Rehoboam appointed Abijah the son of Maacah to be chief, [even] the prince among his brothers; for [he was minded] to make him king.

Rehoboam was wise to distribute some of his children throughout all of the territories of Judah and Benjamin, placing them in all of the fortified cities. He allotted them abundant supplies of food and sought many wives for them.

And when the kingdom of Rehoboam was established and when he was strengthened, he forsook the law of Yahweh, and all Israel with him.

with one thousand two hundred chariots and sixty thousand horsemen. And there was no number to the people who came up with him from Egypt--Libyans, Sukkites, and Cushites.

And in Jehovah's seeing that they humbled themselves, the word of Jehovah was to Shemaiah, saying, They humbled themselves; I will not destroy them, and I gave to them as a little for deliverance; and my wrath shall not be poured out upon Jerusalem by the hand of Shishak.

And it was so, that as often as the king entered into the house of Jehovah, the couriers came and fetched them, and brought them again into the chamber of the couriers.

And when he humbled himself, the anger of Yahweh was turned away from him, so that he did not destroy [the city] completely. Moreover, matters were well in Judah.

King Rehoboam established his royal power in Jerusalem. Rehoboam was 41 years old when he became king and reigned 17 years in Jerusalem, the city the Lord had chosen from all the tribes of Israel to put His name. Rehoboam’s mother’s name was Naamah the Ammonite.

Rehoboam did what was evil, because he did not determine in his heart to seek the Lord.

The events of Rehoboam’s reign, from beginning to end, are written in the Events of Shemaiah the Prophet and of Iddo the Seer concerning genealogies. There was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam throughout their reigns.

Rehoboam rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of David. His son Abijah became king in his place.

Then Abijah died, as had his ancestors, and he was buried in the City of David. Abijah's son Asa reigned in his place, and during his lifetime the land enjoyed rest for ten years.

and reigned three years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Micaiah daughter of Uriel; she was from Gibeah.

There was war between Abijah and Jeroboam.

Then worthless and wicked men gathered around him to resist Rehoboam son of Solomon when Rehoboam was young, inexperienced, and unable to assert himself against them.

Did ye not thrust out the priests of Jehovah, the sons of Aaron and the Levites? and ye will make to you priests according to the peoples of the lands, every one coming to fill his hand with a bullock, son of the cow, and seven rams; and he was priest to no God.

Now Jeroboam had sent an ambush around to advance from behind them. So they were in front of Judah, and the ambush was behind them.

Judah turned and discovered that the battle was in front of them and behind them, so they cried out to the Lord. Then the priests blew the trumpets,

Then the men of Judah raised a war cry, and when the men of Judah raised the war cry, then it was that God routed Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and Judah.

neither was Jeroboam strong any more, in the days of Abijah, - and Yahweh smote him that he died.

Abijah rested with his fathers and was buried in the city of David. His son Asa became king in his place. During his reign the land experienced peace for 10 years.

Asa did what was good and right in the sight of the Lord his God.

And he removed out of all the cities of Judah the high places and the sun-images; and the kingdom was quiet before him.

And he built fortified cities in Judah, for the land was at rest. Under him there was no war in those years, for Yahweh had given rest to him.

And Asa went out before him, and a battle was put in order in the valley of Zepah at Mareshah.

And Asa and the people that were with him pursued them to Gerar; and the Ethiopians were overthrown, that none of them was left alive; for they were crushed before Jehovah and before his army. And they carried away very much spoil.

Then they attacked all the cities around Gerar because the terror of the Lord was on them. They also plundered all the cities, since there was a great deal of plunder in them.

And Azariah son of Oded, upon him was the spirit of God.

Now for a long while Israel was without the true God, and without a teaching priest, and without law;

but when they turned to the Lord God of Israel in their distress and sought Him, He was found by them.

In those times there was no peace for those who went about their daily activities because the residents of the lands had many conflicts.

Nation was crushed by nation and city by city, for God troubled them with every possible distress.

When Asa heard these words and the prophecy of Azariah son of Oded the prophet, he took courage and removed the detestable idols from the whole land of Judah and Benjamin and from the cities he had captured in the hill country of Ephraim. He renovated the altar of the Lord that was in front of the portico of the Lord’s temple.

Then he gathered all Judah and Benjamin, as well as those from the tribes of Ephraim, Manasseh, and Simeon who had settled among them, for they had defected to him from Israel in great numbers when they saw that Yahweh his God was with him.

and they further agreed that whoever would refuse to seek the LORD God of Israel was to be executed, whether important or unimportant, man or woman.

