Abijam Reigns in Judah

¹wNow in the eighteenth year of King Jeroboam the son of Nebat, Abijam began to reign over Judah. ²He reigned for three years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Maacah the daughter of Abishalom. ³And he walked in all the sins that his father did before him, and xhis heart was not wholly true to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father. ⁴Nevertheless, for David's sake the Lord his God gave him ya lamp in Jerusalem, setting up his son after him, and establishing Jerusalem, ⁵because zDavid did what was right in the eyes of the Lord and did not turn aside from anything that he commanded him all the days of his life, aexcept in the matter of Uriah the Hittite. ⁶bNow there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all the days of his life. ⁷cThe rest of the acts of Abijam and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? dAnd there was war between Abijam and Jeroboam. ⁸eAnd Abijam slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David. And Asa his son reigned in his place.

Asa Reigns in Judah

⁹In the twentieth year of Jeroboam king of Israel, Asa began to reign over Judah, ¹⁰and he reigned forty-one years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Maacah the daughter of Abishalom. ¹¹fAnd Asa did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, as David his father had done. ¹²He put away the gmale cult prostitutes out of the land and removed hall the idols that his fathers had made. ¹³iHe also removed Maacah his mother from being queen mother because she had made an abominable image for Asherah. And Asa cut down her image and jburned it at the brook Kidron. ¹⁴kBut the high places were not taken away. Nevertheless, lthe heart of Asa was wholly true to the Lord all his days. ¹⁵And mhe brought into the house of the Lord the sacred gifts of his father and his own sacred gifts, silver, and gold, and vessels.

¹⁶nAnd there was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel all their days. ¹⁷oBaasha king of Israel went up against Judah and pbuilt Ramah, qthat he might permit no one to go out or come in to Asa king of Judah. ¹⁸Then Asa took all the silver and the gold rthat were left in the treasures of the house of the Lord and the treasures of the king's house and gave them into the hands of his servants. sAnd King Asa sent them to Ben-hadad the son of Tabrimmon, the son of Hezion, king of Syria, twho lived in Damascus, saying, ¹⁹“Let there be ua covenant1 between me and you, as there was between my father and your father. Behold, I am sending to you a present of silver and gold. Go, break your covenant with Baasha king of Israel, that he may withdraw from me.” ²⁰And Ben-hadad listened to King Asa and sent the commanders of his armies against the cities of Israel and conquered vIjon, wDan, xAbel-beth-maacah, and all yChinneroth, with all the land of Naphtali. ²¹And when Baasha heard of it, zhe stopped building Ramah, and he lived in aTirzah. ²²Then King Asa made a proclamation to all Judah, none was exempt, and they carried away the stones of Ramah and its timber, with which Baasha had been building, and with them King Asa built bGeba of Benjamin and cMizpah. ²³dNow the rest of all the acts of Asa, all his might, and all that he did, and the cities that he built, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? But in his old age he was diseased in his feet. ²⁴And Asa slept with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of David his father, and eJehoshaphat his son reigned in his place.

Nadab Reigns in Israel

²⁵fNadab the son of Jeroboam began to reign over Israel in the second year of Asa king of Judah, and he reigned over Israel two years. ²⁶He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord gand walked in the way of his father, and in his sin hwhich he made Israel to sin.

²⁷iBaasha the son of Ahijah, of the house of Issachar, conspired against him. And Baasha struck him down at jGibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines, for Nadab and all Israel were laying siege to Gibbethon. ²⁸So Baasha killed him in the third year of Asa king of Judah and reigned in his place. ²⁹And as soon as he was king, he killed all the house of Jeroboam. He left to the house of Jeroboam not one that breathed, until he had destroyed it, kaccording to the word of the Lord that he spoke by his servant Ahijah the Shilonite. ³⁰It was for the sins of Jeroboam that he sinned and hthat he made Israel to sin, and because of the anger to which he provoked the Lord, the God of Israel.

³¹Now the rest of the acts of Nadab and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? ³²lAnd there was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel all their days.

Baasha Reigns in Israel

³³In the third year of Asa king of Judah, Baasha the son of Ahijah began to reign over all Israel at Tirzah, and he reigned twenty-four years. ³⁴He did what was evil in the sight of the Lord mand walked in the way of Jeroboam and in his sin which he made Israel to sin.