1[1] Abijah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David. And Asa his son reigned in his place. In his days the land had rest for ten years. (1Ki 15:8)2[2] And Asa did what was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God.3He took away the foreign altars and the high places and broke down the pillars and cut down the Asherim (Ex 23:24; Ex 34:13; 1Ki 15:14; 2Ch 15:17)4and commanded Judah to seek the Lord, the God of their fathers, and to keep the law and the commandment.5He also took out of all the cities of Judah the high places and the incense altars. And the kingdom had rest under him. (Le 26:30; 2Ch 14:3; 2Ch 34:4; 2Ch 34:7; Isa 17:8; Isa 27:9; Eze 6:4; Eze 6:6)6He built fortified cities in Judah, for the land had rest. He had no war in those years, for the Lord gave him peace. (2Ch 11:5; 2Ch 15:15; 2Ch 20:30)7And he said to Judah, “Let us build these cities and surround them with walls and towers, gates and bars. The land is still ours, because we have sought the Lord our God. We have sought him, and he has given us peace on every side.” So they built and prospered. (2Ch 8:5; 2Ch 14:6)8And Asa had an army of 300,000 from Judah, armed with large shields and spears, and 280,000 men from Benjamin that carried shields and drew bows. All these were mighty men of valor. (2Ch 13:3)9Zerah the Ethiopian came out against them with an army of a million men and 300 chariots, and came as far as Mareshah. (Jos 15:44; 2Ch 11:8; 2Ch 12:3; 2Ch 16:8)10And Asa went out to meet him, and they drew up their lines of battle in the Valley of Zephathah at Mareshah. (2Ch 13:3; 2Ch 14:9)11And Asa cried to the Lord his God, “O Lord, there is none like you to help, between the mighty and the weak. Help us, O Lord our God, for we rely on you, and in your name we have come against this multitude. O Lord, you are our God; let not man prevail against you.” (Ex 14:10; 1Sa 17:45; 2Ch 13:14; 2Ch 13:18)12So the Lord defeated the Ethiopians before Asa and before Judah, and the Ethiopians fled. (2Ch 13:15)13Asa and the people who were with him pursued them as far as Gerar, and the Ethiopians fell until none remained alive, for they were broken before the Lord and his army. The men of Judah[3] carried away very much spoil. (Ge 10:19; Ge 20:1; Ge 26:1; Ge 26:6)14And they attacked all the cities around Gerar, for the fear of the Lord was upon them. They plundered all the cities, for there was much plunder in them. (Ge 35:5; 2Ch 14:13; 2Ch 17:10; 2Ch 20:29)15And they struck down the tents of those who had livestock and carried away sheep in abundance and camels. Then they returned to Jerusalem.
2 Chronicles 14
New International Version
from Biblica1[1] And Abijah rested with his ancestors and was buried in the City of David. Asa his son succeeded him as king, and in his days the country was at peace for ten years.
Asa king of Judah
2Asa did what was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God.3He removed the foreign altars and the high places, smashed the sacred stones and cut down the Asherah poles.[2]4He commanded Judah to seek the Lord, the God of their ancestors, and to obey his laws and commands.5He removed the high places and incense altars in every town in Judah, and the kingdom was at peace under him.6He built up the fortified cities of Judah, since the land was at peace. No-one was at war with him during those years, for the Lord gave him rest.7‘Let us build up these towns,’ he said to Judah, ‘and put walls round them, with towers, gates and bars. The land is still ours, because we have sought the Lord our God; we sought him and he has given us rest on every side.’ So they built and prospered.8Asa had an army of three hundred thousand men from Judah, equipped with large shields and with spears, and two hundred and eighty thousand from Benjamin, armed with small shields and with bows. All these were brave fighting men.9Zerah the Cushite marched out against them with an army of thousands upon thousands and three hundred chariots, and came as far as Mareshah.10Asa went out to meet him, and they took up battle positions in the Valley of Zephathah near Mareshah.11Then Asa called to the Lord his God and said, ‘Lord, there is no-one like you to help the powerless against the mighty. Help us, Lord our God, for we rely on you, and in your name we have come against this vast army. Lord, you are our God; do not let mere mortals prevail against you.’12The Lord struck down the Cushites before Asa and Judah. The Cushites fled,13and Asa and his army pursued them as far as Gerar. Such a great number of Cushites fell that they could not recover; they were crushed before the Lord and his forces. The men of Judah carried off a large amount of plunder.14They destroyed all the villages around Gerar, for the terror of the Lord had fallen on them. They looted all these villages, since there was much plunder there.15They also attacked the camps of the herdsmen and carried off droves of sheep and goats and camels. Then they returned to Jerusalem.