All Judah rejoiced over the oath, for they had sworn it with all their mind. They had sought Him with all their heart, and He was found by them. So the Lord gave them rest on every side.

The high places were not taken away from Israel; nevertheless, Asa was wholehearted his entire life.

There was no war until the thirty-fifth year of Asa’s reign.

In the thirty-sixth year of the rule of Asa, Baasha, king of Israel, went up against Judah, building Ramah so that no one was able to go out or in to Asa, king of Judah.

Asa took all the silver and gold that was left in the treasuries of the Lord's temple and of the royal palace and sent it to King Ben Hadad of Syria, ruler in Damascus, along with this message:

"[There is] a covenant between me and you, [as there was] between my father and your father. Look, I am sending you silver and gold. Go, break your covenant with Baasha, king of Israel, that he might withdraw from me."

Then Asa the king took all Judah; and they carried away the stones of Ramah, and the timber of it, with which Baasha was building, and he built with it Geba and Mizpah.

Were not the Ethiopians and the Lubim a very great army, with war-carriages and horsemen more than might be numbered? but because your faith was in the Lord, he gave them up into your hands.

Asa was angry with the seer and put him in prison because of his anger over this. And Asa mistreated some of the people at that time.

And Asa in the thirty-ninth year of his reign was diseased in his feet, until his disease was extremely great; yet in his disease he did not seek Jehovah, but the physicians.

He was buried in his own tomb that he had made for himself in the city of David. They laid him out in a coffin that was full of spices and various mixtures of prepared ointments; then they made a great fire in his honor.

And Jehoshaphat his son reigned in his stead and was mightier than Israel.

Now the Lord was with Jehoshaphat because he walked in the former ways of his father David. He did not seek the Baals

And his heart was courageous in the ways of Yahweh. Moreover, he removed the high places and the Asherahs from Judah.

And they taught in Judah, and the scroll of the law of Yahweh [was] with them when they went around in all the cities of Judah, and they taught the people.

The terror of the Lord was on all the kingdoms of the lands that surrounded Judah, so they didn’t fight against Jehoshaphat.

And it will be Jehoshaphat went and was great even to above; and he will build fortresses in Judah, and cities of stores.

And much work was to him in the cities of Judah: and the men of war strong of power in Jerusalem.

This was the numbering of them according to their fathers' houses: Of Judah, the captains of thousands: Adnah the captain, and with him mighty men of valor three hundred thousand;

and next to him was Johanan the captain, and with him two hundred and eighty thousand;

And next to him was Amasiah the son of Zichri, who willingly offered himself to the LORD; and with him two hundred thousand mighty men of valor.

And from Benjamin was Eliada, a mighty man of valor, and with him two hundred thousand men armed with bow and shield.

and next to him was Jehozabad, and with him a hundred and eighty thousand ready prepared for war.

Jehoshaphat was very wealthy and greatly respected. He made an alliance by marriage with Ahab,

And when he was come to the king, the king said unto him, Micaiah, shall we go to Ramothgilead to battle, or shall I forbear? And he said, Go ye up, and prosper, and they shall be delivered into your hand.

Then Micaiah said, “Therefore, hear the word of the Lord. I saw the Lord sitting on His throne, and the whole heavenly host was standing at His right hand and at His left hand.

And the Lord said, ‘Who will entice Ahab king of Israel to march up and fall at Ramoth-gilead?’ So one was saying this and another was saying that.

For it came to pass, that, when the captains of the chariots perceived that it was not the king of Israel, they turned back again from pursuing him.

And a man drawing upon a bow to his fulness, and he will strike the king of Israel between the joints and between the coat of mail: and he will say to the driver, Turn thy hands and bring me out from the camp, for I was made sick.

And the battle went on that day, and the king of Israel was propped up in the chariot facing Aram until the evening. And he died at the time of the going down of the sun.

And there came out to meet him, Jehu son of Hanani, the seer, who said unto King Jehoshaphat, Unto the lawless, was it right to give help? and, on them who hate Yahweh, to bestow thy love? For this cause, therefore, is there wrath against thee, from before Yahweh;

And Jehoshaphat was living in Jerusalem; and he went out again among the people, from Beer-sheba to the hill-country of Ephraim, guiding them back to the Lord, the God of their fathers.

Then it was reported to Jehoshaphat, “A great multitude has come against you from beyond the [Dead] Sea, out of Aram (Syria); and behold, they are in Hazazon-tamar (that is, Engedi).”

Jehoshaphat was afraid, and he resolved to seek the Lord. Then he proclaimed a fast for all Judah,

All Judah was standing before the Lord with their infants, their wives, and their children.

