II Chronicles 16
16
Asa’s Treaty with Syria
1In the thirty-sixth year of the reign of Asa, #1 Kin. 15:17–22Baasha king of Israel came up against Judah and built Ramah, #2 Chr. 15:9that he might let none go out or come in to Asa king of Judah. 2Then Asa brought silver and gold from the treasuries of the house of the Lord and of the king’s house, and sent to Ben-Hadad king of Syria, who dwelt in Damascus, saying, 3“Let there be a treaty between you and me, as there was between my father and your father. See, I have sent you silver and gold; come, break your treaty with Baasha king of Israel, so that he will withdraw from me.”
4So Ben-Hadad heeded King Asa, and sent the captains of his armies against the cities of Israel. They attacked Ijon, Dan, Abel Maim, and all the storage cities of Naphtali. 5Now it happened, when Baasha heard it, that he stopped building Ramah and ceased his work. 6Then King Asa took all Judah, and they carried away the stones and timber of Ramah, which Baasha had used for building; and with them he built Geba and Mizpah.
Hanani’s Message to Asa
7And at that time #1 Kin. 16:1; 2 Chr. 19:2Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah, and said to him: #2 Chr. 32:8–10; Ps. 118:9; (Is. 31:1; Jer. 17:5)“Because you have relied on the king of Syria, and have not relied on the Lord your God, therefore the army of the king of Syria has escaped from your hand. 8Were #2 Chr. 14:9the Ethiopians and #2 Chr. 12:3the Lubim not a huge army with very many chariots and horsemen? Yet, because you relied on the Lord, He delivered them into your #2 Chr. 13:16, 18hand. 9#Job 34:21; (Prov. 5:21; 15:3; Jer. 16:17; 32:19); Zech. 4:10For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him. In this #1 Sam. 13:13you have done foolishly; therefore from now on #1 Kin. 15:32you shall have wars.” 10Then Asa was angry with the seer, and #2 Chr. 18:26; Jer. 20:2; Matt. 14:3put him in prison, for he was enraged at him because of this. And Asa oppressed some of the people at that time.
Illness and Death of Asa
11#1 Kin. 15:23, 24; 2 Chr. 14:2Note that the acts of Asa, first and last, are indeed written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel. 12And in the thirty-ninth year of his reign, Asa became diseased in his feet, and his malady was severe; yet in his disease he #(Jer. 17:5)did not seek the Lord, but the physicians.
13#1 Kin. 15:24So Asa rested with his fathers; he died in the forty-first year of his reign. 14They buried him in his own tomb, which he had made for himself in the City of David; and they laid him in the bed which was filled #Gen. 50:2; Mark 16:1; John 19:39, 40with spices and various ingredients prepared in a mixture of ointments. They made #2 Chr. 21:19; Jer. 34:5a very great burning for him.
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II Chronicles 16: NKJV
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The Holy Bible, New King James Version, Copyright © 1982 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.
2 Chronicles 16
16
Final Years of Asa’s Reign
1In the thirty-sixth year of Asa’s reign, King Baasha of Israel invaded Judah and fortified Ramah in order to prevent anyone from entering or leaving King Asa’s territory in Judah.
2Asa responded by removing the silver and gold from the treasuries of the Temple of the Lord and the royal palace. He sent it to King Ben-hadad of Aram, who was ruling in Damascus, along with this message:
3“Let there be a treaty#16:3 As in Greek version; Hebrew reads There is a treaty. between you and me like the one between your father and my father. See, I am sending you silver and gold. Break your treaty with King Baasha of Israel so that he will leave me alone.”
4Ben-hadad agreed to King Asa’s request and sent the commanders of his army to attack the towns of Israel. They conquered the towns of Ijon, Dan, Abel-beth-maacah,#16:4 As in parallel text at 1 Kgs 15:20; Hebrew reads Abel-maim, another name for Abel-beth-maacah. and all the store cities in Naphtali. 5As soon as Baasha of Israel heard what was happening, he abandoned his project of fortifying Ramah and stopped all work on it. 6Then King Asa called out all the men of Judah to carry away the building stones and timbers that Baasha had been using to fortify Ramah. Asa used these materials to fortify the towns of Geba and Mizpah.
7At that time Hanani the seer came to King Asa and told him, “Because you have put your trust in the king of Aram instead of in the Lord your God, you missed your chance to destroy the army of the king of Aram. 8Don’t you remember what happened to the Ethiopians#16:8a Hebrew Cushites. and Libyans and their vast army, with all of their chariots and charioteers?#16:8b Or and horsemen? At that time you relied on the Lord, and he handed them over to you. 9The eyes of the Lord search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. What a fool you have been! From now on you will be at war.”
10Asa became so angry with Hanani for saying this that he threw him into prison and put him in stocks. At that time Asa also began to oppress some of his people.
Summary of Asa’s Reign
11The rest of the events of Asa’s reign, from beginning to end, are recorded in The Book of the Kings of Judah and Israel. 12In the thirty-ninth year of his reign, Asa developed a serious foot disease. Yet even with the severity of his disease, he did not seek the Lord’s help but turned only to his physicians. 13So he died in the forty-first year of his reign. 14He was buried in the tomb he had carved out for himself in the City of David. He was laid on a bed perfumed with sweet spices and fragrant ointments, and the people built a huge funeral fire in his honor.
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