2 Chronicles 15
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Revival Under Asa
15 The Spirit of God came on Azariah son of Oded.(A) 2 So he went out to meet Asa and said to him, “Asa and all Judah and Benjamin, hear me. The Lord is with you(B) when you are with Him. If you seek Him, He will be found by you,(C) but if you abandon Him, He will abandon you.(D) 3 For many years Israel has been without the true God,(E) without a teaching priest, and without instruction,(F) 4 but when they turned to the Lord God of Israel in their distress and sought Him, He was found by them. 5 In those times there was no peace for those who went about their daily activities because the residents of the lands had many conflicts. 6 Nation was crushed by nation and city by city, for God troubled them with every possible distress. 7 But as for you, be strong; don’t be discouraged,[a] for your work has a reward.”(G)
8 When Asa heard these words and the prophecy of Azariah son of Oded the prophet, he took courage and removed the detestable idols from the whole land of Judah and Benjamin and from the cities he had captured in the hill country of Ephraim.(H) He renovated the altar of the Lord that was in front of the portico of the Lord’s temple.(I) 9 Then he gathered all Judah and Benjamin, as well as those from the tribes of Ephraim, Manasseh, and Simeon who had settled among them, for they had defected to him from Israel in great numbers when they saw that Yahweh his God was with him.(J)
10 They were gathered in Jerusalem in the third month of the fifteenth year of Asa’s reign. 11 At that time they sacrificed to the Lord 700 cattle and 7,000 sheep from all the plunder they had brought.(K) 12 Then they entered into a covenant to seek the Lord God of their ancestors with all their mind and all their heart.(L) 13 Whoever would not seek the Lord God of Israel would be put to death, young or old,[b] man or woman.(M) 14 They took an oath to the Lord in a loud voice, with shouting, with trumpets, and with rams’ horns. 15 All Judah rejoiced over the oath, for they had sworn it with all their mind. They had sought Him with all their heart, and He was found by them.(N) So the Lord gave them rest on every side.(O)
16 King Asa(P) also removed Maacah, his grandmother,[c](Q) from being queen mother because she had made an obscene image of Asherah. Asa chopped down her obscene image, then crushed it and burned it in the Kidron Valley.(R) 17 The high places were not taken away from Israel; nevertheless, Asa was wholehearted his entire life.[d] 18 He brought his father’s consecrated gifts and his own consecrated gifts into God’s temple: silver, gold, and utensils.
19 There was no war until the thirty-fifth year of Asa’s reign.
Footnotes
- 2 Chronicles 15:7 Lit don’t let your hands fail
- 2 Chronicles 15:13 Or insignificant or great
- 2 Chronicles 15:16 Lit mother; 1Kg 15:2; 2Ch 11:22
- 2 Chronicles 15:17 Lit wholehearted all his days
2 Chronicles 15
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 15
Cult Reform. 1 The Spirit of God then came upon Azariah, the son of Oded. 2 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 seek him, he will permit you to find him, but if you abandon him, he will abandon you. 3 For a long time Israel was without a priest to impart teaching and without the law. 4 However, when in their distress they turned to the Lord, the God of Israel, and sought him, he allowed them to find him.
5 “In those times it was not safe for anyone to come or go, since all the inhabitants of the land were afflicted with massive disturbances, 6 with nations being crushed by other nations and cities by other cities, for God troubled them with every kind of distress. 7 But as for you, be strong and do not be discouraged, for your work shall be rewarded.”
8 When Asa heard these words and the prophecy of Azariah, the son of Oded the prophet, he became resolute in his courage and ordered the removal of the abominable idols throughout the land of Judah and Benjamin as well as from the towns he had captured in the hill country of Ephraim. He also repaired the altar of the Lord which stood in the vestibule of the house of the Lord.
9 Then Asa assembled all the people of Judah and Benjamin, as well as those from Ephraim, Manasseh, and Simeon who were residing among them, since great numbers of people from Israel had deserted to him when they came to realize that the Lord his God was with him. 10 All the people assembled at Jerusalem in the third month of the fifteenth year of Asa’s reign. 11 On that day they sacrificed to the Lord seven hundred oxen and seven thousand sheep from the plunder they had brought back. 12 After that, they entered into a covenant to seek the Lord, the God of their fathers, with all their heart and soul, 13 while asserting that all those who refused to seek the Lord, the God of Israel, were to be put to death, whether young or old, whether man or woman.
14 Then all of them swore an oath to the Lord with a loud voice and shouts of joy, while the trumpets and the horns resounded. 15 All Judah rejoiced over the oath, for they had sworn with all their heart and had sought the Lord with sincere desire. As a result, the Lord had allowed himself to be found by them, and he granted them peace on every side.
16 King Asa even removed his mother Maacah from her position as queen mother because she had made an obscene image for the worship of Asherah. Asa cut it down, crushed it to powder, and burned it in the Kidron Valley. 17 Although he did not remove the high places from Israel, Asa himself remained faithful throughout his life. 18 He brought into the house of God the votive gifts[a] of his father as well as his own votive gifts—silver, gold, and sacred vessels.
19 There was no further warfare until the thirty-fifth year of the reign of Asa.
Footnotes
- 2 Chronicles 15:18 Votive gifts: Asa’s gifts were most likely the booty he and his father had secured from previous battles.
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