1 Kings 15:1-24
Abijam Reigns in Judah (2 Chronicles 13:1—14:1)
1 In the eighteenth year of King Jeroboam the son of Nebat, Abijam became king over Judah. 2 He reigned three years in Jerusalem. His mother’s name was Maachah the granddaughter of Abishalom. 3 And he walked in all the sins of his father, which he had done before him; his heart was not loyal to the LORD his God, as was the heart of his father David. 4 Nevertheless for David’s sake the LORD his God gave him a lamp in Jerusalem, by setting up his son after him and by establishing Jerusalem; 5 because David did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, and had not turned aside from anything that He commanded him all the days of his life, except in the matter of Uriah the Hittite. 6 And there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all the days of his life. 7 Now the rest of the acts of Abijam, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? And there was war between Abijam and Jeroboam.
8 So Abijam rested with his fathers, and they buried him in the City of David. Then Asa his son reigned in his place.
Asa Reigns in Judah (2 Chronicles 14:1—16:14)
9 In the twentieth year of Jeroboam king of Israel, Asa became king over Judah. 10 And he reigned forty-one years in Jerusalem. His grandmother’s name was Maachah the granddaughter of Abishalom. 11 1 Asa did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, as did his father David. 12 And he banished the perverted persons from the land, and removed all the idols that his fathers had made. 13 Also he removed Maachah his grandmother from being queen mother, because she had made an obscene image of Asherah. And Asa cut down her obscene image and burned it by the Brook Kidron. 14 But the high places were not removed. Nevertheless Asa’s heart was loyal to the LORD all his days. 15 He also brought into the house of the LORD the things which his father had dedicated, and the things which he himself had dedicated: silver and gold and utensils.
16 Now there was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel all their days. 17 And Baasha king of Israel came up against Judah, and built Ramah, that he might let none go out or come in to Asa king of Judah. 18 Then Asa took all the silver and gold that was left in the treasuries of the house of the LORD and the treasuries of the king’s house, and delivered them into the hand of his servants. And King Asa sent them to Ben-Hadad the son of Tabrimmon, the son of Hezion, king of Syria, who dwelt in Damascus, saying, 19 ”Let there be a treaty between you and me, as there was between my father and your father. See, I have sent you a present of silver and gold. Come and break your treaty with Baasha king of Israel, so that he will withdraw from me.”
20 So Ben-Hadad heeded King Asa, and sent the captains of his armies against the cities of Israel. He attacked Ijon, Dan, Abel Beth Maachah, and all Chinneroth, with all the land of Naphtali. 21 Now it happened, when Baasha heard it, that he stopped building Ramah, and remained in Tirzah.
22 Then King Asa made a proclamation throughout all Judah; none was exempted. And they took away the stones and timber of Ramah, which Baasha had used for building; and with them King Asa built Geba of Benjamin, and Mizpah.
23 The rest of all the acts of Asa, all his might, all that he did, and the cities which he built, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? But in the time of his old age he was diseased in his feet. 24 So Asa rested with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the City of David his father. Then Jehoshaphat his son reigned in his place.
Rehoboam the son of Solomon reigned with evil in Judah and his son immediately following him did the same. Abijam ruled in evil, not with a good heart after God like king David, but with a disloyal heart full of blasphemous actions. He warred against the northern tribes of Israel from Judah until he eventually died and his son Asa ascended to the throne. This man ruled for forty-one years in Jerusalem with a good heart and did what was right in the eyes of the LORD as his great grandfather David had done. He cleaned up the ritual homosexual prostitutes in the temple, destroyed the idols and removed his idolatrous grandmother, returned the dedicated things of silver and gold to the temple which his father had absconded for himself, and continued the war with Israel. He ended up having to use the silver and gold items to buy a ceasefire with Israel by payment to Syria for help, however. He then took the building materials Israel was using to build Ramah and used them to build Geba and Mizpah instead for Judah. His reign of doing good in spite of the evil done by his father Rehoboam eventually came to and end and his son Jehoshaphat took over the throne of Judah (1 Kings 22:43) and did good himself in his reign, a faithful son after God’s heart as well. These were examples of good and evil rulers who were so recorded by their adherence to God’s word or their rejection and subsequent actions to the contrary. May we who are in Christ pursue the good heart after God as David and his righteous offspring gave us example and not go the way of the unrighteous offspring who spurned God’s word and worshiped worthless idols of (1 Samuel 15:23, Colossians 3:4-5) immorality and evil actions with their self serving intentions as Abijam’s.
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