Abijam Reigns over Judah

15 ^(A)Now in the eighteenth year of King Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, Abijam became king over Judah. ² He reigned three years in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was ^[a](B)Maacah the daughter of ^[b](C)Abishalom. ³ He walked in all the sins of his father which he had committed before him; and ^(D)his heart was not ^[c]wholly devoted to the Lord his God, like the heart of his father David. ⁴ But for David’s sake the Lord his God gave him a ^(E)lamp in Jerusalem, to raise up his son after him and to establish Jerusalem; ^5 (F)because David did what was right in the sight of the Lord, and had not turned aside from anything that He commanded him all the days of his life, ^(G)except in the case of Uriah the Hittite. ^6 (H)There was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all the days of his life.

⁷ Now ^(I)the 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? ^(J)And there was war between Abijam and Jeroboam.

Asa Succeeds Abijam

^8 (K)And Abijam slept with his fathers and they buried him in the city of David; and Asa his son became king in his place.

⁹ So in the twentieth year of Jeroboam the king of Israel, Asa began to reign as king of Judah. ¹⁰ He reigned forty-one years in Jerusalem; and ^(L)his mother’s name was Maacah the daughter of Abishalom. ^11 (M)Asa did what was right in the sight of the Lord, like David his father. ^12 (N)He also put away the male cult prostitutes from the land and ^(O)removed all the idols which his fathers had made. ^13 [d](P)He also removed Maacah his mother from being queen mother, because she had made a horrid image ^[e]as an Asherah; and Asa cut down her horrid image and ^(Q)burned it at the brook Kidron. ^14 (R)But the high places were not taken away; nevertheless ^(S)the heart of Asa was ^[f]wholly devoted to the Lord all his days. ^15 (T)He brought into the house of the Lord the dedicated things of his father and his own dedicated things: silver and gold and utensils.

^16 (U)Now there was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel all their days. ^17 (V)Baasha king of Israel went up against Judah and ^[g](W)fortified Ramah ^(X)in order to prevent anyone from going out or coming in to Asa king of Judah. ¹⁸ Then ^(Y)Asa took all the silver and the gold which were left in the treasuries of the house of the Lord and the treasuries of the king’s house, and delivered them into the hand of his servants. And ^(Z)King Asa sent them to Ben-hadad the son of Tabrimmon, the son of Hezion, king of Aram, who lived in ^(AA)Damascus, saying, ¹⁹ “Let there be a ^(AB)treaty between ^[h]you and me, as between my father and your father. Behold, I have sent you a present of silver and gold; go, break your treaty with Baasha king of Israel so that he will withdraw from me.” ²⁰ So Ben-hadad listened to King Asa and sent the commanders of his armies against the cities of Israel, and ^[i]conquered ^(AC)Ijon, ^(AD)Dan, ^(AE)Abel-beth-maacah and all ^(AF)Chinneroth, besides all the land of Naphtali. ²¹ When Baasha heard of it, ^(AG)he ceased ^[j]fortifying Ramah and remained in ^(AH)Tirzah. ²² Then 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 built. And King Asa built with them ^(AI)Geba of Benjamin and Mizpah.

Jehoshaphat Succeeds Asa

^23 (AJ)Now the rest of all the acts of Asa and all his might and all that he did and the cities which he built, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah? But in the time of his old age he was diseased in his feet. ²⁴ And Asa slept with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of David his father; and ^(AK)Jehoshaphat his son reigned in his place.

Nadab, then Baasha, Rules over Israel

²⁵ Now ^(AL)Nadab the son of Jeroboam became king over Israel in the second year of Asa king of Judah, and he reigned over Israel two years. ²⁶ He did evil in the sight of the Lord, and ^(AM)walked in the way of his father and ^(AN)in his sin which he made Israel sin. ²⁷ Then ^(AO)Baasha the son of Ahijah of the house of Issachar conspired against him, and Baasha struck him down at ^(AP)Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines, while Nadab and all Israel were laying siege to Gibbethon.

²⁸ So Baasha killed him in the third year of Asa king of Judah and reigned in his place. ²⁹ It came about as soon as he was king, he struck down all the household of Jeroboam. He did not leave to Jeroboam ^[k]any persons alive, until he had destroyed them, ^(AQ)according to the word of the Lord, which He spoke by His servant Ahijah the Shilonite, ³⁰ and because of the sins of Jeroboam which he sinned, and ^(AR)which he made Israel sin, because of his provocation with which he provoked the Lord God of Israel to anger.

^31 (AS)Now 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?

War with Judah

^32 (AT)There was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel all their days.

³³ In the third year of Asa king of Judah, Baasha the son of Ahijah became king over all Israel at Tirzah, and reigned twenty-four years. ³⁴ He did evil in the sight of the Lord, and ^(AU)walked in the way of Jeroboam and in his sin which he made Israel sin.

Honor Widows

5 ^(A)Do not sharply rebuke an ^(B)older man, but rather appeal to him as a father, to ^(C)the younger men as brothers, ² the older women as mothers, and the younger women as sisters, in all purity.

