2 Chronicles 15

1 And the Spirit of God has been on Azariah son of Oded,

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

2 and he goes out before Asa and says to him, “Hear me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin; YHWH [is] with you—in your being with Him, and if you seek Him, He is found by you, and if you forsake Him, He forsakes you;

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.

3 and many days [are] to Israel without [the] true God, and without a teaching priest, and without law,

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

4 and it turns back in its distress to YHWH, God of Israel, and they seek Him, and He is found by them,

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

5 and in those times there is no peace for him who is going out, and for him who is coming in, for many troubles [are] on all the inhabitants of the lands,

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

6 and they have been beaten down, nation by nation, and city by city, for God has troubled them with every adversity;

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

7 and you, be strong, and do not let your hands be feeble, for there is a reward for your work.”

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

8 And at Asa’s hearing these words, and the prophecy of Oded the prophet, he has strengthened himself, and causes the abominations to pass away out of all the land of Judah and Benjamin, and out of the cities that he has captured from the hill-country of Ephraim, and renews the altar of YHWH that [is] before the porch of YHWH,

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.

9 and gathers all Judah and Benjamin, and the sojourners with them out of Ephraim, and Manasseh, and out of Simeon—for they have defected to him from Israel in abundance, in their seeing that his God YHWH [is] with him.

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.

10 And they are gathered to Jerusalem in the third month of the fifteenth year of the reign of Asa,

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

11 and sacrifice to YHWH on that day from the spoil they have brought in—seven hundred oxen and seven thousand sheep,

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

12 and they enter into a covenant to seek YHWH, God of their fathers, with all their heart and with all their soul,

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

13 and everyone who does not seek for YHWH, God of Israel, is put to death, from small to great, from man to woman.

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

14 And they swear to YHWH with a loud voice, and with shouting, and with trumpets, and with horns,

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

15 and all Judah rejoices concerning the oath, for they have sworn with all their heart, and they have sought Him with all their goodwill, and He is found by them, and YHWH gives rest to them all around.

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.

16 And also Maachah, mother of Asa the king—he has removed her from [being] mistress, in that she has made for an Asherah a horrible thing, and Asa cuts down her horrible thing, and beats [it] small, and burns [it] by the Brook of Kidron:

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.

17 yet the high places have not been removed from Israel; only, the heart of Asa has been perfect all his days.

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

18 And he brings in the sanctified things of his father, and his own sanctified things, to the house of God: silver, and gold, and vessels.

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

19 And war has not been until the thirty-fifth year of the reign of Asa.

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