1 Kings 15

JUDAH’S KING ABIJAM

15In the eighteenth year of Israel’s King Jeroboam son of Nebat, Abijam became king over Judah, ²and he reigned three years in Jerusalem.^af His mother’s name was Maacah^ag daughter of Abishalom.

³Abijam walked in all the sins his father before him had committed,^ah and he was not wholeheartedly devoted to the Lord his God as his ancestor David had been.^{ai 4}But for the sake of David, the Lord his God gave him a lamp^E in Jerusalem by raising up his son after him and by preserving Jerusalem.^{aj 5}For David did what was right in the Lord’s sight, and he did not turn aside from anything he had commanded him all the days of his life,^a except in the matter of Uriah^b the Hethite.

⁶There had been war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all the days of Rehoboam’s life.^{c 7}The rest of the events of Abijam’s reign, along with all his accomplishments, are written in the Historical Record of Judah’s Kings.^d There was also war between Abijam and Jeroboam.^{e 8}Abijam rested with his ancestors and was buried in the city of David.^f His son Asa became king in his place.^g

JUDAH’S KING ASA

⁹In the twentieth year of Israel’s King Jeroboam,^h Asa became king of Judah, ¹⁰and he reigned forty-one years in Jerusalem. His grandmother’s^A name was Maacahⁱ daughter of Abishalom.

¹¹Asa did what was right in the Lord’s sight, as his ancestor David had done.^{j 12}He banished the male cult prostitutes^k from the land and removed all of the idols that his ancestors had made.^{l 13}He also^m removed his grandmother^B Maacah from being queen mother because she had made an obscene image of Asherah. Asa chopped down her obscene image and burned itⁿ in the Kidron Valley.^{o 14}The high places were not taken away,^p but Asa was wholeheartedly devoted to the Lord his entire life.^{q 15}He brought his father’s consecrated gifts and his own consecrated gifts into the Lord’s temple: silver, gold, and utensils.^r

¹⁶There was war between Asa and King Baasha of Israel throughout their reigns.^{s 17}Israel’s King Baasha went to war against Judah.^t He built Ramah^u in order to keep anyone from leaving or coming to King Asa of Judah. ¹⁸So Asa withdrew all the silver and gold that remained in the treasuries of the Lord’s temple^v and the treasuries of the royal palace and gave it to his servants. Then King Asa sent them to Ben-hadad^w son of Tabrimmon son of Hezion king of Aram who lived in Damascus,^x saying, ¹⁹“There is a treaty between me and you, between my father and your father.^y Look, I have sent you a gift of silver and gold. Go and break your treaty with King Baasha of Israel^z so that he will withdraw from me.”

²⁰Ben-hadad listened to King Asa and sent the commanders of his armies against the cities of Israel. He attacked Ijon,^aa Dan,^ab Abel-beth-maacah,^ac all Chinnereth,^ad and the whole land of Naphtali.^{ae 21}When Baasha heard about it, he quit building Ramah and stayed in Tirzah.^{af 22}Then King Asa gave a command to everyone without exception in Judah, and they carried away the stones of Ramah and the timbers Baasha had built it with. Then King Asa built Geba^ag of Benjamin and Mizpah^ah with them.

²³The rest of all the events of Asa’s reign,^ai along with all his might, all his accomplishments, and the cities he built, are written in the Historical Record of Judah’s Kings.^aj But in his old age he developed a disease in his feet.^{ak 24}Then Asa rested with his ancestors and was buried in the city of his ancestor David.^al His son Jehoshaphat^am became king in his place.

ISRAEL’S KING NADAB

²⁵Nadab son of Jeroboam^an became king over Israel in the second year of Judah’s King Asa; he reigned over Israel two years. ²⁶Nadab did what was evil in the Lord’s sight and walked in the ways of his father and the sin he had caused Israel to commit.^ao

²⁷Then Baasha^ap son of Ahijah of the house of Issachar conspired against Nadab, and Baasha struck him down at Gibbethon^aq of the Philistines while Nadab and all Israel were besieging Gibbethon. ²⁸In the third year of Judah’s King Asa,^ar Baasha killed Nadab^as and reigned in his place.

²⁹When Baasha became king, he struck down the entire house of Jeroboam.^at He did not leave Jeroboam any survivors but^A destroyed his family according to the word of the Lord he had spoken through his servant Ahijah the Shilonite.^{au 30}This was because Jeroboam had angered^B the Lord God of Israel by the sins he had committed and had caused Israel to commit.^av

³¹The rest of the events of Nadab’s reign, along with all his accomplishments, are written in the Historical Record of Israel’s Kings.^{aw 32}There was war between Asa and King Baasha of Israel throughout their reigns.^ax

ISRAEL’S KING BAASHA

³³In the third year of Judah’s King Asa, Baasha son of Ahijah became king over all Israel, and he reigned in Tirzah^ay twenty-four years. ³⁴He did what was evil in the Lord’s sight and walked in the ways of Jeroboam and the sin he had caused Israel to commit.^a