Asa’s Changes

15 The Spirit of God ·entered [came upon] Azariah son of Oded. ² Azariah went to meet Asa and said, “Listen to me, Asa and all you people of Judah and Benjamin. The Lord ·is [will be] with you when you are with him. If you ·obey [seek] him, you will find him, but if you ·leave [abandon; forsake] him, he will ·leave [abandon; forsake] you. ³ For a long time Israel was without the true God and without a priest to ·teach [instruct] them and without the ·teachings [instructions; laws]. ⁴ But ·when they were in trouble [in their distress], they turned to the Lord, the God of Israel. They ·looked for [sought] him and found him. ⁵ In those days no one could travel safely. There was ·much trouble [turmoil; total chaos] in ·all the nations [every land]. ⁶ One nation would ·destroy [crush] another nation, and one city would ·destroy [crush] another city, because God ·troubled [confused] them with all kinds of distress. ⁷ But you should be strong. Don’t ·give up [be discouraged], because you will be rewarded for your good work.”

⁸ Asa ·felt brave [was encouraged] when he heard these words and the ·message [prophecy] from Azariah son of Oded the prophet. So he removed the ·hateful [detestable; abominable] idols from all the land of Judah and Benjamin and from the towns he had captured in the hills of Ephraim. He ·repaired [restored] the Lord’s altar that was in front of the ·porch [portico; vestibule; entry room] of the ·Temple [^Lhouse] of the Lord.

⁹ Then Asa gathered all the people from Judah and Benjamin and from the tribes of Ephraim, Manasseh, and Simeon who were living in Judah. Many people ·came [defected; deserted] to Asa even from Israel, ·because [when] they saw that the Lord, Asa’s God, was with him.

¹⁰ Asa and these people ·gathered [assembled] in Jerusalem in the third month [^Clate spring] of the fifteenth year of Asa’s ·rule [reign]. ¹¹ ·At that time [^LOn that day] they sacrificed to the Lord seven hundred ·bulls [oxen] and seven thousand sheep and goats from the ·valuable things Asa’s army had taken from their enemies [plunder/spoil they had brought back]. ¹² Then they made an ·agreement [covenant; treaty] to ·obey [seek] the Lord, the God of their ·ancestors [fathers], with their whole ·being [^Lheart and soul]. ¹³ Anyone who refused to ·obey [seek] the Lord, the God of Israel, was to be ·killed [executed; put to death]. It did not matter if that person was ·important [great] or ·unimportant [small], a man or woman. ¹⁴ Then Asa and the people ·made a promise before [swore allegiance/an oath/a vow to] the Lord, shouting with a loud voice and blowing trumpets and sheep’s horns. ¹⁵ All the people of Judah ·were happy about [rejoiced over] the ·promise [vow; oath], because they had ·promised [vowed; sworn] with all their heart. They ·looked for [earnestly sought] God and found him. So the Lord gave them ·peace [rest] ·in all the country [on every side].

The Removal of Maacah^(A)

¹⁶ King Asa also removed Maacah, his ·grandmother [^Lmother], from being queen mother, because she had made a ·terrible [obscene; repulsive; loathsome; abominable] Asherah ·idol [pole; 14:3]. Asa cut down that idol, ·smashed it into pieces, [and crushed] and burned it in the Kidron Valley. ¹⁷ But the ·places of worship to gods [^Lhigh places; 11:15] were not removed from ·Judah [^LIsrael; 12:6]. Even so, Asa was ·faithful [wholeheartedly loyal/devoted] all his life.

¹⁸ Asa brought into the ·Temple [^Lhouse] of God the ·gifts [dedicated/holy things] he and his father had given: silver, gold, and ·utensils [articles].

¹⁹ There was no more war until the thirty-fifth year of Asa’s ·rule [reign].