English · ASV

2 Chronicles 15

Listen to this chapter
0:00 0:00

Azariah Calls Asa to Reform 1–7

1
And the Spirit of God came upon Azariah the son of Oded: ​
2
and he went out to meet Asa, and said unto him, Hear ye me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin: Jehovah is with you, while ye are with him; and if ye seek him, he will be found of you; but if ye forsake him, he will forsake you. ​
3
Now for a long season Israel was without the true God, and without a teaching priest, and without law: ​
4
but when in their distress they turned unto Jehovah, the God of Israel, and sought him, he was found of them.
5
And in those times there was no peace to him that went out, nor to him that came in; but great vexations were upon all the inhabitants of the lands.
6
And they were broken in pieces, nation against nation, and city against city; for God did vex them with all adversity.
7
But be ye strong, and let not your hands be slack; for your work shall be rewarded. ​

Asa Leads Judah in Covenant Renewal 8–15

8
And when Asa heard these words, and the prophecy of Oded the prophet, he took courage, and put away the abominations out of all the land of Judah and Benjamin, and out of the cities which he had taken from the hill-country of Ephraim; and he renewed the altar of Jehovah, that was before the porch of Jehovah. ​
9
And he gathered all Judah and Benjamin, and them that sojourned with them out of Ephraim and Manasseh, and out of Simeon: for they fell to him out of Israel in abundance, when they saw that Jehovah his God was with him. ​
10
So they gathered themselves together at Jerusalem in the third month, in the fifteenth year of the reign of Asa.
11
And they sacrificed unto Jehovah in that day, of the spoil which they had brought, seven hundred oxen and seven thousand sheep.
12
And they entered into the covenant to seek Jehovah, the God of their fathers, with all their heart and with all their soul; ​
13
and that whosoever would not seek Jehovah, the God of Israel, should be put to death, whether small or great, whether man or woman. ​
14
And they sware unto Jehovah with a loud voice, and with shouting, and with trumpets, and with cornets.
15
And all Judah rejoiced at the oath; for they had sworn with all their heart, and sought him with their whole desire; and he was found of them: and Jehovah gave them rest round about. ​

Further Reforms and Lasting Peace 16–19

16
And also Maacah, the mother of Asa the king, he removed from being queen, because she had made an abominable image for an Asherah; and Asa cut down her image, and made dust of it, and burnt it at the brook Kidron. ​
17
But the high places were not taken away out of Israel: nevertheless the heart of Asa was perfect all his days. ​
18
And he brought into the house of God the things that his father had dedicated, and that he himself had dedicated, silver, and gold, and vessels.
19
And there was no more war unto the five and thirtieth year of the reign of Asa. ​

Bible text: American Standard Version (1901) · Public domain

Study Notes for 2 Chronicles 15

Verse 1

the Spirit of God came upon Azariah — Like words come before the messages of Jahaziel (2 Chr 20:14, 'came the Spirit of the LORD') and of Zechariah son of Jehoiada (24:20); a message to the king or people follows each time. Azariah goes out to Asa after the defeat of Zerah the Ethiopian (14:9–12), and v.8 calls what he said 'the prophecy of Oded'.

Verse 2

if ye seek him, he will be found of you — The LORD answers in kind: with you while ye are with him; found if sought; forsaken if forsaking. 'Forsake' is azab, the same verb on both sides, and 'seek' is darash. David gave the same word to Solomon (1 Chr 28:9); James writes, 'Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you' (Jas 4:8).

Verse 3

without a teaching priest — 'Teaching' is yarah, the duty laid on the priests in Lev 10:11, 'that ye may teach the children of Israel all the statutes'. Three lacks are named: the true God (emeth, truth), a teaching priest, and law. Levites later go through Judah's cities 'the book of the law of the LORD with them' (2 Chr 17:9).

Verse 7

let not your hands be weak — Raphah, to slacken: hands let go when courage fails. 'Be ye strong' is chazaq, the verb of 'took courage' in v.8. 'Your work shall be rewarded' is the phrase of Jer 31:16, 'thy work shall be rewarded'; Paul says the same of the Lord's work, 'your labour is not in vain' (1 Cor 15:58).

Verse 8

he took courage — Chazaq, the verb of 'Be ye strong' in v.7: Asa acts on what he heard. The altar 'renewed' (chadash, made new) is the altar before the porch that Solomon had built (2 Chr 8:12). The cities 'which he had taken from mount Ephraim' are Asa's own (17:2); Abijah had earlier taken Bethel, Jeshanah and Ephrain (13:19).

Verse 9

they fell to him out of Israel — The 'strangers' (gur, sojourners) from Ephraim, Manasseh and Simeon come over 'when they saw that the LORD his God was with him', which is the sign Azariah named in v.2. It continues 2 Chr 11:16, where those from all the tribes who 'set their hearts to seek the LORD' came to Jerusalem.

Verse 12

with all their heart and with all their soul — This is the wording of Moses' charge in Deut 4:29, 'if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul', and Deut 10:12. 'Seek' is darash, the verb of v.2. The covenant is made at Jerusalem 'in the third month, in the fifteenth year' of Asa (v.10).

Verse 13

put to death — The penalty is the law's own for leading Israel away from the LORD (Deut 13:5, 9) and for sacrificing to any god but him: 'utterly destroyed' (Ex 22:20). 'Whether small or great, whether man or woman' allows no exception of rank or sex; the oath binds the whole assembly gathered in v.10.

Verse 15

the LORD gave them rest round about — The promise of v.2 is met in order: they 'sought', he 'was found', and he gave nuach, rest. The same words are used of Asa's earlier years, 'we have sought the LORD our God… and he hath given us rest on every side' (14:7). 'Oath' is shebuah, something sworn.

Verse 16

he removed her from being queen — The Hebrew title is gebirah, the queen mother's place. Her 'idol' is miphletseth, a horror, made 'in a grove' (asherah); Asa 'stamped' it (daqaq, crushed small) and burnt it at the brook Kidron. 1 Kings 15:13 tells the same act in almost the same words.

Verse 17

the heart of Asa was perfect — Shalem, whole and undivided, the 'perfect heart' David charged Solomon to bring to the LORD's service (1 Chr 28:9). The two statements stand together in 1 Kings 15:14, and the high places also stayed in Jehoshaphat's reign (1 Kings 22:43).

Verse 19

no more war unto the five and thirtieth year — The covenant was made in Asa's fifteenth year (v.10), so the quiet runs twenty years beyond it. The next chapter opens 'in the six and thirtieth year', when Baasha king of Israel 'came up against Judah, and built Ramah' (16:1).