12. When Hazael asked, “Why is my lord weeping?” he answered, “Because I know the evil that you will inflict on the men of Israel: their strongholds you will set on fire, their young men you will slay with the sword, their little ones you will dash into pieces, and their pregnant ones you will rip open.”
13. Then Hazael said, “But what is your servant, who is but a dog, that he should do anything of such magnitude?” Elisha answered, “Adonai has shown me that you will be king over Aram.”
14. Then he departed from Elisha and went to his master, who asked him, “What did Elisha say to you?” He answered, “He told me that you would surely recover.”
15. But the next day he took a thick cloth, soaked it in water and spread it on his face, so that he died. Then Hazael became king in his place.
16. Now in the fifth year of Joram son of Ahab king of Israel—Jehoshaphat had been king of Judah—Jehoram the son of King Jehoshaphat of Judah became king.
17. He was 32 years old when he became king, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem.
18. But he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, just as the house of Ahab did—for Ahab’s daughter was his wife—and he did what was evil in Adonai’s eyes.
19. Nevertheless, Adonai was not willing to destroy Judah, for the sake of David His servant, since He had promised to give him a lamp for his children all days.
20. In his days Edom revolted from under the hand of Judah, and set up their own king.