1 Kings 15:11-15

15:11 Asa did what the Lord approved ¹  like his ancestor ²  David had done. 15:12 He removed the male cultic prostitutes from the land and got rid of all the disgusting idols ³  his ancestors ⁴  had made. 15:13 He also removed Maacah his grandmother ⁵  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. ⁶  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. ⁷ 

[15:11]  ¹ tn Heb “what was right in the eyes of the Lord.”

[15:11]  ² tn Heb “father,” but Hebrew often uses the terms “father” and “mother” for grandparents and more remote ancestors.

[15:12]  ³ tn The word used here, גִלּוּלִים [gillulim], is always used as a disdainful reference to idols. It is generally thought to have originally referred to “dung pellets” (cf. KBL 183 s.v. גִלּוּלִים). It is only one of several terms used in this way, such as “worthless things” (אֱלִילִים, ’elilim), “vanities” or “empty winds” (הֲבָלִים, havalim).

[15:12]  ⁴ tn Heb “fathers” (also in v. 24).

[15:13]  ⁵ tn Heb “mother,” but Hebrew often uses the terms “father” and “mother” for grandparents and more remote ancestors.

[15:14]  ⁶ tn Heb “yet the heart of Asa was complete with the Lord all his days.”

[15:15]  ⁷ tn Heb “and he brought the holy things of his father and his holy things (into) the house of the Lord, silver, gold, and items.” Instead of “his holy things,” a marginal reading (Qere) in the Hebrew text has “the holy things of [the house of the Lord].”