Study Desk

He also put shields and spears in these towns as a further safety measure. So only Judah and Benjamin remained under his control.

The prophet Shemaiah then met with Rehoboam and Judah's leaders, who had all fled to Jerusalem because of Shishak. Shemaiah told them, "This is what the Lord says: You have abandoned me, so I am abandoning you to Shishak."

But they will become his subjects, so they will know the difference between serving me and serving earthly rulers."

So King Shishak of Egypt came up and attacked Jerusalem. He ransacked the treasuries of the Lord 's Temple and the royal palace; he stole everything, including all the gold shields Solomon had made.

But you have chased away the priests of the Lord (the descendants of Aaron) and the Levites, and you have appointed your own priests, just like the pagan nations. You let anyone become a priest these days! Whoever comes to be dedicated with a young bull and seven rams can become a priest of these so-called gods of yours!

So you see, God is with us. He is our leader. His priests blow their trumpets and lead us into battle against you. O people of Israel, do not fight against the Lord , the God of your ancestors, for you will not succeed!"

So Judah defeated Israel on that occasion because they trusted in the Lord , the God of their ancestors.

So Jeroboam of Israel never regained his power during Abijah's lifetime, and finally the Lord struck him down and he died.

Asa also removed the pagan shrines, as well as the incense altars from every one of Judah's towns. So Asa's kingdom enjoyed a period of peace.

Asa told the people of Judah, "Let us build towns and fortify them with walls, towers, gates, and bars. The land is still ours because we sought the Lord our God, and he has given us peace on every side." So they went ahead with these projects and brought them to completion.

so Asa deployed his armies for battle in the valley north of Mareshah.

So the Lord defeated the Ethiopians in the presence of Asa and the army of Judah, and the enemy fled.

Asa and his army pursued them as far as Gerar, and so many Ethiopians fell that they were unable to rally. They were destroyed by the Lord and his army, and the army of Judah carried off a vast amount of plunder.

So there was no more war until the thirty-fifth year of Asa's reign.

"Let there be a treaty between you and me like the one between your father and my father. See, I am sending you silver and gold. Break your treaty with King Baasha of Israel so that he will leave me alone."

Asa became so angry with Hanani for saying this that he threw him into prison and put him in stocks. At that time Asa also began to oppress some of his people.

So he died in the forty-first year of his reign.

So the Lord established Jehoshaphat's control over the kingdom of Judah. All the people of Judah brought gifts to Jehoshaphat, so he became very wealthy and highly esteemed.

Then the fear of the Lord fell over all the surrounding kingdoms so that none of them wanted to declare war on Jehoshaphat.

So Jehoshaphat became more and more powerful and built fortresses and storage cities throughout Judah.