When the woman saw Samuel, she cried out loudly. ¹  The woman said to Saul, “Why have you deceived me? You are Saul!”

They took captive the women who were in it, from the youngest to the oldest, but they did not kill anyone. They simply carried them off and went on their way.

Then the king said to his servants, “Do you not realize that a great leader ¹  has fallen this day in Israel?

But she said to him, “No I won’t, for sending me away now would be worse than what you did to me earlier!” ¹  But he refused to listen to her.

Just as he finished speaking, the king’s sons arrived, wailing and weeping. ¹  The king and all his servants wept loudly ²  as well.

The army of Israel was defeated there by David’s men. ¹  The slaughter there was great that day – 20,000 soldiers were killed.

The king covered his face and cried out loudly, ¹  “My son, Absalom! Absalom, my son, my son!”

But Barzillai was very old – eighty years old, in fact – and he had taken care of the king when he stayed in Mahanaim, for he was a very rich ¹  man.

All the people followed him up, playing flutes and celebrating so loudly they made the ground shake. ¹ 

The king went to Gibeon to offer sacrifices, for it had the most prominent of the high places. ¹  Solomon would offer up ²  a thousand burnt sacrifices on the altar there.

All of these were built with the best ¹  stones, chiseled to the right size ²  and cut with a saw on all sides, ³  from the foundation to the edge of the roof ⁴  and from the outside to the great courtyard.

Around the great courtyard were three rows of chiseled stones and one row of cedar beams, like the inner courtyard of the Lord’s temple and the hall of the palace. ¹ 

When they hear about your great reputation ¹  and your ability to accomplish mighty deeds, ²  they will come and direct their prayers toward this temple.

Meanwhile the sky was covered with dark clouds, the wind blew, and there was a heavy rainstorm. Ahab rode toward ¹  Jezreel.

Now Elisha went back to Gilgal, while there was famine in the land. Some of the prophets were visiting him ¹  and he told his servant, “Put the big pot on the fire ²  and boil some stew for the prophets.” ³ 

So he threw a big banquet ¹  for them and they ate and drank. Then he sent them back ²  to their master. After that no Syrian raiding parties again invaded the land of Israel.

Samaria’s food supply ran out. ¹  They laid siege to it so long that ²  a donkey’s head was selling for eighty shekels of silver ³  and a quarter of a kab ⁴  of dove’s droppings ⁵  for five shekels of silver. ⁶ 

Now the king was talking to Gehazi, the prophet’s ¹  servant, and said, “Tell me all the great things which Elisha has done.”

Then Jehu killed all who were left of Ahab’s family in Jezreel, and all his nobles, close friends, and priests. He left no survivors.

“Please, Lord. Remember how I have served you ¹  faithfully and with wholehearted devotion, ²  and how I have carried out your will.” ³  Then Hezekiah wept bitterly. ⁴