2 Chronicles 16:1-14

2 Chronicles: God desires loyal people

The *Kingdom called Judah

2 Chronicles Chapter s 10 to 36

Ian Mackervoy

Chapter 16

Asa and Ben-Hadad – 2 Chronicles 16:1-6

v1 In the 36th year of Asa’s rule, Baasha, king of *Israel attacked Judah. He made Ramah a strong town. That was to stop people from going to the territory of Asa, king of Judah. Also, it was to stop people leaving Judah.

v2 Asa took gold and silver from the stores of the *LORD’s *temple and from the royal palace. He sent the gold and silver to Ben-Hadad, king of Aram. Ben-Hadad lived in the city called Damascus. v3 Asa said, ‘Let us agree to have a contract. Let it be like the one that our fathers had. I am sending to you silver and gold. End your contract with Baasha, king of *Israel so that he will leave my country.’

v4 Ben-Hadad agreed with King Asa. And he sent the captains of his armies to attack the towns of *Israel. They *captured the towns called Ijon, Dan, and Abel-maim. And they *captured all the store cities in the region of Naphtali. v5 When Baasha heard about this, he stopped building Ramah. He stopped his work on it. v6 Then King Asa brought all the people from Judah to Ramah. And they carried away the rocks and wood that Baasha had used. Asa used these to build at the cities called Geba and Mizpah.

Verse 1 Baasha, the king of *Israel had been an enemy of Judah since he became king. He fought wars against Asa since that time (1 Kings 15:16). Now Baasha attacked Judah.

The way that Judah had *turned to the *LORD attracted many people in *Israel. It seems that many of them wanted to go to *worship at Jerusalem. This would make the rule of Asa stronger and the rule of Baasha weaker. So, Baasha started to make the town called Ramah much stronger. His purpose was to close the border between *Israel and Judah.

Ramah was on the main road about 5 miles (8 kilometres) north of Jerusalem. It was on high ground and it was a good place for a military camp.

Verses 2-3 Asa did not think that he could beat Baasha. So, he asked Ben-Hadad, king of Aram for help. But Ben-Hadad already had an agreement with Baasha. So, Asa sent to him gold and silver in order to persuade him to *turn from Baasha.

Asa took all of the gold and silver that was in the *LORD’s *temple (1 Kings 15:18). This gold and silver belonged to the *LORD and Asa should not have taken it. The rest of the gold and silver was from his palace. In this act, Asa did not trust in the *LORD. Asa did not ask the *LORD what he should do. Instead, he put his trust in a foreign king.

Asa’s father, Abijah, had a contract with Ben-Hadad’s father, Tabrimmon (1 Kings 15:18). But since then, Ben-Hadad had made an agreement with Baasha. So, Asa asked Ben-Hadad to cancel that agreement and to make a new one with him.

Verses 4-6 Ben-Hadad broke off his contract with Baasha. Then he attacked the towns in the north of *Israel. Among those towns were Ijon, Dan and Abel-maim.

Ijon was on the east side of the Leontes River. This river flowed from the Beqa Valley and into the Mediterranean Sea. Ijon was on a major road into *Israel. Abel-maim was about 8 miles (13 kilometres) south of Ijon. It was on the Jordan River where it flowed into *Israel. Dan was an important town about 4 miles (6 kilometres) east of Abel-maim.

The loss of these towns caused Baasha to stop work on Ramah. Asa’s men took materials from Ramah. They used them in the towns called Geba and Mizpah to add to their defences.

We do not know where Mizpah and Geba were. But we think that both towns were at or near the border between Judah and *Israel.

Asa *turns from trust in the *LORD – 2 Chronicles 16:7-14

v7 At that time, Hanani the *prophet came to Asa, king of Judah. Hanani said to him, ‘You depended on the king of Aram to help you. You did not depend on the *LORD your God. So, the king of Aram’s army escaped from you. v8 Cush and Libya had a large and powerful army with many *chariots and horsemen. But you depended on the *LORD to help you. So, the *LORD handed them over to you. v9 The *LORD searches all the earth for people who give themselves completely to him. He is strong on their behalf. But Asa, you did a foolish thing, so from now on you will have wars.’

v10 Asa was angry with the *prophet because of what he had said. He was so angry that he put Hanani in prison. And Asa was cruel to some of the people at the same time.

v11 The events during Asa’s rule are in the book of the kings of Judah and *Israel. All the events from the beginning to the end of his rule are in the book. v12 In the 39th year of his rule, Asa got a disease in his feet. His disease was very bad but he did not ask the *LORD to make him well. He went to the doctors instead. v13 Then Asa died in the 41st year of his rule. v14 The people buried Asa in the grave that he had made for himself in Jerusalem. They laid his body on a bed. They had filled the bed with *spices and oils that gave sweet smells. And they made a large fire in his honour.

