In the thirty-sixth year of the reign of Asa, Baasha king of Israel went up against Judah, and built Ramah, that he might not allow anyone to go out or come in to Asa king of Judah. 2Then Asa brought out silver and gold from the treasures of the House of YAHWEH1 and of the king’s house, and sent to Ben Hadad king of Syria, who lived at Damascus, saying, 3“There is a league between me and you, as there was between my father and your father: behold, I have sent you silver and gold; go, break your league with Baasha king of Israel, that he may depart from me.”
4Ben Hadad listened to king Asa, and sent the captains of his armies against the cities of Israel; and they struck Ijon, and Dan, and Abel Maim, and all the store-cities of Naphtali. 5It happened, when Baasha heard of it, that he left off building Ramah, and let his work cease. 6Then Asa the king took all Judah; and they carried away the stones of Ramah, and its timber, with which Baasha had built; and he built Geba and Mizpah.
7At that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah, and said to him, “Because you have relied on the king of Syria, and have not relied on YAHWEH your God, therefore the army of the king of Syria has escaped out of your hand. 8Weren’t the Ethiopians and the Lubim a huge army, with chariots and horsemen in large numbers? Yet, because you relied on YAHWEH, he delivered them into your hand. 9For the eyes of YAHWEH run back and forth throughout the whole earth, to show himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is perfect toward him. In this you have done foolishly; for from from now on you shall have wars.”
10Then Asa was angry with the seer, and put him in the prison-house; for he was in a rage with him because of this thing. Asa oppressed some of the people at the same time.
11Behold, the acts of Asa, first and last, behold, they are written in the book of the kings of Judah and Israel. 12In the thirty-ninth year of his reign Asa was diseased in his feet; his disease was very great: yet in his disease he did not seek YAHWEH, but to the physicians. 13Asa slept with his fathers, and died in the forty-first year of his reign. 14They buried him in his own tombs, which he had dug out for himself in the city of Dawud, and laid him in the bed which was filled with sweet odours and various kinds of spices prepared by the perfumers’ art: and they made a very great burning for him.
- 16:2 YAHWEH, God’s personal Name revealed to Prophet Musa in the Taurat, Exodus 3:15: ‘God said moreover to Musa, “You shall tell Bani-Israel this, ‘YAHWEH, the God of your fathers, the God of Ibrahim, the God of Ishaq, and the God of Yaqub, has sent me to you.’ This is my Name forever, and this is how I am to be remembered to all generations.”’ ↩︎