Part 216 (2/2)

3:15. But now bring me hither a minstrel. And when the minstrel played, the hand of the Lord came upon him, and he said:

3:16. Thus saith the Lord: Make the channel of this torrent full of ditches.

3:17. For thus saith the Lord: You shall not see wind, nor rain: and yet this channel shall be filled with waters, and you shall drink, you and your families, and your beasts.

3:18. And this is a small thing in the sight of the Lord: moreover, he will deliver, also, Moab into your hands.

3:19. And you shall destroy every fenced city, and every choice city, and shall cut down every fruitful tree, and shall stop up all the springs of waters, and every goodly field you shall cover with stones.

3:20. And it came to pa.s.s, in the morning, when the sacrifices used to be offered, that behold, water came by the way of Edom, and the country was filled with water.

3:21. And all the Moabites hearing that the kings were come up to fight against them, gathered together all that were girded with a belt upon them, and stood in the borders.

3:22. And they rose early in the morning, and the sun being now up, and s.h.i.+ning upon the waters, the Moabites saw the waters over against them red, like blood,

3:23. And they said: It is the blood of the sword: the kings have fought among themselves, and they have killed one another: go now, Moab, to the spoils.

3:24. And they went into the camp of Israel: but Israel rising up, defeated Moab, who fled before them. And they being conquerors, went and smote Moab.

3:25. And they destroyed the cities: And they filled every goodly field, every man casting his stone: and they stopt up all the springs of waters: and cut down all the trees that bore fruit, so that brick walls only remained: and the city was beset by the slingers, and a great part thereof destroyed.

Brick walls only remained... It was the proper name of the capital city of the Moabites. In Hebrew, Kir-Haraseth.

3:26. And when the king of Moab saw this, to wit, that the enemies had prevailed, he took with him seven hundred men that drew the sword, to break in upon the king of Edom: but they could not.

3:27. Then he took his eldest son, that should have reigned in his stead, and offered him for a burnt offering upon the wall: and there was great indignation in Israel, and presently they departed from him, and returned into their own country.

4 Kings Chapter 4

Miracles of Eliseus. He raiseth a dead child to life.

4:1. Now a certain woman of the wives of the prophets, cried to Eliseus, saying: Thy servant, my husband, is dead, and thou knowest that thy servant was one that feared G.o.d, and behold the creditor is come to take away my two sons to serve him.

4:2. And Eliseus said to her: What wilt thou have me do for thee? Tell me, what hast thou in thy house? And she answered: I, thy handmaid, have nothing in my house but a little oil, to anoint me.

4:3. And he said to her: Go, borrow of all thy neighbours empty vessels, not a few.

4:4. And go in, and shut thy door, when thou art within, and thy sons: and pour out thereof into all those vessels: and when they are full, take them away.

4:5. So the woman went, and shut the door upon her, and upon her sons: they brought her the vessels, and she poured in.

4:6. And when the vessels were full, she said to her son: Bring me yet a vessel. And he answered: I have no more. And the oil stood.

4:7. And she came, and told the man of G.o.d. And he said: Go, sell the oil, and pay thy creditor: and thou and thy sons live of the rest.

4:8. And there was a day when Eliseus pa.s.sed by Sunam: now there was a great woman there, who detained him to eat bread: and as he pa.s.sed often that way, he turned into her house to eat bread.

4:9. And she said to her husband: I perceive that this is a holy man of G.o.d, who often pa.s.seth by us.

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