2 Chronicles 15-18

Asa's Reforms

15¹ Then the Spirit of God came upon Azariah son of Oded, ² and he went out to meet King Asa as he was returning from the battle. "Listen to me, Asa!" he shouted. "Listen, all you people of Judah and Benjamin! The Lord will stay with you as long as you stay with him! Whenever you seek him, you will find him. But if you abandon him, he will abandon you. ³ For a long time Israel was without the true God, without a priest to teach them, and without the Law to instruct them. ⁴ But whenever they were in trouble and turned to the Lord, the God of Israel, and sought him out, they found him. ⁵ "During those dark times, it was not safe to travel. Problems troubled the people of every land. ⁶ Nation fought against nation, and city against city, for God was troubling them with every kind of problem. ⁷ But as for you, be strong and courageous, for your work will be rewarded."

⁸ When Asa heard this message from Azariah the prophet, he took courage and removed all the detestable idols from the land of Judah and Benjamin and in the towns he had captured in the hill country of Ephraim. And he repaired the altar of the Lord, which stood in front of the entry room of the Lord 's Temple. ⁹ Then Asa called together all the people of Judah and Benjamin, along with the people of Ephraim, Manasseh, and Simeon who had settled among them. For many from Israel had moved to Judah during Asa's reign when they saw that the Lord his God was with him. ¹⁰ The people gathered at Jerusalem in late spring, during the fifteenth year of Asa's reign. ¹¹ On that day they sacrificed to the Lord 700 cattle and 7,000 sheep and goats from the plunder they had taken in the battle. ¹² Then they entered into a covenant to seek the Lord, the God of their ancestors, with all their heart and soul. ¹³ They agreed that anyone who refused to seek the Lord, the God of Israel, would be put to death-whether young or old, man or woman. ¹⁴ They shouted out their oath of loyalty to the Lord with trumpets blaring and rams' horns sounding. ¹⁵ All in Judah were happy about this covenant, for they had entered into it with all their heart. They earnestly sought after God, and they found him. And the Lord gave them rest from their enemies on every side. ¹⁶ King Asa even deposed his grandmother Maacah from her position as queen mother because she had made an obscene Asherah pole. He cut down her obscene pole, broke it up, and burned it in the Kidron Valley. ¹⁷ Although the pagan shrines were not removed from Israel, Asa's heart remained completely faithful throughout his life. ¹⁸ He brought into the Temple of God the silver and gold and the various items that he and his father had dedicated. ¹⁹ So there was no more war until the thirty-fifth year of Asa's reign.

Asa's League with Ben-hadad

16¹ In the thirty-sixth year of Asa's reign, King Baasha of Israel invaded Judah and fortified Ramah in order to prevent anyone from entering or leaving King Asa's territory in Judah. ² Asa responded by removing the silver and gold from the treasuries of the Temple of the Lord and the royal palace. He sent it to King Ben-hadad of Aram, who was ruling in Damascus, along with this message: ³ "Let there be a treaty between you and me like the one between your father and my father. See, I am sending you silver and gold. Break your treaty with King Baasha of Israel so that he will leave me alone." ⁴ Ben-hadad agreed to King Asa's request and sent the commanders of his army to attack the towns of Israel. They conquered the towns of Ijon, Dan, Abel-beth-maacah, and all the store cities in Naphtali. ⁵ As soon as Baasha of Israel heard what was happening, he abandoned his project of fortifying Ramah and stopped all work on it. ⁶ Then King Asa called out all the men of Judah to carry away the building stones and timbers that Baasha had been using to fortify Ramah. Asa used these materials to fortify the towns of Geba and Mizpah.

⁷ At that time Hanani the seer came to King Asa and told him, "Because you have put your trust in the king of Aram instead of in the Lord your God, you missed your chance to destroy the army of the king of Aram. ⁸ Don't you remember what happened to the Ethiopians and Libyans and their vast army, with all of their chariots and charioteers? At that time you relied on the Lord, and he handed them over to you. ⁹ The eyes of the Lord search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. What a fool you have been! From now on you will be at war." ¹⁰ Asa became so angry with Hanani for saying this that he threw him into prison and put him in stocks. At that time Asa also began to oppress some of his people. ¹¹ The rest of the events of Asa's reign, from beginning to end, are recorded in ¹² In the thirty-ninth year of his reign, Asa developed a serious foot disease. Yet even with the severity of his disease, he did not seek the Lord 's help but turned only to his physicians. ¹³ So he died in the forty-first year of his reign. ¹⁴ He was buried in the tomb he had carved out for himself in the City of David. He was laid on a bed perfumed with sweet spices and fragrant ointments, and the people built a huge funeral fire in his honor.

