Joram vero filius Achab regnavit super Israël in Samaria anno decimooctavo Josaphat regis Judæ: regnavitque duodecim annis.

It was in the eighteenth year of king Josaphat that Joram, son of Achab, began his reign over Israel at Samaria; it lasted twelve years.

And Joram the son of Achab reigned over Israel in Samaria in the eighteenth year of Josaphat king of Juda. And he reigned twelve years.

Et fecit malum coram Domino, sed non sicut pater suus et mater: tulit enim statuas Baal quas fecerat pater ejus.

He too defied the Lord’s will, but not so openly as his father and mother before him; the images his father had raised to Baal he abolished,

And he did evil before the Lord, but not like his father and his mother: for he took away the statues of Baal, which his father had made.

Verumtamen in peccatis Jeroboam filii Nabat, qui peccare fecit Israël, adhæsit, nec recessit ab eis.

but he clung to the sins of Jeroboam, that taught Israel to sin, and could not bring himself to leave them.

Nevertheless he stuck to the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nabat, who made Israel to sin, nor did he depart from them.

Porro Mesa rex Moab nutriebat pecora multa, et solvebat regi Israël centum millia agnorum, et centum millia arietum cum velleribus suis.

The king of Moab, Mesa, had great flocks in his possession, and used to pay a tribute of a hundred thousand lambs, and as many rams unshorn;

Now Mesa, king of Moab, nourished many sheep, and he paid to the king of Israel a hundred thousand lambs, and a hundred thousand rams with their fleeces.

Cumque mortuus fuisset Achab, prævaricatus est fœdus quod habebat cum rege Israël.

but when Achab died, he renounced his agreement with the kings of Israel.

And when Achab was dead, he broke the league which he had made with the king of Israel.

Egressus est igitur rex Joram in die illa de Samaria, et recensuit universum Israël.

Whereupon king Joram lost no time in marching out from Samaria, mustering his whole forces,

And king Joram went out that day from Samaria, and mustered all Israel.

Misitque ad Josaphat regem Juda, dicens: Rex Moab recessit a me: veni mecum contra eum ad prælium. Qui respondit: Ascendam: qui meus est, tuus est: populus meus, populus tuus, et equi mei, equi tui.

and sending a message to Josaphat, king of Juda, bidding him come out and bear arms against the rebel king of Moab. I will march with thee, he answered; mine is thine, men and horses of mine are at thy disposal;

And he sent to Josaphat king of Juda, saying: The king of Moab is revolted from me, come with me against him to battle. And he answered: I will come up: he that is mine, is thine: my people, thy people: and my horses, thy horses.

Dixitque: Per quam viam ascendemus? At ille respondit: Per desertum Idumææ.

what shall be our line of march? Through the desert of Edom, answered he;

And he said: Which way shall we go up? But he answered: By the desert of Edom.

Perrexerunt igitur rex Israël, et rex Juda, et rex Edom, et circuierunt per viam septem dierum, nec erat aqua exercitui et jumentis quæ sequebantur eos.

and march they did, the three kings of Israel, Juda and Edom, by so indirect a journey as took them seven days to accomplish, till the supply of water failed for man and beast.

So the king of Israel, and the king of Juda, and the king of Edom went, and they fetched a compass of seven days’ journey, and there was no water for the army, and for the beasts, that followed them.

Dixitque rex Israël: Heu! heu! heu! congregavit nos Dominus tres reges ut traderet in manus Moab.

Alas, alas, the king of Israel cried, that the Lord should have gathered us here, kings three, to fall into the hands of Moab!

And the king of Israel said: Alas, alas, alas, the Lord hath gathered us three kings together, to deliver us into the hands of Moab!

Et ait Josaphat: Estne hic propheta Domini, ut deprecemur Dominum per eum? Et respondit unus de servis regis Israël: Est hic Eliseus filius Saphat, qui fundebat aquam super manus Eliæ.

But Josaphat said, Is there no prophet of the Lord here, through whom we might win the divine favour? At that, one of Joram’s men said, Eliseus the son of Saphat is close by, that was body-servant once to Elias.

And Josaphat said: Is there not here a prophet of the Lord, that we may beseech the Lord by him? And one of the servants of the king of Israel answered: Here is Eliseus the son of Saphat, who poured water on the hands of Elias.

Et ait Josaphat: Est apud eum sermo Domini. Descenditque ad eum rex Israël, et Josaphat rex Juda, et rex Edom.

He is a man that has the power of the Lord with him, said Josaphat. So to Eliseus the three kings of Israel, Juda and Edom betook themselves.

And Josaphat said: The word of the Lord is with him. And the king of Israel, and Josaphat king of Juda, and the king of Edom went down to him.

Dixit autem Eliseus ad regem Israël: Quid mihi et tibi est? vade ad prophetas patris tui et matris tuæ. Et ait illi rex Israël: Quare congregavit Dominus tres reges hos ut traderet eos in manus Moab?