And Jahaziel, son of Zechariah, son of Benaiah, son of Jeiel, son of Mattaniah the Levite from the sons of Asaph, upon him was the spirit of Jehovah in the midst of the convocation.

And the children of Ammon and Moab made an attack on the people of Mount Seir with a view to their complete destruction; and when they had put an end to the people of Seir, everyman's hand was turned against his neighbour for his destruction.

And Judah came against the watchtower of the wilderness. And they looked at the crowd, and behold, corpses were lying on the ground. There was none [who had] escaped.

And when Jehoshaphat and his people came to take away the spoil of them, they found among them in abundance both riches with the dead bodies, and precious jewels, which they stripped off for themselves, more than they could carry away: and they were three days in the gathering of the spoil, it was so much.

And on the fourth day they assembled themselves in the valley of Beracah; for there they blessed the LORD: therefore the name of the same place was called, The valley of Beracah, unto this day.

And all the men of Judah and Jerusalem returned, and Jehoshaphat [was] at their head in returning to Jerusalem with joy, for Yahweh caused them to rejoice over their enemies.

And the fear of God was on all the kingdoms of those countries, when they had heard that the LORD fought against the enemies of Israel.

So the realm of Jehoshaphat was quiet: for his God gave him rest round about.

And Jehoshaphat reigned over Judah: he was thirty and five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty and five years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Azubah the daughter of Shilhi.

And he walked in the way of Asa his father, and departed not from it, doing that which was right in the sight of the LORD.

And the rest of the words of Jehoshaphat, the first and the last, behold them written in the words of Jehu son of Hanani, who was made to go up upon the book of the kings of Israel.

After this, Judah’s King Jehoshaphat made an alliance with Israel’s King Ahaziah, who was guilty of wrongdoing.

Now Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David. And Jehoram his son reigned in his stead.

And their father gave them great gifts of silver, and of gold, and of precious things, with fortified cities in Judah: but the kingdom gave he to Jehoram; because he was the firstborn.

Now when Jehoram was risen up to the kingdom of his father, he strengthened himself, and slew all his brethren with the sword, and also some of the princes of Israel.

Jehoram was thirty and two years old when he began to reign, and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem.

And he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, as did the house of Ahab: for he had the daughter of Ahab as his wife: and he did that which was evil in the eyes of the LORD.

but because of the covenant the Lord had made with David, He was unwilling to destroy the house of David since the Lord had promised to give a lamp to David and to his sons forever.

Then Jehoram passed over with his commanders and all the chariots with him, and when night came he struck Edom who [was] all around him and the commanders of his chariots.

So Edom made themselves free from the rule of Judah, to this day: and at the same time Libnah made itself free from his rule; because he was turned away from the Lord, the God of his fathers.

And they came up into Judah, and invaded it, and carried away all the possessions that were found in the king's house, and his sons also, and his wives; so that there was not a son left him, except Jehoahaz, the youngest of his sons.

And after all this Yahweh afflicted him in his bowels with an illness for [which there was] no cure.

And it came to pass, from day to day, and at the time when the second year was drawing to a close, that his bowels fell out by reason of his sickness, and he died in cruel sufferings. And his people made no burning for him, like the burning of his fathers.

Thirty and two years old was he when he began to reign, and he reigned in Jerusalem eight years, and departed without anyone's regret. However they buried him in the city of David, but not in the sepulchers of the kings.

And the inhabiters of Jerusalem made Ahaziah his youngest son king in his stead: For the men of war that came with the Arabians in the host had slain all his elder sons. And so Ahaziah the son of Jehoram king of Judah, was made king.

Forty and two years old was Ahaziah when he began to reign, and he reigned one year in Jerusalem. His mother's name also was Athaliah the granddaughter of Omri.

He also walked in the ways of the house of Ahab: for his mother was his counselor to do wickedly.

So he did what was evil in the Lord’s sight like the house of Ahab, for they were his advisers after the death of his father, to his destruction.

Acting on their suggestion, he went with Jehoram, son of Ahab, king of Israel, to make war on Hazael, king of Aram, at Ramoth-gilead: and Joram was wounded by the bowmen.

And he returned to be healed in Jezreel because of the wounds which were given him at Ramah, when he fought with Hazael king of Syria. And Azariah the son of Jehoram king of Judah went down to see Jehoram the son of Ahab at Jezreel, because he was sick.

And the downfall of Ahaziah was of God by his coming to Joram: for when he had come, he went out with Jehoram against Jehu the son of Nimshi, whom the LORD had anointed to cut off the house of Ahab.