Old/New Testament
Chapter 15
Cult Reform. 1 The Spirit of God then came upon Azariah, the son of Oded. 2 He went out to meet Asa and said to him: “Listen to me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin. The Lord is with you while you are with him. If you seek him, he will permit you to find him, but if you abandon him, he will abandon you. 3 For a long time Israel was without a priest to impart teaching and without the law. 4 However, when in their distress they turned to the Lord, the God of Israel, and sought him, he allowed them to find him.
5 “In those times it was not safe for anyone to come or go, since all the inhabitants of the land were afflicted with massive disturbances, 6 with nations being crushed by other nations and cities by other cities, for God troubled them with every kind of distress. 7 But as for you, be strong and do not be discouraged, for your work shall be rewarded.”
8 When Asa heard these words and the prophecy of Azariah, the son of Oded the prophet, he became resolute in his courage and ordered the removal of the abominable idols throughout the land of Judah and Benjamin as well as from the towns he had captured in the hill country of Ephraim. He also repaired the altar of the Lord which stood in the vestibule of the house of the Lord.
9 Then Asa assembled all the people of Judah and Benjamin, as well as those from Ephraim, Manasseh, and Simeon who were residing among them, since great numbers of people from Israel had deserted to him when they came to realize that the Lord his God was with him. 10 All the people assembled at Jerusalem in the third month of the fifteenth year of Asa’s reign. 11 On that day they sacrificed to the Lord seven hundred oxen and seven thousand sheep from the plunder they had brought back. 12 After that, they entered into a covenant to seek the Lord, the God of their fathers, with all their heart and soul, 13 while asserting that all those who refused to seek the Lord, the God of Israel, were to be put to death, whether young or old, whether man or woman.
14 Then all of them swore an oath to the Lord with a loud voice and shouts of joy, while the trumpets and the horns resounded. 15 All Judah rejoiced over the oath, for they had sworn with all their heart and had sought the Lord with sincere desire. As a result, the Lord had allowed himself to be found by them, and he granted them peace on every side.
16 King Asa even removed his mother Maacah from her position as queen mother because she had made an obscene image for the worship of Asherah. Asa cut it down, crushed it to powder, and burned it in the Kidron Valley. 17 Although he did not remove the high places from Israel, Asa himself remained faithful throughout his life. 18 He brought into the house of God the votive gifts[a] of his father as well as his own votive gifts—silver, gold, and sacred vessels.
19 There was no further warfare until the thirty-fifth year of the reign of Asa.
Chapter 16
Asa’s Infidelity. 1 In the thirty-sixth year of the reign of King Asa, Baasha, the king of Israel, invaded Judah and fortified Ramah to prevent anyone from leaving or entering the kingdom of Asa, the king of Judah. 2 Asa then brought out silver and gold from the treasuries of the house of the Lord and of his own palace, and he sent it to Ben-hadad, the king of Aram, who resided in Damascus.
3 “Let there be an alliance between the two of us,” Asa said, “as there was between my father and your father. Behold, I am sending you silver and gold. In return, I am asking you to break your alliance with Baasha, the king of Israel, so that he will withdraw from me.” 4 Ben-hadad approved the request of King Asa and sent the commanders of his armies against the towns of Israel. They ravaged Ijon, Dan, Abel-maim, and all of the store cities of Naphtali.
5 When Baasha heard this, he discontinued his plan to fortify Ramah, and he abandoned any further improvements. 6 Then King Asa ordered all the men of Judah to remove the stones of Ramah and its timber that Baasha had been using to fortify that place, and he used them instead to fortify Geba and Mizpah.
7 At that time Hanani the seer came to King Asa of Judah and said to him: “Because you relied on the king of Aram and did not rely instead on the Lord, your God, the army of the king of Aram has escaped from your clutches. 8 Did not the Ethiopians and the Libyans have a vast army with great numbers of chariots and cavalry? And yet, when you relied on the Lord, he delivered them into your hands. 9 For the eyes of the Lord range throughout all the earth to strengthen the hearts of those who are totally committed to him. You have acted foolishly in this instance, and from now on you will be forced to endure wars.” 10 Then Asa became enraged at what the seer had said, and he ordered Hanani to be imprisoned in the stocks. Furthermore, at the same time Asa treated some others of his people with great cruelty.
11 The history of the reign of Asa, from beginning to end, is recorded in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel. 12 In the thirty-ninth year of his reign, Asa was gravely afflicted with severe disease in his feet. However, even during his illness he did not seek the help of the Lord but rather resorted to taking the advice of physicians. 13 Then, in the forty-first year of his reign, he died and fell asleep with his ancestors. 14 They buried him in the tomb that he had hewn for himself in the City of David, having laid him on a bier that had been filled with spices and various kinds of perfumes. In addition they also kindled a very great fire in his honor.[b]
27 “Now my soul is troubled.
Yet what should I say:
‘Father, save me from this hour’?
No, it was for this
that I have come to this hour.
28 Father, glorify your name.”
Then a voice came from heaven,
“I have glorified it,
and I will glorify it again.”
29 The crowd that was present heard this, and some of them said that it was thunder, while others asserted, “An angel has spoken to him.” 30 Jesus answered,
“This voice did not come for my sake
but for yours.
31 Now is the judgment on this world.
Now the prince of this world[a]
will be driven out.
32 And when I am lifted up from the earth,
I will draw all to myself.”
33 He said this to indicate the kind of death he was to die.
34 The crowd answered, “Our Law[b] teaches that the Christ will remain forever. How then can you say that the Son of Man must be lifted up? Who is this Son of Man?” 35 Jesus replied,
“The light will be with you
for only a little longer.
Go on your way
while you still have the light,
so that the darkness
will not overtake you.
“Whoever walks in the darkness
does not know where he is going.
36 While you have the light,
believe in the light
so that you may become children of light.”
After Jesus had said this, he departed and hid himself from their sight.
37 The Choice To Believe in the Light.[c] Although he had performed so many signs in their presence, they did not believe in him. 38 This was to fulfill the word of the prophet Isaiah,
“Lord, who has believed our preaching?
To whom has the power of the Lord been revealed?”
39 They therefore could not believe for as Isaiah said,
40 “He has blinded their eyes
and hardened their hearts,
lest they see with their eyes
and understand with their hearts,
and thereby be converted,
so that I could heal them.”[d]
41 Isaiah said this because he saw his glory, and his words referred to him.
42 Nevertheless, there were many, even among the authorities, who believed in him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess their faith in him, for fear of being banned from the synagogue.[e] 43 For they valued human glory more highly than the glory that comes from God.
44 The Choice To Believe in Jesus.[f] Then Jesus cried out,
“Whoever believes in me
believes not only in me
but in him who sent me.
45 And whoever sees me
sees the one who sent me.
46 I have come into the world as light
so that everyone who believes in me
may not have to remain in darkness.
47 [g]“But if anyone listens to my words
and fails to observe them,
I will not pass judgment on him,
for I did not come to judge the world
but to save the world.
48 Anyone who rejects me
and does not accept my words
already has a judge.
On the last day,
the word that I have spoken
will serve as his judge.
49 “For I have not spoken on my own,
but the Father who sent me
has himself given me command
about what I am to say
and how I am to speak.
50 I know that his commandment
is eternal life.
Therefore, what I speak
is what the Father has told me to say.”
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