Jehoshaphat's Kingdom Established

17¹ Then Jehoshaphat, Asa's son, became the next king. He strengthened Judah to stand against any attack from Israel. ² He stationed troops in all the fortified towns of Judah, and he assigned additional garrisons to the land of Judah and to the towns of Ephraim that his father, Asa, had captured. ³ The Lord was with Jehoshaphat because he followed the example of his father's early years and did not worship the images of Baal. ⁴ He sought his father's God and obeyed his commands instead of following the evil practices of the kingdom of Israel. ⁵ So the Lord established Jehoshaphat's control over the kingdom of Judah. All the people of Judah brought gifts to Jehoshaphat, so he became very wealthy and highly esteemed. ⁶ He was deeply committed to the ways of the Lord . He removed the pagan shrines and Asherah poles from Judah. ⁷ In the third year of his reign Jehoshaphat sent his officials to teach in all the towns of Judah. These officials included Ben-hail, Obadiah, Zechariah, Nethanel, and Micaiah. ⁸ He sent Levites along with them, including Shemaiah, Nethaniah, Zebadiah, Asahel, Shemiramoth, Jehonathan, Adonijah, Tobijah, and Tob-adonijah. He also sent out the priests Elishama and Jehoram. ⁹ They took copies of the Book of the Law of the Lord and traveled around through all the towns of Judah, teaching the people.

¹⁰ Then the fear of the Lord fell over all the surrounding kingdoms so that none of them wanted to declare war on Jehoshaphat. ¹¹ Some of the Philistines brought him gifts and silver as tribute, and the Arabs brought 7,700 rams and 7,700 male goats. ¹² So Jehoshaphat became more and more powerful and built fortresses and storage cities throughout Judah. ¹³ He stored numerous supplies in Judah's towns and stationed an army of seasoned troops at Jerusalem. ¹⁴ His army was enrolled according to ancestral clans. From Judah there were 300,000 troops organized in units of 1,000, under the command of Adnah. ¹⁵ Next in command was Jehohanan, who commanded 280,000 troops. ¹⁶ Next was Amasiah son of Zicri, who volunteered for the Lord 's service, with 200,000 troops under his command. ¹⁷ From Benjamin there were 200,000 troops equipped with bows and shields. They were under the command of Eliada, a veteran soldier. ¹⁸ Next in command was Jehozabad, who commanded 180,000 armed men. ¹⁹ These were the troops stationed in Jerusalem to serve the king, besides those Jehoshaphat stationed in the fortified towns throughout Judah.

Micaiah Prophesies the Defeat of Ahab and Jehoshaphat

18¹ Jehoshaphat enjoyed great riches and high esteem, and he made an alliance with Ahab of Israel by having his son marry Ahab's daughter. ² A few years later he went to Samaria to visit Ahab, who prepared a great banquet for him and his officials. They butchered great numbers of sheep, goats, and cattle for the feast. Then Ahab enticed Jehoshaphat to join forces with him to recover Ramoth-gilead. ³ "Will you go with me to Ramoth-gilead?" King Ahab of Israel asked King Jehoshaphat of Judah. Jehoshaphat replied, "Why, of course! You and I are as one, and my troops are your troops. We will certainly join you in battle."

