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1 Kings 20:2-14
New American Standard Bible

Chapter 20

2Then he sent messengers to the city to Ahab, king of Israel, and said to him, 'This is what Ben-hadad says: 3‘Your silver and your gold are mine; your most beautiful wives and children are also mine.’?' 4And the king of Israel replied, 'As you say, my lord, O king; I am yours, as well as all that I have.' 5Then the messengers returned and said, 'Ben-hadad says this: ‘I did indeed send word to you, saying, 'You shall give me your silver, your gold, your wives, and your children'; 6but about this time tomorrow I will send my servants to you, and they will search your house and the houses of your servants; and they will take in their hands everything that is pleasing to your eyes, and take it all away.’?'
7Then the king of Israel summoned all the elders of the land and said, 'Please be aware and see that this man is looking for trouble; for he sent me his demand for my wives, my children, my silver, and my gold, and I did not refuse him.' 8Then all the elders and all the people said to him, 'Do not listen nor consent.' 9So he said to the messengers of Ben-hadad, 'Tell my lord the king, ‘Everything that you sent as a demand to your servant at the first, I will do; but this thing I cannot do.’?' Then the messengers departed, and brought him word again. 10Ben-hadad sent word to him and said, 'May the gods do so to me and more so, if the dust of Samaria will be enough for handfuls for all the people who follow me.' 11Then the king of Israel replied, 'Tell him, ‘He who straps on his weapons had better not boast like one who takes them off.’?' 12And when Ben-hadad heard this message, while he was drinking with the kings in the temporary shelters, he said to his servants, 'Take your positions.' So they took their positions against the city.
13Now behold, a prophet approached Ahab king of Israel, and said, 'This is what the Lord says: ‘Have you seen all this great multitude? Behold, I am going to hand them over to you today, and you shall know that I am the Lord.’?' 14But Ahab said, 'By whom?' So he said, 'The Lord says this: ‘By the young men of the leaders of the provinces.’?' Then he said, 'Who will begin the battle?' And he said, 'You will.'
King James Version

Chapter 20

2And he sent messengers to Ahab king of Israel into the city, and said unto him, Thus saith Benhadad, 3Thy silver and thy gold is mine; thy wives also and thy children, even the goodliest, are mine. 4And the king of Israel answered and said, My lord, O king, according to thy saying, I am thine, and all that I have.
5And the messengers came again, and said, Thus speaketh Benhadad, saying, Although I have sent unto thee, saying, Thou shalt deliver me thy silver, and thy gold, and thy wives, and thy children; 6Yet 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. 7Then 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. 8And all the elders and all the people said unto him, Hearken not unto him, nor consent. 9Wherefore he said unto the messengers of Benhadad, 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.
10And Benhadad 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. 11And 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. 12And it came to pass, when Benhadad 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. 13And, 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. 14And 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.
Christian Standard Bible

Chapter 20

2He sent messengers into the city to King Ahab of Israel and said to him, "This is what Ben-hadad says: 3‘Your silver and your gold are mine! And your best wives and children are mine as well!’"
4Then the king of Israel answered, "Just as you say, my lord the king: I am yours, along with all that I have."
5The messengers then returned and said, "This is what Ben-hadad says: ‘I have sent messengers to you, saying: You are to give me your silver, your gold, your wives, and your children. 6But at this time tomorrow I will send my servants to you, and they will search your palace and your servants’ houses. They will lay their hands on and take away whatever is precious to you.’"
7Then the king of Israel called for all the elders of the land and said, "Recognize that this one is only looking for trouble, for he demanded my wives, my children, my silver, and my gold, and I didn’t turn him down."
8All the elders and all the people said to him, "Don’t listen or agree."
9So he said to Ben-hadad’s messengers, "Say to my lord the king, ‘Everything you demanded of your servant the first time, I will do, but this thing I cannot do.’" So the messengers left and took word back to him.
10Then Ben-hadad sent messengers to him and said, "May the gods punish me and do so severely if Samaria’s dust amounts to a handful for each of the people who follow me."
11The king of Israel answered, "Say this: ‘Don’t let the one who puts on his armor boast like the one who takes it off.’"
12When Ben-hadad heard this response, while he and the kings were drinking in their quarters, he said to his servants, "Take your positions." So they took their positions against the city.
13A prophet approached King Ahab of Israel and said, "This is what the Lord says: ‘Do you see this whole huge army? Watch, I am handing it over to you today so that you may know that I am the Lord.’"
14Ahab asked, "By whom?" And the prophet said, "This is what the Lord says: ‘By the young men of the provincial leaders.’" Then he asked, "Who is to start the battle?" He said, "You."
New Living Translation

