14:1² Abijah passed away³ and was buried in the city of David. His son Asa replaced him as king. During his reign⁴ the land had rest for ten years.

14:2 Asa did what the LORD his God desired and approved.⁵ 14:3 He removed the pagan altars⁶ and the high places, smashed the sacred pillars, and cut down the Asherah poles. 14:4 He ordered Judah to seek the LORD God of their ancestors and to observe his law and commands.⁷ 14:5 He removed the high places and the incense altars from all the cities of Judah. The kingdom had rest under his rule.⁸

14:6 He built fortified cities throughout Judah, for the land was at rest and there was no war during those years; the LORD gave him peace. 14:7 He said to the people of Judah:⁹ “Let’s build these cities and fortify them with walls, towers and strong gates.¹⁰ The land remains ours because we have followed¹¹ the LORD our God and he has made us secure on all sides.”¹² So they built the cities¹³ and prospered.

14:8 Asa had an army of 300,000 men from Judah, equipped with large shields and spears. He also had 80,000 men from Benjamin who carried small shields and were adept archers; they were all skilled warriors. 14:9 Zerach the Cushite marched against them with an army of a million¹⁴ men and 300 chariots. He arrived at Mareshah, 14:10 and Asa went out to oppose him. They deployed for battle in the Valley of Zephathah near Mareshah.

14:11 Asa prayed¹⁵ to the LORD his God: “O LORD, there is no one but you that can help the weak when they are vastly outnumbered.¹⁶ Help us, O LORD our God, for we rely on you and have marched on your behalf against this huge army.¹⁷ O LORD our God, don’t let men prevail against you!”¹⁸ 14:12 The LORD struck down the Cushites before Asa and Judah. The Cushites fled, 14:13 and Asa and his army chased them as far as Gerar. The Cushites were wiped out;¹⁹ they were shattered before the LORD and his army. The men of Judah²⁰ carried off a huge amount of loot. 14:14 The defeated all the cities surrounding Gerar, for the LORD caused them to panic.²¹ The men of Judah²² looted all the cities, for they contained a huge amount of goods.²³ 14:15 They also attacked the tents of the herdsmen in charge of the livestock.²⁴ They carried off many sheep and camels and then returned to Jerusalem.