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Judah’s King Abijam

¹ In the eighteenth year of Israel’s King Jeroboam son of Nebat, Abijam became king over Judah, ² and he reigned three years in Jerusalem.^(C1) His mother’s name was Maacah^(C2) daughter^(F1) of Abishalom.

³ Abijam walked in all the sins his father before him had committed,^(C1) and he was not wholeheartedly devoted to the Lord his God as his ancestor David had been.^{(C2) 4} But for the sake of David, the Lord his God gave him a lamp in Jerusalem by raising up his son after him and by preserving Jerusalem.^{(C1) 5} For David did what was right in the Lord’s sight, and he did not turn aside from anything he had commanded him all the days of his life,^(C1) except in the matter of Uriah^(C2) the Hethite.

⁶ There had been war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all the days of Rehoboam’s life.^{(C1) 7} The rest of the events of Abijam’s reign, along with all his accomplishments, are written in the Historical Record of Judah’s Kings.^(C1) There was also war between Abijam and Jeroboam.^{(C2) 8} Abijam rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of David.^(C1) His son Asa became king in his place.^(C2)

Judah’s King Asa

⁹ In the twentieth year of Israel’s King Jeroboam,^(C1) Asa became king of Judah, ¹⁰ and he reigned forty-one years in Jerusalem. His grandmother’s^(F1) name was Maacah^(C1) daughter of Abishalom.

¹¹ Asa did what was right in the Lord’s sight, as his ancestor David had done.^{(C1) 12} He banished the male cult prostitutes^(C1) from the land and removed all of the idols that his fathers had made.^{(C2) 13} He also^(C1) removed his grandmother^(F1) Maacah from being queen mother because she had made an obscene image of Asherah. Asa chopped down her obscene image and burned it^(C2) in the Kidron Valley.^{(C3) 14} The high places were not taken away,^(C1) but Asa was wholeheartedly devoted to the Lord his entire life.^{(C2) 15} He brought his father’s consecrated gifts and his own consecrated gifts into the Lord’s temple: silver, gold, and utensils.^(C1)

¹⁶ There was war between Asa and King Baasha of Israel throughout their reigns.^{(C1) 17} Israel’s King Baasha went to war against Judah.^(C1) He built Ramah^(C2) in order to keep anyone from leaving or coming to King Asa of Judah. ¹⁸ So Asa withdrew all the silver and gold that remained in the treasuries of the Lord’s temple^(C1) and the treasuries of the royal palace and gave it to his servants. Then King Asa sent them to Ben-hadad^(C2) son of Tabrimmon son of Hezion king of Aram who lived in Damascus,^(C3) saying, ¹⁹ “There is a treaty between me and you, between my father and your father.^(C1) Look, I have sent you a gift of silver and gold. Go and break your treaty with King Baasha of Israel^(C2) so that he will withdraw from me.”

²⁰ Ben-hadad listened to King Asa and sent the commanders of his armies against the cities of Israel. He attacked Ijon,^(C1) Dan,^(C2) Abel-beth-maacah,^(C3) all Chinnereth,^(C4) and the whole land of Naphtali.^{(C5) 21} When Baasha heard about it, he quit building Ramah and stayed in Tirzah.^{(C1) 22} Then King Asa gave a command to everyone without exception in Judah, and they carried away the stones of Ramah and the timbers Baasha had built it with. Then King Asa built Geba^(C1) of Benjamin and Mizpah^(C2) with them.

²³ The rest of all the events of Asa’s reign,^(C1) along with all his might, all his accomplishments, and the cities he built, are written in the Historical Record of Judah’s Kings.^(C2) But in his old age he developed a disease in his feet.^{(C3) 24} Then Asa rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of his ancestor David.^(C1) His son Jehoshaphat^(C2) became king in his place.

Israel’s King Nadab

²⁵ Nadab son of Jeroboam^(C1) became king over Israel in the second year of Judah’s King Asa; he reigned over Israel two years. ²⁶ Nadab did what was evil in the Lord’s sight and walked in the ways of his father and the sin he had caused Israel to commit.^(C1)

²⁷ Then Baasha^(C1) son of Ahijah of the house of Issachar conspired against Nadab, and Baasha struck him down at Gibbethon^(C2) of the Philistines while Nadab and all Israel were besieging Gibbethon. ²⁸ In the third year of Judah’s King Asa,^(C1) Baasha killed Nadab^(C2) and reigned in his place.

²⁹ When Baasha became king, he struck down the entire house of Jeroboam.^(C1) He did not leave Jeroboam any survivors but^(F1) destroyed his family according to the word of the Lord he had spoken through his servant Ahijah the Shilonite.^{(C2) 30} This was because Jeroboam had angered^(F1) the Lord God of Israel by the sins he had committed and had caused Israel to commit.^(C1)

³¹ The rest of the events of Nadab’s reign, along with all his accomplishments, are written in the Historical Record of Israel’s Kings.^{(C1) 32} There was war between Asa and King Baasha of Israel throughout their reigns.^(C1)

Israel’s King Baasha

³³ In the third year of Judah’s King Asa, Baasha son of Ahijah became king over all Israel, and he reigned in Tirzah^(C1) twenty-four years. ³⁴ He did what was evil in the Lord’s sight and walked in the ways of Jeroboam and the sin he had caused Israel to commit.^(C1)