³ Honor widows who are ^(D)widows indeed; ⁴ but if any widow has children or grandchildren, ^(E)they must first learn to practice piety in regard to their own family and to ^[a]make some return to their parents; for this is ^(F)acceptable in the sight of God. ⁵ Now she who is a ^(G)widow indeed and who has been left alone, ^(H)has fixed her hope on God and continues in ^(I)entreaties and prayers night and day. ⁶ But she who ^(J)gives herself to wanton pleasure is ^(K)dead even while she lives. ^7 [b](L)Prescribe these things as well, so that they may be above reproach. ⁸ But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has ^(M)denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

⁹ A widow is to be ^(N)put on the list only if she is not less than sixty years old, having been ^(O)the wife of one man, ¹⁰ having a reputation for ^(P)good works; and if she has brought up children, if she has ^(Q)shown hospitality to strangers, if she ^(R)has washed the ^[c]saints’ feet, if she has ^(S)assisted those in distress, and if she has devoted herself to every good work. ¹¹ But refuse to put younger widows on the list, for when they feel ^(T)sensual desires in disregard of Christ, they want to get married, ¹² thus incurring condemnation, because they have set aside their previous ^[d]pledge. ¹³ At the same time they also learn to be idle, as they go around from house to house; and not merely idle, but also ^(U)gossips and ^(V)busybodies, talking about ^(W)things not proper to mention. ¹⁴ Therefore, I want younger widows to get ^(X)married, bear children, ^(Y)keep house, and ^(Z)give the enemy no occasion for reproach; ¹⁵ for some ^(AA)have already turned aside to follow ^(AB)Satan. ¹⁶ If any woman who is a believer ^(AC)has dependent widows, she must ^(AD)assist them and the church must not be burdened, so that it may assist those who are ^(AE)widows indeed.

Concerning Elders

^17 (AF)The elders who ^(AG)rule well are to be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who ^(AH)work hard ^[e]at preaching and teaching. ¹⁸ For the Scripture says, “^(AI)You shall not muzzle the ox while he is threshing,” and “^(AJ)The laborer is worthy of his wages.” ¹⁹ Do not receive an accusation against an ^(AK)elder except on the basis of ^(AL)two or three witnesses. ²⁰ Those who continue in sin, ^(AM)rebuke in the presence of all, ^(AN)so that the rest also will be fearful of sinning. ^21 (AO)I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus and of His chosen angels, to maintain these principles without bias, doing nothing in a spirit of partiality. ^22 (AP)Do not lay hands upon anyone too hastily and ^[f]thereby share ^(AQ)responsibility for the sins of others; keep yourself ^[g]free from sin.

²³ No longer drink water exclusively, but ^(AR)use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments.

²⁴ The sins of some men are quite evident, going before them to judgment; for others, their sins ^(AS)follow after. ²⁵ Likewise also, deeds that are good are quite evident, and ^(AT)those which are otherwise cannot be concealed.

Instructions to Those Who Minister

6 ^(AU)All who are under the yoke as slaves are to regard their own masters as worthy of all honor so ^(AV)that the name of God and our doctrine will not be ^[h]spoken against. ² Those who have believers as their masters must not be disrespectful to them because they are ^(AW)brethren, but must serve them all the more, because those who ^[i]partake of the benefit are believers and beloved. ^(AX)Teach and ^[j]preach these principles.

³ If anyone ^(AY)advocates a different doctrine and does not ^[k]agree with ^(AZ)sound words, those of our Lord Jesus Christ, and with the doctrine ^(BA)conforming to godliness, ⁴ he is ^(BB)conceited and understands nothing; but he ^[l]has a morbid interest in ^(BC)controversial questions and ^(BD)disputes about words, out of which arise envy, strife, abusive language, evil suspicions, ⁵ and constant friction between ^(BE)men of depraved mind and deprived of the truth, who ^(BF)suppose that ^[m]godliness is a means of gain. ^6 (BG)But godliness actually is a means of ^(BH)great gain when accompanied by ^(BI)contentment. ⁷ For ^(BJ)we have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either. ⁸ If we ^(BK)have food and covering, with these we shall be content. ^9 (BL)But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and ^(BM)a snare and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction. ¹⁰ For ^(BN)the love of money is a root of all ^[n]sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have ^(BO)wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.

¹¹ But ^(BP)flee from these things, you ^(BQ)man of God, and pursue righteousness, godliness, ^(BR)faith, ^(BS)love, ^[o]perseverance and gentleness. ^12 (BT)Fight the good fight of ^(BU)faith; ^(BV)take hold of the eternal life ^(BW)to which you were called, and you made the good ^(BX)confession in the presence of ^(BY)many witnesses. ^13 (BZ)I charge you in the presence of God, who ^[p]gives life to all things, and of ^(CA)Christ Jesus, who testified the ^(CB)good confession ^(CC)before Pontius Pilate, ¹⁴ that you keep the commandment without stain or reproach until the ^(CD)appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, ¹⁵ which He will ^[q]bring about at ^(CE)the proper time—He who is ^(CF)the blessed and ^(CG)only Sovereign, ^(CH)the King of ^[r]kings and ^(CI)Lord of ^[s]lords, ^16 (CJ)who alone possesses immortality and ^(CK)dwells in unapproachable light, ^(CL)whom no man has seen or can see. ^(CM)To Him be honor and eternal dominion! Amen.

¹⁷ Instruct those who are rich in ^(CN)this present world ^(CO)not to be conceited or to ^(CP)fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, ^(CQ)who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy. ¹⁸ Instruct them to do good, to be rich in ^(CR)good ^[t]works, ^(CS)to be generous and ready to share, ^19 (CT)storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may ^(CU)take hold of that which is life indeed.

²⁰ O ^(CV)Timothy, guard ^(CW)what has been entrusted to you, avoiding ^(CX)worldly and empty chatter and the opposing arguments of what is falsely called “knowledge”— ²¹ which some have professed and thus ^(CY)gone astray ^[u]from ^(CZ)the faith.

^(DA)Grace be with you.

Prayer of an Afflicted Man for Mercy on Himself and on Zion.

A Prayer of the Afflicted when he is faint and ^[a]pours out his complaint before the Lord.