2 Chronicles 14
King James Version
1So Abijah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David: and Asa his son reigned in his stead. In his days the land was quiet ten years.2And Asa did that which was good and right in the eyes of the LORD his God:3For he took away the altars of the strange gods , and the high places, and brake down the images, and cut down the groves:4And commanded Judah to seek the LORD God of their fathers, and to do the law and the commandment.5Also he took away out of all the cities of Judah the high places and the images: and the kingdom was quiet before him.6And he built fenced cities in Judah: for the land had rest, and he had no war in those years; because the LORD had given him rest.7Therefore he said unto Judah, Let us build these cities, and make about them walls, and towers, gates, and bars, while the land is yet before us; because we have sought the LORD our God, we have sought him , and he hath given us rest on every side. So they built and prospered.8And Asa had an army of men that bare targets and spears, out of Judah three hundred thousand; and out of Benjamin, that bare shields and drew bows, two hundred and fourscore thousand: all these were mighty men of valour.9And there came out against them Zerah the Ethiopian with an host of a thousand thousand, and three hundred chariots; and came unto Mareshah.10Then Asa went out against him, and they set the battle in array in the valley of Zephathah at Mareshah.11And Asa cried unto the LORD his God, and said, LORD, it is nothing with thee to help, whether with many, or with them that have no power: help us, O LORD our God; for we rest on thee, and in thy name we go against this multitude. O LORD, thou art our God; let not man prevail against thee.12So the LORD smote the Ethiopians before Asa, and before Judah; and the Ethiopians fled.13And Asa and the people that were with him pursued them unto Gerar: and the Ethiopians were overthrown, that they could not recover themselves; for they were destroyed before the LORD, and before his host; and they carried away very much spoil.14And they smote all the cities round about Gerar; for the fear of the LORD came upon them: and they spoiled all the cities; for there was exceeding much spoil in them.15They smote also the tents of cattle, and carried away sheep and camels in abundance, and returned to Jerusalem.
2 Chronicles 14
New International Reader’s Version
from Biblica1Abijah joined the members of his family who had already died. He was buried in the City of David. Abijah’s son Asa became the next king after him. While Asa was king, the country had peace and rest for ten years.
Asa becomes king of Judah
2Asa did what was good and right in the eyes of the LORD his God.3Asa removed the altars where false gods were worshipped. He took away the high places. He smashed the sacred stones. He cut down the poles used to worship the female god named Asherah.4He commanded Judah to worship the LORD, the God of their people. He commanded them to obey the LORD’s laws and commands.5Asa removed the high places and incense altars from every town in Judah. The kingdom had peace and rest under his rule.6He built up the cities of Judah that had high walls around them. The land was at peace. No one was at war with Asa during those years. That’s because the LORD gave him peace and rest.7‘Let’s build up our towns,’ Asa said to the people of Judah. ‘Let’s put walls around them. Let’s provide them with towers. Let’s make them secure with gates that have heavy metal bars. The land still belongs to us. That’s because we’ve trusted in the LORD our God. We trusted in him, and he has given us peace and rest on every side.’ So they built. And things went well for them.8Asa had an army of 300,000 men from Judah. They carried spears and large shields. There were 280,000 men from Benjamin. They were armed with bows and small shields. All these men were brave soldiers.9Zerah marched out against them. He was from Cush. He had a huge army of thousands. He also had 300 chariots. They came all the way to Mareshah.10Asa went out to meet Zerah in battle. They took up their positions in the Valley of Zephathah. It’s near Mareshah.11Then Asa called out to the LORD his God. He said, ‘LORD, there isn’t anyone like you. You help the weak against the strong. LORD our God, help us. We trust in you. In your name we have come out to fight against this huge army. LORD, you are our God. Don’t let mere human beings win the battle over you.’12The LORD struck down the men of Cush for Asa and Judah. The Cushites ran away.13Asa and his army chased them all the way to Gerar. A large number of Cushites fell down wounded or dead. So they couldn’t fight back. The LORD and his army crushed them. The men of Judah carried off a large amount of goods.14They destroyed all the villages around Gerar. The LORD had made the people in those villages afraid of him. The men of Judah took everything from all the villages.15They also attacked the camps of those who took care of the herds. They carried off large numbers of sheep, goats and camels. Then they returned to Jerusalem.