XIII. * Now ain the eighteenth year of king Jeroboam began Abijah to reign over Judah. 2 He reigned three years in Jerusalem. * His mother’s name also was bMichaiah the daughter of Uriel of cGibeah. dAnd there was war between Abijah and Jeroboam. 3 And Abijah * set the battle in array with an army of valiant men of war, even four hundred thousand chosen men: Jeroboam also eset the battle in array against him with eight hundred thousand chosen men, being mighty men of valour.

4 And Abijah stood up upon mount fZemaraim, which is in gmount Ephraim, and said, Hear me, thou Jeroboam, and all Israel; 5 ought you not to know that the Lord God of Israel hgave the kingdom over Israel to David for ever, even to him and to his sons by ia covenant of salt? 6 Yet Jeroboam the son of Nebat, the servant of Solomon the son of David, is risen up, and hath krebelled against his lord. 7 And there are gathered unto him lvain men, mthe children of Belial, and have strengthened themselves against Rehoboam the son of Solomon, when Rehoboam was nyoung and tender hearted, and could not withstand them. 8 And now ye think to withstand othe kingdom of the Lord in the hand of the sons of David; and ye be a great multitude, and there are with you pgolden calves, which Jeroboam made you for gods. 9 qHave ye not cast out the priests of the Lord, the sons of Aaron, and the Levites, and have made you priests after the manner of the nations of other lands? so that whosoever cometh * to consecrate himself with ra young bullock and seven rams, the same may be a priest of them that are sno gods. 10 tBut as for us, the Lord is our God, and we have not forsaken him; and the priests, which minister unto the Lord, are the sons of Aaron, and the Levites wait upon their business: 11 and they burn unto the Lord every morning and every evening uburnt sacrifices and usweet incense: the uwshewbread also set they in order upon the pure table; and xthe candlestick of gold with the lamps thereof, yto burn every evening: for we zkeep the charge of the Lord our God; but ye have forsaken him. 12 And behold, God himself is with us for our captain, and his priests awith sounding trumpets to cry alarm against you. O children of Israel, bfight ye not against the Lord God of your fathers; for you shall not prosper.

13 But Jeroboam caused can ambushment to come about behind them: so they were before Judah, and the ambushment was behind them. 14 And when Judah looked back, behold, the battle was before and behind: and they cried unto the Lord, and dthe priests sounded with the trumpets. 15 Then the men of Judah gave a shout: and as the men of Judah shouted, it came to pass, that God esmote Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and Judah. 16 And the children of Israel fled before Judah: and fGod delivered them into their hand. 17 And Abijah and his people slew them with a great slaughter: so there fell down slain of Israel five hundred thousand chosen men. 18 Thus the children of Israel were brought under at that time, and the children of Judah prevailed, because they grelied upon the Lord God of their fathers. 19 And Abijah pursued after Jeroboam, and took cities from him, hBeth-el with the towns thereof, and Jeshanah with the towns thereof, and iEphrain with the towns thereof. 20 Neither did Jeroboam krecover strength again in the days of Abijah: and the Lord lstruck him, and mhe died. 21 But Abijah nwaxed mighty, and married fourteen wives, and begat twenty and two sons, and sixteen daughters. 22 And the rest of the acts of Abijah, and his ways, and his sayings, are written in the * story of the prophet oIddo.