In the days when Jehoram, the son of Ahab, reigned over Israel, the land was fraught with turmoil and strife. Jehoram was not as wicked as his father Ahab or his mother Jezebel, for he had removed the sacred pillar of Baal that his father had made. Yet, he clung to the sins of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, who had caused Israel to sin by worshiping golden calves. The Lord’s anger burned against Israel, and the land bore the weight of divine judgment.
During this time, Mesha, the king of Moab, who was a sheep breeder, rebelled against the king of Israel. For years, Moab had been a vassal state, paying tribute to Israel in the form of a hundred thousand lambs and the wool of a hundred thousand rams. But when Ahab died, Mesha saw an opportunity to throw off the yoke of Israel’s oppression. He gathered his forces and declared his independence, refusing to send the annual tribute.
Jehoram, enraged by this defiance, mustered his army and sent word to Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah, saying, “The king of Moab has rebelled against me. Will you go with me to fight against Moab?” Jehoshaphat, a man who sought the Lord, replied, “I will go with you. My people are your people, my horses your horses.” Together, they decided to take the long and arduous route through the wilderness of Edom, hoping to catch the Moabites off guard.
The kings of Israel and Judah were joined by the king of Edom, and the three armies set out on their campaign. For seven days, they marched through the barren wilderness, their supplies dwindling and their spirits waning. The sun beat down mercilessly, and the dry, cracked earth offered no relief. The soldiers grew weary, and their animals began to falter. By the seventh day, there was no water left for the army or for the animals that followed them.
Jehoram, desperate and fearful, cried out, “Alas! The Lord has called these three kings to give them into the hand of Moab!” But Jehoshaphat, ever the seeker of God’s counsel, asked, “Is there no prophet of the Lord here, that we may inquire of the Lord through him?” One of the servants of the king of Israel spoke up, saying, “Elisha, the son of Shaphat, is here. He used to pour water on the hands of Elijah.”
Jehoshaphat declared, “The word of the Lord is with him.” So the three kings went down to Elisha, who was staying in the region. When Elisha saw Jehoram, he said with disdain, “What have I to do with you? Go to the prophets of your father and the prophets of your mother!” But Jehoram humbled himself and replied, “No, for it is the Lord who has called these three kings to give them into the hand of Moab.”
Elisha, moved by the presence of Jehoshaphat, the godly king of Judah, said, “As the Lord of hosts lives, before whom I stand, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would neither look at you nor see you. But now bring me a musician.” As the musician played, the hand of the Lord came upon Elisha, and he prophesied, saying, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Make this valley full of ditches. For thus says the Lord: You shall not see wind, nor shall you see rain, yet this valley shall be filled with water, so that you, your cattle, and your animals may drink.’ And this is a light thing in the sight of the Lord; He will also deliver the Moabites into your hand. You shall attack every fortified city and every choice city, and shall cut down every good tree, stop up every spring of water, and ruin every good piece of land with stones.”
The next morning, at the time of the morning sacrifice, water came flowing from the direction of Edom, filling the valley. The ditches they had dug overflowed with water, and the armies drank their fill. The Moabites, seeing the water from a distance, mistook it for blood, for the sun shone red upon it. They said to one another, “This is blood! The kings have surely fought together and struck each other down. Now then, Moab, to the spoil!”
But when the Moabites came to the camp of Israel, they were met with a fierce and unexpected attack. The Israelites rose up and struck them down, pursuing them into their own land. They destroyed the cities, filled the fertile fields with stones, stopped up every spring, and cut down every good tree. Only Kir-hareseth remained, and even that was surrounded by slingers who pelted it with stones.
Mesha, the king of Moab, in his desperation, took his eldest son, who was to reign in his place, and offered him as a burnt offering on the wall. This act of extreme sacrifice horrified the Israelites, and a great wrath came upon them. They withdrew from the siege and returned to their own land, for they could not bear the sight of such a grievous offering.
Thus, the Lord delivered Moab into the hands of the three kings, yet the victory was bittersweet. The land of Moab was left in ruins, and the armies returned to their homes, their hearts heavy with the cost of war. Jehoram, though victorious, did not turn fully to the Lord, and the sins of Israel continued to provoke the anger of God. Yet, in this story, the faithfulness of Elisha and the humility of Jehoshaphat shone as beacons of hope, reminding all who heard it that the Lord is sovereign, and His word never fails.
