Elijah Rebukes King Ahaziah

1Moab rebelled against Israela after Ahab died. 2Meanwhile, Ahaziah had fallen through the lattice in his upper room in Samaria and lay injured. He sent messengers to Ekron with these orders: “Go and consult with Ekron’s god Baal-zebub to find outb if I’m going to recover from this injury.”c

3But the angel of the LORD spoke to Elijah the foreigner,d “Get up and go meet the messengers from the king of Samaria. Ask them ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you’re going to consult with Ekron’s god Baal-zebub? 4Now therefore this is what the LORD says: “You won’t be getting up from that bed of yours on which you’re lying. You will most certainly die!”’” So Elijah got up ande went.

5The messengers returned to the king and he asked them, “What’s this? You’ve come back?”

6They replied, “We met a man who told us, ‘Go back to the king who sent you and ask him, “Is it because there is no God in Israel that you’re going to consult with Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? Therefore you won’t be getting up from that bed on which you’re lying. You will most certainly die!”’”

7He told them, “Describe the man who met you and told you these things.”

8They answered, “The man was a hairy fellow. He wore a leather sash around his waist.”

The kingf responded, “It’s Elijah, that foreigner!”g

Fire from Heaven Destroys the King’s Henchmen

9So the king sent out 50 men, along with their leader.h The leaderi approached Elijah, who was sitting at the top of a hill. He ordered Elijah,j “Hey, man of God! The king orders you to come down!”

10Elijah responded to the leader who was in charge of the 50 soldiers, “So I’m a man of God, am I? If so, may firek fall from heaven and devour you and your 50 soldiers…”l Just then, fire fell from heaven and devoured that leader and his 50 soldiers.m

11Later the king tried again—he sent another company of 50 soldiers, along with their leader, who ordered Elijah, “Hey, man of God! This is what the king orders: ‘Come down!’”

12Elijah responded to the leader and to his entire company,n “So I’m a man of God, am I? If so, may fireo fall from heaven and devour you and your 50 soldiers…”p Just then, fire fell from heaven and devoured him and his 50 soldiers.q

13Then the king tried yet again! The king sent a third company of 50 soldiers along with their leader. The third leader went up the hill,r approached Elijah,s fell on his knees in front of him, and begged him,t “Hey, man of God, please treatu my life and the lives of these servants of yours as precious! 14Look how fire fell from heaven and devoured the two other companies of 50 soldiers, along with their captains, but now please treat me as if my life were precious!”

15The angel of the LORD told Elijah, “Go down the hill with that man. Don’t be afraid of him!” So Elijahv got up and went down with him to meet the king.

16Then Elijah spoke to the king, “This is what the LORD says: ‘Since you sent messengers to consult with Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron—is it because there is no God in Israel with whom to consult regarding his word?—therefore you’re not getting up from the bed on which you’re lying. You certainly will die!’” 17And die he did, just as the LORD had said and just as Elijah had spoken!

After this, Jehoram ascended to the throne during the second year of the reign of Jehoshaphat’s son Jehoram from Judah. He took the place of Ahaziah, who had no son. 18The rest of Ahaziah’s activities are recorded in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel,w are they not?