bali babili (232). Pezhugwi kwabo kadana babhayani be Iziraela bali zwiwulu zwili kutendeka (7 000).
16 Babhayani bakabhuda zhuba lili mpani, koga Bhenihadadi na bomambo bakabe bashingidzana naye bakabe bali mu mishasha beng'wa belaladza. 17 Babhayani bakabe bali pasi kwe balauli be mituthu bakatanga bhuda. Ngono tjeti dze babhayani dzakabe dzadusiwa ndi Bhenihadadi dzikazha kuwonzibisa dziti, “Kuna bathu banobhuda mu Samariya bezha ngeno.” 18 Mambo kadwa tjeti kati, “Ha bezha kowoshaka mbakiso, mubaamutjile bali bapenyu, nenguba bangabe bezha nge ngwa mubaamutjile bali bapenyu.”
19 Koga bazhuzha be babhayani bakabe bali pasi kwe balauli be mituthu bakasagwa shule nge babhayani be Iziraela bakabe babhuda kale mu nzi nkulu. 20 Mmwe ne mmwe kabulaya waakalingisana naye. Basiriya bakatizha, Baiziraela bakatatana nabo, koga Bhenihadadi mambo we Aramu akatatha mbizi kasiya ana bamwe batathi be mbizi. 21 Mambo we Iziraela kalobesa Basiriya banjinji kwazo, ebuya etapa mbizi ne koloyi dzabo dze ngwa.
22 Shule kwa ipapo nlebesambeli kayenda kuna Mambo Ahabu kandwa kati, “Bgwilila, unozwilulwamisa, ubone kuti babhayani babo bamile zubuyanana, ngoti mu tjilimo tjinozha mambo we Aramu unowobe ezha kuwokunginilila.”
Ngwa ye bubili ye Aramu
23 Hadzasha dza Bhenihadadi dzikandwa dzikati, “Midzimu ye Baiziraela midzimu ye matombo, ndizo bakatikunda, koga ngati gweni nabo mu mabala, nge malebeswa towobakulila. 24 Thamani sahwoku, dusani mambo mmwe ne mmwe mu mamo awe, mube mulonga balauli be ngwa mu mamo abo. 25 Mube ne babhayani bangapa ibabaje bakamulashikila, nenge mbizi ne koloyi dze ngwa na idzobo.”
Mambo kateyedza gumbuludzo le hadzasha dzidze kathama sekwa baleba. 26 Kukati mu nsi we nyawuko Bhenihadadi kululwamisa Baaramu kunogwa ndizo kayenda ku Apheke kunogwa ne Baiziraela. 27 Baiziraela bakati basinolulwamisigwa kugwa bapiwa ne mbuba, bakayenda kunogwa ne Baaramu. Ngono bakabe bali bashomanana benga ngubi mbili dze mbudzi mbeli kwe Baaramu, koga Baaramu ibo bali zhele shango yose.
28 Ngono nlebesambeli we Ndzimu kasedzela kuna mambo we Iziraela kandwa kati, “Etji nditjo tjinolebgwa ndi Yahwe beti, ‘Ngoti Baaramu banoleba beti, “Yahwe Ndzimu we matombo usi we mabala,” ndowobalonga mu maboko awo ngono iwe ne bathu babo mowokunda babhayani ibaba be bunji gusibushoma, ndizo iwe ne bathu babo mowoziba kuti ndimi Yahwe.’ ”
29 Baaramu ne Baiziraela bakagala bakalingisana bamwe ne bamwe bali mu mishasha yabo kwe mazhuba ali kutendeka. Ndizo mu zhuba le butendeka ngwa ikatangisa, ngono Baiziraela bakabulaya Baaramu bali zwiwulu zwili zana (100 000). 30 Bakasala bakatizhila mu nzi nkulu we Apheke. Ngono luswingo gukabawila bali zwiwulu zwili makumi mabili ana kutendeka (27 000).
Bhenihadadi naiyebo katizha kanobgwata mu ng'umba ishule mu nzi nkulu. 31 Hadzasha dzidze dzikandwa dzikati, “Bonani, takahwa kuyi bomambo be Iziraela bana ngoni kwazo. Imani tizwisunge thunji nge saka, tipombe zwiambalo mu misholo tibe tiyenda kuna mambo we Iziraela. Pamwe unowoletja kumubulaya.” 32 Ndizo bakabe bezwisunga thunji nge jila le saka, bepomba misholo yabo nge zwiambalo, bebe beyenda kuna mambo we Iziraela beswika bendwa beti, “Nlanda wenyu Bhenihadadi unokumbila kuti musimbulaye.”
Ahabu kadabila eti, “Apa utjatjilazwe kene? Ikamu tjangu!”
33 Hadzasha dza Bhenihadadi dzikayela njele kubona tjilakidzo tje buthu gwa Ahabu, ngono bakabe beti, “Tjoselele ikamu tjenyu Bhenihadadi!”
Ndizo Ahabu kabe ebadwa eti, “Yendani munontola muzhe naye ngeno.” Kukati Bhenihadadi eswika, Ahabu kandwa kati atathe naye mu koloyi ye ngwa. 34 Bhenihadadi kadwa Ahabu kati, “Ndowomubgwilizila mizi yakabe yatolegwa tate benyu ndi tate. Mukazwithamila magalo anoshabila mu Damasiko tate sekwa bakathama mu Samariya.”
Ahabu kashandula eti, “Sekwa wazwisunga, ndowokusunungula.” Ndizo kathama tjidumano naye kabe enletja eyenda.
35 Mmwe we badiyiwana be balebesambeli kadwiwa ndi Yahwe kuti adwe mmwe amphobole. Koga iwoyo nlume kalamba kumphobola. 36 Ndizo nlebesambeli kadwa nlume iwoyo kati, “Bona, sekwa walamba dama la Yahwe, kowoti tjinyolotjo udwa pandili, unowobulawa nge shumba.” Ngono kwakati tjinyolotjo ethubukana ne nlebesambeli kashangana ne shumba ikambulaya.
37 Ipapo kawana mmwe nlume kandwa kati, “Undiphobole.” Ngono nlume iwoyo kamphobola kandusa mbonje. 38 Ndizo nlebesambeli kamilika kayenda, kanomila mambo pa zila akazwipomba nge jila mu buso kuti asizibgwe. 39 Kukati mambo epinda nlebesambeli kan'dana eti, “Bonani, nlada wenyu, ndakati ndili mu ngwa, mbhayani kazha kundili ne nthu waakabe atapa kandidwa kati, ‘Lisa nthu iwoyu, ha kungashingikala kuti atizhe, unowofa mu bumo gugwe, kusajalo unolipa nge themba ye maloso e siliva ali zwiwulu zwili zwitatu (3 000).’ 40 Ngono kukati nlanda wenyu atjakabhata mimwe mishingo, iwoyo nthu katizha.”
Mambo kandwa kati, “Wazwilebegwa, ndiko sekwa wakafanila lipa.”
41 Ipapo nlebesambeli kapalula jila laakabe akazwisunga ndilo mu buso, tjinyolotjo mambo we Iziraela kaziba kuti mmwe we balebesambeli. 42 Nlebesambeli kadwa mambo kati, “Yahwe banolebeleka beti, ‘Ngoti wakaletja nthu wandakabe ndadusila golomodzo, ndizo unowofa mu bumo gugwe ne bathu babo mu bumo gwe bathu babe.’ ” 43 Mambo we Iziraela kayenda ku ng'umba iye ye bushe ku Samariya, ali zhele bushongola kakale akadzipiwa nge shungu.