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ABIJAH.
_How the Second King of Judah Won a Great Victory over Jeroboam_.
(For many years the two rival kings, Rehoboam and Jeroboam, fought without either gaining a decided advantage, but Rehoboam died and his favorite son, Abijah, came to the throne, who enlisted a great army and fought a decisive battle with the older king, overwhelming him in battle and taking away several cities.)
And Rehoboam appointed Abijah the son of Maacah to be chief, the prince among his brethren: for he intended to make him king. And he dealt wisely, and scattered all his sons throughout all the lands of Judah and Benjamin, unto every fenced city.
In the eighteenth year of King Jeroboam began Abijah to reign over Judah. Three years reigned he in Jerusalem: and his mother"s name was Maacah the daughter of Uriel of Gibeah.
And there was war between Abijah and Jeroboam. And Abijah joined battle with an army of valiant men of war: and Jeroboam set the battle in array against him with a great host of many thousands of those who were mighty men of valor.
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[Ill.u.s.tration]
THE JEWS" WAILING PLACE, JERUSALEM.
Used by special permission of the Detroit Photograph Company.
The lower courses of great stones belonged to the ancient temple, and the Jews gathered there every Friday afternoon to mourn over the fall of their city. Some of these stones are 30 feet long, 8 feet wide, and 3-1/2 feet high, weighing over 80 tons [End ill.u.s.tration]
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And Abijah stood up upon Mount Zemaraim, which is in the hill country of Ephraim, and said, "Hear me, O Jeroboam and all Israel; ought ye not to know that the Lord, the G.o.d of Israel, gave the kingdom over Israel to David for ever, even to him and to his sons by a covenant of salt? Yet Jeroboam the son of Nebat, the servant of Solomon the son of David, rose up, and rebelled against his lord. And there were gathered to him vain men, who strengthened themselves against Rehoboam the son of Solomon, when Rehoboam was young and tender-hearted, and could not withstand them. And now ye think to withstand the kingdom of the Lord in the hand of the sons of David; and ye be a great mult.i.tude, and there are with you the golden calves which Jeroboam made you for G.o.ds.
Have ye not driven out the priests of the Lord, the sons of Aaron, and the Levites, and have made you priests after the manner of the peoples of other lands? But as for us, the Lord is our G.o.d, and we have not forsaken him; and we have priests ministering unto the Lord, the sons of Aaron, and the Levites in their work: and they burn unto the Lord every morning and every evening burnt offerings and sweet incense: the s...o...b..ead also set they in order upon the pure table; and the candlestick of gold with the lamps thereof, to burn every evening: for we keep the charge of the Lord our G.o.d; but ye have forsaken him. And, behold, G.o.d is with us at our head, and his priests with the trumpets of alarm to sound an alarm against you. O children of Israel, fight ye not against the Lord, the G.o.d of your fathers; for ye shall not prosper."
But Jeroboam caused an ambushment to come about {246} behind them: so they were before Judah, and the ambushment was behind them. And when Judah looked back, behold, the battle was before and behind them: and they cried unto the Lord, and the priests sounded with the trumpets.
Then the men of Judah gave a shout: and as the men of Judah shouted, it came to pa.s.s, that G.o.d smote Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and Judah. And the children of Israel fled before Judah: and G.o.d delivered them into their hand. And Abijah and his people slew them with a great slaughter.
Thus the children of Israel were brought under at that time, and the children of Judah prevailed, because they relied upon the Lord, the G.o.d of their fathers. And Abijah pursued after Jeroboam, and took cities from him, Beth-el with the towns thereof, and Jeshanah with the towns thereof, and Ephron with the towns thereof.
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ASA.
_A Good King of Judah. He Makes a League with Syria Against the Northern Kingdom_.
(With the good king Asa came a time of prosperity to Judah. He fortified the cities and destroyed the idols, and won a great victory over the host of the Ethiopians. But he made one serious mistake. An enterprising king named Baasha had come to the throne in the northern kingdom, and he began to make advances against Judah. He built a fort at Ramah in a position which commanded the roads to the south. Then Asa in his fear made a league with the king of Syria. This was the beginning of those entanglements and leagues with foreign nations which finally brought disaster to both kingdoms.)
So Abijah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in the city of David, and Asa his son reigned in his stead: in his days the land was quiet ten years.
And Asa did that which was good and right in the eyes of the Lord his G.o.d: for he took away the strange altars, and the high places, and broke down the pillars, and hewed down the Asherim; and commanded Judah to seek the Lord, the G.o.d of their fathers, and to do the law and the commandment. Also he took away out of all the cities of Judah the high places and the sun-images: and the kingdom was quiet before him. And he built fenced cities in Judah: for the land was quiet, and he had no war in those years; because the Lord had given him rest.
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For he said unto Judah, "Let us build these cities, and make about them walls, and towers, gates, and bars; the land is yet before us, because we have sought the Lord our G.o.d; we have sought him, and he hath given us rest on every side." So they built and prospered.
And Asa had an army of spearmen and bowmen many thousand, and all these were mighty men of valor. And there came out against them Zerah the Ethiopian with a mighty host; and he came unto Mareshah.
Then Asa went out to meet him, and they set the battle in array in the valley of Zephathah at Mareshah. And Asa cried unto the Lord his G.o.d, and said, "Lord, there is none beside thee to help, between the mighty and him that hath no strength: help us, O Lord our G.o.d; for we rely on thee, and in thy name are we come against this mult.i.tude. O Lord, thou art our G.o.d; let not man prevail against thee."
