11Now in the eighteenth*year of KingJeroboam, the son of Nebat, AbijambecamekingoverJudah.
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He reignedthreeyears in Jerusalem; and his mother'sname was 2Maacah the daughter of 3Abishalom.
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He walked in all the sins of his fatherwhich he had committedbefore him; and 4his heart was not whollydevoted to the LORD his God, like the heart of his fatherDavid.
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But for David'ssake the LORD his Godgave him a 5lamp in Jerusalem, to raise up his sonafter him and to establishJerusalem;
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6becauseDaviddidwhat was right in the sight of the LORD, and had not turnedaside from anything that He commanded him all the days of his life, 7except in the case of Uriah the Hittite.
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8There was warbetweenRehoboam and Jeroboamall the days of his life.
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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 warbetweenAbijam and Jeroboam.
Asa Succeeds Abijam
811And Abijamslept with his fathers and they buried him in the city of David; and Asa his sonbecameking in his place.
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So in the twentiethyear of Jeroboam the king of Israel, Asa began to reign as king of Judah.
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He reignedforty-one*years in Jerusalem; and 12his mother'sname was Maacah the daughter of Abishalom.
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13Asadidwhat was right in the sight of the LORD, like David his father.
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14He also putaway the malecultprostitutes from the land and 15removedall the idolswhich his fathers had made.
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16He alsoremovedMaacah his mother from being queenmother, because she had made a horridimage as an Asherah; and Asacutdown her horridimage and 17burned it at the brookKidron.
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18But the highplaces were not takenaway; nevertheless19the heart of Asa was whollydevoted to the LORDall his days.
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20He brought into the house of the LORD the dedicatedthings of his father and his own dedicatedthings: silver and gold and utensils.
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21Now there was warbetweenAsa and Baashaking of Israelall their days.
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22Baashaking of Israelwent up againstJudah and 23fortifiedRamah24in order to prevent* anyone from going out or coming in to Asaking of Judah.
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Then 25Asatookall the silver and the gold which were left in the treasuries of the house of the LORD and the treasuries of the king'shouse, and delivered them into the hand of his servants. And 26KingAsasent them to Ben-hadad the son of Tabrimmon, the son of Hezion, king of Aram, who lived in 27Damascus, saying,
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"Let there be a 28treatybetween you 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 Baashaking of Israel so that he will withdraw from me."
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So Ben-hadadlistened to KingAsa and sent the commanders of his armiesagainst the cities of Israel, and conquered29Ijon, 30Dan, 31Abel-beth-maacah and all32Chinneroth, besidesall the land of Naphtali.
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When Baashaheard of it, 33he ceasedfortifyingRamah and remained in 34Tirzah.
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Then KingAsamade a proclamation to allJudah-none was exempt -and they carried away the stones of Ramah and its timber with whichBaasha had built. And KingAsabuilt with them 35Geba of Benjamin and Mizpah.
In this chapter we have a short history of the reign of Abijam, 1Ki 15:1-8 and of Asa, 1Ki 14:9-24, both kings of Judah; and of the reigns of Nadab the son of Jeroboam, and of Baasha, who destroyed his family, both kings of Israel, 1Ki 15:25-34.