The Daily Audio Bible
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14 Abijah rested with his fathers and was buried in the City of David. His son Asa became king in his place. In his days the land was quiet for ten years.[a]
Asa King of Judah
2 Asa did what was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God. 3 He removed the foreign altars and the high places. He demolished the sacred memorial stones and chopped down the Asherah poles. 4 He told Judah to seek the Lord, the God of their fathers, and to obey his law and command. 5 He removed the high places and the sun pillars[b] from all the cities of Judah. The kingdom enjoyed peace and quiet under him.
6 He built fortified cities in Judah because the land was quiet. He had no wars in those years because the Lord gave him rest.
7 Asa said to Judah, “We will build these cities and surround them with walls, towers, and barred gates. The land before us is still ours, because we have sought the Lord our God. We sought him, and he has given us peace all around.”
So they built and prospered.
8 Asa had an army of three hundred thousand men from Judah, who carried large shields and spears, and two hundred eighty thousand men from Benjamin, who carried shields and were armed with bows. These were all strong, powerful warriors.
9 Zerah the Cushite[c] came out against them with an army of a million[d] men and three hundred chariots and advanced as far as Mareshah. 10 Asa went out to confront him, and they formed battle lines in the Valley of Zephathah at Mareshah.
11 Asa cried to the Lord his God, “Lord, there is no one except you to help the powerless against the mighty. Help us, O Lord our God, because we rely on you, and in your name we have come against this horde.[e] Lord, you are our God. Men will not prevail against you.”
12 The Lord defeated the Cushites before Asa and Judah, and the Cushites fled. 13 Asa and the people who were with him pursued them as far as Gerar. The Cushites fell until none of them were left alive, because they were broken before the Lord and before his army, who carried away a large amount of plunder. 14 They struck all the cities around Gerar, because the dread of the Lord was upon them. They looted all the cities because there was a great deal of plunder in them. 15 Also they struck the tents of the herdsmen and carried off very many sheep and camels. Then they returned to Jerusalem.
Asa’s Reformation
15 The Spirit of God came upon Azariah son of Oded. 2 He went out to meet Asa and said this to him:
Listen to me, Asa and all Judah and Benjamin.
The Lord is with you when you are with him. If you seek him, he is there to be found. If you forsake him, he will forsake you.
3 For a long time Israel was without the true God, without a priest to teach, and without the law. 4 Then in their distress they turned to the Lord, the God of Israel. They sought him, and he was found by them. 5 During those times there was no peace for those who went out and came in, because there were great disturbances affecting all the inhabitants of the lands.
6 It was nation against nation and city against city. They were broken in pieces because God troubled them with every kind of distress. 7 But take courage and do not let your hands be slack, because there will be a reward for your work.
8 When Asa heard these words and the prophecy of Azariah son of[f] Oded the prophet, he took courage. He put away the disgusting idols from the whole land of Judah and Benjamin and from the cities which he had taken from the hill country of Ephraim. He repaired the altar of the Lord, which was in front of the porch of the Lord’s house.
9 He gathered all Judah and Benjamin, as well as those who had settled among them from Ephraim, Manasseh, and Simeon, because people from Israel had gone over to Asa in great numbers since they saw that the Lord his God was with him. 10 They gathered at Jerusalem in the third month of the fifteenth year of Asa’s reign. 11 On that day they sacrificed to the Lord seven hundred cattle and seven thousand sheep from the plunder they had brought.
12 They entered into a covenant to seek the Lord, the God of their fathers, with all their heart and with all their soul. 13 Anyone who did not seek the Lord, the God of Israel, was to be put to death, whether young or old,[g] man or woman. 14 They swore an oath to the Lord with a loud voice, with shouting, and with trumpets and ram’s horns. 15 All Judah rejoiced over the oath, because they had sworn with all their heart, and they very eagerly sought the Lord. He was found by them, and the Lord gave them rest on every side.
(1 Kings 15:13-15)
16 Asa even removed his grandmother Ma’akah from her position as queen mother, because she had made an obscene image for Asherah. Asa cut down her image and crushed it and burned it in the Kidron Valley.
17 The high places, however, were not removed from Israel. Nevertheless, Asa’s heart was completely committed throughout all his days. 18 He brought silver and gold and vessels and utensils to the House of the Lord as dedicated offerings for himself and his father.
Asa’s Treaty With Aram
19 There was no war until the thirty-fifth year of Asa’s reign.
16 In the thirty-sixth year of the reign of Asa, Ba’asha king of Israel attacked Judah, and he fortified Ramah, in order to keep anyone from going in or coming out from Asa king of Judah. 2 So Asa took silver and gold from the treasuries of the House of the Lord and from the palace of the king and sent it to Ben Hadad king of Aram, who ruled in Damascus.
He said, 3 “There should be a treaty between you and me as there was between my father and your father. Look! I have sent you silver and gold. Go, break your treaty with Ba’asha king of Israel, so that he will withdraw from me.”
4 Ben Hadad listened to King Asa and sent the commanders of his armies against the cities of Israel. They conquered Ijon, Dan, Abel Maim,[h] and all the towns for storehouses in Naphtali. 5 When Ba’asha heard about it, he stopped building Ramah and put an end to his work on it. 6 King Asa then summoned all Judah, and they carried away from Ramah the stones and the timber which Ba’asha had been using to build it. With them he built Geba and Mizpah.
