2 Chronicles 15

1 Now the Spirit of God came upon Azariah son of Oded.

And as for 'Azaryahu the son of 'Oded—on him came the spirit of God;

2 So he went out to meet Asa and said to him, “Listen to me, Asa and all Judah and Benjamin. The LORD is with you when you are with Him. If you seek Him, He will be found by you, but if you forsake Him, He will forsake you.

And he went out to meet Assa, and said unto him, Hear me, O Assa, and all Judah and Benjamin, The Lord is with you, while ye remain with him; and if ye seek him, he will let himself be found by you; but if ye forsake him, he will forsake you.

3 For many years Israel has been without the true God, without a priest to instruct them, and without the law.

And many days [had elapsed] for Israel, [they being] without the true God, and without a teaching priest, and without law.

4 But in their distress they turned to the LORD, the God of Israel, and sought Him, and He was found by them.

But they returned when they were in distress unto the Lord, the God of Israel, and they sought him, and he let himself be found by them.

5 In those days there was no safety for travelers, because the residents of the lands had many conflicts.

And in those times there was no peace to him that went out, and to him that came in; but there were great confusions among all the inhabitants of the countries.

6 Nation was crushed by nation, and city by city, for God afflicted them with all kinds of adversity.

And nation was dashed to pieces against nation, and city against city; for God did confound them with all kind of distress.

7 But as for you, be strong; do not be discouraged, for your work will be rewarded.”

But as for you, be ye strong, and let not your hands be weak; for there is a reward for your doing.

8 When Asa heard these words and the prophecy of Azariah son of Oded the prophet, he took courage and removed the detestable idols from the whole land of Judah and Benjamin and from the cities he had captured in the hill country of Ephraim. He then restored the altar of the LORD that was in front of the portico of the LORD’s temple.

And when Assa heard these words, and the prophecy of 'Oded the prophet, he was strengthened, and he put away the abominable idols out of all the land of Judah and Benjamin, and out of the cities which he had captured from the mountain of Ephraim; and he renewed the altar of the Lord, that was before the porch of the Lord.

9 And he assembled all Judah and Benjamin, along with those from the tribes of Ephraim, Manasseh, and Simeon who had settled among them, for great numbers had come over to him from Israel when they saw that the LORD his God was with him.

And he assembled all Judah and Benjamin, and those that sojourned with them out of Ephraim and Menasseh, and out of Simeon; for they had joined him out of Israel in abundance, when they saw that the Lord his God was with him.

10 So they gathered together in Jerusalem in the third month of the fifteenth year of Asa’s reign.

And so they assembled themselves at Jerusalem in the third month, in the fifteenth year of the reign of Assa.

11 At that time they sacrificed to the LORD seven hundred oxen and seven thousand sheep from all the plunder they had brought back.

And they sacrificed unto the Lord on the same day, of the booty which they had brought, seven hundred oxen and seven thousand sheep.

12 Then they entered into a covenant to seek the LORD, the God of their fathers, with all their heart and soul.

And they entered into the covenant to seek the Lord the God of their fathers with all their heart and with all their soul;

13 And whoever would not seek the LORD, the God of Israel, would be put to death, whether young or old, man or woman.

So that whosoever would not seek the Lord the God of Israel should be put to death, from the small even up to the great, whether it be man or woman.

14 They took an oath to the LORD with a loud voice, with shouting, trumpets, and rams’ horns.

And they swore unto the Lord with a loud voice, and with [joyful] shouting, and with trumpets, and with cornets.

15 And all Judah rejoiced over the oath, for they had sworn it with all their heart. They had sought Him earnestly, and He was found by them. So the LORD gave them rest on every side.

And all Judah rejoiced because of the oath; for with all their heart had they sworn, and with their whole desire did they seek him, and he let himself be found by them: and the Lord gave them rest on every side.

16 King Asa also removed his grandmother Maacah from her position as queen mother because she had made a detestable Asherah pole. Asa chopped down the pole, crushed it, and burned it in the Kidron Valley.

And also concerning Ma'achah the mother of king Assa, he removed her from being queen, because she had made a scandalous image for the grove; and Assa cut down her scandalous image, and had it ground up, and burnt it by the brook Kidron.

17 The high places were not removed from Israel, but Asa’s heart was fully devoted all his days.

But the high-places were not removed out of Israel; nevertheless the heart of Assa was entire all his days.

18 And he brought into the house of God the silver and gold articles that he and his father had dedicated.

And be brought the things which his father had sanctified, and his own sanctified things, into the house of God, —silver, and gold, and vessels.

19 And there was no war until the thirty-fifth year of Asa’s reign.

And there was no war until the five-and-thirtieth year of the reign of Assa.