Chapter 20

2Ben-hadad sent messengers into the city to relay this message to King Ahab of Israel: 'This is what Ben-hadad says: 3‘Your silver and gold are mine, and so are your wives and the best of your children!’'
4All right, my lord the king,' Israel’s king replied. 'All that I have is yours!'
5Soon Ben-hadad’s messengers returned again and said, 'This is what Ben-hadad says: ‘I have already demanded that you give me your silver, gold, wives, and children. 6But about this time tomorrow I will send my officials to search your palace and the homes of your officials. They will take away everything you consider valuable!’'
7Then Ahab summoned all the elders of the land and said to them, 'Look how this man is stirring up trouble! I already agreed with his demand that I give him my wives and children and silver and gold.'
8Don’t give in to any more demands,' all the elders and the people advised.
9So Ahab told the messengers from Ben-hadad, 'Say this to my lord the king: ‘I will give you everything you asked for the first time, but I cannot accept this last demand of yours.’' So the messengers returned to Ben-hadad with that response.
10Then Ben-hadad sent this message to Ahab: 'May the gods strike me and even kill me if there remains enough dust from Samaria to provide even a handful for each of my soldiers.'
11The king of Israel sent back this answer: 'A warrior putting on his sword for battle should not boast like a warrior who has already won.'
12Ahab’s reply reached Ben-hadad and the other kings as they were drinking in their tents. 'Prepare to attack!' Ben-hadad commanded his officers. So they prepared to attack the city.
13Then a certain prophet came to see King Ahab of Israel and told him, 'This is what the Lord says: Do you see all these enemy forces? Today I will hand them all over to you. Then you will know that I am the Lord.'
14Ahab asked, 'How will he do it?' And the prophet replied, 'This is what the Lord says: The troops of the provincial commanders will do it.' 'Should we attack first?' Ahab asked. 'Yes,' the prophet answered.
English Standard Version

Chapter 20

2And he sent messengers into the city to Ahab king of Israel and said to him, "Thus says Ben-hadad: 3‘Your silver and your gold are mine; your best wives and children also are mine.’" 4And the king of Israel answered, "As you say, my lord, O king, I am yours, and all that I have." 5The messengers came again and said, "Thus says Ben-hadad: ‘I sent to you, saying, "Deliver to me your silver and your gold, your wives and your children." 6Nevertheless I will send my servants to you tomorrow about this time, and they shall search your house and the houses of your servants and lay hands on whatever pleases you and take it away.’"
7Then the king of Israel called all the elders of the land and said, "Mark, now, and see how this man is seeking trouble, for he sent to me for my wives and my children, and for my silver and my gold, and I did not refuse him." 8And all the elders and all the people said to him, "Do not listen or consent." 9So he said to the messengers of Ben-hadad, "Tell my lord the king, ‘All that you first demanded of your servant I will do, but this thing I cannot do.’" And the messengers departed and brought him word again. 10Ben-hadad sent to him and said, "The gods do so to me and more also, if the dust of Samaria shall suffice for handfuls for all the people who follow me." 11And the king of Israel answered, "Tell him, ‘Let not him who straps on his armor boast himself as he who takes it off.’" 12When Ben-hadad heard this message as he was drinking with the kings in the booths, he said to his men, "Take your positions." And they took their positions against the city.
13And behold, a prophet came near to Ahab king of Israel and said, "Thus says the Lord, Have you seen all this great multitude? Behold, I will give it into your hand this day, and you shall know that I am the Lord." 14And Ahab said, "By whom?" He said, "Thus says the Lord, By the servants of the governors of the districts." Then he said, "Who shall begin the battle?" He answered, "You."
New International Version