And thus he greeted the king of Israel, What makest thou with me? To those other prophets betake thyself, whom thy father and thy mother knew. Tell me this, said Joram; why has the Lord gathered us here, kings three, to fall into the hands of Moab?

And Eliseus said to the king of Israel: What have I to do with thee? go to the prophets of thy father, and thy mother. And the king of Israel said to him: Why hath the Lord gathered together these three kings, to deliver them into the hands of Moab?

Dixitque ad eum Eliseus: Vivit Dominus exercituum, in cujus conspectu sto, quod si non vultum Josaphat regis Judæ erubescerem, non attendissem quidem te, nec respexissem.

And Eliseus told him, As the Lord of hosts, the God I serve, is a living God, neither heed nor hearing thou shouldst have had from me, but for that reverence I bear for Josaphat, king of Juda.

And Eliseus said to him: As the Lord of hosts liveth, in whose sight I stand, if I did not reverence the face of Josaphat king of Juda, I would not have hearkened to thee, nor looked on thee.

Nunc autem adducite mihi psaltem. Cumque caneret psaltes, facta est super eum manus Domini, et ait:

Bring a minstrel here. So a minstrel came, and while he played on his harp, the Spirit of the Lord came upon Eliseus, and he cried,

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

Hæc dicit Dominus: Facite alveum torrentis hujus fossas et fossas.

A message from the Lord; Dig channels here, channels there, in this dry river-bed.

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

Hæc enim dicit Dominus: Non videbitis ventum, neque pluviam: et alveus iste replebitur aquis, et bibetis vos, et familiæ vestræ, et jumenta vestra.

Thus says the Lord, Never a sign shall there be of wind or rain, but this river-bed shall fill with water, for you and yours and for your beasts to drink.

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.

Parumque est hoc in conspectu Domini: insuper tradet etiam Moab in manus vestras.

And the Lord will not be content with that; he means to give you victory over Moab.

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

Et percutietis omnem civitatem munitam, et omnem urbem electam, et universum lignum fructiferum succidetis, cunctosque fontes aquarum obturabitis, et omnem agrum egregium operietis lapidibus.

Every fortress and every cherished city of theirs you must overthrow, cut down every fruit-tree, stop up every well, strew all their best plough-land with boulders.

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.

Factum est igitur mane, quando sacrificium offerri solet, et ecce aquæ veniebant per viam Edom, et repleta est terra aquis.

And so, next morning, at the time when sacrifice is offered, in came the water, flowing from Edom; water filled all the plain.

And it came to pass 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.

Universi autem Moabitæ audientes quod ascendissent reges ut pugnarent adversum eos, convocaverunt omnes qui accincti erant balteo desuper, et steterunt in terminis.

And now the Moabites, who had heard that the kings were marching against them, called to arms every man that could wear a sword-belt, and stood ready to defend their frontier.

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.

Primoque mane surgentes, et orto jam sole ex adverso aquarum, viderunt Moabitæ e contra aquas rubras quasi sanguinem,

They awoke that morning to find sunrise reflected in the water, so that it seemed, from their side of the valley, red as blood.

And they rose early in the morning, and the sun being now up, and shining upon the waters, the Moabites saw the waters over against them red, like blood,

dixeruntque: Sanguis gladii est: pugnaverunt reges contra se, et cæsi sunt mutuo: nunc perge ad prædam, Moab.

Bloodshed! they cried; the kings have fallen out with one another and come to blows; men of Moab, there lies the spoil!

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.

Perrexeruntque in castra Israël: porro consurgens Israël, percussit Moab: at illi fugerunt coram eis. Venerunt igitur qui vicerant, et percusserunt Moab,

So they made straight for the Israelite camp; where the Israelites stood to their arms and overpowered them, so that they turned to flee. And now the victors, with Moab at their mercy,

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.

et civitates destruxerunt: et omnem agrum optimum, mittentes singuli lapides, repleverunt: et universos fontes aquarum obturaverunt: et omnia ligna fructifera succiderunt, ita ut muri tantum fictiles remanerent: et circumdata est civitas a fundibulariis, et magna ex parte percussa.

overthrew the cities, smothered their best plough-land, every man throwing his stone, stopped up the wells, and cut down the fruit-trees. Only the City of Brick Walls was left, and even this, beleaguered by slingers, was in great part destroyed.

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.

Quod cum vidisset rex Moab, prævaluisse scilicet hostes, tulit secum septingentos viros educentes gladium, ut irrumperent ad regem Edom: et non potuerunt.

The king of Moab, seeing that his cause was lost, tried to break through, at the head of seven hundred warriors, and attack the king of Edom. When this would not serve,

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.

Arripiensque filium suum primogenitum, qui regnaturus erat pro eo, obtulit holocaustum super murum: et facta est indignatio magna in Israël, statimque recesserunt ab eo, et reversi sunt in terram suam.

he took his own first-born son, the heir to the throne, and offered him up as a sacrifice on the walls. At this, great ruth came upon the men of Israel, so that they let him be, and went back to their own country.

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.