2 Chronicles 13
Expanded Bible
Abijah King of Judah(A)
13 Abijah became the king of Judah during the eighteenth year Jeroboam was king of Israel. 2 Abijah ·ruled [reigned] in Jerusalem for three years. His mother was Maacah daughter of Uriel from the town of Gibeah.
And there was war between Abijah and Jeroboam. 3 Abijah led an army of four hundred thousand ·capable [skilled; valiant] soldiers into battle, and Jeroboam prepared to fight him with eight hundred thousand ·capable [skilled; valiant] soldiers.
4 Abijah stood on Mount Zemaraim in the mountains of Ephraim and said, “Jeroboam and all Israel, listen to me! 5 ·You should know [L Do you not know/realize…?] that the Lord, the God of Israel, gave David and his sons the right to ·rule [reign over] Israel forever by an ·agreement [covenant; treaty] of salt [Lev. 2:13; Num. 18:19]. 6 But Jeroboam son of Nebat, one of the ·officers [officials] of Solomon, David’s son, ·turned [rebelled] against his master. 7 Then ·worthless [L empty], ·evil men [scoundrels] joined Jeroboam against Rehoboam, Solomon’s son. He was young and ·didn’t know what to do [inexperienced; indecisive], so he could not ·stop [resist; stand up to] them.
8 “Now you ·people are making plans against [propose to resist/stand against] the Lord’s kingdom, which belongs to David’s sons. ·There are many of you [You are a vast army], and you have the gold calves Jeroboam made for you as gods. 9 ·You have [Have you not…?] thrown out the Levites and the Lord’s priests, Aaron’s sons. You have ·chosen [appointed] your own priests [C rather than God appointing them] as people in other ·countries [lands; nations] do. Anyone who comes with a young bull and seven ·male sheep [rams] can become a priest of idols that are not gods [C that is, they buy or bribe their way into the priesthood].
10 “But as for us, the Lord is our God; we have not ·left [abandoned; forsaken] him. The priests who serve the Lord are Aaron’s ·sons [descendants], and the Levites ·help [assist; attend] them. 11 They ·offered [sacrificed] burnt offerings and ·sweet-smelling [fragrant] incense to the Lord every morning and evening. They put the ·bread [T showbread] on the ·special [holy; ritually clean] table [C in the Temple]. And they light the lamps on the gold lampstand every evening. We obey the command of the Lord our God, but you have ·left [abandoned; forsaken] him. 12 God himself is with us as our ·ruler [head]. His priests blow the trumpet to ·call us to war [sound the alarm] against you. Men of Israel, don’t fight against the Lord, the God of your ·ancestors [fathers], because you won’t succeed.”
13 But Jeroboam had sent some troops to ·sneak behind Judah’s army [ambush from behind]. So while Jeroboam was ·in front of [confronting] Judah’s army, ·Jeroboam’s soldiers [the ambushers] were behind them. 14 When the soldiers of Judah turned around, they saw Jeroboam’s army attacking both in front and back. So they cried out to the Lord, and the priests blew the trumpets. 15 Then the men of Judah ·gave [shouted out] a battle cry. When they shouted, God ·caused Jeroboam and the army of Israel to run away from [routed/defeated Jeroboam and all Israel before] Abijah and the army of Judah. 16 When the army of Israel ·ran away from the men of [fled before] Judah, God handed them over to Judah. 17 Abijah’s army ·struck [inflicted a great slaughter on] Israel so that five hundred thousand of Israel’s ·best [select] men were killed. 18 So at that time the people of Israel were ·defeated [subdued]. And the people of Judah ·won [conquered; prevailed], because they ·depended on [trusted] the Lord, the God of their ·ancestors [fathers].
19 Abijah’s army chased Jeroboam’s army and captured from him the towns of Bethel, Jeshanah, and Ephron, and the small villages near them. 20 Jeroboam never ·became strong [regained his power] again while Abijah was alive. The Lord struck Jeroboam, and he died.
