2 Chronicles 14 - New Living Translation (NLT)

Early Years of Asa’s Reign

14 [a]When Abijah died, he was buried in the City of David. Then his son Asa became the next king. There was peace in the land for ten years. 2 [b]Asa did what was pleasing and good in the sight of the Lord his God. 3 He removed the foreign altars and the pagan shrines. He smashed the sacred pillars and cut down the Asherah poles. 4 He commanded the people of Judah to seek the Lord, the God of their ancestors, and to obey his law and his commands. 5 Asa also removed the pagan shrines, as well as the incense altars from every one of Judah’s towns. So Asa’s kingdom enjoyed a period of peace. 6 During those peaceful years, he was able to build up the fortified towns throughout Judah. No one tried to make war against him at this time, for the Lord was giving him rest from his enemies.

7 Asa told the people of Judah, “Let us build towns and fortify them with walls, towers, gates, and bars. The land is still ours because we sought the Lord our God, and he has given us peace on every side.” So they went ahead with these projects and brought them to completion.

8 King Asa had an army of 300,000 warriors from the tribe of Judah, armed with large shields and spears. He also had an army of 280,000 warriors from the tribe of Benjamin, armed with small shields and bows. Both armies were composed of well-trained fighting men.

9 Once an Ethiopian[c] named Zerah attacked Judah with an army of 1,000,000 men[d] and 300 chariots. They advanced to the town of Mareshah, 10 so Asa deployed his armies for battle in the valley north of Mareshah.[e] 11 Then Asa cried out to the Lord his God, “O Lord, no one but you can help the powerless against the mighty! Help us, O Lord our God, for we trust in you alone. It is in your name that we have come against this vast horde. O Lord, you are our God; do not let mere men prevail against you!”

12 So the Lord defeated the Ethiopians[f] in the presence of Asa and the army of Judah, and the enemy fled. 13 Asa and his army pursued them as far as Gerar, and so many Ethiopians fell that they were unable to rally. They were destroyed by the Lord and his army, and the army of Judah carried off a vast amount of plunder.

14 While they were at Gerar, they attacked all the towns in that area, and terror from the Lord came upon the people there. As a result, a vast amount of plunder was taken from these towns, too. 15 They also attacked the camps of herdsmen and captured many sheep, goats, and camels before finally returning to Jerusalem.

Footnotes

  1. 14:1 Verse 14:1 is numbered 13:23 in Hebrew text.
  2. 14:2 Verses 14:2-15 are numbered 14:1-14 in Hebrew text.
  3. 14:9a Hebrew a Cushite.
  4. 14:9b Or an army of thousands and thousands; Hebrew reads an army of a thousand thousands.
  5. 14:10 As in Greek version; Hebrew reads valley of Zephathah near Mareshah.
  6. 14:12 Hebrew Cushites; also in 14:13.

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14 And Abijah lieth with his fathers, and they bury him in the city of David, and reign doth Asa his son in his stead: in his days was the land quiet ten years. 2 And Asa doth that which is good, and that which is right, in the eyes of Jehovah his God, 3 and turneth aside the altars of the stranger,...
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14 And Abijah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David; and Asa, his son, reigned for him. In whose days the land rested in peace ten years (In whose days the land was at peace for ten years). 2 And Asa did that, that was good and pleasant in the sight of his God, (And Asa di...
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2 Chronicles 14 - World English Bible (WEB)

14 So Abijah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in David’s city; and Asa his son reigned in his place. In his days, the land was quiet ten years. 2 Asa did that which was good and right in Yahweh his God’s eyes; 3 for he took away the foreign altars and the high places, broke down the pil...
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2 Chronicles 14 - Tree of Life Version (TLV)

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2 Chronicles 14 - Revised Standard Version (RSV)

Asa Reigns14 [a] So Abi′jah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David; and Asa his son reigned in his stead. In his days the land had rest for ten years. 2 [b] And Asa did what was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God. 3 He took away the foreign altars and the high...
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2 Chronicles 14 - New Living Translation (NLT)

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2 Chronicles 14 - New Life Version (NLV)

King Asa Rules in Judah14 Abijah died and they buried him in the city of David. His son Asa became king in his place. In his days the land had peace ten years. 2 Asa did what was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God. 3 For he put away the strange altars and high places. He tore down the p...
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