2 Chronicles 14
New American Standard Bible
Asa Succeeds Abijah in Judah
14 [a](A)So Abijah [b]lay down with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David, and his son Asa became king in his place. The land was undisturbed for ten years during his days.
2 [c]And Asa did what was good and right in the sight of the Lord his God, 3 for he removed (B)the foreign altars and (C)high places, tore down the memorial stones, cut down the [d](D)Asherim, 4 and commanded Judah to seek the Lord God of their fathers and to [e]comply with the Law and the commandment. 5 He also removed the high places and the (E)incense altars from all the cities of Judah. And the kingdom was undisturbed under him. 6 (F)He built fortified cities in Judah, since the land was undisturbed, and [f]there was no one at war with him during those years, (G)because the Lord had given him rest. 7 For he said to Judah, “(H)Let’s build these cities and surround them with walls and towers, gates and bars. The land is still [g]ours 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 Now Asa had an army of (I)three hundred thousand from Judah, carrying large shields and spears, and 280,000 from Benjamin, carrying shields and wielding bows; all of them were valiant warriors.
9 Now Zerah the Ethiopian (J)went 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 [h]to meet him, and they drew up in battle formation in the Valley of Zephathah at Mareshah. 11 Then Asa (L)called to the Lord his God and said, “Lord, there is no one besides You to help in the battle between the powerful and those who have no strength; help us, Lord our God, (M)for we trust in You, and in Your name have come against this multitude. Lord, You are our God; do not let man prevail against You.” 12 So (N)the Lord [i]routed the Ethiopians before Asa and before Judah, and the Ethiopians fled. 13 Asa and the people who were with him pursued them as far as (O)Gerar; and so many Ethiopians fell that [j]they could not recover, for they were shattered before the Lord and before His army. And they carried away a very large amount of plunder. 14 They [k]destroyed all the cities around Gerar, (P)for the dread of the Lord had fallen on them; and they pillaged all the cities, for there was much plunder in them. 15 They also fatally struck [l]those who owned livestock, and they led away large numbers of sheep and camels. Then they returned to Jerusalem.
Footnotes
- 2 Chronicles 14:1 Ch 13:23 in Heb
- 2 Chronicles 14:1 I.e., died
- 2 Chronicles 14:2 Ch 14:1 in Heb
- 2 Chronicles 14:3 I.e., wooden symbols of a female deity (Asherah)
- 2 Chronicles 14:4 Lit do the
- 2 Chronicles 14:6 Lit no war was with him
- 2 Chronicles 14:7 Lit before us
- 2 Chronicles 14:10 Lit before him
- 2 Chronicles 14:12 Lit struck
- 2 Chronicles 14:13 Or there was none left alive
- 2 Chronicles 14:14 Lit struck
- 2 Chronicles 14:15 Lit tents of livestock
2 Chronicles 14
Modern English Version
14 And Abijah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the City of David. Asa his son then reigned in his place. In his days the land was quiet for ten years.
Asa, King of Judah(A)
2 Asa did what was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God. 3 He took down the foreign altars and high places, and he shattered the pillars and cut down the images of Asherah. 4 Then he urged Judah to seek the Lord the God of their fathers and to keep the law and commandments. 5 And he also removed all the high places and incense altars in the cities in Judah. And the kingdom was at rest under Asa. 6 He built fortified cities in Judah because the land was quiet; and there was no war in these years, for the Lord gave peace to him.
7 And he said to Judah, “Let us build up these cities and let us surround them with walls, towers, gates, and bars for the land before us is still ours because we have sought after the Lord our God. We have sought Him, and He has given us peace all around.” So they built and had success.
8 And it happened that Asa had an army from Judah carrying large shields and spears numbering three hundred thousand. And from Benjamin he had an army carrying shields and bows numbering two hundred eighty thousand. All of these were mighty men of valor.
9 But Zerah the Ethiopian Cushite came out against them with an army of a million men and three hundred chariots. And he came up to Mareshah. 10 Then Asa went out to engage him, and they arranged for battle in the Valley of Zephathah near Mareshah.
11 And Asa cried out the Lord his God, and said, “Lord, it is nothing with You to help, whether with many or with those who have no power. Help us, O Lord our God; for we trust in You, and in Your name we come against this multitude. O Lord, You are our God. Let no man prevail against You.”
12 So the Lord struck down the Ethiopian Cushites before Asa and Judah, and the Cushites fled. 13 Then Asa and those with him pursued them until Gerar. And the Cushites fell till there was not one left alive because they were struck down before the Lord and His army. And those in Judah carried off a very great plunder. 14 And they struck down all the cities surrounding Gerar because the terror of the Lord was on them. And they plundered all the cities because there was a great amount of possessions in them. 15 And they also struck the tents holding livestock, and they carried off sheep and a great amount of camels. Then they returned to Jerusalem.
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The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.