Hanani the Seer Delivers a Message to Asa
7 At that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah and said to him, “Because you relied on the king of Aram, and you did not rely on the Lord your God, the army of the king of Aram has escaped from your hand. 8 Weren’t the Cushites and the Libyans a huge army, with very many chariots and charioteers? When you relied on the Lord, he gave them into your hand. 9 The Lord! It is his eyes that go back and forth over all the earth to offer strong support to the hearts of those who are completely committed to[i] him. You have acted foolishly in this. From now on you will be at war.”
10 Asa was angry with the seer, so he put him in prison because he was in a rage against him on account of this. At this time Asa also crushed some of the people.
Asa’s Disease and Death
11 You can find the acts of Asa, from first to last, written in the Book of the Kings of Judah and Israel.
12 Asa’s feet became diseased in the thirty-ninth year of his reign. His disease was very serious, but even when he was sick, he did not seek the Lord, but only his physicians.
13 Asa rested with his fathers. He died in the forty-first year of his reign. 14 They buried him in his tomb, which he had cut out for himself in the City of David. They laid him on a bier[j] that was covered with all kinds of fragrant spices and perfumed ointments, skillfully blended by the perfume makers. They burned a very large bonfire in his honor.
The Blessings of the True Israel
9 I am speaking the truth in Christ—I am not lying—my conscience testifies with me in the Holy Spirit 2 that I have great sorrow and continuous pain in my heart. 3 For I almost wish that I myself could be cursed and separated from Christ in place of my brothers, my relatives according to the flesh, 4 those who are Israelites. Theirs are the adoption as sons, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises. 5 Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them, according to the flesh, came the Christ, who is God over all, eternally blessed. Amen.
6 This does not mean that God’s word has failed, because not all who are descended from Israel are really Israel, 7 and not all who are descended from Abraham are really his children. On the contrary, “Your line of descent will be traced through Isaac.”[a] 8 This means that it is not the children of the flesh who are God’s children, but it is the children of the promise who are counted as his descendants. 9 For this is what the promise said: “I will arrive at this set time, and Sarah will have a son.”[b]
God’s Choice Is Based on His Mercy
10 Not only that, but Rebekah also had children by one man, our forefather, Isaac. 11 Even before the twins were born or did anything good or bad, in order that God’s purpose in election might continue— 12 not by works but because of him who calls us—it was said to her, “The older will serve the younger.”[c] 13 Just as it is written: “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.”[d]
14 What will we say then? Does this mean that God is unjust? Absolutely not! 15 For God says to Moses:
I will show mercy to whom I show mercy,
and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.[e]
16 So then, it does not depend on human desire or effort, but on God’s mercy.
17 Indeed, the Scripture says in regard to Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I caused you to stand, that I may demonstrate my power in how I deal with you, and that my name may be proclaimed in all the earth.”[f] 18 So then, God shows mercy to whom he desires, and he hardens whom he desires.
19 Then you will say to me, “Why does God still find fault? For who has ever succeeded in resisting his will?” 20 But who are you, a mere human being, to talk back to God? Shall the thing that is formed say to the one who formed it, “Why did you make me like this?” No. 21 Doesn’t the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay one pot for special use and another for ordinary use?
22 What if God, although he wanted to demonstrate his wrath and make his power known, endured with great patience the objects of wrath—ripe for destruction?[g] 23 And what if he did this to make the riches of his glory known to the objects of mercy whom he prepared in advance for glory, 24 including us, whom he called—not only from the Jews but also from the Gentiles.
Psalm 19
The Glory of God Is Revealed
Heading
For the choir director. A psalm by David.
The Glory of God Revealed by Creation
1 The heavens tell about the glory of God.
The expanse of the sky proclaims the work of his hands.
2 Day after day they pour out speech.
Night after night they display knowledge.
3 They do not speak. They say no words.
Their voice is not heard.[a]
4 Their voice[b] goes out into all the earth,
and their word reaches the end of the world.
God has pitched a tent for the sun in the heavens.
5 It comes out like a bridegroom from his wedding canopy.
It celebrates like a champion who has run his race.
6 It sets out from one end of the heavens.
It runs until it reaches the other end.
There is nowhere to hide from its heat.
The Glory of God Revealed in His Word
7 The law[c] of the Lord is perfect.
It revives the soul.
The testimony of the Lord is trustworthy.
It gives wisdom to the inexperienced.[d]
8 The precepts of the Lord are right.
They give joy to the heart.
The commandment of the Lord is bright.
It gives light to the eyes.
9 The fear of the Lord is pure.
It stands forever.
The just decrees of the Lord are truth.
They are altogether righteous.
10 They are more desirable than gold,
even better than much pure gold.
They are sweeter than honey,
even honey dripping from the honeycomb.
The Glory of God Revealed in the Believer’s Life
11 Yes, by them your servant is warned.
In keeping them there is great reward.
12 Who can recognize his own errors?
Declare me innocent of hidden sins.
13 Restrain your servant also from deliberate sins.
Do not let them rule over me.
Then I will be blameless.
Then I will be innocent of great rebellion.
14 May the speech from my mouth
and the thoughts in my heart be pleasing to you,
O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.
More Dealing With Fools
20 Wine is a mocker, and beer is a brawler.
Whoever is intoxicated by them is not wise.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.