Historical
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.
Asa’s Last Years(B)
16 But in the thirty-sixth year of the reign of Asa, Baasha king of Israel went up against Judah and built Ramah and did not allow anyone to come in or go out to Asa king of Judah.
2 Then Asa removed silver and gold from the storehouses of the house of the Lord and palace of the king, and he sent it to Ben-Hadad king of Aram in Syria, who lived in Damascus, saying, 3 “There is a covenant between me and you as between my father and your father. I am sending you silver and gold. Go and break your covenant with Baasha king of Israel so that he might leave me.”
4 And Ben-Hadad listened to King Asa, and he sent the commanders of his armies against the cities of Israel. They struck down Ijon, Dan, Abel Maim, and all the depot cities of Naphtali. 5 And it happened when Baasha heard this, that he stopped building Ramah and he ceased his work. 6 Then King Asa took all of Judah, and they took the stones of Ramah and its timber that Baasha had used to build, and he built with them Geba and Mizpah.
7 And at that time Hanani the seer came to King Asa of Judah saying, “Because you depended on the king of Aram and did not depend on the Lord your God, therefore the army of the king of Aram escaped from your hand. 8 Were not the Cushites and Libyans a very large army with chariots and horses, but when you depended on the Lord, He gave them to your hand. 9 For the eyes of the Lord move about on all the earth to strengthen the heart that is completely toward Him. You have acted foolishly in this, and from this point forward you will have wars.”
10 Then Asa was angry with the seer and placed him in prison stocks, for he was enraged by these words. Asa even oppressed some of the people during this time.
The Death of Asa
11 The events of Asa from beginning to end are written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel. 12 In the thirty-ninth year of the reign of Asa, he had a sickness in his feet until his sickness became grave. Even in his disease he did not seek after the Lord, but the physicians. 13 So Asa slept with his fathers; he died in the forty-first year of his reign. 14 And they buried him in the tomb that he cut for himself in the City of David. And they placed him on a place filled with all types of spices mixed with ointments, and then they burned him up with a very great conflagration.
Jehoshaphat, King of Judah
17 Then Jehoshaphat his son reigned in his place, and he grew strong against Israel. 2 He put an army in all the fortified cities of Judah and set military garrisons in the land of Judah, even in the cities of Ephraim that Asa his father had captured.
3 Now the Lord was with Jehoshaphat, for he walked in the previous ways of David his father, and he did not seek out the Baal cult. 4 For he sought out the God of his fathers and walked in his commandments, rather than the deeds of Israel. 5 So the Lord made firm the kingdom in his hand, and all Judah gave a tribute to Jehoshaphat. So he had an abundance of riches and honor. 6 His heart was raised up for the ways of the Lord. He even removed the high places and Asherah poles from Judah.
7 In the third year of his reign he sent officials, Ben-Hail, Obadiah, Zechariah, Nethanel, and Micaiah, to teach in the cities of Jerusalem, 8 and with them were also the Levites: Shemaiah, Nethaniah, Zebadiah, Asahel, Shemiramoth, Jehonathan, Adonijah, Tobijah, and Tob-Adonijah, who were Levites. And with these were also Elishama and Jehoram, who were priests. 9 They taught the people in Judah, and they used the Book of the Law of the Lord and they traveled about all the cities of Judah and taught the people.
10 The terror of the Lord came on all the kingdoms of the land that surrounded Judah, and they did not bring war against Jehoshaphat. 11 Some from the Philistine peoples brought gifts to Jehoshaphat such as silver for tribute. The Arabians even brought seven thousand seven hundred rams and seven thousand seven hundred goats to him.
12 Jehoshaphat continued to increase in greatness, and he built citadels and storehouses in Judah. 13 And he had much property in the cities of Judah, and the men of war, mighty men of valor, were in Jerusalem. 14 This was their divisions by the houses of their father:
From Judah, the commanders of thousands:
Adnah the commander with three hundred thousand mighty men of valor.
15 Beside him was Jehohanan the commander with two hundred eighty thousand mighty men of war.
16 Beside him was Amasiah the son of Zikri, a volunteer for the Lord with two hundred thousand mighty men of war.
17 From Benjamin:
Eliada a mighty man of war with two hundred thousand men armed with bow and shield.
18 Beside him was Jehozabad with one hundred and eighty thousand equipped for warfare.
19 These were serving the king in addition to those the king placed in the fortified cities throughout Judah.
Micaiah Prophesies Against Ahab(C)
18 Now Jehoshaphat had great riches and honor, and he married into the family of Ahab. 2 At the end of some years he went down to Ahab in Samaria. And Ahab slaughtered a great amount of sheep and oxen for Jehoshaphat and those who journeyed with him and then lured him up to Ramoth Gilead. 3 And King Ahab of Israel said to King Jehoshaphat of Judah, “Will you go up with me to Ramoth Gilead?”