Verses 7-9 Hanani came to Asa to show him that his actions were wrong. Asa ought to have depended on the *LORD for help. He should not have made a contract with Ben-Hadad.

If Asa had been loyal to the *LORD, he would have defeated Baasha and Ben-Hadad. Ben-Hadad would have joined in Baasha’s attack against Judah. But the *LORD would have caused Asa to defeat both of their armies. Then he would have had peace. But because he was foolish, there would be wars for the rest of his rule and beyond his time.

Hanani reminded Asa how he had asked the *LORD for help against Zerah. Zerah had a much larger army than Judah. But the *LORD helped Asa to defeat them.

Now, as then, the *LORD searches for people who will give themselves to him. The *LORD wants such people who will be completely loyal to him. And he will be strong and he will work for their benefit.

Verse 10 Asa’s reaction to the *prophecy of Hanani was bad. What Hanani had said was true. But Asa was too proud to listen to it. He ought to have *repented and he ought to have *turned again to the *LORD. Instead, he was angry with Hanani. He was so angry that he put Hanani in prison. But his anger did not stop there. He became cruel to some of the people. Maybe these people had tried to support Hanani or they had agreed with him.

Verses 11-14 The record of Asa’s rule was in the book of the kings of Judah and *Israel. That book does not now exist. The author of Chronicles probably used that book as his main source.

Two years before his death, Asa had a bad disease in his feet. He went to the doctors with his problem but he did not pray to the *LORD. He ought to have asked God to make him well.

It is not wrong to go to the doctors. The *LORD does use the medical profession to make people well. But really it is the *LORD who makes people well (Psalms 103:3). Those who believe in the *LORD should pray to him first.

In those days, there was very little medical knowledge. Doctors now understand much better and they know a lot more. We believe that God usually cures people by medical means. But sometimes he does make people well without medical help.

Asa died and the people gave to him a great public funeral. They laid him on a bed with *spices so that people could say goodbye to him. Then they buried him in the grave that he had made for himself.

At times, he did not trust the *LORD. But he had been a good king.

Jehoshaphat – 2 Chronicles 17:1-20:37

kingdom ~ the place or territory where a king rules; or, the people that a king rules over.
LORD ~ ‘LORD’ is the special name that God gave to himself. It means that God has always been.
lord ~ someone with authority such as the king.
temple ~ a special building for the worship of God or of other gods. The Jews had one in Jerusalem for the worship of the real God.
worship ~ to praise God and to give thanks to him; to show honour to God and to say that we love him very much. But some people worship false gods instead of the real God.
Jews ~ another name for the *Israelites.
capture ~ to fight for something and to make it yours as a result; or, to make somebody a prisoner.
turn ~ to decide to support someone. Or, to decide to oppose someone. If a person ‘turns away from God’, that person decides not to be loyal to God. If a person ‘turns to God’, that person decides to be loyal to God.
worship ~ to praise God and to give thanks to him; to show honour to God and to say that we love him very much. But some people worship false gods instead of the real God.
prophet ~ person who speaks on behalf of God. He or she can sometimes say what will happen in the future. Some prophets worshipped false gods. So, not all prophets spoke words from God.
worship ~ to praise God and to give thanks to him; to show honour to God and to say that we love him very much. But some people worship false gods instead of the real God.
chariot ~ a kind of cart that soldiers use to fight. Horses pulled it.
spice ~ a vegetable substance with a sweet flavour or a strong smell, that they used in food or in incense.
incense ~ something that gives a sweet smell when it burns. The priests burned it when they praised God in the temple.
temple ~ a special building for the worship of God or of other gods. The Jews had one in Jerusalem for the worship of the real God.
worship ~ to praise God and to give thanks to him; to show honour to God and to say that we love him very much. But some people worship false gods instead of the real God.
Jews ~ another name for the *Israelites.
prophecy ~ a message from God; a gift of the Holy Spirit. But sometimes false prophets tried to speak a prophecy.
prophet ~ person who speaks on behalf of God. He or she can sometimes say what will happen in the future. Some prophets worshipped false gods. So, not all prophets spoke words from God.
worship ~ to praise God and to give thanks to him; to show honour to God and to say that we love him very much. But some people worship false gods instead of the real God.
repent ~ to change the mind; to turn away from sin and to turn to God.
sin ~ sin is the wrong things that we do. To sin is to do wrong, bad or evil deeds and not to obey God. Those who sin are sinners.
turn ~ to decide to support someone. Or, to decide to oppose someone. If a person ‘turns away from God’, that person decides not to be loyal to God. If a person ‘turns to God’, that person decides to be loyal to God.