Return • 1 Kings 15:9-22
By Emily Beth Crews
The next king of Judah set the direction of the nation to return to the Lord. He was a man who faithfully followed God and did what was right in the Lord’s sight, but he was not without missteps.
Wholehearted (1 Kings 15:9-15). Asa became king of Judah at an early age and ruled in Jerusalem for 41 years. He was the son of Abijah and his grandfather was Rehoboam. Asa’s father “followed all the sinful practices of his father before him. He was not wholeheartedly devoted to the Lord his God” (1 Kings 15:3).
Despite Rehoboam and Abijah’s lack of devotion to the Lord, the Lord maintained the covenant He established with David. The Lord gave Abijah “a son to succeed him” to “protect Jerusalem” (v. 4). Unlike Rehoboam and Abijah, “Asa did what the Lord approved as his ancestor David had done” (v. 11).
Asa did not follow in the blasphemous footsteps of men who had gone before him. Instead, he returned to the Lord and as a result, God gave the nation peace for a time. Unlike the men who came before him, Asa also remained faithful “to the Lord through his lifetime” (v. 14).
The following were some of the actions Asa undertook that were right in the Lord’s sight:
— He banned cult prostitutes.
— He destroyed objects used for fake worship.
— He removed his grandmother who posed as queen mother and worshipped idols.
— He called on the Lord for help (2 Chronicles 14:8-15).
— He listened for God’s instructions.
— He initiated reforms that returned Judah to the Lord.
“He removed that which was evil; there reformation begins, and a great deal he found to do. Reformation must begin at home” (Matthew Henry).
Instead of Asa doing what was right in his own eyes, like his father and grandfather, he did what was right in God’s sight, “Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, and shrewd in their own sight” (Isa. 5:21, ESV). Proverbs 21:2 reminds us, “Every person’s way is right in his own eyes, but the Lord examines the hearts.”
The Lord judges what is right and wrong; therefore, we have no authority to determine what is right.
Cornered (1 Kings 15:16-19). Asa and the king of Israel, Baasha, were continually at war with one another. Baasha attacked Judah, and Asa decided to find a remedy by taking matters into his own hands rather than consulting with the Lord. “When threatened by Baasha, Asa forgot the Lord and depended on human alliances” (Lifeway).
Asa bribed King Ben Hadad of Syria with the treasures from the palace and temple to break his treaty with King Baasha. This bribe would force Baasha to drop his focus of war with Jerusalem and move the country’s defenses to his northern border.
There are a couple glaring issues here. Asa took treasures from the temple of the Lord to pay the bribe, and he sought a solution to his problem without consulting the Lord. In 2 Chronicles 16:7-10, we read of a prophet, Hanani, who told Asa, “Because you relied on the king of Syria and did not rely on the Lord your God, the army of the king of Syria has escaped from your hand… Certainly the Lord watches the whole earth carefully and is ready to strengthen those who are devoted to him. You have acted foolishly in this matter; from now on you will have war” (v. 7, 9).
“Even true believers find it hard, in times of urgent danger, to trust in the Lord with all their heart. Unbelief makes way for carnal policy, and thus for one sin after another” (Henry).
Resolved (1 Kings 15:20-22). King Ben Hadad accepted Asa’s bribe. He went on to attack the cities of Israel which led Baasha to focus inward on protecting his own borders. During this time, Asa took it upon himself to fortify Mizpah, an elevated place above Gibeon about four miles north of Jerusalem. This was a prime location for threatening Israel’s border.
“The irony of the situation should not be overlooked. Stones and timbers Baasha had used against Asa were now part of the reinforced defenses of Judah… Although Asa failed to depend on God and was reprimanded accordingly, God still used the situation to spare Judah. He even took the things that were intended to harm Judah and used them to protect His people” (Lifeway).
God is always in the business of redeeming His people. Despite humanity’s failures, God is sovereign over us all.
Emily Beth Crews currently resides in Montana but was born and raised in Mississippi. She is the daughter of regular contributor, Laura Lee Leathers.