21 But Abijah ·became strong [grew more powerful]. He married fourteen women and was the father of twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters. 22 ·Everything else Abijah did [The rest of the events/acts/history of Abijah]—what he said and what he did—is recorded in the ·writings [commentary; treatise] of the prophet Iddo.
2 Chronicles 13
Amplified Bible
Abijah Succeeds Rehoboam
13 In the eighteenth year of King Jeroboam, Abijah became king over Judah. 2 He reigned three years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Micaiah the daughter of Uriel of Gibeah.
And there was war between Abijah and Jeroboam [of Israel]. 3 Abijah began the battle with an army of brave soldiers, 400,000 chosen men. Jeroboam drew up in battle formation against him with 800,000 chosen men, valiant men.
Civil War
4 Then Abijah stood on Mount Zemaraim, which is in the hill country of Ephraim, and said, “Listen to me, Jeroboam and all Israel: 5 Do you not know that the Lord God of Israel, gave rule over Israel forever to David and to his sons by a covenant of [a]salt [a permanent pact, extending to each generation of Israel]?(A) 6 Yet Jeroboam the son of Nebat, a servant of Solomon the son of David, rose up and rebelled against his lord [the king], 7 and worthless (unprincipled, unethical) men gathered around him, useless and wicked men, who proved too strong for Rehoboam the son of Solomon when Rehoboam was young and timid, and could not assert himself against them.
8 “And now you intend to assert yourselves against the kingdom of the Lord which is in the hands of the sons of David, since you are a great multitude and have with you the golden calves (idols) which Jeroboam made for you as gods. 9 Have you not driven out the priests of the Lord, the sons of Aaron and the Levites, and made priests for yourselves like the peoples of other lands? So whoever comes to consecrate himself with a young bull and seven rams, even he may become a priest of non-existent gods (idols). 10 But as for us, the Lord is our God, and we have not abandoned (turned away from) Him. The sons of Aaron are ministering to the Lord as priests, and the Levites attend to their service. 11 Every morning and every evening they offer the burnt offerings and the fragrant incense to the Lord; and the [b]showbread is set on the clean table [of pure gold], and the golden lampstand with its lamps is ready to light every evening; for we keep the charge of the Lord our God [that is, the obligation we have to Him], but you have abandoned (turned away from) Him. 12 Behold, God is with us at our head, and His priests [are here] with their signal trumpets to sound an alarm against you. O sons of Israel, do not fight against the Lord God of your fathers, for you cannot succeed.”
13 But Jeroboam had set an ambush to come from the rear, so that Israel was in front of Judah and the ambush was behind them. 14 When [the men of] Judah turned around, they were attacked from both front and rear; so they cried out to the Lord [for help], and the priests blew the trumpets. 15 Then the men of Judah raised a war cry; and as they shouted, God struck Jeroboam and all Israel [with defeat] before Abijah and Judah. 16 And the sons of Israel fled before Judah, and God handed over the sons of Israel to them. 17 Abijah and his people inflicted on them a great defeat, so that 500,000 chosen men of Israel fell slain. 18 Thus the sons of Israel were subdued (humbled) at that time, and the sons of Judah prevailed because they relied on the Lord, the God of their fathers. 19 Abijah pursued Jeroboam and captured [several] cities from him: Bethel, Jeshanah, and Ephraim (Ephron), with their villages.
Death of Jeroboam
20 Jeroboam did not recover strength again during the time of [the reign of] Abijah. And the Lord struck him and he died.
21 But Abijah became powerful. He took fourteen wives for himself and fathered twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters. 22 Now the rest of the acts of Abijah, and his ways and his sayings, are written in the writing of the prophet Iddo.
Footnotes
- 2 Chronicles 13:5 The Hebrews harvested sea salt through the process of evaporation. It was regarded as a symbol of loyalty and durability.
- 2 Chronicles 13:11 I.e. bread of the Presence.
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