^1aSo Abijah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David; and Asa his son became king in his place. The land was quiet for ten years during his days.

2 ¹And Asa did what was good and right in the sight of Yahweh his God, 3 for he removed ^athe foreign altars and ^bhigh places, shattered the sacred pillars, cut the ^1cAsherim in pieces, 4 and said for Judah to seek Yahweh, the God of their fathers, and to do the law and the commandment. 5 He also ¹removed the high places and the ^aincense altars from all the cities of Judah. And the kingdom was quiet before him. 6 ^aAnd he built fortified cities in Judah, since the land was quiet, and ¹there was no one at war with him during those years, ^bbecause Yahweh had given him rest. 7 And he said to Judah, “^aLet us build these cities and surround them with walls and towers, gates and bars. The land is still ¹ours because we have sought Yahweh our God; we have sought Him, and He has given us rest on every side.” So they built and succeeded. 8 Now Asa had a military force of ^a300,000 from Judah, bearing large shields and spears, and 280,000 from Benjamin, bearing shields and wielding bows; all of them were mighty men of valor.

9 Then Zerah the Ethiopian ^awent out against them with a military force of one million men and 300 chariots, and he came to ^bMareshah. 10 So Asa went out ¹to meet him, and they arranged themselves for battle in the valley of Zephathah at Mareshah. 11 Then Asa ^acalled to Yahweh his God and said, “Yahweh, there is no one besides You to help in the battle between those of abundant power and those who have no power; so help us, O Yahweh our God, ^bfor we lean on You, and in Your name have come against this multitude. O Yahweh, You are our God; let not mortal man prevail against You.” 12 So ^aYahweh smote the Ethiopians before Asa and before Judah, and the Ethiopians fled. 13 And Asa and the people who were with him pursued them as far as ^aGerar; and so many Ethiopians fell that ¹they could not recover, for they were shattered before Yahweh and before His ²army. And they carried away very much spoil. 14 And they struck down all the cities around Gerar, ^afor the dread of Yahweh had fallen on them; and they plundered all the cities, for there was much plunder in them. 15 They also struck down ¹those who owned livestock, and they carried away large numbers of sheep and camels. Then they returned to Jerusalem.

^1aSo Abijah ²lay down with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David, and his son Asa became king in his place. The land was undisturbed for ten years during his days.

2 ¹And Asa did what was good and right in the sight of the LORD his God, 3 for he removed ^athe foreign altars and ^bhigh places, tore down the memorial stones, cut down the ^1cAsherim, 4 and commanded Judah to seek the LORD God of their fathers and to ¹comply with the Law and the commandment. 5 He also removed the high places and the ^aincense altars from all the cities of Judah. And the kingdom was undisturbed under him. 6 ^aHe built fortified cities in Judah, since the land was undisturbed, and ¹there was no one at war with him during those years, ^bbecause the LORD had given him rest. 7 For he said to Judah, “^aLet’s build these cities and surround them with walls and towers, gates and bars. The land is still ¹ours because we have sought the LORD our God; we have sought Him, and He has given us rest on every side.” So they built and prospered. 8 Now Asa had an army of ^athree hundred thousand from Judah, carrying large shields and spears, and 280,000 from Benjamin, carrying shields and wielding bows; all of them were valiant warriors.

9 Now Zerah the Ethiopian ^awent out against them with an army of a million men and three hundred chariots, and he came to ^bMareshah. 10 So Asa went out ¹to meet him, and they drew up in battle formation in the Valley of Zephathah at Mareshah. 11 Then Asa ^acalled to the LORD his God and said, “LORD, there is no one besides You to help in the battle between the powerful and those who have no strength; help us, LORD our God, ^bfor we trust in You, and in Your name have come against this multitude. LORD, You are our God; do not let man prevail against You.” 12 So ^athe LORD ¹routed the Ethiopians before Asa and before Judah, and the Ethiopians fled. 13 Asa and the people who were with him pursued them as far as ^aGerar; and so many Ethiopians fell that ¹they could not recover, for they were shattered before the LORD and before His army. And they carried away a very large amount of plunder. 14 They ¹destroyed all the cities around Gerar, ^afor the dread of the LORD had fallen on them; and they pillaged all the cities, for there was much plunder in them. 15 They also fatally struck ¹those who owned livestock, and they led away large numbers of sheep and camels. Then they returned to Jerusalem.