And he responded, “I am as you are, and as your people also my people are. We will be with you in this war.” 4 And Jehoshaphat further said to the king of Israel, “Inquire today the word of the Lord on this.”
5 So the king of Israel gathered together four hundred prophets, and he inquired from them, “Should I go up to Ramoth Gilead for battle, or should I cease from this?”
They said, “Go up, for God will give this to the hand of the king.”
6 But Jehoshaphat said, “Is there not still here another prophet for the Lord from whom we might inquire?”
7 Then the king of Israel responded to Jehoshaphat, “There is still one man from whom we can seek the Lord, but I hate him because he does not prophesy anything good for me but always disaster. He is Micaiah the son of Imlah.”
And Jehoshaphat said, “May the king not speak like this.”
8 So the king of Israel called to a court eunuch and said, “Hurry and bring Micaiah the son of Imlah.”
9 And the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah were sitting on their own thrones, clothed in their royal garments, at the threshing floor at the entrance at the gate of Samaria, and all the prophets were prophesying before them. 10 Then Zedekiah the son of Kenaanah made for himself iron horns, and he said, “Thus says the Lord: With these you will thrust out the Arameans in Syria until they are finished.”
11 And all the prophets were prophesying the same, “Go up to Ramoth Gilead and find success, because the Lord has given the king into your hands.”
12 And the messenger who went to call Micaiah said to him, “The words of the prophets are as one voice and only for good to the king, so may your word be like one of them, and you speak favorably.”
13 And Micaiah said, “As the Lord lives, whatever my God says, that will I speak.”
14 When he came to the king, the king said to him, “Micaiah, should we go up to Ramoth Gilead for battle, or should I cease?”
He said, “All of you go up and be successful, and they will be given into your hands.”
15 Then the king said to him, “How many times must I cause you to swear that you speak to me only truth in the name of the Lord?”
16 Then he said, “I saw all Israel scattered on the mountains like sheep that have no shepherd. The Lord said, ‘There are no masters for them. Let each man return to his home in peace.’ ”
17 Then the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “Did I not say to you that he would not prophesy good concerning me, but evil?”
18 So the prophet said, “Now hear the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on His throne and the heavenly assembly was standing at His right and His left. 19 And the Lord said, ‘Who will deceive Ahab king of Israel so that he might go up and fall at Ramoth Gilead?’
“One was saying one thing, and another was saying something else. 20 Then a spirit came out and stood before the Lord, and he said, ‘I will deceive him.’
“Then the Lord said to him, ‘How?’
21 “Then he said, ‘I will go out and be a spirit of deception in the mouth of all the prophets.’
“Then the Lord said, ‘You will deceive and find success. Go out and do this.’
22 “Now see that the Lord has put a spirit of deception in the mouth of your prophets. So the Lord has declared disaster over you.”
23 Then Zedekiah the son of Kenaanah came near to Micaiah and struck him on the cheek. And he said, “Which way then did the spirit from the Lord pass from me to speak with you?”
24 Then Micaiah said, “You will see it on the day when you enter an inner chamber to hide yourself.”
25 And the king of Israel said, “Seize Micaiah and take him to Amon, the governor of the city, and to Joash the son of the king, 26 and you will say, ‘So says the king: Put him in a prison, and feed him a little food and water until I return in peace.’ ”
27 Then Micaiah said, “If you certainly return in peace, then the Lord has not spoken by me. Listen, all you people!”
The Death of Ahab(D)
28 So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah went up to Ramoth Gilead. 29 Then the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, “I will disguise myself and go into battle, but you will put on your clothes.” So the king of Israel disguised himself, and they both entered into battle.
30 And the king of Aram ordered the commanders of his chariots, “Do not wage war with the small or great but with the king of Israel alone.” 31 And it happened when the commanders of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat they said, “It is the king of Israel.” So they turned on him to wage war. But Jehoshaphat cried out, and the Lord helped him, then God drew them away from the king. 32 And it happened when the commanders of the chariots saw that he was not the king of Israel, then they turned away from him.
33 But a man pulled his bow at random and struck the king of Israel between his armor scales and body armor. He said to the commander of the chariot, “Turn and remove me from the battle because I am wounded.” 34 And the battle continued on that day, and the king of Israel was set up in his chariot before the Arameans until evening. Then he died when the sun set.
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.