Eventually, Abijah died, as did his ancestors, and he was buried in the City of David. His son Asa succeeded him as king.

Asa began to reign as Judah's king during the twentieth year of the reign of Jeroboam as king over Israel.

Asa practiced what the LORD considered to be right, just like his ancestor David.

He removed his mother Maacah from her position as Queen Mother because she had made a detestable image dedicated to Asherah. Asa cut down his mother's idol, crushed it, and burned it at the Kidron Brook.

Nevertheless, the high places were not removed, even though Asa's heart was blameless toward the LORD all of his life.

Asa brought into the LORD's Temple the things that his father had dedicated, as well as his own dedicated gifts such as silver, gold, and temple service implements.

A state of continual military unrest existed between Asa and King Baasha of Israel throughout their lifetimes.

King Baasha of Israel invaded Judah and interdicted Ramah by building fortifications around it so no one could enter or leave to join King Asa of Judah.

But Asa removed all the silver and gold from the treasuries of the Lord's Temple and from his royal palace, placed them into the care of some servants, and then sent them to Tabrimmon's son King Ben-hadad of Aram, the grandson of Hezion, who lived in Damascus.

So King Ben-hadad did just what King Asa had asked: he sent his commanding officers to attack the cities of Israel, conquering Ijon, Dan, Abel-beth-maacah, all of Chinneroth, and the territory of Naphtali.

so King Asa published a proclamation throughout Judah (no one was left out) and they carried away the stones and timber with which Baasha had been fortifying Judah. King Asa used them to fortify Geba in Benjamin and Mizpah.

The rest of Asa's accomplishments, his strength, everything that he undertook, and the cities that he fortified are written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah, are they not? However, as he approached old age, he became diseased in his feet.

Then Asa died, as had his ancestors, and he was buried with his ancestors in the City of David, his ancestor. His son Jehoshaphat reigned in his place.

Jeroboam's son Nadab became king over Israel during the second year of the reign of King Asa over Judah. He reigned over Israel for two years,

Baasha killed him during the third year of the reign of King Asa of Judah and took Nadab's place as king.

Meanwhile, a state of war continued to exist between Asa and Baasha king of Israel, throughout their reigns.

During the third year of the reign of King Asa of Judah, Ahijah's son Baasha became king over all of Israel. He reigned for 24 years at Tirzah.

During the twenty-sixth year of the reign of King Asa of Judah, Baasha's son Elah became king over Israel and reigned at Tirzah for two years.

Zimri went inside, attacked him, and killed him in the twenty-seventh year of the reign of King Asa of Judah, and then became king in Elah's place.

Zimri reigned for seven days at Tirzah during the twenty-seventh year of the reign of King Asa of Judah. At that time, the army was encamped in a siege against Gibbethon of Philistia.

During the thirty-first year of the reign of King Asa of Judah, Omri became king over Israel. He reigned for twelve years, six of them at Tirzah.

Omri's son Ahab became king over Israel in the thirty-eighth year of King Asa of Judah. He reigned over Israel in Samaria for 22 years.

Asa's son Jehoshaphat became king over Judah during the fourth year of the reign of King Ahab of Israel.

He lived like his father Asa and never abandoned that life. He did what the LORD considered to be right. Nevertheless, the high places were not demolished, and the people continued to sacrifice and burn incense on the high places.

He also eliminated the male cult prostitutes who still remained from the time of his father Asa.

Solomon's descendants included Rehoboam, his son Abijah, his son Asa, his son Jehoshaphat,

and Shemaiah's son Obadiah, who was the grandson of Galal, who was fathered by Jeduthun, and Asa's son Berechiah, who was the grandson of Elkanah, who lived in the villages of the Netophathites.

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.

Asa practiced what the LORD his God considered to be right

He also removed the high places and incense altars from all of the cities of Judah. As a result, the kingdom enjoyed rest under Asa's leadership.

Asa built fortified cities throughout Judah while the land lay undisturbed, because the LORD had given him peace so that no one went to war against him during those years.

