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.

[c]And Asa did what was good and right in the sight of the Lord his God, for he removed (B)the foreign altars and (C)high places, tore down the memorial stones, cut down the [d](D)Asherim, and commanded Judah to seek the Lord God of their fathers and to [e]comply with the Law and the commandment. He also removed the high places and the (E)incense altars from all the cities of Judah. And the kingdom was undisturbed under him. (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. 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.

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 14:1 Ch 13:23 in Heb
  2. 2 Chronicles 14:1 I.e., died
  3. 2 Chronicles 14:2 Ch 14:1 in Heb
  4. 2 Chronicles 14:3 I.e., wooden symbols of a female deity (Asherah)
  5. 2 Chronicles 14:4 Lit do the
  6. 2 Chronicles 14:6 Lit no war was with him
  7. 2 Chronicles 14:7 Lit before us

14 Abijah lay down with his ancestors and was buried in David’s City. His son Asa succeeded him as king.

Asa rules Judah

[a] In Asa’s time, the land had peace for ten years. [b] Asa did what was right and good in the Lord his God’s eyes. He removed the foreign altars and shrines, smashed the sacred pillars, cut down the sacred poles,[c] and urged Judah to seek the Lord, the God of their ancestors, by doing what the Instruction and the commandments required. He also removed the shrines and incense altars from all the cities of Judah so that the kingdom was at peace under him. When the land was at peace, he built fortified cities in Judah; there was no war in those years because the Lord had given him rest.

“Let’s build up these cities,” Asa told Judah. “We’ll surround them with walls, towers, gates, and crossbars while the land is still ours, because we sought the Lord our God and he sought us[d] and surrounded us with rest.” As a result, the people successfully completed their building projects.

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Chronicles 14:1 13:23 in Heb
  2. 2 Chronicles 14:2 14:1 in Heb
  3. 2 Chronicles 14:3 Heb asherim, perhaps objects devoted to the goddess Asherah; cf 1 Kgs 15:13
  4. 2 Chronicles 14:7 LXX; MT lacks and and repeats we sought.