New American Bible, Revised Edition

2 Kings 3:12-26 New American Bible, Revised Edition (NABRE)

12. Jehoshaphat agreed, “He has the word of the Lord.” So the king of Israel, along with Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom, went down to Elisha.

13. Elisha asked the king of Israel, “What do you want with me? Go to the prophets of your father and to the prophets of your mother.” The king of Israel replied, “No, the Lord has called these three kings together only to deliver us into the power of Moab.”

14. Then Elisha said, “As the Lord of hosts lives, whom I serve, were it not that I respect Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, I should neither look at you nor notice you at all.

15. Now get me a minstrel.” When the minstrel played, the hand of the Lord came upon Elisha,

16. and he announced: “Thus says the Lord: Provide many catch basins in this wadi.

17. For the Lord says: Though you will see neither wind nor rain, yet this wadi will be filled with water for you to drink, and for your livestock and pack animals.

18. And since the Lord does not consider this enough, he will also deliver Moab into your power.

19. You shall destroy every fortified city and every choice city, fell every fruit tree, stop up all the springs, and ruin every fertile field with stones.”

20. In the morning, at the time of the sacrifice, water came from the direction of Edom and filled the land.

21. Meanwhile, all Moab had heard that the kings had come to war against them; troops from the youngest on up were mobilized and stationed at the border.

22. When they rose early that morning, the sun was shining across the water. The Moabites saw the water as red as blood,

23. and said, “This is blood! The kings have fought among themselves and killed one another. Quick! To the spoils, Moab!”

24. But when they reached the camp of Israel, the Israelites rose up and attacked the Moabites, who fled from them. They ranged through the countryside destroying Moab—

25. leveling the cities, each one casting the stones onto every fertile field and filling it, stopping up every spring, felling every fruit tree, until only the stones of Kir-hareseth remained. Then the slingers surrounded and attacked it.

26. When he saw that the battle was going against him, the king of Moab took seven hundred swordsmen to break through to the king of Edom, but he failed.