1. After the death of King Ahab of Israel, the country of Moab rebelled against Israel.
2. 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.
3. But an angel of the Lord commanded Elijah, the prophet from Tishbe, to go and meet the messengers of King Ahaziah and ask them, “Why are you going to consult Baalzebub, the god of Ekron? Is it because you think there is no god in Israel?
4. Tell the king that the Lord says, ‘You will not recover from your injuries; you will die!’ ”Elijah did as the Lord commanded,
5. and the messengers returned to the king. “Why have you come back?” he asked.
6. They answered, “We were met by a man who told us to come back and tell you that the Lord says to you, ‘Why are you sending messengers to consult Baalzebub, the god of Ekron? Is it because you think there is no god in Israel? You will not recover from your injuries; you will die!’ ”
7. “What did the man look like?” the king asked.
8. “He was wearing a cloak made of animal skins, tied with a leather belt,” they answered.“It's Elijah!” the king exclaimed.
9. Then he sent an officer with fifty men to get Elijah. The officer found him sitting on a hill and said to him, “Man of God, the king orders you to come down.”