1 Kings 15 (New American Standard)

Abijam Reigns over Judah

1 ¹Now in the eighteenth year of King Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, Abijam became king over Judah. 2 He reigned three years in Jerusalem ; and his mother's name was ^a2Maacah the daughter of ^b3Abishalom. 3 He walked in all the sins of his father which he had committed before him; and ⁴his heart was not ^cwholly devoted to the LORD his God, like the heart of his father David. 4 But for David's sake the LORD his God gave him a ⁵lamp in Jerusalem, to raise up his son after him and to establish Jerusalem ; 5 ⁶because David did what was right in the sight of the LORD, and had not turned aside from anything that He commanded him all the days of his life, ⁷except in the case of Uriah the Hittite. 6 ⁸There was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all the days of his life. 7 Now ⁹the rest of the acts of Abijam and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah ? ¹⁰And there was war between Abijam and Jeroboam.

Asa Succeeds Abijam

8 ¹¹And Abijam slept with his fathers and they buried him in the city of David ; and Asa his son became king in his place. 9 So in the twentieth year of Jeroboam the king of Israel, Asa began to reign as king of Judah. 10 He reigned forty-one years in Jerusalem ; and ¹²his mother's name was Maacah the daughter of Abishalom. 11 ¹³Asa did what was right in the sight of the LORD, like David his father. 12 ¹⁴He also put away the male cult prostitutes from the land and ¹⁵removed all the idols which his fathers had made. 13 ^d16He also removed Maacah his mother from being queen mother, because she had made a horrid image ^eas an Asherah ; and Asa cut down her horrid image and ¹⁷burned it at the brook Kidron. 14 ¹⁸But the high places were not taken away ; nevertheless ¹⁹the heart of Asa was ^fwholly devoted to the LORD all his days. 15 ²⁰He brought into the house of the LORD the dedicated things of his father and his own dedicated things : silver and gold and utensils. 16 ²¹Now there was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel all their days. 17 ²²Baasha king of Israel went up against Judah and ^g23fortified Ramah ²⁴in order to prevent anyone from going out or coming in to Asa king of Judah. 18 Then ²⁵Asa took all the silver and the gold which were left in the treasuries of the house of the LORD and the treasuries of the king's house, and delivered them into the hand of his servants. And ²⁶King Asa sent them to Ben-hadad the son of Tabrimmon, the son of Hezion, king of Aram, who lived in ²⁷Damascus, saying, 19 "Let there be a ²⁸treaty between ^hyou and me, as between my father and your father. Behold, I have sent you a present of silver and gold ; go, break your treaty with Baasha king of Israel so that he will withdraw from me." 20 So Ben-hadad listened to King Asa and sent the commanders of his armies against the cities of Israel, and ⁱconquered ²⁹Ijon, ³⁰Dan, ³¹Abel-beth-maacah and all ³²Chinneroth, besides all the land of Naphtali. 21 When Baasha heard of it, ³³he ceased ^jfortifying Ramah and remained in ³⁴Tirzah. 22 Then King Asa made a proclamation to all Judah -none was exempt -and they carried away the stones of Ramah and its timber with which Baasha had built. And King Asa built with them ³⁵Geba of Benjamin and Mizpah.

Jehoshaphat Succeeds Asa

23 ³⁶Now the rest of all the acts of Asa and all his might and all that he did and the cities which he built, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Judah ? But in the time of his old age he was diseased in his feet. 24 And Asa slept with his fathers and was buried with his fathers in the city of David his father ; and ³⁷Jehoshaphat his son reigned in his place.

Nadab, then Baasha, Rules over Israel

25 Now ³⁸Nadab the son of Jeroboam became king over Israel in the second year of Asa king of Judah, and he reigned over Israel two years. 26 He did evil in the sight of the LORD, and ³⁹walked in the way of his father and ⁴⁰in his sin which he made Israel sin. 27 Then ⁴¹Baasha the son of Ahijah of the house of Issachar conspired against him, and Baasha struck him down at ⁴²Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines, while Nadab and all Israel were laying siege to Gibbethon. 28 So Baasha killed him in the third year of Asa king of Judah and reigned in his place. 29 It came about as soon as he was king, he struck down all the household of Jeroboam. He did not leave to Jeroboam ^kany persons alive, until he had destroyed them, ⁴³according to the word of the LORD, which He spoke by His servant Ahijah the Shilonite, 30 and because of the sins of Jeroboam which he sinned, and ⁴⁴which he made Israel sin, because of his provocation with which he provoked the LORD God of Israel to anger. 31 ⁴⁵Now the rest of the acts of Nadab and all that he did, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel ?

War with Judah

32 ⁴⁶There was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel all their days. 33 In the third year of Asa king of Judah, Baasha the son of Ahijah became king over all Israel at Tirzah, and reigned twenty-four years. 34 He did evil in the sight of the LORD, and ⁴⁷walked in the way of Jeroboam and in his sin which he made Israel sin.