2 Chronicles 15

1 The Spirit of God came on Azariah son of Oded.

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

2 He went out to meet Asa and said to him, “Listen to me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin: Yahweh is with you, while 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 Now for a long period, Israel was without the true God, without a teaching priest, 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 when in their distress they turned to Yahweh, the God of Israel, and sought him, 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 times there was no peace for him who traveled away, nor for him who traveled to here; instead, great troubles were on all the inhabitants of the lands.

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 They were broken in pieces, nation against nation, and city against city, for God troubled them with all kinds of suffering.

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

7 But be strong, and do not let your hands be weak, 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, the prophecy of Oded the prophet, he took courage and drove away the disgusting things from all the land of Judah and Benjamin, and from the cities that he had captured from the hill country of Ephraim, and he rebuilt Yahweh's altar, which was in front of the portico of Yahweh's house.

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 He gathered all Judah and Benjamin, and those who stayed with them—people from of Ephraim and Manasseh, and from Simeon. For they came from Israel to him in great numbers, when they saw that Yahweh 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 at Jerusalem in the third month, in 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 They sacrificed to Yahweh in that day some of the plunder that they had brought: seven hundred oxen and seven thousand sheep and goats.

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 They entered into a covenant to seek Yahweh, the God of their ancestors, with all their heart and with all their 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 They agreed that whoever refused to seek Yahweh, the God of Israel, should be put to death, whether the person was small or great, whether 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 swore to Yahweh with a loud voice, with shouting, and with trumpets and horns.

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

15 All Judah rejoiced at the oath, for they had sworn with all their heart, and they sought God with their whole desire, and he was found by them. Yahweh gave them peace all around them.

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 He also removed Maacah, his grandmother, from being queen, because she had made a disgusting figure out of an Asherah pole. Asa cut down the disgusting figure, ground it to dust and burned it at the brook Kidron.

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 But the high places were not taken out of Israel. Nevertheless, Asa's heart was completely 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 He brought into the house of God the silver and gold and the utensils that he and his father had dedicated for that purpose.

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 There was no more 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.