Now give me wisdom and discernment so I can effectively lead this nation. Otherwise no one is able to make judicial decisions for this great nation of yours."

Now let my lord send to his servants the wheat, barley, olive oil, and wine he has promised;

Solomon laid the foundation for God's temple; its length (determined according to the old standard of measure) was 90 feet, and its width 30 feet.

But now I have chosen Jerusalem as a place to live, and I have chosen David to lead my people Israel.'

Others will then answer, 'Because they abandoned the Lord God of their ancestors, who led them out of Egypt. They embraced other gods whom they worshiped and served. That is why he brought all this disaster down on them.'"

As his father David had decreed, Solomon appointed the divisions of the priests to do their assigned tasks, the Levitical orders to lead worship and help the priests with their daily tasks, and the divisions of the gatekeepers to serve at their assigned gates. This was what David the man of God had ordered.

All the work ordered by Solomon was completed, from the day the foundation of the Lord's temple was laid until it was finished; the Lord's temple was completed.

The young advisers with whom Rehoboam had grown up said to him, "Say this to these people who have said to you, 'Your father made us work hard, but now lighten our burden' -- say this to them: 'I am a lot harsher than my father!

Jeroboam appointed his own priests to serve at the worship centers and to lead in the worship of the goat idols and calf idols he had made.

They offer burnt sacrifices to the Lord every morning and every evening, along with fragrant incense. They arrange the Bread of the Presence on a ritually clean table and light the lamps on the gold lampstand every evening. Certainly we are observing the Lord our God's regulations, but you have rejected him.

He said to the people of Judah: "Let's build these cities and fortify them with walls, towers, and barred gates. The land remains ours because we have followed the Lord our God and he has made us secure on all sides." So they built the cities and prospered.

Asa prayed to the Lord his God: "O Lord, there is no one but you who can help the weak when they are vastly outnumbered. Help us, O Lord our God, for we rely on you and have marched on your behalf against this huge army. O Lord our God, don't let men prevail against you!"

He was buried in the tomb he had carved out in the City of David. They laid him to rest on a bier covered with spices and assorted mixtures of ointments. They made a huge bonfire to honor him.

Some of the Philistines brought Jehoshaphat tribute, including a load of silver. The Arabs brought him 7,700 rams and 7,700 goats from their flocks.

These were their divisions by families: There were a thousand officers from Judah. Adnah the commander led 300,000 skilled warriors,

Jehochanan the commander led 280,000,

and Amasiah son of Zikri, who volunteered to serve the Lord, led 200,000 skilled warriors.

From Benjamin, Eliada, a skilled warrior, led 200,000 men who were equipped with bows and shields,

and Jehozabad led 180,000 trained warriors.

He also built high places on the hills of Judah; he encouraged the residents of Jerusalem to be unfaithful to the Lord and led Judah away from the Lord.

He did evil in the sight of the Lord like Ahab's dynasty because, after his father's death, they gave him advice that led to his destruction.

Jehoiada and his sons led out the king's son and placed on him the crown and the royal insignia. They proclaimed him king and poured olive oil on his head. They declared, "Long live the king!"

He summoned the officers of the units of hundreds, the nobles, the rulers of the people, and all the people of land, and he then led the king down from the Lord's temple. They entered the royal palace through the Upper Gate and seated the king on the royal throne.

Whenever the Levites brought the chest to the royal accountant and they saw there was a lot of silver, the royal scribe and the accountant of the high priest emptied the chest and then took it back to its place. They went through this routine every day and collected a large amount of silver.

The Lord sent prophets among them to lead them back to him. They warned the people, but they would not pay attention.

Amaziah boldly led his army to the Valley of Salt, where he defeated 10,000 Edomites.

The total number of family leaders who led warriors was 2,600.

He built the Upper Gate to the Lord's temple and did a lot of work on the wall in the area known as Ophel.

Now don't let Hezekiah deceive you or mislead you like this. Don't believe him, for no god of any nation or kingdom has been able to rescue his people from my power or the power of my predecessors. So how can your gods rescue you from my power?'"

Then Shaphan the scribe told the king, "Hilkiah the priest has given me a scroll." Shaphan read it out loud before the king.