Chapter 20

2He sent messengers into the city to Ahab king of Israel, saying, "This is what Ben-Hadad says: 3‘Your silver and gold are mine, and the best of your wives and children are mine.’ "
4The king of Israel answered, "Just as you say, my lord the king. I and all I have are yours."
5The messengers came again and said, "This is what Ben-Hadad says: ‘I sent to demand your silver and gold, your wives and your children. 6But about this time tomorrow I am going to send my officials to search your palace and the houses of your officials. They will seize everything you value and carry it away.’ "
7The king of Israel summoned all the elders of the land and said to them, "See how this man is looking for trouble! When he sent for my wives and my children, my silver and my gold, I did not refuse him."
8The elders and the people all answered, "Don’t listen to him or agree to his demands."
9So he replied to Ben-Hadad’s messengers, "Tell my lord the king, ‘Your servant will do all you demanded the first time, but this demand I cannot meet.’ " They left and took the answer back to Ben-Hadad.
10Then Ben-Hadad sent another message to Ahab: "May the gods deal with me, be it ever so severely, if enough dust remains in Samaria to give each of my men a handful."
11The king of Israel answered, "Tell him: ‘One who puts on his armor should not boast like one who takes it off.’ "
12Ben-Hadad heard this message while he and the kings were drinking in their tents, and he ordered his men: "Prepare to attack." So they prepared to attack the city.
13Meanwhile a prophet came to Ahab king of Israel and announced, "This is what the Lord says: ‘Do you see this vast army? I will give it into your hand today, and then you will know that I am the Lord.’ "
14"But who will do this?" asked Ahab. The prophet replied, "This is what the Lord says: ‘The junior officers under the provincial commanders will do it.’ " "And who will start the battle?" he asked. The prophet answered, "You will."
New King James Version

Chapter 20

2Then he sent messengers into the city to Ahab king of Israel, and said to him, “Thus says Ben-Hadad: 3‘Your silver and your gold are mine; your loveliest wives and children are mine.’ ”
4And the king of Israel answered and said, “My lord, O king, just as you say, I and all that I have are yours.”
5Then the messengers came back and said, “Thus speaks Ben-Hadad, saying, ‘Indeed I have sent to you, saying, “You shall deliver to me your silver and your gold, your wives and your children”; 6but I will send my servants to you tomorrow about this time, and they shall search your house and the houses of your servants. And it shall be, that whatever is pleasant in your eyes, they will put it in their hands and take it.’ ”
7So the king of Israel called all the elders of the land, and said, “Notice, please, and see how this man seeks trouble, for he sent to me for my wives, my children, my silver, and my gold; and I did not deny him.”
8And all the elders and all the people said to him, “Do not listen or consent.”
9Therefore he said to the messengers of Ben-Hadad, “Tell my lord the king, ‘All that you sent for to your servant the first time I will do, but this thing I cannot do.’ ” And the messengers departed and brought back word to him.
10Then Ben-Hadad sent to him and said, “The gods do so to me, and more also, if enough dust is left of Samaria for a handful for each of the people who follow me.”
11So the king of Israel answered and said, “Tell him, ‘Let not the one who puts on his armor boast like the one who takes it off.’ ”
12And it happened when Ben-Hadad heard this message, as he and the kings were drinking at the command post, that he said to his servants, “Get ready.” And they got ready to attack the city.
13Suddenly a prophet approached Ahab king of Israel, saying, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Have you seen all this great multitude? Behold, I will deliver it into your hand today, and you shall know that I am the Lord.’ ”
14So Ahab said, “By whom?” And he said, “Thus says the Lord: ‘By the young leaders of the provinces.’ ” Then he said, “Who will set the battle in order?” And he answered, “You.”
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