2 Chronicles 14 (WEB)

2 Chronicles 14

¹ So Abijah slept with his fathers, and they buried him in David’s city; and Asa his son reigned in his place. In his days, the land was quiet ten years.

² Asa did that which was good and right in the LORD his God’s eyes,

³ for he took away the foreign altars and the high places, broke down the pillars, cut down the Asherah poles,

⁴ and commanded Judah to seek the LORD, the God of their fathers, and to obey his law and command.

⁵ 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.

⁶ He built fortified cities in Judah; for the land was quiet, and he had no war in those years, because the LORD had given him rest.

⁷ For he said to Judah, “Let’s build these cities and make walls around them, with towers, gates, and bars. The land is yet before us, because we have sought the LORD our God. We have sought him, and he has given us rest on every side.” So they built and prospered.

⁸ Asa had an army of three hundred thousand out of Judah who bore bucklers and spears, and two hundred eighty thousand out of Benjamin who bore shields and drew bows. All these were mighty men of valor.

⁹ Zerah the Ethiopian came out against them with an army of a million troops and three hundred chariots, and he came to Mareshah.

¹⁰ Then Asa went out to meet him, and they set the battle in array in the valley of Zephathah at Mareshah.

¹¹ Asa cried to the LORD his God, and said, “LORD, there is no one besides you to help, between the mighty and him who has no strength. Help us, LORD our God; for we rely on you, and in your name we have come against this multitude. LORD, you are our God. Don’t let man prevail against you.”

¹² So the LORD struck the Ethiopians before Asa and before Judah; and the Ethiopians fled.

¹³ Asa and the people who were with him pursued them to Gerar. So many of the Ethiopians fell that they could not recover themselves, for they were destroyed before the LORD and before his army. Judah’s army carried away very much booty.

¹⁴ They struck all the cities around Gerar, for the fear of the LORD came on them. They plundered all the cities, for there was much plunder in them.

¹⁵ They also struck the tents of those who had livestock, and carried away sheep and camels in abundance, then returned to Jerusalem.

Around 2 Chronicles 14

Context

Context for this book is being written. A note appears here only once it names its sources.

AI explanation

2 Chronicles 14 · Written by an AI model · Not reviewed by a theological reader

This explanation was written by an AI model to help you get started. It names no sources and can contain mistakes. Scripture comes first, and context with sources is shown separately on this page.

What this chapter says

After the war comes quiet, and quiet gives Asa the chance to build. His father Abijah has died, and for ten years the land has rest. Asa does what is good and right in the LORD’s eyes. He takes away the foreign altars and high places, breaks the pillars and cuts down the Asherah poles, and tells Judah to seek the LORD. He builds fortified cities and says that the land is theirs because they have sought the LORD, who has given them rest on every side.

Then rest ends. Zerah the Ethiopian comes with an army of a million troops and three hundred chariots, and he reaches Mareshah. Asa has a large army too, but he does not trust it. He cries to the LORD: “LORD, you are our God.” In his prayer, he says that there is no one besides the LORD to help the mighty or the weak. The LORD strikes the Ethiopians, and they flee. Judah pursues them to Gerar, plunders the cities, and returns to Jerusalem with sheep and camels in abundance.

Background

Asa is the third king of Judah after the split, and Chronicles gives him a long and mostly good reign. The chapter shows peace and then a threat, and it shows what Asa does when he is outnumbered. His prayer here is worth comparing with what he does later in chapter 16.

About this explanation

Written by Claude Sonnet 5.5, an AI model, on 2 November 2026. It draws on the WEB text and general knowledge and was not checked against sources by a person. Every quotation from Scripture is checked automatically against the WEB text.

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