I Kings 20

Kong Benhadad af Aram samlede hele sin Hær, og to og tredive Konger fulgte ham med Heste og Stridsvogne; og han drog op og indesluttede Samaria og belejrede det.

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.

Han sendte nu Sendebud ind i Byen til Kong Akab af Israel

And he sent messengers to Ahab king of Israel into the city, and said unto him, Thus saith Ben–hadad,

og lod sige til ham: "Således siger Benhadad: Dit Sølv og Guld er mit, men dine Hustruer og børn kan du beholde!"

Thy silver and thy gold is mine; thy wives also and thy children, even the goodliest, are mine.

Israels Konge lod svare: "Som du byder, Herre Konge! Jeg og alt, hvad mit er, tilhører dig."

And the king of Israel answered and said, My lord, O king, according to thy saying, I am thine, and all that I have.

Men Sendebudene vendte tilbage og sagde: "Således siger Benha dad: Jeg sendte Bud til dig og lod sige: Dit Sølv og Guld og dine Hustruer og Børn skal du give mig!

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;

Så sender jeg da i Morgen ved denne Tid mine Folk til dig, og de skal gennemsøge dit Hus og dine Folks Huse og tilvende sig og tage alt, hvad de lyster!"

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.

Da lod Israels Konge alle Landets Ældste kalde og sagde: "Der ser I, at Manden har ondt i Sinde, thi nu sender han Bud til mig om mine Hustruer og Børn, og mit Sølv og Guld havde jeg ikke nægtet ham!"

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.

Alle de Ældste og alt Folket svarede ham: "Hør ham ikke; du må ikke give efter!"

And all the elders and all the people said unto him, Hearken not unto him, nor consent.

Da sagde han til Benhadads Sendebud: "Sig til min Herre Kongen: Alt, hvad du første Gang krævede af din Træl, vil jeg gøre, men dette Krav kan jeg ikke opfylde!" Med det Svar vendte Sendebudene tilbage.

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.

Da sendte Benhadad Bud til ham og lod sige: "Guderne ramme mig både med det ene og det andet, om Støvet i Samaria forslår til at fylde Hænderne på alle de Krigere, der følger mig!"

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.

Men Israels Konge lod svare: "Sig således: Den, der spænder Bæltet, skal ikke rose sig som den, der løser det!"

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.

Benhadad modtog Svaret, just som han sad og drak sammen med Kongerne i Løvhytterne; da sagde han til sine Folk: "Til Storm!" Og de gjorde sig rede til at storme Byen.

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.

Men en Profet trådte hen til Kong Akab af Israel og sagde: "Så siger HERREN: Ser du hele den vældige Menneskemængde der? Se, jeg giver den i Dag i din Hånd, og du skal kende, at jeg er HERREN!"

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.

Akab spurgte: "Ved hvem?" Han svarede: "Så siger HERREN: Ved Fogedernes Folk!" Derpå spurgte han: "Hvem skal åbne Kampen?" Han svarede: "Du!"

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.

Så mønstrede han Fogedernes Folk, og de var 232; derefter mønstrede han hele Hæren, alle Israeliterne, 7000 Mand.

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.

Og ved Middagstid gjorde de et Udfald, just som Benhadad og de to og tredive Konger, der fulgte ham, sad og drak i Løvhytterne.

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.

Først rykkede Fogedernes Folk ud. Man sendte da Bud til Benhadad og meldte: "Der rykker Mænd ud fra Samaria!"

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.

Da sagde han: "Hvad enten de rykker ud for at få Fred eller for at kæmpe, så grib dem levende!"

And he said, Whether they be come out for peace, take them alive; or whether they be come out for war, take them alive.

Da Fogedernes Folk og Hæren, som fulgte efter, var rykket ud fra Byen,

So these young men of the princes of the provinces came out of the city, and the army which followed them.

huggede de ned for Fode, så at Aramæerne tog Flugten; og Israeliterne satte efter dem. Men Kong Benhadad af Aram undslap til Hest sammen med nogle Ryttere.

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.

Da rykkede Israels Konge ud og gjorde Hestene og Vognene til Bytte, og han tilføjede Aramæerne et stort Nederlag.

And the king of Israel went out, and smote the horses and chariots, and slew the Syrians with a great slaughter.

Men Profeten trådte hen til Israels Konge og sagde til ham: "Tag dig sammen og se vel til, hvad du vil gøre, thi næste År drager Arams Konge op imod dig igen!"

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.

