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Texts -- 1 Kings 15:5-34 (NET)

Context
15:5 He did this because David had done what he approved and had not disregarded any of his commandments his entire lifetime , except for the incident involving Uriah the Hittite . 15:6 Rehoboam and Jeroboam were continually at war with each other throughout Abijah’s lifetime . 15:7 The rest of the events of Abijah’s reign, including all his accomplishments , are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Judah . Abijah and Jeroboam had been at war with each other. 15:8 Abijah passed away and was buried in the city of David . His son Asa replaced him as king .
Asa’s Reign over Judah
15:9 In the twentieth year of Jeroboam’s reign over Israel , Asa became the king of Judah . 15:10 He ruled for forty-one years in Jerusalem . His grandmother was Maacah daughter of Abishalom . 15:11 Asa did what the Lord approved like his ancestor David had done . 15:12 He removed the male cultic prostitutes from the land and got rid of all the disgusting idols his ancestors had made . 15:13 He also removed Maacah his grandmother from her position as queen because she had made a loathsome Asherah pole . Asa cut down her Asherah pole and burned it in the Kidron Valley . 15:14 The high places were not eliminated , yet Asa was wholeheartedly devoted to the Lord throughout his lifetime . 15:15 He brought the holy items that he and his father had made into the Lord’s temple , including the silver , gold , and other articles . 15:16 Now Asa and King Baasha of Israel were continually at war with each other . 15:17 King Baasha of Israel attacked Judah and established Ramah as a military outpost to prevent anyone from leaving or entering the land of King Asa of Judah . 15:18 Asa took all the silver and gold that was left in the treasuries of the Lord’s temple and of the royal palace and handed it to his servants . He then told them to deliver it to Ben Hadad son of Tabrimmon , the son of Hezion , king of Syria , ruler in Damascus , along with this message : 15:19 “I want to make a treaty with you, like the one our fathers made. See , I have sent you silver and gold as a present . Break your treaty with King Baasha of Israel , so he will retreat from my land.” 15:20 Ben Hadad accepted King Asa’s offer and ordered his army commanders to attack the cities of Israel . They conquered Ijon , Dan , Abel Beth Maacah , and all the territory of Naphtali , including the region of Kinnereth . 15:21 When Baasha heard the news, he stopped fortifying Ramah and settled down in Tirzah . 15:22 King Asa ordered all the men of Judah (no exemptions were granted) to carry away the stones and wood that Baasha had used to build Ramah . King Asa used the materials to build up Geba (in Benjamin ) and Mizpah . 15:23 The rest of the events of Asa’s reign, including all his successes and accomplishments , as well as a record of the cities he built , are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Judah . Yet when he was very old he developed a foot disease . 15:24 Asa passed away and was buried with his ancestors in the city of his ancestor David . His son Jehoshaphat replaced him as king .
Nadab’s Reign over Israel
15:25 In the second year of Asa’s reign over Judah , Jeroboam’s son Nadab became the king of Israel ; he ruled Israel for two years . 15:26 He did evil in the sight of the Lord . He followed in his father’s footsteps and encouraged Israel to sin . 15:27 Baasha son of Ahijah , from the tribe of Issachar , conspired against Nadab and assassinated him in Gibbethon , which was in Philistine territory. This happened while Nadab and all the Israelite army were besieging Gibbethon . 15:28 Baasha killed him in the third year of Asa’s reign over Judah and replaced him as king. 15:29 When he became king , he executed Jeroboam’s entire family . He wiped out everyone who breathed , just as the Lord had predicted through his servant Ahijah the Shilonite . 15:30 This happened because of the sins which Jeroboam committed and which he made Israel commit . These sins angered the Lord God of Israel . 15:31 The rest of the events of Nadab’s reign, including all his accomplishments , are recorded in the scroll called the Annals of the Kings of Israel . 15:32 Asa and King Nadab of Israel were continually at war with each other.
Baasha’s Reign over Israel
15:33 In the third year of Asa’s reign over Judah , Baasha son of Ahijah became king over all Israel in Tirzah ; he ruled for twenty-four years . 15:34 He did evil in the sight of the Lord ; he followed in Jeroboam’s footsteps and encouraged Israel to sin .

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