2 Kings 1:2

Bible in Basic English

Now Ahaziah had a fall from the window of his room in Samaria, and was ill. And he sent men, and said to them, Put a question to Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, about the outcome of my disease, to see if I will get well or not.

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
Ahaziah had fallen through the latticed window of his upstairs room in Samaria and was injured. So he sent messengers, instructing them, “Go inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I will recover from this injury.”

Hebrew Names Version
Achazyah fell down through the lattice in his upper chamber that was in Shomron, and was sick: and he sent messengers, and said to them, Go, inquire of Ba`al-Zevuv, the god of `Ekron, whether I shall recover of this sickness.

King James Version
And Ahaziah fell down through a lattice in his upper chamber that was in Samaria, and was sick: and he sent messengers, and said unto them, Go, enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron whether I shall recover of this disease.

English Standard Version
Now Ahaziah fell through the lattice in his upper chamber in Samaria, and lay sick; so he sent messengers, telling them, "Go, inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover from this sickness."

New Century Version
Ahaziah fell down through the wooden bars in his upstairs room in Samaria and was badly hurt. He sent messengers and told them, "Go, ask Baal-Zebub, god of Ekron, if I will recover from my injuries."

New English Translation
Ahaziah fell through a window lattice in his upper chamber in Samaria and was injured. He sent messengers with these orders, "Go, ask Baal Zebub, the god of Ekron, if I will survive this injury."

Amplified Bible
Ahaziah [the king of Israel] fell through the lattice (grid) in his upper chamber which was in Samaria, and became sick [from the injury]. So he sent messengers, saying to them, "Go, inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, if I will recover from this sickness."

New American Standard Bible
And Ahaziah fell through the window lattice in his upper chamber which was in Samaria, and became ill. So he sent messengers and said to them, "Go, inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I will recover from this sickness."

Geneva Bible (1587)
And Ahaziah fell thorow the lattesse windowe in his vpper chamber which was in Samaria: so he was sicke: then he sent messengers, to whome he saide, Goe, and enquire of Baal-zebub the God of Ekron, if I shall recouer of this my disease.

Legacy Standard Bible
And Ahaziah fell through the lattice in his upper chamber, which was in Samaria, and became ill. So he sent messengers and said to them, "Go, inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I will live from this sickness."

Complete Jewish Bible
When Achazyah fell through a latticed window of his upper room in Shomron and lay injured, he sent messengers and said to them, "Go, consult Ba‘al-Z'vuv the god of ‘Ekron, and ask whether I will recover from this injury."

Darby Translation
And Ahaziah fell down through the lattice in his upper chamber which was in Samaria, and was sick; and he sent messengers and said to them, Go, inquire of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover from this disease.

Easy-to-Read Version
One day Ahaziah was on the roof of his house in Samaria. He fell down through the wooden bars on top of his house and was badly hurt. He called messengers and told them, "Go to the priests of Baal Zebub, the god of Ekron, and ask them if I will get well from my injuries."

George Lamsa Translation
And Ahaziah fell down from the balcony of his upper chamber in Samaria, and was injured; so he sent messengers and said to them, Go, inquire of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron whether I shall recover from this injury.

Good News Translation
King Ahaziah of Israel fell off the balcony on the roof of his palace in Samaria and was seriously injured. So he sent some messengers to consult Baalzebub, the god of the Philistine city of Ekron, in order to find out whether or not he would recover.

Lexham English Bible
Ahaziah had fallen through the lattice in his upper room, which was in Samaria, and he was injured. So he sent messengers, and he said to them, "Go, inquire of Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron, if I will survive this injury."

Literal Translation
And Ahaziah fell through the lattice-work in his upper room in Samaria, and was sick. And he sent messengers and said to them, Go, ask of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron if I will recover from this sickness.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And Ochosias fell thorow ye grate in his chaber at Samaria, and was deed sicke, and sent messaungers, and sayde vnto them: Go youre waye, and axe councell at Beelzebub the god of Ekron, whether I shall recouer from this sicknesse.

American Standard Version
And Ahaziah fell down through the lattice in his upper chamber that was in Samaria, and was sick: and he sent messengers, and said unto them, Go, inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover of this sickness.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And Ahazia fell through a lattesse wyndowe of his vpper chamber that he had in Samaria, and while he was in his sickenesse, he sent messengers and saide vnto them: Go, and enquire of Beelzebub the god of Ekrom, whether I shall recouer of this my disease.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
And Ahaziah fell down through the lattice in his upper chamber that was in Samaria, and was sick; and he sent messengers, and said unto them: 'Go, inquire of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron whether I shall recover of this sickness.'

King James Version (1611)
And Ahaziah fel downe thorow a lattesse in his vpper chamber that was in Samaria, and was sicke: and he sent messengers, and said vnto them, Goe, enquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron, whether I shal recouer of this disease.

English Revised Version
And Ahaziah fell down through the lattice in his upper chamber that was in Samaria, and was sick: and he sent messengers, and said unto them, Go, inquire of Baal–zebub the god of Ekron whether I shall recover of this sickness.

