ARKCODEX
2 Chronicles
Ch. 14–15
King Asa Defeats the Ethiopians
1King Abijah died and was buried in the royal tombs in David's City. His son Asa succeeded him as king, and under Asa the land enjoyed peace for ten years.
2Asa pleased the Lord, his God, by doing what was right and good.
3He removed the foreign altars and the pagan places of worship, broke down the sacred stone columns, and cut down the symbols of the goddess Asherah.
4He commanded the people of Judah to do the will of the Lord, the God of their ancestors, and to obey his teachings and commands.
5Because he abolished the pagan places of worship and the incense altars from all the cities of Judah, the kingdom was at peace under his rule.
6He built fortifications for the cities of Judah during this time, and for several years there was no war, because the Lord gave him peace.
7He told the people of Judah, “Let us fortify the cities by building walls and towers, and gates that can be shut and barred. We have control of the land because we have done the will of the Lord our God. He has protected us and given us security on every side.” And so they built and prospered.
8King Asa had an army of 300,000 men from Judah, armed with shields and spears, and 280,000 men from Benjamin, armed with shields and bows. All of them were brave, well-trained men.
9An Ethiopian named Zerah invaded Judah with an army of a million men and three hundred chariots and advanced as far as Mareshah.
10Asa went out to fight him, and both sides took up their positions at Zephathah Valley near Mareshah.
11Asa prayed to the Lord his God, “O Lord, you can help a weak army as easily as a powerful one. Help us now, O Lord our God, because we are relying on you, and in your name we have come out to fight against this huge army. Lord, you are our God; no one can hope to defeat you.”
12The Lord defeated the Ethiopian army when Asa and the Judean army attacked them. They fled,
13and Asa and his troops pursued them as far as Gerar. So many of the Ethiopians were killed that the army was unable to rally and fight. They were overpowered by the Lord and his army, and the army took large amounts of loot.
14Then they were able to destroy the cities in the area around Gerar, because the people there were terrified of the Lord. The army plundered all those cities and captured large amounts of loot.
15They also attacked the camps of some shepherds, capturing large numbers of sheep and camels. Then they returned to Jerusalem.
2 Chronicles 15
Asa's Reforms
1The spirit of God came upon Azariah son of Oded,
2and he went to meet King Asa. He called out, “Listen to me, King Asa, and all you people of Judah and Benjamin! The Lord is with you as long as you are with him. If you look for him, he will let you find him, but if you turn away, he will abandon you.
3For a long time Israel lived without the true God, without priests to teach them, and without a law.
4But when trouble came, they turned to the Lord, the God of Israel. They searched for him and found him.
5In those days no one could come and go in safety, because there was trouble and disorder in every land.
6One nation oppressed another nation, and one city oppressed another city, because God was bringing trouble and distress on them.
7But you must be strong and not be discouraged. The work that you do will be rewarded.”
8When Asa heard the prophecy that Azariah son of Oded had spoken, he was encouraged. He did away with all the idols in the land of Judah and Benjamin and all the idols in the cities he had captured in the hill country of Ephraim. He also repaired the altar of the Lord that stood in the Temple courtyard.
9Many people had come over to Asa's side from Ephraim, Manasseh, and Simeon, and were living in his kingdom, because they had seen that the Lord was with him. Asa summoned all of them and the people of Judah and Benjamin.
10They assembled in Jerusalem in the third month of the fifteenth year that Asa was king.
11On that day they offered sacrifices to the Lord from the loot they had brought back: seven hundred head of cattle and seven thousand sheep.
12They made a covenant in which they agreed to worship the Lord, the God of their ancestors, with all their heart and soul.
13Anyone, young or old, male or female, who did not worship him was to be put to death.
14In a loud voice they took an oath in the Lord's name that they would keep the covenant, and then they shouted and blew trumpets.
15All the people of Judah were happy because they had made this covenant with all their heart. They took delight in worshiping the Lord, and he accepted them and gave them peace on every side.
16King Asa removed his grandmother Maacah from her position as queen mother, because she had made an obscene idol of the fertility goddess Asherah. Asa cut down the idol, chopped it up, and burned the pieces in Kidron Valley.
17Even though Asa did not destroy all the pagan places of worship in the land, he remained faithful to the Lord all his life.
18He placed in the Temple all the objects his father Abijah had dedicated to God, as well as the gold and silver objects that he himself dedicated.
19There was no more war until the thirty-fifth year of his reign.
Song of Solomon
Ch. 3
1Asleep on my bed, night after night I dreamed of the one I love; I was looking for him, but couldn't find him.
2I went wandering through the city, through its streets and alleys. I looked for the one I love. I looked, but couldn't find him.
3The sentries patrolling the city saw me. I asked them, “Have you found my lover?”
4As soon as I left them, I found him. I held him and wouldn't let him go until I took him to my mother's house, to the room where I was born.
5Promise me, women of Jerusalem; swear by the swift deer and the gazelles that you will not interrupt our love.
The Woman
6What is this coming from the desert like a column of smoke, fragrant with incense and myrrh, the incense sold by the traders?
7Solomon is coming, carried on his throne; sixty soldiers form the bodyguard, the finest soldiers in Israel.
8All of them are skillful with the sword; they are battle-hardened veterans. Each of them is armed with a sword, on guard against a night attack.
9King Solomon is carried on a throne made of the finest wood.
10Its posts are covered with silver; over it is cloth embroidered with gold. Its cushions are covered with purple cloth, lovingly woven by the women of Jerusalem.
11Women of Zion, come and see King Solomon. He is wearing the crown that his mother placed on his head on his wedding day, on the day of his gladness and joy.