So the Lord smote the Ethiopians before Asa, and before Judah; and the Ethiopians fled. And Asa and the people that were with him pursued them unto Gerar: and there fell of the Ethiopians so many that they could not recover themselves; for they were destroyed before the Lord, and before his host; and they carried away very much booty. And they smote all the cities round about Gerar, for the fear of the Lord came upon them: and they sacked all the cities; for there was much spoil in them. They smote also the tents of cattle, and carried away sheep in abundance and camels, and returned to Jerusalem.
And the spirit of G.o.d came upon Azariah the son of {249} Oded: and he went out to meet Asa, and said unto him, "Hear ye me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin: the Lord is with you, while ye be with him; and if ye seek him, he will be found of you; but if ye forsake him, he will forsake you. Now for long seasons Israel hath been without the true G.o.d, and without a teaching priest, and without law: but when in their distress they turned unto the Lord, the G.o.d of Israel, and sought him, he was found by them. And in those times there was no peace to him that went out, nor to him that came in, but great vexations were upon all the inhabitants of the lands. And they were broken in pieces, nation against nation, and city against city: for G.o.d did vex them with all adversity. But be ye strong, and let not your hands be slack: for your work shall be rewarded."
And when Asa heard these words, and the prophecy of Oded the prophet, he took courage, and put away the abominations out of all the land of Judah and Benjamin, and out of the cities which he had taken from the hill country of Ephraim; and he renewed the altar of the Lord, that was before the porch of the Lord. And he gathered all Judah and Benjamin, and them that sojourned with them out of Ephraim and Mana.s.seh, and out of Simeon: for they came to him out of Israel in abundance, when they saw that the Lord his G.o.d was with him. So they gathered themselves together at Jerusalem in the third month, in the fifteenth year of the reign of Asa. And they sacrificed unto the Lord in that day, of the spoil which they had brought, seven hundred oxen and seven {250} thousand sheep. And they entered into the covenant to seek the Lord, the G.o.d of their fathers, with all their heart and with all their soul; and that whosoever would not seek the Lord, the G.o.d of Israel, should be put to death, whether small or great, whether man or woman. And they swore unto the Lord with a loud voice, and with shouting, and with trumpets, and with cornets.
And all Judah rejoiced at the oath: for they had sworn with all their heart, and sought him with their whole desire; and he was found by them: and the Lord gave them rest round about. And also Maacah the mother of Asa the king, he removed her from being queen, because she had made an abominable image for an Asherah; and Asa cut down her image, and made dust of it, and burnt it at the brook Kidron. But the high places were not taken away out of Israel: nevertheless the heart of Asa was perfect all his days. And he brought into the house of G.o.d the things that his father had dedicated, and that he himself had dedicated, silver, and gold, and vessels. And there was no more war unto the five and thirtieth year of the reign of Asa.
In the six and thirtieth year of the reign of Asa, Baasha king of Israel went up against Judah, and built Ramah, that he might not allow any to go out or come in to Asa king of Judah.
Then Asa brought out silver and gold out of the treasures of the house of the Lord and of the king"s house, and sent to Ben-hadad king of Syria, that dwelt at Damascus, saying, "There is a league between me and thee, as there was between my father and thy father: behold, I have sent thee silver and gold; go, break thy league with Baasha king of Israel, that he may depart from me."
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[Ill.u.s.tration]
LOOKING UP THE VALLEY OF JEHOSHAPHAT, OR THE VALLEY OF KIDRON, FROM THE SOUTH.
Jerusalem on the left, the foot of the Mount of Olives on the right.
The cultivated land immediately in front was perhaps the place of "the king"s gardens"
This valley, which separates the temple mount from the Mount of Olives, was not known as the valley of Jehoshaphat in the Bible (except in Joel 3:12, though probably another locality is there intended), but it has always been so called in later days. Perhaps it was given the name of the king because of the great victory he won over the allied forces of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, in a valley which is near the Kidron as it turns toward the Dead Sea.
[End ill.u.s.tration]
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And Ben-hadad hearkened unto King Asa, and sent the captains of his armies against the cities of Israel; and they smote Ijon, and Dan, and Abel-maim, and all the store cities of Naphtali. And it came to pa.s.s, when Baasha heard thereof, that he left off building of Ramah, and let his work cease.
Then Asa the king took all Judah; and they carried away the stones of Ramah, and the timber thereof, wherewith Baasha had builded; and he built therewith Geba and Mizpah. And at that time Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah, and said unto him, "Because thou hast relied on the king of Syria, and hast not relied on the Lord thy G.o.d, therefore is the host of the king of Syria escaped out of thine hand. Were not the Ethiopians and the Lubim a huge host, with chariots and hors.e.m.e.n exceeding many? yet, because thou didst rely on the Lord, he delivered them into thine hand. For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. Herein thou hast done foolishly; for from henceforth thou shalt have wars."
Then Asa was wroth with the seer, and put him in the prison house; for he was in a rage with him because of this thing. And Asa oppressed some of the people the same time. And in the thirty and ninth year of his reign Asa was diseased in his feet; his disease was exceeding {254} great: yet in his disease he went not to the Lord, but to the physicians.
And Asa died in the one and fortieth year of his reign. And they buried him in his own sepulchers, which he had hewn out for himself in the city of David, and laid him in the bed which was filled with sweet odors and divers kinds of spices prepared by the apothecaries" art: and they made a very great burning for him.
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JEHOSHAPHAT.
_The Story of a Good King Who Feared G.o.d and Served the Nation Well_.