Men Aramæerkongens Folk sagde til ham: "Deres Gud er en Bjerggud, derfor blev de os for stærke; men lad os se, om vi ikke kan blive de stærkeste, når vi angriber dem på Slettelandet!

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.

Således skal du gøre: Afsæt alle Kongerne, sæt Statholdere i deres Sted

And do this thing, Take the kings away, every man out of his place, and put captains in their rooms:

og stil lige så stor en Hær på Benene som den, du mistede, og lige så mange Heste og Vogne som før! Når vi så kæmper med dem på Slettelandet, sandelig, om vi ikke bliver de stærkeste!" Og han fulgte deres Råd og handlede derefter.

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.

Næste År mønstrede Benha dad Aramæeme og drog op til Atek for at kæmpe med Israel.

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.

Også Israeliterne blev mønstret og forsynede sig med Levnedsmidler, hvorefter de rykkede dem i Møde og lejrede sig lige over for dem som to små Gedehjorde, medens Aramæerne oversvømmede Landet.

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.

Da trådte en Guds Mand hen til Israels Konge og sagde: "Så siger HERREN: Fordi Aramæerne siger: HERREN er en Bjerggud og ikke en Dalgud! vil jeg give hele den vældige Menneskemængde der i din Hånd, og I skal kende, at jeg er HERREN!"

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.

De lå nu lejret over for hinanden i syv Dage, men Syvendedagen kom det til Kamp, og Israeliterne huggede Aramæerne ned, 100.000 Mand Fodfolk på een Dag.

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.

De, der blev tilovers, flygtede til Byen Afek, men Muren styrtede ned over dem, der var tilbage, 27000 Mand. Benhadad flygtede ind i Byen, hvor han løb fra Kammer til Kammer.

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.

Da sagde hans Folk til ham: Vi har hørt, at Kongerne over Israels Hus er nådige Konger; lad os binde Sæk om Lænderne og Reb om Hovederne og gå ud til Israels Konge, måske han da vil skåne dit Liv!"

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.

Så bandt de Sæk om Lændeme og Reb om Hovederne og kom til Israels Konge og sagde: "Din Træl Benhadad siger: Lad mig leve!" Han svarede: "Er han endnu i Live? Han er min Broder!"

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.

Det tog Mændene for et godt Varsel. og de tog ham straks på Ordet, idet de sagde: "Benhadad er din Broder!" Da sagde han: "Gå hen og hent ham!" Så gik Benhadad ud til ham, og han tog ham op i Vognen til sig.

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.

Benhadad sagde nu til ham: "De Byer, min Fader fratog din Fader, vil jeg give tilbage, og du må bygge dig Gader i Damaskus, lige som min Fader gjorde i Samaria! På disse Vilkår give du mig fri!" Og han sluttede Pagt med ham og lod ham gå.

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.

Men en af Profetsønnerne sagde med HERRENs Ord til sin Fælle: "Slå mig!" Men han vægrede sig derved.

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.

Da sagde han til ham: "Fordi du ikke har adlydt HERRENs Ord. skal en Løve dræbe dig, når du går bort fra mig!" Og da han gik bort fra ham, traf en Løve på ham og dræbte ham.

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.

Så traf Profetsønnen en anden og sagde til ham: "Slå mig!" Og den anden slog ham og sårede ham.

Then he found another man, and said, Smite me, I pray thee. And the man smote him, so that in smiting he wounded him.

Så gik Profeten hen og stillede sig på den Vej, Kongen kom, og gjorde sig ukendelig med et Bind for Øjnene.

So the prophet departed, and waited for the king by the way, and disguised himself with ashes upon his face.

Da Kongen kom forbi, råbte han til ham: "Din Træl var draget med i Kampen; da kom en hen til mig med en Mand og sagde: Vogt den Mand vel! Slipper han bort, skal du svare for hans Liv med dit eget Liv eller bøde en Talent Sølv!

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.

Men din Træl var optaget snart her, snart der, og borte var han." Da sagde Israels Konge til ham: "Det er din Dom, du har selv fældet den!"

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.

Så tog han hurtig Bindet fra Øjnene, og Israels Konge genkendte ham som en af Ptofeterne.

And he hasted, and took the ashes away from his face; and the king of Israel discerned him that he was of the prophets.

Og han sagde til ham: "Så siger HERREN: Fordi du gav Slip på den Mand, der var hjemfaldet til mit Band, skal du svare for hans Liv med dit eget Liv og for hans Folk med dit eget Folk!"

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.

Da drog Israels Konge hjem, misfornøjet og ilde til Mode, og han kom til Samaria.

And the king of Israel went to his house heavy and displeased, and came to Samaria.