Asa kept a standing army of 300,000 soldiers from Judah equipped with large shields and spears, as well as 280,000 soldiers from Benjamin, also bearing shields and wielding bows. All of them were valiant soldiers.

Asa went out to engage him in battle, and they drew up their battle lines at Mareshah in the Zephathah Valley.

Asa cried out to the LORD his God, telling him, "LORD, there is no one except for you to help between the powerful and the weak. So help us, LORD God, because we're depending on you and have come against this vast group in your name. LORD, you are our God. Let no mere mortal man defeat you!"

So the Lord defeated the Ethiopians right in front of Asa and Judah, and the Ethiopians ran away.

Asa and his army pursued the Ethiopians as far as Gerar. So many Ethiopians died that their army could not recover, because it had been shattered in the LORD's presence and in the presence of his army. The Israelis carried off a lot of plunder, too.

so he went out to meet Asa and rebuked him:

"Listen to me, Asa, Judah, and Benjamin! The LORD is with you when you are with him. If you seek him, he will allow you to find him, but if you abandon him, he will abandon you. Israel lived for years without the true God, priests to teach them, and the Law,

Encouraged by what Oded's son Azariah the prophet had said in his prophecy, Asa removed the detestable idols from throughout the entire territories of Judah and Benjamin, and from the cities that he had captured in the hill country of Ephraim. He repaired the LORD's altar that stood in front of the vestibule of the LORD's Temple.

They all assembled in Jerusalem during the third month of the fifteenth year of Asa's reign.

King Asa removed his mother Maacah from her position as Queen Mother because she had made a detestable image dedicated to Asherah. He cut down his mother's idol, crushed it, and burned it at the Kidron Brook.

Nevertheless, the high places were not removed from Israel, even though Asa's heart was blameless all of his life.

Asa brought into God's Temple the things that his father had dedicated, as well as his own dedicated gifts such as silver, gold, and temple service implements.

Asa experienced no more war until the end of the thirty-fifth year of his reign.

During the thirty-sixth year of Asa's reign, King Baasha of Israel invaded Judah and interdicted Ramah by building fortifications around it so no one could enter or leave to join King Asa of Judah.

But Asa removed some silver and gold from the treasuries of the LORD's Temple and from his royal palace and sent them to King Ben-hadad of Aram, who lived in Damascus.

So King Ben-hadad did just what King Asa had asked: he sent his commanding officers to attack the cities of Israel. They conquered Ijon, Dan, Bel-maim, and all of the storage centers in Naphtali.

Then King Asa brought his entire army of Judah to carry away the building stones and the timber that Baasha had been using to surround Ramah, and he used those materials to fortify Geba and Mizpah.

Right about then, Hanani the seer came to King Asa of Judah and rebuked him. "Because you have put your trust in the king of Aram and have not relied on the LORD your God, the army of the king of Aram has escaped from your control.

In response, Asa flew into a rage and locked up the seer in stocks in the palace prison because of what Hanani had told him. Asa also tortured some of the people of Israel at that time.

Now the accomplishments of Asa from first to last are written in the Book of the Kings of Judah.

In the thirty-ninth year of his reign, Asa suffered from a foot disease. Even though he suffered greatly, he never sought the LORD, but instead looked to doctors.

As a result, in the forty-first year of his reign, Asa died, as had his ancestors,

Asa's son Jehoshaphat succeeded him as king, and he consolidated his authority over Israel

by placing troops in all of the fortified citadels through Judah and by establishing garrisons throughout the land of Judah and in the cities that his father Asa had captured.

He followed the example of his father Asa and never departed from it, practicing what the LORD considered to be right.

"This is what the LORD God of your ancestor David says: "You haven't lived like your father Jehoshaphat and like King Asa of Judah. Instead, you have lived like the kings of Israel by causing Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem to commit cultic sexual immorality just like Ahab's dynasty did! And you've killed your brothers who were better than you your own father's dynasty!

Ishmael threw the bodies of the men he killed on account of Gedaliah into the cistern that King Asa had made for protection against King Baasha of Israel. That is the same one Nethaniah's son Ishmael filled with those he killed.