Berean Standard Bible
Now Ahaziah had fallen through the lattice of his upper room in Samaria and injured himself. So he sent messengers and instructed them: "Go inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I will recover from this injury."

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And Ocozie felde thorou the aleris of his soler, which he hadde in Samarie, and was sijk; and he sente messangeris, and seide to hem, Go ye, and councele Belzebub, god of Acharon, whether Y may lyue after this sijknesse of me.

Young's Literal Translation
and Ahaziah falleth through the lattice in his upper chamber that [is] in Samaria, and is sick, and sendeth messengers, and saith unto them, `Go ye, inquire of Baal-Zebub god of Ekron if I recover from this sickness.'

Update Bible Version
And Ahaziah fell down through the lattice in his upper chamber that was in Samaria, and was sick: and he sent messengers, and said to them, Go, inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover of this sickness.

Webster's Bible Translation
And Ahaziah fell down through a lattice in his upper chamber that [was] in Samaria, and was sick: and he sent messengers, and said to them, Go, inquire of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover from this disease.

World English Bible
Ahaziah fell down through the lattice in his upper chamber that was in Samaria, and was sick: and he sent messengers, and said to them, Go, inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover of this sickness.

New King James Version
Now Ahaziah fell through the lattice of his upper room in Samaria, and was injured; so he sent messengers and said to them, "Go, inquire of Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover from this injury."

New Living Translation
One day Israel's new king, Ahaziah, fell through the latticework of an upper room at his palace in Samaria and was seriously injured. So he sent messengers to the temple of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, to ask whether he would recover.

New Life Bible
Ahaziah fell through the window of his second-floor room in Samaria, and lay sick. So he sent men with news, saying to them, "Go and ask Baalzebub the god of Ekron if I will get well again from this sickness."

New Revised Standard
Ahaziah had fallen through the lattice in his upper chamber in Samaria, and lay injured; so he sent messengers, telling them, "Go, inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover from this injury."

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And Ahaziah fell through the lattice in his upper chamber, which was in Samaria, and became sick, - so he sent messengers, and said unto them - Go enquire of Baalzebub, god of Ekron, whether I shall recover from this sickness.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And Ochozias fell through the lattices of his upper chamber, which he had in Samaria, and was sick: and he sent messengers, saying to them: Go, consult Beelzebub, the god of Accaron, whether I shall recover of this my illness.

Revised Standard Version
Now Ahazi'ah fell through the lattice in his upper chamber in Sama'ria, and lay sick; so he sent messengers, telling them, "Go, inquire of Ba'al-ze'bub, the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover from this sickness."

THE MESSAGE
One day Ahaziah fell through the balcony railing on the rooftop of his house in Samaria and was injured. He sent messengers off to consult Baal-Zebub, the god of Ekron, "Am I going to recover from this accident?"

New American Standard Bible (1995)
And Ahaziah fell through the lattice in his upper chamber which was in Samaria, and became ill. So he sent messengers and said to them, "Go, inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, whether I will recover from this sickness."

Contextual Overview

¹ After the death of Ahab, Moab made itself free from the authority of Israel. ² Now Ahaziah had a fall from the window of his room in Samaria, and was ill. And he sent men, and said to them, Put a question to Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron, about the outcome of my disease, to see if I will get well or not. ³ But the angel of the Lord said to Elijah the Tishbite, Go now, and, meeting the men sent by the king of Samaria, say to them, Is it because there is no God in Israel, that you are going to get directions from Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? ⁴ Give ear then to the words of the Lord: You will never again get down from the bed on to which you have gone up, but death will certainly come to you. Then Elijah went away. ⁵ And the men he had sent came back to the king; and he said to them, Why have you come back? ⁶ And they said to him, On our way we had a meeting with a man who said, Go back to the king who sent you and say to him, The Lord says, Is it because there is no God in Israel that you send to put a question to Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron? For this reason, you will not come down from the bed on to which you have gone up, but death will certainly come to you. ⁷ And he said to them, What sort of a man was it who came and said these words to you? ⁸ And they said in answer, He was a man clothed in a coat of hair, with a leather band about his body. Then he said, It is Elijah the Tishbite.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

a lattice: The flat roofs of the eastern houses are generally surrounded by a parapet wall breast high; but instead of this, some terraces are guarded with balustrades only, or latticed work. Of the same kind, probably, was the lattice, or net, as the term shevacha seems to import, through which Ahaziah fell into the court. This incident proves the necessity of the law for the formation of battlements for roof (Deuteronomy 22:8), which God graciously dictated from Sinai, which furnishes a beautiful example of his paternal care and goodness; for the terrace was a place where many offices of the family were performed, and business frequently transacted. Judges 5:28, Song of Solomon 2:9, Acts 20:9

was sick: 1 Kings 22:34, *marg. 2 Chronicles 21:14, 2 Chronicles 21:15, Job 31:3

Baalzebub: 2 Kings 1:3, 2 Kings 1:6, 2 Kings 1:16, Matthew 10:25, Matthew 12:24-27, Mark 3:22, Luke 11:15, Beelzebub

