1In the eighteenth year of the reign of Jeroboam son of Nebat, Abijah became king over Judah.

2He ruled for three years in Jerusalem. His mother was Maacah, the daughter of Abishalom.

3He followed all the sinful practices of his father before him. He was not wholeheartedly devoted to the Lord his God, as his ancestor David had been.

4Nevertheless for David’s sake the Lord his God maintained his dynasty in Jerusalem by giving him a son to succeed him and by protecting Jerusalem.

5He 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.

6Rehoboam and Jeroboam were continually at war with each other throughout Abijah’s lifetime.

7The 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.

8Abijah passed away and was buried in the city of David. His son Asa replaced him as king.

Asa’s Reign over Judah

9In the twentieth year of Jeroboam’s reign over Israel, Asa became the king of Judah.

10He ruled for forty-one years in Jerusalem. His grandmother was Maacah daughter of Abishalom.

11Asa did what the Lord approved like his ancestor David had done.

12He removed the male cultic prostitutes from the land and got rid of all the disgusting idols his ancestors had made.

13He 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.

14The high places were not eliminated, yet Asa was wholeheartedly devoted to the Lord throughout his lifetime.

15He brought the holy items that he and his father had made into the Lord’s temple, including the silver, gold, and other articles.

16Now Asa and King Baasha of Israel were continually at war with each other.

17King 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.

18Asa 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:

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.”

20Ben 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.

21When Baasha heard the news, he stopped fortifying Ramah and settled down in Tirzah.

22King 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.

23The 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.

24Asa 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

25In the second year of Asa’s reign over Judah, Jeroboam’s son Nadab became the king of Israel; he ruled Israel for two years.

26He did evil in the sight of the Lord. He followed in his father’s footsteps and encouraged Israel to sin.

27Baasha 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.

28Baasha killed him in the third year of Asa’s reign over Judah and replaced him as king.

29When 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.

30This happened because of the sins which Jeroboam committed and which he made Israel commit. These sins angered the Lord God of Israel.

31The 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.

32Asa and King Nadab of Israel were continually at war with each other.

Baasha’s Reign over Israel

33In 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.

34He did evil in the sight of the Lord; he followed in Jeroboam’s footsteps and encouraged Israel to sin.