Font Size
2 Chronicles 14
Good News Translation
2 Chronicles 14
Good News Translation
King Asa Defeats the Ethiopians
14 King Abijah died and was buried in the royal tombs in David's City. His son Asa succeeded him as king, and under Asa the land enjoyed peace for ten years. 2 Asa pleased the Lord, his God, by doing what was right and good. 3 He removed the foreign altars and the pagan places of worship, broke down the sacred stone columns, and cut down the symbols of the goddess Asherah. 4 He commanded the people of Judah to do the will of the Lord, the God of their ancestors, and to obey his teachings and commands. 5 Because he abolished the pagan places of worship and the incense altars from all the cities of Judah, the kingdom was at peace under his rule. 6 He built fortifications for the cities of Judah during this time, and for several years there was no war, because the Lord gave him peace. 7 He told the people of Judah, “Let us fortify the cities by building walls and towers, and gates that can be shut and barred. We have control of the land because we have done the will of the Lord our God. He has protected us and given us security on every side.” And so they built and prospered. 8 King Asa had an army of 300,000 men from Judah, armed with shields and spears, and 280,000 men from Benjamin, armed with shields and bows. All of them were brave, well-trained men.
9 An Ethiopian[a] named Zerah invaded Judah with an army of a million men and three hundred chariots and advanced as far as Mareshah. 10 Asa went out to fight him, and both sides took up their positions at Zephathah Valley near Mareshah. 11 Asa prayed to the Lord his God, “O Lord, you can help a weak army as easily as a powerful one. Help us now, O Lord our God, because we are relying on you, and in your name we have come out to fight against this huge army. Lord, you are our God; no one can hope to defeat you.”
12 The Lord defeated the Ethiopian[b] army when Asa and the Judean army attacked them. They fled, 13 and Asa and his troops pursued them as far as Gerar. So many of the Ethiopians[c] were killed that the army was unable to rally and fight.[d] They were overpowered by the Lord and his army, and the army took large amounts of loot. 14 Then they were able to destroy the cities in the area around Gerar, because the people there were terrified of the Lord. The army plundered all those cities and captured large amounts of loot. 15 They also attacked the camps of some shepherds, capturing large numbers of sheep and camels. Then they returned to Jerusalem.
Footnotes
- 2 Chronicles 14:9 Hebrew Cushite(s): Cush is the ancient name of the extensive territory south of the First Cataract of the Nile River. This region was called Ethiopia in Graeco-Roman times, and included within its borders most of modern Sudan and some of present-day Ethiopia (Abyssinia).
- 2 Chronicles 14:12 Hebrew Cushite(s): Cush is the ancient name of the extensive territory south of the First Cataract of the Nile River. This region was called Ethiopia in Graeco-Roman times, and included within its borders most of modern Sudan and some of present-day Ethiopia (Abyssinia).
- 2 Chronicles 14:13 Hebrew Cushite(s): Cush is the ancient name of the extensive territory south of the First Cataract of the Nile River. This region was called Ethiopia in Graeco-Roman times, and included within its borders most of modern Sudan and some of present-day Ethiopia (Abyssinia).
- 2 Chronicles 14:13 So many of the Ethiopians … fight; or The Ethiopians were completely defeated; not one of them was left alive.
2 Chronicles 14
New King James Version
2 Chronicles 14
New King James Version
Asa Reigns over Judah
14 So Abijah rested with his fathers, and they buried him in the City of David. Then (A)Asa his son reigned in his place. In his days the land was quiet for ten years.
Asa Reigns in Judah(B)
2 Asa did what was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God, 3 for he removed the altars of the foreign gods and (C)the [a]high places, and (D)broke down the sacred pillars (E)and cut down the wooden images. 4 He commanded Judah to (F)seek the Lord God of their fathers, and to observe the law and the commandment. 5 He also removed the [b]high places and the incense altars from all the cities of Judah, and the kingdom was quiet under him. 6 And he built fortified cities in Judah, for the land had rest; he had no war in those years, because the Lord had given him (G)rest. 7 Therefore he said to Judah, “Let us build these cities and make walls around them, and towers, gates, and bars, while the land is yet before us, because we have sought the Lord our God; we have sought Him, and He has given us rest on every side.” So they built and prospered. 8 And Asa had an army of three hundred thousand from Judah who carried [c]shields and spears, and from Benjamin two hundred and eighty thousand men who carried shields and drew (H)bows; all these were mighty men of (I)valor.
9 (J)Then Zerah the Ethiopian came out against them with an army of a million men and three hundred chariots, and he came to (K)Mareshah. 10 So Asa went out against him, and they set the troops in battle array in the Valley of Zephathah at Mareshah. 11 And Asa (L)cried out to the Lord his God, and said, “Lord, it is (M)nothing for You to help, whether with many or with those who have no power; help us, O Lord our God, for we rest on You, and (N)in Your name we go against this multitude. O Lord, You are our God; do not let man prevail against You!”
12 So the Lord (O)struck the Ethiopians before Asa and Judah, and the Ethiopians fled. 13 And Asa and the people who were with him pursued them to (P)Gerar. So the Ethiopians were overthrown, and they could not recover, for they were broken before the Lord and His army. And they carried away very much [d]spoil. 14 Then they defeated all the cities around Gerar, for (Q)the fear of the Lord came upon them; and they plundered all the cities, for there was exceedingly much [e]spoil in them. 15 They also [f]attacked the livestock enclosures, and carried off sheep and camels in abundance, and returned to Jerusalem.