⁴ Then Jehoshaphat added, "But first let's find out what the Lord says." ⁵ So the king of Israel summoned the prophets, 400 of them, and asked them, "Should we go to war against Ramoth-gilead, or should I hold back?" They all replied, "Yes, go right ahead! God will give the king victory." ⁶ But Jehoshaphat asked, "Is there not also a prophet of the Lord here? We should ask him the same question." ⁷ The king of Israel replied to Jehoshaphat, "There is one more man who could consult the Lord for us, but I hate him. He never prophesies anything but trouble for me! His name is Micaiah son of Imlah." Jehoshaphat replied, "That's not the way a king should talk! Let's hear what he has to say." ⁸ So the king of Israel called one of his officials and said, "Quick! Bring Micaiah son of Imlah." ⁹ King Ahab of Israel and King Jehoshaphat of Judah, dressed in their royal robes, were sitting on thrones at the threshing floor near the gate of Samaria. All of Ahab's prophets were prophesying there in front of them. ¹⁰ One of them, Zedekiah son of Kenaanah, made some iron horns and proclaimed, "This is what the Lord says: With these horns you will gore the Arameans to death!" ¹¹ All the other prophets agreed. "Yes," they said, "go up to Ramoth-gilead and be victorious, for the Lord will give the king victory!" ¹² Meanwhile, the messenger who went to get Micaiah said to him, "Look, all the prophets are promising victory for the king. Be sure that you agree with them and promise success." ¹³ But Micaiah replied, "As surely as the Lord lives, I will say only what my God says." ¹⁴ When Micaiah arrived before the king, Ahab asked him, "Micaiah, should we go to war against Ramoth-gilead, or should I hold back?" Micaiah replied sarcastically, "Yes, go up and be victorious, for you will have victory over them!" ¹⁵ But the king replied sharply, "How many times must I demand that you speak only the truth to me when you speak for the Lord ?" ¹⁶ Then Micaiah told him, "In a vision I saw all Israel scattered on the mountains, like sheep without a shepherd. And the Lord said, 'Their master has been killed. Send them home in peace.'" ¹⁷ "Didn't I tell you?" the king of Israel exclaimed to Jehoshaphat. "He never prophesies anything but trouble for me." ¹⁸ Then Micaiah continued, "Listen to what the Lord says! I saw the Lord sitting on his throne with all the armies of heaven around him, on his right and on his left. ¹⁹ And the Lord said, 'Who can entice King Ahab of Israel to go into battle against Ramoth-gilead so he can be killed?' "There were many suggestions, ²⁰ and finally a spirit approached the Lord and said, 'I can do it!' "'How will you do this?' the Lord asked. ²¹ "And the spirit replied, 'I will go out and inspire all of Ahab's prophets to speak lies.' "'You will succeed,' said the Lord . 'Go ahead and do it.' ²² "So you see, the Lord has put a lying spirit in the mouths of your prophets. For the Lord has pronounced your doom." ²³ Then Zedekiah son of Kenaanah walked up to Micaiah and slapped him across the face. "Since when did the Spirit of the Lord leave me to speak to you?" he demanded. ²⁴ And Micaiah replied, "You will find out soon enough when you are trying to hide in some secret room!" ²⁵ "Arrest him!" the king of Israel ordered. "Take him back to Amon, the governor of the city, and to my son Joash. ²⁶ Give them this order from the king: 'Put this man in prison, and feed him nothing but bread and water until I return safely from the battle!'" ²⁷ But Micaiah replied, "If you return safely, it will mean that the Lord has not spoken through me!" Then he added to those standing around, "Everyone mark my words!"

²⁸ So King Ahab of Israel and King Jehoshaphat of Judah led their armies against Ramoth-gilead. ²⁹ The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, "As we go into battle, I will disguise myself so no one will recognize me, but you wear your royal robes." So the king of Israel disguised himself, and they went into battle. ³⁰ Meanwhile, the king of Aram had issued these orders to his chariot commanders: "Attack only the king of Israel! Don't bother with anyone else." ³¹ So when the Aramean chariot commanders saw Jehoshaphat in his royal robes, they went after him. "There is the king of Israel!" they shouted. But Jehoshaphat called out, and the Lord saved him. God helped him by turning the attackers away from him. ³² As soon as the chariot commanders realized he was not the king of Israel, they stopped chasing him. ³³ An Aramean soldier, however, randomly shot an arrow at the Israelite troops and hit the king of Israel between the joints of his armor. "Turn the horses and get me out of here!" Ahab groaned to the driver of the chariot. "I'm badly wounded!" ³⁴ The battle raged all that day, and the king of Israel propped himself up in his chariot facing the Arameans. In the evening, just as the sun was setting, he died.