god: Judges 11:24, 1 Samuel 5:10, 1 Kings 11:33, Isaiah 37:12, Isaiah 37:19

whether: 2 Kings 8:7-10, 1 Kings 14:3

Reciprocal: Joshua 15:11 - Ekron Judges 9:46 - an hold Judges 10:6 - the gods of the Philistines 1 Samuel 6:17 - Ekron 1 Samuel 28:7 - Seek me 1 Kings 22:40 - Ahaziah 1 Kings 22:52 - he did evil 1 Kings 22:53 - he served Baal 2 Kings 8:8 - inquire 2 Chronicles 20:35 - who did very Ecclesiastes 5:17 - much Hosea 2:13 - the days

Cross-References

Genesis 1:12
And grass came up on the earth, and every plant producing seed of its sort, and every tree producing fruit, in which is its seed, of its sort: and God saw that it was good.

Genesis 1:14
And God said, Let there be lights in the arch of heaven, for a division between the day and the night, and let them be for signs, and for marking the changes of the year, and for days and for years:

Job 26:7
By his hand the north is stretched out in space, and the earth is hanging on nothing.

Job 26:14
See, these are only the outskirts of his ways; and how small is that which comes to our ears about him! But the thunder of his acts of power is outside all knowledge.

Psalms 33:6
By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; and all the army of heaven by the breath of his mouth.

Isaiah 45:18
For this is the word of the Lord who made the heavens; he is God; the maker and designer of the earth; who made it not to be a waste, but as a living-place for man: I am the Lord, and there is no other.

Nahum 2:10
Everything has been taken from her, all is gone, she has nothing more: the heart is turned to water, the knees are shaking, all are twisted in pain, and colour has gone from all faces.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And Ahaziah fell down a lattice in his upper chamber that was in Samaria,.... Which was either a window or lattice in the form of network, to let in light; or rather were the rails of a balcony or battlement on the roof of his palace, in this form, on which leaning, it broke down, and he fell into the garden or court yard; or walking on the roof of his house, and treading unawares on a sky light, which let in light into a room underneath, he fell through it into it:

and was sick; the fall perhaps threw him into a fever, and which seemed threatening, being violent:

and he sent messengers, and said unto them, go inquire of Baalzebub, the god of Ekron, whether I shall recover of this disease; not to heal him of it, but to know the issue of it; a vain curiosity this! Ekron was one of the principalities of the Philistines, and this idol was the god they worshipped, which signifies a master fly: which some think was a large metallic fly; made under a planet that rules over flies; and the Heathens had deities they called Myiodes, Myagros, and απομυιος, which signifies a driver away of flies; as Jupiter and Hercules were called by the Eleans and Romans, and worshipped and sacrificed to by them on that account a; and so the Cyreneans, a people of Lybia, worshipped the god Achor, which seems to be a corruption of the word Ekron, because he freed them from flies, after they had been infested with a pestilence through them b; and Ekron being a place near the sea, and both hot and moist, might be much infested with those creatures. Within the haven of Ptolemais, or Acco, was formerly a temple of Baalzebub, called in later times "the tower of flies", and used as a Pharus c.

a Pausan. Eliac. 1. sive, l. 5. p. 313. & Arcadica, sive, l. 8. p. 491. Clement. Alex. Admon. ad Gentes, p. 24. b Plin. Nat. Hist. l. 10. c. 27. Vid. Chartarii Imagines Deorum, p. 151. & Alex. ab Alex. Genial. Dier. l. 6. c. 26. c Adrichom. Theatrum Ter. Sanct. fol. 6. 1.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

A lattice - The “upper chamber” had probably a single latticed window, through which Ahaziah fell. Windows in the East are to this day generally closed by lattices of interlaced wood, which open outward; so that, if the fastening is not properly secured, one who leans against them may easily fall out.

Baal-zebub - literally, “Lord (i. e., averter) of flies.” Flies in the East constitute one of the most terrible of plages Psalms 105:31; Exodus 8:24; and Orientals would be as likely to have a “god of flies” as a god of storm fand thunder. To inquire 2 Kings 1:3 of Baal-zebub was practically to deny Yahweh. Ahaziah cast aside the last remnant of respect for the old religion, and consulted a foreign oracle, as if the voice of God were wholly silent in his own country.

For Ekron see the marginal reference.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse 2 Kings 1:2. Fell down through a lattice — Perhaps either through the flat root of his house, or over or through the balustrades with which the roof was surrounded.

Go, inquire of Baal-zebub — Literally, the fly-god, or master of flies. The Septuagint has βααλμυιαν, Baal the fly. He was the tutelary god of Ekron, and probably was used at first as a kind of telesm, to drive away flies. He became afterwards a very respectable devil, and was supposed to have great power and influence. In the New Testament Beelzebub is a common name for Satan himself, or the prince of devils. Matthew 10:25.