The Divided Kingdom

And Abiiah and his people slewe a great slaughter of them, so that there fel downe wounded of Israel fiue hundreth thousand chosen men.

So the children of Israel were brought vnder at that time: and the children of Iudah preuailed, because they stayed vpon the Lord God of their fathers.

And Abiiah pursued after Ieroboam, and tooke cities from him, euen Beth-el, and the villages thereof, and Ieshanah with her villages, and Ephron with her villages.

And Ieroboam recouered no strength againe in the dayes of Abiiah, but the Lord plagued him, and he dyed.

So Abiiah waxed mightie, and marryed foureteene wiues, and begate two and twentie sonnes, and sixteene daughters.

The rest of the actes of Abiiah and his maners and his sayings are written in the storie of the Prophet Iddo.

So Abiiah slept with his fathers, and they buryed him in the citie of Dauid, and Asa his sonne reigned in his steade: in whose dayes the lande was quiet ten yeere.

And Asa did that was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his God.

For he tooke away the altars of the strange gods and the hie places, and brake downe the images, and cut downe the groues,

And commanded Iudah to seeke the Lord God of their fathers, and to doe according to the Lawe and the comandement.

And he tooke away out of all the cities of Iudah the hie places, and the images: therefore the kingdome was quiet before him.

He built also strong cities in Iudah, because the lande was in rest, and he had no warre in those yeeres: for the Lord had giuen him rest.

Therefore he saide to Iudah, Let vs builde these cities and make walles about, and towers, gates, and barres, whiles the lande is before vs: because we haue sought the Lord our God, we haue sought him, and he hath giuen vs rest on euery side: so they built and prospered.

And Asa had an armie of Iudah that bare shieldes and speares, three hundreth thousande, and of Beniamin that bare shieldes and drewe bowes, two hundreth and foure score thousande: all these were valiant men.

And there came out against them Zerah of Ethiopia with an hoste of ten hundreth thousande, and three hundreth charets, and came vnto Mareshah.

Then Asa went out before him, and they set the battell in aray in the valley of Zephathah beside Mareshah.

And Asa cryed vnto the Lord his God, and saide, Lord, it is nothing with thee to helpe with many, or with no power: helpe vs, O Lord our God: for we rest on thee, and in thy Name are we come against this multitude: O Lord, thou art our God, let not man preuaile against thee.

So the Lord smote the Ethiopians before Asa and before Iudah, and the Ethiopians fled.

And Asa and the people that was with him, pursued them vnto Gerar. And the Ethiopians hoste was ouerthrowen, so that there was no life in them: for they were destroyed before the Lord and before his hoste: and they caryed away a mightie great spoyle.

And they smote all the cities rounde about Gerar: for the feare of the Lord came vpon them, and they spoyled all the cities, for there was exceeding much spoyle in them.

Yea, and they smote the tents of cattel, and carried away plentie of sheepe and camels, and returned to Ierusalem.

Then the Spirite of God came vpon Azariah the sonne of Obed.

And he went out to meete Asa, and said vnto him, O Asa, and all Iudah, and Beniamin, heare ye me. The Lord is with you, while ye be with him: and if ye seeke him, he wil be founde of you, but if ye forsake him, he will forsake you.

Nowe for a long season Israel hath bene without the true God, and without Priest to teach and without Lawe.

But whosoeuer returned in his affliction to the Lord God of Israel, and sought him, he was founde of them.