2Ki 1:16 | NET2full | STEP | Elijah said to the king, “ This is what the Lord has said , ‘You sent messengers to seek an oracle from Baal Zebub , the god of Ekron . Is it because there is no God in Israel from whom you can seek a message ? Therefore you will not leave the bed you lie on , for you will certainly die .’”

2 Kings 1:16

16 Elijah said to the king, ^{▼▼tn Heb “he spoke to him,”} “This is what the Lord has said, ‘You sent messengers to seek an oracle from Baal Zebub, the god of Ekron. Is it because there is no God in Israel from whom you can seek a message? Therefore ^{▼▼tn Heb “Because you sent… therefore you will not leave.” The rhetorical question is a parenthetical remark inserted into the proposition for dramatic effect.} you will not leave the bed you lie on, for you will certainly die.’” ^{▼▼sn For the third time in this chapter we read the Lord’s sarcastic question to the king and the accompanying announcement of judgment. The repetition emphasizes one of the chapter’s main themes. Israel’s leaders should seek guidance from their own God, not a pagan deity, for Israel’s sovereign God is the one who controls life and death.}