2 Kings 7

Al-Yasa said, Hear the word of Allah: thus says Allah, Tomorrow about this time a measure of fine flour shall be sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, in the gate of Samaria. ²Then the captain on whose hand the king leaned answered the man of God, and said, Look, even if Allah should make windows in heaven, would this thing be? Al-Yasa answered, You shall indeed see it with your eyes, but shall not eat of it. ³Now there were four leprous men at the entrance of the city gate: and they said one to another, Why sit here until we die? ⁴If we say, We will enter city--the famine is there, and we will die; and if we stay here, we will die. Now therefore come, and let us surrender to the army of the Syrians: if they save us alive, we shall live; and if they kill us, we shall but die. ⁵They rose at twilight, to go to the camp of the Syrians; and when they had come to the outskirts of the camp of the Syrians, no one was there. ⁶For the Lord had made the army of the Syrians to hear a noise of chariots, and a noise of horses, even the noise of a great army: and they said one to another, Behold, the king of Israel has hired against us the kings of the Hittites, and the kings of the Egyptians, to attack us. ⁷Therefore they arose and fled in the twilight, and left their tents, and their horses, and their donkeys, even the camp as it was, and fled for their life. ⁸When these lepers came to the outskirts of the camp, they went into one tent, and ate and drink, and carried from there silver, gold, and clothing, and went and hid them; and they came back, and entered into another tent, and carried from there also, and went and hid it. ⁹Then they said one to another, We aren't doing right. This day is a day of good news, and we remain silent: if we wait until the morning light, punishment will overtake us; now therefore come, let us go and tell the king's household. ¹⁰So they came and called to the gatekeepers of the city, and told them, We came to the camp of the Syrians, and there was no one there, not the sound of one person. But the horses and donkeys were still tied, and the tents were still there. ¹¹The gatekeepers called out and told it to the king's household inside. ¹²The king arose in the night, and said to his servants, I'll show you what the Syrians have done to us. They know that we are hungry; so they have gone out of the camp to hide themselves in the field, saying, When they come out of the city, we will take them alive, and get into the city. ¹³One of his servants answered, Please let some men take five of the horses that remain, which are left in the city. Their plight is as all the multitude of Israel who are left here; look, they are doomed like the rest of the multitude of Israel. So let us send them and see. ¹⁴So they took two chariots with horses; and the king sent them in the direction of the Syrian army, saying, Go and see. ¹⁵They went after them to the Jordan: and, indeed, all the way was full of garments and equipment, which the Syrians had thrown away in their haste. The messengers returned, and told the king. ¹⁶The people went out, and plundered the camp of the Syrians. So a measure of fine flour was sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, according to the word of Allah. ¹⁷The king appointed the captain on whose hand he leaned to have the charge of the gate: and the people trampled him in the gate, and he died as the man of God had said, who spoke when the king came down to him. ¹⁸It happened, as the man of God had spoken to the king, saying, Two measures of barley for a shekel, and a measure of fine flour for a shekel, shall be tomorrow about this time in the gate of Samaria; ¹⁹and that captain answered the man of God, and said, Now look, even if Allah should make windows in heaven, would such a thing be? Al-Yasa said, You shall indeed see it with your eyes, but shall not eat of it: ²⁰and so it happened to him; for the people trampled him in the gate, and he died.