Footnotes
- 2 Chronicles 14:3 Places for pagan worship
- 2 Chronicles 14:5 Places for pagan worship
- 2 Chronicles 14:8 large shields
- 2 Chronicles 14:13 plunder
- 2 Chronicles 14:14 plunder
- 2 Chronicles 14:15 Lit. struck
2 Chronicles 14
New International Version
2 Chronicles 14
New International Version
14 [a]And Abijah rested with his ancestors and was buried in the City of David. Asa his son succeeded him as king, and in his days the country was at peace for ten years.
Asa King of Judah(A)
2 Asa did what was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God.(B) 3 He removed the foreign altars(C) and the high places, smashed the sacred stones(D) and cut down the Asherah poles.[b](E) 4 He commanded Judah to seek the Lord,(F) the God of their ancestors, and to obey his laws and commands. 5 He removed the high places(G) and incense altars(H) in every town in Judah, and the kingdom was at peace under him. 6 He built up the fortified cities of Judah, since the land was at peace. No one was at war with him during those years, for the Lord gave him rest.(I)
7 “Let us build up these towns,” he said to Judah, “and put walls around them, with towers, gates and bars. The land is still ours, because we have sought the Lord our God; we sought him and he has given us rest(J) on every side.” So they built and prospered.
8 Asa had an army of three hundred thousand(K) men from Judah, equipped with large shields and with spears, and two hundred and eighty thousand from Benjamin, armed with small shields and with bows. All these were brave fighting men.
9 Zerah the Cushite(L) marched out against them with an army of thousands upon thousands and three hundred chariots, and came as far as Mareshah.(M) 10 Asa went out to meet him, and they took up battle positions in the Valley of Zephathah near Mareshah.
11 Then Asa called(N) to the Lord his God and said, “Lord, there is no one like you to help the powerless against the mighty. Help us,(O) Lord our God, for we rely(P) on you, and in your name(Q) we have come against this vast army. Lord, you are our God; do not let mere mortals prevail(R) against you.”
12 The Lord struck down(S) the Cushites before Asa and Judah. The Cushites fled, 13 and Asa and his army pursued them as far as Gerar.(T) Such a great number of Cushites fell that they could not recover; they were crushed(U) before the Lord and his forces. The men of Judah carried off a large amount of plunder.(V) 14 They destroyed all the villages around Gerar, for the terror(W) of the Lord had fallen on them. They looted all these villages, since there was much plunder there. 15 They also attacked the camps of the herders and carried off droves of sheep and goats and camels. Then they returned to Jerusalem.
Footnotes
- 2 Chronicles 14:1 In Hebrew texts 14:1 is numbered 13:23, and 14:2-15 is numbered 14:1-14.
- 2 Chronicles 14:3 That is, wooden symbols of the goddess Asherah; here and elsewhere in 2 Chronicles
2 Crónicas 14
Reina Valera Contemporánea
2 Crónicas 14
Reina Valera Contemporánea
Reinado de Asa(A)
14 Abías descansó entre sus antepasados y fue sepultado en la ciudad de David, y en su lugar reinó su hijo Asa, y durante su reinado el país estuvo en paz durante diez años. 2 Asa hizo lo bueno y lo recto ante los ojos del Señor su Dios, 3 pues quitó los altares de culto ajenos y los lugares altos, hizo pedazos los ídolos y derribó los símbolos de Asera, 4 y ordenó a Judá buscar al Señor, el Dios de sus padres, y poner por obra la ley y sus mandamientos. 5 Además, quitó de todas las ciudades de Judá los lugares altos y los ídolos, y bajo su reinado hubo paz. 6 Precisamente porque en ese tiempo había paz y nadie le hacía la guerra, pues el Señor le había dado paz, Asa construyó en Judá ciudades fortificadas. 7 Les dijo a los de Judá:
«Edifiquemos estas ciudades, y levantemos murallas a su alrededor, con torres, puertas y cerrojos, pues la tierra es nuestra. Nosotros hemos buscado al Señor nuestro Dios, y porque lo hemos buscado, él nos ha dado paz en todas partes.»
En la construcción tuvieron mucho éxito. 8 Además, Asa tenía un ejército armado de lanzas y escudos, todos ellos soldados bien entrenados para lanzar flechas. De Judá eran trescientos mil, y de Benjamín doscientos ochenta mil.
9 Zeraj el etíope salió a presentarles batalla con un ejército de un millón de hombres y trescientos carros de guerra; y llegó hasta Maresa. 10 Asa salió a su encuentro, y libraron la batalla en el valle de Sefata, junto a Maresa. 11 Allí Asa clamó al Señor su Dios, y dijo:
«¡Ay, Señor! Para ti no hay diferencia alguna en brindar tu ayuda al poderoso o al débil. ¡Ayúdanos, Señor y Dios nuestro, porque en ti confiamos y en tu nombre venimos contra este ejército! Tú, Señor, eres nuestro Dios; ¡que no prevalezca el hombre contra ti!»
12 El Señor derrotó a los etíopes que se enfrentaron contra Asa y Judá, y los etíopes huyeron. 13 Asa y su ejército los persiguieron hasta Gerar, y los etíopes fueron derrotados hasta no quedar uno solo con vida. Fueron derrotados delante del Señor y de su ejército, y se les quitó un gran botín de guerra. 14 Además, el terror del Señor cayó sobre todas las ciudades alrededor de Gerar, y como había en ellas grandes riquezas, Asa y los suyos las saquearon, 15 y atacaron también las cabañas de los que tenían ganado, y antes de volver a Jerusalén se llevaron muchas ovejas y camellos.
Good News Translation (GNT) 
Good News Translation® (Today’s English Version, Second Edition) © 1992 American Bible Society. All rights reserved. For more information about GNT, visit www.bibles.com and www.gnt.bible.
New King James Version (NKJV) 
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.
Reina Valera Contemporánea (RVC)
Copyright © 2009, 2011 by Sociedades Bíblicas Unidas