Study Desk

Three years reigned he in Jerusalem; and his mother's name was Micaiah the daughter of Uriel of Gibeah. And there was war between Abijah and Jeroboam.

ought ye not to know that the LORD, the God of Israel, gave the kingdom over Israel to David for ever, even to him and to his sons by a covenant of salt?

Yet Jeroboam the son of Nebat, the servant of Solomon the son of David, rose up, and rebelled against his lord.

And, behold, God is with us at our head, and His priests with the trumpets of alarm to sound an alarm against you. O children of Israel, fight ye not against the LORD, the God of your fathers; for ye shall not prosper.'

And Abijah and his people slew them with a great slaughter; so there fell down slain of Israel five hundred thousand chosen men.

And the rest of the acts of Abijah, and his ways, and his sayings, are written in the commentary of the prophet Iddo. So Abijah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David, and Asa his son reigned in his stead; in his days the land was quiet ten years.

And Asa did that which was good and right in the eyes of the LORD his God;

And Asa cried unto the LORD his God, and said: 'LORD, there is none beside Thee to help, between the mighty and him that hath no strength; help us, O LORD our God; for we rely on Thee, and in Thy name are we come against this multitude. Thou art the LORD our God; let not man prevail against Thee.'

And Asa and the people that were with him pursued them unto Gerar; and there fell of the Ethiopians so that none remained alive; for they were shattered before the LORD, and before His host; and they carried away very much booty.

span data-lang="eng" data-trans="jps" data-ref="2ch.14.1" class="versetxt"> And Asa did that which was good and right in the eyes of the LORD his God; for he took away the strange altars, and the high places, and broke down the pillars, and hewed down the Asherim; and commanded Judah to seek the LORD, the God of their fathers, and to do the law and the commandment. Also he took away out of all the cities of Judah the high places and the sun-images; and the kingdom was quiet before him. And he built fortified cities in Judah; for the land was quiet, and he had no war in those years; because the LORD had given him rest. For he said unto Judah: 'Let us build these cities, and make about them walls, and towers, gates, and bars; the land is yet before us, because we have sought the LORD our God; we have sought Him, and He hath given us rest on every side.' So they built and prospered. And Asa had an army that bore bucklers and spears, out of Judah three hundred thousand; and out of Benjamin, that bore shields and drew bows, two hundred and fourscore thousand; all these were mighty men of valour. And there came out against them Zerah the Ethiopian with an army of a thousand thousand, and three hundred chariots; and he came unto Mareshah. Then Asa went out to meet him, and they set the battle in array in the valley of Zephath at Mareshah. And Asa cried unto the LORD his God, and said: 'LORD, there is none beside Thee to help, between the mighty and him that hath no strength; help us, O LORD our God; for we rely on Thee, and in Thy name are we come against this multitude. Thou art the LORD our God; let not man prevail against Thee.' So the LORD smote the Ethiopians before Asa, and before Judah; and the Ethiopians fled. And Asa and the people that were with him pursued them unto Gerar; and there fell of the Ethiopians so that none remained alive; for they were shattered before the LORD, and before His host; and they carried away very much booty. And they smote all the cities round about Gerar; for a terror from the LORD came upon them; and they spoiled all the cities; for there was much spoil in them. They smote also the tents of cattle, and carried away sheep in abundance and camels, and returned to Jerusalem.

And he gathered all Judah and Benjamin, and them that sojourned with them out of Ephraim and Manasseh, and out of Simeon; for they fell to him out of Israel in abundance, when they saw that the LORD his God was with him.

But the high places were not taken away out of Israel; nevertheless the heart of Asa was whole all his days.

And he brought into the house of God the things that his father had hallowed, and that he himself had hallowed, silver, and gold, and vessels.

And Ben-hadad hearkened unto king Asa, and sent the captains of his armies against the cities of Israel; and they smote Ijon, and Dan, and Abelmaim, and all the store-cities of Naphtali.

And it came to pass, when Baasa heard thereof, that he left off building Ramah, and let his work cease.

And in the thirty and ninth year of his reign Asa was diseased in his feet; his disease was exceeding great; yet in his disease he sought not to the LORD, but to the physicians.

And Asa slept with his fathers, and died in the one and fortieth year of his reign.

And they buried him in his own sepulchres, which he had hewn out for himself in the city of David, and laid him in the bed which was filled with sweet odours and divers kinds [of spices] prepared by the perfumers' art; and they made a very great burning for him.

And Jehoshaphat his son reigned in his stead, and strengthened himself against Israel.

And he placed forces in all the fortified cities of Judah, and set garrisons in the land of Judah, and in the cities of Ephraim, which Asa his father had taken.