2 Chronicles 15
Contemporary English Version
Asa Destroys the Idols in Judah
15 Some time later, God spoke to Azariah son of Oded. 2 At once, Azariah went to Asa and said:
Listen to me, King Asa and you people of Judah and Benjamin. The Lord will be with you and help you, as long as you obey and worship him. But if you disobey him, he will desert you.
3 For a long time, the people of Israel did not worship the true God or listen to priests who could teach them about God. They refused to obey God's Law. 4 But whenever trouble came, Israel turned back to the Lord their God and worshiped him.
5 There was so much confusion in those days that it wasn't safe to go anywhere in Israel. 6 Nations were destroying each other, and cities were wiping out other cities, because God was causing trouble and unrest everywhere.
7 So you must be brave. Don't give up! God will honor you for obeying him.
8 As soon as Asa heard what Azariah the prophet said, he gave orders for all the idols in Judah and Benjamin to be destroyed, including those in the towns he had captured in the territory of Ephraim. He also repaired the Lord's altar that was in front of the temple porch.
9 Asa called together the people from Judah and Benjamin, as well as the people from the territories of Ephraim, West Manasseh, and Simeon who were living in Judah. Many of these people were now loyal to Asa, because they had seen that the Lord was with him.
10 In the third month of the fifteenth year of Asa's rule, they all met in Jerusalem. 11 That same day, they took 700 bulls and 7,000 sheep and goats from what they had brought back from Gerar and sacrificed them as offerings to the Lord. 12 They made a solemn promise to faithfully worship the Lord God their ancestors had worshiped, 13 and to put to death anyone who refused to obey him. 14 The crowd solemnly agreed to keep their promise to the Lord, then they celebrated by shouting and blowing trumpets and horns. 15 Everyone was happy because they had made this solemn promise, and in return, the Lord blessed them with peace from all their enemies.
16 Asa's grandmother Maacah had made a disgusting idol of the goddess Asherah, so he cut it down, crushed it, and burned it in Kidron Valley. Then he removed Maacah from her position as queen mother.[a] 17 As long as Asa lived, he was faithful to the Lord, even though he did not destroy the local shrines[b] in Israel. 18 He placed in the temple all the silver and gold objects that he and his father had dedicated to God.
19 There was peace in Judah until the thirty-fifth year of Asa's rule.
2 Chronicles 15
Modern English Version
The Reforms of Asa(A)
15 Then the Spirit of God came on Azariah the son of Oded, 2 and he went out to meet Asa and said to him, “Listen to me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin: The Lord is with you while you are with Him. If you all seek Him, He will be found with you. But if you forsake Him, He will forsake you. 3 For a long time Israel has been without the true God, and without a teaching priest and without law, 4 but when in their trouble they turned to the Lord God of Israel, and sought Him, He was found by them. 5 And at that time there was no peace to the one traveling in or out because there was a great panic on all those who dwelt in the land. 6 They were broken to pieces, nation against nation and city against city, because God confused them with every type of distress. 7 But you all must be strong and not lose heart, for there is a reward for your deeds.”
8 And when Asa heard these words of the prophecy of Azariah son of Oded the prophet, he was encouraged and removed the detestable idols from the entire land of Judah and Benjamin and from the cities that he captured in the hills of Ephraim. And he repaired the altar of the Lord that was before the vestibule of the Lord.
9 And he gathered together all of Judah and Benjamin and those who had settled among them from Ephraim, Manasseh, and Simeon, for these had come down to him from Israel in a great number when they saw that the Lord his God was with him.
10 These were gathered in Jerusalem in the third month in the fifteenth year in the reign of Asa. 11 They sacrificed to the Lord that day from the plunder that they brought in, seven hundred oxen and seven thousand sheep. 12 And they entered into a covenant to seek the Lord God of their fathers with all their heart and soul. 13 But whoever would not seek the Lord God of Israel would be put to death, whether young or old, man or woman. 14 They swore an oath to the Lord in a loud voice, with shouting, trumpets, and horns. 15 And all Judah rejoiced over this oath because they swore with their whole heart and they sought Him with all their desire; and He was found by them, and the Lord gave them rest all around.
16 King Asa even removed his mother Maakah from being queen mother because she had made a detestable image for Asherah. Asa cut down her image, crushed it, and burned it in the Kidron Valley. 17 But they did not remove the high places from Israel. Nevertheless the heart of Asa was wholly committed all his days. 18 He brought into the house of God the sacred gifts of his father and his own sacred gifts—silver, gold, and utensils.
19 And there was no war until the thirty-fifth year of the reign of Asa.
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The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.